We celebrated a birthday today. Our friends and family joined us at Bates Nut Farm with half of the rest of San Diego county. It was warm, super-crowded, and a lot of fun. I'll put up some photos later today, but here is a short video of the cake that Jenetta made.
The past 6 weeks have really been unique for us. It's been over 8 years since I've had a month off from work. So in many ways, the rest has been awesome! I've surfed a lot, gotten some good distance runs in, read a few great books, had time to hang out with friends, and spent the majority of each day doing things with the girls. The time has flown by, and I have very much enjoyed the chance to recharge.
Some people have been asking me about the status of the company I was working for. It is still totally up in the air. I have been assured by the shareholders that are reorganizing the company that they want me to be a part of the process going forward. But one estimated date after another has passed without any resolution. There is still no new company. There is no money in the old company's bank account, and there will be no funding for the new company until the situation with my former boss is settled.
That has been the most annoying part. He has stalled and delayed and negotiated and countered and basically wasted everyone's time after agreeing to "do the right thing" well over a month ago. I've been put in a tough place as the person with a lot of inside information about what has gone on with our company that I didn't feel comfortable sharing out of respect to my former boss. Today I found out that his latest stall tactic is to blame me of all people! I am being accused of mail fraud and sabotaging negotiations between him and the shareholders. These claims are completely ridiculous and the shareholders aren't buying it, but I sure am steamed about it! I want to really give him a piece of my mind, but it just isn't worth it, so I sit on the sidelines and wait.
Speaking of that, I went to LA on Monday to meet with the person who would be the new CEO if the company ever gets going. I really admire him and he has taken the time to share a lot of his experience with me. One thing that really stuck with me is he told me that hope is not a very effective business strategy. He advised me to get going and see what I could get on my own. So I am back to interviewing and applying and waiting...
In the meantime, I've been surprisingly busy this week. I got a gig as an extra with speaking lines on a reality TV show pilot for the Food Network. Today I had a lot of time on camera and had a bunch of fun. I hope the show makes it! It could lead to some production work for me as it will be filmed in Carlsbad. I'm shooting a house for a former real estate client tomorrow morning, I've had an interview with a temp agency, and we're getting ready to host O's 5th birthday.
Our oldest daughter turns 5 tomorrow. Things are going better with her. We've discovered that significant exercise really helps her, so when she doesn't go to school, I try to run with her 2-3 miles in the morning. It's challenging to make it a game for her and to vary it up so she doesn't check out. But for the most part, she enjoys the time we spend together. And when we get back home, she is much more pleasant to be around!
L is getting over three weeks of croup - that was no fun! She was coughing so much, and her little voice sounded like a three-year-old's version of a chain smoker. She was kind enough to give the adult version of her cough to both of us, so both Jenetta and I are hacking and coughing most of the time, although mine is mostly better by today.
My parents arrive tomorrow night. They are driving down for O's party. It's a long haul for them, so we appreciate it a lot. I'm sure I'll post stuff later when they are here.
Jenetta did a photo shoot today with a family and their three dogs. She continues to plug away at her blog and discover ways we can make more money at it a few cents at a time - it all adds up! I enjoy watching her interact with the girls. She has a very nurturing side that I'd never really seen before. And she's also a no-nonsense, take no crap kind of mommy. I like to see that side of her, too.
So that's pretty much where we are. Send us a line or update your blog and tell us the same for you... :)
Last night we got together with our homegroup to celebrate our second annual "Friendsgiving." It is a time for us to feast and be thankful for the blessings of friendship in our lives.
This year, we decided to do it closer to Canadian Thanksgiving than the US one for no reason in particular other than we didn't want to wait another month :)
As David said in the e-vite: "i love thanksgiving meal so dang much. doing it more than once a year is a dream come true for me."
:)
Last year, I put together this huge party for Jenetta with lots of friends. This year, we just had a quiet night at Joy and CJ's home. Joy took the girls in the afternoon and made a cake and wrapped presents for Jenetta. We took the opportunity to clean the kitchen here at home and then we headed over to enjoy the evening.
This year sure has been full of changes for us!
My brother Joel and his wife Emily welcomed Jacob Greg Penner to their family last week. So far, he is the only boy in the growing group of grandchildren.
Everyone is doing fine!
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