The summer holiday, for some people, is all about taking a break from responsibilities like school, work and chores. On the other hand, there are some that choose to take advantage of their time off in other ways. For example, junior Jeanie Balzer traveled to Jacksonville, Florida to nanny for her cousin for the summer.

“The main reason I was going was to babysit my cousin’s kids,” Balzer said. “It was also a great opportunity to get to know that part of the family better.”

Growing up, Balzer said that because of the age difference and their location, she and her cousin were never really close so she was happy to get to know her family more.

Balzer was in charge of watching her cousin’s kids during the day while she was at work. It was her job to make sure the kids got to where they needed to be on time.

“I made lunch for the kids every day and I would drive them around to their other activities they had going on,” Balzer said. “When we weren’t busy with swim practice, we spent a lot of time playing outside, hanging out at the pool or going to the beach.”

While she was in Jacksonville, Balzer was able to experience a whole other lifestyle compared to here. She had the time and opportunities to try new foods and meet many different people.

“I was also only thirty minutes from the beach,” said Balzer. “I had been to the gulf before, but never to the Atlantic so that was something new and exciting for me.”

Balzer spent eight weeks in Florida. She left Hays the second week of June and came back on Aug. 1. Although she enjoyed the experience, she isn’t sure if she’d want to do it again.

“I would love to go back to Florida again sometime in the future to see my family again,” Balzer said. “I don’t know if I’d commit to a whole summer of being a nanny again.”

Not only did she miss her family while she was away, but she missed many opportunities here as well.

“I am really happy that I went this past summer though,” Balzer said. “I know I’ll treasure the memories I made for years to come.”

17jdake@usd489.com