Where to start??

Whew, what a month! Our lives have been completely turned around (for the better) and we are loving it! Steve ended up with TWO job offers, but ultimately, the Kansas City job was a much better fit. He loved the Huntsville area, and it was a strong company, but he opted for the position that would give him experience better suited for a possible future (down the road, God-willing) with the National Weather Service as a forecaster, rather than digging further and further into the research and computer side of Meteorology. And my goodness, did he make the right choice! He is learning so much and getting some pretty incredible training with some amazing people. There are so many positives about this move that I can hardly even list them. We are much closer to my family (it cut the distance basically in half), I am not working full-time anymore (PRAISE GOD!), God provided an awesome apartment that is within walking distance to the most beautiful park (seriously…miles and miles of trails for walking/running/biking/horseback riding. It even has a Hot Air Balloon launch field! What?!), I am not working, Steve loves his job and is being challenged, Norman is much more comfortable in our new apartment, and did I mention…I’m not working?! I am just feeling so blessed by this new life…I feel like after 5 years of marriage (we just celebrated our 5th Anniversary October 8th) we are just getting started on the life of which we have dreamed. And it affirms that our decision to send Steve back to school for this second bachelor’s degree was the right one. God has provided confirmation after confirmation for us, and how cool is that? So anyways…about our new life…

Steve got the job offer(s) while I was in New York last month, so we had to basically consult via phone regarding this decision that would affect our lives in a pretty huge way. The positive side of that…although I was more than happy to leave many parts of my job, I was also very reluctant to leave it (I worked at the most amazing company, with the most amazing people, making a very decent salary with amazing benefits and perks)…so being in New York helped me escape the reality of “oh my goodness, I need to turn in a 2 week notice!” Yes, you read that right…Steve’s new company wanted him to start October 1st (we were able to push them out to the 4th). Not much time to wrap things up in OKC, that’s for sure! But we knew it would happen quickly when it happened, and certainly weren’t complaining about things, because STEVE HAD A JOB!! My trip to New York ended up being a pretty awesome “last hurrah” for my life as a career woman, because I got to fly out on the jet!

We were riding in style!

This is my sweet co-worker. I miss seeing her every day...she is such a wise woman of God!

Needless to say, commercial air travel will never be the same for me again. Haha!

Here is another awesome thing we saw in NY. God’s creation is breathtaking!

Our last two weeks in Oklahoma were quite a whirlwind. It happened to include the only two weekends that we actually had made plans (go figure). Steve’s folks arrived in OK the day I returned from NY, as we had been planning to go to the OU vs. Air Force game that weekend (Steve’s dad is an Air Force Academy graduate) and they ended up being a tremendous help. Steve’s mom is probably the best packer I know. She was a life saver in helping me get the kitchen, pantry, knick knacks, and many other things wrapped securely and packed (did I mention she is FAST?!). We could not have done this move without them. For reals. They were with us through the weekend and then went back to CA knowing that in just about 9 days, they’d be back. That is the best way to say goodbye…knowing they will be back soon! Then, the following weekend, we had already planned a Kansas City weekend with some members of my family. It is a great “halfway point” between MN and OKC, so many Kansas City weekends happened with various family and friends during our 4 years in Oklahoma. Even though the timing was a bit crazy, I knew I’d probably actually need a weekend of just relaxing, playing some cards, watching football, and laughing with my people, so we kept it on. And I am so glad we did. We were also able to take a car load of stuff up to our new apartment! Nice! Thanks, Dad, for helping us unload that first car load!

When we returned to Oklahoma City that Monday, the rest of the week is seriously a blur. I was blessed to have great groups of friends in Oklahoma and I was trying to cram as much time in with them as I could…and it still just wasn’t enough. I sure miss them! Another plus of being in Kansas City…it’s not far to go back to OK for a visit either! I worked the rest of the week (my final week at Chesapeake…bittersweet), and Steve’s folks came out again for the remainder of the packing/loading/moving extravaganza. We filled a 26-foot truck, people! How in the world can a couple that has been married only 5 years fill a 26-foot truck, plus three (actually, four, including our pre-move trip) carloads of stuff?! Phew! Which explains my new part-time job, for the time being. SELL STUFF! I am having a blast just being able to “nest” in our new home, and simplify our lives by selling/donating things. It is just an awesome feeling.

Steve’s parents were again instrumental in the tail-end of the move as well. Have I mentioned that our new apartment is on the 3rd floor?? God bless the guys as they made numerous trips up those stairs with very heavy things. Steve’s mom was also extremely helpful in keeping Norman safe and happy. The poor pair was holed up in one of the bedrooms for much of two days. Thank you, thank you, thank you, Mommers Irwin! I wanted to start the unpacking/nesting later that week (after the folks left), so on Monday, instead of unpacking, I decided to introduce my MIL to one of my absolute favorite parts of the Kansas City area…Country Club Plaza! We had such a fun day together, shopping, eating, lots of walking, and just enjoying each other’s company. I am so blessed to have ILs that I absolutely love.

Now that we have been here for a couple weeks, we are adjusting quite well. I am, of course, loving staying at home and getting our apartment in order, and Steve is doing great at his new job. His first two weeks consisted of training on the day shift before he switched over (this week) to his normal shift…1:00 am to 9:30 am. Crazy, huh? We got some killer blackout curtains (two layers, actually), and Steve even came up with the idea of using Velcro to attach them to the wall so that no light can leak through. It’s a pretty cool system, if I do say so myself (sorry, honey, for giving you a hard time about it pre-installation...you were right)! It’s pretty neat to have Steve come home around 10:00 am and have the day together (well, until he has to start getting ready for bed at around 4:00 pm). On Monday, we went to the park right after he got home and enjoyed a 3 mile walk! I love having him home during the day.

Today, we had our Home Study Update visit with a new Social Worker (our current adoption Home Study was done in Oklahoma, and we need to have it updated now that our living/job situation has changed…it now needs to be done by someone licensed in Kansas, hence today’s visit with a new Social Worker). We are now in the paper chase (abbreviated version) again as we wait for the Kansas Background Checks to clear and our new home study to be written up and sent to the agency. We are still able to use the same adoption agency, and we are so glad to be able to continue the process with them. We are sort of “on hold” while we wait for our home study to be updated, etc. (they can’t show our profile to birthmoms that are due anytime soon, just in case our home study update isn’t completed in time)…hopefully not for too long, though! And even though it stinks to have this delay, we knew from the beginning that this was likely, and I feel such a peace about where we are now. One thing we know for sure is that God is in complete control of the process, so it’s not like we are going to miss the child He has for us, ya know? Plus, it’s nice to not be “up in the air” anymore. We are here for awhile (at least) and can make our home here with confidence until God leads us somewhere else. And the bottom line is, each day we are closer to meeting our baby, and I could not be more excited for that!

Wow…this post has gotten long, but there have been so many things to update you all on! Let me know if you want our new contact info (I can send it via email). In the meantime, I have no excuses on not keeping up with the blog…especially since I have lots of quiet time in the evening now while Steve sleeps! I also have learned the art of quicker photo downloads (a perk of all my selling on Cra*gs L*st!) so I can include fun pictures of our new adventures. Quick prayer requests before I sign off:

*That I find a part-time (very part-time, preferably) job to supplement our income. Would love to either work from home or find a coffee-shop job or something like that
*That we can get plugged into a great church. We really miss our church in Edmond and are praying for God to lead us to a place where we can build some great relationships (since we have no family here…our church family will be our family)
*That our adoption process will continue to move forward as quickly as possible, but mostly for peace and patience during the dreaded wait
*That Steve will continue to adapt to his new schedule. God has really been providing in that area, and we pray that He will continue to do so

Thank you so much to everyone that has prayed for us, offered words of encouragement, and just been excited with us as we begin this next chapter in our lives! We are so blessed by each one of you!