Adjustments
I've been working at my new job for two weeks and I've been meaning to write about it for at least a week. The truth is, I've had the time, I just haven't taken it. I've been trying to readjust my thinking and speaking to reflect the fact that most of the time when we say "I don't have the time for that", what we're really meaning is "I haven't made it a priority." Apparently wasting at least an hour each evening on reading internet articles is a priority of mine. I think I need to make some adjustments, because other things really should be on the top of my list.
People keep asking how my new job is going, and the truth is that at this point it's hard to tell. I always have a hard time getting used to new things and new situations. It's not that I dislike my new job, not at all (and things like this are why I hesitate to write about my employment on the internet). In fact, the people I work with are great and I love my new office and my even shorter commute. The work environment is just so different from my previous job that it's going to take some adjusting. Plus the first month or so at a new job is always hard because you just don't know what you are doing or how to do it. I don't have a lot of work experience to draw on either. I do like my job, but I also know that I will like it even more in a few more months.
The transition to working full-time has also not been as bad as I feared either. I have a bit of flexibility in my schedule, so I've been able to get the kids out the door to school and get to work by 8:45, then I take a half-hour lunch and leave work at 5:15. I'm home by 5:30 at the latest. After spending a year working many evenings and Saturdays, I almost feel like I have more free time, even though I don't. It also helps to not have the constant back-of-the mind feeling that teaching classes always brings. I can truly leave work at the office when I leave at the end of the day (although I've already had at least one dream about work so I guess I'm feeling settled-in already).
The kids seem to be doing all right with the new routine, as far as I can tell. I found a very nice girl who is a BYU student and has worked as a nanny before, and the kids seem to like her. P. Bibby gives her the cold shoulder in the morning when I'm leaving, but during the evenings she tells me all about what she did that day so I know she likes her. At bedtime Little Dude still tells me he is sad and that he wishes I didn't have to go to work and that Daddy still lived in our house. He's been doing that for a while, and all I can do is tell him that I'm sad too and rub his back until he gets sleepy. There's not much else I can do; other than that, during the day he generally seems to be doing OK with everything. S-Boogie has actually not even met the new nanny yet because she's in school all day for another two weeks. To save on childcare expenses we only have the nanny come over for six hours a day and then Mr. Fob comes over for the last few hours. There are good and bad things about that, but I know it's the best for the kids so I'll deal with it.
And so, that is what life is like around here. Time seems to fly by faster when I'm at work all day and then home at night for not that much time. However, I've decided to really focus on the kids during the few hours I'm home at night with them (no computer time before 8 for me) and I really like it. It's nice to be home every evening to eat dinner together, go for walks or play outside, and then read scriptures and some stories before getting to bed. I'm learning to readjust my menu planning and shopping and I miss some of my more elaborate cooking, but I'm also realizing ways I can fit it in. I guess my theme for this post is that working is not as bad as I feared it would be, at least so far. We'll see how I feel in a few months.
People keep asking how my new job is going, and the truth is that at this point it's hard to tell. I always have a hard time getting used to new things and new situations. It's not that I dislike my new job, not at all (and things like this are why I hesitate to write about my employment on the internet). In fact, the people I work with are great and I love my new office and my even shorter commute. The work environment is just so different from my previous job that it's going to take some adjusting. Plus the first month or so at a new job is always hard because you just don't know what you are doing or how to do it. I don't have a lot of work experience to draw on either. I do like my job, but I also know that I will like it even more in a few more months.
The transition to working full-time has also not been as bad as I feared either. I have a bit of flexibility in my schedule, so I've been able to get the kids out the door to school and get to work by 8:45, then I take a half-hour lunch and leave work at 5:15. I'm home by 5:30 at the latest. After spending a year working many evenings and Saturdays, I almost feel like I have more free time, even though I don't. It also helps to not have the constant back-of-the mind feeling that teaching classes always brings. I can truly leave work at the office when I leave at the end of the day (although I've already had at least one dream about work so I guess I'm feeling settled-in already).
The kids seem to be doing all right with the new routine, as far as I can tell. I found a very nice girl who is a BYU student and has worked as a nanny before, and the kids seem to like her. P. Bibby gives her the cold shoulder in the morning when I'm leaving, but during the evenings she tells me all about what she did that day so I know she likes her. At bedtime Little Dude still tells me he is sad and that he wishes I didn't have to go to work and that Daddy still lived in our house. He's been doing that for a while, and all I can do is tell him that I'm sad too and rub his back until he gets sleepy. There's not much else I can do; other than that, during the day he generally seems to be doing OK with everything. S-Boogie has actually not even met the new nanny yet because she's in school all day for another two weeks. To save on childcare expenses we only have the nanny come over for six hours a day and then Mr. Fob comes over for the last few hours. There are good and bad things about that, but I know it's the best for the kids so I'll deal with it.
And so, that is what life is like around here. Time seems to fly by faster when I'm at work all day and then home at night for not that much time. However, I've decided to really focus on the kids during the few hours I'm home at night with them (no computer time before 8 for me) and I really like it. It's nice to be home every evening to eat dinner together, go for walks or play outside, and then read scriptures and some stories before getting to bed. I'm learning to readjust my menu planning and shopping and I miss some of my more elaborate cooking, but I'm also realizing ways I can fit it in. I guess my theme for this post is that working is not as bad as I feared it would be, at least so far. We'll see how I feel in a few months.
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