Through the Wringer: The Finale

First off, I want to apologize for doing these segments so sporadically. The baby is due any day now and it’s been increasingly hard to do things. On with the story!

I had retaken the bar and was not so patiently for the results. Finally, April came around. It was the big day. I took the morning off. The office had planned a big lunch celebration (no pressure!). D took the day off so he could be with me when we found out. The list came up. I had my number in my hand. I was too afraid to look, but couldn’t look away. D slowly scrolled down the screen until he got to where my number should be…and it was there! I passed the bar! D and I hugged each other and started crying. The office waited about 15 minutes after they knew scores were posted to call me. This time, I had happy news to share.

I felt like things were finally going to be all right for D and I. We both had jobs. I had finally passed the bar. We were starting to settle into our town and our lives together. D had a scare at work. They let a bunch of people go. Luckily, D was not one of them. A few months later, they let D’s boss go. D is now the only one with an engineering degree left at the company (it’s a small company). Realistically, this means D finally has pretty good job security. D has been working there for almost three years now.

D and I are now expecting our first child. The baby is due on April 3rd (as I said, any day now!). We started looking at houses. We looked at a lot of houses. And then, we looked at some more houses. We finally found one that we like a lot. We had previously been given verbal pre-approval at the bank. We put in an offer. After a little negotiation, we accepted a counter-offer. We sent the purchase agreement on to the bank. Then the bottom dropped out.

Apparently, the federal standards had changed from our previous discussions with the banker. Our credit scores were now too low according to the new standard (but not the previous one). It didn’t matter that we had 10% to put down on the house. At this point, it looks like the dream of owning a house will have to wait. We have one “hail Mary pass” so to speak out there, but I’ve resigned myself to the fact that we’re not going to be able to get a house right now.

On top of all this, one of the attorneys in my office informed me that “they weren’t sure if they were keeping me yet.” So, I may have to find another job in this economy. I’m not looking forward to that. So, it may be for the best that we weren’t able to get the house. All the sea of uncertainty has been hard on D and I during the 9th month of my pregnancy.

Despite all this, I feel like we’ve been through worse. All the job losses, taking the bar twice, etc. makes me feel like D and I are prepared for whatever comes next. We have always been able to turn things around and they have always worked out for us. Every time life gives us a blow, it seems like it isn’t long before we are back on top. D and I have been through the wringer several times, but the only way to squeeze out the extra water is to do so. And it does feel nice to get rid of all the extra water weight!

I hope you enjoyed our story. It feels good to share it with all of you.

Happy Crafting!