Update

I haven't posted for a long time, so I decided that I'd better give an update. I wish I had lots of happy and fun things to say, but most of this will probably seem depressing. Most things right now aren't that great, but the things that are good are really good, and I am thankful for that.

We have had stomach flu, colds, and croup at our house for the last couple of weeks. I'm anxious to get everyone healthy again, hopefully before the holidays.

Don's boss ran out of money to pay him. I don't really understand it all, but apparently some investors that he was counting on didn't pay up. So, he asked Don to take some time off. That's okay for right now, because Don is working a second contract job. However, that will end in 1-3 weeks, at which point either the investors will have paid, or we will be unemployed yet again. Only this time without a savings account, food storage, or unemployment benefits.

Also, we were denied a modification of our mortgage. Wells Fargo told us that we can't afford any payment that they give us, so they won't change it. They tell us this even though we've successfully made our payments with even less income than we have now for the last 17 months. They want us to either increase our income (I want that too!) or decrease our expenses (do they think that we haven't thought of that??!!). The main concern that they had was that we are paying such a large sum in tithing. I guess to them that is an unnecessary expense. Anyway, they denied us. Then a few days ago they called and wanted us to resubmit everything once again. I have no idea why. They said that maybe they might have some kind of program that will help. This is no small process, so I wasn't sure that I wanted to do it again, but what are my choices really? So, I sent it in again and we'll wait, probably another 8 months for them to decide if we can afford it or not. With how long this process takes, I don't know how it really helps anyone avoid forclosure.

Now for a few of the really good things. We were able to apply for some inexpensive medical insurance. Hopefully that will go through. Don is still feeling good. We haven't had to get any more shots, and his decompression treatments seem to really be helping. He still can't sit or stand or walk for very long periods of time, and he may never play sports or run again. However, he can handle basic day to day stuff, and for that we are all grateful. Another really good thing is Don's short-term contract with TaxWorks. I am optimistic that he will make enough with it to pay most, if not all, of his medical bills. That will be such a relief not to have that huge debt hanging over us. I've shared some good stuff and some better stuff. Now for the best. Evan is doing great in 1st grade. He's like a little sponge, just soaking everything in. He has so much excitement about learning. I hope that he never loses that. Kabe loves, Loves, LOVES preschool. He has a fantastic teacher and he counts down the hours until he gets to go each time. He has become such a great love note writer, and I love to find his little notes everywhere. Addie says new words every day. I might be the only one who can understand them, but she says them. She has a majorly independent spirit that I'm sure I will appreciate more in a couple of years. :) She is such a happy part of our family. She calls all babies "Addie" and loves to draw and "la-da-la-da-la" (color) and read "I-Spy's" (that's how she says books). We all just adore her and delight in each of her new discoveries.

See how the good outweighs the bad? My hope is that I can focus, especially in the coming weeks, on how much good there is and not let the stress overwhelm me.