Nanny Job in Grande Prairie, Alberta

Hi, we're the Binks family (Evan & Melanie) and we're looking for someone to be a full time live in caregiver for our 9 yr old son who has developmental disabilities as well was born missing his left arm. He has Tourette's Syndrome, Autism Spectrum disorder, Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, generalized anxiety, communication disorder ( he speaks very well but has a slower time processing and understanding what is being said to him). We adopted our son as a baby and were unaware of his many disabilities but love him with all our hearts! He can be challenging at times of course which can cause quite a bit of stress on the person who's caring for him but he can also be the sweetest, kindest, most lovable child at times as well which makes being around him very rewarding. He is funny and has a sense of humor and will surprise you with some of the things he says. He has a very good memory and is VERY smart on topics that interest him. It could be "The Titanic" or sharks or Birds. But he will be able to tell you almost anything about the topic he's interested in that day. He's becoming more & more interested in reading & likes when HE can read to you or be a BIG BOY or boy of his own age and be treated as such. There are certain times and places that do allow him to have a little more freedom and he needs to know there's things he can do on his own SOMETIMES! We've never had a caregiver before and have done this on our own along with our 2 biological daughters ages 14 & 18. Our 18 yr old daughter will not be living at home as we live on an acreage about 10-15 minutes to the middle of the city & she wants to be closer to the college which she'll be starting this Sept. our 14 yr old will be at home but she is not your primary concern. She's a great girl and self sufficient so really she lives here but you're not being hired to care & attend to her. We'd like someone who on occasion may make a meal or at least start something If we're not home at the time supper needs to be started. LIGHT housekeeping but I'll take care of most of that myself unless you wish to do it to keep yourself busy. Also I've had to drive the kids to the school bus & pick them up after school about 1 mile from our house because we are cross boundering to the school the kids attend. I'm trying to have that changed because now my daughter will HAVE to attend the only county school so the bus will pick her up from home leaving me to drive my son 1 mile. They should be able to take him as well but if not we may ask you to be the one doing the dropping off & picking up. Depending on your driving situation or I'll it and that's not a problem at all. The biggest issue we have is this: We need to know that you do have experience with special needs or a great understanding what the demands can be in children and are willing to adapt to our strategies that are being put in place by Occupational Therapists, Psychologists, Psychiatrsts and other professionals involved in our lives. If you're not familiar at all with special needs, please be honest up front because having done this myself for 9 years I know what stress it CAN be and if you're not familiar you will become frustrated and won't stay with our family very long. We need someone who's not going to run out the door and find a new job right away. This has happened with respite workers and it's most hard on our son wondering why people constantly come and go in his life. This is why we're being honest and upfront. I'm not the kind of person to mislead anyone only to find out at a later time they've had the truth kept from them like what happened to us. We're not asking for you to have years of experience but knowing what "Special Needs" honestly requires and be willing to learn and adapt is what we really need. Its more about personal qualities and having a good relationship with our son because you can have all the experience in the world but maybe there's a big personality clash. That wouldn't work either because it would only cause more anxiety for "Christian" and more problems. Please respond if you're interested or would like more information. Thank you so much & we hope to hear from you soon. Melanie Binks Ps- This is a one year contract guaranteed with possibility of extension if you're interested. Also some weeks the hours may vary a bit but you will have 2 days off/week and for the right person we'd like to offer every 3rd Friday off as an incentive for the variance there may be. This would give you a long weekend every 3rd week to do as you choose. Stay home in our home & have your privacy or feel free to go somewhere. We're also thinking of reducing the Room & Board amount suggested by the federal government to make the pay a bit better for you! We adopted our son through a private, acreditted agency at 11 days old & he was born a month premature and also born missing his left arm. He can function well without it having never had it to know what it's like having 2 arms. He can manipulate a lot of things to make them work just for him and will sometimes use his left foot in replace of his left hand. Especially with video games. His toes are his fingers & it's amazing to watch!! As "Christian" grew things with him were just "different" or "delayed" more than our daughters but eventually there were other things we noticed as well. We started seeing all kinds of doctors by the time he was 3-3.5 yrs old and last year when he was 8 yrs old we FINALLY got answers we were seeking. Not that I believe in "LABELS" but for school funding and to have a One on one teachers aide you need to have these labels unfortunately. So here's the list of what we had no idea we were signing up for because Christians birth mother chose not to be honest with the agency or us! AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER, FETAL ALCOHOL SPECTRUM DISORDER, TOURETTE'S SYNDROME, GENERALIZED ANXIETY DISORDER, FINE MOTOR SKILL IMPAIRMENT, SENSORY REGULATORY DYSFUNCTION & SEVERE COMMUNICATION IMPAIRMENT. He talks just fine but it's the way he perceives what's being said to him. It can sometimes take up to 30 seconds for him to process what's been said to him and you think he's just ignoring you but really he's not.