Continuing on the Roller Coaster of Life

I just realized it has been two years since I posted to this blog. The main reason for the long break is that I've been busy doing social media and blogging in my job and I'm honestly too drained to do this stuff for myself.

More job changes, but I'm working within walking distance of my house and it's a job that feels like a perfect fit. For almost two years I have been the community relations coordinator for the Provo City Council. My responsibilities include handling communications for the Council and coordinating Provo's Neighborhood Program. Working in government is very, very different, but I love the challenge...and it's a constant challenge. Ironically, my mom spent most of her career working for a city government.

The way I see it, most of what I do is to "translate." Government news isn't always easy to understand so I work to de-jargon information and put it in terms the average person can understand. I also help the Council to reach more people by using Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, etc. This is still a fairly new way for government to communicate but it's going well. I'm also helping our citizens to communicate with the Council so their needs are heard. A real highlight so far is that a coworker and I presented at the Government Social Media Conference earlier this year.

My hubby has also been going through changes and challenges at work. So grateful we work as a team and manage all this craziness together. I've enjoyed being there to support his coaching efforts in football and softball. We anticipate continuing challenges, but we can take it.

The most dramatic news - our baby boy got married. He's now married to a girl who grew up just one block away. They've known each other most of their lives and developed a great friendship. The wedding incorporated our Navajo heritage with the bride's love of the outdoors. We love having a daughter in our family and it's a bonus that we already know her family well.

Life without kids in the house is different. There are a lot of nice things - less trash, less food, less noise, more privacy. We do miss them a lot and regularly text/message them to see what's going on. Denver Broncos games bring them over so we can all watch together. And we sometimes go out to lunch or a movie. This will probably be the routine until one of them decides to move farther away. Seeing nieces and nephews often makes me miss the adventures of having young children around.

The ups and downs don't surprise me too much anymore. That's life. To be expected. I see it as yet another challenge and tackle it as best I can. Is this what it means to be grown up? Am I finally mature enough to let most craziness roll over me instead of knocking me over? Guess so.