Daddy goes TO work!

Have we here at the Valentine Nest experienced some major life change or what? Two weeks ago, Robby started a new full time position in IT consulting OUTSIDE the nest! Following seven years of enjoying his daily presence in our home we were sad to say goodbye but also excited for the new adventure both for him & for us.  

His role with the company he was previously working for came to an end & he was hired by a different company that is literally within a quick jog (if you are like Robby, long jog/walk if you are like me) from our new house.  They are family friendly, require NO traveling & offer an environment where Robby will get to learn a lot from others.  

After college, he started a job in Addison for a consulting company where he worked for two years. Through some connections with friends, he was offered a position in 2007 with a small consulting firm in Dallas where he was able to work from home about 99 percent of the time.  As young marrieds, I was working full time day shift & enjoyed his presence on my days off & his cooking on the days I was working. It was this company that fully supported our move to Orlando to be a part of a church plant.  He asked after working for only a few months with these guys & had the green light immediately to pursue a move to the sandbar.  The men he worked with were not only wonderful co-workers but cared deeply for our family & offered a friendship to Robby that he greatly valued through the years he was with them & I would venture to say will continue now that we are in Dallas again.  Once we settled into Florida, as many of you know, our home was quickly filled with little girls & boys.  A work from home dad could not have been any more appreciated than he was in those first five years of parenthood! We LOVED having him at home day in & day out & will forever treasure moments like these that occurred during "working hours." 

In honor of five years at home...

always time for a morning read with baby Charlotte on the table.  In fact for months 3-6 of Charlotte's life, work at home Daddy tended to bottle feeding, putting her down for naps & keeping her happy in a Bumbo chair on his desk when Mommy was at work 1 day a week! 

mid day music with Charlotte when she was in the stage of excess in the headband & panty department...lol....

Snuggles with Baby Eloise....

Horsey rides on a lunch break...even Bella girl was happy to be close...real close haha!

One nice part about working from home was that when there was nothing that needed to be done immediately, he could take a break to enjoy an afternoon rain with two little guys. 

The office was relocated to Robby's parents house this summer just in time for the World Cup...

GOAL!

Oh what sweet days they were! Robby would be the first to say that it was not always easy working from home & I would quickly affirm that statement!  The noise level increased about every 21 months as another baby (or two) were added to the mix.  A sign appeared on the office door that had rules like "Knock, if someone answers, come in, if no one answers, turn around quietly & walk away." I found this funny since I was the only one who could read in the house & it was placed right at my eye level  ; ) Sometimes he would walk out & say "It has to be quiet in here for the next hour." I would grin & say, "okay, we will do our best!" as I looked around at kids and/or dogs. We would often lock ourselves in the Master bedroom or load up in the car & get a Chick-Fil-A milk shake again...I liked those days. He eventually added weatherstripping to his office door to reinforce the gaps & block out some racket, it worked amazingly well from both sides.  The dogs really loved that his office was about 15 degrees hotter than the rest of the house due to all the computers running & passed out on a regular basis at his feet. I definitely spent many an afternoon breaking in to lay on the floor & lamenting about crying babies or failures in motherhood. I never failed to mention that I felt like he needed a chaise lounge against the wall so I could express my mental state more comfortably. He would grin at me like "I will never get one of those because then you would never leave my office." Ha! True story!

He really worked hard & played hard during those years & I am pretty sure I would not have survived the year that the twins were born without him at home with us.  He helped me stay sane & shared the workload when he was able. Many times he held down the fort when there were napping children so I could run to the grocery store sans kids or even let me take a quick walk....that was a gift in itself.

His first day was the Tuesday after Labor Day & I fought back the urge to write "First day of work" on our chalkboard sign & have him pose for a picture. But I did request that he smile with the Fab Four as they said goodbye to Daddy at the front door. The caption "Don't leave us!!"

Overall, we have enjoyed the past two weeks of our new routine. With Rob away it has really helped me take charge around the house & tend to everyone's needs while keeping up with housework & preparing for his arrival in the evening. Since he is literally around the corner he has joined us for lunch most days which is a perfect break in my day & offers much excitement for the little ones. There have been a few nights where he was walked into "perfection" you know, dinner on the table, four smiling, self controlled children with a calm mother but most nights he steps into the wildest hour of the day with grumpy kids, a half made meal & a disaster kitchen. He is always happy to see us (I think) & jumps right into the evening routine which we conquer then collapse on the couch simultaneously & ask, "how long will we feel this tired?" Ha! I think it's going to be a long time ; )

We look back over this year of uncertainty with employment for Robby & are so thankful that God provided exactly what we needed in every way. What a wild year...or years for that matter. Praise the Lord for all that He has done in our family. Here's to Daddy going TO work!