Introductions and Getting to Work

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I'm taking a quick break from all the busy things going on right now so I can participate in Share Our Lives 2024, a monthly link-up to share aspects of our daily lives with each other. It's the new name of what used to be the Not Just A Mom link-up, and I like the title change! For this first month's theme, we are introducing (or re-introducing!) ourselves and telling about the jobs we've had. So here goes!

First, introductions! I thought it would be easiest for me to grab my Introduction post from last year and use some highlights from that. It was only my second post here on A Fresh Cup of Coffee. Before beginning this blog I had been writing a homeschool blog for many years, but needed a bit of a rebrand since my kids had all graduated and I was REALLY "not just a mom" any more! 

Here are some of the facts I shared a year ago - with some updates.

• I'm originally from Calgary, Alberta, Canada, and although I've been an American for about thirty years, some still claim to hear my accent. 
• My husband and I moved to southern New Jersey when our oldest son was a baby. We lived there for a couple of years, had another son, and then moved to Maryland (not far from Thurmont) where we lived for more than twenty years. In November of 2022 we moved to Ohio, where we've been adjusting to an abruptly Empty Nest, in which the parents are the ones who flew away!
• We home educated all four children from the beginning right through to high school graduation. Even after the youngest graduated, I stayed involved in the homeschool community and continued tutoring at the co-op we'd started.
• My children are Harrison, Spencer, Landon, and Kennady. Harrison and his family live fairly close to where we are in Ohio. Spencer, Landon and his family, and Kennady all live in Maryland - in the family home we left behind! I'm also Nonny (my grandmother title!) to Veronica and Aubrey! 
• Last year I said I was hoping to get involved in music here in Ohio. Well, that happened! I joined Scioto Valley Chorus, which is a Sweet Adelines chorus (women's barbershop) and I have also been playing keyboard on the worship team at our church. 
• Last year I was starting to think about whether I wanted to look for a job, and if there were other ways I could keep myself busy here. That seems like a good segue to the other part of this link-up theme - the jobs we've had. 

This is my very informal resume, a list of the different jobs I've held over the years:

• I worked various part time jobs as a teenager and young adult, but my first full time "grown-up" job was during my gap year between high school and college, when I worked in the accounting office of a commercial bakery.
• As it turned out, I didn't finish college, deciding to get married instead. I was the office manager for a carpet cleaning company, then worked in the accounts offices of a major aviation repair company, and then as the assistant comptroller for a heavy construction company. I really enjoyed that job and they even offered to pay for my classes if I got a CMA license. But by that time I was expecting my first baby, so I reluctantly declined. I took my maternity leave but never returned to that job.
• I was a full time mom, and homeschool mom for the next couple of decades! I did have a couple of other jobs along the way during those years: I was a paid musician/worship director early on; I did accounts receivable for the church for a few years; and one summer I managed the tasting room at a small winery! In the homeschool world, I did a lot of volunteer work, especially as a tutor in our co-ops. When my youngest was in high school, I worked with a couple of other moms to establish a high school tutorial co-op, and that was when I started getting paid as a tutor! I taught high school writing, literature, and history; and I was hired to teach middle school grammar and composition at a private hybrid school.
• It was a very brief time, and a couple of decades ago that I was being paid to do music for the church, but as a singer and keyboard player, I considered even my volunteer work in church worship music to be a career of sorts. Even without professional titles in that area, being a worship leader has been one of my most rewarding roles, and I've been involved in that ever since I was a teenager. While in Maryland, my husband, my son Landon, and my daughter Kennady were in my worship band, and Spencer was our sound tech. Kennady is now the director of that worship team and I sure miss being able to play music with family! 
• My love of all things coffee was rewarded by a part-time job managing a coffee roastery for a few years and I really enjoyed that. Not just being around all that coffee all day at work, but learning so much about coffee, and getting to know co-workers and customers. 
• Several months ago I got a part-time job in Columbus, doing accounts receivable for LKQ Keystone. I've been enjoying it, and since I was commuting to work five days a week anyway, I decided I should just go ahead and see about switching to full-time hours so I could get some benefits. Today is my first day working full time! First time I've worked a regular full-time schedule in about thirty years, y'all!! Pray for me!

I'm a little concerned that working full-time is going to take away from blogging time and other free time activities, but I will adjust! Probably by spending far less time adding photos and graphics to my posts. Sorry for the visual boring-ness of this one!

Speaking of blogging and link-ups, the first Twenty-Six Lists link-up will open tomorrow, January 9th and I'd love to have you join me! Each list is up for two weeks and the first one will be a list of accomplishments and goals! (Find out more here: Introducing Twenty-Six Lists)

This post will be linked up with the Share Our Lives 2024 Link-up hosted by Adrienne, Dara, Jen, Joanne, and Sarah.

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