Job & Smiles

Thought today I'd give just a little bit of an update on the job situation and share a new pic of Zac for all to enjoy. Note that in this picture, he is actually smiling! Yes, Zac began smiling in reaction to things Katy and I have been trying just within the past few days. We're happy to finally get some type of recognition out of him beyond just paying attention to things. He's just started staring at objects, too, and getting slightly entranced by them.

On the job front, against our true wishes, we have begun looking into the possibility of relocating so I can find a job. I've put my resume out on some different job boards that are further away for consideration. The areas we are willing to consider are Tulsa, Des Moines, the areas around Kansas City (within about two hours or so) and smaller cities in Nebraska. Essentially, if it's outside of Nebraska, it has to be within three hours of Kansas City, where Claire is, because that's about how far away we are right now. If it's still in Nebraska, which is where we want to stay, then we can consider moving a bit further away and when we pick Claire up, we'll just have to cover the extra distance we moved.

I've received interest so far from a publishing company in Missouri, about two hours east of Kansas City, and hope to hear back from them for a more formal interview by the end of this week. I've also heard from a recruiter for a hospital up in Norfolk, which is about 100 miles or so north-northwest of Omaha. I haven't heard back for a phone interview yet, though they said I should by the end of last week. Additionally, I've now applied for positions in the Tulsa/Bartlesville area of Oklahoma as well as over in Des Moines. We would also consider Topeka, KS, but I haven't searched there just yet. I continue to apply for between 3 and 6 positions weekly. Again, the most frustrating part of the process is not hearing back from 95% of the companies, even when they aren't considering me. After seven months without a job, it does play on your confidence a bit, so I'm just trying to remain positive about any opportunities that come and not get overly worked up worrying about things I cannot control. It is, after all, in God's capable hands.