On Tuesday, Augustus and Xander were both at school and I was at home all day. My position is based out of my house, so other than in person meetings here and there, most of my time is spent on Microsoft teams or working independently. I really like working from home- I like to work at my own pace, without being interrupted. I like that when I take a break between projects that I can throw in a load of laundry or take the dogs for a quick walk. Having a flexible schedule is my number one priority for a job, and this one is perfect for my current life with 2 little kids.
On Wednesday, Augustus spent the day with Grandma Debbie again and brought home fresh baked cookies! I had an in-person meeting so I was gone most of the day. My job is to work with the alumni of the 8 overnight camps, Youth in Government and the University YMCA programs. In the next few weeks, I will be meeting with the directors of each program to learn more and to connect with the alumni they have, while working with them to plan ways to re-connect with alumni that are disconnected. My first meeting was with the Exec of the Youth in Government program. She is newish (a year) to the role so I didn’t know her, but we clicked right away and I think we might be a dangerous combination because we were off and running with big ideas and enthusiasm. I LOVE YIG and I am so incredibly excited to be able to work with this program. I left that meeting just floating. I have a million ideas, and I’m so so excited for the events that are coming up in the next few months. 
Friday, Nate and Gussie spent the day together while I worked- another in person meeting in the morning and then busy in my home office the rest of the day. We had a short happy hour with the neighborhood, but it was REALLY chilly out, so we didn’t last outside very long.
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The weather was so nice that after dinner, Nate suggested we go get ice cream.
This morning, Xander and I went to the YMCA to do some “serious swimming”. One of the great things that came from my gap in employment was that I started swimming twice a week. When I started in May, I could barely go one length (which is 25 yards) without feeling like I was going to die. But I got better and better and eventually set the goal of swimming a mile, which I now do regularly (for reference, that is 70 lengths or 35 laps in the pool). I am still a certified lifeguard trainer and ever since Xander swam a full length of the pool in swim lessons, he has been talking about being a lifeguard. He also wants to swim a mile, so we went to the Y to practice. He did SO well! He ended up swimming 6 lengths total (he can swim a full length without stopping or grabbing the edge of the pool). Then we took a break from laps and he dove for a ring a few times. He got better and went into deeper water each time. Then we practiced some rescues, where I sunk to the bottom of the pool (not all the way in the deep end) and he jumped in, dove down, grabbed me and swam me to the edge. He was super into it and did so well! It was fun to see him be so proud of himself and grow in confidence (he was definitely nervous when we got there).
At 11:30, we headed to our neighbor’s house for “sides-giving” which is all of the best sides from Thanksgiving, no turkey necessary. Our neighbors are all really good cooks, so whenever we get together, there is always a lot of really yummy things to eat. It was a very fun kick off to Thanksgiving week and always wonderful to spend time with our amazing neighbors.
