Wow…

Wow.
Just wow…
This week turned mind-bogglingly crazy and life this year for our family now looks extremely different to what it did a few days ago when I vented all my feelings.
All I can say is that God is faithful!

What I need to tell you first is that just prior to Christmas I applied and interviewed for a job…

A full time job.
Yikes!!!

I don’t even really know how it happened at first – because I found the job advert unintentionally and in a bit of an obscure place…
I had been casually looking around for a suitable part time opportunity, but I hadn’t been looking for a full time job at all.
Then somehow, through a google search I did, I clicked directly to that job advert and it really caught my eye.

It was for a role working in the real estate industry, similar to the one I did prior to Hannah, but more in an assistant role with more defined hours (in other words better for my situation now!)
And the best bit – it was literally situated 2 minutes drive from my house & Hannah’s school!!

So after some thought I somewhat hesitantly decided to enquire and then apply.
It just sounded so interesting and like the perfect job for me!
(Perhaps with the exception of it being full time. But after a lengthy discussion together Mr Flutter & I decided that we would never know unless we tried. And I thought it would be better to be happy in a full time job than miserable in a part time one that I hated).

Then, after I applied I found out that actually I knew the wife of the agent I would be working for (and the person currently doing the job) as we had become friends about 2 years ago at a women’s bible group we both attended.
And she is an incredibly lovely person.
It just felt so right. And like “a God thing”.
But obviously we still needed to go through all the proper channels etc…

Through the whole interview process it still felt so right.
I had a connection which each of the people I came into contact with about the job and I felt like they would be a really good team of people to work with.
I also knew I was well qualified for the job, therefore feeling somewhat confident in my ability to go back into the workforce after 5 years.
There was only that faint little voice right at the back that was saying
“full time… really? Are you sure full time?”

So I waited to hear back.
waited a bit more,
And waited some more.
I’m not a patient person so the extra waiting was torture!

With each passing day of waiting I started to feel less and confident and more like I wasn’t going to get it.
Then came the phone call that was to confirm that fear,
I didn’t get the job…
It obviously just wasn’t to be.

At that point I wasn’t sure whether I was more disappointed,
surprised (at God because the role itself had felt so right!!!!)
or relieved, because the reality of going back to full time work would have been a major lifestyle adjustment for our entire family, least of all me.

It wasn’t all bad news though, because they said that they thought really highly of me, so if it was ok with me then they’d like to refer me to another agent in the company who was looking for someone part time, as they thought part time hours might suit me better.
Hmmm let me think about that for a minute – more suitable part time hours at a job that I would love…
ummm YES!
It also made me feel comfortable that they at least had still had faith in my ability for doing the job, but just saw that at the moment part time work would be better suited to me.
Because if I’m honest I was kind of feeling like if I wasn’t qualified to go back into a role like that in which I had experience in and was really good at, then what was I going to be qualified to do?!
An interview was quickly arranged for this following week for the part time role and I was back to being in with a chance of going back to work.

Then on Thursday the totally unexpected happened…
I got back from a morning swimming with the girls to a bunch of missed calls out of the blue from my friend who’s husband had initially interviewed me.
Hmmm strange?
When I called her back she explained that she had tried to visit me at home that morning but obviously I was out, and would it be ok to catch up that afternoon.
Like in about 10 minutes?
Ummmm…. ok? I was very intrigued by her desperate hurry to contact me!

Shortly after that she came to visit me at home, and, well,
Long story, but in 10 days or so since my last contact with them the other person had pulled the plug on them at the last minute, they had done a lot of thinking about things and…
She had come by to offer me the job I hadn’t got,
BUT as a job share arrangement with her so that it would be only part time, 3 days per week Mon, Wed, Fri, because she just felt that would suit me better than full time and that had been her main hesitation with me from the beginning.
Oh let me think about that – YES!
Yes, Yes, Yes, Yes.
That is exactly what I was hoping for in the first place!!!

So, as of next week I am officially a working girl.
Oh.my.goodness. Oh.my.goodness.
I am scared, and excited, and more excited,
and really I can’t wait to start this new opportunity to learn and grow as a person again outside of being a Mum.

Now that Neil is home permanently full time, I’ve been really looking for opportunities where I can have something for me outside the home.
And this is going to be very welcome as part of making that (as well as our financial goals) happen!

Then of course there’s that little niggle of Mummy guilt about leaving my children in other peoples care and not being there all the time for them.
But, I have found great care for them, and at the end of the day I know my girls…
They are independent, need to be full-on-busy girls who thrive in situations where they have large amounts of people interaction.
{Exactly like little mini me’s}
They are the kind of kids that once we arrive at playgroup or wherever, run off in their own directions doing their own stuff and don’t even really notice if I’m there or not.
So I just know that they will love and thrive in a little day care and that this new part time balance we be a perfect compromise for our family.

And that is that.
Well, there’s some more as well actually but that is all enough for today.

I have some finished projects to share over the next few days finally too. So watch this space 🙂