Health has not been the only change around this household. Perhaps the biggest news is that Jeremy finally got a new job! He left Liberty Mutual almost three weeks ago and is now working for Eli Lilly, Indianapolis's largest employer. For those that aren't familiar with Lilly, it is a large drug company, and while everyone may have very mixed feelings about the pharmaceutical sector, Lilly is very good to its employees. We are thrilled that he is working with them! He is still working as a paralegal, but his job in infinitely more interesting and challenging now. Plus, he isn't just doing discovery and motions. It more like he is overseeing the department, making sure discovery and motions are accurate and follow the SOP for Lilly, and he gets to attend any trials that occur. He's most excited about that, I think. He is already planning to travel to Delaware toward the end of September for a trial, and will have to visit the state sometime this spring for a sight visit to approve the location. The area of law he is working with now is largely patent law, so he's out of his element, but he always learns so fast. Plus, he is super eager to do well, so he's doing everything he can to learn about patent law.
The only downside to this job is that it is a short-term employment position. He will be doing this job for two years, and then there is an opportunity for the position to be renewed for two more years. So long as Lilly isn't having financial problems (it has been unstable now for years), he will most likely re-up at that time. After four years though, the job is gone (almost certainly). At that time he will either need to find a different position with Lilly or move on. The *exciting* part though...the VP of the legal department has already mentioned that if Jeremy does well and impresses the VP, that guy could then refer Jeremy to an outside firm for legal experience, and then rehire Jeremy in a few years as a full-fledged lawyer. It's not very common for Lilly to promote paralegals to lawyers because they feel paralegals lack the experience Lilly wants, but it is also a possibility. Just, not as likely. We are kind of aiming for impress the VP, get referred to a firm, get hired back. You know, unless something else comes up or Jeremy decides this isn't for him after all. Still, it's so nice to have options on the horizon. Like, real options, that feel tangible and positive for Jeremy. He actually *has conversations* with me *about work* now. It's amazing!
I guess another down side is that he will be working longer hours. I have to adjust to his later evening arrival time, and that he will be bringing work home often. I haven't quite made that switch yet with meal preparations or evening organization, but we'll get there. I don't begrudge him the hours, I just have to get my shit together.
For my part, work continues to go well and I will talk about that in much greater detail when I talk about horses as a whole. Suffice for now that I am happy for Jeremy, keeping the house together, getting ready for a garden (also its own blog), and dreaming of better things to come.
Now Samuel. Oh dear little Samuel. I could probably write about him for days. *grin* He is two and a half now and ever so much fun. He tests me continually, but is good-natured about it. He still loves being outdoors the best, and is always exploring. Preschool continues to be a positive experience for him and I really love the Montessori school he attends. This year he is going three days a week, half days. Next year I intend to enroll him in five days a week, half days. I am just so pleased with the socializing and education he receives, it has been a wonderful fit for us all.
His love for horses is growing! My mother-in-law is out of town for several weeks (Jeremy's sister had her first baby yesterday! Cay is there to help and visit), so Samuel has been coming to work with me more often. He comes with me to IU on Mondays, and I have been trying to make time for a ride date each week too. When we go to IU, he hangs out with Sara, the stable assistant, and they often go visit the minis. This last week, he felt one of them needed a hug. *awww* When we visit Doc, he helps me get all of our stuff out, then at the end helps me put all of our stuff away. He is pretty patient about waiting to get on the horse, and then will stay up there as long as he is comfortable. His attention span isn't so much an issue as his physical comfort. For instance, we rode around the race track twice one day, and started on our third round be he got cold so we went back. Then yesterday we went out for our first full-fledged trail ride. It was a beautiful day, a little windy, but he had his wind jacket on so he was perfectly comfortable. We made it all the way around the short side--though I did have to get off with about 1/4 of the trail to go because Samuel was tired of sharing the saddle with me. lol! I can't blame him though, there wasn't enough room for both of us, and he is used to riding bareback with me, not with a saddle. Without me taking up room in the saddle, he was perfectly content up there. He also now calls Doc "his horse" about half the time, and the other half "mommy's horse". I love it. I hope this enjoyment for riding continues his whole life!
When we aren't playing with horses, we just have other little adventures. He loves riding his tricycle while we walk the dogs, he loves going to the zoo and the children's museum, and he loves visiting his friends. This summer, I hope he'll help me with the gardening, and I imagine we'll find some fun little adventures to go on as well. Maybe even some camping trips with the horses.
It's hard to believe he's coming up on three already. They grow up so fast! This spring and summer we are going to work on potty training. He shows lots of interest, but our schedule has made it difficult to commit to it hardcore. I think once I am done teaching IU in a couple of weeks, the schedule (and weather) will allow a lot more time for this endeavor.
I think that about sums us up. I'll leave you with some Samuel pictures that I adore. :)
Enjoying a bareback ride on Doc with Mommy
Trail ride at Strawtown. This is after I dismounted, but he was a content little rider the whole way, and Doc was a saint.
The mini needed a hug!
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