Upward and Onward!

I know I haven't been posting much the past few months, and there's a very good reason for that: Stress!!

Back in March, Joe's company cut Fridays for the entire plant! That meant our one income decreased by 20% in one fell swoop. Not good. After a lot of discussion, Joe and I felt that maybe it was a sign that we were supposed to be moving on. We'd always said we didn't want to stay longer than 5-7 years (his 5 yr. Anniv. was in May), we are growing out of our condo quickly, and Maddie starts kindergarten in a year. It seemed like the perfect opening to job hunt.

Joe has accepted the position of "Senior Process Engineer" at Sandvik in Kennewick, WA. Sandvik is a huge international company, head quartered in Sweden. This particular plant makes "refractory alloy tubes for aerospace, nuclear applications, and medical." If you want to know what that means, ask Joe! I know he'll be working with titanium and zirconium, and that is a really specialized field! He is excited to be learning, and they're going to throw him right in with the machinists first thing. The benefits are fantastic. He starts out with 3 weeks vacation!! We have NEVER seen that many!

The one VERY BIG problem we have is the condo. Unfortunately, the market in Seattle is bad. Really bad. We would not be able to get what we owe out of the condo at this time. We don't owe a lot over, but when you haven't been working full time in several months, money isn't growing on trees. So, with no help from others, we are forced to rent. It is not the situation I had hoped or planned for, but it will work.

Thankfully, it is really cheap to live in the Tri Cities. We have had an offer accepted on a 1970's tri level house in Kennewick, WA. The house is in good condition, just needs some paint and upgrading. It has a HUGE backyard for the kids and dog. The best part is that it's on a quiet cul de sac, and behind us is the elementary school! Location location location! If we didn't have to keep the condo, things would be different. But I know that God is watching over us, and that this will all turn out ok in the end.

So....onward and upward we go! We are really excited to be living close to Spokane, with a house and a yard, and some hot weather!! Saying good bye hasn't exactly hit me yet, Joe's depressed. It's hard to put yourself out there, make friends, have relationships with people, and then leave. I think I'm just in denial. But change is inevitable, and this is what is best for our family. Thank goodness for the internet and cell phones! We're only a phone call away :)