Utah and Yellowstone to Come; Alabama for Now

I still have to locate our camera and download the pictures before I can share with you our amazing trip out west. So for now I'll let you in on a little stress that's come over my poor husband.

He got a job offer. Now, different people react to things differently. For example, I'd be breaking out the bubbly (if certain circumstances were different - you knew I was pregnant, right? I assume everyone who reads this is either family or was at Ashley and Paul's wedding). But Josh thinks things over a little more thoroughly than I do. He has to weigh all his options. See, the difficult thing about this job is that it would require a move to Huntsville, Alabama. And this is a difficult decision for Josh because he is only 4 credits shy of completing his Ph.D. at Purdue (he could do his dissertation remotely) and that traslates into a year's worth of classes. The company in Alabama is not willing to wait any longer than the end of the semester. I think that's the main concern for him, but there are others. For one, the company is only 10 years old and the division that he would be working for is brand-spanking-new. That means there might be some instability. Another is that they have to win government grants to continue funding their projects and so in two years, if they don't win any more, the project is dead and that would leave Josh with a project he didn't sign on for. And of course, there's the fact that Olivia might develop a Forrest Gump accent.

But that's only looking at the negatives, and that's not the way I look at the world! When I look at this situation, I see... well, let's be perfectly honest here, I see the paycheck first and foremost. It's hard being married to a student - and we'll soon be a family of four! I was in the WIC office getting coupons for free groceries the day we found out about this offer. Of course I wanted him to take the job! I also see a great opportunity for Josh to get involved in the area he wants (attitude control, for those who don't know or might have forgotten). And what really are the odds that this company is going to crash? And I believe that if he got this job, he would prove himself in no time; his work ethic and dedication are the finest examples I've ever seen. If this currect project doesn't continue to get funding, they would simply relocate him. And if it were to a department he is not as interested in, then he could search for another job that suits him better. Did I mention that this job in Alabama would put him in a leadership position within a core group of engineers? How great would that look on a resume? I'd say about as good as a Ph.D. from Purdue. I don't think he'd have a problem finding a job he was more interested in.

But then... what about his goal to become a professor someday? Without a Ph.D., that wouldn't work. But then again, at universities, they don't necessarily look at the alma mater as much as an engineering firm would. Not all the professors at Purdue graduated from Purdue. He could get it from the University of Alabama in Huntsville. They even have a world-renowned researcher in controls that teaches there. But he's worried if he doesn't get his Ph.D. soon, he'll get distracted by career and a growing family and it won't happen til he's 65.

Well, speaking of getting distracted by family, Olivia's crying. She's not going to sleep very well tonight. What do you think? Should we move to Alabama?

Birthday, Haircut, Wedding

In my defense:
I started this post August 3. Bogger wouldn't upload the pictures, so I quit and went to Indiana, Utah, Wyoming, Utah, and Indiana and tried again. It apears to be working now.

I finally got the computer to recognize the usb cord for my camera and uploaded hundreds of pictures! You've missed so much out there and I apologize. I've also been gone a couple weeks here and there, and will be gone again in another week.

So, in my absense, Olivia has turned one!


She was a little confused by the cake and the fire and the cameras. I had to "help" her blow out the candle.


She was confused by the frosting, too. I had to help her with that as well. She didn't realize it was edible at first. She thought it was just for smooshing inbetween her fingers


She eventually got the hang of it.



After a good old-fashioned birthday bath (complete with party hat), she got to open presents!



One thing she hasn't grasped yet about opening present, though, is that the point is to just see what it is and then move on to the next. She got mad at us when we tried to take away a new toy so she'd open up another present.



Look at that possessive grip on that toy! We finally got her to open all her presents and she loved them all! Well... almost all of them...


A few days after her birthday, Great-Aunt Martha (I think that's her title) came and saw great need for a haircut!


I wondered how she'd keep Olivia from grabbing the scissors, but we found ways to make it happen.


Now that she's got her hair cut all pretty, it's time to get in her pretty jewelry...


And her pretty flower girl dress...



And practice!!


Here she is on her big day - a little nervous.


She actually ended up handing off the big job to Daddy once she got on the aisle.


Strange enough, that shy nervousness turned into pure nervous energy pretty quickly and she had to be removed from the sanctuary.


Here's Olivia and the beautiful bride, Ashley Borrego!


Congratulations, Ashley and Paul!