Philadelphia

A few weeks ago, Conner had the opportunity, once again, to interview for a job in Philadelphia. This time, however, it was for Chatham financial; this is the company that he is always wanted to work for. They flew him out and he was able to stay with Shannon and Steve during the interview process. It was a bit of an emotional roller coaster for both of us. Conner wanted the job so badly, but I didn't want to move to Philadelphia. I tried to be supportive, but ended up in tears almost every time we talked about moving. I felt badly when he left because I felt like I wasn't as supportive as I should have been considering the fact that this could have possibly been his dream job. I made him a little going away poster to help boost his confidence...

Since Chatham was paying for his flight, I told him to stay for a couple days and to make a vacation out of it. It was a long four days without him...I guess I was a bit anxious about the whole thing. He felt like interview went very well and that he did his very best. Steve thought that this position would be perfect for him. Conner said the night before the big day he expected to be all jitters-instead, he was calm and knew that Heavenly Father was looking out for him. I was certain that he would get an offer. Conner believed that whatever happened, everything would be okay. I wish I could say that I had the same faith.

Too long weeks passe. Steve finally called Conner and let him know that he didn't think that this job opportunity was going to go their way… Chatham didn't call Conner for another couple of days but they did confirm that they were not going to and extend an offer to him. It was heartbreaking. Steve was angry, Conner was heartbroken, and I felt so bad that I couldn't truly share in Conner's heartache due to the fact that I didn't want to move in the first place. I felt for him but I think he felt very alone which made me feel awful. Chatham told Conner that he knocked it out of the park on a personal standpoint but speaking technically, they had some doubts. This infuriated Steve seeing as how they could easily teach him the things that he needs to know. Conner was pretty optimistic from this point on and decided to move onto Plan B… Getting his MBA at the University of Utah.

Around the same time that we heard about the opportunity in Philadelphia, we had a neighbor in the ward ask us to come and check out her house… she would be moving to another home in the neighborhood and thought we might be interested in looking at hers. Although it was a nice idea, especially because we would love to stay in the ward, we ultimately decided not to purchase her home.

Between looking at her house and searching for possible homes in Philadelphia, the idea of buying a home became a bit more of a reality. We love our neighborhood and the wonderful people in our ward, but we would probably not be able to stay in our 2-bedroom rental forever; adding a baby this past year has made things a bit cramped. I was perusing some real estate sites and found a few homes in the area that I was interested in. I wasn't looking too aggressively, but figured we should probably start looking if we wanted to buy a house in the next year or two. I took my mom to look at one house in particular and we loved it. Someone had flipped it and had remodeled the entire place top to bottom, including the yard. I drove Conner back to it that night and a couple in our ward was there removing cleaning supplies from their trunk. They were there to clean it. It was their house! What are the chances? I was certain it was a sign that we had to buy it. The house is beautiful and it was done by a couple who are perfectionists so I knew it wasn't too good to be true.

Long story, short, we put in an offer...and another offer...then denied their request for 2,500 more dollars and thought we had lost it. BUT they came back and said that they would take our second offer. Ah! Then we started freaking out. We weren't sure if it was right. Should we move? Is it right? Do we like the neighborhood? Can we leave our friends? These are just a few questions that came to mind, but ultimately, we have decided to go through with it. As long as everything goes smoothly, we could be official homeowners on May 21st, 2014. What a crazy couple of months! I am excited to see what this adventure brings!

I know that Heavenly Father will bless us wherever we are as long as we are steadfast in the gospel. We have definitely felt his hand in our lives this past year and know that we can rely on the Spirit to help us make these big decisions. I am so thankful that I know that I have a Father in Heaven. It is such a blessing to feel of his love and support in all we do.