Thanksgiving…Much to Be Thankful For

 

Thanksgiving was in the Country this year.  We left early and got up there for a nice long visit.  We all pitched in and had a traditional feast this year.  Most years it’s something different like lasagna or gumbo.  This year Stephanie requested traditional and I’m glad she did. 

Erin and Luke are not in the same class this year and they don’t have much time together during the day.  I didn’t realize how much she missed him until she talked about seeing him the whole way up there.

The kids had a blast as usual.  We played games inside and of course had our turns on the tire swings.  I got the bucket of cubes out and we fed the cows and bull.  They were up at the fence watching us anyway, so it seemed like a good time to “feed” them.  Omaha the bull has a really, really long tongue.  The kids didn’t like him licking them too much, it feels like slimy sandpaper.

I tried to get some pictures of the kids, but they didn’t want to cooperate.  I could get Luke to look but Erin would make a face.  I could get Erin to stop and Jake would duck out of the way.  It was impossible to get a good one of all 3 of them.  I think they lack the cooperation gene. 

Here’s what I got….

A Hard Day’s Work…

 

I officially started my new job on Tuesday and so far so good.  I haven’t even been on a roof yet!

They were supposed to do something behind the scenes so that they just flipped a switch and all the claims were supposed to be routed from where they were currently going to the new system.  Of course it didn’t work.  So on Tuesday no one got anything. 

They fixed the glitch yesterday and I got a claim but it was an old one that only needs babysitting and not actual inspection.  So, I’m still waiting.

In the meantime, me and the other Angela met with the trainer at one of our offices in Houston.  We did a mock computer sketch of a house and a couple of other computer things.  We’re meeting there again today and we’re supposed to climb the Claims Office and get on the roof.  Yikes.  Luckily, it’s a simple one story roof. 

But first, he’s going to have to teach me how to open the ladder.  It’s a Little Giant ladder and they breakdown into 4 sections and fold up.  I don’t want to be in some customer’s front yard for the first time trying to open the ladder!!  That just instills confidence I’m sure.

I’ll keep you posted!  Pray for me!!!

Jumping Into Seven…

Jake’s birthday party was yesterday.  His actual birthday was the 13th but it was easier to have the party on Saturday.  It was at Sky Zone an indoor trampoline place.  It was the first time we’ve been there but I’m sure we’ll be back.

It was mostly boys and older friends of Jake's.  Erin really wanted to play with Luke but he was too busy playing with the older boys.  (And they play rough!)  She was so excited when “Cousin” Reese got there.  (Erin calls her Cousin Reese when she’s talking about her.)

The girls were so cute together.  There was a sectioned off place for the party jumpers, so it was not so crowded.  It was great.  There was a worker right there watching to make sure other kids didn’t come in.  There was also a pit of foam blocks that you jumped into.  It was open to the public and Reese and Erin had a hard time with the concept of standing in line.  The worker working that particular station was NOT nice.  He was very OCD about the foam blocks and ran the station like a Nazi soldier.

Tommy ended up getting in there with her.  She loved having him jump with her.  Granny and Pepaw came in for the party.  They didn’t jump!!!  LOL

The party ended with pizza, presents and cake.  Erin was so whipped after jumping for an hour that she ended up laying down on the bench with her head in my lap.  She was so tired.  When we got home she didn’t even fight me about taking a nap.  She passed out cold.

Here’s some pics and a video I shot.  I forgot my good camera, so these were done with my phone and aren’t the greatest pictures.



   

All I Can Do Is Laugh…

 

I “officially” started my new job on September 22nd.  I went on the State Farm Fire and Casualty payroll instead of State Farm Mutual payroll.  I was officially switched on the computer to being a Weather Catastrophe Claim Services Claim Specialist.  I was moved to my house and no longer had an actual office desk in a SF office.  It all seemed so new and fun.

Fast forward 2 months.  I’ve been doing computer training everyday since 9/22.  I learned the Home Owners policies and even watched ladder safety videos.  I learned how to write HO estimates and watched how to sketch a home floor plan and roof.  I say watched because I haven’t actually gotten to do any of this yet.  I’ve just been watching, and watching, and watching…

During these last 2 months UPS has come do my door daily.  I’ve gotten random packages.  It’s been fun seeing what I’m going to get.  It’s like Christmas everyday.  One day I might get a digital camera and a ruler, and the next day I might get a traffic cone and a box of rubber gloves.  (See, it’s fun!)  I’ve gotten office equipment like a printer, a box of printer paper, etc and things are piling up in the dining room.  The stack is now huge.

I am supposed to get a SF van but it hasn’t come yet.  Well, come to find out…it’s just been ordered.  I should get it in December.  So, in the meantime, they had me rent a mini-van for a month starting Monday.  The good news is that my SF van will be a brand new van and not one from existing inventory.  This is a good thing.  Some of the vans we have are 2007s.  I’m not sure what it will look like – big van or little van, but I’ll have to have the windows tinted anyway.  I’ll be wearing a SF ball cap and sunglasses to hide myself while driving this Molester Mobile on a daily basis.  Tommy can’t wait for this monstrosity to be parking in the driveway every night.

I’m also supposed to be getting 2 ladders that haven’t shown up either.  One if 28 ft and the other is 22 ft.  (Yes, that sounds scary to me too!)  I also haven’t gotten my Ladder Safety Kit that I am supposed to use before climbing the ladder.  This kit anchors the ladder to the ground and at the top so it’s secure when you climb.  And let’s face it, I need it secured because I might slip on the pee from when I pee my pants at having to use a 28 ft ladder.

I’ve also been ordering stuff to wear.  I bought expensive roof boots and some $17 dollar pants from Wal-Mart.  I don’t want to climb in jeans because I would be ticked if I ripped a perfectly good pair of my jeans, so I bought pants I’m not invested in.  They’re actual work pants that Wal-Mart sells for us Blue Collar workers.  I’ve ordered SF polo shirts and a SF rain coat.  I’ve bought a pink tool carrier for my supplies and a purple clip board and fanny pack.  I can feel the coolness coming off of me already, fanny pack and Wal-Mart pants.  Yes, stand back because I have arrived.  Why did I leave my cushy casual wear office job again???

I got some good news yesterday.  I will have a Trainer on the ground to help me out when we go Live on Tuesday.  The only problem is that he’s got 2 other people assigned to him besides me.  Luckily, I’ve befriended one of them and she and I have decided to ride together for as long as we can since our territories butt up against each other and she’s new too.  Of course, her name is Angela.  So the Angela’s will team up to start this job.  I couldn’t be happier about this.  It’s reassuring to know someone else is starting with me.

Yes, we go live on Tuesday and I’m having heart palpitations.  I’ve apologized in advance to the Trainer and the guys on my team.  I know I’ll ask some dumb questions and be scared to death at first, but so far they’ve all be very nice about it.  They all know that everyone had to start out where I am.  The one good thing is that I’m experienced on the SF claim applications and with customers.  It’s the actual physical part of the job I need the help with.  The soft skills I already have.

This is going to get interesting next week, but I’ll keep you posted.  I’ll even try to remember to shoot a picture from the top of my first roof claim.  (I just hope I don’t have to use the 28 ft ladder on my first claim!)

Busy Time of Year…

 

It’s getting to be the busy time of year.  Not that we’re not busy all year long, it just always seems busier this time of year.

We have 3 birthday parties in the next 2 weeks and Thanksgiving.  I start my new job on Tuesday and don’t even get me started about Christmas shopping!

With all that being said, I’ve been slacking in the blog dept.  I’ll do better, I promise!

Erin Update

 

Erin had her follow up appointment for her ears and hearing on Tuesday.  She went to the hearing test first and the Audiologist said she passed the test with flying colors.

Next was the appointment with the ENT.  She looked at the test results and in Erin’s ears and all is great.

Erin no longer has a hearing problem.  She can hear everything and the pressure in her ears is gone.  Yay!  The doctor gave us an Rx for ear drop if/when she develops some drainage.  Since the drainage means it would have been an ear infection we have the antibiotic drops to fight it.  For some reason, Erin is just very susceptible to ear infections.  Neither Tommy or I had them as kids much, but E gets them at the drop of a hat.

I can hear you loud and clear!

A Little Pre-Christmas Travel…

 

Found out last week that I will have to go to Corporate Headquarters in Bloomington, IL in December for a week!  They gave us like 6 options as to which week we go.  It was the first week of December thru the last week of January excluding Christmas and NY weeks.  I picked December 1st.

I’ve managed to stalk and befriend a girl in Waco.  She and I IM all the time and she picked that week.  Since she’s the only person I know, I decided to go with her.  Both of us were thinking it would be the warmest out of the possible weeks.  Something about January on the Great Lakes doesn’t appeal to my Lone Star blood.

When I say I stalked the girl, I mean it.  I got a mass email and I looked at all the names and the start dates of the employees listed.  Then I looked up their offices and guessed their approximate ages based on start dates.  I sent her and a couple of other people an email asking them some general questions.  She wrote back and her response was cute and funny.  I decided I liked her immediately so I pounced.  I’ve been on the girl like white on rice.  She doesn’t seem to mind because she emails me and IM’s me all the time too.  She’s a little younger than me and started SF about the same time.  She is married with 2 daughters and lives in Waco where she grew up.

With all this being said, I had to gear up.  I needed a heavy winter coat and a medium weight jacket.  The jacket is mainly for here.  On November 18th my on-line training ends and I’ll be going out with guys on roofs.  It’s a lot of OJT.  The Fire Claim School in Bloomington is supposed to teach me how to climb a roof and be comfortable up there.  Right.  Like that will ever happen.  All my friends that climb roofs tell me you really do get your feet under you and get used to it.  We shall see.

Our office there as a huge heated/air conditioned warehouse like building that has all kinds of structures in it.  There are actual houses and roofs built in there to give you “feet on” training.  They will show me how to secure and place a ladder and the best ways to climb a roof.  I’ve had the on-line classes, but that’s not the same thing.  They also teach you about arson and I think they have a burned out house in there.  I walked thru it on the way to the Auto warehouse with all the cars about 16 years ago, but I honestly can’t remember all of it.

I also needed a couple more pairs of jeans.  It seems that all I wear in the summer to work is denim capri pants!  Plus I needed special roof boots.  One of the guys on my team said I absolutely HAD to buy them.  It’s not something SF reimburses for but they are a must for safely climbing a roof.  They don’t make them in women’s sizes so you have to order men’s sizes two sizes smaller.  And ugly, let me just tell you.  I’ve already decided I’m going to work on a prototype for some women’s roof boots.  I could make a million bucks! 

While I’m gone, Tommy will get to be Mr. Mom.  He and Erin will be fine.  Things won’t get done the way Momma does them, but I know they will get done and that’s all that matters.  I just wonder what I’ll come home too!!! LOL.  I also think this will make me more appreciated on the home front.  (Not that he doesn’t already tell me all the time how much he appreciates me for all that I do!)

December is going to be very interesting in the Mize house!  Have roof boots, will travel.

Happy Halloween…

 

This was the first year Erin really understood trick or treating.  We’ve dressed her up and taken her to Aunt Steph and Uncle Mark’s house before but never trick or treated in the neighborhood.  Every year the cul-de-sac puts up tables and have a little pot luck going.  We have a ton of people and kids so she’s never lacked in the candy department. 

This year Queen Elsa knew exactly what was going on.  By 5:30 she was announcing to the group that it was time to go trick or treating.  We managed to keep her contained until about 6:30. It was still light, but getting darker.

One of our neighbors is a couple months younger than Erin.  Andrew made the perfect Trick or Treat companion.  We trick or treated our way up the street and thru our section of the subdivision.  The people were so nice.  I hadn’t trick or treated in years obviously, but I’m impressed with our neighbors. Most of them held out the candy bowl and I had to yell at Erin to only take one or two pieces.  When you’re four and someone puts a bowl of candy in your face, you don’t exactly think of leaving any for others. 

It didn’t take long for Erin and Andrew to get the hang of it.  The hardest part was keeping up with them.  Fueled on sugar and the prospect of more sugar, they were running to each house.  We made sure that they said Trick or Treat at each house and remembered to say Thank You. 

By 7:30 Tommy was carrying Erin and Andrew had given his candy bucket to his dad.  We called it a night and Erin was so happy!

Here are a couple of shots of Erin dressed up in her costume for school.