Saturday, November 3, 2012

The Big Reveal: Part 7 (The Decision!)


Wow, if you have read all of these, you deserve some sort of award!  I hereby declare you to be the Bloomin' Reader of the Year!!  :)

If, on the other hand, you've missed a few installments along the way, don't tell me.  Just click 123, 4, 5, or 6.

The long-awaited Official Offer Letter from Kentucky finally arrived!  Hurray!

But right before that happened, I started doing some more calculations thanks to this website that determines your take-home pay based on a number of factors, most importantly State of Residence.  (You might be amazed how different the tax rates are from one state to the next.)  Short answer: after paying more for insurance and changes in tax rates, a pretty good raise amounted to very little extra in the actual paycheck.  On top of that, we were going to get no moving assistance, we were looking at having to borrow money to be able to sell our house, etc.  And would you believe that houses in Paducah, KY cost quite a bit more than in Fort Smith, AR?  (I expected them to be about the same.)

So here's where we were:
1.  We had a job offer in hand.
2.  David's boss had told him back in June that he was going to close the Fort Smith office if business didn't improve.  Things were just the same.
3.  We didn't really want to leave Fort Smith.
4.  We really wanted to know and follow God's plan for us in this decision.

We had been praying all along for God to please show us where He wanted us to be.  We had genuinely been trying to not push open doors that the Lord had closed.  We really weren't sure what the answer was.

So with the assurance of a job waiting in Paducah if everything fell apart, David called his boss to talk about the State of the Office.  If Gary was about to close the office in the near future, David would put in his notice.  If Gary was not planning to close the office, and if he was willing to help David in making some much-needed changes to the office and supportive of David's efforts to build the business back up (which he had been working on for the last couple of months), we would stay here.

They had a long and honest talk.  Gary assured David that he did not plan to close the office right now, that he wanted it to stay open, that he was on board with David's requests, and that - if all else fails and it still falls apart - he could work in Little Rock until he found another job.  So we're staying in Fort Smith.  David called Paducah to say "thanks, but no thanks" and we pulled the For Sale sign out of our yard.

Now, before you throw virtual tomatoes at your computer screen and comment in all caps about how I led you on for a whole week, I'd like to share some of the lessons that I learned from this Summer.

1.  God is faithful to lead.  It's my willingness to follow that sometimes falters.  I am a problem-solver by nature, so learning to wait on the Lord has been a great, but sometimes painful, lesson.

2.  David and I have grown in our understanding of spiritual leadership and Godly submission.  The marriage conference we attended was awesome!  But this process has been real on-the-job training.  (All of that probably needs a post all its own.)  Our marriage is even stronger now than it was 6 months ago.

3.  I have a wonderful husband!  I already knew that, but I've seen him grow in amazing ways.  This process began because he is determined to do what is best for our family, and it has ultimately ended in Fort Smith because he believes this is the best place for our family right now.

4.  David and I now have a shared vision of where we want our family to go.  (I'm always hesitant to say "God gave him a vision" because I don't know for certain that it came from God, but I do believe it is a God-honoring vision, and it is up to God entirely whether this ever comes to fruition.)  We came to Fort Smith 3 years ago because the plan was for David to buy this office in a few years.  That is still what we would like to see happen.  The goal/vision is for the business to grow to the point where we have the freedom - financial and otherwise - to go on longer-term mission trips overseas where David could do prosthetics.  Several times this past year, David has seen opportunities like this come up where people are wanted for a month up to a year.  We would love to be able to do something like that as a family.  Working for someone else, that is virtually impossible.

Will that all ever come to pass?  Only God knows.  But we are doing all that we can do, and we are asking God to do all that He is willing to do, to make it happen.

Believe me, we are shocked to not be moving after all that has happened, especially in light of our history of moving so many times.  Only one other time have we had a genuine opportunity to move and turned it down.  (Ironically, it was a job in Chattanooga many years ago.)  But David believes, and I agree, that God's will is for us to stay in Fort Smith for now, and we will be here until He moves us on - whenever and wherever that may be.

So we're not moving.  And we've never been happier about it!




 This post is linked up to one or more of the following blog parties.  Check them out! Monday: Menu Plan Monday on I'm an Organizing Junkie Wednesday: Works for Me Wednesday at We are THAT Family Friday: 5 Minute Friday at The Gypsy Mama, Company Girl Coffee at Home Sanctuary, Pieces of Amy Other days: A Wise Woman Builds Her Home

Friday, November 2, 2012

The Big Reveal: Part 6

Just joining in?  Here are parts 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5.

It has now been 8 days since David was in Paducah, and this is the first post I'm writing in "real time" - not in retrospect.  We still haven't received the formal offer letter, although once again it is supposed to arrive today, October 16th.

I really thought the decision would be easy at this point.  I mean, haven't we been working, traveling, praying, searching to find another job for David - one that is more secure and not on the brink of ending at a moment's notice?

For me, the choice is clear: it's time to move on.  A little over 4 years ago, an office where David was working was shut down with absolutely no advance notice.  One morning he had a job, that afternoon he didn't.  Six months ago, David's boss warned that he couldn't keep this office open in its current state, financially.  In spite of David's efforts to get new business, nothing has changed.  He has gotten exactly 2 new patients since January.

But David is still wavering.

He's not wavering about the job.  The one in Paducah is clearly better than the job here - in virtually every possible way.  He doesn't want to leave our church and the friends and spiritual growth that come with it.  I do understand that.  I certainly don't want his spiritual growth to stop, either!

But let's be honest: if this job was in Alabama, Tennessee, north Georgia, or north Mississippi, he would have already reserved the U-Haul and started packing boxes.  Neither of us really wants to move to Paducah.  It's small; it's flat; it doesn't have a single thing that makes it seem exciting.  (Of course, Fort Smith isn't exactly exciting, either.  But when we came here, the choice was much clearer.)

But should this decision really be based on location?  After all, it's not like we are contemplating a move to Outer Mongolia (although that would at least have the exotic factor working in its favor).

We both honestly want to be where God wants us to be.  But how can we discern His will in this kind of decision?  Is this job offer God's answer?  Would we be leaving too soon, right before God has something better for us here?  Does God have a specific will in this situation, or is He more concerned with how we live our lives regardless of what zip code we write on our return address?

When my parents married, my Dad wanted to open a veterinary practice in either Australia or Hartselle, Alabama.  If they had moved to Australia, my life certainly would have been different.  But would it have been better?  Or worse?  Or just different?

If you read most marriage books, there are usually several chapters devoted to how women tend to be more emotional and men tend to be more factual in decision-making.  While there are certain situations in which that is true for us, oftentimes I'm the more practical and David is the more emotional.  I'm the number-cruncher.  And the numbers are clear: we need to move.  On the other hand, David hasn't gotten a clear sign, gut-feeling, etc. on which way to go.

Confession: this drives me nuts.

So we're praying for a clear sign.  When the offer letter finally arrives (why, oh why do other people take forever in getting things done?!?), David is planning to call his boss to find out The Plan for the office in Fort Smith (assuming there actually is a plan).  If The Plan is to close the office at the end of the year, the answer is clear.  If The Plan is to keep the office open, then some things will have to change to make the office profitable.  The choice then is back to fuzzy because many promises of help have been made over the years and not kept.  Do we believe him this time?  If The Plan is to keep the office open along with concrete, immediate, significant steps taken to make positive changes, then I think the For Sale sign will be taken out of our yard.

I truly want to submit to both God and my husband.  But this does not come naturally for me, especially the husband part.  Right now, there's no decision to submit myself under.  So, I guess I'm submitting to wait.

Lord, please lead David in the way we should go.

To be continued...



 This post is linked up to one or more of the following blog parties.  Check them out! Monday: Menu Plan Monday on I'm an Organizing Junkie Wednesday: Works for Me Wednesday at We are THAT Family Friday: 5 Minute Friday at The Gypsy Mama, Company Girl Coffee at Home Sanctuary, Pieces of Amy Other days: A Wise Woman Builds Her Home

Thursday, November 1, 2012

The Big Reveal: Part 5

Here is Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4.

Are you beginning to wonder if the story is finally over?  Yep, so were we.

It wasn't.

On Tuesday, September 4th, we were expecting a formal offer on the job in Birmingham with the vascular surgeon.  No phone call, no e-mail, nothing.  After a couple more days, David called to find out Dr. D. was on another overseas trip but was assured that everything was still a "go" when he got back.

He came back.  Nothing.  He went on another trip.  He came back.  Still nothing.  It was now the end of September.

In the meantime, that random resume sent to Paducah was getting a lot of interest.  David was called by someone in HR.  Then he was called by the area manager.  Then the HR person again.  And then an official phone interview by a senior manager.

And then, they offered him a job.  Over the phone.  With no face-to-face interview.

But, wait.  Weren't we moving to Birmingham?  It's the perfect job, remember?

Finally, on October 3rd, we found out that Dr. D. had hired someone else - a few weeks earlier.  You would think someone would have called David, right??  Sigh.

So, Paducah.  Not somewhere we had been dreaming of going, but we have a job offer from there.  Time to check it out!

Suffice it to say that going on all of these trips/interviews wasn't cheap, so we decided it would be best for David to go alone to Paducah.  He was there this past Monday (October 8th).  In a sense, he was interviewing them, since he had already been offered the job.  He spent most of the day at the office, getting to know the people who would be his coworkers, and then drove around town for a bit.  It all seems like it would be a really good fit: big, stable company; doing prosthetics almost exclusively (another story - but that's important); increase in salary; retirement plan.

Here's the irony: over the course of these last six months, as we've been traipsing all over the Southeast on The Great Job Hunt, David has really grown attached to Fort Smith, Arkansas (where we currently live).  (I put down roots here much sooner, but it has taken David a while.)  Mostly, we really love our church - we're making good friends, we've got a new pastor we're very excited about, we've grown so much through the marriage conference, etc.  Six months ago, the decision would have been very easy (at least for David).  But now - do we stay, or do we go?

To be continued...



This post is linked up to one or more of the following blog parties.  Check them out! Monday: Menu Plan Monday on I'm an Organizing Junkie Wednesday: Works for Me Wednesday at We are THAT Family Friday: 5 Minute Friday at The Gypsy Mama, Company Girl Coffee at Home Sanctuary, Pieces of Amy Other days: A Wise Woman Builds Her Home

The Big Reveal: Part 4

Here is Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.

So are you tired of reading about this yet?  Imagine living all of this!

So where were we?  Oh yes, we were moving to Chattanooga but checking out Birmingham just in case.  (Birmingham, AL, is less than 2 hours from each set of our kids' grandparents and about the same distance from our beloved Auburn.)

David had been trying to get in touch with a guy named Adam down in Birmingham for a week or so with no luck.  In a way that only God could orchestrate (because it came as a direct result of David obeying God on another issue), David learned that Adam was looking to hire a practitioner in Alabaster, where we had lived a few years ago.  This time, he finally was able to speak with Adam, and they arranged a meeting for the next day, July 27th.

The meeting went very well, but there were some details to be worked out.  This would soon become a recurrent theme in the process.

We picked up the kids at my parents' house, headed back to Arkansas, and waited.  And waited.  And waited some more.  Sadly, no one from Chattanooga called.  No one from North Carolina called, either (although that was just fine with us).  And details were still being worked out in Birmingham.

While waiting and still searching for jobs online, we came across a job in Paducah, Kentucky.  Since that's still a lot closer to our family than we are here in Outer Mongolia, Arkansas, we sent in a resume.

David stayed in touch with the person who had told him about the (unadvertised) job with Adam and learned of an opening in a vascular surgeon's office also in Birmingham.  David sent a resume and heard back very quickly.  Because the doctor would be out of town for much of September, they needed to meet very soon.  Again, God arranged some details to make that possible, so off he went.

The interview went extremely well.  The job was an amazing fit for our family.  Dr. D. said he would have an offer for David as soon as he got back from his first trip.  Yippee!  Looks like we're moving back to Alabama!!

To be continued...



This post is linked up to one or more of the following blog parties.  Check them out! Monday: Menu Plan Monday on I'm an Organizing Junkie Wednesday: Works for Me Wednesday at We are THAT Family Friday: 5 Minute Friday at The Gypsy Mama, Company Girl Coffee at Home Sanctuary, Pieces of Amy Other days: A Wise Woman Builds Her Home

Wednesday, October 31, 2012

The Big Reveal: Part 3

To get caught up, here is Part 1 and Part 2.

After the Kentucky job didn't pan out and the Texas job began to look unlikely, I went online again and discovered job postings for 2 jobs in Chattanooga.

David and I have wanted to live in Chattanooga for years and years.  It really is our dream location.  We much prefer mountains to beaches, it's just the right distance from our parents, lots to do there, etc.  So we both nearly had fits when I made this discovery.  Needless to say, we applied for both jobs that night.  (This also involved a God moment.  It would be pretty convoluted to explain, but suffice it to say that He was watching over us.  As always.)

The next morning, David got an e-mail response from one of the jobs.  The man indicated that some key people were on vacation but that there would be "a great deal of interest" in David.  So I began to learn the words to Chattanooga Choo Choo (What?  You think I'm kidding??) and mentally moved there.

One humbling realization from this Summer: other people really aren't in a big hurry to make hiring decisions.  Nevertheless, eventually a lunch meeting was scheduled.

For my kids, the 4th week of July was Cousins Camp.  For us it was The Week of Many Miles and Many Interviews.  We dropped the kids off in north Alabama on Sunday night, and Monday made our way to Chattanooga in time for the lunch appointment.  It went very well.  We were convinced that finally (after literally driving through Chattanooga during two moves) we were going to get to move there.  But just in case, we continued on.

David had an interview in North Carolina on Wednesday, so we drove and drove and drove.  That interview was disappointing for a number of reasons, but that was OK because we were moving to Chattanooga.

But just in case, David called a guy in Birmingham whom he had heard was hiring.

Wait a minute - Birmingham?  How did that get on the list of possible jobs?

To be continued...



This post may be linked up to one or more of the following blog parties.  Check them out! Monday: Menu Plan Monday on I'm an Organizing Junkie Wednesday: Works for Me Wednesday at We are THAT Family Friday: 5 Minute Friday at The Gypsy Mama, Company Girl Coffee at Home Sanctuary, Pieces of Amy Other days: A Wise Woman Builds Her Home

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

The Big Reveal: Part 2


If you're just joining in, you may want to read this first to get caught up.

We continued to talk about and consider moving to Alaska for a couple of weeks.  The main issue standing in our way was the cost of living.  It's MUCH higher than Fort Smith, Arkansas.  In researching houses (to buy or to rent) and talking to a cousin who grew up in Alaska, we had a pretty good ballpark figure in mind of how much David's income would need to be to at least be comparable to our current (comfortable but not extravagant) lifestyle.  Problem: it became clear that the job in Alaska was not going to pay anywhere close to that amount.

Moving far away for a new adventure: exciting.

Moving far away and having to pinch every penny leaving no money for actually enjoying the benefits of living in Alaska: no fun at all.

We were disappointed by this turn of events, but we recovered.  All along, we had been asking for God to make His will apparent to us.  For us, the salary issue was the answer we were seeking.

Although we were still more than willing to stay in Fort Smith, the business continued to decline and various signs seemed to be pointing in the direction of us needing to move on, at least within the next year.  So one night we sent David's resume in response to 8 different job postings.  Within a couple of days, David had been contacted by 5 companies in Texas, South Carolina, North Carolina, Kentucky, and Florida.  Of those, the three that seemed to be the most realistic were the ones in Texas, North Carolina, and Kentucky.

The potential employer in Kentucky spoke with great urgency of wanting to fill a management position in Elizabethtown and gave every indication of wanting to hire David as soon as possible.  So the last week of June, we found ourselves in Elizabethtown for David's interview.  He spent the day at the office, and I spent the day looking at houses.

While there, David found out that another person was also being interviewed later that week, but he felt positive about the interview.  So we waited and prayed.

And waited.  And prayed.  And waited some more.

A few weeks later, they finally decided to hire someone else.  Again, we were disappointed but not bewildered.  If God didn't want us in Kentucky, then we didn't want to go to Kentucky.  After all, there were still "irons in the fire" in Texas and North Carolina.

To be continued....





 This post may be linked up to one or more of the following blog parties.  Check them out! Monday: Menu Plan Monday on I'm an Organizing Junkie Wednesday: Works for Me Wednesday at We are THAT Family Friday: 5 Minute Friday at The Gypsy Mama, Company Girl Coffee at Home Sanctuary, Pieces of Amy Other days: A Wise Woman Builds Her Home

Monday, October 29, 2012

The Big Reveal: Part 1

We've been in Fort Smith now for just over 3 years.  In fact, we set a new David-and-Laura record last month in our current house: longest time living at a single address (25 months).  For most of that time, David has wanted to move.  He has felt disconnected from anywhere he considered "home" and has had a hard time making friends.  While I didn't just love it here at first, I began to make friends pretty early on, and several of those friendships have continued this whole time.  I have "put down roots" here and feel quite at home.

Over the Spring, David finally began to feel at home here, too.  He started making some friends and just generally became more content here.  Although the business at his office was diminishing, he was hopeful and confident that, with God's intervention and direction, the business could thrive again.  We were making plans for how to market the office and looking forward to buying the office here in a couple of years.

At the end of May, David and I traveled to Tampa for him to take part of a certification test in orthotics.  Driving back up I-95, he said something quite unexpected: "I think I should apply for that job in Alaska."

Umm, what?

This job in Anchorage had been posted in the orthotics and prosthetics trade magazines for quite a while, and several times I had (half-joking, half-not) suggested that we consider it, but David always just looked at me incredulously and laughed.  After all, if Arkansas was "too far away," then why on earth would we move to Alaska?

It took me a few minutes to get over the initial shock, but then I was all over the idea.  You see, contrary to my rather plain exterior, I have quite a thirst for adventure (not the jumping out of airplanes type but the living in a different part of the country or different part of the world type).  So in true David-and-Laura style, we spent most of the trip back to north Alabama (to pick up the kids) talking about this next adventure, how crazy it was, and how we were sure we could make it work.

Within a couple of days of getting back home, we had sent a resume, David had a very positive phone interview, and things were moving along.  I even had a new blog name picked out for chronicling the adventure: The Frozen Magnolia!

To be continued....



This post may be linked up to one or more of the following blog parties.  Check them out! Monday: Menu Plan Monday on I'm an Organizing Junkie Wednesday: Works for Me Wednesday at We are THAT Family Friday: 5 Minute Friday at The Gypsy Mama, Company Girl Coffee at Home Sanctuary, Pieces of Amy Other days: A Wise Woman Builds Her Home
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