For a total of one year, one month and five days, I enjoyed the luxury of being a housewife. No, not the desperate kind like the TV show with all the drama. More like a homemaker - with very little glamour involved. My weeks consisted of learning how to cook better, scheduled cleaning days, a greater involvement in my church, and lunches out with friends. Ok, so maybe there was a little bit of glamour. All in all I loved this time in my life. My marriage grew and deepened, my faith blossomed, and I must say that I have become a pretty good cook! (Ask me to make my fabulous Stuffed Chicken Valentino whenever you visit.) This sabbatical, however, has come to an end. I have decided to enter the workforce once again...well, at least on a part-time basis. Through a little (very little) searching I came across a dance studio that was hiring. I have a few years under my belt of coaching and teaching dance, so I truly felt that I could get this job. What I didn't realize was that not only was I going to be hired as a pre-k dance instructor, but I was about to create a whole new position for myself at this studio.
My work history is a colorful array of odd jobs that probably would not seem to line up in any kind of career path. Post-college, I have worked as a substitute teacher, dance coach, cheer coach, financial analyst, gymnastics coach, program director, and receptionist. I have thankfully "fallen into" each of these positions with little effort of my own. Its seems that the jobs I worked really hard at getting (full-time teaching), were never offered to me. And now with my current job, things have once again worked out so smoothly, I know it is not of my own doing but rather being right where God wants me to be.
I was hired on the spot after teaching only 30 minutes of a class to 3 four-year-olds. After realizing that the relatively new studio only had two daytime classes for me to teach, I was struck with an awesome idea. With boldness that came from who knows where (again only from above, I believe) I sent the owner my proposal to work as the studio manager - a job that at that moment did not exist. I shared with her all my experience as a program director, receptionist, and coach of several teams, and I convinced her that I am what she needs to get her studio on the right track to expansion and success. And just like that I had created a brand new position and given myself a new title to add to my resume.
Now, three days in, I am loving my work. Not only do I get to work in a field I am passionate about, I really feel like I can and will make a difference at this place. Its not my studio, but I am determined to see it grow. And with each day of experience I gain from this job, that crooked career path of odds and ends is beginning to look a little clearer now. Its funny when I come across old college classmates and they ask if I am teaching these days. They remember me from our middle childhood ed classes and from student teaching. I used to feel a bit embarrassed when I had to share that "no, I never got hired to teach in a school." And "yes, I did sub for awhile...and coach in the schools...but still no job in the classroom." But now I am so proud to say that Yes! I am a teacher. I teach dance. And I am darn proud to teach Pre-K dance. It is an honor and a privilege to have the responsibility of being a child's first dance instructor. And, oh yeah, I manage the studio too!
February 26, 2009
February 11, 2009
Define Cold, Please
Before we moved to Maryland, Keris and I tried to sell our home in Florida. But like so many others, we just were not willing to lose so much money on the house at this time. After 6 months on the market with very few inquiries, we decided to go the rental route. Through several recommendations, we were hooked up with a great management company that found us a tenant in about a week. We feel really good about our tenant, and have decided to do the management from afar.
A landlord is something I never thought I would be and definitely not an out of state landlord. With this title comes many new responsibilities and concerns. My philosophy is that if we take care of our tenant, he will in turn take care of our home. Friends thought I was crazy for touching up the paint, fixing the grout, and cleaning more than I probably ever did while we lived there. But I would want the same out of a house that we rent.
So far it seems to be working out. He has not complained about the ugly, out-of-date washer and dryer. He is being patient as we line up a maintenance man to fix one of the shower doors. And he has not said a peep about the dieing grass in our backyard. However, he has had a problem with the heat. Now I know it has been colder than usual for Jacksonville, but I really don't want to hear about it while I am freezing up north. He has called twice about this situation, and when we asked him how cold it was, he told us that the thermostat read 72. 72 degrees!!?!! I would love to have my home up here at 72. Instead, I am layering on the sweaters (my parents would be so proud) instead of raising the heat above 66. (I'm trying to save on the ridiculous cost of utilities up here.)
We have asked him to take a look at the coil. I am not sure what that is, but Keris says that should tell us whether the whole system is working or not. And then he is supposed to get back to us. We have not heard from him in several days, so hopefully he has bought a sweater to get through the typical cold stretch that lasts for about a week in Florida.
A landlord is something I never thought I would be and definitely not an out of state landlord. With this title comes many new responsibilities and concerns. My philosophy is that if we take care of our tenant, he will in turn take care of our home. Friends thought I was crazy for touching up the paint, fixing the grout, and cleaning more than I probably ever did while we lived there. But I would want the same out of a house that we rent.
So far it seems to be working out. He has not complained about the ugly, out-of-date washer and dryer. He is being patient as we line up a maintenance man to fix one of the shower doors. And he has not said a peep about the dieing grass in our backyard. However, he has had a problem with the heat. Now I know it has been colder than usual for Jacksonville, but I really don't want to hear about it while I am freezing up north. He has called twice about this situation, and when we asked him how cold it was, he told us that the thermostat read 72. 72 degrees!!?!! I would love to have my home up here at 72. Instead, I am layering on the sweaters (my parents would be so proud) instead of raising the heat above 66. (I'm trying to save on the ridiculous cost of utilities up here.)
We have asked him to take a look at the coil. I am not sure what that is, but Keris says that should tell us whether the whole system is working or not. And then he is supposed to get back to us. We have not heard from him in several days, so hopefully he has bought a sweater to get through the typical cold stretch that lasts for about a week in Florida.
February 9, 2009
Still Unpacking
Good Morning! Today I feel refreshed and ready to tackle another week of unpacking. I never thought it would take us this long to get our new house set up. So far things have gone very smoothly for us. The move went better than I had expected. I have many Navy friends who had told horror stories of moves gone bad. For example, one moving company labeled everything as "Christmas decorations." Another friend said the movers packed everything, including the garbage in all the cans. But Keris and I got lucky I guess.
The packers were friendly and helpful, and as long as we kept feeding them with donuts and cookies, they worked hard. I actually felt guilty a few times for not helping them do their job. And they never complained once about our mafia bedroom furniture (an over-sized, ridiculously heavy set of dressers and nightstands).
All in all the actual move could not have gone better. Its all the boxes and packing paper I had not planned for. I wonder how many trees were cut down in order to pack up and move all of our stuff. Having to move every 2-3 years is really going to help us cut down on clutter. We had done the whole pitch and purge thing before we left Jacksonville. Now that we are forced to look again at everything we own on this end of the move, we are pitching and purging once again. How can two people with two dogs own so much? We have been so blessed to own a home and now rent a huge townhouse. But do we really need all this?
Sometimes I wish we would downsize to a trendy downtown apartment like friends of ours have in D.C. I could definitely live like that. But at the same time, I look around our new place and envision all the family and friends we hope to host for holidays and parties. And anyone who knows me will tell you, I love to plan parties and entertain. So as soon as I can get the guest beds made and the rest of the boxes unpacked, we are eager to host visitors. Just let us know!
The packers were friendly and helpful, and as long as we kept feeding them with donuts and cookies, they worked hard. I actually felt guilty a few times for not helping them do their job. And they never complained once about our mafia bedroom furniture (an over-sized, ridiculously heavy set of dressers and nightstands).
All in all the actual move could not have gone better. Its all the boxes and packing paper I had not planned for. I wonder how many trees were cut down in order to pack up and move all of our stuff. Having to move every 2-3 years is really going to help us cut down on clutter. We had done the whole pitch and purge thing before we left Jacksonville. Now that we are forced to look again at everything we own on this end of the move, we are pitching and purging once again. How can two people with two dogs own so much? We have been so blessed to own a home and now rent a huge townhouse. But do we really need all this?
Sometimes I wish we would downsize to a trendy downtown apartment like friends of ours have in D.C. I could definitely live like that. But at the same time, I look around our new place and envision all the family and friends we hope to host for holidays and parties. And anyone who knows me will tell you, I love to plan parties and entertain. So as soon as I can get the guest beds made and the rest of the boxes unpacked, we are eager to host visitors. Just let us know!
February 8, 2009
Getting Started
Welcome to our blog! We hope to use this blog as one of many ways to keep in touch with all the wonderful people we have been so fortunate to have in our lives. With so many social networks out there, we hope to keep this blog as our "grand central station" for updating family and friends on our ever-changing lives.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
