New Skills, Goodbyes, and a Trip West

AI breakthroughs, emotional transitions, and getting ready for another adventure with Jasper.

This past week felt like life in its most normal form — a mix of exciting highs and emotional lows all happening at once.

At work, we stepped into new territory. New skills, renewed skills, and a lot of learning as things continue to evolve around us. At the same time, we also began saying long goodbyes to friends and colleagues who have been part of the journey for years. It’s strange how growth and change often arrive together — one hand opening while the other slowly lets go.

Meanwhile at home, excitement has definitely started building.

By the time this post goes live, Jasper, my partner, and I will officially be heading out on vacation. Or holiday, depending on which side of the family is speaking. 😄

This trip feels extra special because it’s actually Jasper’s first repeat destination. We’re heading back to Arizona for a week to visit friends, slow life down a bit, and just enjoy being somewhere different together as a family.

There’s something comforting about returning somewhere familiar — especially now seeing it through the eyes of a 2-year-old.

Jasper had a great week at school before the trip too. Although I’ll admit, managing his hair lately has become a full-on “terrible twos” challenge of its own. Somehow every morning turns into a negotiation between style and chaos. Still, he’s loving school, loving his friends, and growing so fast it honestly feels hard to keep up sometimes.

Being away from school for a bit will probably be an adjustment for him, but I think a week with Mom and Dad exploring Arizona will balance that out just fine.

Professionally, this week also brought a big personal milestone.

If you checked out my LinkedIn recently, you probably saw that I completed my AI training — something I’m genuinely excited about. I really enjoyed digging into the material and seeing how it connects with both old skills and new ones, especially around coding, automation, and development.

Toward the end of the week, I fully leaned into it and built a web app along with a process to help create new regions at work. Honestly, it reminded me how much I enjoy building things. Solving problems. Creating systems that actually help people.

I’m pretty excited to show more of it soon.

But while one chapter feels like it’s opening, another is quietly closing.

One of our longest-tenured teammates is preparing for his next challenge, and that reality is hitting harder than I expected. Work relationships become part of your rhythm over time. Some people are simply woven into the story of your career, and it’s emotional watching those seasons begin to shift.

Still, that’s part of growth too.

And maybe that’s what this week really was about:

Learning to hold excitement and uncertainty at the same time.

New beginnings. Long goodbyes. Family adventures. Professional growth.

A little messy. A little emotional. But meaningful all the same.

You can follow more of the professional side of the journey on my LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidbanigjr

And for extra photos, creative posts, and behind-the-scenes moments from The Dad Diary, check out: https://buymeacoffee.com/davidbanigjr