Day 19

I am thankful that not only do I have a secure job in health care, but I absolutely love what I do. I get to work with kids anywhere from 8 to 18 years old and help rehabilitate them from their injuries. I work in a Sports Medicine clinic, which is perfect for me if you know me :) and I get to put all those years of playing soccer to good use to help get an athlete rehabbing from an ACL tear back onto the field.

I have a good boss and fantastic co-workers... there are some girls there that I have loved getting to know over the past few years. I mean, where else can you put on your Tough Mudder head bands, climb a rock wall and goof off taking pictures?

But more than being grateful for where I work and having a job in this tough economy, I am thankful for sound advice and wisdom from my parents when choosing what to go to school for. I currently only have an Associates Degree in Health Science and I am a Licensed Physical Therapist Assistant. At one time I had dreams of finishing a bachelors degree and then going to grad school to get a Doctorate in Physical Therapy, but I also knew I wanted to get married and have kids and then one day stay home with those kids to raise them. I struggled with this decision for a while because I had always enjoyed learning, had a fascination with the medical field and had a worldly desire to have a prestigious career to "prove" that a home schooled girl was just as smart as any one else. After much prayer and time in The Word, I knew that being a wife and mother was the occupation that was more important to me because I knew it had more eternal value than money and a career. Because of this I kept my college career to a minimum and have been blessed by that decision ever since.

If I had gone on with my schooling I would just be graduating college this spring, which means I would be most likely be more than a hundred thousand dollars in debt and just starting to work and make money right around this time - which just so happens to be the time that my heart is longing for a baby. That just wouldn't have made much sense... I am certain I would've regretted that choice. Either financially, for wasting so much money on a college degree to end up staying home, or emotionally, for putting aside starting a family in order to work and make money. I am grateful that my mother had eyes for the future, and while she didn't make the decision for me, she did present the truth of what the future would most likely hold. And I am grateful for the Holy Spirit convicting me of a much higher calling than a Doctorate degree in Physical Therapy.

Because of this leading I was able to make it through 3 years of school without incurring debt, I have been working for 3 years and I have been helping to add money to our savings during that time so that when the time comes for me to stay home the initial burden might be less on my husband.

I know many people have both a career and a family, and that might work for them! But I knew that wasn't what I wanted for me and my future family. So my plan, as long as God allows, is to continue working  and save as much money as I can from my salary until God decides to grow Mark and I's family. And as much as I enjoy my job now, I cannot wait until I can start my new job!