Andrea: "I love my job" - then and now

Fond memories flooded my mind as Jeff, the girls, and I attended the Division of Aging Services' Training and Employee Appreciation Day at Grant Park in downtown Atlanta to celebrate the completion of their Oglethorpe Award Process (Baldridge) application and on-site evaluation. I appreciated their invitation to include me and my family since I participated in their work towards completing the Baldridge criteria while I was there. We ate a nice lunch and visited with my former co-workers from the Division. Unfortunately, we had to leave before seeing the staff from the Office of the State Long-Term Care Ombudsman who were in transit from another training event in Macon.

Maria Greene, Division of Aging Services Director (and former Ombudsman), and Cheryl Harris, Aging and Disability Resource Center Director (and another former Ombudsman), are visiting with Aubrey and meeting Addison for the first time.Photo above: Maria is enjoying talking with Aubrey at the picnic.

Photo below: Maria is holding Aubrey for the first time when she was just one day old. (November 2, 2006)

I worked for the Office of the State Long-Term Care Ombudsman (http://www.georgiaombudsman.org/) administered by the Division for 8 1/4 years (12 3/4 years total with the Ombudsman Program at the local level and at the State Office) before leaving to be a stay-at-home-mom - - a decision I will never regret, but I still miss the work that I did (well, sometimes), the advocacy, and the people. My former boss, Becky Kurtz, State Long-Term Care Ombudsman, probably recalls how often I professed how much "I love my job." And, I did....I loved being a part of something that helped the residents of nursing homes and personal care homes now and in the future. It gave me the opportunity to passionately do many other things that I enjoyed: helping residents and their families solve problems, providing training and technical assistance to other ombudsmen, providing information about the Ombudsman Program to the general public, making improvements to our systems and methods of data collection and evaluation at local, state, and national levels, compiling statistical information to give a bigger picture of our Program, our work, our residents, and long-term care, etc., etc. After Aubrey was born, I went back to work thanks to an enviable arrangement to work only 3 days a week, two of which were from home. But, it just didn't meet the original goals of our family which was for me to be at home full-time. After much thought and prayer, I tearfully resigned 6+ months after giving it an earnest try. But truthfully, ever since Jeff and I married, I had been looking forward to my new job of raising my children. I was excited that there was something (or should I say, someone) at home that would challenge me, teach me, need me, love me, and give me the most joy I've ever known.

So, if you've had even one conversation with me in the last 2 1/2 years or have been keeping up with this blog, then you know how much "I love my new job"......the greatest job I could ever have!

Here are two of my favorite, priceless "Mommy-moments":

Mommy and Aubrey like to hug cheek to cheek and look at each other in the mirror while Aubrey chants, "Me and my Mommy. Me and my Mommy."

Addison is watching and feeling Mommy's lips move while Mommy is singing and talking to her.

Mommy's little angels