Monday, week 2 of new job

So, I decided to take the position at the child-care facility. It was a very difficult decision, but I felt so drawn to it, mostly because of the people there, and the place in general has such a nice, welcoming, warm feel. Not the usual disinfectant smell, everyone screaming & crying and staff looking like they'd rather be dead that you get at some child-care places. To be honest, I wasn't very inclined when I went to check it out, but was won over by the ambiance of the place. And, I've been rewarded. Other than this killer sore-throat + congested head which is no doubt from the little 3- & 4- year- old germ factories.

Perks include waking up leisurely at 8am every morning, then hopping on my bike sometime around 9:25 in my plain comfortable clothes and cycling over there with enough time to have a drink and cool down before 8 hours of on-duty action. 2 of which are designated 'nap'. Sadly, not for me. I would consider having a catnap during my half-hour break, but then, I couldn't talk to the cool Nigerian woman who always has her break at the same time as me, and we couldn't make fun of the people on 'Judge Alex' together.

Anyhow, its going well, and its SO good to have a routine again. And, the woman with whom I co-teach this class of 3 and 4 year olds is so interesting. She's a little younger than my own mother, and a self-proclaimed child of the 60's. I look forward to working with her, and she has so many good ideas on working with kids-- she's great at being simultaneously laid-back and right on top of the kids and what is going on. One of the things that I appreciate most about the position, though, is the creative outlet it allows me. Furthermore, as long as I am diligent to keep a positive attitude and not expect the kids to act like anything other than 3 and 4 year olds, the days are quite rewarding, if tiring!

I'm already dreading having to look for a new job when Sam and I (probably) move in the fall. But, I really oughtn't worry ahead of time for that. No need to be a pessimist!

In short, things are looking up on the employment front, other than the head cold, and life in general is pretty swell, too. More on that in the days to come.

Randployment

Ah, employment... always such a joy to find, happily keep, wonder about in the future. I'm struggling with a few things, here. The first is the panic that I'm losing time to pick a career and stick with it. I'm getting older, and I can't keep having such varied experience, blah blah blah. I realize this is debunked by, like, all these statistics about people switching careers, like 31 times per lifetime, but its still a panic sometimes. The second is feeling like my 'career choice' is my purpose. Sam and I were discussing this one, and how a career can be part of my purpose, but that I really have to keep remembering that my first purpose is to serve God, and my second is to be Sam's wife. Obviously both of those are roomy and allow for many employment opportunities, but it helped me in recognizing that my career isn't so much about identity. The last thing I'm struggling with is wanting to be as reponsible as possible with my time, talents, and passions. I don't just want something for money, or something else for fun. *sigh* I know it'll all sort itself out. In fact, I think I'm to go ahead and accept the lower pay, higher enjoyment opportunity and get it over with.

A Time to Settle

Just said goodbye to the last of the wedding guests. The two sisters set off for Dallas to stay with Aaron overnight before flying home tomorrow. We had a nice prayer time and sent them on their merry way. Had a great time walking around Norman with Julia today for about 2 1/2 hours despite the fact that the weather turned while we were out and we turned muy cold. But, we got a 10% discount at the Earth for arriving on foot, woo! Not to mention free copies at the copy shop, woo!

So, on to the real subject of me being Mrs. Negus. Or rather, formally Mrs. Negus, since technically Sam and I have been married since March 14 in order to make the immigration paperwork as painless as possible. Verdict: its great! And now that the strangely-defined in-between time is over, we are enjoying celebrating the fullness of marriage, yay, and living in our little brightly-colored house together. It will definitely be fun to grow together.

In fact, one of the things Julia and I were talking about today as we walked was how, in a Christ-centered marriage, surely one of the most exciting things will be to see the ways in which one's spouse grows in changes; since the two can rely on Christ to keep them bound together and growing closer, there need be no fear that changes will be detrimental to the relationship, so instead growth and change can be exciting. I'm interested to see how Sam continues to surprise me as we grow older together.

That's my little insight for today.