I am now IKEA Springvale's new restaurant Team Leader. Which I believe is equivalent to an assistant manager in Canada. I went through the entire interview process as did everyone else who applied, although I did get a little push from a few people higher up as they see the potential in me, I think I needed it. As of right now I am super excited and super proud of my self. It seems that I am going to have a lot of support from both sides, my managers and my coworkers(minus a couple who want to add a bit of drama, but I'm hoping we can move past that sooner rather than later). I'm really looking forward to the challenge of the role and also to move forward in the work world, get that training and experience that will be essential no matter where I take it. Today was my first day in the role, my boss, Con, has kindly given me a couple of days to find my feet in the new role and for the rest of the coworkers to adjust and learn. He said he will bombard me this Friday with training, yay :P I will be learning; a system called Kronos, their payroll system, doing rosters, ordering, invoices, as well as running the restaurant making sure everything is running smoothly on a regular business day and of course supporting both sides with whatever they need. So like I said, will be a good challenge, will be nice to have a bit more to do and to step into that role that everyone seems to think I should be in. Wish me luck! :)
We haven't weighed Junior lately, but I think he's probably put on a couple more kilo's as well as grown upwards a bit, no big growth spirts though. Dan did meet another Aussie Bulldog in the dog park the other day and he said he was not too much taller then Junior but about twice as big outwards. Let's just hope he learns how to stop when he runs soon, instead of running right into us, otherwise we're going to have a lot of bruises on our shins and bums. We took him to the dog beach the other night for the first time, he absolutely loved it! Got a bit carried away chasing a golden retriever into the water and then the sandbar seemed to have disappeared from under his feet. Dan and I both had a minor heart attack and ran for him, he hasn't swam by himself yet, but after getting over the initial surprise he managed to swim back in himself. He loved licking the sand and salt water too, although I don't think he was too happy about it later on in the night, let's just say we woke up to a very stinky smell and had to clean out his kennel, poor thing slept in it all night.
Dan's doing really good. He's off to Adelaide in January for Tour Down Under, kind of an Aussie version of Tour De France but not as big. He's going with a couple of mates, they're going to camp and cycle to and from the race everyday, maybe participate in one of their side races. He'll be gone for a week :( Which means I'll be curling up with Junior for the week. He's also thinking of entering a triathlon which would be a great challenge for him and a good goal to set for himself. That will be in the new year though. Work for him is going well, still jack of all trades in the cemetery and they're getting him to work at another cemetery every so often to train up some of the new staff and get a few things in order as it's a bit of a mess there. He seems to be a big asset to their company and use him every way they can work wise which is great. Hopefully one day soon he can step into management as well, he's born for it.
I still can't believe Christmas is next month!! I haven't even started shopping yet :S At least I have an idea of what I'll be getting everyone, so it's just a matter of getting it. New Years sounds like it may be a bit low key, I have to work both New Years eve and day. I think we'll be heading down to Inverloch for a couple of nights, it's about an hours drive from here, Dan's Aunt & Uncle have a house right on the beach there and they'll be away for a little while. Which means we have been invited to celebrate New Years there with Paul (Dan's eldest brother) and his family. So I'll just travel from there New Years eve/day and then back and chill out the following day(we both have off). Will be a nice change of scenery for a bit, let's hope we get some wicked weather!
We've finally found a dining table!! :D It's pretty much the last large piece of furniture that we need for inside the house. I've been looking around since we moved in at the beginning of the year. We've been pretty picky with what we've bought as we want it to last a long time and we want to like it for as long as it lasts. The only thing is, the dining table won't be available until mid-late January, I suppose I can wait until then seems I've already waited this long :P Will be nice to finally fill that space though!
Must fix up the garden this weekend, Junior's managed to ruin it! :( We're going to go out and buy some pieces of plywood and some fishing line and rig up part of the garden so he can't dig in it anymore and the other part so he can't even get in it. Then we need to find something to put in the front garden to stop the birds from dive bombing in it and throwing the mulch everywhere. I know exactly what I want, it's just a matter of finding it. Elaine and Julien, you have one, it's your metal birds that swing around in the wind. I saw one a while back at the Melbourne Show, should of bought it then, but I haven't managed to find it since :( Oh well, must be patient.
Well, that's it for now. I think it's time to wind down for the day and relax. Gotta get ready for another big day tomorrow. Love and miss you all always. xxx
