The house help

Well Sonya has begun employment in our home. We went yesterday morning and picked her up from the home of her previous employer. It really couldn't have happened at a better time. I'm finding it quite difficult to get any house work done, including dishes. Nate informed me a few hours before church that we would be having dinner guests. Without Sonya the guests wouldn't have had anything clean to eat with. She was doing the dishes while I was preparing the meal. Normally after cooking I am in no shape to do the clean up. (One of the reasons the dishes have been piling up.) It was nice to leave things in order before bed. The kids benefitted greatly too. They've been wanting pancakes and I've been telling them they had to wait for Sonya to come. I haven't been keeping myself in clean pans. So this morning they got their pancakes. I will also be able to cook lunch and dinner as again, there will be clean pots and pans to use.

This is going to be a different relationship than with Dina, that I can tell. Dina we miss greatly. She fit right into our family and has a place as a member of it. Sonya is going to be a great maid, but I have a feeling the relationship will not mature too much beyond that. She will be capable though and right now that is what we need. When Dina came into our lives I needed the friendship just as much as I needed the house clean. She needed the friendship as well so it worked out well.

Nate did a very good job the first day of keeping out of the way. We had tried to tell Sonya not to go overboard. No need to do it all the first day. But she got into the swing of things in the kitchen and I couldn't get her to take a break from it. Nate commented "I just need to remind myself that it is like having your mother in the house." No disrespect meant Mother. Only that you like to stay busy and can't look at the work and not do it. Sonya will be like that I am sure.

Now we need to make sure all the "I's" are dotted and the "T's" crossed concerning her visa. For the most part I think it is done. Nate needs to do some running around to make sure all the correct documents have been transfered from the old sponsor to him. Oh how fun for him.

All else seems to be well. On a side note. For all those that I told that Sonya was LDS (aka Mormon like ourselves) we were wrong. She is Catholic. How that little error happened make Nate and I laugh heartily when we were alone. Sonya was hired without a second thought because we thought she said she was LDS from Davao. I was certain we would know people in common. A classic example of communication breakdown due to English as a second language. She was trying to tell us she was the eldest, as in oldest sibling. However in the context of the conversation her "eldest" in unclear english sounded just like "LDS" and it fit into the conversation so well we both thought that was the reference she was making. It didn't cross our minds to ask for clarification because it sounded so plausable. (I thought we it was really clear in our interview, now some of her confusion makes sense.) In retrospect I told Nathan that I believe the Lord allowed us to hear this and think this as it assured us a maid at a good rate and good timing. He knew more than we just how necessary it would become for us to have someone in the home.

Alls well that ends well as they say.