Life as a Newbie at a CPA Firm

Life the last few months has been exhausting, yet rewarding. I have now been with McGladrey for about two months and it has been great. On my first day I went to Costa Mesa for a new hire orientation. The following week I went to Ontario for New Hire Training. After training I reported back to the San Diego Office were I spent my time studying before being assigned to a client. A couple of weeks later I took my first CPA Exam which was the most difficult exam I had ever taken. Of course it doesn't help that I took the most difficult one first. After I took my exam I was assigned to my first client. It was a publicly traded technology company that has operations in both Switzerland and China. So on my first day at the client I had to talk to the Controller about something I found in my audit. I would never have thought that I would be talking to a corporate executive on my first day. After two 60 hour weeks we finished the Quarterly Review and their financials were released to their investors and creditors. It was so cool to be a part of. I guess I did ok because my In-Charge requested for me to be on the engagement for the Year-End audit of the company. So I could very well work on this client for a very long time. Now I am preparing for my next CPA Exam that I will take next week. But that's not all that I do. I also play beach volleyball during work hours. I mean how hard of a life is that. Last Friday one of my managers got a bunch of us together to play beach volleyball downstairs (from 3:30 to 5 pm). That is just how cool my firm is. Choosing to work for this firm is one of the best decisions I have ever made.

Cabrillo National Monument

Today we decided to do something fun in San Diego fo a change. Elizabeth and I thought that it was time to take advantage of our expensive San Diego rent by seeing the sites. Today we visited Cabrillo National Monument on Point Loma.

Jon and I are on the top of the point overlooking downtown San Diego and Coronado Island.

Here Jon is enjoying the ocean breeze. He likes the way it makes his hair look.

Jon and I infront of the haunted Point Loma Light House. Ooo! Scary!

Elizabeth and Jon infront of the Cabrillo Monument.

Now its Elizabeth's turn to take the picture.

We also went to see the tide pools but we forgot our camera. Elizabeth was being her same old adventurous self by standing on a rock waiting to get splashed by the periodic crashing wave. She was so cute to watch and I wish I could have documented it.

Jon's 1st Birthday!

A few weeks ago we had a party to celebrate Jon's first birthday. He was so cute. It was funny to see him love all the attention. Here are some pictures of the milestone event:

This was the train cake that Elizabeth made. It tasted as good as it looked. Jon loved it (especially the candy).

Can you believe he was able to blow out that candle?

He devoured the cake. But first he had to eat the candy, of course!

The cake was good until he discovered a new big blue ball.

Jon loved all of the gifts he received. It was a memorable day and he loved it! For Elizabeth and I, the most memorable part of the day, was the reaction on Jon's face when he opened a present, tasted candy covered cake for the first time, and blew out his fist birthday candle.

Good Old Broken Arrow, Oklahoma

Elizabeth, Jon, and I just got back from our trip to Oklahoma. I have to be honest; I love that place. In the 6 days we were there I had all sorts of crazy experiences. I saw a snake on someones driveway, I went out on a paddle boat on a one acre pond in someones backyard, I spent part of one evening with my family in a bathroom taking refuge from what was supposed to be the largest tornado producing storm in twenty years, and I had great food that cannot be found in California. The people there are also the nicest people you could ever find and the land is dirt cheap. I am sorry but as you can see, part of me is tempted to pack up and move there right now. Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, is a little unknown paradise.

Graduation

Well I am now officially a college graduate. A couple of weeks ago I had my honors reception where I was inducted into Beta Gamma Sigma. The following morning at 8 am I had the College of Business Administration comencement ceremony in COX Arena followed by a reception for the School of Accountancy in the Aztec Athletic Hall of Fame. It was really neat to introduce many of my professors to Jon and others in my family. Afterwards all of us went to my apartment where we had lunch. During lunch we received a visit from Elizabeth's great uncle who happens to be a world champion yo yo man. He gave all of us a free show that lasted about 45 minutes. It was really world class entertainment and it made that lunch a trully memorable experience. It was a great weekend but exausting at the same time. Although it was nice to have a day dedicated to me, I am glad it is all over and I can move on with my life.

Going to Oklahoma.

We leave for Oklahoma today. We are all so excited. Rick is nervous though. He doesn't know if he'll fit in. He wants to see a real redneck...:) He is just joking but its cute to hear him say it. Jon got his Third tooth on Sunday. Now Jon is sitting up all the time on his own and if there is something to grab onto he is always trying to stand up.
Rick Graduated From College on May 24. We are all so proud of him and so excited. Well I will write more later. Jon has gotten to the computer and he will destoy it, so its time to shut it down before he does.

Jon Crawled!!

Jon crawled for the first time today!! It's so fun to watch him grow up. He has two teeth now on the bottom. He is also talking now. He says words like Hi, Yay, Bath, Ball, Baba, and others that I don't want to try to remember. He sure understands everything we say too. He is a smart baby. He is 9 and a half months now and just as big as can be.