My Own Personal Employment Journey 2009-present

If you've read most of my blog posts over the last few years, you'll know that I used to be the senior graphic designer at a small print shop in Jonesville, Michigan. I loved my job, but in an effort to keep this concise and not run off-topic, I'll just say that I was forced to leave that position for reasons both financial and of conscience. It was one of the hardest decisions I have ever made, and just like with this recent job loss experience, I grieved it a bit, felt hurt by the experience and also somewhat burnt out from doing design work. I was unemployed for a few months until being asked to move to Texas to nanny my brand-new-at-the-time niece, Ellie.

I was Ellie's full time nanny for about two years. The above pictures were taken on my first day: Valentine's Day 2011 and on the anniversary the years after. It wasn't graphic design, but I loved the diversion and all of that quality time with my little buddy. In the spring of 2013, shortly after our two-year anniversary, a new niece was born, Emily Anne, named after yours truly (it's no secret that my middle name is Emily) and their maternal grandma whose middle name is Ann. :) I was so thrilled and so honored, and it was love at first sight. <3 br="">

Anyway, the mama, Valerie, decided to become a mostly stay-at-home mama after Emily was born, so my hours with the girls became much more part-time. This worked out quite well because another family member was in need of some extra care: my grandma.

 Isn't she such a pretty lady? :)

As the result of breaking a vertebrae in her back and not able to ever fully regain all of her previous strength and vitality, in December 2012, we moved my grandma from Florida to her own apartment a few doors down from me in Texas so that I could begin assisting her and helping her stay as independent as possible. Caring for this widow, my own grandma, is easily one of the best and hardest jobs I have ever had. Easier than being a nanny in some ways and much harder in others. I never in a million years expected to be care-giving for an elderly person at the age of 30. It's not an experience I've actually ever put into words until now, so I'll be a bit more descriptive here if you don't mind. ;)

It's a humbling act of service...of love. I don't say that to boast. It's just that the kinds of things one must do to care for an elderly person is by nature a humbling experience. They aren't that different than things you do for kids, but when you do it for a child, you take it for granted. As an example, I gave my grandma a pedicure (everything but nail polish...her feet are always covered) a few weeks ago because I felt she needed one. It was a decision I made without question or even giving it a second thought really, but in the moment while I was washing her feet, it really struck me about when Jesus talks about washing one another's feet in John 13:14, that act of humbling oneself and serving someone else. I was doing it and not even realizing it. It almost brought me to tears honestly. But it is also an honor to serve someone who has loved and cared for me as a baby, a child, and well actually my whole life, and here I am now, able to serve her. I think of times she pushed me in a stroller around the mall, and now I push her in a wheelchair. So we have made a complete 180º. A role reversal. It's difficult but also very beautiful.

So, that's what I've been doing for work the past year or so. In the early fall of 2013, I resumed occasionally babysitting my nieces. I cleaned an office space for awhile, but when my brother's business closed and Nate lost his job, the cleaning job went with it. I also do a little graphic design on the side, but to be honest, I have put it on the back-burner because these special people in my life have needed me more. I know that my grandma's quality of life is so drastically improved now that she is nearer to those she loves. Her care continues to be of great importance to me, but we are now transitioning to a different arrangement, one that will be better for her in the long run as she is gradually needing more and more help. More details on that will follow after they are set in stone.

Even though I didn't have a regular full-time job, the three jobs I did have pretty much filled up my time. I didn't anticipate rejoining the marketplace at this juncture in my life, but now given our current circumstances, I am actually ready to resume working at a "normal" job, whether or not Nate finds one first. I have no idea how long of a journey it will be or which direction it will take me, but I'm looking forward to finding a new adventure! I'll keep you posted. :)

Happy New Year 2014 and the Latest on the Job Front

Hmmm. New Year. 2014. I posted this snarky little message on Facebook for New Year's Day:

"Happy holidays! (I don't want to offend anyone who doesn't celebrate the new year.) And with that snarky remark, I will make my new year's resolution to be less sarcastic and more kind. Ah, who am I kidding? I don't make new year's resolutions. Happy New Year!!"

And by that, you can read between the lines and understand that though we are still in a difficult place, we are in much better spirits emotionally than we were those few weeks before Christmas. After my last update, we took a road trip to Michigan to spend some much needed downtime with Nate's family for Christmas. His mom and aunts are excellent hostesses. We ate so much amazing yumminess, watched so many Christmas movies, enjoyed curling up by the fireplace each night, and overall got a week's worth of R&R. Upon our return, we spent the new year with most of my family in Texas.

Here are a couple of my favorite images from Christmas 2013:

 

 

 

 

That certainly doesn't include all our loved ones, but I wanted to protect the privacy of those who might not appreciate their image posted on a public blog. ;)

On the job front, we were able to do some more searching while we were relaxing, and thankfully we are mostly passed the grieving and on to the taking action part of the post-job-loss recovery. Nate and I have learned some important things, not the least of which is patience.

Nate has applied to and has all but been hired for a position that, for now, is probably his second-choice on the job front. His first choice doesn't have any local availabilities currently with this employer, but there is a chance that once hired within the company, he could eventually move to the position he thinks he would prefer. He has been approved for this second-choice position (a premises technician with a major cable/internet provider) in every way save one...and that one should be a given. It's a standard requirement of almost any job. Aaaaaaand they lost the results. Gah. The HR person Nate has been in contact with assured him that this was an unusual situation and told him on Friday that she had forwarded the problem to her supervisor, which did encourage us some. After three weeks of the company attempting to track down the results, we felt the likelihood of that job being what the futures holds for us waning with every passing day. It was hard to not feel discouraged. I admit, on several days, we felt helpless and hopeless, wondering whether the job search should continue with fervor or whether we should just wait patiently for this one to be finalized. As anyone who has ever breathed air can tell you...waiting is haaaaaaaaard.

Yesterday at church, Nate prayed specifically to receive an answer tomorrow from this employer, and today, he got a phone call. !!!! To those who do not believe that God answers prayer, this might sound like a coincidence, but to us, it was exactly the encouragement we needed to continue to persevere in patience and waiting on the Lord. [As a sidenote: we have learned that "waiting around" and "waiting on the Lord" are two entirely different things.] The answer was not that they found the results but rather offered an expedited retake of the test, which he will happily do ASAP in hopes of bringing further closure to this situation.

Maybe this still isn't the path God has for us and we just don't know it yet, but I feel sure that there are reasons it is taking so long, not the least of which is this: Nate picked up part time temporary work after Christmas, and his employer still needs him. Maybe for another week. Maybe less. Maybe more. He makes more per hour at this temp job than he is likely to make at the full time position in question. Thus, it would be very much in the nature of the God I know to have our best interests at heart throughout this delay, as He always does, in asking us to wait on beginning a new position just yet.

As for me, well, my employment situation has fluctuated so much in the last 5 years that I'm not really sure where to begin, but I do know I'd like to share more than will fit here. I'll just have to do another blog post about that. ;)

Thank you all again for reading my blog, caring about us, and especially for praying for us as we are continuing on this rocky road.