Before we left for Arizona, Kolt was informed of two different C-schools that he needed to attend in Elizabeth City, North Carolina. Each school is four weeks long and they would be back to back with a week long break in between. Nine weeks total would be spent in North Carolina. We decided that Brinleigh and I would go with him, nine weeks was just too long for me to be left by myself in Sitka, with a baby, during the winter time when it's dark and cold. Brinleigh and I could stay with our cousins KC and Tyler just like I did when Kolt went to his five month long A-school in Elizabeth City.
So the plan was to leave at the beginning of February, Kolt would have a week long break in between schools, he wanted to take a week of leave after the second school, and then we would return to Sitka in the middle of April. On the way there, Kolt and I would be flying separately. He has to fly into Virginia and drive to E-city and since it is work related, he had to book his ticket through SATO. I can book my ticket as normal and would fly into Raleigh. However, on the trip back to Sitka, he will fly out of Raleigh with Brinleigh and I so we can book our tickets together through Alaska Airlines. (SATO will then reimburse us for this ticket. This is because SATO will not book a ticket for him to return since he wants to take leave after the schools.)
Anyways..... In the last two weeks of being home, this plan has changed. Shocking, I know!
Kolt went to the doctor about a bump on his back that has been bothering him. Turns out, the "bump" is a fairly large cyst and it's around the bottom of his spinal cord. He was referred to a surgeon who advised him to have it removed immediately. After it is removed, he will be out of work for a week and he cannot travel until it is completely healed. Therefore, the schools he was going to attend are out of the question now. He cancelled his orders with SATO, scheduled his outpatient surgery for Monday morning, and will be off work all of next week.
We don't know for sure, but he might be able to attend the next set of c-schools in April & May. If so, we will stick to the original plans but with the new dates.
As much as we were looking forward to only being home from Arizona for six weeks and then leaving again for the rest of the winter, we are not disappointed about the change of plans. We actually have a list of things that we have to get done before leaving again. The cancellation of schools gives us a lot more time so I can stop stressing about getting everything done. And surprisingly, this winter has not been bad at all and I have even enjoyed the snow. It really hasn't snowed much at all, especially compared to last year and I'm kinda sad about it. I think last winter was just really hard for me because I was pregnant, experiencing the dark and cold Alaska winter for the first time, and we didn't go home for Christmas.
On another note, I've recently been contemplating about making our blog private. This means that anyone who wants to keep up with us or read our posts would have to sign up as a follower. I know for most people this can be a hassle to have to create a username and password and then log on when you want to read our updates, but my thoughts about this are only related to the privacy and protection of my family. Since I do choose to use names and I write about when and where we travel and where we live, I think I would just feel better if the blog wasn't open for the entire world to read. I'm still debating though. Feel free to give me your input on the matter.
