Tender Mercies

Tender Mercies of the Lord.

We moved to New Mexico almost 2.5 years ago. When we moved there we knew we wouldn't be there for too long....3 to 5 years is what we kept saying. It wasn't our dream place.....it wasn't where we wanted to grow old and raise our family. We had been in Phoenix before that and the heat is NOT my favorite thing in the whole world....especially having been pregnant in Phoenix and Carlsbad NM....two of the hottest cities in the U.S.

We always sort of looked for jobs casually and saw what was out there...if there was anything cool or in a great location. One Saturday I found a job in Washington at a hand clinic that I told my husband about. He wasn't really sure he even wanted to apply for it. But, after some discussion we decided there wasn't any harm in applying....and then if we were applying for one job we might as well see what else was out there. Then, we found the job.

Providence Hand Clinic, Medford, Oregon.

A little farther away from my family than I would have liked....but we applied anyway. Not even a day later we got an e-mail back. The next day was an initial phone interview. A few days later another phone interview. A week later Rob was driving to El Paso to fly out for an in-person interview. A few days after he got back, a job offer. The next day an acceptance of a job offer.

We discussed it and both of our reactions were we would feel SICK if we didn't accept. So, accept we did. We gave our 30 day notice, started trying to sell our house and off we went.

There were bumps in the road. Selling our house being the BIGGEST bump ever....but we are hopefully on track to close on our house in a few weeks. Hallelujah.

Along this journey there were some serious tender mercy moments of the Lord.

I drove by myself with two toddlers from Carlsbad, NM to Cedar Hills, UT. My mom lent me her guardian angels and believe me...they were there. The girls did fantastic. No real screaming or being super upset. My poor little Ella got car sick once on that part of the journey.....the only real disaster. They would giggle, watch movies, and were just really good. We didn't even have to stop too often for Lily to go to the bathroom....that is a miracle unto itself.

My wonderful dad drove with us on leg #2....SLC to Medford with a stop in Winnemucca. The girls were not as well-behaved because my mom's guardian angels were busy. My dad just kept saying he couldn't believe I did the first part by myself. My poor little Ella got carsick again...this time much much worse. The girls were more cranky, needy...but it really wasn't too bad since my dad was driving and I could better attend to their needs. Lily even went potty on the side of the road while it was snowing.  My kids both kept saying Grandpa or Papa and would wave to him from the back seat. Lily became attached to my dad while we went swimming in the hotel pool.

A few miles out from Medford my dad asked how Rob was going to react seeing the girls...I told him that he would cry when he saw Lily. Sure enough....he picked up Lily and she just kept saying Daddy Daddy and tears started rolling down his face. It was such a sweet moment.

The day I left Carlsbad we got the first official offer on our house...and a few days later we were under contract.

My husband found us a great rental.....a large vacant house that needed a little TLC. Such a BLESSING.

My husband LOVES his job. It is a great place to learn and grow. He will be happy in this job for a long time.

Medford is a beautiful green place. There are rolling hills, greenery, mountains....just beautiful-ness outside my front door. I have been running 4 times in the past 6 days because it is just so beautiful and peaceful to be outside in the nature.

We were able to get the last spot in a wonderful preschool for this fall that usually fills up years in advance...but this year was a fluke and there was still an opening.....what a tender mercy.

My heart is so full of gratitude. We are enjoying this new adventure and finding all these things to do.....beautiful parks, splash pads, real stores to go shopping at, farmers markets. It is all such a wonderful adventure. Even after being here for less than 2 weeks we feel comfortable here.....at peace.

I wish I had taken more pictures of our journey.....me cleaning up puke on the side of the road while Ella screamed bloody murder. The disgusting-ness of my van after traveling for 6 days. Lily and Rob hugging after not seeing him for 2.5 weeks.

I will upload some pictures that I do have at another time. Right now...I just have to say how grateful I am for the tender mercies of the Lord.