Picture of the Week - 12/26/2019

So this is the last POTW message I will write this year.  It's also the last message I will write this decade.  Wow!

If there were ever a time to stop and do a little reflection, it's got to be now, am I right?

I was thinking the other day about these messages.  To be honest, I was also dwelling on the fact that my "recipient list" has shrunk a lot over the years.  Back in the early days I sent these little weekly broadcasts out to a lot more people.  I suppose things may have been more interesting at the beginning than they are now.  We were adding babies to the family.  We were dealing with healthcare diagnosis and surgeries and appointment updates.  We were able to share a wide variety of cute things that adorable toddlers and preschoolers do on the regular.  Teenagers are slightly less cute.

These days, we are settled into the business of raising a family.  Our world is so very different at the end of this decade than it was at the end of the last one.  Late in 2009 we had just completed the process of rocking our whole world by adding a new baby to our established little family.  That wasn't a particularly easy transition, if I'm being honest.  But goodness gracious I can't even imagine having made a different decision.  We would most certainly be different people if Zane (and eventually Beckett) hadn't joined our family.  Different isn't always better.  In this case, it's certainly not.

In 2009 we were still able to manage the sports practice schedule without calling in reinforcements and we still took entire months off without obligations to some coach or another.  These days, we are tied to a calendar and to the practice and tournament schedules given to us from a variety of different coaches - times 4.  It's definitely a busier lifestyle than we had back when I started writing these little messages.  Bob and I laugh often about how young couples without kids talk about how busy they are and how tired they are because we know what's coming.  Today we know we need to go to bed early.  We know when to save energy and how to prioritize both our time and the never-ending To-Do lists.  My house/yard/job is always in need of something.  My boys almost never are...  feels like a good balance for today.

At the end of the last decade I was halfway through my time at the job where I learned to be a product manager.  It was a time of push and pull for me for sure.  I was busy growing babies and growing my career at the same time and, in hindsight, probably also taking a bunch of things for granted that I shouldn't have been so blind to.  At the end of this decade I think I can safely say that I have matured enough to know where my priorities should be and am on a journey to make sure I treat these things with the importance they deserve.  Goodness knows I'm not perfect and I know this thing we call life is more a journey than a destination.  Shame it's taken me 45 years to figure out that the goal is to enjoy the ride instead of waiting on the goal line.

I'm estimating here, but I guess that I've sent somewhere around 885 of these weekly email messages.  17 years x 52 weeks (plus a few months in 2002 minus a very few weeks here and there where I missed a week).  885 of anything is a lot.  For me to ask you all to come along with me on this journey and to take time out of your week 885 times seems a tremendous imposition.  And yet, it is also one of the greatest gifts you could have given me.  To know that there are people out there following along with our little family who care enough to read these ramblings from time to time provides an (often) invisible umbrella of support to me that I couldn't be more thankful for as I look back over the last 10 years and look forward to the next 10.  

Thank you for your love and support over the years.  Thank you for caring about me and my family enough to spare us some of your valuable time - and your more valuable thoughts and prayers!  You are appreciated and you are loved.

My wish for all of you as we move into this next decade is that you will find gratitude in the everyday-ness of everyday.  That you will feel love and light pouring into you from everyone you encounter - but especially from those you love and care for in return.  And that you will be happy and healthy and have all you need through today, tomorrow and the next decade.  I hope you are all still reading along with my story in 2029 when I will (God willing) have 2 boys off in the world and 2 more working through the joys of high school.  If you are looking for me at any time over the next 10 years, check the local gymnasium's tournament schedule.  I'll probably be there...

Thank you!  God bless!  Have a super happy New Year!!

Picture of the Week - 12/19/2019

Next week is Christmas!!!  Who's excited???  I can't wait!

This is the first year in a really long time that I haven't had an extended break/vacation around Christmas/New Year.  It dawns on me that I haven't shared a job-related update with the POTW since I announced that I had lost my old job.  So here's the update...  I got a new job.  :)

While I continue to be bothered (really hurt is probably a better word) about how things ended at Craneware, I really couldn't have asked for a better exit strategy from the situation there than what ended up happening.  It really was (and continues to be) an answered prayer.  

The job hunt is not fun for me.  I'm sure there are personality types out there who love the thrill of the hunt.  They do it without tying too much of the process to themselves and are probably healthier than I am (mentally) because of it.  For me, the uncertainty of not knowing what was going to happen was just awful.  I hated it.  I hated it a lot!

Looking at the situation from the outside, it's probably hard to understand why I hated going through it.  We were not in financial trouble.  The job search net I threw out was very small (and I could certainly have widened it if/when needed.)  And while every encounter didn't result in a positive outcome, the VAST majority of activities I completed during the job hunt ended in success.  I honestly really only had one result that was really disappointing to me - and in hindsight even that was exactly what needed to happen.  And during all of this, I was not working and basically doing what I wanted - during the nicest part of the Atlanta weather-year.

I ended up with the first job I applied for - which is not the way these things normally go!  A bit of background...  going into the WAY BACK machine.

When Bob and I were first starting our careers (a good 20 years ago now - ouch) Bob landed at ADP and I went to work for a small 300 person .com company.  We both grew and matured and moved up in our organizations.  We joked a lot that the personality of a .com company (fast, loose, chaotic) fit Bob more than me and the conservative, stoic nature of a 60k employee company like ADP was really more aligned to my preferences.  It sorta become obvious about 3 years in (this is 17 years ago if you don't want to work the math out...) that someday I should try to get a job at ADP.  

And ADP jobs have been on my radar ever since.  It's just never really been the right time.  

I left Optio after 7+ years and went to work for a healthcare software company which set my career direction for years to come.  In the 5+ years I was there I learned how to be a product manager and grew a huge network of people.  From there I bounced a couple of times - sticking in the healthcare software niche.  The move to Craneware in 2015 was utilizing my network of colleagues, sticking close to home from a market perspective, and something that felt like it could be a good opportunity.  All of the companies I have worked for were small and all of them have had issues.  (Aside, ALLLLLLLL companies have problems...  I know there isn't a perfect work place out there!)  Little did I realize when I joined Craneware that in addition to providing me with some amazing opportunities to travel and learn and continue to build my professional network, I was also walking into a pretty toxic environment.  In a weird combination (clash) of people who grew that company from the ground up and newbies (outsiders?) like me who were trying to come in to help it succeed, an environment of blame and fear and politics flourished.  Clearly I didn't play well there - and so they wiped me out.  

And when they did, they presented me with the right time to go after a role at ADP.  Told ya it was an answered prayer.  :)

Here's the issue that I had to deal with through this situation...  ADP is BIG.  It's SLOW - particularly in HR.  And if there were ever a company where silos of people work side by side and don't know each other - it's here.  Bob, despite working for ADP for nearly 20 years, didn't have good contacts in the Product Management organization.  He reached out to a few people, but none of them were all that helpful.  I happened to have a former colleague that is now in product management at ADP and when I reached out to her to discuss the company, people, work, etc. she was more than forthcoming - but she wasn't at all helpful in getting my resume pushed forward.  So while I applied first to ADP, I didn't hear anything for a REALLY long time.  To be honest, I lost hope that I'd be able to get a foot in the door.  (Sidebar - never lose hope.)

The very day of my final interview/presentation for a job I ended up not getting (despite making it through like 5 rounds of interviews) I had a call with a woman who is now my boss.  To be honest, I was pretty sure I was going to get that other role and didn't really prep for the ADP screening discussion.  I don't actually even remember most of it.  

Fast forward a few days and I got rejected for the job I thought I was going to get and the next day got invited back for more interviews at ADP.  Things work out.  

I am now managing ADP's Talent Management solutions as part of the National Accounts team.  I have 3 solutions under me and work with a number of different teams.  I am literally just getting my feet wet here, but when I heard that there isn't a single person on my team that has a tenure of less than 5 years, I knew without a shadow of a doubt, that I made the right choice to join this group.  Employees don't stick around if they don't feel valued and this group has stuck around for a LONG time.  

I'm excited to see what the future brings.  I'm excited to be a part of the ADP team.  And it's SUPER weird (and awesome) that Bob is in my WORK Instant Messenger system!  

So it's a pretty good trade off to have this opportunity hitting right at the end of the year - which means no PTO time for me this year.  It's a small sacrifice to get the chance to (finally) work for this company that I've had my eye on for such a long time.  And it's a huge relief to have the ordeal of the last 3 months in the rear view mirror.  

Newsy stuff

- Spencer is off to TN this weekend for an individual tournament.  He and Bob are leaving tomorrow morning.  

- Quinn is wrestling in a JV Dual tomorrow night

- Zane and Beck are also wrestling tomorrow night in an individual tournament - it's a divide-and-conquer kinda day!

Sunday we have church and then a Christmas party at the wrestling gym and Monday evening starts the Christmas festivities.  I can't wait to celebrate Christmas this year!  We have SO VERY MUCH to be thankful for!

Thank you for all the love and support you have thrown our way this year (and all the years).  

Merry Christmas to all of you!!!

Picture of the Week - 12/12/2019

Big Happy Birthday wishes to Bob today!  I wish we could celebrate, but mid-week birthdays are rough.  I'm sure he will take a rain-check for birthday fun!

The boys cooperated with me last weekend to get the traditional, annual Santa Hat picture.  Love this almost as much as I love them!  

Newsy-stuff...

Tomorrow the varsity team is heading over to Pigeon Forge for the Smoky Mt Duals*.  They went last year too and had a really fun time.  Spencer is wrestling the 220 spot and Quinn got invited to go in case coach wants to juggle up the lineup.  Bob's driving the "Bob Mobile" with a car full of boys and will likely be playing Uber-duties for the team during the trip.  They should get home late on Saturday.  Can't wait to see how they do!  It's a big tourney with a lot of high quality teams attending.  I like our chances against most of them!

Then Sunday, Zane got chosen to compete with the Morris Fitness Elementary School duals team.  He's SOOOO excited.  Bob should get home just in time to grab some sleep, repack the cooler and head to a different gym full of wrestling mats.  'Tis the season!  (Spoiler alert, next weekend looks very similar...)

Have a great week everyone!  Get all that shopping and baking and shipping and wrapping outta the way so you can sink into the magic of the season next week!  

* For anyone who doesn't know wrestling...  a Dual is a team event.  For the high school, there are 14 weight classes, so the best kid at each weight class is part of the Dual team.  The team competes against another team and each of the weight classes wrestles head-to-head.  Points are earned by one team, based on the type of match/win.  The team with the highest point total at the end of the 14 matches is the winner.  I love Duals.  They are super easy to watch because all of our guys are wrestling back-to-back on the same mat.  There is a great combo of strategy and skill - because the coach can juggle the line up a bit to get the match-ups he wants.  For example, if our 120 is good, but the opponent has an amazing 120 and has a gap at 126, we may send out a back-up 120 (expecting the loss) and take the win at 126.  It's a bit cat-and-mouse and very entertaining!  It's also really awesome to watch the team cheering for each other.  Wrestling is an individual sport, but Duals folds in the team aspect in a really exciting way.  

Picture of the Week - 12/5/2019

Happy December - and a big happy birthday to my mom!  (It's one of those milestone birthdays, so give her a shout and wish her a HAPPY day!)

We are knee deep in wrestling season - and having a blast!  Here are a couple of pictures from a little dual tournament the boys had on Tuesday.  Quinn didn't have a match, so he just got to hang with the team, support his buddies, and look all handsome.  Spencer tried to break this guy's poor neck on the way to a pin.  This weekend Spencer and Quinn are off thanks to a tournament cancellation, but Zane and Beck have a tournament on Sunday.  

In between wrestling practice, we are GEARING UP for Christmas!  I can't wait!  This weekend our church is doing a big celebration for the kids.  It sounds like great fun - with music and food and dancing.  Thanks for the forced down-time I had being unemployed through the fall, we've got all our shopping done and we are well on our way to being able to sit back with a winter cocktail and enjoy the season.  I hope you are all taking some time to slow down and enjoy - as I know this season can be a crazy busy time!

Have a great week!  Only 19 days until Christmas!

PS - Quinn got contacts!  Isn't he handsome?!?!?!