Almost there...

These past months have been stressful. I know many of you have been wondering where we are, what we're up to, when we'll finally be settled, etc. Well, we're temporarily in NC, we're biding our time until Mike begins work (October 25th), and as far as being settled? ...I don't know that we will ever be settled! I have an inkling our lives will continue to be somewhat nomadic, though I may be wrong!

These past months have been filled with the ominous waiting. Waiting for paperwork, finances to pay for licensing, waiting to finally be 'home' somewhere and feel like we can begin again and gain some normalcy. That will happen. Of that I'm sure. We do not know yet WHEN that will happen. It will be a few weeks of Mike traveling, once again, working his new job and trying to find a place to live. Thankfully, he'll be staying with friends! :) I marvel at God's goodness in provision, whether it is the way we 'want' it to be or not. He is always faithful. And we'll get there. Even if it takes another month or two. ;)

We'll keep you posted. In the mean time, we're busy with school, cleaning, and waiting! Just trying to enjoy this last week with Mike before we're once again in transition mode. I think this has been hardest on the kids in that regard. Or...maybe me - in that it is emotional and hard on them which is emotional for me and hard on me, too.

On that note, I need to get some dishes put away and cuddle some munchkins!

<3

Roanoke, VA it is! :D

Well, since I last posted, Mike received an offer from the hospital system in VA! We accepted and his approximate start date is around Thanksgiving. What a Thanksgiving it will be!!! :D He will be working in a Level 1 Trauma Center in their Emergency Department; mostly Urgent Care, Pediatric Urgent Care and Chest Pain Centers.

It is so amazing how all of this has come about. We are so amazed to sit back and see God's hand not only in this particular circumstance, but throughout the last 4 years. It is interesting that Virginia was not even on our radar in terms of places we were looking to live. We have known we would like to be closer to family. We've known Mike REALLY wanted an ER job. We've known we love it here in Williamsport and that that didn't pan out (because God had other plans!). So, this move will be bittersweet. We will dearly miss this place and the people who have become family to us. We will miss our church and all of those who have supported us through these trying years. We will miss the beauty of the landscape; rivers, rolling hills, green everything, and the beauty of the Fall. And yes...Wegmans.

But here is what we look forward to. Getting paid. :) Just kidding. Kind of. We look forward to being 4 1/2 hours from Mike's family (in NC). We look forward to being near dear friends. We look forward to Mike having a job that challenges him in every way! We look forward to finding a new church home (and already have a few scoped out). We look forward to raising our kids in another beautiful area (near the Blue Ridge Mtns.). We look forward to eventually getting some land and some livestock and building a big ol' garden. We look forward to making a home. We look forward to the hopes of you, our friends and family, coming to visit!!! Please know our door is always open-not to be confused with unlocked!

No words or amount of explanations could express the gratitude we feel toward those of you who have supported us in any way...even cheering us on when we were ready to say, 'Enough!' You all mean so much to us. We pray one day we can give back in all of those ways... :)

Thank you all for the love and congratulations! :)

OH, and lest I forget to blog it, Mike just received word from Penn College that he is the recipient of the Board of Directors' Award for achievement in exceptional circumstances! :) I (Jenna) can honestly say I am so grateful that they have recognized his achievement in our exceptional circumstances! ;)

Waiting...

Well, I have been wanting and waiting to update when I felt like we had some solid plans, however, we're still waiting to know what those will be! SO, since everyone has been asking and since we have only ideas, but no definite plans, I thought I would take a few moments to say a few things about this past year.

For those of you who have been following this journey of ours, you know it has been a challenging one. It has had ups and downs; we've made so many decisions--some good, some bad; we've felt sure and unsure; but above all, we have been SO blessed. I can't tell you how many times I sit back and think about the generosity of strangers, old friends, family...we can say without reservation that we couldn't have gotten through this year without you. We have walked out faith like never before in trusting that God would provide in His timing what we need through various places. We long to be able to bless others abundantly more than we have been blessed and that is a whole lot!

We have been counting down to graduation for months...MONTHS! Well, technically 4 years! And I am so happy to say that graduation is in two and a half weeks! No, it hasn't sunk in. I think it would help if we knew for certain where we will be, but we are still waiting on answers! :)

We will certainly keep you updated as we know anything. We're awaiting word from a few places and even then, he still has to take his National Certification Exam. Many places make you wait, even though hired, up to four months after you pass to get all of the credentials, insurance and red tape squared away before you are allowed to work, so...again. We would love to know where we'll be as soon as possible to begin planning. Though, us and planning doesn't always seem to work out. We can want to, hope to, PLAN to, and we still seem to be at the mercy of God's timing! :) We cannot complain, though, as He always knows best.

I cannot tell you how I look forward to sharing more when we know things more solidly! :D

Giving Thanks in ALL Situations

...we are learning a lot about that! :)

In the last post, for those of you who follow, we last heard that AZ may or may not happen. Well, Rotation number 8 has begun...in Pennsylvania! Jen and the kids are down in NC for about a month visiting Mike's family. Mike's sister is eagerly awaiting the return of her husband from Afghanistan in mid-June and ALSO eagerly awaiting the birth of their little girl-within the same week! :) (They may or may not stay in NC, depending on if it is a help or hindrance!)

Mike began his Orthopedic rotation yesterday and thinks he is going to enjoy it. He is only about an hour from 'home' so, if we do head back up, the likelihood we would see him more often is great. He is staying with a friend from school for the weeks he is there, so that is nice, too! (Thanks, Steve!)

He has been presented with a couple possibilities, for jobs, that we are praying about and will let you know if we settle on anything, but for now...they're all viable options! ;) He has had a couple interviews with one place and it really will come down to which kind of PA they are looking for, as the two they re-interviewed would both be great additions!

It is hard to believe we have only about 10 weeks to go until graduation. Truly, this year has gone by so quickly.

Reflecting, I can't thank those of you who have invested in us (with your time, energy, encouragement, generosity and love) enough. This truly has been a faith-walk and God has seen us through and blessed us along the way with family and friends.

I've been reflecting on James lately. He says in it to "consider it pure joy whenever [we] face trials of many kinds because it develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so [we] may be mature, complete, not lacking anything." I don't know if I can consider the 'scary' times when we didn't know where we were going to live...how we were going to pay a bill...when we said goodbye to Mike week, after week, after week PURE JOY. It felt like something else, but how we have grown in the times that I can look back and visibly SEE how blessed we've been this year. And that IS joy so that as we go through hard times...when we know we're being asked to do things so much bigger than 'us', we can know in every way that we CAN be JOYFUL knowing that God makes ALL things possible.

We sit and wonder what the next years will bring. Where will we be? Who will we come into contact with? How can we bless others in the same way we've been blessed? We long to make an impact in the world...

So, as we head toward the end, Mike will finish his Ortho rotation and begin his VERY LAST rotation. In Williamsport. As of June 23rd, we will no longer have to say goodbye to 'daddy' for a week at a time...at least not for school! :) In the future, it may be for other reasons, but prayerfully better ones...it is a means to an end and it will all be worth it!

Love and thanks to all of you who've joined us for the journey!

Yes, No and Maybe!

Yes: We are here and surviving and doing well! It is nice to have breaks of time that we can look forward to the 'next' thing. Between rotations, Holidays and weekends, we have plenty of things to 'look forward' to! We are halfway through Rotation #5-Towanda!

N0: We do NOT know where we will be for his last two rotations. We were HOPING for AZ, which seemed to be a perfect set-up, however, in spite of all of the legalities going through, no Doctors were willing to take students. Their reasoning is that they are 'too busy.' Anyone who knows my husband knows that that concept doesn't exist. He THRIVES in busy-ness and chaos, so he was disappointed and I was as well, but keep coming back to the fact that God knows what I don't. He knows where we need to be and as we've been praying for each of these experiences, we trust that God has answered those prayers and the blessing has been not having to say goodbye for a month at a time! While it would have been nice to travel and/or be near family, that doesn't seem to be the way it is going, sooo...we press on.

Maybe: We MAY still wind up in AZ for a rotation if one pulls through, but it is doubtful. We MAY still wind up living in AZ...or CO, or Montana, or...who knows?! Here?! They have recently discovered that this area is NOT what they thought-it is NOT the largest find in the country, but NOW believe it to be the largest natural gas/oil find in The WORLD... We have often talked about staying in PA and Mike has been in contact with some people about some new URGI centers up North, but...we do not know. Only God does and we're okay with that.


Time is nearing an end. My countdown has begun! August 7, 2010 is rapidly approaching, despite the feeling of time coming to a slow... ;) I know Mike is especially ready to come home to us every night and we are eager to begin a new chapter while trying to treasure the joys of this one. It has been a hard season and I am glad for the challenges it has brought and the growth as well!

Blessings to all and we'll let you know when we know anything...or not! ;)

SPRING...in more ways than one... :)

Can I just say that I LOVE Pennsylvania...I LOVE the beautiful rolling hills and the way Spring erupts out of nowhere with crocuses and buds of irises! Can you tell we've been outside today?! It was so nice to put on a tee-shirt and kick off my sandals and feel the warmth of the grass. I suppose that the reality that this may no longer be home in a few months has me seeing everything a little differently. Will we have this where we're going? Will I be able to have a garden? Will we get to enjoy the smell after rain?

Nothing is set in stone, but for those of you who ARE wondering what August will bring, we are very seriously considering Arizona. NOT Phoenix area, where [Jenna's] family is, but a little more in the mountains where we'll have more sunshine, but less rain. More warmth, less snow. More space, less people. We have spent a lot of time and energy really praying about where we should 'land' and are looking at things practically as well.

One neat thing that has come up is that Mike may have his last two rotations in the Phoenix area, which means the whole family would go and stay with [Jenna's] family. It is kind of a God-thing that it is even possible. One more way that God has shown His faithfulness in times that seem so uncertain. Mike was told they would not be able to get any more rotations squared away than those already set, so the likelihood that he would even get one in AZ was no longer a possibility. We were disappointed, but God has known much more amazingly what we needed this year than we have, so we trusted that there was a reason. Well, at the last minute, he and another student who has family down in AZ were given the green light to FIND someone that would take them. Like, THAT DAY and they would proceed with all of the paperwork and legalities that makes it complicated. Mike called several places and got in touch with someone who directed him to an ER hiring service for 23 states. They work with 3 hospitals in the Phoenix area and she was SO excited at the possibility of working with students and having a new way of getting in touch with potential hires that she sent the information and Mike's school responded promptly and within 20 minutes, it was exchanged! She had a meeting with her higher-ups the following week and Mike spoke with his school and everything is in the works (which means the company gave it a go!). There is always room for changes, but we are encouraged that God has opened this door. Not only will we be able to spend time with family, but we will be able to really scout out where we are hoping to live! And it will give Mike more of an opportunity to interview and get a sense for what he really wants to do.

All that to say, his 8th rotation begins mid-May and, barring any changes, we will be heading West then! We will stay there until his rotations are finished and head back to PA to 'move', party and graduate and say goodbye to our precious friends here in PA. We are so blessed to have been here. It has been one of my most favorite times of life, though it has had its challenges! ;)

Mike finishes his 5th rotation this week. We are on the home-stretch and I am just SO thrilled. I am NOT thrilled that he will have another long two rotations away from home, BUT we can do it two more months. We've done it this long! Please pray with us for the kids in all of these transitions. It is hardest on them (and Jenna) as Daddy weekly comes in and out and we have to adjust either way...they understand as best as they can, but it isn't easy. We're hoping for lots of distractions in these next months until we can all be together! We're hoping one of those is a trip to visit Mike's family in North Carolina! :)

We hope this finds you all well! Blessings and HAPPY SPRING!!!