November 28, 2010: The first week begins

I decided to not start this blog by announcing to the world, "you know, I've never blogged before." No, not me. That would be trite.

Instead, I begin my electronic opus by introducing the world to my beloved family of four - Glen, the husband/daddy, David, the older child/big brother, Elizabeth, the younger child/little sister, and myself - the mommy/wife. Oh, let's not forget the two dogs, Lager and Spike.

But why, might the unknowing reader ask, would your family be of any particular interest to anyone besides ... well, your family? An excellent question! Here's my attempt at an answer:

We are your ordinary, suburban family living in Southern California. My husband has worked in the tech industry for almost 20 years, and my career has centered on the field of higher education since 1993. Between the two of us, we have five advanced  degrees, two cars, two kids, two dogs, one house, and two mortgages (I think).

Recently, our family schedule and infrastructure was turned slightly askew, but in a good way. Before the holiday season began, my husband was afforded the opportunity to begin a new career at a company in Silicone Valley - you know, the Bay area. This would not be a big deal were it not for the fact that the Bay area - home to my in-laws (whom I love, by the way) is approximately 400 miles away from our home in Southern California. This was not just any run-of-the-mill offer. This opportunity was hip, hot, and NOW! Let's just say that the offering company has a CEO who briefly attended Harvard, is 26 years old, and recently had a major motion picture made about him.

Fast forward a few weeks' worth of a detailed decision-making process, and we get to the part where Glen jumped at the opportunity, with what I hope was my unfettered, unabridged, unconditional, and complete support.


This, of course, unveiled a series of conundrums that, while not insurmountable, required some deep thinking and strategerie, particularly pertaining where our band of Hastings merry-makers should establish permanent residence. Issues to consider: kids' schools, my job, our house, and our community.

Let's fast-forward a bit  more to the part where we decide that, for the most part, Chez Hastings will remain in Southern California. Glen and I agree that he will commute weekly, coming home on Friday evenings, returning to northern California on Sunday evenings, and racking up a boat load of frequent flyer miles on Southwest Airlines.

And herein lies the purpose of this blog: to keep a journalistic account of the mayhem, silliness, and pratfalls that will no doubt come with my new (yet part-time) role of single mommy.

Let's put that in bold font, shall we? PART-TIME SINGLE MOMMY!

So here, I must curb my sarcasm for a few minutes to add a few notes:

1. I could not be more proud of and excited for my sweet Glen. He has embarked upon the adventure of a lifetime!

2. Our kids - David and Elizabeth - are pretty much 100% awesome. Parenting them is a joy and an honor. They are kind, smart, thoughtful, and engaging. 

3. I have a terrific job with a very supportive boss and co-workers, and more friends who have offered to pitch in and help during the weekdays than I can possibly count.

This being said, many people have asked me, "how do you feel about Glen being away so much during the week now?" Up until this week ... well, this past weekend to be specific ... I hadn't given it much thought. Glen and I have both had travel obligations for work that have taken us away from the house on many, many, many occasions. Glen, in particular, is quite resilient and good-natured about the whole thing when I have to travel for my job, and the kids and I became very used to having Daddy travel to Sunnyvale weekly for his former employer (whose name begins with a Y and whose company color is purple).

So, it's fair to say that in many respects, this new arrangement is not all that different.

Except that it is different. Very different.

We grown-ups* often tell ourselves that we will look back on the days that our kids were small and relish those moments ... especially when aforementioned kids are teenagers who are either screeming at us or not speaking to us at all. While I don't anticipate that this will necessarily be the case with David and Elizabeth, I have long considered how best to capture and record the moments of their young childhood that will later become treasured memories.

I hope that this blog will help me do that.



*OMG! Did I just refer to myself as a grown up? Yikes!