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Original poster

The curse of Boff. Again.

281 replies

BoffinMum · 13/01/2010 17:23

You are not going to believe this, guys. The lovely temp (and she really is lovely) who came today has had to leave because her mum was rushed into hospital. We don't know if/when she'll be coming back. So we are without childcare again! I am currently in Paris and DH was supposed to be going into work tomorrow because he hasn't been able to get in all week. He has no leave left either. Crikey! Anybody want three lovely children, two with diarrhoea?

OP posts:
Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
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lilylu22 · 13/01/2010 17:40

Can you remind me where you are located? I am a nanny who may be able to help..

Original poster
BoffinMum · 13/01/2010 17:44

We're in Cambridge.

OP posts:
Blondeshavemorefun · 13/01/2010 18:01

oh jesus boffy

((HUGS))

i can think of someone who may be interested,needs a job for 6weeks

will email you

Original poster
BoffinMum · 13/01/2010 18:11

Cheers. As I say, I don't know if LovelyTemp will be back soon, she has gone very quiet and her mum sounded very ill. DH insisted she go back home to see her, 'twas the right thing to do.

OP posts:
NannyBeth · 13/01/2010 20:40

If you have somewhere for me to live in, I can come down and cover for you, if you want/need it!

nanny dot beth at hotmail dot com

Original poster
BoffinMum · 14/01/2010 06:18

Hey Beth, I will email. But beware the curse of Boff that strikes all our childcare arrangements! Will you survive or be another victim??? [Hallowe'en emoticon]

OP posts:
Starberries · 14/01/2010 07:47

I can also help - nanny in between jobs at the moment, looking for something permanent but won't mind something temp. Need to live-in though as I live in London.

nanny . sarah (at) hotmail [dot] com

Starberries · 14/01/2010 07:48

Eek wrong address

[at] live (dot) com, not hotmail.

frakkinaround · 14/01/2010 08:55

Oh Boff

But you have lots of nice offers! I would but I'm even further away than Paris...

Hope the miniBoffs get well soon.

Blondeshavemorefun · 14/01/2010 13:48

great mind beth - thats who i meant boffy

did you go into that strip club last night .......

Original poster
BoffinMum · 14/01/2010 23:39

Not a strip club, a nice French restaurant ACTUALLY!

LovelyTemp has now informed us via agency that she is too tired to work for us for a bit.

WTF?!!!!!

OP posts:
thenewbornnanny · 15/01/2010 08:53

Too tired to work for you for a bit??!!??!!

Bloody hell. Pardon my french.

I wish she could have been in my shoes this week. 3 day hospital stay and straight back to work as I HAD to. She would know about being tired then!

I have a lot of sympathy if her mum is seriously ill. But really she should have worded her reasons for not coming back a little better.

thenewbornnanny · 15/01/2010 08:53

Too tired to work for you for a bit??!!??!!

Bloody hell. Pardon my french.

I wish she could have been in my shoes this week. 3 day hospital stay and straight back to work as I HAD to. She would know about being tired then!

I have a lot of sympathy if her mum is seriously ill. But really she should have worded her reasons for not coming back a little better.

thenewbornnanny · 15/01/2010 08:54

Oops

kazkiss · 15/01/2010 08:58

ohh boff, have nothing really to say of help but wanted to give [hugs]

frakkinaround · 15/01/2010 09:08

And I trust you are informing temp who is not so lovely after all via the agency that you are tired of people not showing up and are looking for someone else.

Fingers crossed you find someone soon. How are the MiniBoffs?

Blondeshavemorefun · 15/01/2010 11:59

too tired?

try working 13hr days so 65hr weeks and then you can moan that you are tired

glad you went to a nice resturant

did it have seperate booths/peep holes rofl x

Original poster
BoffinMum · 15/01/2010 23:40

I agree. I am just back from Paris where I worked or networked every bloody hour I was awake, including at breakfast time even, and I am up at this time having just finished printing off a couple of lectures for next week.

Seriously, I do wonder about some people. I have now been looking after 3 kids (and their big sister who also requires adult type mothering) for a goddamm month pretty much on my own, and between wipings and feedings I have been running a flipping university course, writing half an academic paper and also presenting at an overseas conference.

OP posts:
Blondeshavemorefun · 16/01/2010 12:33
Original poster
BoffinMum · 16/01/2010 16:59

Wine will not do it, Blondes. It is a conspiracy to stop women having a say and influencing the public arena, childcare hassle is. It wears us out and grinds us down so we don't cause trouble or ask difficult questions of our leaders.

OP posts:
Blondeshavemorefun · 16/01/2010 18:11

as i have said many times if i could clone myself i would,and i would work for nothing - well my clone self would

K75 · 16/01/2010 19:12

Oh dear! You have had a bad run. Are you just not getting good candidates to interview? Feels like you might be missing something. My mother has my style and is near you, I should send her over to sort the wheat from the chaff for you!!!

Original poster
BoffinMum · 17/01/2010 20:24

My mum offered to come over and sort me out as well, but I reckon she'd scare them off!

OP posts:
Original poster
BoffinMum · 17/01/2010 20:53

I have to say we get pretty awful candidates to interview.

  1. Looked very nice but then when we asked the agency if she could do a trial day, she said she didn't really want a job. WTF?
  2. Had booked 6 weeks holiday in term time in the first four months of when she would be working for us, so would have been unavailable a lot of the time we would have needed her. Also slagged off current employers during the interview.
  3. Seemed nice, offered her the job, she meesed us about all summer, finally signed the contract and then rang us up four days before she was due to start saying she had got another job somewhere else.
  4. Clearly had some sort of eating disorder.
  5. Seemed nice, did a good trial day, lasted ten weeks and the whole thing was a misadventure as you know.
  6. Bonkers, unqualified, exhausting.
  7. Seemed nice, offered her a trial day, was not prepared to free up enough time for a proper trial day, so only agreed to do three hours, actually got in the way during this trial period rather than helped. Had also booked lots of holidays in term time.
  8. Lasted three hours, left because she said she had got a call saying her mother had been taken to hospital with chest pains, then got agency to ring us to say she was too tired to work as she had done twelve days in a row, but that she might be available in February.

Total spent on agency fees since September:

£2220

Total spent on unusable childcare vouchers since September:

£1944

Total spent on nannies since September:

£3428.66

Total cost of all this to us for a total of 13 weeks childcare and associated trauma:

£7592.66

OP posts:
Summersoon · 17/01/2010 21:15

No wonder you are fed up! I don't even know what to say - except: is there no way you can get at least some money back from the agencies who have not exactly done what you hired them to do, have they?

Commiserations and I hope that your luck turns better very soon.

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