Our "other" lives

As I read through the blog, I realize... pretty much everything in it is about our kids. You would think that is what our entire life is all about. There are times when that is the case, but we do have a whole lot of other stuff going on. For all you friends out there wondering how KURT and JEN are doing, this entry is for you! Grandmoms and Granddads, you can just skip ahead to grandkid stuff. ;o)

I (Jen) have FIVE jobs right now. Yes, five. And I really enjoy all of them.

Job 1 is a new one that I started after the first of the year. I am working from home as a Marketing Director for a realty group, The Keith Hinton Group. Keith is a great friend of ours and he had a need for someone to do all his advertising, fliers, mailers, website, etc... so, he hired me on to be that person. This is a long term job (we have both promised to be in it for the long haul) and eventually I will be his right hand woman, not just marketing, but admin and office management stuff too. www.keithhintongroup.com (this is a brand new site, placeholder screen)

Job 2 is working for the company in Newport News, C2, (actually, it is based in Tysons Corner) and I go into the office every now and then to do voice over recording. I really enjoy that and hope to build up a portfolio of lots of different projects. I just finished doing some recording for Microsoft XBOX360 Training and I will be doing the Microsoft ZUNE training also. It is a fun job, just sitting in front of a microphone reading with my best pronunciation and diction. ;o)

Job 3 is with K12, the company I used to work for in Northern Virginia. I have been a contractor with them on and off since I was laid off a year ago. The work has been very steady since July and has been a big blessing. They pay well and I get to be home.

Job 4 is with Stampin' Up! I am still a demonstrator selling scrapbooking, stamping supplies. I do in-home workshops and have a great client base. It gets me all of my stuff for free, so that is the big draw.

Job 5 is being a stay-at-home mom, which is actually the BIGGEST job of all. I take the kids to an in-home daycare 2 days a week just so I can get some work done and keep sane. Otherwise, it is just me and the boys during the day! I love it. I can't imagine not being home with them.

Other than work, I go to our new YMCA to work out when I can. We just joined there and I really enjoy the water aerobic classes. With my awful knees (which I need another surgery on), I find that water classes are the best way for me to get a workout with much pain. Kurt and I are both in our church choir which meets every Wednesday night and we are in a small covenant Bible study on every other Sunday. He plays hockey in a rec league and also works out at the YMCA like mad. He likes spinning classes. Anyone else share that craziness!? He doesn't play half as much golf as he would like, especially since it is now actually winter here (it has been in the 70s for the past few weeks, but it is now 42).

Kurt still works as a graphic designer for The Virginian Pilot, the big paper down here in the Tidewater Area. He has been there for 2 years now, and although the job has changed quite a bit since he started there, he still enjoys it for the most part. He is a sub at church to play drums, but he hasn't actually been able to help out yet.

When I asked him what he wants me to write in our post, he says that he is "still much in love with his wife". I suppose that is a REALLY good thing. Actually, we are much closer now than we have ever been. The marriage is wonderful. I suppose a little of the romance slips away when you are in "kid mode", but we try to bring it back every now and then. We have a date night once a month (it is supposed to be once a week, yeah right), so we still get out and do things together. We have a date set up to get dessert at The Melting Pot soon. :o) I love that place.

The families are doing great. We see my parents and my sister and her family quite a bit since we live so close. Evan (our nephew) is 6, so he is a little older than Brody, but he still loves to play with him. They are four years apart. Evan is great with little kids and Seth is always making him laugh. My parents are loving their condo on the water in Portsmouth. They have a great view with a back porch on the water... and the porch swing is always the kids favorite.

Kurts parents live on the golf course in Blacksburg. We see them pretty regularly, but not nearly enough. Luckily, technology allows for a blog to keep updated, huh Grammy? They were just here for Seth's 1st birthday and they will be back in a couple weeks for Brody's birthday party.

Kurts sister, J.J. and her husband and kids (the twins, Will and Maddie) live in Salem, Virginia, in the same house the Kurt grew up in. The twins are a few months older than Brody and it is dangerous to get them together. Will and Brody are unstoppable when they are together.

We have a few vacations coming up this year that we are really excited about. Our church choir will be going on a missions trip to Austria in June. I have been there before, But Kurt has never been to Europe. It should be wonderful to be traveling together there WITHOUT THE KIDS. I said that "I am NOT changing diapers in Austria". The kids will have plenty of time with the grandparents.

We will also be spending a week in Myrtle Beach in September. That trip is a reunion with the Akers and some of their great friends. It will be 6 couples and all the kids. It should be a blast. We are really looking forward to that!

We love our home in Chesapeake. Every now and then we have to pinch ouselves. This is where we plan to be as the kids grow up and eventually move out. We have a list about 50 items long of all the stuff we want to do to the house *someday*. I suppose with the extra income now, maybe we will be able to start crossing off some of the list.

Well, that is us in a nutshell... everything about us with NO KID STUFF INCLUDED. It is hard to stay true to yourself when kids can take up so much of your time and energy. It is nice to know we are still ourselves through all of this!

Hope all of you, friends and family, are all doing well and had a wonderful New Year! We hope to see you soon. We are right on the way back from the outer banks, off of I-664 if anyone is passing through. Please feel free to email us! jenakers@cox.net