Life

Today while I was at work I stepped outside to make a couple of phone calls that I didn't feel comfortable making at work, some things you just don't want people to overhear, like trying to get a new job. So I stepped outside to call Steve to find about the two job offers he got today, and he accepted one of them! Yay! He interviewed at Renown today and they told him they would give him a call back within the next three weeks, he got two different calls about two hours later- two job offers the same day! He accepted the better one- an internship with a two year contract. I don't remember all of the details but the gist of it is that he works in almost every unit of the hospital for about 4 or 5 weeks and at the end goes back to the first one he worked at and stays there for the remainder of the year, and then for the second year he works in whichever one he wants. He will also get to be on some committees which means better positioning to get into better jobs. I might not have all of that correct- but it's how I understood it from Steve explaining it to me in his very disjointed don't give all the information at once kind of way. So yay! A JOB! Did I mention he graduated on Saturday? Yep- done with school and has a job, he starts on January 24th!
Oh, I am so relieved, we I was really starting to get worried about if he was going to get a job, most of his other classmates from nursing school already had jobs so I was getting kind of panicky because I've had big plans for the next year that all depend on him getting a job. You see, I have been the main breadwinner the whole time he has been in school, and frankly, I am so tired of it. It is so hard to be a mom and to be a working mom at that. The hardest part is probably the guilt- but that is a whole 'nother post on its own. So yeah, getting to spend about 3 1/2 to 4 hours a day with my son has been tough. I love him so much and he is just the most incredible little boy, of course I am a little biased (what mom isn't), but my son is just so cool and fun and exhausting. After working and driving all over town everyday, by the time I get home with him I am tired, and I still have to make dinner and play with him and it gets very stressful because once I am home with Simon he wants my undivided attention so sometimes we don't even eat dinner until 8 because I am doing things like spending time with him instead of making dinner for him. So back to my original point... I have been the breadwinner for all this time (4 years) and I am tired of doing it. I am ready to stay home and be a full-time mom, to play with my son all day long, to be able to teach him things, to want to pull my hair out because he is driving me crazy all day long instead of for just 4 hours a day, to be there for my family mentally and physically and emotionally, because lately I haven't been.
So if you caught the little comment up there about me trying to get a job, you might be wondering why I am talking about wanting to stay home and getting a new job in the same post. Well, that is because, frankly, I am a little scared of being a stay-at-home mom. So one of my co-workers told me about this home decor store that is opening soon in Reno and it's only open one day a week, Thursday, and the store gets set up every week on Wednesday. They are planning on opening in January, but it's looking more like it is going to be in February. Perfect! I love decorating, I love accessories, and I still want to work a little bit, and two set days a week would be awesome. Just for the sanity mostly, not for the money. I just want to feel like I am doing something else, that I am contributing to something, and I want to have time around other adults still (I am in nursery at church so I don't even get a lot of adult interaction at church). And it also gives me a break from the stresses of being a stay-at-home mom, it gives Cindy time to spend with her grandson every week still, and gives him a chance to play with other kids. So about a month ago I interviewed for a position at this store, and it went really well, and the guy called me back this morning about it. I am going to meet with him again this Saturday. Pretty sure I have a job, he just wants to make sure we both know what it is going to be like. I am so excited! This all works perfectly. It coincides so well with when Steve will be starting his job and be bringing a REAL paycheck! My anniversary with my work is Dec 15, so after that I get 2 weeks paid vacation to take sometime in the next year. I am planning on using it in early January so Steve and I can FINALLY go on a trip to somewhere cool. We have always planned on Malta, but we realized it is winter there- in the 60s, but if I am flying to the Mediterranean I want to swim in it, and you can't really go swimming there when it is cool outside. So we are thinking its going to be something different, but I don't want to talk to much about that because whenever we do it never happens, and I am sure our families are both thinking something along the lines of "Oh, that Steve and Kari, they keep talking about traveling the world, but who are they kidding? They make all these plans, they buy plane tickets, but they're never going to go anywhere." But this time we are, and it's going to be for two weeks, and it's going to be awesome!
So yeah, today has been the best day I have had in a while, I came back in from those two phone calls (with Steve and the new job guy) and I had the biggest smile on my face, a smile I never have on my face while I am at work, and one of my coworkers knew something was up and since he is the one that first told me about the new job opportunity I told him what was going on, and it just felt so good to be able to say that all these plans that Steve and I have been making for a while now are finally becoming a reality. I just can't wait! Less than three weeks to Christmas, and then about two weeks after that is our 4th anniversary, our vacation, and our plans to start trying for another baby while on said vacation. Life is good, and I can't wait!