So its been over a week and a half since Ben has left for Hawaii. The first few days were quite rough. Moving to a new place you have never been to before without your spouse can make things quite difficult. Things were quite lonely for Ben, but he was able to stay with our friend Heidi and her husband for the first night. Their support and encouragment has been a huge help to us. They even let him borrow their car for a few days while Ben went apartment shopping. He was able to find a one bedroom cottage a mile or so from Castle Med Center after a couple days of being on the island and was able to move in almost immediately. It is completely furnished, which is exactly what we need. The location and the quieter atomsphere lead us choose to live in Kailua verses Honolulu.
Ben has enjoyed his work so far, which is a reief. It reminded us why he moved down there. This past week Ben has been in the classroom taking a crash course in Human Anatomy and Phys, Med Term, and ER stuff. This challenge was a welcome surprise for Ben. He had a few intense days of classes and successfully passed his final exam on Sunday! Today he officially started working in the ER. He is to shadow a medical scribe for 40 hours this week and hopefully be on his own next week! He is the only "full timer" working out of 10 other scribes so he gets to choose his shifts for the schedule.
I am planning on moving down sometime this weekend :) I got an incredible offer from a highschool friend, (Whitney) to use her "buddy pass." This means I don't need to plan my flight much in advance and it is significantly cheaper than regular tickets. We are also able to then save our $400 voucher for a trip back. Ben was able to talk to a nurse manager on a floor that I applied to at Castle and she was going to call me sometime this week to discuss my experience. She told Ben they usually hire "experienced" nurses on the Telemetry floor to which I applied, but that she would call me anyway. Otherwise, we have found that they are much more apt to hire you if you are currently down there and actively following up on your applications in person. So we will continue to pray that I find a job quickly after I arrive there. Otherwise, I may have to resort to serving drinks on the beach :).
Those are just a few updates since Ben has moved down. I am really enjoying living with my parents/family, but also am excited to see him soon. I pray that my flights and move down go well, or at least smoother than Ben's did. It will be so good to be back together and see this new place we will call "home" for a year.
Monday, May 31, 2010
Friday, May 21, 2010
May 20th, 2010
We had waited for this day to come for a long time, and here it was. We were feeling less prepared for this day than we thought we would be. It had been a busy week of saying good-byes, and packing up our apartment. Today would be the last official day of normalcy in Sioux County. This place we have called home for over 20 years. this is our comfort zone. Home to our family, friends, familiar highschool/college community, and our church families.
God was pushing us out of the nest (like a loving mother bird would), knowing that we would be able to fly. We, however, are still not fully aware of the fact that we can fly though. This makes the time between jumping (or being pushed) out of the nest and falling to the earth rather scary. And with that said, this is where Ben and I are currently. We may even be in this place for quite some time. We are somewhere in this free-fall of life. We took this leap of faith!
1:05pm. This was the time of Ben's flight departure from Omaha. Lisa, Emily, and Myself were there to send him off on this exciting yet scary day. It was raning heavily once we arrived to the airport and that is how us women were feeling. Heavy hearts. Knowing this was a chance of a lifetime. We had mixed emotions. The first move away from home is probably the most difficult. As Ben noted, "it feels as if I am finally going off to college. Leaving our families for the first time, but knowing I will be back here in a year." That is an accurate description of our situation. Once Ben made it through the security gates, after they almost took his PS3, he was able to get bumped. This was thanks to Delta and their over booked flights. He was able to get upgraded to First Class for the rest of his flights, a $400.00 ticket voucher for anyone to use at any time (that would be for me:), money for food, and a free hotel and good night's rest in LA. This moving stuff wasn't too bad!
As I write now, Ben is currently flying over the Pacific Ocean, making his way to Honolulu International Airport. He is to arrive at 11:30am (Hawaii Standard Time), which is officially 5 hours behind us who live in the Central Time Zone. Once he arrives he will check out an apartment near his hosptial (Castle Medical Center) and his golf course in the town of Kailua. If all goes well, and the pictures are an accurate depiction of the apartment, we will have a place to live! :)
One thing God has really blessed us with is making a connection with a Dordt Alum who is currently living in Honolulu. Heidi has been so willing and helpful through this whole moving process and has even offered to let Ben take their car this afternoon while he does some apartment shopping! When God opens doors, he REALLY opens doors.
So what about the wifey?! Many people have asked what I am up to or when I will be moving down. I am currently living with my parents in Hospers. I will be working til the first week in June at the hospital and am hoping to move down sometime the second week in June. I need to officially book my ticket yet! I still have not heard anything about jobs and have applied for 8 positions in the past month. I am trying to be patient. I promised Ben I would be down no later than one month after he moved. SO, if that means working at Starbucks or a golf course for a bit until I find a nursing job, I will do it. Sometimes you just need to move to a new place and get down there. That would be another large leap of faith for me. Showing them that you have committed to a move and are ready to interview and work anytime may be the thing I need to do to get a job.
So there is an update on life so far. Keep us in your thoughts and prayers over the next couple weeks as Ben will be down there by himself orientating and starting a new job and as I am here finishing up mine. Also, pray that we find a place to live soon and that a job open up for me.
God is taking us on quite the journey and I am happy to be able to share that with you!
God was pushing us out of the nest (like a loving mother bird would), knowing that we would be able to fly. We, however, are still not fully aware of the fact that we can fly though. This makes the time between jumping (or being pushed) out of the nest and falling to the earth rather scary. And with that said, this is where Ben and I are currently. We may even be in this place for quite some time. We are somewhere in this free-fall of life. We took this leap of faith!
1:05pm. This was the time of Ben's flight departure from Omaha. Lisa, Emily, and Myself were there to send him off on this exciting yet scary day. It was raning heavily once we arrived to the airport and that is how us women were feeling. Heavy hearts. Knowing this was a chance of a lifetime. We had mixed emotions. The first move away from home is probably the most difficult. As Ben noted, "it feels as if I am finally going off to college. Leaving our families for the first time, but knowing I will be back here in a year." That is an accurate description of our situation. Once Ben made it through the security gates, after they almost took his PS3, he was able to get bumped. This was thanks to Delta and their over booked flights. He was able to get upgraded to First Class for the rest of his flights, a $400.00 ticket voucher for anyone to use at any time (that would be for me:), money for food, and a free hotel and good night's rest in LA. This moving stuff wasn't too bad!
As I write now, Ben is currently flying over the Pacific Ocean, making his way to Honolulu International Airport. He is to arrive at 11:30am (Hawaii Standard Time), which is officially 5 hours behind us who live in the Central Time Zone. Once he arrives he will check out an apartment near his hosptial (Castle Medical Center) and his golf course in the town of Kailua. If all goes well, and the pictures are an accurate depiction of the apartment, we will have a place to live! :)
One thing God has really blessed us with is making a connection with a Dordt Alum who is currently living in Honolulu. Heidi has been so willing and helpful through this whole moving process and has even offered to let Ben take their car this afternoon while he does some apartment shopping! When God opens doors, he REALLY opens doors.
So what about the wifey?! Many people have asked what I am up to or when I will be moving down. I am currently living with my parents in Hospers. I will be working til the first week in June at the hospital and am hoping to move down sometime the second week in June. I need to officially book my ticket yet! I still have not heard anything about jobs and have applied for 8 positions in the past month. I am trying to be patient. I promised Ben I would be down no later than one month after he moved. SO, if that means working at Starbucks or a golf course for a bit until I find a nursing job, I will do it. Sometimes you just need to move to a new place and get down there. That would be another large leap of faith for me. Showing them that you have committed to a move and are ready to interview and work anytime may be the thing I need to do to get a job.
So there is an update on life so far. Keep us in your thoughts and prayers over the next couple weeks as Ben will be down there by himself orientating and starting a new job and as I am here finishing up mine. Also, pray that we find a place to live soon and that a job open up for me.
God is taking us on quite the journey and I am happy to be able to share that with you!
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