Guess who got the job? THIS GIRL! :)

Great news! After days and days of endless job searching and applying for jobs, I landed one that I am so excited to start!  Go figure - as soon as I took this one, I got three other call backs for similar jobs and for fruit picking jobs! But this is the one I feel the best about, and feel that I will enjoy the most!  This is the posting:

"We are looking for a full time nanny for our three children who are aged 6, 5 and 2. We are on a farm in the South West of Western Australia. All of your food and accommodation is provided on a separate location approx 15km’s away with a car available to get to and from work . You will need to have a driver’s license, and qualifications in either early childhood teaching or childcare. This position starts on 18th November 2012. Please send us through a short paragraph about yourself and also your resume with at least one reference. This is a paid position of $300 before tax each week and all meals and accommodation included. Position is ideally for 6 months. You will need to have sound spoken English. Some farm work will be available if you are needing your second year visa. We look forward to hearing from you. Our nearest town is Kojonup, WA"

So I got a call today from Kate, who owns the farm and is the mom of Jack, Asha and Lucy!  The phone chat was great, and I feel like this job is a perfect fit for me.  She was hoping for a fully qualified teacher to help with some summer learning for her kiddies, and that is something I can't wait to jump into!  Some summer teaching with the kids, nanny work, and some additional work on their chicken farm collecting and packing eggs so that the work and time spent on the farm qualifies for the second year visa application.  I will be sharing accommodations with three or four other farm worker/backpackers from around the world, which will be great to meet people and make some friends. 

I will also be spending Christmas and the New Year with Kate and her family! She says they're expecting nearly 30 people on their Christmas lunch! So although I will be missing another Christmas in Canada with my family, I'll be in the southern hemisphere again with a big family! I won't be alone! :)

So, currently in Melbourne, my plan is to fly to Perth asap, utilize my five remaining nights at the YHA Hostel in Central Perth which I've already paid for, enjoy the beaches and the sites in Perth, and then take a bus down to Kojonup on Monday morning! Although this map points out a route to Albany, ignore that and look at the big yellow dot. I'll be just outside of that. :)

I downsized some of my backpack, and thankfully Kristen (who is beyond loving and generous!) is allowing me to keep my gym bag full of teaching clothes and miscellaneous items at her place for when I return to Melbourne in April! That way I officially have my life in a backpack!  Thanks AGAIN Kristen! What a great friend to have! See you in April! :)

Something that Kristen and her mom pointed out on the weekend is that there are some funny spelling differences here. For example, care tire - care tyre. Not even kidding. It's spelled with a "y"!  Organized, realized, summarize... all the the "z" words are "s" words!  Well, that shouldn't be such a huge thing since we are supposed to use "s" in Canada, but really... who does?  So I need to get on changing that!

As for now, time to figure out flights and Perth accommodations and plans for the weekend! Will be in touch and will let you know how Perth goes!

LOVE LOVE LOVE!