He is Faithful

Back in December I had a difficult choice to make. I had been offered a job at my PRN (part time as needed) and wasn't sure whether or not I should accept it. The health insurance is literally double. Not kidding. Sure it came with a slight pay raise, but was it enough to even out double the insurance? Also, it was my PRN. It was convenient being a 5 minute walk from my house. I could work 6 hours on saturday and still be home before the kids got up from their naps. But if I worked there, where would I go if caseload were low or we had unexpected expenses and I needed extra hours? Having the responsibility of providing for my family sometimes really stresses me out.

I prayed a lot and talked with my husband, family, friends, and coworkers. I really wanted to work close to home and regain those ten lost hours I wasted weekly in the car. Ryan and I crunched and crunched the budget numbers and came to the conclusion that we didn't know if it would work. He particularly was a little nervous of what would happen if I gave up my PRN. The cry of my heart was to have more time with my boys. I miss them and they're growing up so quickly. Finally, Ryan and I made the decision to accept the position in my hometown. How could I not with two little sets of arms (and a big set) waiting to hug me sooner every evening?

I am happy to report that most of the weeks since I have accepted my new position I have gotten my full 40 hours at a minimum. Many weeks I even have all the overtime I can handle or have to turn it down to spend time with my family. Now that the price of gas has skyrocketed, a 5 minute walk is a definite bonus! The icing on the cake is that I have been able to lose 10 pounds. I walk home for lunch 3-4 days a week and get so many more hugs and kisses from my boys! When talking to a former coworker, she rejoiced with me when I reported all of this. "You choose to honor God by putting your family before your job. He took care of the rest." He has!!! Ryan and I didn't know the outcome, but we stepped out on faith and knew that the Father would provide for us. And I still have a PRN job. My former boss has asked me to do work a couple hours a week at a facility close by. It's so amazing what a wonderful God we serve! When the numbers don't add up, He makes it work anyway.

P.S. For those of you out there who are geeks, PRN is short for pro re nata, "as the circumstance arises."

What a Mess!

Discovered this post that I had started and never posted from last August. Here goes.

Last weekend we visited one of my favorite stores--IKEA. I was delighted to find that one of the main items on my list, rugs for the doors leading to the outside, were on clearance. The last rug wore out sometime before the birth of my three-year-old and I hadn't been able to find one that I liked in my price range. Consequently, I'm not even sure if my children know what rugs truly are. With joy I laid them on the floor and imagined the dirt clods and leaves being somewhat restricted in access to my home.

The rugs were placed on the floor after the children went to bed. The boys didn't seem to notice them until halfway through breakfast. Landon looked over with spoon in hand and pointed to the door, "Daddy, what spilled?" My husband looked around in vain for the offending liquid on the floor. Landon insisted, despite assurances to the contrary, that there was indeed something spilled on the floor. "But there's a towel on the floor!"