Time off

So I decided I need to take a bit of time off from writing. Catie and I have been going through a kind of rough stretch and I just needed to re-evaluate some stuff in life. I had been taking time to vent my feelings online more than talking to her so I decided it would be good to stop for a while... well 2 weeks about (which is a while for me).

So life has been rough the last little bit.... I really need a job for me to be sane and so we can pay our mortgage... which might not happen on time this month. We got our taxes back and paid off other debt and bills but miscalculated on our mortgage payment... I guess it is good that we did pay off other stuff but the idea of not being able to pay for our house doesn't feel very good (and is not how we would have done it). (we had less than $50 to our name this weekend... but I think we are getting a tiny bit of money back from an insurance refund... not much... but some). So $50 is not a lot of money to live on... it is extremely uncomfortable... but Catie and I are trusting God that he will provide. Catie is working a few more hours this week and I am trying to work as many Saturdays at Menards as possible (I got to work this past weekend and hopefully this one too).

We also had to spend $75 in gas (plus food $) going down to Catie's grandma's funeral. Fortunately it wasn't the grandma that Catie is really close to... if that happened during this time, life would have been even more stressful for us.

Although spending the money in gas and food wasn't good talking in the car and spending time with Catie was really good for us. It was nice to be stuck in a car together. We were able to really talk and just spend some quality time together (the kids slept a lot in the car). So I really enjoyed that and so did Catie.

Sunday Catie and I were arguing about something money related (like not having it) and she said she didn't want to go to church. Noelen did the most awesome thing. He completely calmed the situation down. He went and talked to Catie and said, "Don't cry mom. We are family and we need to go to church together." Then apparently he came looking for me to try and talk to me too but I was in the bathroom. I just realize how sweet he can be.... it just makes all the screaming fighting times with him more worth it... to see how sweet he is. Noelen is either a really intense stinker (like right now when we told me he wanted something to eat and I said, "hang on" and then I busted him with a bag of cookies he took off the counter.. downstairs... hiding in a laundry basket)... or really sweet and loving (like the first example).... two polar opposites.

Anyways, Catie and I are just realizing how little we can do without God... we are also realizing that are relationships with God are really lacking in a lot of areas... areas that need to be stregthened in order to be in a healthy relationship with God... not just a casual relationship. So hard times are teaching us a lot about each other, ourselves and our relationship with God.