I don't remember the exact date, but it was probably about a year ago. I was sitting in my usual spot in our house...at my computer in the office...working. Harry came home from work and jokingly said that someone asked him if he would ever consider working overseas. I caught him totally off guard when I showed sincere interest in the idea. He said that he knew there would be projects coming up in Brazil and in Saudi Arabia. I told him that I'd go to Brazil in a heartbeat, but there was NO WAY I was going to Saudi! He laughed and said, "I wasn't expecting you to want to do this, but okay...I'll get more information about it tomorrow." And just like that, the next chapter in our lives began.
Somewhere along the way my attitude towards Saudi Arabia changed. I have done a lot of research and have read other people's blogs about expat life in the Kingdom. After educating myself, I felt much more open to the idea of packing up our family and moving to the Middle East. After many conversations and even more praying, Harry and I decided that he would go for it. Several months passed and we joked that talking about him getting the job was like talking about winning the lottery - we REALLY wished it would happen and we discussed what life would be like if it would happen, but we didn't actually think it would happen. We felt this way because this opportunity is life-changing for us (besides that fact that we are moving to another country). Finally, it was time for him to throw his name into the hat for Saudi. He had a meeting with his potential new boss a few days later. At his meeting, he found out that there were 14 applicants and 7 spots. The projected date to start on the project is sometime in July of next year and his contract would be anywhere from 2 to 3 years. He was told that he'd hear something within the next three weeks. We thought, "OMG, this could really happen for us!" The following weeks were extremely long to say the least. Harry checked his email over and over and over again. It was October 25th and exactly three weeks had passed since his meeting. He was working nights so when he got to work and called to say he didn't have an email I lost hope. I thought there was no way he was going to get selected. About an hour later he called back. My heart started pounding when I saw the number because I knew that he had gotten an answer. He had been offered the job and we were so excited! Then reality hit...we are really doing this!! We are moving to Saudi Arabia!
I must say how extremely proud I am of my husband. He works so hard to provide for his family. This is an amazing career opportunity for him and I will get to focus all my energy on my family. We plan to do lots of traveling and experience things we used to only dream about. We are absolutely blessed beyond measure. Even though I know that we will go through hard times during this journey, I am certain that our marriage and family will be stronger because of it. I am so excited about sharing this next chapter with the two most important people in my life :)
