Tough Decisions. Major Changes.It's official. After 12.5 years of service, my last day as an accountant at Southwest Airlines will be April 30, 2010. I still can't believe it. My career here has spanned nearly my entire adult life.
I didn't get laid off. SWA has never had layoffs, and none are currently planned. I elected to take a completely voluntary severance package. SWA has offered similar programs in the past, but never one with such excellent terms as this.
Interestingly, news of this severance package was announced in May, the very same month as our 3rd wedding anniversary, which also happened to coincide with the timeframe Brian and I had planned to start thinking about having a family.
We had many long discussions and crunched the numbers over and over. We prayed fervently over the decision. Ultimately, we realized that if we were very careful with the severance payment, we could use it to supplement Brian's salary and potentially stretch it out long enough to allow me to stay home with a baby for 3, maybe even 4 years. This was an exciting idea, because prior to this the best we had hoped for was for me to be able go part-time once we have a family. However, even with the severance payment, our household income during those years will still be cut in half. This felt pretty risky and honestly quite a bit scary, but we believe God was leading us to take the risk and step out in faith. So I had a talk with my manager (we both got a little verklempt) and then turned in the paperwork.
The toughest part of the decision was having to make it prior to actually expecting a baby. I'm 36, so I am well-aware that things might not happen as quickly as they might have when I was younger. Also, what if we end up being unable to have a family, and then I've given up an excellent job for no reason? That's another huge risk, and I must admit that this possibility still concerns me when I think about it too much.
If April rolls around and we aren't expecting, instead of making plans to be a SAHM I'll be updating my resume and pounding the pavement for a new accounting job. That's the worst-case scenario, and I REALLY hope it doesn't work out that way. (I suppose the bright side is that we'll still end up with a nice chunk of savings that we could use to eventually remodel our kitchen or something!)
It's in God's hands now. We'll just have to wait and see how the next ten months unfold!
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Because I'm feeling nostalgic about my time at SWA right now, here are some pics from one of the coolest things I've ever done. My accounting group was given the opportunity to accept delivery of our newest aircraft back in December, 2005. We were given a tour of the Boeing factory in Seattle and then rode along on the ferry flight back to Dallas.
Me inside the engine!

In the cockpit...

Riding in the cockpit jumpseat during takeoff...

The view from the cockpit during flight.
