The Short Story
Rob has a new job! He'll be working for Amnis, a company that sells a scientific data analysis machine. He'll be a Field Scientist / Analyst for the Midwest region. It starts November 5th and will pay him more money than he's currently making with all 4 of his jobs combined. Hurray!
If you'd like the longer story, read on. It's kind of a neat story.
The Back Story
A few months ago Rob's boss, Edith, who is a lovely woman, told Rob that she didn't have money for him beginning some time mid-2013. She didn't want to let him go without him having another job, so she asked him to start looking around. This wasn't unexpected. When Rob started work with Edith in 2010, he knew that she had guaranteed money for him for 3 years, but not necessarily longer.
So Rob started looking. We still wanted to stay in Cincinnati, so the plan was to look around here, then extend the search if something local didn't pan out. There are three faculty positions opening for local universities that he was looking at, one of them at NKU. That's still a long shot. The other two are only for one, possibly two years. So not ideal. And the position at Mount St. Joseph (that Rob was the runner-up for 2 years ago) hasn't materialized the way they said it would.
So local seemed unlikely. Our fall-back plan was for Rob to step up his adjuncting and for me to work full-time as an interpreter starting next fall. Not the best, but workable.
The Real Story
Seemingly unconnected to anything else job-seeking-related, Rob attended a scientific conference at the end of September. His co-worker and friend mentioned that it was a good place to network. Rob kind of ho-hummed the idea. On Thursday night, when he arrived, we talked on the phone. The conversation went something like this:
Tamra: When someone offers you a job tomorrow, you should say yes.
Rob: Yeah, okay, whatever.
Tamra: No. Really. Someone's going to offer you a job tomorrow, and you should say yes.
Every once in a long while, there are things that I know without knowing how. It wasn't IF but WHEN. Thankfully it doesn't happen often, because it makes me sound like a crazy person.
On Friday night Rob called and said, "So, how serious are we about looking into industry?" He explained that he'd met with some people from a particular company and they were looking for someone to fill a particular spot in that company. I was like, "Rob, that's your job!" (Okay, it wasn't a job offer, but it was close, no? Gotta admit my premonition was spookily accurate.)
Rob basically spent all weekend following them around, asking them questions about what they do and what their schedules are like and what the company is like. The company reps spent time watching Rob give a presentation and being generally impressed by him. They told him to send in his resume as soon as possible. Preferably the minute he got home.
It Gets Going
On Monday, Oct. 1st, he sent in his resume and cover letter. Within an hour he got a phone call to set up a phone interview for Tuesday, Oct. 2nd.
On Wednesday, Oct. 3rd, he got another phone call to set up a phone interview in 45 minutes from then. The guy said, "Normally things don't happen this fast, but you've really caused a stir around here. How do you know these guys?"
On Thursday, Oct. 4th, he got a phone call setting up an in-person interview at company head quarters in Seattle.
The interview was Thursday the 11th. It went amazingly well. The more Rob learned about the company and the people who work there, the happier he was to potentially work for them. And the more they learned about Rob, the more positive things they had to say about him. They did everything except formally offer him the job.
At the end of last week, after what seemed like a very long week, Rob got a phone call saying that they were going to offer him the job. It was nice of them to tell us before the weekend so we could have our lives back. This week he got the formal offer, negotiated a little, signed the final offer, and things are off and running!
About the Job and The Lord's Plan
We feel extremely grateful for all of this. Rob and I have been praying for years that a job would be prepared for him. We both assumed that would mean a job in academia, as a professor. But it just so happens that all of his skill sets, that he's been working on for years, or even decades, align perfectly with this job. Check it out:
- Rob has been teaching on the side for 4 years, to eventually impress a university. He had been told this is what he needed to do. Pay his dues. Guess who wasn't impressed with Rob's teaching experience? A single university. Guess who WAS impressed? Amnis.
- Rob has been using this machine for years during his post-doc work. He's won awards with this machine and his ability to use it to analyze his data. People in the lab come to him to help them with it. And it just so happens that the people who make this machine are looking for an expert who uses this highly specialized equipment? What are the chances?
- It's a bonus that Rob speaks German. The company that owns Amnis, called Millipore, or maybe it's Merck that owns Millipore... Merck owns Millipore owns Amnis. Either way, one of those two is based in Germany. They're looking to expand there. How many American companies think it's a bonus for their employees to speak German? Honestly, Rob has been so bummed over the years that his German has defiantly not come in handy.
And then there are other things that are just perfect for us:
- You have to be a people person. Check.
- You have to be okay with travel. This is a little scarier for Rob than it is for me. My dad traveled when I was a kid, and he still does, so it seems normal and natural for me. It'll be a lifestyle change, for sure, but one we can handle and one I think we'll end up really liking.
- Rob gets to work from home when he's not traveling. SCORE!
- We don't have to move. We can live anywhere in the Midwest area that's close enough to an airport to make traveling convenient. As an added bonus, there's an Amnis machine at Children's, and Rob already has a ton of connections there.
We feel so blessed. Heavenly Father is good to us.
So when you see Rob next, tell him congrats. We're both really excited about this change and what it will mean for our family and our lives and our future!
Showing posts with label Rob. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Rob. Show all posts
Thursday, October 25, 2012
Saturday, November 12, 2011
Rob and Tamra Update
Boring, boring, boring! But after the kid update, I got a request for a Rob and Tamra update, so here goes.
Short update: We're stressed.
Longer update:
Rob
Rob still has his lab job at Children's Hospital, which he enjoys, and is enjoying more and more as time goes on. He applied for a teaching job at the University of Cincinnati (UC), but he hasn't been contacted, so it's almost definitely a No.
The reason that job sounded so inviting is that it would have allowed Rob to stop working 3 and jobs at a time. Rob is teaching an introductory-level Biology class, with lab, every Tuesday and Thursday night at Northern Kentucky University. He LOVES it, but it's hard to be away from family so much. Then, when he's home, he has to prep lectures (though not as much any more, since he's been teaching the same class for almost 2 years now), grade papers, etc. At the same time, he's also teaching an on-line class for UC. Sometimes he teaches 2 sections of it.
These extra jobs allow for several things.
1 - Paying off the grad school debt that we accumulated when we thought Rob would graduate and be working an industry job and raking in $90,000/year. He's making about half that right now. ... Not that making less is a problem, because it's not. But being in debt IS a problem. We're still on track to be debt free (except the house) in 2013, give or take a year. That will be the biggest raise we've ever had. Right now between $700 and $900/mo. is going towards debt re-payment. That's like a second mortgage.
2- It's giving Rob teaching experience. It turns out, though, that this is not helping him stand out from the rest of the job applicant pool. We were told that it would. Those people lied to us. We're not bitter about that, it's just interesting. What it means is that Rob is now more motivated to get some stellar research done. He's working on a publication right now that's due on Tuesday. That's a guaranteed publication, too, so slam dunk for Rob. He has 2 others that he hopes to get out in 2012.
3- It pays for my school tuition.
Rob working for Edith, who is an angel in human form, is one of our greatest blessings. I know I say that a lot, but I say it as much as I can. You guys have no idea how much she has changed our family's life for the better. Rob is just now figuring out that he's good at science, that he can be successful at it, and that he just might want to do this for the rest of his life. Edith is an excellent mentor and boss, and I'm encouraging Rob to stay with her until something Amazing comes his way. Who knows when that will be.
Tamra
School pretty much dominates my life right now. This last week was my week off (Cincinnati State is currently on a 9-week term schedule, but that'll change in Fall 2012), so I've been savoring it. Doing all those things that I haven't done in weeks. Like folding the laundry while humming. And doing a project with the kids. And saying things like, "It'll all be alright," when Rob looks uber-stressed (instead of saying, "Yeah, me, too."). It's been a much-needed break.
I volunteer at the kids' school 4 times a month, which doesn't seem like a lot, and it's probably not, but it's about all I can handle. Otherwise, afternoons are my homework time. Or my time to not do homework because I'm so stressed that I can't even think about it. Rob makes dinner now, which helps me a ton, and I take care of the house except for that, and it works out pretty well.
The large upside to school is that I'm succeeding. Cincinnati State is a community college, which means it's ... not to sound cocky ... below what I'm capable of doing. I ace tests and papers with little effort. I feel for the students who find it difficult. ... I say little effort, but I'm putting in quite a bit of effort. School is a process I enjoy, and I very much dislike doing poorly on any assignment. My lowest grade on anything so far was a 90% on a homework assignment, and I was mad at myself. It's amazing how being 30 and feeling like I don't have time to waste changes my entire perspective. It didn't bother me, dropping out of college when I was 21. That's not an option this time.
I also have lots and lots of opportunities to sign. About every other weekend I'm at some deaf event, signing away for hours. I love it. I've also been interpreting once or twice a month at church. I was able to interpret for a deaf investigator meeting with the missionaries. That was a new experience for me, and I helped more than I hurt, so that's good. ... I'm learning a lot and improving a lot.
Our Family
School for me and 3 jobs for Rob means that our kids are getting the short end of the stick. We re-connect as a family over the weekend, and it's sacred time for all of us. The kids aren't involved in sports or any extra activities except for Miciah's piano on Wednesday nights. That's all we can handle right now. I feel kinda bad about that, but I know that the situation isn't forever. And maybe it's good for them to know that sometimes we can't have everything we want, and that a family sacrifices together. I dunno.
We don't hang out with friends much any more, which sounds sadder than it is. Rob and I hardly find the time to hang out with each other, so hanging out with friends is almost a burden right now. That sounds so friendly of me, right? The situation isn't upsetting or depressing, it just is what it is. Certain things have had to drop for our family to be successful. That's not sad at all. It's necessary.
What's been fascinating to me is seeing how much peace I've had through the whole process. I hate stress. Hate it. I avoid it like ... like something that should be avoided at all costs. Sure, some days I break down. But mostly I'm steady. I have the time to do what most needs to be done, and I don't mind doing it. I need less down time than normal, and I feel like Heavenly Father is strengthening our family. I get the sleep I need. I get and give the hugs I need. And I know that this is worth everything we're putting into it.
It's a good life.
Short update: We're stressed.
Longer update:
Rob
Rob still has his lab job at Children's Hospital, which he enjoys, and is enjoying more and more as time goes on. He applied for a teaching job at the University of Cincinnati (UC), but he hasn't been contacted, so it's almost definitely a No.
The reason that job sounded so inviting is that it would have allowed Rob to stop working 3 and jobs at a time. Rob is teaching an introductory-level Biology class, with lab, every Tuesday and Thursday night at Northern Kentucky University. He LOVES it, but it's hard to be away from family so much. Then, when he's home, he has to prep lectures (though not as much any more, since he's been teaching the same class for almost 2 years now), grade papers, etc. At the same time, he's also teaching an on-line class for UC. Sometimes he teaches 2 sections of it.
These extra jobs allow for several things.
1 - Paying off the grad school debt that we accumulated when we thought Rob would graduate and be working an industry job and raking in $90,000/year. He's making about half that right now. ... Not that making less is a problem, because it's not. But being in debt IS a problem. We're still on track to be debt free (except the house) in 2013, give or take a year. That will be the biggest raise we've ever had. Right now between $700 and $900/mo. is going towards debt re-payment. That's like a second mortgage.
2- It's giving Rob teaching experience. It turns out, though, that this is not helping him stand out from the rest of the job applicant pool. We were told that it would. Those people lied to us. We're not bitter about that, it's just interesting. What it means is that Rob is now more motivated to get some stellar research done. He's working on a publication right now that's due on Tuesday. That's a guaranteed publication, too, so slam dunk for Rob. He has 2 others that he hopes to get out in 2012.
3- It pays for my school tuition.
Rob working for Edith, who is an angel in human form, is one of our greatest blessings. I know I say that a lot, but I say it as much as I can. You guys have no idea how much she has changed our family's life for the better. Rob is just now figuring out that he's good at science, that he can be successful at it, and that he just might want to do this for the rest of his life. Edith is an excellent mentor and boss, and I'm encouraging Rob to stay with her until something Amazing comes his way. Who knows when that will be.
Tamra
School pretty much dominates my life right now. This last week was my week off (Cincinnati State is currently on a 9-week term schedule, but that'll change in Fall 2012), so I've been savoring it. Doing all those things that I haven't done in weeks. Like folding the laundry while humming. And doing a project with the kids. And saying things like, "It'll all be alright," when Rob looks uber-stressed (instead of saying, "Yeah, me, too."). It's been a much-needed break.
I volunteer at the kids' school 4 times a month, which doesn't seem like a lot, and it's probably not, but it's about all I can handle. Otherwise, afternoons are my homework time. Or my time to not do homework because I'm so stressed that I can't even think about it. Rob makes dinner now, which helps me a ton, and I take care of the house except for that, and it works out pretty well.
The large upside to school is that I'm succeeding. Cincinnati State is a community college, which means it's ... not to sound cocky ... below what I'm capable of doing. I ace tests and papers with little effort. I feel for the students who find it difficult. ... I say little effort, but I'm putting in quite a bit of effort. School is a process I enjoy, and I very much dislike doing poorly on any assignment. My lowest grade on anything so far was a 90% on a homework assignment, and I was mad at myself. It's amazing how being 30 and feeling like I don't have time to waste changes my entire perspective. It didn't bother me, dropping out of college when I was 21. That's not an option this time.
I also have lots and lots of opportunities to sign. About every other weekend I'm at some deaf event, signing away for hours. I love it. I've also been interpreting once or twice a month at church. I was able to interpret for a deaf investigator meeting with the missionaries. That was a new experience for me, and I helped more than I hurt, so that's good. ... I'm learning a lot and improving a lot.
Our Family
School for me and 3 jobs for Rob means that our kids are getting the short end of the stick. We re-connect as a family over the weekend, and it's sacred time for all of us. The kids aren't involved in sports or any extra activities except for Miciah's piano on Wednesday nights. That's all we can handle right now. I feel kinda bad about that, but I know that the situation isn't forever. And maybe it's good for them to know that sometimes we can't have everything we want, and that a family sacrifices together. I dunno.
We don't hang out with friends much any more, which sounds sadder than it is. Rob and I hardly find the time to hang out with each other, so hanging out with friends is almost a burden right now. That sounds so friendly of me, right? The situation isn't upsetting or depressing, it just is what it is. Certain things have had to drop for our family to be successful. That's not sad at all. It's necessary.
What's been fascinating to me is seeing how much peace I've had through the whole process. I hate stress. Hate it. I avoid it like ... like something that should be avoided at all costs. Sure, some days I break down. But mostly I'm steady. I have the time to do what most needs to be done, and I don't mind doing it. I need less down time than normal, and I feel like Heavenly Father is strengthening our family. I get the sleep I need. I get and give the hugs I need. And I know that this is worth everything we're putting into it.
It's a good life.
Friday, July 22, 2011
Fill in the Blank
Lots of things have happened lately and I've thought, "I should write that down." But then I didn't, of course. It seems alright to write them down now, though. In no particular order, here are some things I've been meaning to jot down.
Elijah Ruben
Elijah is named after my brother Ruben who passed away when he was 21 years old. (No apologies for that, please. It's not your fault, and that's just how life goes sometimes.) When I was pregnant with Elijah I felt that Rob had an extra special connection to this boy coming our way, so I asked Rob to name our son. Alas, the name came to me first. Rob came home one day and I said, "Sorry, his name is Elijah. But the middle name is all yours!" I was touched when some time later Rob said, "I've been thinking about it. What about 'Ruben'?" We called my family to make sure no one objected and then happily gave Elijah the legacy of being named after great men. Elijah the prophet, and Ruben my brother.
It never occurred to me then that this would lead a small boy to wonder about his namesake. We've shown all of the kids pictures of their uncle, told them stories, let them know that we loved him (past tense) and that we love him (present tense) and that we'll see him again and that he'll love them when he sees them on the other side. I try to make it a positive thing for them.
Elijah is a sensitive child. One night not too long ago he called me into his bedroom at night. He was crying. I asked him why he was crying and he said it was because he was sad that he'd never met his Uncle Ruben. We went over the normal stuff again: that Elijah is lucky to be named after his uncle, that Ruben loves him and wants him to be good. Elijah was still sad. "I just want to see him, Mom." "Me, too, buddy." I hugged him and we both cried a little.
When I left his room that night I thought, "I guess that's what I get for naming him Ruben." But then I remembered that I didn't name him Ruben, Rob did. I've always been grateful that my husband is such a giving, generous man. He wanted Ruben to be remembered and honored, even though Rob never met him. I have some good men in my life, that's for sure. I love them dearly.
Rob's a Pack Rat
No joke. When mildew hit our basement, I decided it was a great time to re-evaluate what was down there. Not much was fully destroyed, but some things were close, including a box of baby clothes saved for my kids' kids, and ancient boxes of memories.
I went through 3 boxes of letters I'd saved from High School and threw them away. They were special to me once, but I hadn't looked at them for years and I just didn't see the point in hanging on to them any longer. Then I encouraged Rob to go through his boxes, too.
It was hard for Rob. He's very sentimental when it comes to stuff like that (for instance, he loves music boxes. After he bought me 2, I told him he couldn't buy any more, even if he does love them. He gives me the same music box for Christmas every year and I love it. Rob's adorable). He opened his box of treasures and parted with:
- a blue fuzzy that he'd saved since he was 7 years old. When Miciah asked if she could use it for some crafts Rob said, "No!" Then I gave him The Look and he said, "Okay."
- 2 baseballs: his homerun baseball from a little league championship game
and the ball signed by his entire league champion team. When Elijah asked if he could sign it, too, Rob said, "No!" I gave him The Look again and Rob said, "What?! He wasn't on the team." I just shook my head.
- a two dollar bill given to him by his grandmother when he was 12
- some freaky-looking gold mice with red eyes. There were 3, one for each kid. Perfect.
- a stuffed animal mouse that Teancom immediately claimed and loved and named Jumpy because he loves to jump. (Did you know that Rob collected mice? Weird, right?)
Of my favorite Non-Treasures were:
- Rob's 5th Grade Spelling Bee trophy. Umm, yeah. A spelling bee. Here's Rob with the trophy before we pitched it:
- Best All-Round Student for 2nd grade. SECOND GRADE, PEOPLE!
- 2 mildew-covered scholar athlete awards. 1 highest GPA on the football team award (I said, "That's not an accomplishment. You could have done that with a 2.3 GPA.").
and my favorite, favorite, favorite trophy:
A Good Try Attendance Award for 2nd grade. ... Let that sink in for a moment. ... Awesome, right?
Love that Rob husband.
And that's it for today.
Elijah Ruben
Elijah is named after my brother Ruben who passed away when he was 21 years old. (No apologies for that, please. It's not your fault, and that's just how life goes sometimes.) When I was pregnant with Elijah I felt that Rob had an extra special connection to this boy coming our way, so I asked Rob to name our son. Alas, the name came to me first. Rob came home one day and I said, "Sorry, his name is Elijah. But the middle name is all yours!" I was touched when some time later Rob said, "I've been thinking about it. What about 'Ruben'?" We called my family to make sure no one objected and then happily gave Elijah the legacy of being named after great men. Elijah the prophet, and Ruben my brother.
It never occurred to me then that this would lead a small boy to wonder about his namesake. We've shown all of the kids pictures of their uncle, told them stories, let them know that we loved him (past tense) and that we love him (present tense) and that we'll see him again and that he'll love them when he sees them on the other side. I try to make it a positive thing for them.
Elijah is a sensitive child. One night not too long ago he called me into his bedroom at night. He was crying. I asked him why he was crying and he said it was because he was sad that he'd never met his Uncle Ruben. We went over the normal stuff again: that Elijah is lucky to be named after his uncle, that Ruben loves him and wants him to be good. Elijah was still sad. "I just want to see him, Mom." "Me, too, buddy." I hugged him and we both cried a little.
When I left his room that night I thought, "I guess that's what I get for naming him Ruben." But then I remembered that I didn't name him Ruben, Rob did. I've always been grateful that my husband is such a giving, generous man. He wanted Ruben to be remembered and honored, even though Rob never met him. I have some good men in my life, that's for sure. I love them dearly.
Rob's a Pack Rat
No joke. When mildew hit our basement, I decided it was a great time to re-evaluate what was down there. Not much was fully destroyed, but some things were close, including a box of baby clothes saved for my kids' kids, and ancient boxes of memories.
I went through 3 boxes of letters I'd saved from High School and threw them away. They were special to me once, but I hadn't looked at them for years and I just didn't see the point in hanging on to them any longer. Then I encouraged Rob to go through his boxes, too.
It was hard for Rob. He's very sentimental when it comes to stuff like that (for instance, he loves music boxes. After he bought me 2, I told him he couldn't buy any more, even if he does love them. He gives me the same music box for Christmas every year and I love it. Rob's adorable). He opened his box of treasures and parted with:
- a blue fuzzy that he'd saved since he was 7 years old. When Miciah asked if she could use it for some crafts Rob said, "No!" Then I gave him The Look and he said, "Okay."
- 2 baseballs: his homerun baseball from a little league championship game
and the ball signed by his entire league champion team. When Elijah asked if he could sign it, too, Rob said, "No!" I gave him The Look again and Rob said, "What?! He wasn't on the team." I just shook my head.
- a two dollar bill given to him by his grandmother when he was 12
- some freaky-looking gold mice with red eyes. There were 3, one for each kid. Perfect.
- a stuffed animal mouse that Teancom immediately claimed and loved and named Jumpy because he loves to jump. (Did you know that Rob collected mice? Weird, right?)
Of my favorite Non-Treasures were:
- Rob's 5th Grade Spelling Bee trophy. Umm, yeah. A spelling bee. Here's Rob with the trophy before we pitched it:
-- Best All-Round Student for 2nd grade. SECOND GRADE, PEOPLE!
- 2 mildew-covered scholar athlete awards. 1 highest GPA on the football team award (I said, "That's not an accomplishment. You could have done that with a 2.3 GPA.").
and my favorite, favorite, favorite trophy:
A Good Try Attendance Award for 2nd grade. ... Let that sink in for a moment. ... Awesome, right?
Love that Rob husband.
And that's it for today.
Saturday, April 16, 2011
The Great Thackeroni
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| (You can't tell in this picture, but the bow tie and cummerbund are TOTALLY hideous.) |
Some clarifications on the card tricks. They didn't come across well on camera, and honestly he'll have to perfect them for an audience because I think half of the people missed the joke at first. So: The first deck of cards he uses is a trick deck. All the cards are blank. The second trick with the 4 cards, 1 of them was from a completely different deck. 3 of the cards have a purple back and 1 has a red back. Same with the last trick. One of the cards is the red card and all the others are purple.
I told Rob that apparently his talent is comedy. And he's clearly a bit of a showman. Some of us (meaning me) aren't good at stuff like that.
Also, Rob is available for birthday parties! Serious. He says he'll do a show for a piece of cake.
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Valentine's Day, What?
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| Me and Rob, dressed up for a dance. Fall 2003, I think. I was pregnant with Elijah. Was Rob really this big? Was I really that white? Am I still?? |
I did like that Rob made me brownies, first thing in the morning, as a surprise. And I did like that he made the bed, which means it was made for the first time in months (I only rarely make the bed. It seems so pointless to me). And I like that people give cute Valentines. Not that I give cute Valentines. I just like when people give them to me. Not that anyone did. Just saying.
When I got a call from the school saying that Elijah was sick, I didn't think, "Ah, man! This ruins my romantic holiday!" I just went and picked him up. Poor kid, he's been mostly miserable, with moments of bearably unpleasant. Welcome, flu, to our home. You can stay as long as you'd like, though I'd prefer if it wasn't too long. Not trying to force you, though. Make what decision you will.
But I have been thinking about a few things, relating to Rob and love and marriage and yucky stuff like that.
First, Rob is still the best man I know. This is why I married him, and my opinion hasn't changed since day one. I've met men that I've thought were just as good as him. As in, "Oh, he's another great guy, just like Rob." But never, ever, ever have I met a man that blew Rob out of the water.
Second, Rob loves all the time, no matter what. I do not. I can be fickle and harsh and other things that aren't very charitable. This is another reason why I married Rob. He's impossibly loving! And you know what? It's impossible to not love someone who loves you impossibly well. So in my worst moments, when I want to just not like him, I can't do it. If I press hard, he just lets me. If I yell, he holds me tighter (or lets go, whichever I demand at the moment). If I say I hate him, he says, "What can I do to make you love me again."
Looking back, I did a good job finding a man who balances out my non-reliable-ness when it comes to love. Not that I saw it at the time, but I'm grateful for it now.
Thank you, Rob, for being a better person than me. Please don't ever change.
Happy Valentine's Day, a day late. The roses were cheaper today.
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Today is Rob's Birthday
Today is Rob's birthday. He's 31. We aren't doing anything fun for his birthday, since Tuesdays are the days he isn't home until 10 p.m. Though he did sleep in this morning and hold me instead of getting up early. A delightful start to the day, for sure.
His siblings called the cell phone over night to leave him 31 messages. Only 19 saved before our mailbox filled up, but still it was awesome. They sang songs in English and Portuguese, and even wrote their own adapted show tune songs. They gave the most unenthusiastic "Happy Birthday" in the history of wishing people Happy Birthday. Roommates and an "Ohio policeman" gave Rob birthday wishes, a gun did, some dogs and some German pigs did. A cute gay guy named John (inside joke with a long and glorious history) told Rob that he was looking "fine" and that he was "just right," like Goldilocks.
Rob, of course, loved every minute of it.
Rob's parents came in town 2 weekends ago and surprised him for an early birthday present. They met us at Rob's favorite restaurant, a delightful Mexican place called Cancun, and you should have seen Rob's face when they showed up. Then his parents paid for dinner and for the babysitter, and that was a wonderful gift.
I, however, am not giving Rob anything for his birthday. That's how deep my love goes. ... I should probably get all lovey-dovey and mention the top 31 things I love about Rob. But I won't drag you through that. Suffice it to say that Rob is a great husband and father, and he's one of the best men I've ever met. I've spent the last 9 years trying hard to be more like him. The kids and I adore him and could ask for no better man in our lives.
Miciah wrote a message for him in the snow before she left for school this morning. I had to take pictures of it because the snow is melting off the cement and it won't exist by the time Rob gets home tonight. It's a little hard to make out, but it's "Happy B-Day!" marked out with her shoes. The dot for the exclamation point is done with her hand. Super cute.
Happy Birthday, Rob. We love you!
His siblings called the cell phone over night to leave him 31 messages. Only 19 saved before our mailbox filled up, but still it was awesome. They sang songs in English and Portuguese, and even wrote their own adapted show tune songs. They gave the most unenthusiastic "Happy Birthday" in the history of wishing people Happy Birthday. Roommates and an "Ohio policeman" gave Rob birthday wishes, a gun did, some dogs and some German pigs did. A cute gay guy named John (inside joke with a long and glorious history) told Rob that he was looking "fine" and that he was "just right," like Goldilocks.
Rob, of course, loved every minute of it.
Rob's parents came in town 2 weekends ago and surprised him for an early birthday present. They met us at Rob's favorite restaurant, a delightful Mexican place called Cancun, and you should have seen Rob's face when they showed up. Then his parents paid for dinner and for the babysitter, and that was a wonderful gift.
I, however, am not giving Rob anything for his birthday. That's how deep my love goes. ... I should probably get all lovey-dovey and mention the top 31 things I love about Rob. But I won't drag you through that. Suffice it to say that Rob is a great husband and father, and he's one of the best men I've ever met. I've spent the last 9 years trying hard to be more like him. The kids and I adore him and could ask for no better man in our lives.
Miciah wrote a message for him in the snow before she left for school this morning. I had to take pictures of it because the snow is melting off the cement and it won't exist by the time Rob gets home tonight. It's a little hard to make out, but it's "Happy B-Day!" marked out with her shoes. The dot for the exclamation point is done with her hand. Super cute.
Happy Birthday, Rob. We love you!
Friday, September 21, 2007
Pictures I Wanted to Share
I send out a lot of pictures. Probably because when Collin gave me this camera, he told me I had to send out lots of pictures. I suppose if you ever get tired of them, you don't have to view them. :) Oh, and if anyone ever wants the full-sized version of photos I send out, just let me know. I have the ability to send out larger files, it's just inconvenient, so I usually send out smaller pictures. I figure they normally just get viewed and deleted anyway, not printed out for photo-quality stuff.
These 2 photos are from late last night. Rob and I were playing parcheesi, a game we've come to love. I beat him mercilessly (really, it was a blow-out). Then he sat there for like 20 minutes trying to build an animal pyramid. The first photo is of him concentrating (check out those focused eyes!). The second photo is of the pyramid, the best it got. Too bad the video is much too large to send out. Cause it's pretty funny to watch how weird Rob gets after 11 p.m.
I can never get very good pictures of Elijah, hence I'm always trying. ... I finally figured out that he looks cheesy when he smiles for the camera because he doesn't naturally smile very much. So I've stopped asking him to smile for the camera and the pictures are turning out better--more natural.
These are my 3 latest attempts.
I was labelling my pictures and came across this one Rob took of Elijah. It reminds me very much of photos of Ruben when he was a little kid. At the very least, it shows off Elijah's T-ness (in looks, not in behavior)!
Tamra
Monday, November 27, 2006
Saturday, January 28, 2006
An Update
I don't get around to e-mail much lately, as you all have noticed. By the time I get the time, I don't often have the energy, or some other combination of things like that. But here's the latest at the Thacker home.
Rob's Tests
Rob took his big big test last Wednesday. It's his qualifying exam that if he doesn't pass with a 70% or better we get kicked out of grad school. He should know in a matter of days what he got on the test. He is very confident about it and is pretty sure he passed. So the stress looming over our family for the 3 weeks before that test is now gone and life is good. Rob is again funny and relaxed, and we like him that way. He took another test Monday for the class he's taking and surprised himself (he didn't have much studying time cause he was worn out from the qualifying exam, and he doesn't like the subject either) by setting the curve. Go Rob.
Ultrasound
Wed. the 25th I went to the doctor for the first time and found out that we are NOT having twins. This is the best news I've had in a while. :) One at a time is fine with me. As far as the doctor could tell, the baby has no birth defects (they can't tell for sure on Downs, though he's pretty sure the baby doesn't have it, and they can't tell on the heart cause it's too little right now)--no spinabifida (however you spell that), the brain is normal, organs he could see are normal--and the due date is right on schedule. I forget which was the first day of my last period and put down Oct. 20th, which put my due date at July 27th. The ultrasound put it at July 29th. Oops, it just means I put down the wrong date. I knew it was either the 20th or 22nd. Obviously it was the 22nd. I'm debating telling the doc, though. He said we could keep it the 27th and it doesn't matter much, so I'm okay with that.
Rob Turns 27
Rob's birthday was the day after, the 26th. Rob is 27 now and that seems weird to me, but I like that he's mature. :) He went to school like normal and we had R & C and T T, a good friend, over for dinner. We feasted unlike normal and it was great. T stayed until 10 pm chatting with us. T is one of the only people on the face of the earth who can make Rob laugh. It was fun. Then Rob slept in Friday and didn't go in to school and did work at home instead. Life is good. ... I got Rob a pan for his b-day. Doesn't that sound like the most non-romantic, lame gift you can think of? But he was excited. It's a little bitty pan to fry his eggs in in the morning. We also rented movies to watch for his b-day cause Rob is a movie junkie.
Rob's folks are coming in tonight and taking us out to dinner at a restaraunt of Rob's choosing. I don't know where we'll go. We were going to make dinner for them, but thought them taking us out was better. :) We'll feed them dinner tomorrow instead.
Pregnancy
I am feeling pretty good in terms of pregnancy stuff. I am tired all the time, but otherwise feel really good. I was sick this past weekend and gave my kids to whomever would watch them cause I was just knocked out with this cold. I feel much better, though, and have no real complaints. There are worse things than being tired all the time.
Company
Life is good and we stay busy, even though I thought I'd be ready for breaks. Come to find out about myself, though, that if we don't have company scheduled for like a week, I start inviting people over. A curse from Mom and Dad, I think: liking to have people over for dinner. How boring to just have Rob and I and the kids! We probably eat more meals with other people than by ourselves. Over this next week and a little bit, I'm inviting over 2 couples that have had us over to their house more than we've had them over to ours. This is not okay with me. We will not be the family that doesn't reciprocate. I remember (as a kid in my parents' household) having a ton of people over to eat at our house, whole families of sometimes 10 or more people. And I remember being invited to ONE person's house to reciprocate. I have since decided this is not cool with me and have made it a rule that if someone invites us over, we WILL invite them over. My little pet peeve. We're never offended when others don't reciprocate, but we won't be the guilty party. :)
That's life. Sorry it's been so long. I was thinking about sending pics of the ultrasound, but you can't see a lot anyway. No gender stuff or anything. ... The doc does have this "4D ultrasound" technology that's pretty cool. It interprets the ultrasound images into a 3D picture of what you're looking at. Pretty rad. But I will be sending, as soon as I get around to it, a picture that Miciah colored. It's beautiful. I think I'm going to scrapbook it, it's that neat. I'll take a picture of it and send it along hopefully before the year is over. :)
Tamra
Rob's Tests
Rob took his big big test last Wednesday. It's his qualifying exam that if he doesn't pass with a 70% or better we get kicked out of grad school. He should know in a matter of days what he got on the test. He is very confident about it and is pretty sure he passed. So the stress looming over our family for the 3 weeks before that test is now gone and life is good. Rob is again funny and relaxed, and we like him that way. He took another test Monday for the class he's taking and surprised himself (he didn't have much studying time cause he was worn out from the qualifying exam, and he doesn't like the subject either) by setting the curve. Go Rob.
Ultrasound
Wed. the 25th I went to the doctor for the first time and found out that we are NOT having twins. This is the best news I've had in a while. :) One at a time is fine with me. As far as the doctor could tell, the baby has no birth defects (they can't tell for sure on Downs, though he's pretty sure the baby doesn't have it, and they can't tell on the heart cause it's too little right now)--no spinabifida (however you spell that), the brain is normal, organs he could see are normal--and the due date is right on schedule. I forget which was the first day of my last period and put down Oct. 20th, which put my due date at July 27th. The ultrasound put it at July 29th. Oops, it just means I put down the wrong date. I knew it was either the 20th or 22nd. Obviously it was the 22nd. I'm debating telling the doc, though. He said we could keep it the 27th and it doesn't matter much, so I'm okay with that.
Rob Turns 27
Rob's birthday was the day after, the 26th. Rob is 27 now and that seems weird to me, but I like that he's mature. :) He went to school like normal and we had R & C and T T, a good friend, over for dinner. We feasted unlike normal and it was great. T stayed until 10 pm chatting with us. T is one of the only people on the face of the earth who can make Rob laugh. It was fun. Then Rob slept in Friday and didn't go in to school and did work at home instead. Life is good. ... I got Rob a pan for his b-day. Doesn't that sound like the most non-romantic, lame gift you can think of? But he was excited. It's a little bitty pan to fry his eggs in in the morning. We also rented movies to watch for his b-day cause Rob is a movie junkie.
Rob's folks are coming in tonight and taking us out to dinner at a restaraunt of Rob's choosing. I don't know where we'll go. We were going to make dinner for them, but thought them taking us out was better. :) We'll feed them dinner tomorrow instead.
Pregnancy
I am feeling pretty good in terms of pregnancy stuff. I am tired all the time, but otherwise feel really good. I was sick this past weekend and gave my kids to whomever would watch them cause I was just knocked out with this cold. I feel much better, though, and have no real complaints. There are worse things than being tired all the time.
Company
Life is good and we stay busy, even though I thought I'd be ready for breaks. Come to find out about myself, though, that if we don't have company scheduled for like a week, I start inviting people over. A curse from Mom and Dad, I think: liking to have people over for dinner. How boring to just have Rob and I and the kids! We probably eat more meals with other people than by ourselves. Over this next week and a little bit, I'm inviting over 2 couples that have had us over to their house more than we've had them over to ours. This is not okay with me. We will not be the family that doesn't reciprocate. I remember (as a kid in my parents' household) having a ton of people over to eat at our house, whole families of sometimes 10 or more people. And I remember being invited to ONE person's house to reciprocate. I have since decided this is not cool with me and have made it a rule that if someone invites us over, we WILL invite them over. My little pet peeve. We're never offended when others don't reciprocate, but we won't be the guilty party. :)
That's life. Sorry it's been so long. I was thinking about sending pics of the ultrasound, but you can't see a lot anyway. No gender stuff or anything. ... The doc does have this "4D ultrasound" technology that's pretty cool. It interprets the ultrasound images into a 3D picture of what you're looking at. Pretty rad. But I will be sending, as soon as I get around to it, a picture that Miciah colored. It's beautiful. I think I'm going to scrapbook it, it's that neat. I'll take a picture of it and send it along hopefully before the year is over. :)
Tamra
Saturday, February 12, 2005
Pictures of Rob and Tamra
Rob and I went to a Valentine's Dance at the church last night. Rob wore his tux and I wore my wedding dress which I revised with a ribbon. I love it. My friend did my hair and I was the belle of the ball, which has never happened to me before. It was kind of nice.
Tamra
Tamra
Sunday, January 2, 2005
Merry Christmas 2004!
(this picture is blue-tinted because of a lame camera-operator. that's me)
Hope you had a happy holiday season. We're looking forward to things getting back to normal.
Love,
Tamra and family
Friday, February 6, 2004
Graduate Schools
I guess it's time for an update on graduate schools.
For those who didn't know, Rob interviewed at University of Pennsylvania 2 weeks ago. He was told today he was not accepted to their program, which isn't a horrible thing. They have a Parasitology program specifically (none of the other schools he applied to do), but he's having second thoughts about going into that specifically and so keeping his options open to a broader program may be a plus.
He applied to several other schools, most of which he's heard back from:
* Washington University in St. Louis turned him down. Which is okay, too. That was the dream school we weren't sure he had much chance of getting into. And who wants to live in St. Louis, anyways.
* Medical College of Ohio in Toledo offered Rob an interview which he turned down. They offer substantially less money than the other schools do, and they're also a much smaller and less well known school.
* Ohio State University accepted him.
* University of Cincinnati accepted him.
* University of Washington - Seattle and University of Wisconsin both have yet to get back to Rob with a yes or a no. However, neither of these schools are his top choice.
Rob will soon be planning times to go out to Ohio to visit both UC and OSU. Hopefully he can get them to see him 2 days in a row so we only have to arrange one trip out there. UC has given Rob some specific dates in March, so we'll be planning from those. For those of you that this may involve (Cincinnati folk mostly), we'll be keeping in touch with plans.
That's our update. Thanks for all your love, support, and prayers. We'll definitely let you all know when we decide which school is best for our family and hopefully for some of you, we'll be moving a little closer! We love you all.
Tamra
For those who didn't know, Rob interviewed at University of Pennsylvania 2 weeks ago. He was told today he was not accepted to their program, which isn't a horrible thing. They have a Parasitology program specifically (none of the other schools he applied to do), but he's having second thoughts about going into that specifically and so keeping his options open to a broader program may be a plus.
He applied to several other schools, most of which he's heard back from:
* Washington University in St. Louis turned him down. Which is okay, too. That was the dream school we weren't sure he had much chance of getting into. And who wants to live in St. Louis, anyways.
* Medical College of Ohio in Toledo offered Rob an interview which he turned down. They offer substantially less money than the other schools do, and they're also a much smaller and less well known school.
* Ohio State University accepted him.
* University of Cincinnati accepted him.
* University of Washington - Seattle and University of Wisconsin both have yet to get back to Rob with a yes or a no. However, neither of these schools are his top choice.
Rob will soon be planning times to go out to Ohio to visit both UC and OSU. Hopefully he can get them to see him 2 days in a row so we only have to arrange one trip out there. UC has given Rob some specific dates in March, so we'll be planning from those. For those of you that this may involve (Cincinnati folk mostly), we'll be keeping in touch with plans.
That's our update. Thanks for all your love, support, and prayers. We'll definitely let you all know when we decide which school is best for our family and hopefully for some of you, we'll be moving a little closer! We love you all.
Tamra
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