Minneapolis adventure

We survived! And thrived, I might add...Ginger, Grammy, Opa, and I all traveled out to Minneapolis for my first week on the new job, and I have to say that it went even better than I could have ever dreamed.

The flight out was a cinch- Ginger slept on the way out to Denver, and then played on the 2nd leg to Minneapolis. It was nice to have two extra sets of hands to help with all of the luggage, toys, and baby, I must admit. When we arrived, we were excited to see how nice the set-up was at the hotel- it was a 2 bedroom suite with a full kitchen and living room, more than enough space for all of us.

Dad and I woke up Monday morning and got breakfast together, while Grammy and Ginger slept in together. The executive recruiter who took me along the hiring process met me in the lobby and we walked together the 5 blocks to the Target corporate center. Target actually takes up 5 seperate buildings in downtown Minneapolis- it is definitely Target town around there! I was led to the "lactation room" for moms, and was BLOWN away by the set up. I wished I had all of this at home- lockers, refrigerators, 10-12 seperate stalls with magazines, a place to put your baby's photo, electrical outlets, wipes, paper towels, kleenex- you name it. It was kind of funny walking in and hearing the "whoosh whoosh" sound of other moms breast pumps- but usually I was either alone, or just one other person in there, and always in the seperate stalls so the privacy was just awesome.

Target, I've decided, is where I needed to land for my first venture in returning to work. Every single person I met with was sharp, young, family focused, intelligent, and truly welcoming and glad to see me joining the team. My boss is FANTASTIC! He has a little baby boy only a month older than Ginger, and his wife also works at Target (and breastfeeds/pumps) so there was absolutely no awkwardness at all. We showed off our babies to each other, and he lit up when talking about his baby boy. We hit it off right away, and though I will report to him from CA, I can tell that it's going to be a great working relationship. His biggest concern for me is that I remember my priority is my family, and that work never trumphs my husband and baby. WOW is all I can say.

I spent the week really just going from meeting to meeting with various peers, and doing "GTK's". That stands for Get to Knows, so I told my career story about 50 times, but found it interesting to learn where others had come from. Many of them have been with Target for 10+ years, which is nice to see, as I'm hoping to plant my feet and stick around.

Everyone's advice for me is to "go slow now, to go fast later". Meaning just enjoy this time in training, absorb the Target culture, and despite wanting to jump right in, resist and just develop relationships. Most companies, especially in this economy, would have directed otherwise, so I can tell this is a long term investment on their part. One day, my boss's boss's boss (3 levels up) took the whole team out to lunch (about 20 people) and we laughed so much through the lunch that at times we were tearing up from all of the laughter. I fit like a glove with the team, and I feel really set up for success having come from Starbucks. I swear, you could just change the Target Red for Starbucks green and it is the same place. Overwhelming for some, but for me, it felt just like home.

I will admit that it was tough to leave Ginger every morning, but knowing she was in my parents hands made all the difference. I was more jealous that I didn't get to go on all of the fun adventures they had, vs. feeling sad and depressed that I wasn't with her. I would come home from work at night, and she would grin ear to ear and snuggle, hug, and want to be close with me right away. She slept well, ate well, and really adjusted just fine. As they say, it is more of a transition for Mom than child, and that proved true for us. Plus Ginger got to bond with Grammy and Opa, who have offered to watch her for another 2 months until my full time nanny (and friend) is available to watch Ginger. Which means I won't have to leave her with our next door neighbor, who is sweet and kind, but still a bit of a stranger to me. I couldn't be more thrilled.

All in all, it was a fabulous trip. I am happy to be home, enjoying my own bed, seeing Paul and Woody, and being lazy around the house this weekend. If you can believe it, I am actually looking forward now to work, though it will still be hard to leave her in the mornings. If I had any concerns about whether this was the right move, they were alieviated by my boss and Target's sharp focus on making sure everyone is family first. That means a lot to me as a new mom, and I can't wait to see what's in store for the next chapter...