just wanted to share my good news...

[whitby_2773]

I''m an australian living in New York, and i''m currently in LA visiting friends before heading home to Australia...for 2 months. in the almost 10 years i''ve been away from my friends and family, this will be my 4th trip home. i went home for 3 weeks last august...and it just wasn''t enough. so tim said to me - ''why not miss the depths of the NY winter, and catch up with family and friends in a more substantial way?'' so i said - ''great!...but i''ll miss *you*.....'' this is the difficulty of moving around the world; you make connections everywhere, and everyone you love is never in the one place.

anyway, being away so long, tim would normally come home with me for some period of time. but he''s recently started a new job with a big, global company, and isn''t allowed to take leave for 3 months - which is the end of march - which is when i come back.

but 2 weeks ago, his boss walked into his office and said..."i hear your wife is going to australia for a visit? we''re thinking of sending a review team to australia for a week - would you like to head it up?"

so guess what! tim is coming home for the *very middle* week of my time away - which also just happens to be....

VALENTINE''S DAY!

i''m *so* pleased, and *so* chuffed - it''s going to make the time apart just SO much easier if i know the longest we''ll be apart is 4 weeks...instead of 9.

and after all these years, we''re going to be having Valentine''s Day dinner together in our favorite restaurant in all the world.

i feel beyond blessed.

 

[VRBeauty]

Whitby:

How wonderful for you -- blessed sounds like the best possible description!

Em... I assume being "chuffed" is a good thing?

 

[Bella_mezzo]

whitby, that is fantastic!!!!!!! Have a great valentines day!

 

[loriken214]

How AWESOME Kareyn!!!! You''ll have a brilliant Valentine''s Day with Tim!!!!

Lori

 

[honey22]

That''s fabulous news!!!! And as an Aussie, I have to ask, which is your favorite restaurant?!

 

[whitby_2773]

Date: 1/23/2010 1:12:50 AM
Author: honey22
That's fabulous news!!!! And as an Aussie, I have to ask, which is your favorite restaurant?!

honey! i didnt know you were australian! hallo aussie - oi oi oi!

my favorite restaurant is the Bon Ton in Leura. superlative food, wonderful ambiance - just perfect. we'll sit outside under the trees and the fairy lights, with the fountain bubbling and music playing, and at that time of year there will almost certainly be warm, balmy breezes blowing, and we'll watch the sun go down and it'll just be....

bliss.

 

[kama_s]

Wow - what a great surprise! I''m so glad you''re doing this, Whitby. I think you''re going to be in for a real treat with this extended visit. And it''s fantastic Tim can join, even if only for a short visit.

 

[Smo]

Date: 1/23/2010 1:15:33 AM
Author: whitby_2773

Date: 1/23/2010 1:12:50 AM
Author: honey22
That''s fabulous news!!!! And as an Aussie, I have to ask, which is your favorite restaurant?!

honey! i didnt know you were australian! hallo aussie - oi oi oi!

my favorite restaurant is the Bon Ton in Leura. superlative food, wonderful ambiance - just perfect. we''ll sit outside under the trees and the fairy lights, with the fountain bubbling and music playing, and at that time of year there will almost certainly be warm, balmy breezes blowing, and we''ll watch the sun go down and it''ll just be....

bliss.

That is such nice news! I am also an Aussie and love Cafe Bon Ton in Leura, I literally went there last weekend for lunch. Had an unreal beef shank pie and this amazing cake for desert, so much meringue and chocolate it was so delicious!

 

[chiquitapet]

That is so wonderful!!!! Wishing you and Tim a great Valentine''s (from Brisbane)!!

 

[oddoneout]

Aw great news. Have a great Valentine''s Day.

 

[Dandi]

Fantastic news whitby!! Have a wonderful trip home!!

 

[whitby_2773]

Date: 1/23/2010 2:54:52 AM
Author: Smo

Date: 1/23/2010 1:15:33 AM

Author: whitby_2773

Date: 1/23/2010 1:12:50 AM

Author: honey22

That''s fabulous news!!!! And as an Aussie, I have to ask, which is your favorite restaurant?!

honey! i didnt know you were australian! hallo aussie - oi oi oi!


my favorite restaurant is the Bon Ton in Leura. superlative food, wonderful ambiance - just perfect. we''ll sit outside under the trees and the fairy lights, with the fountain bubbling and music playing, and at that time of year there will almost certainly be warm, balmy breezes blowing, and we''ll watch the sun go down and it''ll just be....


bliss.

That is such nice news! I am also an Aussie and love Cafe Bon Ton in Leura, I literally went there last weekend for lunch. Had an unreal beef shank pie and this amazing cake for desert, so much meringue and chocolate it was so delicious!

Smo! no way!!

what were you doing in leura? i lived in glenbrook, prior to moving to the UK, then the US. and i know EXACTLY the cake you''re referring to - YUMHO!

the bon ton at night is one of the few truly romantic places in the world for dinner - i love it. just love it.

 

[noelwr]

wow... that is indeed fantastic news! what a coincidence that it is even possible, especially since he''s been working at this new company for...what?...not even a month? they must see a lot of potential in him. and Australia is a big place... so what are the chances his company has stuff going on at the same place as your home town?

so I''m guessing Tim is ruff_hi?

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

YAY!!!! What a fantastic boss! I hope you and Tim have a lovely time on Oz!

 

[Catmom]

Oh whitby, how wonderful and what a fantastic boss your hubby has!!! You will have such a wonderful Valentine''s Day!!! Have a great time in Austrailia.

 

[Scorpioanne]

Date: 1/23/2010 1:15:33 AM
Author: whitby_2773

Date: 1/23/2010 1:12:50 AM
Author: honey22
That''s fabulous news!!!! And as an Aussie, I have to ask, which is your favorite restaurant?!

honey! i didnt know you were australian! hallo aussie - oi oi oi!

my favorite restaurant is the Bon Ton in Leura. superlative food, wonderful ambiance - just perfect. we''ll sit outside under the trees and the fairy lights, with the fountain bubbling and music playing, and at that time of year there will almost certainly be warm, balmy breezes blowing, and we''ll watch the sun go down and it''ll just be....

bliss.

That sounds fabulous, I am so glad Tim will be there for some of your time away.

 

[Gailey]

Marvellous news Whitby. I so empathise with how you feel. I''m British and have been living in Canada for the last 13½ years. It''s tough to be away from the ones you love the most. I also know how tough it is to be away from DH for an extended period too as a few years ago I had to spend 5 months in the UK while Mr G was back home holding the fort.

Having Tim out there for a week in the middle will be wonderful for you both. I hope he spoils you rotten.

Now bring me a slice of that gorgeous sounding cake back. Better still get the recipe!

 

[Diamond*Dana]

How wonderful! I am so excited for you

 

[gwendolyn]

Oh whitby honey, that is some of the best news I have heard in a long time!! How wonderful!

And I know all too well how it feels to have the people you love scattered around the globe. You always are leaving a piece of your heart somewhere. So glad you will be able to have your wonderful hubs and your friends from home together at the same time!

 

[Tacori E-ring]

Whitby I am so excited for you! What perfect timing. Hope it is the best v-day you two have ever shared!!!

 

[jet2ks]

Great news, whitby! How considerate of Tim''s boss to give you both this opportunity.

 

[vc10um]

That''s just wonderful news, whitby! And what a wonderful and understand new boss your hubby has!!! Enjoy your Valentine''s Day...that restaurant sounds truly fabulous!

 

[Luckyeshe]

Aaawww!! That''s awesome that your hubby will be able to see you sooner than later!! AND you get to spend v-day together! Have fun in Australia!!!

 

[Snicklefritz]

How wonderful for both of you! Enjoy your special time together!

 

[MonkeyPie]

Oh whitby, that is SO GREAT! What an amazing boss Tim has, and what perfect timing for you both. It will be like a mini getaway for you two

 

[rierie26]

Yay! What a great Valentine''s day!

 

[stepcutgirl]

Yay Whitby! That is excellent news!

 

[LaurenThePartier]

Oh, Whitby - yay!!!! I''m so glad Tim is going to be able to come visit while you''re there, and during Valentine''s Day no less!!!!!

 

[Maisie]

A blessing indeed! I hope you both have a wonderful time!

 

[whitby_2773]

Date: 1/23/2010 1:21:38 PM
Author: MonkeyPie
Oh whitby, that is SO GREAT! What an amazing boss Tim has, and what perfect timing for you both. It will be like a mini getaway for you two

it really will be! tim is staying in a 5 star hotel in the city, overlooking the harbor, and he'll come up to the mountains for the weekend he arrives - then we'll go down into the city together for monday->thursday - then back to the mountains again till he leaves on the saturday.

re tim's boss...

tim was laid off from his last position last october. he knew it was coming (the company he worked for shut down the entire line of business) and he was ready to move on. he got what i consider to be a huge payout and decided to take a 2 month holiday, having not taken more than a week's leave since he started with them 7 years previously. the DAY AFTER he finished with his last employer, the phone started ringing - and it rang and rang and rang. tim is very well known - both nationally and internationally - in his field, and a whole lot of people were jumping to grab him. this company offered him less money than some, but he liked some other aspects of the job and their benefits, and was happy to accept their offer. but they've bent over backwards to make him comfortable and to ensure he doesnt look anywhere else, or uses them as a half-way house on his way to a 'bigger, better' position. tim is a very loyal employee, but i think people these days are so transient, companies seem to prepare for the departure of staff as soon as they walk *in* the door. tim also won an award for a paper he published about 2 days after he accepted this company's offer, and is presenting the paper at a global symposium in april. i think that, too, kinda made them nervous about whether he'd stay...

so all that to say - this is a great big fat gift horse, and we are in no way looking it in the mouth! the fact that it's valentine's day is unbelievable and, altho i'm VERY grateful to the company for whom tim works, i am more grateful to my husband who has worked his butt off his entire professional career to be as good at what he does as he is. he deserves this.

i, on the other hand, am a total free-loader! yay! free-loaders unite!