01x07 - Paul Family

[bunniefuu]

[screaming]

NARRATOR: They're every
parent's worst nightmare--

Enough already.

I told you to stop complaining.

NARRATOR: --kids
completely out of control

and taking over the household.

These families have reached
the end of the road.

MOM: DJ, get off.

NARRATOR: They're in
desperate need of help.

DJ.

NARRATOR: They only have
one alternative left.

It's time to dial Nanny 911.

[phone ringing]

LILLIAN: Hello.

This is Nanny 911.

NARRATOR: We've gathered a
team of world-class nannies

from all over the globe.

Each week, from Nanny
Central, they will watch

a video of a family in crisis--

[screaming and crying]

NARRATOR: --and decide which
nanny is best suited to help.

They will then have one week to
take our families from living

hell to a family bliss.

Look at me.

I'm serious.

There are gonna have to be
some major changes that go on.

That's the plan.

NARRATOR: Can these
families be saved?

No.

We leave her.

It doesn't have
to be this extreme.

I am trying to show you
a better way to do this.

NARRATOR: Parents of
America, help is on the way.

Hello.

NARRATOR: Tonight on
"Nanny 911," Cyndi and Tim

Paul had one perfect child.

My name's Kimmy
and this is my room.

NARRATOR: And they
wanted one more.

Maybe one more baby
would be kind of fun.

NARRATOR: But when
they got three--

Mommy.

NARRATOR: --the world
came tumbling down

on this ex-flight attendant.

CYNDI: I struggle with
the noise and the chaos.

Mom has made a crash landing.

I tell people I
officially lost my mind.

NARRATOR: And
dad's hit the wall.

I can't walk
through the living

room without twisting my ankle.

NARRATOR: Can nanny
Deb restore order

to this disorderly family?

[shrieking]

[indistinct speech]

If you continue
with this behavior,

I am not helping you--

[overlapping speech]

NARRATOR: Or will these
parents fall to pieces?

NARRATOR: Tonight,
it's the little house

of horrors on "Nanny 911."

[theme song]

[shouting]

Stop it.

You're biting her shirt.

TIM: We're the Pauls.

We live in Missouri.

We have four beautiful
children, Kimberly,

Michael, Lauren, and Bethany.

As a flight attendant,
I have experience

of how to deal with crisis,
but I didn't expect this.

[shrieking]

All four of them know how
to climb doors, windows,

video cabinets, at 18 months
were climbing on the table,

swinging from a light fixture.

They can pretty much
climb the walls, literally.

It's just a little
crazy around here.

Oh, Kimmy.

It took us a little while
to have some children,

but we finally were blessed with
our first daughter, Kimberly.

My name's Kimmy
and this is my room.

CYNDI (VOICEOVER): She's
wonderful and perfect

in every way.

Ow.

Then, we decided,
well, maybe one more baby

would be kinda fun.

Little did we know we were
gonna get three more babies.

They keep us hopping from
morning, noon, till night.

Bethany gets very upset
if things don't go her way

and she throws temper tantrums.

No.

Bethany.

Bethy.

Michael is very charming.

He likes to spit and punch.

Lauren and Michael.

Lauren is very stubborn.

She is the most
challenging for me.

They did it and I
didn't want them to do it,

because I wanted to do it.

Oh, god.

Michael, don't spray that.

No more jumping.

What'd I say?

What?

The kids don't
really listen to her.

No.
CYNDI: Yes.

No.

CYNDI: Yes.

Yes.

Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes.

Don't you dare eat
off the ground.

No, no, no.

With four children
in this family,

we are constantly
playing catch-up.

I have tried about a dozen
ways to get organized

and have failed at all of them.

Oh, no.

You guys, I had
your bed all made.

I'll start one room.

By the time I'm
at the third room,

the first room is
already a mess again.

I struggle with the
noise and the chaos.

But, mostly, our house is like
a hurricane went through it.

[screaming]

TIM: It does get
pretty stressful.

There's times when you
just feel like you're

losing control over them.

Mommy's getting a
big headache from this.

Let's go.

You're giving me a headache.

You guys are
giving me a headache.

What?

Giving me a--

CYNDI: All of a sudden,
I just start zoning out

and I get, like, this headache.

And I can't even process
simple questions.

OK.
Hold on.

Headache.

One at a time.

What?

And I eventually
start going crazy.

[overlapping speech]

CYNDI: Oh, that's
not how you act.

For later.
- No.

CYNDI: Yes.

[gasps]

So what do you think, girls?

Oh my god.

That house is a disaster.

There is absolutely
no organization.

It's appalling.

It's a wonder she hasn't lost
a child in all of that mess.

With her ability to make
rules and discipline fun,

I have decided that
Deborah is the right nanny

for this family.

Yes.

[dramatic music]

DEB (VOICEOVER): It's
come to my attention

that the Paul family
has some problems.

Mom Cyndi has anxiety caused
by her four unruly children.

And as a result, the
house is a complete mess.

[overlapping speech]

CYNDI (VOICEOVER):
Bethany, let him go.

DEB (VOICEOVER): I'm
Nanny Deb and I'm

from Holyhead, North Wales and
I've been a nanny for 22 years.

I've been called to Missouri
to help the Paul family dig

out from underneath a big mess.

Cyndi is a former
flight attendant

who won't give her kids
any responsibility,

resulting in a house
out of control and a mom

losing her mind.

Tim is an overworked
office manager

who can't cope with the
chaos and has absolutely

no control over the household.

All signs point to
disaster and I've only got

one week to clean up this mess.

OK.

Nanny's here.

- Hello.
- Hello.

Hello.

Hello.

You must be the nanny.

Whoa.

Welcome to our home.

Come in.
- Hi.

I'm Nanny Deb.

How are you?

KIDS: Good.

Nice to meet you.

We wanna welcome
Nanny Deb to our house.

You stay right here.

Can you stay right here by me?

We've never had a
nanny in our home.

DEB: You haven't?

CYNDI: Can you tell?

DEB: Oh.

Well, the plan is, today,
I'm just going to observe

everything that's going on--

OK.

--and see how your
family dynamic works.

At the end of the
day, we'll have

a little powwow, so to speak.

All right?

The first thing I
must see is clear.

Just how messy is this house?

Kimmy, go and check
out your room.

Whoa.

Hmm.

And then, we go in here.

My goodness.

These children have obviously
never been told to tidy up

their rooms or make their beds.

And that has got to change.

Hey, Mikey, let's
go see your room.

Wow.

Look at all that stuff.

This family, clearly,
never throws anything away.

Are they raising
children or pack rats?

The children's
rooms are appalling.

I can only hope this
filth hasn't spread

to the rest of the house.

Oh my gosh.

The toy room?

DEB: You say that
you just cleaned it?

That's clean?

DEB: Now, it's messy.

How can you play with
anything when it's so messy?

This house is a disaster area.

And when a house
is this disorderly,

the children always follow suit.

What did mommy say you have
to do if you do potty talk?

NARRATOR (VOICEOVER):
Cyndi has not

only lost control
of her home, she's

lost control of her children.

CYNDI: You're giving
me a headache.

[crying]

DEB (VOICEOVER):
If this continues,

she's headed for a breakdown.

Next time, you
can be the winner.

OK?

No.

DEB (VOICEOVER): These children
have clearly figured out

how to get their way with mom.

If they throw a
tantrum, mom gives in.

If they don't want
to dress themselves,

she does it for them.

Mikey.

MICHAEL: Daddy,
daddy, come here.

Hi, Beth.

How are you doing?

DEB (VOICEOVER): Hopefully,
dad has a better way of dealing

with this trash heap.

Clean this up, OK?

Come on.

Get everything picked up
and put them in the closets.

Let's just get it picked up.

No.

But the Barbie stuff
is supposed to go right

where the Barbie stuff-- no.
Wait.

Kimmy--

Well, let's just get it
put away for right now.

DEB (VOICEOVER): I'm glad
to see that one parent

has a problem with this pigsty.

But why on Earth would
Cyndi want to put a stop

to dad cleaning the house?

Just put it in a pile
and we'll go from there.

We'll just-- then, we'll
just knock the pile down.

Well, but if they
put them in the closet,

then they won't get it in the
box where I want it to be.

If you just sweep it all--

DEB (VOICEOVER): However, if dad
thinks he can literally sweep

this family's problems
under the rug,

he's in for a big surprise.

TIM: You want some broccoli?
CYNDI: All right.

We'll give you broccoli instead.

DEB: How about some peas?

CYNDI: I know, but
you gotta try them.

CHILD: No, I don't wanna go.

CYNDI: How about one?

[overlapping speech]
CYNDI: Yes.

MICHAEL: No.
- Yes.

--for you and I want
you to try them.

I don't really like them.

DEB (VOICEOVER): The
house is in shambles.

The kids are out of control.

And the parents can't
get it together.

CHILD: I hate them.
I hate those.

DEB (VOICEOVER): And the
root of all these problems

is clearly Cyndi.

It's time for me to
sit the parents down.

So I wanted to talk to you
about what I've observed today.

The problems that I
noticed is that the house

is extremely disorganized.

If your children live
in an environment that

isn't organized and
isn't structured,

their mind is going to wander.

They're not gonna be able to
go to school and sit and focus.

And I want to get to the
root of that problem.

I can't walk through
the living room without--

without stepping on something
and twisting my ankle.

The problem is I
don't have enough time.

Your method of cleaning
up is get the broom,

make it a big pile,
get the kids to throw

everything in their closet.

That's the way
you kind of do it?

TIM: Yeah.

To me, it's out-- out
of sight, out of mind.

And that's the best
way to get it done.

So it works for you?

Yes, it does.

But it doesn't work for you?

CYNDI: No, absolutely not.

It just seems like
it's faster and easier

if I just do it myself.

You can't do it all yourself.

I guess I don't even
think that they can do it

and that's probably
part of the problem.

You enable these
children too much.

Mommy, help me.

I am helping you.

You do everything for them.

That's how the house
ends up in a mess.

What we really need
to work towards here

is finding that middle ground.

We're gonna find it.

We're gonna work towards it.

I want you on the same team.

Right now, we have
opposing sides.

So I'm gonna go.

I'm gonna formulate this plan.

This family is going
to work much better.

All right?
- OK.

- Hang in there.
- Thank you.

All right.

My goal with this family is
to change their lifestyle.

I want them to learn how to
live a more organized life.

I think it's gonna
be a bumpy ride.

I got up early this
morning to give the Pauls

their new rules only
to find dad off to work

and Cyndi in a tizzy.

I'm gonna go find
your other shoe.

My biggest concern is getting
her on that bus at 8:03.

The bus stop is right
in front of my house

and we are constantly
missing the bus.

Oh, Michael, you just
spilled your milk.

Kimmy, do you know
where your shoes are?

CYNDI: In your room.

With the bus
mere moments away,

I notice Kimmy
doesn't lift a finger

to help find her lost shoe.

She's obviously used to mom
doing everything for her.

I can't find her shoes.

Kimmy, are you
sure it's in here?

We are constantly
playing catch-up.

I am never on time anywhere.

I have like five
clocks in this house

and I have no idea
which one is right.

It's probably not that one.

Well, I gotta find out
what time it really is.

Hold on.
MAN (PHONE): The time is now--

Is--

MAN (PHONE): 7:57.


This is the most disorganized
woman I have ever seen.

Right now, I
cannot find her other

shoe and it is
sitting dangerously

close to the bus time.

As usual, I'm not together.

Not in there.

Maybe it's over here.

Get your old shoes
on, all right?

Hurry up.

Did we miss it yet?

Kimmy and I missed the bus, even
though the bus stop is right

here in front of our house.

Oh my god.

There's Kimmy's other shoe,
right in front of my face.

DEB (VOICEOVER): This
family is missing

the bus in more ways than one.

And before things
can get better,

they're going to get
much, much worse.

After a day of observation,
this much is clear,

the Paul family is a mess.

It's time to set
down the new rules.

Today, I brought Nanny's Rules.

Now, these rules apply when
I'm here and when I'm gone.

So we start with rule
number one, "Get organized

and stay organized."

Who knows what organized means?

Clean up.

It means cleaning up
and keeping it clean.

Number two is "Stick
to a schedule."

That means you do
the same things

at the same time every day.

I have like five
clocks in this house

and I have no idea
which one is right.

And no missing the school bus.

That's right.

Ever.

Ever.

We never miss the school bus.

Number three, "Everyone
is responsible

for their own stuff."

You guys need to get
yourselves dressed.

No more mommy helping
anybody get dressed.

Shoe.

So is everybody ready?

We're gonna roll up our sleeves
and we've got to get to work.

And we're gonna get started.

I have been
thinking a long time

about how I would
react to somebody

else coming in my house.

Because, to be honest, I
have never had a babysitter.

I will admit, I am
a little hesitant

about this whole thing.

DEB: Are you ready?
CHILD: Yeah.

CYNDI: Ready?
DEB: Steady?

TIM: Ready?

Go.

This family may not like me very
much over the next few days.

At the end of this lesson,
they'll be grateful.

Last night, I noticed
that the children had

absolutely no table manners.

You gotta keep those
greens in your plate.

[screaming]

DEB (VOICEOVER): And since
we're in the dining room,

I thought it would be best
to start the teaching there.

So today, we are going
to practice manners.

Quick table manners class.

All right.

Sit nicely at the table.

Like this?

DEB: Like this.

Oh, we don't put our
elbows on the table.

We're gonna take our napkin.

We're going to shake it out.

Put it nicely on our lap.

[screaming]
[overlapping speech]

--on your lap.

A-choo!

Tonight--

I don't want it.

[overlapping speech]

This may take
longer than expected.

Oh!

We don't spill on
the fancy party.

NARRATOR: While teaching
the children table manners,

I noticed Cyndi seems to
be getting a bit put out.

I hope she can handle all this.

When we're finished
with our food,

we put our fork and
our Kn*fe at 5 o'clock.

Imagine it's a clock.

Put our napkin on
our plate, and we

say, please, may I be excused?

Please be excused?

DEB: Yes, you may.

CYNDI: It's a little
bit overwhelming

right now to have Nanny Deb
here in our house taking over.

DEB: Good job, good
job, good job, good job.

NARRATOR: When teaching
children responsibility,

it's always best to
keep the lessons fun.

So I'm going to give the
kids their own set of rules.

Let's see how Cyndi handles it.

Who wants to
open the nanny bag?

Me!

[unzipping]

OK, let's see what we
have in the nanny bag.

OK, we have Kimmy's
rules, Bethany's rules--

NARRATOR: Once the
children begin cleaning up

after themselves, Cyndi will
have no excuses for not putting

the rest of her house in order.

[music playing]

You want to read them, Kimmy?

Everybody has the same rules.

Make your bed.

Get yourself dressed.

Pick up your toys.

Keep your room tidy, and pick
your clothes for the next day.

DEB: Yes, excellent!

I believe that
children need rules

and consistency in their life.

They need to live in a
home that is organized.

And they need to
follow a schedule.

It makes them feel safe,
happy, and well-adjusted.

NARRATOR: Let's see how we
do with rule number one--

make your own bed.

What would you
like to do first?

Would you like to
make your bed first

or pick up your clothes first?

I want to do the bed.

DEB: She would like
to help make the beds.

CYNDI: Let's see.

Take everything off first.

All the clothes off.

DEB: All right.

Excellent.

Then you first
put on this one,

then you put on the
warm one, and then

you put on the big one.

All right.

Let's see.

Can you do it without help?

Or would you like some help?

Without help.

NARRATOR: As the kids
began making their beds,

I notice Cyndi's
even more distressed,

which is very troubling.

CYNDI: I like the idea of giving
my children the responsibility

of making their beds,
but I'm just not

so sure that they can do this.

I'm spreading the bed!

I'm spreading the bed.

CYNDI: Especially
because I might

not like the way they do it.

[laughing]
DEB: Quick, quick.

Chop, chop.

How is that going
to keep us warm?

CYNDI: They put
it on horizontally

instead of vertically, and
it's driving me a little crazy.

NARRATOR: Cyndi should be
happy to see her kids finally

learning responsibility.

DEB: There you go!

Excellent work.

This is a little hard to
sit here and watch this.

NARRATOR: Cyndi's anxieties
are becoming annoying.

I'm beginning to think
that Cyndi simply refuses

to let her kids grow up at all.

I would probably already
be finished making these beds

and on to another room.

Then go vacuum another
room and leave them to it.

Children.

I felt a little defeated,
like I couldn't handle it.

I'm not certain how
this will all end.

But be careful what you ask for,
because you just might get it.

[music playing]

NARRATOR: I've shown
the kids the rules,

and they've gotten on
well with me at the helm.

But today, Cyndi steps in.

Let's see if she handles
herself any better

than she did yesterday.

First up, can Cyndi get the
kids to dress themselves?

CYNDI: Get yourself dressed.

CHILD: No.

CYNDI: Lauri you need
to either get your socks

on right now or make your bed.

Oh, no.

Remember what Nanny Deb said?

Please!

I know.

[smooch]

Please, Mama, please.

I'm gonna go drink
the rest of my tea.

And you need to make your bed
and get your socks and shoes

on, and come on out, OK?

Mama.

CYNDI: Oh, Lord,
you're already--

Why do you keep saying no?

Please, Mama.

CYNDI: This is a
very heartbreaking.

It really is.

Please!

Please!

This is Lauren.

And this is how Lauren behaves.

She will do this
for half an hour,

which can be very
frustrating here for a while.

When she has her
meltdown, she just

asks the same question over
and over and over and over.

Please, Mama!

Can't you put them on?

CYNDI: No.

[whining]

No!

I want you to.

Please, Mama!

Can you put them on?

CYNDI: That's when
I just zone out.

And I can no longer focus.

And I'm ready to just
scream at everybody

and send them all
straight to bed.

NARRATOR: Cyndi needs to
be firm with her children

so that they know
what's expected

of them if they are
ever to begin taking

responsibility for themselves.

Please!

NARRATOR: Cyndi
obviously has no idea how

to deal with Lauren's meltdown.

Please, Mama!

Why do you keep saying no?

Because you can
do it yourself.

NARRATOR: I'm going to
have to step in and show

her how to handle her kids.

- Please, Mama!
- All right.

She's gonna come to you.
This is what you do.

Get down.
Get down.

- Mama, I want you to!
- Take it down.

Firm tone.
There's no, I know.

Please, please,
please, please!

DEB: Now it's like, I told you
I will help you with your socks

after you make your bed.

Please, Mama!

No, Lauren.

Remember?

I told you I will help
you with your socks

after you make your bed.

Please?

No.
You can do it.

[crying]

Why don't you go in
your room right now?

Sit down for a little while
until you're ready to come out.

If you continue
with this behavior,

I am not helping you
with the socks at all.

Lauren, act like
this any longer,

I'm not even gonna help
you with your socks.

- Mama!
- No, we're not doing--

Mama!
Mama!

Go.

NARRATOR: Cyndi's
inability to be firm

is just confusing
the poor child.

I don't know anything.

[sniffs] I want my
Mommy to help me.

She's one of those children
that if A, B, C, and D happens

every day, and all of a
sudden, C doesn't happen, like,

something is different.

DEB: Right.

She can't get over that hump.

[crying]

For 4 and 1/2 years,
she's got upset,

you've let her get away with it.

She's really testing the
boundaries right now.

What's going to happen to her
in second grade when she's not

doing her math because she
doesn't want to? (CRYING)

I don't know how to do it.

I don't know.

CYNDI: Nanny Deb's given
us a lot of things to do.

And I'm not so sure that my
children and I can handle this.

So she needs to
now know you're

not going to give in to her.

Reiterate to her, you do know.

You are choosing right
now not to do it.

CYNDI: I'm not sure I'm
gonna adjust to that so well.

I think I'm probably
gonna jump in still

and help them with this.

NARRATOR: I certainly hope
that Cyndi can finally get

Lauren to put her own socks on.

Can you do it?

Please!

No.

Please, do it.

Come here.

[music playing]

NARRATOR: I can't
believe Cyndi broke down

and put Lauren's
shoes and socks on.

It's almost as if she
wants these children to be

completely dependent on her.

More drastic action
is clearly required.

Let's see how Cyndi
reacts to leaving

her children alone with me.

This has been really
stressful for you.

So I've made arrangements
for you and Tim

to go out tonight for dinner.

And I'm gonna
babysit the children.

CYNDI: Nanny Deb offered for
Tim and I to go out for dinner.

But I was a little nervous
about it, because to be honest,

I've never left my
children with a babysitter.

OK.

Um, well-- um.

NARRATOR: When I suggested
she leave the children alone

with me, Cyndi looked
like she was going

to have an anxiety att*ck.

For how long?

[overlapping speech]

DEB: Just for dinner.

CYNDI: I have a
lot of reservations

about leaving them with her.

I have-- to be honest, I
have never left them alone.

NARRATOR: I can't believe
Cyndi has never left

her children with a sitter.

She must learn to let go.

I haven't hurt one yet.

They will be safe.

They will have fun.

I want you to hand over
some responsibility,

to learn to accept help from
others, to learn to let go.

NARRATOR: Cyndi certainly
did not want to leave

her kids with me for the night.

CYNDI: I really have never
left my children alone.

I have a lot of reservations
and I'm very nervous,

but she tells me I
have to try to let go.

So that's what I'm gonna do.

NARRATOR: With
Cyndi gone, I'm very

interested to see how the
children feel about Mom

going out for the evening.
[music playing]

DEB: So what do you think
about Mom and Dad going out?

Good!

All right.

Let's go.

NARRATOR: Now it's
time to get to work.

Oh, my goodness.

NARRATOR: The first
thing we're going to do

is clean the children's
rooms from top to bottom.

DEB: Their rooms
were disgusting.

There were dirty and clean
clothes all mixed together,

toys piled underneath
piles of clothes.

You couldn't even tell the
color of the children's carpets.

Come on.

Oh, my goodness.

You guys have too many clothes.

[music playing]

CYNDI: I might want to call
them a little bit later.

I'm sure Nanny's got
everything under control.

Cindy had a little
fear, a little anxiety

about leaving the kids.

And it was hard to
get her to relax.

But if it'll make
you feel better,

we'll make a phone call.

[music playing]

NARRATOR: With Cyndi
out of the way,

the children seemed
to actually enjoy

taking part in the chores.

Oh, fabulous, Bethy.

You are the champion at
making the clothes pile.

All right, excellent.

See who can pick up
the most clothes.

Ted.

All right.

I can't see.

[beeping]

[busy signal]

It's busy.

Let me try again.

Oh, Kimmy, this is great.

The kids did a great job today.

They folded their clothes,
organized their room.

So I'm very proud of
the little munchkins.

Hello.

Mommy!

Daddy!

Hi, guys.

Mommy, come see my room.

All right.

Daddy, come see
at my room next.

Wow.

Kimmy, it looks great.

Wow.

Look how clean it is.

NARRATOR: While Tim is
thrilled with the clean rooms,

Cyndi doesn't seem
to like it at all.

Did they resist you at all?

DEB: No, it was a lot of fun.

NARRATOR: Today was a
big day for her kids.

And Cyndi should be as
proud of them as Tim and me.

It's driving me
a little crazy.

I wasn't so happy about
letting go of my control.

I am a little uneasy that
they're doing it themselves.

NARRATOR: I can't believe,
after all our hard work,

Cyndi just seemed
to be more upset.

I can't wait to see
what happens tomorrow

when I set out to clean
up the rest of her mess.

[music playing]

Because Cyndi can't
let go of anything,

the kids are going to have a
hard time letting go as well.

So I came up with
a fun way to throw

out all of their broken toys.

You can see the problem here.

We have too many toys.

But guess what.

I have a solution.

So let's go.

Follow me outside.

Climb over the mess.

Now we're gonna do
something really fun

with these two big trash cans.

All the toys that you
don't play with anymore,

we're gonna put
in the happy face

because we're
gonna make somebody

happy by giving them some toys.

All the toys that are
broken, we're just gonna

put it in the sad face bin, OK?

Nanny Deb?

Yes?

I really want to--

I like my broken toys.

Well, I know you
like your broken toys.

But there's no point
in keeping broken toys,

because we don't want
to play with them.

I like to play with them.

I think that I would probably
give them a little more time.

He's crying.

NARRATOR: Cyndi
has shown herself

to be very anxious about
letting go of things.

This anxiety passes
on to the children.

If it's broken, you
can still keep it,

but never throw it away.

NARRATOR: They don't know how
to handle letting go of anything

now.

All right.

Let's go fill them up.

Look at all this stuff.

Come on, guys.

Grab a big fistful of toys
and throw them outside.

[crying]

CYNDI: It was very hard to
see my little ones get upset.

I can't find
all of my animals!

I can't find all the rest!

TIM: Take them out.

The kids want to keep toys
that we haven't used in years

or haven't even seen in years.

It's something
that had to happen.

[crying]

What's wrong, Mikey?

Did you want to keep your car?

It was stressful
for me to watch

them throw all the toys away.

OK, what's this?

CYNDI: Things that I feel
mean something to my children.

This is broken crayons.

No!

Babar!

NARRATOR: Cyndi's anxieties
fuel anxiety in her children.

NARRATOR: --making the Pauls
an extremely unhealthy family.

It's high time Cyndi
heard the truth.

Let's go upstairs and have
a talk about what's going on.

Come on.

CYNDI: There's no
way I will let her

do anything that will cause
any kind of traumatic harm

to my children.

OK, so you are getting
very, very upset out there.

This is the thing
you have to realize.

You are their role model.

So they model
themselves after you.

These children are looking to
you to make sure that it's OK.

And you're not OK.

[music playing]

You know, they're different
children with their father

because he's much more relaxed
about these kind of things.

CYNDI: I thought that's
what they wanted,

was this nurturing mother who--

And they do.

--saved onto everything.

They do need the nurturing.

These children are very loved.

That's not what we're
talking about here.

We're talking about getting
you to a place where you

don't feel like you have
to hold on to things

to keep the memory.

I just can't believe that
I had that kind of effect

on my children.

[ding]

I would hate for them to spend
their life feeling the way

that I have felt,
because it isn't any fun

not to be able to let go.

DEB: So let's get
this turned around

and make you feel good about
cleaning out things, OK?

Yes.

DEB: All right.

Let's go try to
get this finished.

All right.

NARRATOR: Finally, I felt like
I'd gotten through to Cyndi.

Let's see if she can
put her new perspective

into action by
comfortably throwing out

all of her children's old toys.

CYNDI: I think this is good
that Nanny Deb intervened.

I might have gone
on forever allowing

them to just hold on to things.

It's gonna to be hard, buddy,
but you'll get used to it.

NARRATOR: With Cyndi
leading the way,

the kids are no longer
so anxious about letting

go of their toys--

This will be so awesome!

NARRATOR: --and happily
start pitching in.

Things that you
don't like, is,

you can put them in the trash.

In here, this goes.

NARRATOR: It certainly
is refreshing to see

the Pauls working together as a
team to get the playroom clean.

[music playing]

Over the next few days, Cyndi
began making huge strides.

CYNDI: How are you doing, angel?

NARRATOR: She's
finally beginning

to learn that by letting
go of some control

and allowing the kids to
take on responsibility,

she can create a calm and
orderly household, resulting

in calm and orderly children.

Yay, we made it.

This has actually been a
really good morning for us.

There was no whining.

There was no fighting.

Got dressed, made the bed, and
got on the bus right on time.

NARRATOR: Cyndi is
finally starting

to realize that
if she steps back,

her children will
naturally step up.

DEB: You're almost done, bud.

Sometimes I do it like that.

I just put my socks on.

And I made my bed.

I'm gonna tell Nanny Deb.

I have big news.

Lori just came in and took me
to her room to see her bed.

And she made her bed!

It looks perfect.

Yay!
Oh, look at her feet!

Yay, Lori!

And you got socks on!

And you made your bed.

Oh, I knew you could do it.

NARRATOR: Cyndi
is really learning

to take pride in her
children's accomplishments.

[whirring]

Tim has come a long
way, too, and now

realizes that the
answer isn't simply

throwing everything away.

[indistinct speech]

DEB: Oh, that was--

NARRATOR: And I can gladly say
that Cyndi and Tim are finally

getting on the same page.

Cheese.

[whirring]

NARRATOR: When it came time
to give some of the old toys

away to charity--

DEB: I see the van is waiting.

Let's go take all this stuff.

Good job.

NARRATOR: --the
kids and Cyndi were

more than happy to join in.

Oh, thank you.

CYNDI: All right, let's go.

Thank you.

DEB: Good job.

There you go.

Yes.

Thank you very much.

NARRATOR: And it
made Tim very proud.

TIM: I think the kids have more
pride in what they're doing.

They have a better
feeling about themselves.

CYNDI: They are
proud of themselves.

And it makes me feel proud
to know that doing less

is actually doing more for them.

And it's actually giving me more
time to enjoy their childhood.

[music playing]

[honking]

NARRATOR: Saying
goodbye is never easy.

But saying goodbye to the
Pauls will be especially hard,

because they've come so far.

The house is virtually
unrecognizable from the one

I entered only a week ago.

And so is the family.

Like this?

That looks great.

NARRATOR: The children have
begun learning responsibility.

And the pride they've
taken in themselves

is reflected in the
happiness in their faces.

And Cyndi now realizes that
there is no place for anxiety

in a healthy, loving home.

And she and Tim have
found middle ground.

[giggling]

NARRATOR: I couldn't
be more proud of them.

DEB: OK, everybody.

It's time for Nanny
to say goodbye.

You can stay here forever
and spend the night.

[laughter]

Thank you, Mikey.

You guys have done such
a great job for me.

I'm gonna start with Kimmy.

And I just want to say
I'm really proud of you.

You've shown a good example to
your brother and your sisters.

So I want to say a really
big thank you to you.

Thank you.

You're welcome.

And I want to say
a big thank you,

too, to Bethy, because you do
a great job of making your bed

and getting yourself dressed.

And I want to say a
big thank you to Mikey

because he's been a champion.

And it was very
sad the day you had

to throw out your broken toys.

And you were really good
and did a great job.

And then you, Miss Lori, we had
so many problems with sock day,

didn't we?

And then you finally did it!

And then, of course,
Tim, you did it.

You found a common ground.

Thank you.

DEB: And you really--

it's really important that
you did that for Cyndi.

So I'm really proud.
And then--

TIM: Thank you.

DEB: Cyndi, you really have
made a lot of progress.

[sniffs] You've always been an
incredible, incredible mother.

And I think you
now see what a gift

you've given your children.

You kind of
expect that somebody

is gonna come in and tell you
everything you're doing wrong

and that you need to
do something different.

But instead, she tells you that
you're doing everything right,

but there's things that you
can do that make it better.

TIM: Who wants to
say thank you to Deb?

Because I think she's
done the best job of all.

Thank you, Nanny Deb.

DEB: You're very welcome.

Thank you, sweet hug.

Thank you.

Mwah!

Thank you for everything.

You really have come so far.

Thank you.

Thanks for all your help.

Oh, you're so welcome.

Thank you.

Oh, my legs!

OK, well, I will see
you guys one day again.

Keep up the good work.

Bye, everybody.

Bye!

Bye!

Bye, Nanny Deb!

We love you!

Bye, Nanny.

NARRATOR: My week in Missouri
was one of the most rewarding

in all my years as a nanny.

I will have nothing but
the fondest memories

of my time with the Pauls
Now they have a clean house

and a clean slate.

And I know they'll
make the most of it.

Dear Paul family, thank
you so much for asking

me to come and help you.

As a gift to you all, I've
asked my friends at CLB Design--

to redesign your whole house?

If you open the gift,
you will see what you can

look forward to when it's done.

Oh, my goodness.

Wow.

Oh, my gosh!

Oh, I love it!

CYNDI: That is gorgeous.

TIM: The lessons that
she's taught us have given

us a good base to build from.

It's just been a fabulous
experience from start to end.

[audio logo]