Two Days Until the Move.....Where's my Insulin??

Ok, so it’s been a while. Things have been going a mile a minute here. Between training guys at work and packing at home, life is crazy. Today is the first day that I’ve been like, “ why am I killing myself here at work, I should take it easy for the first time in six years”. Not the best attitude I know, but there’s so much more to worry about. I think that Aidan knows something is up. We’ve got boxes piled high in the kitchen and living room, which he thinks is great cause he can pull himself up and stand by them. He must be sensing the stress-out vibe that Amanda and I are emitting.
The good news is that we’ve got our new phone number and post office box number so we can get telemarketing calls and junk mail. Amanda is meeting the principal for the first time today. He’s here in Edmonton for teachers convention so they’re going to get together and go over a bunch of paperwork and talk about what’s going to happen on Monday. It seems a little surreal that we’re moving in two days to a place we’ve never been to live in a house we’ve never seen so Amanda can work at a job she’s never officially done before and I can look after our son fulltime for the first time. It’s crazy that we just found out about this job last Tuesday and now we’re moving. I guess we’re a lot more adventurous then we thought we were.

They’re having a goodbye lunch tomorrow for me. I’d feel special but they did the same thing for the guy who was only here for a couple months and then moved to our Vancouver office. Maybe I’ll get a sweet bonus on my last cheque! Probably not.

What else….we taped the finale of the Amazing Race but then we had to pack our VCR the next day. I’m disappointed that the new season starts so soon. We won’t be getting cable up in McLennan, maybe we can get Beah to give us an update every week. The town library has public internet access but it’s only dial-up so I’m not sure I’ll have the patience for that after working on a bullet of a computer here.

I guess that’s it for now, I should get back to ‘pretending to work’ for a bit. Usually I just grab a shovel or some generic paperwork and walk around the office and the warehouse for a while.

Later,

JG

The Big Announcement!

Well, here it is.

Amanda has received a teaching job in McLennan Alberta. We are leaving February 12 to move up there to live for 4 1/2 months. If everything works out, she could have a guaranteed job for the next two years. Everything is moving pretty fast, finding a place to live and putting everything here in
Edmonton in place. Hopefully we'll be able to blog up there, but if not, it's been really fun this past year!

Maybe more later!

JG

I'll Second That....

PROLOGUE: Please read Jonathan's short blog before you dive into mine.

While it has been fun being a stay at home mom, lately it has seemed like the most stressful place to be in the whole world, only because Jonathan has been having a rough time at work. Now I know when I was working last year, when you are having a rough time at work nothing else seems to matter. Work is so much a part of who you are everyday. I feel horrible for Jonathan and what he is going through, knowing that Aidan and I are the cause of his discontent and stress. If it wasn't for us he wouldn't have to work. Not that he minds having a wife and child, but I feel as though we are sometimes wearing him down. Let's just say that there have been many times this year when I have just wanted him to quit. I don' t like the person he is when he comes home all stressed out. In short, I want my husband back and soon...before it is too late. Needless to say, I have been frantically searching the internet and my brain for ways to speed up the hiring process. I really love being a mom, but I really love teaching. It is hard to watch your husband go to a job he hates when you could be doing something you love. So, I second Jonathan's notion for prayer for a job for me. There must be something out there. God knows!!!

To end on a happier note, there has only been one submission of a conspiracy theory so far. (Beah's theory on her blog...see stained glass!) I am eagerly awaiting more submissions. (Attn. Jennifer and Jenny - I know you must both have some...So let's get to it!) We'll see if we get anymore and then I will chose a deadline for submission. Otherwise Beah will win by default....Not that hers isn't good. It's just supposed to be a contest, people! So get thinking and conspiring!!! :)

Have a good Monday. More tomorrow.

Love,
Manders

Just a Quickie

Well, I've been out of it for a while now. I was sick Friday and most of the weekend too, mostly due to stress and fatigue. I'm better now, but work threatens to swallow me again. My boss wants me to dive into the whole management and safety officier crap again. Wants me to be the best Warehouse Manager I can be! Of course, I don't want to be one at all if I can help it. It seems that every year I keep hoping that this'll be the last year, and Amanda will get a teaching job and I can take a few years off, be a Mr. Mom and take care of Aidan until he goes to school. In a couple weeks it'll be six years that I've been here. It seems like a long time to be working a job that you don't love. The reality is that I have to provide for my family, so hopefully I only have to suck it up for another seven months or so. If anyone has an empty line on their prayer list, you could pray that Amanda will get a teaching job this year. I'd sure appreciate that.

Hopefully funnier later,
JG

Home Sweet Home

Well, we're back and refreshed and renewed - at least I know I am. On Friday morning, we left at about 8:30 from our house. By the time we left Edmonton it was about 9 or so. The highway between Edmonton and Calgary was horrible up to Ponoka. After that it cleared off, there was no ice or anything. We arrived in Calgary at about 1:30 or so. We dropped Aidan off at my mom's school, where supposedly he spent the afternoon being fauned over by many women and children. We left Calgary and headed out on the TransCanada Highway to Lake Louise. The road was pretty good until Banff. Then the ice and slush and one lane each way began...I also thought that Lake Louise was alot closer to Banff than it actually was. Needless to say, we arrived in Lake Louise at 5pm or so and were GLAD to be done driving.

There was so much snow in Lake Louise. Of course you are on top of a mountain, so you would expect there to be lots of snow. And there was. Almost up to my mid thigh in some places. It was pretty cloudy all weekend, so we didn't really get to see the glacier behind the lake at all, and you couldn't see the tops of the mountains, but it was still beautiful.

We spent our Saturday hanging out around the hotel. We went for a walk (there was an ice sculpture competition 2 weeks ago - there was even one that was shaped like a castle, out on the lake...it was cool!), went swimming and to the hot tub, had a nap, just hung out...It was nice. I only thought about Aidan in those down times, and then only for a few seconds.

Jonathan's company had a supper on the Saturday night. So we all met in the lobby and walked a little ways to another smaller lodge and had supper there. The food was good - the pork tenderloin was to die for - the company....Well, let's just say we sat with a couple that we felt comfortable with. Many of them we don't, mainly because we don't have anything in common with them. But then the supper went on for hours. (2-3 to be exact!) It was way too long for Jonathan and I. We don't mind getting together with people, but there is a time limit. Needless to say, we were ready for the evening to be over before it ended.

On Sunday morning Jonathan had a meeting and the rest of us (aka the spouses) went for brunch. It was nice. I sat with the two women who have small kids just like us and they were both Christian and the same socio-economic background. So we had lots to talk about. Then we all went around the table and told how we each met our spouses. It was interesting to hear the stories.

Oh, I forgot to tell you all about the loud music on Saturday night. Here we are in an upscale, four star hotel, and all Jonathan and I can hear on Saturday night is loud music and a DJ. You might expect that from a cheaper hotel, but the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise??? Anyway, one of the owners of Jonathan's company was sleeping on the floor below us. He had been in Paris until Friday and had flown back and came straight out to Lake Louise with his wife. When he heard the music on Saturday night, he was not to pleased...He called the front desk about 3 times and finally asked for the General Manager. I can only imagine....

Sunday, we drove home, which took forever. Aidan was grumpy, too. It was nice to get home and sleep in our own bed. As my dad would say, it's always nice to leave but it is always nice to come home, too. I agree.

Aidan seems to have transitioned alright, although he is a little grumpy today. His other top tooth broke through, so I am sure that is causing some discomfort. He also has a really bad rash....My poor baby....

Well, I think that's it. Jonathan can fill in anything I left out. I hope you all have a great Tuesday.

Love,
Manders