The Tide Begins to Roll...

Well, I don't know how "public" my DH wants the news to be at this point, but what they hey...

University in the South emailed yesterday to let him know they would be making an official offer sometime next week.

The wheels of university bureaucracy often spin slowly, especially when there is possible promotion and tenure in question, or a significant amount of muhlah (compared to the minimum wage, of course).

No matter what happens, I'm proud of him.

Please pray that the decision is relatively easy for both of us.

I love a lot of things about Lexington, and about our life right here. But I also know that "to everything there is a season", and our season here may be coming to a close. Our work here may be done...or not.

We really need wisdom, and guidance, and peace in the weeks ahead. If an offer rolls in next week, we may very well know within a couple of weeks where we will all be living come this August (which is merely 6 shorts months from now).

Our master bedroom is being painted next week - which means it will either be in perfect shape to sell, or the perfect bedroom I've always wanted for myself.

I'm at peace with either staying or going. But between me and the blogosphere, if I were a gambling woman, I'd bet on red (meaning, we're going). And I've always been pretty good at Roulette...just not the Russian kind.

If you're into "signs", we had a monstrous ice storm here last week that wiped out the city for days, while in the other city, it was warm and sunny. I also look better in red than in blue. ;)

Oh, and if you are praying for specifics - tenure, promotion, an affordable house to buy, and a salary with a lot of 8s in it. I won't be more specific than that, but think/pray - 8. Remember, 8 is great.

To everyone reading - thank you. A sincere thank you for the prayers, and for caring about 'lil ol us. We are honored to be in your thoughts and prayers.

You Know There Is A Recession When...

...you transfer your prescriptions all over town in order to get gift cards so you can buy milk and bread there.

So far, we have transferred from CVS to Rite Aid (3 $30 gifts cards for each of us for a total of $180 in gift cards), to Walgreens, and now to Kroger. I think the Kroger deal was the best so far -$20 gift card for each transferred Rx - up to 3 of them. That's grocery money right there.

Next month will be Target - they only offer a $10 gift card, but hey, $10 is $10.

And I have the coupons to transfer to K-Mart as well, but I still have to find out if ours has a pharmacy.

Anyone else done the prescription shuffle?

How It Went

Hubby thinks all went well...$$ was talked about, and promotion, and the possibility of tenure - all things that certainly wouldn't be talked about were he not under serious consideration and had made a great impression over the 2-day interview-palooza.

My co-parent returns tomorrow afternoon, and his oldest child will be so glad to see him as she has really, really missed him.

In sad news, it looks like one of my classes for Spring didn't make, so that's less income. However, it very well may be God making more time for me to get the house together and to make preparations for a move. Who knows. I'm just trying to trust.

Any idea how sexy your husband becomes when he is successful and everyone knows it?? Dang. Just. Dang.

In the 'Loo

Well, hubby is safely at the interview destination - and I'm off to have my hair done while the kid-os are at daycare. It's been quite a while, and I'm trying out a new stylist (who is about $30 cheaper than my normal stylist, which should tell you how much I've been over-paying).

The kids were up when daddy left at 5:30 this morning, and I let them watch Dora until it was daylight and then I dressed them and took them to daycare. I did the WIC grocery store run bright and early which apparently is senior-citizen time at Kroger (who knew). I then took a hot shower (which I'd also not had in far too long) and watched a few insipid style makeover shows.

I'm now blogging, of course, and about to head out to get my new 'doo.

Hubby should be touring the city we call "The 'Loo" about now. Tonight is dinner with the retiring faculty member who could be called the Aretha Franklin of our field. I'm jealous. The first time I met her I felt faint - what a cool woman she is.

Later I'll get the kid-os and see what Cookie wants for dinner. She barely eats, so what she wants is usually what we have. Maybe tonight we will do girls' manicures. I wonder how Bit-Bit would like that??

Interview

Day after tomorrow, hubby leaves for his interview at Big Southern University (well, medium-sized really, considering its only 17K students). I don't know about an elephant as a mascot, and a chant referencing polluted water. That, and I graduated from Florida. Working there just seems, well, ...let's just hope they pay well. I CAN be bought.

We've looked at houses on-line in Small Southern City just east of Mississippi. I even found a cute one on a lake. Houses seem affordable. The only catch is a big one - we'd have to sell our house here, and there's no way we could carry two house payments. I also feel like we just got our house here looking the way I wanted it (most rooms re-painted, all new lighting, etc.).

I find the thought of moving downright invigorating. Most folks loathe the idea, but I think grad school and the academy made me more flexible in that area.

I'm not looking forward to being a single-mom for the 3 days Michael will be gone. I'm a wimp. I like our routine with the kids, and how much he does with them. I can't imagine how I'm going to get both of them to sleep. Usually he gets Bit-Bit to sleep and I lay down next to Cookie as she drifts off. It's a good balance.

Michael won't know for a while the outcome of his interview as the other candidate isn't coming in until the end of January. There is also another faculty line being filled in the same department, and those candidates are also interviewing this month. So, the faculty there won't likely make their decisions and have approval to extend the offers until the beginning of February. It will be a long, hard wait for me. I like to have answers YESTERDAY. I was not blessed with the gift of patience. Until then, we will focus on our teaching and the new semester and our family.

We've purchased new bedroom furniture for ourselves, and that will arrive this month. We're also getting our master bedroom painted (a very, very light aqua), and purchased new bedding. I've gone for the "spa" feel, so hopefully that will also motivate me to get the oldest child OUT of our SPA bed! It also won't hurt for showing the house to prospective buyers.

All that should keep us busy. I'm working on getting my vita updated so we can potentially try to land me some teaching in the department as well, should Michael get an offer that he can't pass up.

Rest assured, it would take a fabulous offer to get us to leave all we have here. We are pretty certain the offer would have to involve promotion to Associate Professor (which there is a good chance of), promise of tenure in a year (which there is a slight chance of), and a nice bump in salary (who the heck knows the chances of that one). It really needs to be a "dream offer".

So, what do we think we want at this moment? We want an offer that is all of the above. So, if you are the praying type, we'd love for you to pray with us this week and this month. If God wants us to roll with the tide, then pray we follow His will! If we are to stay, pray we know for sure we need to be here. We are grateful to be in this position, especially when so many others are suffering without jobs of any kind. We are excited that God might be telling us it is time to move on to the next great adventure! You know, I had no clue as to why I/we was/were supposed to move to Lexington, KY - but I have two beautiful reasons that are now crystal clear.

I'm so proud of Michael. And in my previous marriage I was never proud of my husband. What a difference it is to have someone to be proud of. Such a cool feeling.

His BIG interview day is Friday. Relaxed day Thurs. getting shown around and "wined and dined", BIG interview day and his research presentation on Friday, and he returns Sat. morning. So BIG prayers needed Friday!

Conversation with Cookie

In the bathroom, water is warming up in the tub before she gets in...

C: "I don't like my vagina", she says, sitting on the rug and giving it a close inspection.

Me: "Oh, you have a very nice vagina. I like it. I have one too, and I like mine." (I attempt to be very vagina-positive, lest she grow up thinking its anything short of wonderful.)

C: "But I have a little bitty vagina. When I grow up I'm gonna have a GREAT BIG VAGINA." (shouted while throwing her arms up in the air)

Me: (trying not to pee myself) "Oh sweetie, how about a nice medium-sized vagina?"