When Adam found out he matched at Creighton Medical School (on our honeymoon), my first thought was, “Nebraska? Really?” I had never been to the state, never wanted to come to the state, and certainly didn’t want to move to the state for at least 4 years. But it wasn’t a great idea to tell your brand-new husband that you wanted a long distance marriage for the first few years.

We moved here on the hottest day of the year, and I pretty much bawled the entire drive. My sister and dad helped us move, and I pretty much bawled whenever there was a lull in conversation – they kept trying to divert me from thinking about living in Omaha. I didn’t have a job, I knew no one, and it was the first time I was living away from Fargo. Even my college, MSUM, was a 10-minute drive from my parents house.

I think I cried most of the day, every day. To say I was in a deep depression is an understatement. I couldn’t even say I lived in Omaha- it was “Omahell.”

Finally, I got a job! Not a teaching job, but a job in marketing for a small firm. I was one of 5 employees. Well… I like the opportunity, and the job itself, but absolutely hated going to work every day and the people I worked with. Adam was busy with school and was making some great friends. He finally convinced me to start going out with him (I think some of his friends thought he had a fake wife). I met some wonderful people – even if I didn’t want to admit it.

Then, I lost my job. Smack dab in the middle of the largest unemployment rate in recent history. Think I loved Omaha then? I got a part-time job at Express and met some amazing people. But working retail wasn’t exactly paying the bills. And then… our Jetta was stolen. Adam’s bike was stolen. There were 31 murders in 31 days.

But! My wonderful friend from Express, Chris, got me an interview at Lincoln Financial Group. I got the job!!! Things were starting to turn around. Most of my new co-workers were so fun, and I’m lucky to call them my friends.

In the past 2 years… Omaha has become my “Homaha.” I really like it here. Sometimes I even find myself saying I love it here. In the past 2 years Omaha has improved big time. Aksarben Village was built, Midtown Crossing was built, we got a Trader Joe’s, crime rate went down, and… we got pregnant! With twins! The overall feel of the city has changed. All of our friends agree. Most of us hated living here in the beginning, and now we are sad that we may be leaving in a few months.

We really hope that we will stay in Omaha for residency. Omaha and Kansas City are our top choices. Adam interviewed for Orthopedic residencies across the country, but after going through his Radiology rotation a few months ago, he thought, “I could rank this too. It would allow us to stay in Omaha.” He liked the rotation, and because we could stay in Omaha and be close to family and friends, he ranked the Radiology residency above some Ortho spots!

The Stibbe family is ready for whatever is thrown at us on March 17th. But here’s to hoping and praying we end up in Omaha or Kansas City! 🙂

P.S. How great is the new header for the blog? My friend from college, Nikki, designed it. She’s uber creative. It kind of makes me sick.

Check out their family blog and her Etsy shop!

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