Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Exciting News! (Erin) (Archive)

It's official today! Gerrit and I are moving to Houston next year! He officially accepted the job this morning.

Gerrit went to Houston at the beginning of this month for interviews at Exxon, and came back so excited about the job possibility. He heard back with an offer within a few days and we pretty much knew that we would take it. It's a great offer with great benefits (they really take care of you), and Gerrit is so excited about what kind of work he would be doing (computer stuff that I couldn't explain haha). But even though we felt really sure about this we decided to wait to make it official because he had another interview with another company later in the month.

But now he has accepted the job and we are so excited and I am so proud of him! It's quite scary still, and there are lots of details to be ironed out, but we know it will be a fun adventure. We of course have been doing lots of research, and I have ordered some books about Houston.

Sometime in May probably we are going to be going to Houston to look for somewhere to live. Exxon is wonderful in that they are going to help us out with all of that. I'm excited to go and see the new city we will be living in!

Sunday, November 1, 2009

Weekending With Erin's Family (Gerrit) (Archive)

This weekend has been a wonderful time to hang out with Erin and her family. I came down on Friday evening and helped Erin get her trailer clean for company, then her parents arrived and we had a nice time just hanging out, visiting, and catching up. We talked about the possibility of Houston and I described what this coming Thursday and Friday have in store for me on my site tour.

On Saturday, we got up pretty early to head to the Auburn v. Ole Miss game (which kicked off at the odd time of 11:21am). Erin and I had to be there early to get good seats in the student section. We met up with one of Erin's friends and her boyfriend before the game at a tailgate, then we headed into the stadium. Due to the threat of rain and the early kickoff, we didn't expect to struggle to find seats. I was surprised at how many people were there already, but we got great seats to the game! We were four rows up in the corner of the end zone (here's the link to a pic -> http://twitpic.com/noojc) and actually made it on TV (here's the link to two pics my dad took off his TV -> http://twitpic.com/nvop0 and http://twitpic.com/nvoim). It was a really fun game... and it was good to watch Auburn have some success on offense. There were some HUGE hits laid out yesterday... it was a very exciting game to watch.

After the game was over we headed back to Erin's trailer to get ready for the big fiesta. Family, friends, and significant others all piled into her living room for feasting (no seriously... there was so much food), chatting, and more football! I was really pleased that the Mississippi State game was on TV... and I really enjoyed getting to watch us play a great game too :) We beat Kentucky 31 - 24, making my day a perfect three for three. 1. getting to watch auburn win 2. getting to watch Ole Miss lose 3. getting to watch State win.

That deserves a big smiley :D

Now we're gearing up to head to lunch with Erin's family and grandparents... and are hoping that all parties remembered the time changed last night...

Saturday, October 24, 2009

A Lone Star on the Horizon? (Gerrit) (Archive)

I haven't posted about this situation that's been brewing because: a) I didn't want to jinx it... and b) I was worried that I'd get your hopes up (and in the meantime over-inflate my own)

Anyway, now is a good time to give you a very important update on a big decision that Erin and I have been thinking and praying a lot on recently...

Around three weeks ago I went to an information session for ExxonMobil and really was impressed by what they had to say. The jobs they described that they were recruiting for in their Information Systems department sounded excellent, and the benefits even better! Only one problem... a job with Exxon would require a move to Houston.

A few days later, they invited me out to dinner with some of the other recruits they had decided to interview. The dinner brought even more enticing information to light, and I got to sit down and talk with a lady who works in their information systems department. She told me her favorite thing about working for Exxon was that they rotate you through positions around every two years. They do this to keep their employees fresh, innovative, and to constantly look for the managerial talent. A great part of this is that often, you get to sit down with your supervisor and pick your next assignment.

Very excited, I went to my interview the next day. I was relieved when the lady I had talked to at the dinner turned out to be my interviewer! Already being comfortable around her made the interview much easier. The interview went well,and she told me that I should hear back in the next few weeks.

Just over a week and a half later (now we're up to this past Monday) I got a phone call from a woman in the ExxonMobil HR department. She informed me that I had made the cut and asked if I would be available to fly out on November 5th and 6th to Houston for a site visit and a series of additional interviews. She told me that I wouldn't be competing for a position with the other recruits, that there were plenty of positions, but gave the impression that the interviews would be more designed to determine placement within the company.

After a quick call with Travel to set up my itinerary, I was all set to fly out of Birmingham on November 5!

Erin and I are VERY excited/nervous/scared/pumped/uncertain/anxious about this possible move to Houston. Even though it would be very very hard to be away from "home" and from so much of our families, it would be a fun adventure.

Please pray for us as we work towards making this big decision, that Erin would be able to find a good job there too, and that we'd be able to find the perfect place to live (if this is what we decide).

Nothing is set in stone yet (I don't actually have an offer... and won't hear official until the beginning of December), but Erin and I are doing a lot of research.

Your prayers are appreciated!

Sunday, October 11, 2009

Engagement Photos (Gerrit) (Archive)

So we have our engagement photos back and they are wonderful!

For those of you who would like to see them, here is a preview.

You can also go check out more on our photos page, or go to Simply Bloom's blog (simplybloomphotography.com/blog).





Wednesday, September 16, 2009

An Update... (Erin) (Archive)

Oh my goodness! It was been over a month since we have written anything and I am quite sorry for anyone who has been waiting for an update...

Gerrit and I have both been incredibly busy with the start of a new semester. My schedule is a bit less intense than his. He is taking 21 hours which is insane and hopefully he will survive. So far he's doing a really good job though. I, on the other hand, am taking less hours than I have ever taken before, but, being the student that I am, I have been able to find plenty of ways to stay busy.

Football season is also underway (yay!). This past weekend Gerrit came to Auburn to visit for the Auburn vs. Mississippi State game. Unfortunately (for him) Auburn won by a lot. Really I didn't want us to win that much. I really was rooting for Mississippi State at the end because I didn't want him to be so disappointed in his team. I'm sure my family is appalled by this fact. ;)

After the game Saturday things got worse though. I had a fever. I'm so glad Gerrit was in town to take care of me and I felt much better on Monday. I relapsed yesterday though and went to the doctor today (which is not very helpful and only necessary because I am missing class and need an excuse). So I'm at home resting today and trying to get better because I hate missing class. Hopefully Gerrit won't get sick later this week though!

In other news: we got our engagement pictures back! Hopefully soon we will have some blog images for everyone to see!