negative nancy

There was way too much going on here at work yesterday (mostly non-work-related conversations about severance packages and where Lockheed’s offices are located) to write a decent post about our 4th of July beach trip… so here it is, albeit a day or two late.

We had a great time down in Holden Beach (again! – second time in a month). I didn't get scorched like I did on our last trip down there… in fact, Peter and Steve were more burnt than me! Since we didn’t have any sunscreen mishaps the first day, we were able to have two full days on the beach and we also made it up to Wilmington again for a little bit of shopping… and to the movies to see Hancock. Sunday’s drive home took forever because of the holiday traffic and a thunderstorm, but it was nice to get away. We missed the dogs a ton... although Luke is going through grandma-withdrawal right now because he has such a fun time playing outside all weekend long at Steve’s parent’s house. He’s usually so exhausted that he sleeps for a day or two and putts around the house being grumpy. This morning he was dragging Lila around the living room by her tail so I think it's safe to say he’s back to normal.

Work is soooo weird now. We definitely have jobs through the end of October… but possibly longer. I’ve heard rumblings that we could be here through the end of the year… or not. It’s all very up-in-the-air… and frustrating. We’ve been told they’ll help all of us (300+ employees? Really?) find new jobs either internally or with the new contract or elsewhere, but I’m in a unique situation as I won’t even be here during that transitional period. My main concern is getting my full maternity leave. When I was job-hunting last fall I decided to stick it out here because I’d been here awhile and, if we did get pregnant (surprise! It can happen quicker than you think!), I would have a good amount of maternity leave. Here we are now, uncertain about our future within this company and the tentative end of our contract is smack in the middle of my leave… just weeks after the baby is born. Perfect. Secondary on my mind is the fact that I might not have this flexible working mother-friendly atmosphere to come back to… and with that, the possibility of working part-time may go right out the window. I guess at this point my plan of action is to just wait until our HR person comes back from vacation this week so I can hear her opinion on the maternity leave situation… and keep my eyes and ears peeled for possible opportunities elsewhere. Try and stay positive, right? Positive positive positive...

Oh, we watched Knocked Up on the way back from the beach. The movie is still hilarious but it is entirely different to watch it now - Steve is officially freaked out by labor and delivery.