Ganga!

Recently I was on Crag's List trying to look for a nanny for our kids this summer while we are in the States. While I was reading the adds, I started thinking about all of women (and a man!) who have helped us raise Koa and and Nai'a across three continents.

Our kids have had many, many nannies.

The sisters, Jilmara and Jaciara in Brasil were my surrogate mothers when Koa was born. They made me stomach settling tea and were my own private "La Leche" league when I was trying to learn how to feed our son. Ryder used to say they were MY nannies and in SO many ways they were.

Then came a long line of wacky nannies who made themselves at home, TOO at home in our house in Brasil. A perfect quote from Koa's godfather Dan when a new nanny showed up for her first day of work.

The second she walks in Dan says, "This nanny is never going to work out, Cristiana."

"Why Dan, how do you know? She just walked in." I answered.

"Yeah, no. It won't work. She is too hot. You should never, ever have hot nannies. It does not work out."

Our very first day in Africa, "Atila the Joyce" knocked on our door and barged into our life. She frightened everyone, eccept unfortunately, the children. (Yes, I do believe kids should have a healthy dose of fear/respect for their nannies.)

And the constant during our time in Nigeria, Chinedu our driver/mechanic/manny/whiner/beer purchaser...

Then came Nneka. Ahh ..... Nneka, with her gentle ways (particularly rare in West African women) and her constant smile won us over. The kids loved her, I loved her, our friends loved her and when she was not asking for more money, even Ryder loved her. She could sew, she could cook, she could make the most amazing baked garlic pita chips in all of Africa. She helped Koa with his homework and made braids in Nai'a's hair. She was the perfect blend of hard line "Come in and take a bath right this second" and "Now that you are clean I have made those special fried plantains you like" that makes a perfect nanny. We were sad to say goodbye to her.

Then, came a VERY dark time in our family's history. Our first few months here in Qatar when we did not have a nanny! The horror! The piles of laundry! It was not a happy time, for any of us. In order to cope I created a schedule that would have made a special military covert mission look disorganized. 6:11 am brush teeth... 6:14 am pick up school bags...

Then, finally... sometime in October of last year, in the middle of a dinner party (yes, I still had parties, even without a nanny!) Ganga came to live with us. Ganga is like the powerful river in India she is named after. She is loud and opinionated and believes our house to be her house. She feeds the cat what she wants to feed him, she waters the plants the way she wants to water them (makes Ryder crazy!) and cooks enough rice to feed the entire compound. She walks in the bedroom when we are still in bed (!) and tells me when she thinks I should go and change into a better outfit. She is .... Ganga. And we really, and I mean REALLY could not live without her.