True, I haven't posted since December. That is sad and pathetic. However, I am still alive and kicking.
Things got crazy with our family in the last several months. My husband was laid off (for the second time in a little over 5 years) from a job he loved. He had known for months that it was coming, as the company he worked for was being bought out, so he'd been networking/job searching for quite some time. The lay off was at the beginning of October, and we had really hoped he'd have something else in the Des Moines area by then. No dice. Ross had traveled for interviews near and far. He'd been a finalist for a position in St. Louis that we were excited about, but it did not materialize. Christmas came and went, and there were three great possibilities around here at that point. The first vanished early in February. The second was not a job he was dying to have, as it would require traveling 90% of the time, but it would compensate well. We both knew he wouldn't be able to stand it for more than a couple years, at which point he'd be searching again. The third was stable, and had a great job title, but he feared it would be a bit boring.
We prayed (and asked everyone we knew to pray) for clarity. Even though every closed door hurt, we knew it would eventually lead to one open door that was THE one God wanted us to walk through. During the last year, he had not only interviewed in St. Louis, but also Chicago, Minneapolis, Baltimore, Atlanta, and Seattle. Truly, the only one of those places that appealed to me was St. Louis. I could live with Minneapolis because of its proximity to DM, but I don't love it. The others were less than desirable, some downright appalling to my little Midwestern brain. Early in March, while we waited to hear from the last two opportunities in our area (I should mention that his skill set is very specialized in the derivatives/fixed income area of the investments field), my husband traveled to Portland, OR, for an interview. This didn't concern me. I was fairly confident that one of the jobs here would be offered to him.
The next week God closed the door on the job that would require all the traveling. This was honestly a relief, yet we were concerned at this point. We were both born and raised here in Iowa. Both sets of our parents still live in our childhood homes. Two of our four siblings are still living in Iowa with their families. We have been in Ankeny for over 14 years, and in our dream home (designed by me and built by one of the best builders, who also happens to be our neighbor) for 10 years. We LOVE our church here, and we have an awesome group of friends. The last thing on earth we wanted to do was leave.
Before hearing one way or the other on the last job opportunity, my husband was offered the job in Portland. It sounded like a job he would really like at a company that seemed fairly stable. They offered much less than he had hoped, but after some negotiating, they met him not quite half-way. He held off on accepting by asking if they'd let him take me out there over spring break to get a feel for the area. For such a huge move, we wanted to be sure it would be a good fit for our family. All the while, we were both hoping and praying that he'd get the offer in Iowa for the other job. We spent two days in Portland with realtors provided by the company. Lots of stress. Little sleep.
We got back to Iowa Thursday night and before we were even out of bed Friday, the Portland company had already left a message asking for my husband's decision. He stalled and asked for the weekend to think about it. Monday finally brought God's final closed door. The last possibility for us to stay here disappeared. God made it perfectly clear that He wants us in OR.
Here's the odd part. I never felt any major anxiety or qualms about moving to Portland. Even from the time he first went out to interview. When we visited over spring break, I couldn't believe how beautiful it was out there. I could immediately picture our family living there. Don't get me wrong: I continued to pray for the Iowa job. But, God was definitely working on my heart. This Iowa girl has always loved traveling, but has not ever wanted to live anywhere outside of Iowa. Certainly never wanted to live outside the Midwest. And yet, somehow God has changed me so that I know beyond the shadow of a doubt, that we are going to love living in Portland, OR. Weird.
Now our house is on the market and I'm striving to keep it clean with three kids and a husband who has been in OR for almost three weeks. We are staying here through the school year, and into June if the house doesn't sell as quickly as we hope it will.
I am looking forward to finding amazing new ABC activities and places in the Pacific Northwest, and I'll be adding them to my blog. This summer we're still planning to eat our way through the alphabet. Some of that will be on the road, as it's a long drive to OR from here, but I will still do my best to post about our edible adventures. Don't give up on the ABC Summer Mom! :)
*For those new to my blog, check out the beginnings of ABC summers here.*
