Back to work

Well just as Katie requested, I am writing again J.  We came back to Germany from Switzerland on Easter Sunday afternoon.  It was strange not spending Easter with family but it was still a good day.  The four of us who were in Switzerland together spent the day driving through the Swiss Alps taking lots of pictures.

Monday was also part of the Easter holiday here in Germany so we did not have to go to work.  Instead the four Central Distribution Center employees spent the day in Wurzburg Germany looking at castles and palaces.  It was a lot of fun to get out and see those amazing buildings that we just don’t have in the US.  These buildings were unbelievably enormous. 

If you go to my facebook page you can find a link to the pictures of the Wurzburg buildings and the Easter trip through the Alps, there’s way too many to put on the blog here.

Tuesday was back to work here in Germany.  We spent the morning in getting another presentation learning more about the company and how it operates.  In the afternoon we toured two local warehouses owned by Würth to see how they do their processes.  We also toured a screw manufacturing facility.  I have used so many screws in all our remodeling escapades it was really interesting to see how they’re all made.

Today was our first day of “work” since we’ve been here in Bad Mergentheim.  Over the next week and a half we will spend our time rotating through various departments learning what they do and how they do it.  After that we will spend the final four weeks in our respective departments learning specifics about how we will be doing our job once we return to the US. 

Today was our warehouse day.  I spent the morning packaging parcels for shipment.  We took little boxes of parts and put them into standard sized bigger boxes, attached the shipping label and sent it on it’s way down the conveyer belt.  The afternoon was much less interesting.  I spent two hours opening small Ziploc bags, putting two small screws into it, and reclosing the bag.  Apparently some customers pay extra to have their parts already assembled the way they want.  For example, think of when you buy furniture from IKEA or somewhere, you know that package of hardware that comes with it?  Next time you see one of those please be grateful to the person in the warehouse who put all those together, it is not a lot of fun.

Well that’s about it for today.  Tomorrow we are working in purchasing I think, maybe that will be a little more interesting. 

The Readers Digest Version

Oh boy, it’s been a while! These last few weeks have been crazy with so many things going on and so much change happening… so here is the Readers Digest version!

-          The weekend before Phil left we had two parties to celebrate him being done with Graduate school and his new job. It was so great to see family and hang out with friends before he left. With our friends we did a mock graduation ceremony that I can guarantee was much more entertaining that mine could ever dream of being! Phil was a great sport even when we made him put on his graduation robe and hat.

-          Phil and I had an awesome date “day” the day before he left. We had some professional pictures taken down by the stone arch bridge and then enjoyed exploring the area. Phil leaving was harder then I think we both expected. Saying “goodbye” at the airport was miserable to say the least. The whole first day I could not stop crying, I was at work and even the littlest things set me off! However we are both figuring out what this season looks like and are adjusting more. Thankfully we have been able to talk more than we both expected!

-          I finished grad school!!! I am so relieved to be completely done! It feels so surreal and a bit unnerving! I keep on feeling a panic that I have not gotten enough done and then remember that there is nothing else to do. Graduation is in a few weeks and I think that will bring some closure for my brain. It is amazing how quickly these two years went. There were so many points I just wanted to quit and be done with school, I am so glad I stuck it through and finished!!

-          My job transition is going really well! I really love my new position and everyday feel like I am learning a little more. This is the last week I have where I am job sharing. I am sad to be leaving Student Development and the people there though. I am so thankful for so many good friends and co-workers I have made while working there.

Now that grad school is done, I am hoping to get back into the swing of blogging more! And maybe Phil will update some as well J

Hello from the Swiss Alps

So I know this is Katie's blog but she gave me special permission to use it over the next few weeks/months to keep everyone up to date on my world travels.  For those of you who don't know I got a new job a few weeks ago as the account for a company in Maple Grove, MN called Wurth Adams Nut and Bolt.  Wurth Adams is a subsidiary of Wurth Industry of North America (WINA) which is a division of Wurth Industry based in Kunzelsau Germany.  Wurth is a multi-billion dollar company which is still privately owned by the Wurth family who started it in the late '40s.  I know most people in the US haven't heard of Wurth, (I hadn't either until I had a friend who got a job there) but in Germany and Europe as a whole, their name is as common as 3M or Target.  They are a huge company with multiple divisions in almost every industry there is.  They own hotels, restaurants, airports, schools etc but their biggest industry is distribution of nuts and bolts. 

Wurth International Headquarters in Kunzelsau, Germany

Anyway, I am in Germany because the distribution center they are opening in the US is going to be using a computer system all of the Germany companies use but none of the US companies use yet.  There is no one who can teach us how to operate the computer systems so they sent us to where it all begins to learn how to use the computer system. 

I am going to be here for the next two months which is a long time but it's been pretty fun so far.  Because of the long weekend for Easter, four of the five of us here decided to take a trip to Switzerland for the weekend.  We figured so long as we are in Europe we might as well take in the sights.  It's strange that driving to different countries here is as easy as driving to different states in the US.  Anyway, we're in the amazing beautiful Swiss Alps for the next couple days.  Here's the link to the city we're in Chur, Switzerland

Here's a couple of pictures for you to enjoy.  There's more on my Facebook page too.  I'll try to keep writing as time goes on over the next few weeks/months to keep everyone updated on what I'm doing and how things are going.

In the Home Stretch… ?

Yes, I am blogging. Yes I am avoiding my paper. YES, it is due in two weeks. Yes, I am having a little panic attack. YET, here I am. How could I not share my JOY with you?

Now, don’t you wish you were working on your masters as well? I get this is the home stretch... but I am just ready to be done!

HELP!!

Our Chaotic Life

So as you can tell, blogging has not been my top priority lately, and I do honestly miss it, but there is just not enough time to do everything.

This week I started my new job at Northwestern. I am an Academic Advisor for the Graduate and Continuing education department and so far I am loving it! It is so fun to have things like my own space, desk, computer, phone line and other things that I always shared with all the student workers before. I keep on joking with Phil that I feel like I got a big girl job. J

Phil is finishing his last week at his current company so he has been training in his replacement all week. Its very surreal that this big change will be coming so soon for him. Monday he starts at Wurth and will be in the office for a week before flying to Germany for seven weeks. I feel like the clock is ticking for our time remaining. Before he leaves in a week and a half, we are having three parties at our house, the yard is in desperate need of being raked, we need to finish the egress windows so our permit can be closed with the city, AND we both need to finish out projects for grad school. Oh yeah, and I would really like to spend some time with Phil before he leaves… I thinking something is going to have to give.

My sister Emily who lives in our basement apartment also started her full time job today! It was so cool to see how God totally took care of her by bringing this job for her. When we all got home from work today, we all had so much to talk about. Crazy change and transition for all of us.

I think the only thing that has not changed right now is the dog’s obsession with shoes. It seriously won't end. I really am the dumb one, because I keep on accidentally leaving shoes out for him to kill. I am seriously down to one pair of dress shoes now. I have been borrowing shoes from Emily the last few days. Tonight after class, I am going to run by Target and see if I can find some shoes without spending so much money… He knows what he is doing is wrong, he just seems helpless to help his puppy ways. Oh what to do?

Until grad school is done, I am sure I will not be a regular in posting as I would like, but this season will end shortly! Happy Wednesday!