Caution: Adulting Ahead

I recently become a certified Construction Risk Insurance Specialist (CRIS).  A few weeks later I received a promotion!  My duties have been slowly changing over the past couple months. I'm training our new Contracts/Risk Specialist on negotiating terms and conditions for our purchase orders and subcontracts. I've been getting more involved in owner and other special agreements. I've also been handling more claims (workers compensation, auto, builder's risk, general liability, as well as bond claims). It's exciting and I'm learning a lot!  

The people I work with are great! The department I am in operates as a strong team without any drama. We have a department meeting next month to discuss the succession plan for when our director retires. I'm confident our culture will remain the same throughout the forthcoming changes. 

So, what's next?  I'm going to keep working hard. In the next month or two, I'm going to start the process of getting approved for a mortgage so that I can weigh my options of renting vs. buying. *gasp* This level of adulting is a bit daunting. I'm working on paying off my medical debt, increasing my savings, and improving my credit score to be strong enough to withstand a few dings when I apply without bringing it below excellent. 

Kim is Leaving to Chase Her Dreams

I have a tissue box sitting next me, and it's not just because I'm fighting a cold. I know by the end of composing this post I will lose my composure and tears will soak my cheeks.

Kim leaves this week to move to Virginia to attend the Doctor of Physical Therapy Program at Murphy Deming College of Health Sciences. Her classes begin in one week! I have no doubt that she is ready for this next chapter. She has the drive, determination, and passion to make her dreams of becoming a physical therapist come true. She is super intelligent.  She is willing to challenge herself to work hard because she expects the best out of herself. I have deep admiration and respect for the woman she is and the woman she wants to become. I believe her in her dreams!

Out of all of my sisters, Kim understands me the best. She may be younger than me, but there is a maturity to our relationship that I don't have with other family members. We can be brutally honest with each other and still respect each others' opinions and advice. We can disagree without raising our voices. More importantly, we can disagree and still actively listen to what the other one is saying. I value her perspective on life. We are always there to support each other. I love hanging out and talking with her and I equally love sitting in silence with her. She has the best smile and the most additive laugh I've ever heard. She makes me a better person. When I grow up, I want to be like her.

I'm going to miss her like crazy. I compare this feeling to mourning my good health and Taylor moving away. I know life will go on, but I also know it's going to be different. There's going to be a void, there's going to be an adjustment, and there's going to be a period of feeling lost without her.

I am so proud of Kim for being fearless in chasing after what she wants out of life! I think she is going to blossom during this next chapter of her life, and I'm excited to see her become the woman she wants to be! Go kick ass, baby sis! I love you and remember... https://youtu.be/5tepYJno7rU

Back at My Parents' Place

Last weekend my sister Kelly and I moved out of our apartment. If I felt better, I might have stronger feelings about it. At this point, I just want to be settled even if living back with my parents doesn't thrill me like it does Kelly. We rented a U-Haul that my dad was kind of to drive for us and my mom, dad, sisters, uncle, and I moved everything from the apartment to my parents' place in four hours.

Going into the weekend I wasn't sure how much I was going to be able to help, but my butt ended up being pain free enough to do my share of the heavy lifting.  I was exhausted and didn't feel well, but by now I should be a professional at functioning under inferior health conditions. I really approached it like a marathon except I've never finished a marathon in four hours. I was ready to be done before we even started, but I somehow managed to dig deep and finish. I couldn't ask my family to pick up my slack  because I didn't want to give anyone something else to bitch about when they were already volunteering their time and energy, albeit I'm sure they felt at least 50% better than I did. After all, I'm recovering from having Mount Everest in my crack. Mount Everest is what I decided to name my first abscess.

My mom is a life saver. She certainly helped me the most with the move and I couldn't have done it without her. She has also graciously taken care of me these past two weeks and has made my life easier.