We’re looking for someone who wants to work in exchange for a free place to stay and to help cook and eat with us. We are looking for a “mommy’s helper”, mostly helping with children (not being left alone with them). We have a 2, 3, 4, and 6 year old and a 7 month old. We live at 4,000 ft. elevation, off-grid in ocean view where it’s cool and quiet. We’ve transformed a pair of sheds into a tiny home/glamping style of living- very easy, simple, and efficient. We are on catchment, have a composting toilet, and run off of solar. You will have a home separate from our family but shared with another "mommy's helper" with a courtyard and parking. Her name is Kelly and she's super nice and has a dog. Your shared home includes a shower, toilet, kitchenette area with a hotplate, a fridge, a sitting room with recliners and a great view of South Point, and a bedroom with a dresser. Everything is furnished including pots, dishes, and silverware. You can use the laundry in our home once a week. There's plenty of solar power for cell phone and computer charging and lights.
The ideal candidate has lots of energy, healthy, naturally nurturing, kind despite others ignorance, calm in the face of adversity, able to stay cheerful when under the ludicrous demands of toddlers, and able to lovingly teach children good manners and kind behavior.
We have a few very loving rescue dogs, a cat that you'll never see, 1 super sweet kitten, and a chicken coop full of hens on property. The chickens aren't free range but everything else is including the kids.
You will be responsible for your own cellphone and whatever personal items you need (we are located approx. 12 minutes drive uphill from the highway). We provide the basics like soap in the shower, toilet paper and paper towels. The thoughtful candidate will have a good answer for what they plan on doing with the rest of their time and how they plan to pay for their phone etc.
We are looking for someone preferably long term but a shorter amount of time is negotiable (even month to month). Perhaps you want a summer “rest” from school or want to get out of living with family/roommate and want some space of your own?
We are looking for 24 work hours per week. The days are flexible and the hours can be divided differently, open for discussion. We homeschool but we're actually starting 3 different schools in the fall and are just looking for an extra set of hands. Once school starts we'll need help getting them ready and into the van by 8am. When school is not in session, some days we would just go to the beach and park. Honestly I would want to get out most days if I had a bit of help. We like to be outdoors and the kids love to play. We always need help in the evening with baths. The evening routine of dinner, bath, book, and bed is the most challenging and the most important thing I need help with. Please contact me if you’re interested and we can discuss further details and arrangements. Mahalo!
Christina
Available immediately.
Resume, CV, references and requests to schedule video calls may be sent via email.
Adding additional info below from Dad(Ikaika).
Duties would include helping Christina or myself load the kids and the snacks and the water bottles and the toys into the van to go to school or the beach or the park, unloading it all when we got there, and then doing it all again to go home and once we got home, playing Legos with the 5-year-old, building puzzles with the 4-year-old playing Make believe tea party or dinosaurs with the 3-year-old and holding the 18 month old and the newborn, maybe even at the same time. The well-qualified candidate would have no problem changing diapers or helping clean our home. You will never be left alone with any kid.
You should consider that we are a 12-minute drive from the highway. It's a 2-hour walk down and a 3-hour walk back up. But we go up and down all the time so if that's something you would need to do occasionally to catch a bus into town or to stock up on groceries, it's no problem as long as you communicate ahead of time and remind me. We're not looking to add taking care of someone to our already full plates. We're looking for someone smart and who thinks ahead, knows what they'll need ahead of time, and communicates asap.
Please allow me to also restate that it's only 24 hours of work per week plus helping with whatever meals you want to eat with us. We'll buy all the groceries. We eat pretty standard American food plus some Oriental and Mexican dishes. We're open to adding your favorite dishes to the rotation, especially if it's something you enjoy cooking. We eat a lot of salads right now in summer plus a ton of eggs from the chickens.
Preference given to Hawaiian language speakers, Hawaiian women, and foreign language speakers.
Continental people thinking they can get around the island on a moped, the only way in or out of the neighborhood is a 60mph freeway. There is a free bus to get in and out of the neighborhood but it will not bring you up the mountain to our home. It goes from the grocery store to the rest of the island and comes only two or three times a day. Even the local beaches are tough to reach without a car although I'm happy to take you with me on my weekly dawn patrol surf sessions.
Ok last thing, for HIKERS, BIRDERS, NATURE LOVERS, it is a 40 minute walk up the mountain to the gate into the National Park. I've seen a 53 year old short lady hop the gate so you can too and then you'll be in the back country of Volcanoes National Park Kahuku Unit surrounded by native koa and a'ali'i trees giving home to several species of native birds where you can hike wide manicured trails for hours without ever seeing another soul. It's beautiful in the park. Even the walk up to the gate is cool as it's mostly through virgin ohi'a forest full of native akia, pukiawe, pawale and ohelo berries. Those are delicious.