With all of the recent activity in our household (new job for me, new car for Dana, and various parties to attend), blogging and extracurricular development have taken a backseat to the family activities.  Not that it’s a bad thing, it’s just the typical shift in priorities that tends to occur during the summer months.

So, to review the last month or so:

Vacation

Topsail this year, as usual, was extremely relaxing and enjoyable. Especially considering the last day of vacation I received an excellent new job offer. Deuce wanted nothing to do with the ocean until the last day, at which point he spent a good 2 hours getting knocked over in the surf. As for Dana and I, well, we just had a good time.

My new job

As mentioned previously, I received an offer for a new job while on vacation. There was a pay raise, but more importantly the environment is much more collaborative. The company also invests in employee training and certification. Plus, I’ll be able to “telecommute” (see work from home) up to three days a week.

Dana’s new car

Dana’s been car shopping for over a year now. After much internal deliberation on her part, she decided to by a used 2006 Volvo S60. Having owned an older model (see 1992 Volvo 850), I was more than a pleased with her decision, as I know she’ll get the mileage out of that car that she needs. Not to mention the fact that it’s a very nice looking vehicle with good creature comforts.

Parties

Well, let’s see, we’ve had a family reunion and a christening since we’ve been back from the beach. We have a graduation party, another reunion, and my new company’s picnic coming in the next month, not to mention the Steeler’s/Gatorade 5K (although that’s still questionable) and a few smaller get togethers with some “out of towners.”

Given the fact that the 5K is Sept. 2, I have a feeling that summer is going to be over before I’m ready for it to be. The fall brings high school football season, and since my cousin David is a senior quarterback at Ambridge, I’m sure I’ll make at least one of those games as well. I hate to say it, but Thanksgiving isn’t as far away as I thought it was.

The Steelers 5K is Sunday, Sept. 2 at 9:30 am. However, we have a family reunion on the same day in Twinsburg, Ohio. I’m conflicted, as I’d been planning to run the Steeler’s 5K since May, and Dana was also planning on running the race as her first 5K.

I guess we have a decision to make, but I’m not going to make it now… I’m in my last 4 days of work at my current employer before I switch to another company. The new job looks to be an excellent opportunity for me to learn and grow as a developer, so I’m very excited to start there next week.