We found out a couple of weeks ago that Michael's former employer will be closing the Des Moines location at the end of the year...which (after a big "WHEW!") has caused us to think about the timing of things over the past year. It's really been amazing - Michael & I are wired to be go-getters (that first-born tendency!), and if there's anything we've learned (and continue to learn), it's the letting go of the reigns that has brought us more peace than the take-what-you-can-and-run-with-it mentality we used to employ...
I remember thinking last year at Christmas how nice it would be not to have to travel back and forth to Omaha to see friends & family...more than just missing that, I felt like our time in Des Moines was coming to an end (party selfishly). We both started to feel it. I'm pretty sure I clicked my heels a few times! We prayed about it, because we knew that leaving Iowa mostly likely meant Michael leaving his job....and it was a decent job, a steady income, so we didn't want to leave on a whim. We felt like it was OK to put the house up for sale, and so shortly before Reese's 2nd birthday (and finding out we were pregnant again), we did. Three fruitless open houses and a little over a month later, it sold for our asking price! The buyer just walked up to our door one night and asked to see the place. We almost didn't answer. If you knew our house, the market and where we lived in Des Moines, you know that our house selling this past summer was nothing short of miraculous. We had to be out in a little under a month - which seemed awfully fast. Busy friends offered to help me with Reese when I was down-and-out with morning sickness. (I am still humbled by that.) We found a great duplex lickety-split, for less than we were paying for our house! Michael's employer agreed to keep him on at the Omaha location, and even though it would involve a LOT of travel between the two locations, it also allowed us to pay cash for the move and not have the added stress of finding a new job in another city. Just when he finally stopped traveling and 'landed' here full-time (hallelujah! I had been a pregnant 'single' parent most of the summer), he got fired. Sounds horrible, but hours after it happened we both felt OK about it, and increasingly peaceful. I just knew he was going to find a job that suited him and our family better. That I never doubted. And less than a month after losing his job, he did. I can see that Michael's load is lighter, his face brighter. Sure, the budget's pretty tight, especially for this time of year, but we are so happy.
And relieved. I cannot imagine being stuck in our house (the interest rate was about to go through the roof), losing a job and on the hunt NOW, with a baby very nearly here, and trying to sell our house and remain financially, emotionally, and spiritually stable right NOW. The provision has been plenty, the timing perfect. It is too perfect to be mere chance or serendipity. We're convinced God orchestrated everything for us - sure, certain things weren't ideal (by society's standards), and we struggle with contendedness, but we have been taken care of. It's been a lesson in trust and a test of faith. When I have time to look back, I hope I can say we trusted well. I know my faith has increased. I am so grateful for all He has given us - and surprised us with - this year.
I've been hiding from my blog lately, hoping/praying/bargaining with God for our baby to come before the new year....but alas, he sees fit to stay put til 2008. So a belated Merry Christmas from this slightly Grinchy-feeling mama, and Happy New Year! One way or another, he's coming out by January 3rd (my induction date and, incidentally, my sister's 25th birthday). If you've called or texted lately and I haven't gotten in touch, it's probably due to a) me being busy either bouncing on Michael's balance ball, driving at breakneck speeds down pothole-ridden sidestreets, walking laps around the mall, or b) feeling like I'd like to keep to myself a little bit. I'm focused and trying to remain positive. Cheers!
