A New Year is Here Already!

Where has this year gone in such a rush?! Already, we are fast counting down to 2018 and the new beginnings it shall bring. 
My baby is a year old! Still not walking, but once she gains her confidence I believe she will take off running. 

My other children are starting to truly show their strengths and weaknesses in life. Be it reading from my oldest to science and math for my middle kid, to my fast learning little diva in kindergarten. I am so proud of them all. 
We had a wonderful Christmas vacation. Went to spend it with my in-laws. While enjoying good food, good times and gifts, there was a couple family members who ended up in the emergency room. One of them went in as one person and came out as two! Such a cute little fighter that one has turned out to be. Definitely had us on edge all that week though. 
Looking back, I think this was our best Christmas so far. We all got things we needed or really wanted. People might laugh, but getting Tide and a laundry basket was awesome. Getting a laptop had me so thrilled! These were things I genuinely needed. My kids got the pants they needed. Or underwear. And a backpack. My husband and his drill or the compressor. The simple things that will be appreciated so much this year. It was a blessing all around. We are all so happy this holiday season. And yes, we got things that we wanted or thought were cool. Like the years subscription to Amazon Prime, gaming gear, and dolls. 
But the greatest gift all? We spent this Christmas together. We made happy memories that will last a lifetime. 

And then, we went shopping for Christmas clearance deals. Sadly, I waited too long and by the time I went on Thursday, there wasn't much left. But I did get some of the things we needed.

Like wrapping paper. The ones I found were reversible and had patterns that I can use throughout the year. I picked up an Axe gift set. We were in need of another toiletries bag and my husband uses some kinds of Axe products. The ones he doesn't use, I will be sending to my brothers. All for $12. We bought a regular sized tree for the Christmas' to come. Gonna need it for our growing collection of amazing ornaments. And the Star Wars light show projector?! Can you believe it was only $7?? I picked up other little stocking stuffers for chore rewards and for next years gifts.

I had stopped by Walgreens when picking up a picture too. Once again, they were wiped out of most of the good stuff. I did find a little sun catcher for my little princess to paint. It was half off the sticker price too.

Moving into the New Year, I have decided to make my resolution to lose 30 lbs. To build strength to my failing body and to lighten the load I carry daily. My back isn't going to get better. And I can't afford to fix it. So I can at least focus my energy on making less stress for it. This will be the first year I have had this resolution. Usually, it is to make more of an effort in being a better mother and person. Which will still be a goal. I truly believe that everyone can be better in life. Kinder, more compassionate, giving, loving, honest. Just some traits I think everyone should work at daily. 

What is your resolution and why? What do you strive for in your own life? And how do you plan to make 2018 better than 2017?

Learning Not to Worry

After losing my job, worry took over. I fretted over how we would pay the bills. Wondered what we would do to make ends meet. I questioned what God might have planned for us. Unemployment was fickle. Almost like a full time job. At first, I looked like crazy for a job. But soon came to realize that it might not be the right choice. You see, right before losing my job, my husband was in a car accident that totaled his vehicle. So we were down to one car - my van. In addition, he had work overnight and school two days a week. Between his schedule and making sure someone was able to be with the baby all day or get the kids as they exited the bus, none of the jobs I was looking for matched our needs. I had been laid off from being an administrative assistant making $14/hour. And that's the type of job I was looking for. I felt as though I had to get the full time, high paying job that would keep our family as it had been. We had gotten comfortable. But we didn't need that to be happy. My husband works part time while he's in school. He makes enough to cover the bills. We could get by with what we need. I had a couple thousand saved from work. It has been slowly dwindling with each month that passes by as my automatic bills pull from it. We have not needed to worry. We won't be going out to eat like we used to. Lunch dates will be sparse. I have to pinch pennies from time to time to get little non-food items, but the bills are paid. 

And when other unexpected bills have struck, like the multiple van issues, we  were blessed in ways we could not have imagined. At first, we were having starter problems. The van would not start. Our local, and trusted mechanic, told us that was something he could not help with. We feared the price tag the dealership would put to such a task. My husband called and began to inquire. Turned out, there was a recall on that part and we didn't have to pay a dime! The relief was like a wave over us, despite agreeing that whatever happened would be God's will. Then the alternator died. We broke down on our way home one day. We had to have the van towed to the mechanics shop, rent a car for the weekend, as well as pay for the parts and labor. But at the same time that happened, we had sold something donated to us by my husband's grandparents. The money from that sale more than covered all those expenses. 

Another item his grandparents had donated us, also sold. And with the money we got from that, we were able to get the last of the Christmas presents on our list for family and friends. This was one part of me that hurt the most. I'm a giver. It is my gift, or curse - depending on your point of view. I love to give, even when I have so little. 

Then there were other things. Like my son needed a new backpack. I'm praying his lasts until Christmas. (Tonight, we had to duct tape it back together. Duct tape - the key element for everything.) That is when he gets a new one from money sent by a friend to purchase gifts for the kids. My daughter needed new panties. Those also came from that money. Shortly after shopping for those things, we came to find that both boys' jackets broke and they needed new ones. They also needed pants. Another friend writes that he wanted to be their Santa this year. He sent money that more than covered those needs. They were even able to get some toys that I would not have otherwise been able to get. My baby got a walker that will hopefully help her learn to walk. At 13 months, she is being a little slow. My middle son needed shoes. Without even telling my mother, I received a packaged from her that had a new pair in it just for him. And not a day too soon. We had duct taped his old pair back together and the school was planning to get him a new pair when they saw it. They didn't, however, so we were very glad to have gotten those when we did! Today, the school surprised us by sending 3 pairs of shoes for the boys and one for my daughter. They will be set for a little while yet. 

These are just a few things that I have come to realize. All the times I have worried, God has provided in ways that I never would have thought to be. We have been able to keep our heads up. To have our needs, and even some wants, provided for. Through family and friends. I had applied for a job last week. Sadly, even after 2 interviews, it just wasn't meant to be. But I have faith. We will be fine. Better than fine. We will get by with life going smoothly. No matter what hiccups may come, we don't have to worry. I don't have to worry. God has got this.

The Votes Come Today

Today is the day, my friends. When we find out just how stupid those in power truly are. There are two major issues going to be voted on today. Two things that will affect every American in some way. 

Net Neutrality. I know I have posted about this before. Sadly, it has come back into talks. The FCC will vote today on whether they should repeal the laws or not. What does that mean for us? Net Neutrality means that Internet Service Providers (ISP's) have to treat all data online the same. Without it, ISP's can inflict throttling (slowing down the access allowed)to certain websites or information based on whether they pay fees or not to keep their information flowing equally with all others. Imagine turning on Netflix when they have not paid up - your ISP can throttle them and movies stream at a ridiculously slower rate. You no longer have the drive to watch anymore, right? Surfing the web will also be like that. We are reverting back to the dark ages if this comes about. Comcast and was caught doing that before. BitTorrent was one of the websites they throttled. If I remember correctly, Verizon was another one who was secretly slowing up some websites. So get ready. It seems to have gained momentum towards being approved. And if that is the case, the internet will be less user friendly and more company driven than you could have imagined. 

Second up for a vote - the new tax bill. Have you actually looked at this law? It is protecting those of substantial wealth. The more money you make, the less you pay in taxes. Guess it goes to show what our president and his cronies think of the little man. As usual, they are protecting their money. At the expense of our own. 

You know what? I'm not proud to be an American anymore. Other countries are having far more appeal. In a way, our freedoms are slowly being throttled as it were. The big one for people like me? We are now further into the poverty level since middle class is slowly becoming extinct. You are either rich or poor. And it must get worse before we can even dare to hope it will be better.

Oh This Generation

At only 29 years old, I have come to find that I now belong in the category of the "older generation". I don't fit in, mentally, with the millenials. I'm not with "it" anymore. Not that I ever really wanted to be. "It" was usually stupid and fleeting in its existence. No, I don't belong among my age group. 

This past Sunday, and I think part of Saturday, I had heard some interesting things about what this generation will never understand. It followed a tweet about things that you remember that others would not. Like what a pager/beeper was. Remember those? Mostly popular among business people and medical workers, but lots of people used them. Before cell phones were in everyone's hands. And cell phones... Well... My first one was the kind that flipped open. You had the single number keypad that had letters assigned to each number. You had to hit each number a certain amount of times to get to the letter you wanted. Texting was a pain in the butt. Or who recalls  what 411 meant? Remember when we said, "Just give me the 411." It was an information service. That is no longer needed with computers the size of our palm. But when we asked each other for the 411, we simply wanted the straight up information. 

Answering machines. Oh wow... that was when we had phones plugged into the wall. It was called a land line.  And if someone called when you weren't home, they could leave a message. You were expected to call them back eventually.

I recently heard a radio personality talking about when her son saw the phone book on the doorstep. He comes in and tells her, "Someone left a library book at the front door." Her confusion was turned to humor when she saw what he was referring to. She actually had to explain what it was. His response, "But your phone already has everything you need in it!" *Shaking my head* That is probably true for newspapers. This generation might say those are for old folks.

How many of you remember what real music was? I can tell you it was nothing like the run-of-the-mill pop stuff we have today. Beyonce can't hold a candle to what I grew up with. Like MC Hammer sang, "You can't touch this!" Songs actually had deeper meanings. You could follow the words. Voices didn't need synthetic additives to build them up. They just naturally sounded good. And in the 90's, synthesizing was the new "cool" thing in music. And you know what? CD's were just starting to come around.

Yes, we actually listened to cassette tapes at first. In our BOOMBOX! I thought CD's were cool though. And I loved getting my first player. iPods were not invented yet. You had this mini CD player that was only about 2 inches bigger than the CD. It didn't clip to anything though. You had to hold it in your hand. But I thought I was so cool. I could take my music with me! Now, everything is digital. And mostly on YouTube or Pandora.

When I was in school, we actually went to the public library for research. I didn't have reliable computer access. The World Wide Web was barely getting started. As a matter of fact, we had dial up! Remember that awful sound? And better let everyone know you will be online so they don't pick up the phone and you lose connection. 

Gaming. Let me tell you what it was like for me. Board games were what we knew most of. Monopoly, Life, Yahtzee. My cousins were lucky. They played Street Fighter. For a while, my brother and I played Duck Hunt. Anyone else remember that? Stupid dog would laugh when you missed that duck. I wanted to shoot him instead! My husband actually had more gaming in his life. Granted, his mother and siblings were, and still are, all gamers. He has an Atari! And a GameCube! Those were not around long enough. Now, though, kids are getting into more interactive game play. Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality. 3D games and movies. Did you watch everything on VHS like I did? My husband still has his player and some movies. We were so curious about these new things called DVD's. Now, we have BluRay too. Or you can subscribe and "stream" everything from Netflix. Stream. Had I heard that word as a kid, I thought you were talking about a water source. Maybe had trout in it...

Kids these days... And I don't just mean those under 18. I'm thinking of any of them up to 25 at least. They just won't understand what it was like. I'm sure those who are in their late 40's and up look at my age group with the same thoughts. I talked to a friend who actually learned computers back when you had to type the commands into it to get it to do anything. There was no such thing as an Operating System. Now our phones have them! Heck, computers and phones talk to us now.  And we used floppy disks! There was no USB, Flash Drives, External Hard Drives. No, we carried a floppy to transfer files from one place to another. I had gem colored ones!

What about you? What can you say that you remember from your younger years that anyone under 25 would not have the faintest idea about now? And likewise, what is one thing you are so glad we have now that you never had then, but you think is just awesome? Leave me a comment and let us reminisce about the times gone past. About being that "older generation" together.