This is a phrase that should not be applied to jobs. Unfortunately these days it's all too true for so many people. You find a job, it's a good job, things are humming along nicely, and then one day you get the "it's not you, it's the economy" speech, and you find yourself standing in line at the unemployment office along with hundreds of others......others like my husband, who got the speech from his boss last night and now finds himself laid off (SO glad we purchased the Wii this week, Ugh.)
It's been nearly two years since the last time Mike was laid off - just a few weeks before Christmas of 2006. That time I was a bit panicked, at least the first few weeks before I realized that God was in control of the entire situation. Just like He is now. Mike had received a call while we were on vacation (something I don't regret spending the money on, even now) that if he was interested, to put together a resume for this company that was looking to hire on soon. This is a company that is very difficult to get into and by referral only. We were both praying on it, asking for some clear direction on whether to stay put or go for the new job. I'd say Mike got a crystal clear indicator last night that "staying put" isn't what God has in mind, whether it's moving to this new company or somewhere else altogether.
So as Mike left this morning to file for unemployment and call the Union hall to get his name on the (undoubtedly long) list, he said, "Well, we're heading off down a new path on another adventure!" I gotta respect his enthusiasm. I wouldn't exactly say this is an adventure I'd choose, but knowing that God is leading the way sure makes me less worried about where we're going.
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Monday, October 27, 2008
At The Bowling Alley
So Mike joined a bowling league. Not just any bowling league, mind you. This is a Wii bowling league that was jokingly formed on Saturday nights at the home of some friends who host a pot-luck most Saturday nights after church. They have a Wii, and some of the folks there are getting into the bowling thing. It's Mike's first real chance to play the game for longer than a couple of minutes. I knew he was going to get hooked. Just knew it. Sure enough before we left on vacation, and before his birthday rolled around, he said he wanted a Wii (if we could afford it.....and if one could be found.)
We still had some funds left over that weren't spent on vacation ('cause we fed our kids ice cream for meals instead of blowing the wad on $8 hot dogs), so we decided to go for the Wii. I was at Best Buy last week to get new speakers for my computer since the old ones blew themselves out.....certainly not from me jamming on them or anything. Anyway, at BestBuy they were sold out of Wiis. I wasn't thinking I'd find Mike his present after all......you know, it's getting to be Christmas Shopping season don't you know (eye roll.)
On a lark, I called Toys R Us last night and they actually had them in stock! Not delaying, I left Mike in charge of bathing children while I dashed off to the toy store. Mikey was one happy camper when I got home, and we had to bowl. This is my first time bowling on a Wii. And I kicked his butt. hehe. Maybe I'll join the Saturday night bowling league now. ;-)
We still had some funds left over that weren't spent on vacation ('cause we fed our kids ice cream for meals instead of blowing the wad on $8 hot dogs), so we decided to go for the Wii. I was at Best Buy last week to get new speakers for my computer since the old ones blew themselves out.....certainly not from me jamming on them or anything. Anyway, at BestBuy they were sold out of Wiis. I wasn't thinking I'd find Mike his present after all......you know, it's getting to be Christmas Shopping season don't you know (eye roll.)
On a lark, I called Toys R Us last night and they actually had them in stock! Not delaying, I left Mike in charge of bathing children while I dashed off to the toy store. Mikey was one happy camper when I got home, and we had to bowl. This is my first time bowling on a Wii. And I kicked his butt. hehe. Maybe I'll join the Saturday night bowling league now. ;-)
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Florida Vacation - My Favorite Photos
With nearly 800 photos, there's bound to be a few that stand out and speak to me. Here are a few of them.
Sunrise on our last day in Florida
Yay, Mike got a decent shot of me!
Friday, October 24, 2008
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Florida Vacation - Days 5 & 6 - St. Pete Beach
After our fun-filled days at Disney, we headed southwest to St. Pete Beach to kick back and relax. We stayed at a lovely resort on the Gulf of Mexico. With our budget, I was only able to book a "parking lot view" room. Upon our arrival, though, we were upgraded to an ocean front, pool-side room for an extra $20 a night. How awesome!! We were steps from the pool, beach and ocean. We also had our own private patio with table and chairs.
Nothing spectacular about this photo, but you can see our patio area off the room AND the ocean and sunset reflection on the glass.
Going out onto the beach to watch the sunset was a nightly ritual for us, as well as hundreds of others. There's nothing like it......they really are this colorful and stunning.
I learned my lesson after our trip to The Big Woods, so before we left on vacation, I gave Mike a crash course on how to take an in-focus photo. So here's the proof that I was on the beach!
The kids weren't as impressed with what amounted to them as a ball of orange off on the horizon, so they spent the time playing in the sand. The white sand was as soft as powdered sugar!
Nothing spectacular about this photo, but you can see our patio area off the room AND the ocean and sunset reflection on the glass.
Our hotel from the beach-side. If you click on it to see it enlarged, you can see which room was ours.
Going out onto the beach to watch the sunset was a nightly ritual for us, as well as hundreds of others. There's nothing like it......they really are this colorful and stunning.
A contemplative Mike, enjoying the sunset
I learned my lesson after our trip to The Big Woods, so before we left on vacation, I gave Mike a crash course on how to take an in-focus photo. So here's the proof that I was on the beach!
The kids weren't as impressed with what amounted to them as a ball of orange off on the horizon, so they spent the time playing in the sand. The white sand was as soft as powdered sugar!
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Florida Vacation - Day 4 Magic Kingdom
No, you're not losing it. There were no photos of Day 3. That was our day off, including mine. No photos whatsoever (the horror) to document our day of shopping, eating, swimming, relaxing, and minature golf. But Day 4........that's another story.
Magic Kingdom was a lot of fun, and the crowds weren't too bad till afternoon. The first ride we hit was Space Mountain, an indoor roller coaster that's in the dark. I figured Mike and I would switch off, with one of us staying with the kids while the other rode. But both kids turned out tall enough to ride and actually wanted too, although I think Charlotte was a tad nervous. All for naught, because she ended up loving Space Mountain and went on it three times. The kids loved all the rides, but especially Space Mountain and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad (went on that twice!) We managed to see only one show the whole day - Mickey's Philharmagic, a 3-D cartoon thing that was really great! But enough about all that. On to the photos! :-D
What trip to the Magic Kingdom is complete without a slew of photos taken of Cinderella's Castle??
We sort of skipped lunch and had a Mickey shaped ice cream bar instead. There were no complaints.
Around dinner time, we finally made it to Mickey's Toontown Fair, a section of the park that has kiddie rides and character meet N greets. I had promised Charlotte I would make sure she got to meet Cinderella, her favorite princess, and since a "promise is a promise" , off we went to stand in line while Mike and Eric went on rides. An hour+ later, we got our meeting, autographs and photos:
When we finally got done with the princesses, we visited Minnie & Mickey's houses.
Eric raids Minnie's fridge
We capped off the evening by staking out a spot on Main Street, ate more ice cream in lieu of dinner(we're on vacation, right? Lest you think we're too cheap to feed our kids properly, we did sit down to a real meal around 2:3o p.m. but couldn't find anything appetizing for dinner so we skipped it, and then ate ice cream, again, at the end of the day. Like I said, it's vacation!). While enjoying said ice cream, we waited for the fireworks. It was a nice way to end our long, fabulously fun day at Disney Magic Kingdom!
Magic Kingdom was a lot of fun, and the crowds weren't too bad till afternoon. The first ride we hit was Space Mountain, an indoor roller coaster that's in the dark. I figured Mike and I would switch off, with one of us staying with the kids while the other rode. But both kids turned out tall enough to ride and actually wanted too, although I think Charlotte was a tad nervous. All for naught, because she ended up loving Space Mountain and went on it three times. The kids loved all the rides, but especially Space Mountain and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad (went on that twice!) We managed to see only one show the whole day - Mickey's Philharmagic, a 3-D cartoon thing that was really great! But enough about all that. On to the photos! :-D
What trip to the Magic Kingdom is complete without a slew of photos taken of Cinderella's Castle??
The front
Some detail along the back
The side
At night, lit in blue (light colors changed about every 15 minutes)
We sort of skipped lunch and had a Mickey shaped ice cream bar instead. There were no complaints.
Our map reader
Around dinner time, we finally made it to Mickey's Toontown Fair, a section of the park that has kiddie rides and character meet N greets. I had promised Charlotte I would make sure she got to meet Cinderella, her favorite princess, and since a "promise is a promise" , off we went to stand in line while Mike and Eric went on rides. An hour+ later, we got our meeting, autographs and photos:
Sleeping Beauty
Cinderella
Belle
When we finally got done with the princesses, we visited Minnie & Mickey's houses.
Obviously this is Minnie's house
Eric raids Minnie's fridge
And right next door is Mickey's house
Who knew Mickey had such a green thumb?
I wonder if they had to pay OshKosh to do this
A couple of bushes
We capped off the evening by staking out a spot on Main Street, ate more ice cream in lieu of dinner(we're on vacation, right? Lest you think we're too cheap to feed our kids properly, we did sit down to a real meal around 2:3o p.m. but couldn't find anything appetizing for dinner so we skipped it, and then ate ice cream, again, at the end of the day. Like I said, it's vacation!). While enjoying said ice cream, we waited for the fireworks. It was a nice way to end our long, fabulously fun day at Disney Magic Kingdom!
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