No More Plan B

Today is Dan's last day of work for PennWest!  Wow!  I know we are just beginning a new part of our journey, but we are just ending one journey.  A journey that Dan began 16 years ago with he and his dad out for pie one Saturday when he was home for a weekend from Prairie.  Dan really had no idea what he was "going to be when he grew up" he wanted to be a hellecopter pilot, but I think knew that he didn't have the money to do it so was on to plan B from the get go.  His dad told him that he could be a gas plant operator:  he would be able to correspondence on his own and challenge the exams, they didn't have to work hard 75% of the time (they are essentially babysitters), he could likely get a job up in Fox Creek if he went about things right, and they made pretty good money.  So that was what began his career in oil and gas.  He worked hard at 18 and was essentially a mail boy/secretary (smile, he'd love that I'm saying this) but they got to know him and respect his hard work. He worked on his tickets on his own in the evenings and shortly before he turned 20 was hired on by Chevron as a power engineer.  

From there he has moved up in experience and seniority to the point that he is leaving as acting forman of the plant at Acheson.  He has been "acting" because they knew he was leaving them, to finally pursue a career that he is excited and passionate about.  No more plan B.  Now even though he was living plan b in his work life, it enabled us to live comfortably and we have enjoyed his shift work days with little ones and then have enjoyed his "regular shift too" we haven't been living a "plan B" life. 

My kids are home from school today and Dan is at his last day of work.  He won't really be doing any work. (Smile) He is trying to stay out of everyone elses way so they can work, they'll take him out for lunch and then he'll come home.  The kids are so excited!  They are busy "cleaning up" so we can decorate to celebrate with Dan when he gets home.  We are all excited for this next section of the journey that God is leading us in.

Dogs

For months before Dan and I got married whenever Dan and I would talk (we lived in different towns) or when we would see each other Dan would just randomly say "SURPRISE!"  It drove me nuts... but I loved it of course too.  My "Surprise!" was our dog Buddy who we had for 11 1/2 years.  He was my wedding present from Dan and we had him our whole marriage until this fall.  He was a great low maintenance dog for a growing family who, since having kids, really didn't have much time for an overly needy dog.  He knew his place was on the floor and was happiest there, could wait 12 hours (we didn't do that often) to go outside if we ended up having a long day away from home, he'd "walk" himself when we were camping (we just attached his leash, or not, and let him go out first thing in the morning while we continued to sleep) and was just a great dog who was oh so cute.  He was truly a member of the family and I miss him still.  

People are sometimes surprised that we don't have a dog yet, because we are totally dog people, but after you have loved and lost (to death) a dog, replacing it is not the first thing you want to do.  The grieving process was actually much longer than I thought it would be and I still tear up when certain things about Buddy come to mind.  That said we have begun our search for our next dog.

Yesterday I spent some time on Kijiji and it is going to be so hard to know which would be right.  I don't want to be stuck to a certain breed, just the right temperment.  We thought for awhile that we would go the outside dog route, but I know it would just end up back in the house and then we would have a hairy, inside dog.  So, inside it will be.  The kids can hardly wait and you know, I'm really excited too!  The only one we have to get on board now is Dan.  Of course knowing that he'll be home a lot more during the day in a week definately helps me be excited because I know I won't be the only one to be running the dog to the bush to house train.  (Didn't I just do my last kid?)  

Hope and a Future

So Dan resigned from his wonderfully "safe" good paying job last week.  He has another week to go and then he is done there.  I am so ready for this, and I'm not really sure why, I can only say "it's a God thing."

Last spring... probably May... Dan and I were doing our chat-in-the-evening on the couch thing and he "dumped" on me.  All at once I heard that his work, that had actually just changed a few months before to no longer be shift work, was terrible.  He was tired of the stress and responsibility that comes with having men work under you working with poisonous gas etc.  We had realized the summer before that Dan felt a restlessness to do something new, but I had hoped that his new job, with new responsibility would be just what he needed.  It was not.

The next day, I was at the kids school for something, trying to wear my brave, happy face when I finally broke down with a couple of friends and told them my story.  It's funny because now I wonder why I was crying... but I know at the time it felt like my world was ending.  Dan was going to begin actively looking for his own business.  He had an idea what he wanted to do, but to me it was just to be a hobby not a job, I had been dismissing it for at least 6 months (maybe even longer) as a viable option.  Anyway, back at the school... these two women told me many things and prayed with me.  God placed me with two women who had actually walked in my shoes not long before.  Both of their husbands are self-employed and both left jobs that to some it would seem strange to leave.  Some of the words they said that God still uses to encourage me are: "God will not waste anything... he will use this time."  "God sees you," "Trust God," "Trust Dan, you know he will not plunge into anything without having prayed and done his homework."  The overall feeling that they left me with was that God would provide for Dan and for our family. I was still scared... totally scared, but I was open to where God was going to lead us.

Less than a month later, Dan was offered to be mentored and trained, by a man and his team that is so super smart.  God has blessed them and he has done amazingly.  Wow God!  He gets to do the very thing he had wanted to do for a long time. 

In August (after a couple of months of initial training) Dan began to actively work.  Now six months later he continues with his learning, he is being mentored and prayed for, he has all the support he could ask for, yet he is his own boss.  He has his own clients and is loving what he is doing.  It is exactly what we were hoping and praying for.  

Many verses have encouraged me on this journey of resigning one job to begin the journey of self-employment. One of my favourite is Jeremiah 28:11 "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to proper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

Will I be scared next Monday when Dan's alarm doesn't go off half an hour before mine?  Probably... but I do know that with my God I do have hope and a future.

It's Magic!

Two days ago we got home from our family holiday in Florida. The six of us and Papa and Nana (Dan's parents) were away for 11 days. We had a very full and fun trip and it will probably take me a few days to get out all of the thoughts that I had about it all.

Our first day was spent at "The Holy Land Experience". Do I recommend it? Hmmm.... some great parts..... but for $180 to get us in for a few hours (it's not really a spend a day there kind of place, it's much smaller than the other parks we went to) I say go with low expectations then you will be pleasantly surprised! (smile) Nana enjoyed it, it was her surprise, so that was the main thing.

The next day we went to Disney's "Magic Kingdom" We had a great time! I had done lots of preparation and had a schedual to follow to get to the best rides, for us, in the shortest lines. The research did pay off when my entourage would work with me. (smile)

Bo and I rode "Peter Pan" together... it's a little ship suspended in the air so beneath you and around you are all the scenes from the movie.... Bo says "How are we flying" looking everywhere below and around us, not above where the track we were on is... I said... "it's magic!" Ah the wonder of a child.

Lilly was a princess... the "cast members" that's what they call the staff, are amazing there. They always called her "princess" or "Belle" she was in heaven. Wow does that girl love to shop... it's amazing... and of course Nana was her perfect partner.

Eli trooped along, loving what he could do, not minding at all when he and Nana got to sit for a bit and snack while the rest of us were on a ride.

Tessa my girl who just seems to grow up a little more each day. She came on all the rides, even the ones that scared her, other than "Space Mountain." Which "Space Mountain" is so fast, and dark that I was glad that she wasn't with us. She came on Everest, Splash Mountain, Thunder Mountain and Dinosouar (actaully all of them but Eli came on Dinosaur, it was really scary... oops!)

Dan, my amazing husband.... he carried the back pack full of juice boxes, water and snacks.... it was very heavy... and he carried Eli, when Lilly needed a break and rode in the stroller. He's Buff!