Here Comes the Sun

   After many days of non-stop rain (not quite the famous 40 days and nights, but a lot of rain in a row for Southern California), we finally got some sunshine. So we were able to participate in one of our favorite traditions: Christmas Eve day brunch at the beach!

The friends

The family

The free dolphin show!

   In addition to seeing a pod of dolphins playing offshore, we also saw a Santa parade: an endless stream of guys dressed up as Santa riding driving down PCH on Harleys.

   After playing at the beach for a few hours, we headed home for showers, church, and some presents! A lovely evening, made extra special with the presence of three grandparents. Didn't want to leave Nana out, so we had a virtual visit thanks to Skype. Since our next Christmas will most likely be in Australia, we are cherishing these holidays together with family.
   Merry Christmas everyone. We're looking forward to an incredible adventure in 2011. We leave two weeks from today!

Hello, Goodbye

  Too many goodbyes on my last day at work, after 15 years. It was really hard to be leaving such great people, such a great company. Those of you that work there, know what I mean.   It was a busy, difficult day, packing up and saying farewells. We had a nice lunch in Temecula Old Town--had to get my Mexican food fix (Rosas!) while I can. Melbourne is known for great food, unless it's Mexican you want. My coworkers gave me cards, flowers, gifts, all very thoughtful. I did pack up my Opto hardware to take with me. I plan (hope?) to do some consulting for Opto while I'm gone, and if I'm lucky, I might be able to come back someday.

   Another thing I had to do was take a picture with Ben. In the small world category of life, he's a true blue Aussie. He worked with Opto products for 18 years about an hour outside of Melbourne. He came to Opto 2.5 years ago, and we became great friends as we worked together on training and other marketing projects. It's quite ironic that now I'm moving to Australia. (The joke is that Australia called and wanted Ben back. Opto's sending me instead. Sort of a hostage exchange program!) Anyway, some of you have told me how much you enjoy reading his comments on this blog, especially the parts while we were in Australia. So, thought I'd share this pic of the two of us.

My Aussie mate Ben

  On the flip side, there have been some nice "Hellos." Andy arrived back home from Australia on Saturday, after a weeklong trip. In addition to endless work that week, including a trip to Adelaide, he set aside one day to view houses with a relocation consultant. It was rather discouraging to see what $800/week (or more!) gets you in the areas we are looking at. Out of the 10 he saw, only one was an option. In a great school district, but had a few flaws, the biggest being the owners would be returning in 2 years, so we'd have to move. We found a great house walking distance to another top school, but he wasn't able to view it. It just went on the market, so the tenants aren't yet allowing inspections, and you're not allowed to apply unless you view it. We're going to see if Andy's coworker can inspect it for us, and maybe even apply for us as well. If not, we'll be busy househunting when we land.

  Another nice "Hello": My parents arrived Monday. Despite the crappy weather (nonstop rain, for the 6th day in a row--whatever happened to "It never rains in Southern California?"), they are glad to be here, and the feeling is mutual.

  Well, it's 5:30 am Tuesday morning. If it were a "normal" Tuesday morning, I'd be driving to Temecula right about now. I feel quite at a loss not having a job for the first time since, well, since college I guess. But, enough blogging, gotta get packing!

She came in through the bathroom window

  She didn't really, since only one of our three bathrooms even has a window. But the good news is our bathroom remodel is complete. New tile in all three, complete overhauls in the other two. Too bad we didn't do it sooner, so we could have enjoyed it more. We'll be coming back though, despite what some might say/think.
  The house is officially up for lease. The sign in the front yard says so, and it's been listed in the MLS. Despite frantic cleaning before going to Adventure City though, no one has come by to see it, other than the two families we found through word of mouth. Still have three weeks though.
  Andy's in Australia now. As we speak, he's finishing up a day of touring properties with our relocation agent. A few possibilities, but it's a daunting task finding a nice house with a reasonable rent in a specific and tiny geographical area (near one of three good schools that we liked.)
  Busy week ahead--is there any other kind? Nutcracker Ballet, choir performance, SSJ recital. Oh, and my last day of work will be Thursday. Going to be a very sad day, leaving behind a job I love, people I really care about and enjoy working with. I'm hopeful that I can still do some work for Opto from home, and I'm also hopeful I can return once we come back. Only time will tell, but I have to think positive.
  When Andy and I discussed this move, my three biggest concerns were, in order:
1. Being far from family and friends
2. Having to give up my job,
3. The financial implications (loss of my income, cost of living in Australia, etc.)
  The first concern is obvious, and we'll do the best we can to alleviate the pain of separation. Things like Skype, and buying airplane tickets for the grandparents, and coming back every year will help with the first issue. The second was a huge deal to me for so many reasons, most of which are very personal to me and most likely of no interest to you, so I'll spare you that. If I am able to do some consulting at least, or gain other Opto experience, that will help take care the second issue. We'll let you know how #3 works out once we get our feet on the ground.
 

Eight Days a Week

  Seems like we've been trying to fit eight days into every week. I think that will be the norm for quite a while. We should be preparing for this move, but who has time? We're trying to savor every moment with friends, every holiday activity, every fun event possible. So we've been busy to say the least.
  First up was the annual Gingerbread House decorating event, thanks to the wonderful McCormicks for inviting us. The kids get access to a well-built, ready to decorate house and unlimited candy, and the grownups get access to unlimited wine, what could be better?


Christmas card family photo?

Masterpiece in progress

  Next up, a party with my Bunco group.  Another bittersweet moment. We've been playing together for 7 (?) years now, and been through so much together: births of children, deaths of parents, illnesses, but through it all, we've had a lot of laughs..and yes, a lot of wine. Thanks Cathy for hosting the lovely party, and Allison is really sorry she caught your table on fire while doing sambuca shots. Thankfully Allison will never read this, but those who were there know it's true!

Let the good times roll

  This was a weekend of the SunShine Generation, a singing group the girls participate in, along with some of their friends. They did performances at a senior center, a tree-lighting ceremony, and at a historical society event. Afterwards, they met with Santa. What did they ask for? What every 6 and 8 year old wants: a laptop so they can Skype their friends from Australia, of course!

The girls and Santa

  On Monday, since I had nothing else going on, I flew to Vegas then Albuquerque. On Tuesday I wore my "OptoChick" hat and presented to some longtime customers. Note to self, no jokes about men driving when you're outnumbered 50 to 1. Thankfully, I knew a lot of the guys from training, and they had a good sense of humor. And although I wasn't thrilled about the trip when I was pulling an all-nighter to prepare the presentation, I really enjoyed showing off the latest Opto stuff, and from what the sales guy said, it was successful in staving off the dreaded AB competition.
 gotta go, more to post, but another day..things are moving along though.