Hurry Up and Wait!

Well... I haven't blogged lately because there isn't really a whole lot going on right now.  It seems like things go in spurts and we will be really busy for a while and then things kind of die down.  I guess that's what they meant when they said this will be a "Hurry Up and Wait" process.

We sent the second packet back almost two weeks ago.  It mostly contained financial information and some info for work visas.  The first week of May Josh and I will be traveling down to Houston to do some more medical testing and we will do an orientation with the company.  We are looking forward to getting away!!!

In the meantime we have been doing a lot of moving preparation type stuff.  We have sold a lot of things that we won't be taking with us.  Two mattresses, the snowmobile, a desk, an armoire, couches... Stuff like that.  It's nice to get rid of things but it's also sad to see things like the snowmobile go. :(  We have also been getting the house ready to sell. We have done a lot of deep cleaning and some painting etc.  Down in the unfinished part of the basement there is a big corner full of "garage sale" stuff.  It's amazing how much junk we have, but hey, one man's junk is another man's treasure!  We also have a lot of things that will be going into storage.

Josh is getting kind of trunky at work and we are all getting so tired of all the SNOW!  It's the end of March and it looks like it could be January out there.  We are getting really excited to move and to experience so many new things!  It seems like it is so far away but also it seems like time just keeps on going so fast!!!   We have a lot to do in such a short amount of time but it is really hard to know what we need to be doing right now. :)

More fun stuff!

 Friday afternoon we got another package from Aramco.  MORE PAPERWORK!  This one has some financial paperwork and some stuff that we need to do to get work visas.  We also got some information about who our relocation advisor is.  We are hoping to hear more from him really soon.  Also included was a book (it was actually smaller than we anticipated) called the relocation guide.  We have both been skimming through that while trying not to get too overwhelmed.  There is A LOT of information about what we can take with us and what things we will need to either get rid of or store here.  It's very detailed and some things are quite confusing.  It's all part of the adventure though (or so I  have been told) so we are trying to enjoy this even though it's a little stressful.

                                                
                                                         This is the relocation guide...our moving bible.

On Saturday our passports came!   The mail lady saw me pulling out of the driveway and flagged me down so I could sign for them.  She said we have been a hot topic of conversation...LOL.  It seems that most everyone knows now about our move and everyone wants to talk about it.  I can't really go anywhere without getting stopped by several people who have questions about it.  Most people say something like, "I heard a rumor about you, is it true?'  One person that Josh was talking to said, "You're moving there on purpose?"  Josh and I both got a good laugh out of that.  A lot of people have been asking if I am scared to move to the Middle East.  I am not scared at all to LIVE there.  The process of moving overseas is what is more overwhelming to me than the idea of living there.  Maybe once we are there I will feel scared but right now I am more worried about actually being able to get there.  

At church today one of my neighbors (who had just learned about our move today) came up and gave me a hug and told me she was going to miss me.  Another lady told me that her daughter is so sad that her best friend (Levi) is going to move and won't be in her first grade class.  These kind of conversations remind me of how hard it will be to leave Star Valley, where we are so comfortable and have so many great friends.  For the most part though we are just really excited and so happy and grateful that we have this opportunity.

The Contract!

Last Monday (the 18th) we got an email with an attached copy of our contract.  The email came while we were driving home from Utah for a long vacation.  SO EXCITING!  The next day FedEx dropped off the official copy.  Also included was A LOT of paperwork.  The packet needed to returned within 7 days so we got to work really quick.  They needed school records, a copy of our marriage license, passport info (we hadn't even started working on those yet.  We got those taken care of and they should arrive at the beginning of next week), background checks, immunization records, and a few other things.  

We have heard that we should probably be contacted by our relocation advisor this week or maybe the beginning of next week.  We are really excited about that!  We also know that we will soon be getting our relocation manual which is actually a very thick book.   So much still seems to be up in the air but at least we are making progress.

 

The picture I took to send to Josh right after the contract was delivered.

                                                    

Looking it over. :)

This was after we had everything filled out.  He was getting it all put together so we could send it back.

Timeline

Our original conversation about moving to Saudi happened in October of 2011.  At that time Josh emailed the company and we were told that they don't normally hire families with more than 2 or 3 kids. We were disappointed but just kind of put it out of our heads.

In the spring of 2012 we found out that Kelly and Geniel (Kelly was Josh's principal/boss for several years) were moving back over to KSA.  In passing Josh told Kelly that we were still interested in going so if he knew of anyway to get us over there with our large family size to let us know.  I still kind of giggle when people think a family with 4 kids is large.  It seems like a small family to me!  We didn't really think a whole lot more about Saudi Arabia until...

October 10, 2012- Out of the blue Josh got an email from Kelly telling us that the superintendent could make exceptions for a family with 4 kids if we were still interested.  We thought about it for about 2 minutes and decided to email Kelly back for more info.  We talked to Kelly several times over the next couple of weeks trying to get all the info we could.  I also spent a lot of time online researching the company and what it was like living there.

November 3- Josh emailed his resume to the superintendent and principal.  We got a quick reply from the superintendent telling us basically to sit tight and we would hear more soon.

November 15- After hearing that the Abqaiq school had a high demand for early childhood teachers we  emailed them and told them I would be willing to get certified.  This was probably what really got them interested in us.  Josh had a great resume and recommendation but they just didn't need a 5th grade teacher as much as they needed preschool teachers.

November 18- We got an email from David (the principal at Abqaiq school) asking us if we were available for a Skype interview in the next week or so.

November 24- First Skype interview.  We were down in Salt Lake for Thanksgiving so we did that at my inlaws house.

December 5- 2nd interview.  This time over the phone.

December 16- David emailed asking Josh some more interview type questions and asked if I would be willing to get a substitute permit and possibly work as a substitute teacher if needed.

January 4, 2013- Josh and I are getting anxious because we haven't heard from anyone for a while.  We emailed David and he told us he wanted to have all the hiring done by then end of January.

January 14- We FINALLY got an email from the superintendent asking us if we could do a Skype interview.

January 15- Skype with Tim the superintendent

January 20- Skype with Chris the business manager.  This was SO FUN! :)

January 23- We wake up to an email from David asking us for times that we could Skype.  Lucky for us we signed onto Skype right then and David popped on and offered us the job.

Now its been two weeks of waiting for the contract to arrive.  The waiting is a KILLER!!!  Maybe today will be the day!

A little more...

To answer a few more questions...

Will you be able to run?  Yes...lol.  I can run on outside on the compound when its cool enough (quite the opposite from here).   We will also take our treadmill and there is a gym in Abqaiq as well.  I plan on doing a lot of running. :) (That question obviously came from one of my running friends)

How will you get all of your stuff there?  We will take some luggage with us on the airplane.  We will also have one air shipment.  From what I understand it will be about a 3'x3' box.  It will arrive a few weeks after we do.  The rest of our things will go on a boat.  It will take 3-4 months for them to get to us.  This will be all of our beds and furniture.  Until our of our things are there we will use stuff that is owned by the company.  It was described to us as "1970's Holiday Inn furniture."  Can't say I am super excited about that but I think it will be part of the experience.

Is food available there?  From what I have read we will be able to get everything we need at the commissary in Abqaiq.  There is a mall in Khobar and I have heard that there are a lot of restaurants and different stores.  I know for sure that there is a Fudruckers, a Pottery Barn, and an IKEA.


That's all for now.  I am working on a timeline so you can see the steps we have taken during this process. Hopefully I can post that tomorrow.  We woke up this morning to an email from the principal. He gave us contact info for about 5 other new hires.  I am going to email the other wives tonight and try to get to know them.  We also got a call from our friends who are there now.  Its was fun to talk to them and she texted me some really fun pictures.  We are definitely in for a big change!

It is really happening!

Long story very short (Long version coming soon)

In October of 2011 Josh had a conversation with his former principal, Kelly, regarding the time Kelly and his family had spent living in Saudi Arabia.  Not sure why, but Josh and I decided it would be a fun adventure.  Now, almost a year and a half later, Josh has been offered a teaching job at the Abqaiq school.

We have gotten A LOT of questions so here is my quick attempt to answer a few of them:

Are you crazy?   YES!

When do you leave?  We will need to be there sometime in the middle of August.

How long will you be there?  Anywhere between one day and twenty seven years.

What are you doing with your house?  Probably selling it.  It's a beautiful house...anyone wanna buy it?

Will you have to cover your head?  No.  When I am on the compound I will dress the same as I do now (although not in quite so many layers).  When we go into the Kingdom I will wear an abaya (long black dress) over my clothes.

And for my favorite Llewellyn cousins...  Will you miss the 24th of July?  We get to come home every July!!!

Lots more details coming soon!