4
Jordan
I'd all but made flashcards to memorize the names of my new families, fathers and children. I hadn't met any of the dads but Ethan yet, but when I called Ethan to inform him I was ready to start earlier in the day, he told me he asked all the dads to be there for a grand introduction. It was a little intimidating, the thought of meeting them all at once, but he assured me it was the best way to do it, especially considering it was Friday, and the kids were certain to be a little rowdy going into the weekend. No one knows a child better than their parents, so I didn't argue, just told him that I would be making sure I had everyone memorized before heading over.
There was Ethan Coleman, the dad who'd interviewed me. He was a structural engineer and worked for the city of Dallas. Some of the crispness of his home made more sense once I learned that. He had twin boys who were six named Davin and David. Ethan also included that he was half Jewish. He hadn't passed many Jewish traditions on to his children, but used his Jewish heritage to educate his children on the importance of not judging someone because they are different. I had a lot of respect for that and wanted to make sure that I continued that practice with them. The twins were athletic and were on a baseball team, that practiced on Saturdays and had games on Sundays. They were the only family I'd seen thus far, and I'd made a mental note that Ethan was gorgeous and to watch myself around him.
Rogan Paulson, had a six-year-old daughter named Danielle who Rogan described in his letter as not very outgoing. She was the only one of the kids that didn't have an extra-curricular, much to her father's dismay. Despite being a C.E.O. of an accounting firm, he described himself as really outgoing and athletic and was concerned his daughter didn't share the traits. He was concerned she was becoming a loner and had made several attempts to get her to do stuff after school. I found that it was rare children had no friends, so I set a personal goal to figure out what Danielle liked and who her friends were to help her father feel better about her socialization.
Cade Milton and his daughter Nova, were apparently new to the group. Nova had a lactose allergy, something that she shared with her father. As a result, the family led an entirely dairy-free life. I spent a good deal of time researching lactose-free foods as well as foods and drinks that people tend to not realize have dairy. Cade was adamant that Nova was good about avoiding dairy, but she was only six after all, and as her nanny, it was my job to protect her, so I wanted to be well versed in that allergy. Cade was a prosecutor for the city who claimed his daughter was more outgoing than he was. She also had ballet on Saturdays fairly close to the same time the twins had baseball, which was going to take some time to juggle effectively.Oliver Hunt was a police officer and brought his six-year-old, Tyler to the group; Ty for short. He described himself as the man having the least time to spend with his son and feeling really bad about it. He was very candid about his "selfish, bitch ex-wife" leaving abandoning he and Tyler, so it made him feel even worse that he couldn't be around more often. As a result, he tried to keep Tyler busy with lots of after-school and weekend activities. I knew that one of the first things I wanted to do was find out how much Tyler enjoyed his busy schedule. Kids deserve attention, but it was also easy to get overwhelmed at that age, and I wanted to make sure that he was doing things he enjoyed, not just to distract him from the fact that neither of his parents were around.Richard, nicknamed Ricky, was Lowe Wynters' five-year-old son. From what I could tell, he was the most involved with his son, often taking his son with him to work to teach him the ins and outs of the automotive industry as a C.E.O. of his own company. His son liked cars and buildings and was part of his school's lego league. Fortunately for me, lego league took place after school during the week as opposed to on the weekend, but it also seemed like I would end up spending the least amount of time with him. I would have to be intentional about spending time with Ricky whenever I could to make sure I bonded with him the way as the others.could tell, he was the most involved with his son, often taking his son with him to work to teach him the ins and outs of the automotive industry as a C.E.O. of his own company. His son liked cars and buildings and was part of his school's lego league. Fortunately for me, lego league took place after school during the week as opposed to on the weekend, but it also seemed like I would end up spending the least amount of time with him. I would have to be intentional about spending time with Ricky whenever I could to make sure I bonded with him the way as the others.
