Yay for weekends!

I finished my first nine days in SC with the new job!  I survived and didn't quit and move back to KS!  That isn't to say that I didn't think about it!  The last week seemed like the longest one in my life.  I am sincerely glad it is over and do not want a repeat.  Reflecting back, it really wasn't that bad.  However, that's not to say it was a walk in the park, either.
It began with me starting work a day earlier than I planned.  Let's just say I have a hard time saying "No" to people in need.  I did negotiate an eight hour shift instead of 12.  I should get extra credit for that.  Plus, I saved a vacation day to spend with any future visitor this year.  Lucky me walked in at 12:45 to find the computers weren't working, and had not been since the store opened.  Yippee.  Finally, between 3 and 4pm the computers came up, and we had a whole day's work to make up.  In the middle of the dinner rush, Hubby calls and states he somehow locked himself out of the house.  No car keys, no wallet, barefoot, and both kiddos in the house asleep.  He made it to a neighbor's house to borrow their phone to call me at work.  Unfortunately, I cannot leave and don't get off until 9pm.  I tell him I will try to figure something out.  My mind freaks out.  I hold back tears, wait a few minutes, then ask my technician if she will take my house key and drive to my house to give it Hubby.  She agrees.  Our house is 20 minutes or more away.  She is gone over an hour, but at least my hubby makes it back in before the kiddos wake up.  Not my ideal first day.
The weekend I spend at the slowest store in the district.  I am the only employee in the pharmacy and I do less than 50 rxs each day.  I have busy moments, but 9 hours is torture to spend alone.  At least 95% of the customers were friendly and thankful for my help.
Day five began 10 hours at the busiest store the in the area, in a town 30 minutes away.  The store does about the same volume as my former store in KS, but they are 24 hours.  I expected it to be easier since some of the work should have been done over night.  Wrong thinking.  Mondays are typically the busiest day anyway, but this place isn't as efficient as it could be.  Plus, these people don't believe in taking breaks, apparently.  I should have feigned a smoke break.  On the up side, I met the district operations trainer, and she seemed really nice and helpful.  Tuesday and Wednesday were spent in the busy store.  Tuesday, I found myself missing KS and 3772 a bunch.  I missed my co-workers and friendly banter.  I'm still the newbie and no one really trusts my opinion yet.  I know it will take time to build that trust relationship, but it still hurts not to be taken seriously.
Thursday I worked three hours in the slow store.  Yup, three whole hours.  It wasn't too bad, I had a tech to talk to for two hours of it.  Friday was back to the busy store.  The store manager and operations trainer complimented my on work ethic and attitude.  I was surprised they had looked at my numbers, but pleased they noticed and took the time to tell me.  It was a rough week, but I had some positive notes, too.
This weekend we took the kiddos to the beach.  Finally.  I have been waiting for almost two weeks.  Do you know what's even more amazing then walking two blocks to the beach?  Walking to Starbucks for an iced white chocolate mocha ON THE WAY to the beach.  Yes, there is a Starbucks three blocks from my house, one block from the beach.  I'm in heaven.  We had a blast at the beach.  I tagged along after Handsome.  We dug in the sand and waded in the ocean.  Hubby and Princess jumped in the waves.  Both kids cried when we left.  Princess asked to go to the beach this afternoon and make sand castles.  I'm so happy my kids can grow up here.
Tomorrow, we are going to try a new church.  I'm excited to go and meet some new people.  Its important for our family to make new relationships, especially if Hubby gets locked out again.

Still Here, Barely

I'm still here, trying to blog in between opening boxes and doing laundry.  The place is starting to come together, although we are still missing a few key pieces.  We got purged ourselves of many belongings before moving, but I am convinced it is not enough.  And of course, things have not made it.  For instance, the feet to our dresser are MIA.  Plus, the dresser doesn't fit in our new room AND allow the closet door to open.  No one is brave enough to move it upstairs to the Princess' room, so it has taken up residence in the dining room.  I plan on using it as a buffet/decor storage thing.  Currently, it is sitting on cardboard until we muster enough energy to put felt on the corners to help avoid scratching the floors.  However, we did manage to move some loose plastic spoons and a pair of chopsticks.  How those made it and not the dresser feet I will never know.
Meanwhile, Princess, Hubs, and I have no place to store our clothes.  Dresser shopping needs to happen soon, but its hard to find the time.  Anyone have tips on how to store clothes in a small space without hanging everything?  I have so many things I need to do, it's hard to prioritize.  We did buy mattresses for the Princess.  She is moving up to a big girl bed.  We also purchased a rug for the living room and found a chair we (I) really like.  I think we might wait for the chair until next paycheck and search for a World Market coupon.
In the middle of all this my job called and asked if I could start work early, on Thursday.  I negotiated a one to nine shift, so hopefully I can find my work clothes that morning and figure out where the store is.  So now I have an extra vacay day for later in the year, but extra stress for myself now.  Why do I allow myself to say yes?  Maybe I need to leave town unexpectedly.  At least I got to walk to the beach today.  I might have to do that every day to remind myself these unexpected stressors are short lived.

Leaving on a Jet Plane

Saturday was the big day.  Hubby took the kiddos and I to the airport, where I met my Momma. We arrived around 11am and waited for our flight.   We didn't board until 1:20pm.  From there we flew to Cleveland.  Lucky for me, Handsome slept almost the whole way.   Princess entertained herself with an ipad.   Momma and I played Scrabble across the aisle.   It was a tiny plane.   One seat on one side of the aisle, and two on the other side.  I had to keep both kiddos with me because my side had an extra oxygen mask.  We had an hour and a half layover before the next flight.  There really weren't any kid friendly food places nearby, so I was an all-star mother and fed my offspring a dinner of Teddy Grahams, Nutrigrain bars, potato chips, PB crackers, milk, and apple juice.  It looks like a lot typed out, but they shared everything.  In addition to feeding my kiddos, we also tried to let them burn off some energy. This is where I am EXTREMELY thankful my Momma was along.  One of us could dash after Handsome while the other could watch the bags.   Handsome was always trying to dash through an open door or make the automatic doors open.  He almost made it into the President's Club.  It was also necessary to have two people for bathroom breaks.  I can't imagine trying to wrangle two kiddos, three bags, and diaper changes by myself.  Thank Heaven's for family bathrooms.  At one point, my Momma was waiting in the hall with Princess while Handsome and I were finishing up our business.  I could hear my child screaming for me.  I'm sure my mom was hoping no one would think she was trying to kidnap her.  Oh, and in the middle of all of this, I lost my boarding pass.   Not just mine, but my kiddos too.   And didn't realize this until 5 minutes before we were to board the plane.  We waited for the end of the line before I hung my head and confessed to the ticket taker what had happened.  She then asked to see my ID, and of course I couldn't find it.   A few minutes later my Momma found it at the bottom of my purse.  Seriously, I don't know what I would have done if she wasn't with me.  I would have had an emotional breakdown.
The second leg wasn't too eventful.   Princess fell asleep for the last 30 minutes.   Handsome flirted with the flight attendant. Once we landed, the captain announced the ramp was closed and we couldn't get off the plane.  We had to wait until it was re-opened.  Now my kiddos were upset.  We had to sit for another 15 minutes.  Once we were allowed off, it didn't take too long to get to the car and get on the road.
We decided to head to my Momma's house in SC instead of staying in her apartment in the city.  We drove through one of the most hellacious thunderstorms ever.  I mean, I love thunderstorms, and this one was awesome.   The lightening strikes where so bold and bright you could see a darker black outline where it used to be.  I think it burned my retinas.  The rain came down in sheets.  We pulled over for a bit, then decided to keep going.  We drove 30 mph for about 30 minutes. We could barely see the lanes, most people were driving with their hazards on.  I love a good thunderstorm.   It was like a welcome home present.
All in all, it really wasn't a bad trip.  Somehow I managed to get through it functioning on very little sleep and being emotionally exhausted.  Next time I decide to move across the country after working 8 days in a row while frantically packing and cleaning until midnight or later every night, please kindly remind me that isn't a good idea.  In fact, slap me in the face and tell me I'm insane.

Guess (Translate) That Word

Let's play a game. It's called "Guess that Word".    I'll tell you a word and and give you a hint, then you translate it from Baby Talk to English.  Doesn't that sound like fun?  Whoever guesses the most correct gets a prize!  Ok, here we go.

1.  Poh-pop.   I'm red and tomatoey.  Answer: Ketchup,  per Handsome

2.  Cherry.    I'm a diet supplement.  Answer:  Vitamin, per Princess

3.  Woh-wade.  Yellow, tart, and delicious.  Answer: Lemonade, per Princess 

4.  Awe-fuwl.   Sticky, breakfast carbs.  Answer: Waffles, per Princess

5.  Allaces.  British claymation show.  Answer:  Wallace and Gromit, per Princess

5.  Coocakes.  Something sweet?? Answer: Cupcakes, per Princess, refers to ANYTHING sweet.


Good Luck!  A follow up post with the answers and winners in one week!  (give or take a few days, you know how life goes with kiddos)

Winner is Andrew! You win a free night at the beach!  You just have to get here!  Runner up is Carly!  You also win a free night at the beach!  Email for more details!!!