Ever since we started out on this job finding journey there has always been a few key players.
Dr Coplin in Montana, Dr Quintana in Albuquerque, and a company called comfort dental.
Justin felt it was important to take a trip down to New Mexico to explore the opportunity
with Dr. Quintana.
We have known all along that once he goes down there he will be left with only one week to decide weather or not he will take the job.
This is not long at all, and had us operating under pressure!
Dr. Quintana has played a large role in the directing our course.
From the very first time Justin spoke with him on the phone they had a great connection.
Dr. Quintana and his wife are both so very kind, and concerned about the well being of both their family and ours.
Justin visited them in New Mexico for his first interview, and felt excited,
but not confidant making the decision on his own.
He didn't feel he could make the decision until I had been there to see the area
and everything it entailed.
I appreciated him for being so thoughtful of me!
Although I trusted him to make the choice and supported him no matter what he decided,
he still felt strongly that he wanted me to be there.
You don't have to talk me into taking a trip alone with my sweetie!
Before we knew it we were high above the sky on our way to New Mexico.
I have enjoyed the opportunities that have come our way to see the different states here in the west.
It has felt like a privilege and honor every time we have had the chance to visit somewhere new.
The experiences have not come to us easily.
They have come after long hours of searching and dedication
and at a great expense of our stress and prayers.
Each time we have gone with full intent in our hearts to embrace the area, job, and do our very best to picture and place our family there.
My heart has gotten attached to each place, in hopes that it could be the right place for our family.
(Oakland CA was beautiful in the morning..)
We arrived in ABQ early in the afternoon.
My first impression of Albuquerque was that it was exactly as I expected in to be,
which was a good thing.
It wasn't disappointing at all, and only left us feeling comfortable with our surroundings.
The city is a lot like Salt Lake Valley, with a mix of a south western feel.
We could definitely see the appeal, and see why so many young professionals are drawn to the area.
First stop was lunch. I had to wear my sunglasses indoors, it was so bright!
You have just got to love the desert sun.
In our time in Albuquerque we visited schools, communities, and searched for homes.
Through my own research we already knew where we would be living, where our kids would go to school and church, etc...
Everything hinged upon the 'feeling' that this was the right place for our family
and the right job for Justin.
During our search I couldn't help but laugh at some of the new, different, and unique things that stood out to me about desert living...
One of which was the tumble weed pile ups.
I could hardly believe the sight of all the tumble weeds piled against the fences with no where to go, towering over our car, and almost over the fences holding them in.
Why am I so weird? I don't know, but seriously, the sight...! I just had to get pictures.
Next, was the backyard friends.
Jack rabbits.
How about bunnies just jumping around in your backyard like it's nothing?
... how about bouncing down the streets and alley ways?
They were everywhere. And adorable.
I grew up having rabbits, so the bunnies about sold the place. ;)
Our first night in town we met up with the Quintana's for dinner.
I was thrilled to meet them in person, and could see immediately why and how Justin could fall in love with them in seconds.
The Quintana's are just fantastic, good people. Hard working, and devoted to excelling.
We shared our stories with one another, our goals and our visions for the future. We enjoyed the company thoroughly.
I was so anxious to meet the Dr. and his wife, because I knew it would give me the feeling we were hoping for, and I truly believed I would know what to do after meeting them.
Just like the pieces to a puzzle, we needed the job as well as the area to come together.
Please understand, we were in no way looking for the perfect situation.
But, we were looking for enough of a positive feeling that could propel us forward, as well as enough that made sense to relocate our family and raise our children in a new place.
At dinner, I knew right away that Albuquerque was a NO.
I can't even tell you the real reason why, but it was clearly a no.
After dinner, Justin asked me what I had thought, and I told him I knew within the first ten minutes that this was not for our family.
It was a very very clear answer between the feeling in my heart and in my mind.
He agreed, yet we struggled because we didn't really have a good reason 'why...'
that just made us feel badly, because who wouldn't want this great position?
And, who wouldn't want to come and work for these great people??
We needed a job, and had the opportunity to take one, so it didn't make a lot of sense to turn it down. We had put so much of our efforts into making this work, that is felt terrible to turn back and start over.
The Quintana's graciously gave us a few days to think over our decision.
In that amount of time we did the deepest searching we knew how.
We spent the next day at the temple, pondering and praying for guidance and answers.
At the temple we split up.
I gave Justin time to sit and sift through his own thoughts,
while I took a minute to walk around by myself as well.
As I walked, I looked over the beautiful view of the valley,
and felt that glorious warm sunshine on my face.
And of course I cried.
So many tears of pleading and faith.
I prayed with all my might that my prayers would reach heaven, and that Heavenly Father would hear me and my desires to find the right place for my family.
I prayed for Justin that he would be counseled by the spirit for the guidance he needs to lead our family on the right path.
I searched my soul for the spirit of truth, wanting it so badly to bare witness to my heart of where we should go and what we should do.
I didn't receive the burning I was longing for, but instead my mind felt clear and I remembered promptings that had come to me many times before.
~Let him lead~
~Focus on your goals~
My heart stirred and I knew I needed to keep my eye single to His miraculous glory.
It had been made so clear to me as I was able to encounter so many different communities in His great land.
God's hands are in our lives.
I returned to Justin on the temple grounds,
and together we discussed the feelings in our hearts and minds.
We came to the temple that day confused and concerned about where to go.
We left with clarity, focus, and direction.
In his time pondering, as well as mine, we realized the job ultimately did not provide our family the stability we were looking for.
We felt it would be a good starting place, but didn't give us a potential for long term growth, and felt that in just a few years we would be right back in this position wondering where to go from here.
Our children have been on the fore front of our minds as we have considered our relocation.
We could picture ourselves in Albuquerque, but had a hard time picturing our children.
We left that day with the answer we needed to move forward into the unknown.
The future had nothing (yet) in store,
but we were on the same page and ready to keep searching for what felt right.
That night we met with the Quintana's once again, and told them the decision we had made.
They received the disappointing news with great understanding and support.
They praised Justin for his courage to continue looking.
We had a wonderful night that night visiting, and enjoying one another's company.
Dr. Quintana offered his advice,
and we left that night feeling so very grateful to have known one another.
We made promises to stay in contact with one another.
We don't know why we needed to go down this road, but hope one day it will all come together.
We walked along the Rio Grande before heading home that night.
Feeling the spirit burning in our hearts that we had made the right choice.
Sometimes, however, it's not easy to choose the right, because now we faced the heaviness of having no where to go, running out of time and money.
The feeling felt lonely, and scary.
My shoulders were heavy, but my faith still strong.
We decided together that Justin would look into Comfort Dental right away; the opportunity being in Colorado.
Helene can attest to my many tearful melt downs,
as in the days to come I would call her and plead for advice. S
he was, as always, full of wisdom and understanding, and helped me stay grateful through my trials. Justin planed to visit Denver for a mandatory meeting, and life continued on from interview to interview while we held our breath.
We returned home.
We gave Albuquerque two thumbs down.
Denver came and went, without anything promising.
At this point we had looked at jobs in Maine, Virginia, Idaho, California, Utah, Montana, New Mexico, Colorado and Oklahoma.
Each time stringing along high hopes and deepest desires for the future...
I was started to get to the point where I couldn't handle the emotional stress very well anymore.
One day, nearing the end of my rope, Justin called me from work.
He had received an e-mail from his director about a position in Idaho that sounded interesting.
His first words to me were, "Have you ever heard of Coeur d'Alene, Idaho?
I wanted to burst into tears as my heart silently poured out......
"We've found it!"
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