I WAS ONCE THE NANNY OF TODAY'S IRONMAN

Please meet A.C. Morgan, known to family, friends and myself as Lord Morgan. Back in 1980, this now handsome man could talk me into doing almost anything! As his nanny, I was to be one that guided him, taught him, took care of him and challenged him. But he was the only child of the Morgan family, who knew he had mom right where he wanted and usually could get away with anything because of his smile and ability to talk his way out of it. When I left him to come back to Ohio, I left part of my heart and my favorite stuffed animal with him. He gave me love and adventures that would last me a life time! So, lets begin the story.....

When everyone else was picking their colleges or getting married, I was secretly applying for a nanny's job on the East Coast. I came up with this idea when my dad through a fit about me wanting to enlist in the army. I knew I was going to go away on my own and explore somehow, I just didn't know how. Then one day our Home Economic teacher talked about how she put herself through college by being a nanny and when it was the right time I asked her just how she did that and if she could give me information on it. I was unhappy at home, just like most teenagers are. I now know that it is God's way of helping the child detach from the parents and the parents to let go of the child. Back then I thought it was just because they didn't understand me or like me. So I applied to the Overseas Maid Agency in hopes of being picked by the perfect family and beginning a new life somewhere other than Pandora, Ohio.

I remember getting a letter in the mail from a family that lived in Darien Connecticut. It was a single mother raising 1 son who's name was Arthur Cecil Morgan (AC just as his dad) but family, friends and myself called him "Lord". It was just a name. Not meant to be anything other than, that's what was known in the family to do. I admit that it took me awhile to get use to, but it was just another adventure which you'll see later on in the blog. After all the goodbyes, mace for protection from my dad, hugs and kisses, I boarded the 727 and thought I was big stuff... but inside I was scared to death. I had never done anything without my brother Darrell and my dad. I had never been away from home. And here at the age of 18, I was sitting on a jet with an open seat beside me wondering what was ahead. Would the lady recognize me from my photo that I sent her and what if they didn't like me or I didn't like them, or I got lost? All these things were going through my head and also....... why in the world did I decide to do this?! ........just as THE Howard Cosell sat down in the seat beside me. Now that I'm older I'm wondering why he wasn't sitting up front in the plush section. But he didn't. He sat right down beside me and I knew he was someone but I didn't know who at that time. I just knew I heard him on the tv during football say," And this is HOWARD COSELL! The flight was very quiet, I wasn't going to speak to a strange older man and he was into his paper. But then my quiet moment became an embarrassing nightmare when I was walking down the steps in my heels and jeans, trying to act like I knew what I was doing and where I was going, when all of a sudden I missed the step and went to fall and Mr. Cosell caught me from going down. Red faced, I thanked him as he asked me if I was ok and I replied, "Yes, Thank you", and went on my way. I had no clue what I was doing or where I was going. I was to look for a blonde haired lady with a young 11 year old blond headed boy with a sign that said, Teresa Frey on it. Finally I saw the sign and there stood a lady who looked like a model with this little boy who didn't want to be there and beside her was a man who looked like an attorney. Later on I found out that Bob Epstein was a very well known business man of the Connecticut area.

Life as Lord Morgan's nanny was full of adventure. One of the first things that I remember is Molly showing me the two vehicles that I would be driving with unlimited gasoline and useage. The first was a Renade Jeep, baby blue and awesome! But the second one scared me to death! It was a midnight blue, 1980 Mercedes 450 SL Hardtop Convertible. I can remember thinking, that car costs more than I will make in a life-time and she wants me to drive it?! It took me 2 days to get the courage and then I was loving it! But the jeep was the fun toy! My job was to take care of Lord and my living area. She had a maid who had been with her growing up and now with Lord. He did the cleaning and cooking and was an amazing older man who never married. Just gave his life to Molly and his mom. I grew to love him also. I can remember taking Lord to the grocery store one day and he was being his ornery self and wanting everything under the sun, and I said, "Lord, stop that! I mean it!" and I will never forget the looks on people's faces because of me talking to "Lord". I grew to not pay attention to their looks after awhile. I really loved the family and Lord and I grew very close but I was also so home sick. I missed loved ones and friends, allot. But as time went on I joined the Country Club so Lord could take his swimming lessons and met other nanny's there and then life became exciting! I always had the weekends off because Molly would spend them with her friends and family and take Lord with her. So the other nanny's and I would go into NYC and go dancing, shopping and exploring. One time, Molly gave me tickets for the other nanny's and myself to see, Van Halen at Madison Square Gardens. We had no idea that she bought us box ticket seats! We walked into the box room and seen that there were 4 other seats and in walk these 4 Italian guys who we were happy to have join us... but after talking with them and showing them the refrigerator where all the beer and soda was (pop back home), they then left and we realized that they took along with them our purses. So we had to take a taxi all the way home, because they took our keys also to the car, pay for that taxi then to drive us back with our extra set of keys to get the car so we could be home. Later on we received our purses and everything except for the money in the mail.

I learned allot as a nanny. I learned that you have to make your happy. Money doesn't buy it. That money is just a tool of survival and no matter how much you have you always want more if you get caught up in that. Lord Morgan now goes by his given name of A.C. Morgan, just like his dad and he has turned into an amazing man. He not only survived the plane crash in 1998 but his office (I think on the 11th floor) was in the World Trade Center tower that was destroyed on 9-11-2001 and he survived that also. Although I have many other memories as a nanny, I would like to share with you the story of A.C. Morgan as an Iron Man. I hope you enjoy it just as much as I do every time I read it! Just click on the link. I will also be posting the old photos of Lord and I in the 1980's when I was his nanny and he was 11.

http://seaver.pepperdine.edu/newsevents/stories/2008/october/ac-morgan.htm

The Unexpected Love

Running a Bed and Breakfast can get nuts sometimes. But it is a wonderful kind of nuts. I wake up every morning, look out the window and sometimes fight the tears as I think of where I've come from to where I'm at.

There are those things in your life that you must secretly desire because until they happen you never realized just how wonderful that was or just how much that meant to you. And that moment then leaves, life goes on and you step back and realize what just happened and wonder how that unexpected love showed up at the perfect time of your need for it.

This past Saturday was one of those times. The morning was rushed. I had the guest's breakfast to make and at an earlier time than normal. I had 5 orders of scones and pies to get ready for their pick-up and then rooms to clean and get ready because the guests for that day wanted an early arrival and with the bike swap here in town and Bowling Green's Alumni gathering going on, I knew we were going to be getting some of Don's old college friends and people of the bike swap stopping in for tours. Plus my little brother from S. Carolina/Georgia area was going to be staying the night and I really wanted to be done with everything so I could spend some much needed time with him. Just as I was clearing the table from breakfast, I seen Don turn to talk to someone out on the porch, I peaked out the window and "Oh my gish" instantly followed. There with my dad, his wife and my brother, stood one of my pillars in life. My Aunt Betty, and along with her came an exchange student. They all had this planned and decided to surprise me. My second reaction was to panic because all the rooms were full, but somehow we made it all work so everyone could stay the night.

Betty is the sister of my biological mom that died at the age of 25 in childbirth. I was 6, Darrell was 4 and Tony was newly born. Over the years we saw eachother less and less but absence can't distroy love when blood is the same. And I'm amazed when I see her and feel all the love that I have for her..... just the same, everytime, as if I see her daily. She gets me. I get her. We are the same in MANY ways. Darrell (my brother) spent alot of time listening to her and I as we laughed and picked on eachother, on Don and on him. Laughter is what life is about to Betty and I. Laughter and love. I knew that I was enjoying this shared time, but I didn't know how much I enjoyed it until they all left and went home to their own lives. I am amazed at how I think I know, for the most part, what is going to happen with my day and then God shows me that I don't plan my days. He does. And sometimes He surprises me with unexpected acts of love.

"What blew in with the wind!"

Today has been one of those non-stop days! Actually, this whole week has been. Adjusting to being a stay-at-home Teresamarie for the first time since I was 23 years old, without a car has been a challenge but it has also grounded me to where I don't miss the constant "knock knock" on one of the many doors of our beautiful, "Housley House Bed and Breakfast".
The morning began with kissing "Walter" goodbye as he left for another day at Glandorf Elementary and then it was off to the "station". I had a black raspberry pie and a dozen apple cinnamon scones that needed to be ready and cooled before 10:00 a.m. for a special guest that has become an instant friend and marketing partner! As the baked goods were cooling, I decided to sit down and get on the Housley House face book page and find out what was going on in everyone's lives today and there I found a note from a local business telling me that they were going to start popping in on me to get bites of my baking if I didn't stop posting about it all the time. I messaged him back and said that I would be right there will a treat. You see, that business has given me so many customers and have been so supportive of the Bed and Breakfast that I really wanted to show them how much I appreciated them anyway. So I made a dozen more scones, got out the last piece of coconut cream pie and raspberry pie that I had and boxed it all up to take to them. Went through the garden, opened the gate to where my once beautiful black Chevy Impala once parked... and to my surprise I forgot that I no longer had that company car! In fact I don't own a car now! Where was my head! So I called a friend of Don's and mine who lived here in town and asked him if he would consider driving me to the location so I could deliver these items. And he did :) I really love the baking but I love even more the spoiling. Teresamarie's definition of spoiling - A total sacrificing of one's talents/gifts for another without anything in return. In return this business has been invited to be my guests for breakfast next Saturday and they willingly accepted.
The afternoon went by with baking and cleaning - getting ready for the Putnam County Mother's Group that will be arriving around 6:00 p.m. tonight. And after a short power nap, I heard another "knock knock" on the door and there stood 3 ladies who stated, "We were in Perrysburg and heard all about you and so we decided to come see you and your beautiful Bed and Breakfast!" Two of the three ladies were from New Orleans. One was from Northwood, Ohio. They stated how they didn't pack warm clothing because they were told it has been so hot and now that they've arrived the cold has set in. But while they were shopping, the lady at the store told them about the Housley House and Teresamarie and how she was just at the B&B the day before for a tour and how Teresamarie fixed them all these things and spoiled them, above and beyond. (they were very easy to spoil!) I took them on the tour of the house and they fussed over it and stated that they will be staying here this summer when they return. They then came downstairs and I told them to have a seat at the table in the library and that I'd be right back. When I returned I had my hands full of apple cinnamon scones and cinnamon tea - much to their delight. You see if I wasn't home full time I wouldn't be able to keep up all this baking and take all this time to sit and talk with people and share. But what a wonderful time I am having with everyone that the "wind blows in!"By the time they left we were hugging good bye and planning the time tomorrow in which I was going to be delivering their dozen scones and tea that they just ordered. And one of the ladies was trying to barter with me on driving her car that she was hoping to buy up here to New Orleans for her! Which just might be able to be worked out! I love the wind and all that it blows in!