We're Moving to Saudi Arabia

I guess I haven't announced it here on the blog, but I think everyone already knows. We're Moving to Saudi Arabia!! We're excited about the new adventure and have been connecting with people who live there. I have yet to talk to a single person that didn't love it. Of course a few of them warned me that if you can't adapt to change and accept differences and the challenges of expat living then frankly it may not be for you. In the end they figured if I could handle not having Wal-Mart or Target here in Singapore and know the glories of hearing "no stock" at the grocery store and reworking my entire week menu because they were out of broccoli, sour cream, flour, marshmallows and green peppers all on different days when I went to pick up things at the shops then I could more or less hack it there.

So we accepted the assignment about 2 months ago and commenced the waiting game. Now that the move is within 4 weeks they should be making plans soon. That is SHOULD. Not WILL BE. Just SHOULD BE making plans soon. Our lives have been in flux for weeks. The soccer term finishes - do I enroll in the next one or is it a waste of money? Will I have time to take the kid to soccer when I really should be spending my time preparing to move? Will the kid be in my way if I don't have things for them to do? Will he be better to slow life down and be family centered in the last few months to make them feel secure and safe? Or should we carry on as normal to keep them active and engaged in life and help them feel safe and secure in the routine they have been existing in for 3 years? It's so hard to know. And each kid is different. Completely different.

It's even harder to help the kids know what to expect when we don't have any answers.

Our moving plans seem to change by the day. Here is how our last week has gone:

Thursday – Brian leaves mid-Jan for Saudi Arabia, we follow 70 days later meaning probably end of March

Friday – Good news. HR says there is NO possible way to get visas cleared that fast. Brian has a business trip mid-Jan then officially moves mid-Feb to mid-March, we follow 70 days later probably in May.

Sunday – (he’s working weekends for start-up at the plant) Bad news. There is a big project and the submitted a big batch of 30 or 100 or something “no name” visas to assign as they got people. They are all approved and they decided to give one of those to him. His visa is ready NOW and he leaves mid-Jan for good. We follow mid-March

Friday (today) – Visa is now unsure again if he has it or not. Business trip planned for Jan 11-26, home 27-31, moves permanently Feb 1 but that visa is also not cleared yet. We follow mid-March BUT there is no house for us so there is nowhere to live. We need to wait until another family leaves the house so there is space therefore we move in June and finish school here without Brian.

Brian and I went Christmas shopping today and I asked him to buy me a Magic 8 Ball I saw at Toys R Us to help me make decisions. I think it may be more reliable than the HR plan has been thus far. Gotta love corporate moves.