I made it the whole week!

Well, I made it through the entire week at my new job. I wouldn't say I am proud of it or anything, I am just thrilled to have a job! I keep telling my new co-workers that I am stoked to be at work. They kind of look at me sideways and get a funny look on their face, like they are not sure what to think. I tell them that I really am excited to be there and they just kind of smirk and walk away, shaking their heads as they go. I can't help it if it's the truth - I am totally jazzed about being at work. I am helping the team by working on an energy simulation model that we have going on for a school district in central Idaho (confidentiality requires that I say no more about the client).

I think I am making a good impression on my new co-workers. I hope that as they get to know me a little better, they can use my talents. I think this process has been hard for Joel. He was promoted and I took his job, but he still has some of the same responsibilities until he can hand them off to me. I have been asking him for tasks and he says something like "Do you want to do this for me?" and I say to him, "If that is what you need me to do, I will do it." Sometimes I think he is afraid I will tell him no. I don't know why he would think that, especially since this is what they hired me to do. Oh well, I will just keep on trying to exceed their expectations and do the best I can all the time.

Here is a picture of Erin on our trip to Stanley last year. When we got to the hill for sledding, there were no tracks in the snow at all, so we ran the snowmobiles down the hill a few times to try to get the snow packed down a little bit and make a trail. When Erin got on the sled to go down the hill, she followed the path for a little bit, then jumped off the trail and almost ran into the rock that is mostly snow-covered in this picture. I don't think she would admit it, but from my vantage point it sure looked like she was having fun.

This one is from the Blue and Gold Banquet last February. Tyler earned his Webelos Rank. As part of the ceremony, all the boys who earned their rank advancements had to get them out of a cupcake without using their hands. The rank badge had been baked in the cupcake and then frosted, so it fun to see that some boys just got after it to get their badge and didn't care how messy they got. Other boys tried not to get any frosting on themselves. Since these were my Webleos boys, I walked around the table behind all of them as they were finding their badges in the middle of the cupcakes. I accidentally bumped a few boys which had the unfortunate result of them getting more frosting on their face than they had hoped. The two boys in the background of this picture just got their Bobcat ranks and had had their faces painted with bobcat whiskers by their moms. It was a great time!