The Year 2012

I hope everyone's Christmas went well.  We had a great Christmas but it went by too fast.  Now we are approaching another New Year, 2012.  It was almost a year when me and Ne found out she was pregnant.  Hard to believe so much change has happened and change will always be a part of life....for good or for bad.

What changes will 2012 bring to us all?  Maybe some are hoping to find that new job?  Hoping this is the year a new baby arrives?  Hoping we have another year with our family?  Whatever the case is, 2012 for us will be about change.

2012 will bring on a career change.  If you read my previous post, "Jobless with Twins" all of you will know I am lookng for job.  Although I had some success in obtaining a job, it's not what I would call a long term solution.   Going thru the whole process of getting a job is becoming dis-heartening.  Some job postings don't even reflective what the job "really" is.  Sometimes when you are lucky and get an interview, and on the door step of landing the job, the hiring manager gets laid off.  I've been there, done that.  The working world is strange to me.   Company politics are strange to me and a lot of times, working with people on simple tasks can even get out of hand.  Maybe I have 10-20 good working years left in me.  I need to spend that time doing something meaningful before I leave this Earth. 

2012 will also bring on changes with the twins.  So far it's been amazing to see the girls grow.  From little scrawny creatures, they now have fattened up to 13lbs.  Now they smile, laugh, and babble.  By next year they should be walking and probably getting into temper tantrums.  I'll whip them into shape, believe that.

Finally 2012, I hope brings us all good health.  We have only one body, so I'm a believer of taking care of it.  In the New Year, I'm hoping to get more exercise done.  Eversince the babies, I've been in sedentary mode.  I'm hoping the babies will be active as they grow older too.

So to conclude, I'm wishing you all, the best in 2012.  Whatever it is you are looking forward to in the New Year, may it come true and may it be another good year.  Here are some photos of our x'mas.  Enjoy.

They got more gifts in one Xmas than I ever did in my childhood.

Mommy and the girls

Freak out

Quynn's saying hi

The gang

Jayde always smiling

I Hate Christmas

Why I Hate Christmas.

I don’t hate Christmas, but some people do.  Maybe it's because  of a negative experience on Christmas or maybe your fear of receiving another ugly sweater.  Maybe that special someone didn't end up under the tree?  What does Christmas mean to you?  I was searching the net on why some hate Christmas so much.  There are forums dedicated to hating Christmas and songs of Christmas hate too.  Here are some stuff I found:

“Oh God damn I hate Christmas, I wish I had herpes.” - Karl Speegle

“You have to buy presents for everyone, including that bitch of a cousin who pushed you into a lake. Why the hell should I buy him that x-box 360 game he wanted? He pushed me into a lake, dammit!” - howlsatthemoon

“I hate Christmas because my heart is small.” www.cluelessincarolina.com

“I once bought my kids a set of batteries for Christmas with a note on it saying, toys not included.”  - Bernard Manning

Other stuff I came across.

Santa baby bib

Santa plopping cherries?

I want a Millennium Falcon for Christmas

A Special Christmas

This year Christmas seems a lot different to me.  For one, where’s the snow? Where’s the minus 10 weather?  I’m dreaming for a white Christmas.  What do I got to do?  Paint the grass white?  Second, lots of life changes will occur in the New Year.  (Future posts to come).  Third, I get to spend Christmas with my amazing girls and it will be their first.

For me, Christmas is about being with family, who helped shape the person I am today.  It’s the family that I yelled at when things didn’t go my way, the one I butted heads with when my thinking differed than theirs.  It was my family that supported me when I wasn’t the nicest.  Christmas is about thanking our family.

Christmas is also about celebrating life.  A couple days ago, a friend of mine lost their brother to a sudden heart attack.  I could see the pain in his heart thru his eyes as he tried to run his business.  Christmas to me is supposed to be happy and yet, inevitably there is sadness.  This year I want to celebrate life, the birth of my twins, the fact that I am still here breathing, and the fact that my Mom, Dad, brother and Grandma are here to see the twins grow.  Christmas is about celebrating life.

Lastly, Christmas to me is about thanking Christ.  No matter how bad I think my situation is in life, He is there right beside me with a plan.  That’s faith, that’s what I believe in.  In this life, so many things can go wrong and I count my blessings.  When things get scary, or don’t go your way,  I either turn to psalms 23 to find answers or to this t-shirt I saw.

Jesus is my homeboy!

Christmas is about seeking Jesus.

So from I Parent Twins,  I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday.  I promise to try posting more often but the twins take up so much time.  I also want to thank all my readers.  I started this site so family on the other side of the world can catch a glimpse of the twins and has since expanded to friends wanting to read more.  Take care all, have a Merry Christmas and happy New Year. 

Jason and family.

Jobless with Twins

I don't know how many times I've heard the same story over and over again.  So and so just had a kid and now they got laid off from their job.  Gone are the days when an employee would stay at a company for 10, 15, 20, 25 years or more.  Not in the high tech industry anyway.  I made it to 5 years only.  Companies are also less willing to pay for benefits hence a host of contract jobs.  In any case, losing a job, or getting laid off, is stressful.  Just look in the news and how many times have we heard an employee getting laid off and the next day, come into work to shoot down everyone?  Stressful as it may be, there is hope.  Yes there is hope because losing a job is not the end of life.  It's a bump in the road, or possibly a new journey.  My story of Jobless with Twins begins in the summer of 2011.

Summer 2011 - The Vision

"I don't know, but something big will happen when the twins arrive.  I mean,  family life will change but career-wise too.  I'm not sure what it will be yet but I know something has to change.  The twins will let me know."  I remember saying that to a friend when they came to visit.  I was referring to my job and how it didn't make sense any more to have a 9-5 job.  What I needed was flexibility in my schedule.  What I needed was to be with my children.  Fast-forward to Fall 2011.

Fall 2011 - D Day  

In early fall I took 2 months paternity leave from my job.  I returned to work on Nov. 3.  The next day I entered my office building and several security guards were roaming the production area.  I could see many of my co-workers huddled in a circle, just talking.  Minding my business I took a flight of stairs to my cubicle where I found more of my co-workers standing around, looking out the glass window to the production floor below.  "You know what's going on today right?"  "I think I have a good idea," I replied.  I didn't really believe my gut instinct until I walked down the hall to get some coffee.  "Jason, come with me to the cafeteria.  We have a meeting."  I followed my manager to the cafeteria and at that moment, I didn't know how to feel.

In the cafeteria were all my co-workers, seated in chairs.  At the front of the room I could see HR personnel, an interpreter, the director of engineering.  I sat down, waiting to hear my fate, and the fate of the others.  "It is my regret, to announce a difficult decision...."  That's all I remember hearing because all I thought about after were my twins.

Getting Laid.    

We have a saying at work, "When are we getting laid?"  Laid off of course.  Getting laid is another story we have to deal with but we'll save that for next time.  The company will be letting all of board operations go by the end of this year.  I only know of 4 people who will remain at the company from about 50.  I received my package for 5 years of service. Hard to believe it's been 5 years.  

A New Life

The days following the announcement, I remained calm because in essence, it's something out of my control.  In life you are given a set of cards, it's how you play them that counts.  Are you going to fold?  Or are you going to try changing your hand for something better?  Who knows what you will end up with but if you don't do anything, you will end up with nothing.  If you don't take a risk, you will never gain.  In this life, I believe things happen for a reason, and it doesn't become apparent until you look back.  As Steve Jobs once said, "you need to look at the past in order for you to connect the dots, before it all starts to make sense."  I look back and see the birth of my twins, and now a chance to spend more time with them.  I look back and see that the 9-5 doesn't make sense for me.  I look back and maybe getting a job isn't even the right thing to do.  I'm not crazy, trust me.  There is method to the madness but it has to start small.

So for those who have recently lost their jobs, or looking for a job, or just trying to find out what's the next step in life... keep your ears open and hearts open...it will allow you to find your way around that bump in the road.  Have patience and believe in yourself because no else in this world will.