What's Happening Now?

Perhaps you thought we might have disappeared, but I was waiting until a few more things were final before I updated so that I didn't have to do it numerous times. Today Brian officially accepted the offer from MTU, so now we wait again. He has to go through an extensive background check and physical before he can begin employment. We're not really sure how long this will all take, so we don't have a definite start date yet. I'll let you know when we do.

Here's what we do know:

• Brian's sister, Jamie, is coming home from Mexico for a week and we are going next Saturday to pick her up from the Detroit airport. On the way, we are turning in paperwork for an apartment in the Novi/Wixom area.
• Brian only has a few more weeks of school and will be graduated on May 10. We are going to Ferris for an open house at the church since he won't be walking in graduation.
• I finish my online class this week and start another one on May 5.
• May 21 will be my last day at the dollar store.
• Memorial Day weekend we are going to North Manitou Island to go camping with Nick and Kelly.
• After camping, we will be packing and moving by May 31 when we have to be out of our apartment in Grandville.

So that's what we know at this point. We'll keep you updated on how things progress and when we know an actual start date for Brian. Pray it all goes quickly.

Birthdays

Sunday was the birthday party for Brian's mom, Judy, and Brian's brother, Joe. We went to Joe and Kristin's house for dinner which was really yummy. Afterward, we played with the girls awhile until they took naps. Here's some pictures from the afternoon.

Here's Joe playing with Ashleight and Erika. I think Moo is in the stroller.

Here's Erika. A girl after my own heart - reading books.

Here's Ashleigh with her newest toy. She loves Uncle Brian pushing her around.

Here's birthday girl grandma playing with Ashleigh.

Aleah likes to push drool infested toys in Uncle Brian's face. :)

Goodbye Arizona! Hello Detroit!

If you have seen either Brian or I in the last two days, perhaps you know the latest news, but most likely you don't. God has changed our plans for the future once again.

A couple weeks ago, Brian received a call from MTU Detroit Diesel because they wanted to interview him for a job. Because he hadn't signed the contract with Cummins yet, he took them up on the offer because he would rather do that job and wanted to give it a chance. Last Monday he had an interview with them, and on Friday they verbally offered him a job and he accepted it.
What does this mean for our immediate future?
We will not be going to Arizona anymore. There is no formal training with the MTU job, so we will be able to move directly to the Detroit area. This will hopefully happen by May 19.

What is this new job?
Brian will be an Application Engineer. From what I understand, he will make engines and generators work together to perform for a customer. You can ask him more if you're really interested. There will be a bit of traveling involved with this job. Brian will need to go to Germany for some factory training this summer and to visit customers when he is doing a job for them. How much traveling this is, we're not quite sure yet.

What will Beth do while Brian is traveling?
I will be taking an online class this summer toward my master's. Hopefully I can go to Germany with him at least once. If he will be gone for longer periods, I may come back to GR to stay with my parents so I'm not bored. We are also thinking about getting a guinea pig to keep me company. :)

Why MTU and not Cummins?
This is not a service job, but more of an engineer job which Brian is more interested in. There are more opportunities to advance in the company. It will look better on a resume should he decide to change jobs in the future. It provides more financial stability for the near future because we don't have to go to Arizona. It provides more financial stability for the not so near future because it pays more.

Where will we live?
We are looking at an apartment we found a few weeks ago on the border of Wixom and Novi, MI. It is a two-bedroom apartment with a washer/dryer in a nice area. I will drive about 30 minutes to school and Brian will drive about 20 minutes to work.

Well, I think that's it for now. I'll keep updating this as things progress and become more official. I'll post some pictures of our birthday party today too. :) Happy 50th Judy and 30th Joe!

Kindergarten again...

So I received a phone call at 7:10 this morning. It was my mom. They were desperate for a kindergarten sub. I said I'd be there by 8:00 am.

A little crazy. I haven't been in a classroom since last April when I student taught. I have never been in a kindergarten classroom, let alone be in charge. It was a little scary going into it, but it went all right. Kindergarteners have a lot of energy and can be just as devious as older students.

This experience has told me one thing. It is a good thing I've been working at the dollar store for the past 11 months and not subbing. I think I would go insane if I had to step into a new classroom with new students everyday. Not something I'm very comfortable doing at all. God has certainly blessed me with the job at the dollar store even though it hasn't always been my favorite. He has a funny way of working.