A wonderful day for James

My sweet husband went back to school when Abigail was a tiny infant to get his nursing degree. Though he had a successful job as a pharmacy sales rep, and also had earned a 4 year degree at Southeastern, he never felt he'd found the right fit for him. Nursing was something he'd wanted to do for years, but we kept finding reasons to NOT do it. Our pastor was instrumental in encouraging him to pursue this dream, in spite of the sacrifice it would be in some ways, to find a way to use his God-given passions and abilities the best way possible. Looking back, I sometimes wonder how we survived that year and a half. It was hard, tiring, financially insane - but we did through God's grace and because many people prayed for us and stood behind us when at times it seemed impossible to continue.

Today, I'm so proud that James was willing to risk a lot of comfort and sacrifice so much to finish that degree, because it has been well worth it. He is an amazing nurse, and with the 14 years of paramedic experience he has as well, is an asset to the different environments he gets to work in, beyond the NICU. He's on orientation now with Children's Hospital's Critical Care Transport Team, and will hopefully someday be able to move into a slot there once it's available. For now, he still works full-time in the Neonatal Intensive Care, and just works occasionally for the CCT. This past Friday he worked and was able to go on the very first call on the new helicopter that just arrived. This was a HUGE deal to him, since the helicopter transports are what he really has longed to do for ages. Then, once they returned, they got another call, so he went on it too. It was so great for him, and brought tears to my eyes to hear his joyful voice when he called to tell me he was about to take off. When I told Isaac and Abigail that Daddy was flying on a new helicopter, they broke into cheers and shouts of joy, and did an impromptu dance. They kept saying all afternoon, "I bet Daddy is SO excited!" They got what a big deal this was. God is good, to grant us opportunities like this, and we had to share it with you. I'm so happy for you, precious husband!!

These photos were taken by him as the helicopter arrived at the hospital helipad before he went on the 2 calls.