It's Official

As of Monday Oct. 19 I am officially a stay-at-home mom. I have been on maternity leave for the last few months waiting to see if Jake found a job (his job ended at the end of June because of the economy). Over the past few months Jake, his brother, and his dad have decided to start a law firm together. We are hoping it continues to be successful. So I called my boss on Monday and let him know that I wouldn't be coming back. I was a little nervous and sad before I called him knowing that I would be unemployed for the first time in 5 years and that my career was about to officially end. It ended up being a lot easier to tell him I was leaving than I had anticipated. When I hung up the phone I felt so relieved and happy. I think I realized at that moment that I was finally going to have the "job" I have been dreaming of for years.

Me with my co-worker Melissa on my last day of work.

This morning while I was walking with Hannah I found myself a little nostalgic thinking about all of the lessons I have learned from the people I was able to work with as a speech therapist over the past 5 years. I decided that I needed to write some of them down so I wouldn't forget them, so bear with me.
There were many people who taught me to be grateful for the little things:

* The lady who was so excited to be able to eat again after 2 months and went on and on about the canned peaches I gave her. I never realized eating canned peaches could be so exciting. (speech therapists work with people on their speech as well as on swallowing and eating).
*I was with a family as they heard their teenage son talk again after 3 months following an accident and watched them shed tears of joy.
*The man who was very active and in the military and now is too weak to eat or move his limbs who always was concerned about me and asked me each day (especially when I was pregnant) how I was doing.
*The woman who had to go to an assisted living center instead of home following a brain injury who told me she had watched a presentation about the people in Africa who don't even have homes and how when she thought of them she decided assisted living wasn't so bad. This is the same day I had been complaining to Jake about our tiny apartment without a dishwasher. I decided that day that I should be grateful that at least it isn't assisted living.
*I learned how fragile life is from the 27 year old father who was dying from brain cancer and whom I had the privilege of helping him find ways to communicate with his family up until the day he passed away.
*The little 6 year-old girl whose voice was affected by a car accident and when I asked her what she wanted for Christmas her response was to have her voice back and maybe a few "jewels" (meaning a necklace and earrings).

I am also grateful for the patients and their families who kept things entertaining:
*The little old men who told me they loved me and proposed quite frequently (this is before I was married).
*The family who persisted in trying to find someone to marry me (also before I was married) and brought their 40 year old nephew (this is when I was in my 20's) in who was a dentist to talk to me about how dentistry related to speech therapy. After he got there I figured out the real reason he was there.
*The older gentleman who when the song "I believe I can fly" came on the radio one afternoon began to sing along with the words "I believe I can die". His version actually fits better with the rest of the lyrics of the song.
*The teenage boy who flipped me off while in a coma. All I could figure was that it was such an automatic thing for him before his accident that he even did it in his sleep.
I could go on and on and of course there were definitely some bad days, such as when families were angry their loved one was not making progress and the horrible manager I had right before I quit.
All in all it is interesting to look back and see how Heavenly Father has guided my life, helped me choose a career, get through school, and find the perfect job for me. Working until almost 33 was never in my plans, but I know Heavenly Father knew more than I did and led me to the best situation for this last phase of my life . I am excited for this new phase and all of lessons and experiences I will have and have already had. I am so grateful to now have the job title of "mother" and to have the privilege of taking care of this little cutie every day.