What was I so worried about anyway???

Well, simple fact, I knew my interview went well with the dog walking place. My interviewer and I have had too many fabulous conversations for it to have gone otherwise! Of course I was worried and freaked out for nothing because she hadn't called me when she said she would.

(a) I do still feel that wasn't the best way for her to handle things, especially with someone so new to dealing with their company, and with the front desk girl not having all the information.
(b) She explained VERY well to me what happened and why I hadn't heard from her until late Tuesday afternoon (instead of "by noon on Monday."

All that said, I got the job!!!! I went in yesterday for orientation, filling out paperwork, etc, and a couple hours following someone on 3 of her walks. It was good to be able to observe some specific processes, get some reminders on some common sense things, and to see someone with a different style of handling rambunctious big dogs than I would.

My office manager and I had a good laugh about that later, as my style is much closer to hers than to my trainer. Amazingly enough, the trainer reported back that she was concerned at HOW disciplined I am with dogs! Her style is some of "let 'em do whatever they want, we're here to show them a good time." My style is more "Let's have fun, get the dogs some exercise, but they need to know that when I'm here, I'm the boss. NOT them!"

I generally prescribe to the Cesar Milan method of dog handling. It's all about human training, not dog training, and the dog just has a clear understanding that you are the Alpha-Dog and "Pack Leader," as Cesar would say. When a dog knows who is in charge, they happily comply (typically) and are much more content with knowing that they're being given clear orders. My version of it is basically, "You do what I want you to do, and then we can do what you want to do!"

Well, now I'm off to day two of training!!! I'm told if I can be half the pet care professional this woman is, I will be doing fabulously in this business. Sweet!!! People need to learn those kinds of comments just make me want to jump higher!

Earliest I've been awake to date!

Hello readers. I'm sorry, I know it's been a few days since my last post. I've been actually trying to figure out what exactly to post about... not a whole lot has been going on. After my last post, Dog-Man called and sort of tried to work things out. I decided to give him one more chance, but of course, I think he still has no real concept of how to run a business, and nothing really changed. Earlier this week, I actually got a call from another dog walking company - MUCH more local, MUCH more experience and professionalism and concept of business image with your staff just as much as with your clients. They actually had a real list of questions on an interview form!!! gasp!

I went in for a casual interview yesterday, which was actually pretty great. I get along really well with the marketing director, we have a very similar mindset about how a business should work and what customer service looks like. I left with no direct job offer, but feeling as though I was already a part of the team. I will find out Monday if I got the job, and will start PAID training Tuesday!! Yeah, did I mention before that with the other company, the only work I would have been paid for was the actual dog walking I did? I would have been expected to do my own marketing, build my own client base, and come in for training completely pay-free. Riiiiiiiight.

Moving on, the current thing on my mind is something I am starting to get a little worried about. On Sunday in church, I started feeling a little, uncomfortable but not entirely painful twinge right in the middle of my lower pelvis. I brushed it off as no biggie because I didn't really feel any real alarm over it, it just wasn't comfortable. That, and I had just called the doctor a couple days prior with concerns about what turned out to be just a bad round ligament pull. I don't want to be a neglectful mother, but I also don't want to be freaking out over stupid little things. So, I figured I'd let this one go.

Here's the problem, though... since Monday, off and on, and - I realized today - increasingly, I have been experiencing what feels a lot like mild menstrual cramping that fades in and out all day. It's completely subtle and doesn't impede my activities at all, but I definitely notice it. When it woke me up this morning just before 6:00 (not awful, just enough to wake me up), I realized I couldn't ignore it anymore. Now, I'm up at least an hour and a half earlier than what I'm used to, researching mild cramping in the second trimester, and starting to freak out. No one else is awake yet, my doctor's office isn't open, but the article I found basically said that because the pain is consistent I need to call the doctor.

They already decided they want me to get things checked out at my next sonogram to be sure they're not "missing anything" from the ligament cramping before - now THAT pain was bad! - and now, with my next appointment still 2 weeks away, I'm not sure if I can really wait any longer to get it done.

Are there any other moms out there who've experienced this happening? I'm really trying hard not to become a total worry-wart, but I've had a pretty constant fear of something awful happening to my baby, that I haven't ever been able to totally shake. I'm struggling with really relying on God and allowing him to give me peace about this whole thing. I just want to have a healthy baby...

Do I Look Like an Idiot to You??

Ok, so this post is really more of a pissed of rant than an update of any real caliber. Update portion is this: I've been looking into becoming a dog-walker part time between now and August (when Munchkin Melice enters stage left). The first place I applied actually called me right away. Walking dogs in the wealthy communities of DC and making a butt-load of money while getting in some exercise sounds like fun to me!!! Secretly, I've always had a little fantasy about being a dog-walker for a short season of my life, just to see what it's like. I keep remembering Maggie in "In Her Shoes" and having her first real job ever be walking and washing dogs. I know, oh so glamorous, but when this girl gets an idea in her head, it's hard to get it out. Call it checking off an item on the Bucket List.

Anyhoo.... so I've been in contact with this guy who's running the dog walking business in DC. We met last week (I swear it feels like it's been longer than that) up in Silver Spring, where I got turned around and he was still pissy about me being late. We talked for about an hour, which he kept saying he wasn't happy about. *rolls eyes* He tells me he's going to schedule me to come up for training and to get set up with a couple clients so I can start walking sooner than later. Sure, fine, I can handle that. Just let me know when to be where.

I don't hear from the guy for almost a WEEK! So, I call him and ask when I should start hearing about training and he says to come up Tuesday. Great another long drive to Silver Spring. Sure, no problem. I call Monday to confirm and he says no, Tuesday's to packed, he'll set up a meeting for me to get some training in Dupont. Oh yeah. I forgot to mention... I talked to the guy THREE times and he couldn't remember who I was!!!!! Does anyone else see anything seriously wrong with this!?

So, surprise, surprise, I never heard from him yesterday. I've been planning my week and my day around having this meeting in DC and I still don't know if it's happening! So, I call him this morning at 8:26. Yes, I know. Too early, but if I have to leave at 9:20 I need to get moving! No answer. I call again at 9:20. STILL no answer!

And then.... I get a TEXT MESSAGE!!!!!!!!! Are you freaking kidding me?!?!?!?!?! Seriously. You are placing me in an employer/employee relationship and you're seriously going to TEXT me to tell me you're in a meeting and the person YOU were supposed to schedule me with would call me to set something up?! Ok, fine. I'll play your stupid game. Keep in mind, please, that I'd already left two messages telling him I'm unimpressed with his lack of communication and giving me the run-around, especially since I'd been planning my whole day around this.

I text him back asking him to call me after his meeting because the way this has turned out is NOT ok. He then responds that "unless you take initiative, it is hard for me to manage every bodies schedule, until I get an office manager sorry. I have 45 people working for me right now."

And yes, ladies and gentlemen, that is exactly, letter for letter, how the message was typed. And apparently now I am the one who isn't taking initiative. Interesting how that works, huh? So I responded, "I am not arguing this with you over texts while you are in a meeting. Please call me when you are done."

Oh yeah, and by the by, it's now noon and I haven't heard from him OR the girl.