November 2012

So there are a number of things that I want to talk about today...but as far as family blogs go, I feel that I really should try to keep those things out.  I'll allow myself to say that I (personally) was really hoping for a different outcome last night.  But, such is life.  We'll keep moving forward and upwards and get our revenge via our well lived lives and happiness.  There.  Done.  Onto the brighter and more enjoyable updates!

Needless to say, it's been a very, very, very busy schedule for both Anna and I.  Work has come to the point of my being here roughly 10-12 hrs/day on average for the design of our new workflow system - and it doesn't look like that is going to be slowing down anytime before the (current) go-live date of February 15, 2013.  Anna's been swamped by work, school, and the growing expectations of motherhood (we're at 15 weeks!!) as well.

In regards to the 'upgrades' to the house, I'm nearly done with the basement.  All I have left is to finish the flooring in the new guest room/office's closet, replace the baseboards, and then move all the furniture.  Granted...this might take a little while (since my partner in crime can no longer lift anything over 15 lbs.).  But I'll try to post some pictures either via here (with the next monthly update) or on Facebook as soon as we can get some produced (Anna does love to take pictures of progress).

October 2012

Man, make this the theme for Anna and I this month.  As usual, here's the late update for the latest events.  ::sigh::

We're nearly at the 12 week mark for the pregnancy (which is immensely exciting, by the way) and are really getting used to the fact that it seems every day something is changing.  For those of you who are friend with Anna on Facebook, I'm sure that you've seen the weekly updates on how the baby is developing - for those of you who aren't, here's roughly what we get get read each week:

"Our baby, just over 1 1/2 inches long and about the size of a fig, is now almost fully formed.  His/her hands will soon open and close into fists, tiny tooth buds are beginning to appear under his/her gums, and some of his/her bones are beginning to harden.  He/She's already busy kicking and stretching, and his/her tiny movements are so effortless they look like water ballet.  These movements will become more frequent as his/her body grows and becomes more developed and functional.  [Anna] won't feel our baby's acrobatics for another month or two - nor will [she] notice the hiccuping that may be happening now that his/her diaphragm is forming."

Needless to say, it really puts it in perspective just how quickly a child grows when we get this email each week (I mean, the last email was showing how the baby was barely over an inch in length).  

Other than that, we're still working (sometimes it feels that we're always working - even on the days that we are supposedly 'off').  We did have a wonderful weekend with the Hornsby family this past weekend (which, of course was complimented by repeated trips to Midori's for sushi) and are really enjoying the changes that are finally starting to show in the house from all the updates that we've been working on.  Hopefully we'll be done with the remodeling of the basement here within the next month (if everything goes smoothly) and will start to get the nursery set up in preparation for our incoming arrival.

As usual, if there is anyone that is coming through our area, please don't hesitate to give us a shout (either via email or phone) so that we can meet up for a cup of coffee (or milk, in Anna's case).

September 2012

So yeah.  That's the reason this post is late.  ^_^

WE'RE PREGNANT!!

I was waiting for Anna's approval to go ahead and make the announcement (which she had officially posted over on Facebook - amid much emotional explosions of happiness) before I posted our monthly update here in order to make sure that we didn't jump the gun and accidentally forget to tell someone.

So now that the major part of our update has been completed - onto the more boring and mundane pieces...of which, I honestly can't remember at the moment.

So yeah... short post (mostly due to the excitement that we're going through today at the great news from the doctors) this month.  I'm sure I'll get around to posting something before our next scheduled meeting - but, as usual, no promises!

Oh - and there are more pictures on Anna's Facebook, in case anyone was wanting to get those. I believe that we're going to be updating the gallery over there ASAP whenever we can (in order to sate the hunger that so many people have expressed for instant updates on the status of everything).

August 2012

So here's another view from the new desk - this one was taken during the All Star Game a few weeks back.  It still is somewhat amazing the new freedoms that the position are granting me (hours and flexibility on how to operate within the times that I am here - not to mention the freedom afforded to me with the new laptop that they've given me).

In other news - the basement is coming along fairly well.  Painting is nearly complete and then all we'll really need to do is the new flooring and refitting of the floorboards/molding around the room...and then comes phase two of the process - moving the stuff back into the room.  Which I think Anna is going to love (because she'll finally have her laundry room back for use).  The backyard grill covering has been placed on hold for the time being to allow us more time to focus on getting the internal reformatting completed - though the new patio furniture that Anna's family got for us on my birthday does make it clear that we're going to need to step up the presentation level so that it doesn't look to much like a mix-matched setup.

Speaking of my better half, her semester ended with (surprise, surprise) good grades and a short period in which she was comatose (I believe mostly to catch up from the lack of sleep that her finals had caused).  I'm pretty sure that she's glad none-the-less to be finished with this particular bout of classes...even though, from what I could see, they were some of the more laid back professors (don't, however, take my word for it - email her to confirm this hypothesis).

As usual, be sure to drop us a line if you're going to be in our area of the country and need a place to stay and/or a warm meal with some friendly company!!

July 2012

Well, after a month in the new position here, I have to say - this job is awesome. I really enjoy working with people that; (a) appreciate the effort that I put forward in the workplace, (b) legitimately enjoy my company, (c) are actually team players who are capable of carrying their own weight, and (d) don't expect me to do the entire thing by myself.

Don't get me wrong, this isn't a walk in the park - far from it actually.  We're having to basically walk through an entire system and design each feature as we come across it, while making sure that the overall scheme of the program doesn't compromise a laundry list of compliance issues and still makes sense to the end-users (many of which are not as technologically savvy as the common coder/designer).  I cannot give justice to the immense amount of work that we have both accomplished and still have ahead of us in the months/years to come as the project unfurls.

Anna is also having her own 'crunch-time' with her summer schedule - she's taking two graduate-level courses in Accounting (don't ask me what the titles are...they make my head hurt to even try to keep up with her when she's on a raging rant about the workload and content of the lectures) over the summer semester - which basically translates into a huge amount of information crammed into an itty-bitty time frame.  (And yes, that was an Aladdin reference for those of you who are actually paying attention to my rambling for this month)

In other news - we're nearly done with the painting of the main section of the basement remodeling project.  All I have left are the cabinets and door/window-frames and we'll be done with that room (which leaves the closet and the hallway to paint before we move onto getting the new floorboards down).  However, this last weekend, our neighbor accidentally flattened our 'grill patio' (as I fondly refer to the dilapidated structure in our back yard) with a tree that they were in the middle of trimming.  Which means that we're going to have to get that repaired sometime this month so that we can have everything in a semblance of order before we start getting things together for our newly made tradition of the Annual Crenwelge Household New Year's Eve Party (see the Facebook page event for said tradition).  The good news is that this basically gives me the excuse that I was looking for to tear down the remaining pieces of the cover and rebuild a larger and more hooka-smoking-friendly enclosure.  More details will be sure to be posted as we plan/install that piece of our house, I'm sure.

As usual, be sure to drop us a line if you're in our area of the country and need a place to stay or a warm meal and some friendly company!

June 2012 (Mobile Update)

So tomorrow is the start in the new position.  Which is both terribly exciting and some-what nerve-wracking.  But overall, I'm still 100% convinced that this is the best move for myself and our family.  It's going to be hard these first months...maybe even the first couple of years, but once I get everything under some semblance of control, I feel that the benefits are totally going to blow the costs that are being asked for now out of the water. 

Anna is starting her summer semester this week, so the schedule is full, to say the least for the two of us.  Her classes are getting tougher too, which is understandable as she comes closer and closer to graduating.  Hopefully she'll be able to continue at the awesome pace that she had been going at.  I'm so very proud of all the hard work that she does (not to mention the trials that I create too!).

We've cleaned out the cellar and will hopefully be getting the room repainted sometime this month.  Flooring might take a bit longer, but we should be done with the remodeling on that level by the end of the summer at the latest...which means that we will be mote than ready to host any of you who need a place to stay when you all come to hang out with us!!

View from my new desk

View directly in front of my desk

May 2012 Update

So.  In my defense of being slightly late on this update - I was really waiting to have definitive news in regards to the new position at my job before I jumped the gun either way.  Needless to say, I got the job!

I'm going to be taking on the position of Business System Administrator for our new systems that will be going into place later this year to keep track of our lending programs and centralize the overall workflow of the departments that are involved with those products (for now).  It's going to be a huge position to fill - and the work alone might be more than either Anna or I are expecting...but the opportunity is none-the-less one that would have been insane for me to pass up.

Anna had her final last night for this semester and, from what I understood from our talk, everything is going great in regards to the school work.  She's gearing up for a rather intense summer semester and a subsequent fall semester (which hopefully won't burn her out).

In other news - we're still the planning stages of getting our cellar remodeled into an office for me and another guest room to give us more room upstairs for a nursery.  Hopefully we'll be able to start on that project here in the near future - though between the upcoming integration of my company's newly acquired institution out in the Colorado areas and Anna's classes/busy summer schedule, that might get a bit tough.

I'll be sure to keep everyone updated as much as possible as the new position begins to develop further in the days to come and (hopefully) will have the energy to post some photos of the 'W.I.P.' of the cellar as we move forward with the updates.

Love you all and hope that you all will have the opportunity to come visit us in the near future!

~ Jay ~