Christmas Plans

"Christmas is coming, the goose is getting fat. Pleased to put a penny in an old man's hat. Pleased to put a penny in an old man's hat. If you've no penny, a hay-penny will do. If you have no hay-penny then God bless you. If you have no hay-penny then God bless you."

Sorry, I haven't written in a while, or posted Thanksgiving pics, but things have been busy and I still haven't found my camera cord. It's very annoying.

Christmas is a busy time. I love the hectic, festive spirit that is all around. I love the planning and buying and wrapping and giving of presents and visiting with people you love. I love the music and the decorations. I love the real Christmas spirit that comes with knowing the real reason for the season, the Savior.

What I don't love is being so far from my families. I wish that I could go to visit everyone this Christmas season. I wish I had the money to fly to Kentucky, Maine, and maybe even Canada (I miss my Night Owl) and spend time with everyone. I wish I didn't need to make money and save money and be responsible so I could do all the things I want to this Christmas.

In short, I hate being a grown up.

Ok, so there's my whine and rant for this post.

What I AM doing for Christmas is spending another Christmas in Rigby with the Olsen crew. They're awesome. I love holidays with them. I miss my old traditions, but I enjoy making new ones and enjoying others'.

D and I will head up North early next week and spend the week with Mom and Dad Olsen. We'll stay until Saturday, when I have to come home to go to work. We both have 2 full weeks off from school, but I have my shifts at SBGH. While we're gone, Chuck will take care of our cats and when we return we'll watch his cats while he goes to visit his family. It seems like a pretty decent arrangement.

So those are our Christmas plans. More to come soon, I hope!

~KK~

Thanksgiving and other thoughts

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving this year. We went to D's parents house and spent the holiday with her family and some mutual friends. The food was fabulous (D and I made rolls) and the company was even better. I will post pictures as soon as I find my camera cord (the thing really should have a GPS system attached).

I have been working on my NaNo project, but I am afraid that I'm just not gonna make the deadline. Too much has got in the way this month and my word count is just too far behind to catch up. 35k in 2 days is just too much to accomplish, even if I did nothing else. I'm not too discouraged; there's always next year to meet the goal of 50k in a month. I've got all year to prepare.

Christmas preparations are underway. D and I are getting our photographs taken by the wonderful and beautiful Jaimee of Cyr Photography on Sunday, and this will make up a large portion of our Christmas gifts to both of our families. We'll bring the Christmas decorations home tomorrow and start decorating our little apartment and wrapping our other gifts.

I love the Christmas season. Not the weather, mind you, but everything else. The meaning of the season, the festive spirit, the music, and decorations. It's all so wonderful.

I'm so glad that it's finally here!

~KK~

NaNoWriMo

I've been neglecting both of my blogs in order to focus on NaNoWriMo. Forgive me if I don't write until the competition is over. I am determined to write my 50,000 words in 30 days. I will return to blogging in December with a long report on life in Idaho.

Love to you all.

~KK~

;)

Happy Birthday to Diane.

:D

Happy birthday to me, I've turned 23!

HA! I made a rhyme!!!

I'm excited about this birthday. It's not like we're doing anything special (we're still broke) but I've had a lot of warm wishes and some pretty neat presents. I'm especially excited about getting my dad's present in the mail because he always gets me the best things, things that I really need, not just things that I want. He told me that I can buy things that I want in my 40's and to focus on what I need for now. Good advice. So, waiting with baited breath...or something. I've received some great gifts, both practical and frivilous from many of my loved ones, THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH, but the best gifts I've received were the hugs and well-wishes and phone calls. They're the best. Hands down.

I'm finally starting to feel better after a bout with the flu (not the Swine flu. Thank heavens) and I'm actually waiting anxiously to be able to go back to work (MONDAY!!!). I thought the time off would be good for me, but I miss my residents and students and I'm bored out of my tree!!!!!!!!!!!!!

D's birthday is Monday, so I'm planning to make her dinner and take her to a dollar movie. We're doing our Ward trunk or treat for my birthday.

Excitingness!!


~KK~

Visiting

So this weekend we went up to D's parents' house to visit and to see our other "adopted" sister whom I had never met and who D hadn't seen in 9 years. It was an awesome weekend. I was, of course, very nervous, new people you know, but S made me feel very comfortable and safe and we just had so much fun. Except for the fact that I was sick allof Friday night and D was sick all day Saturday. That part we can overlook in favor of funness, right?

hahaha.

So my preparations for NaNoWriMo 2009 are well under way. I am blogging like mad on my other blog The Write Stuff and preparing outlines and cleaning up my space so it's workable...on top of juggling 2 jobs and my Avon sales. But that's a whole other blog post that I'll get around to later.

I am also fighting illness, trying to keep sickness at bay so it does not interfere with my busy life. I SOOOOO do not have time to get sick. Keep me in your prayers.

So all's well on in this life...for the most part.

~KK~

Dating

So, I've been seeing this guy, kind of casual, friend dating. We're going to the theatre tonight to see "Thouroughly Modern Millie" and eat dinner. I'm excited because we're also going to be performing at the Festival of Trees in December. Him playing guitar and me singing. It's fun and he's super sweet. He's safe, I guess you could say. No pressure. It's good to get out once in a while. Or every Friday night. hahaha.

There are some issues with my dating this guy, namely he's older and not LDS, but for now I'm content to keep going on as we have been, having fun and enjoying each other's company.

I'm not used to "dating." It's kind of a foreign concept to me. I stay at home. I babysit people's kids so they can go out. I don't date. It's a weird new kind of thing...

~KK~

Busy Busy

I have been absent for far too long. I really need to get internet access at home so this doesn't happen.

Ahh, dreams.

We've been keeping busy, working working working! I took a job with the school district and cut back my hours at SBGH (I couldn't bear to leave for good) because the school pays better. So now I'm working 7 days a week. Like I said, keeping very very busy.

D is also busy, keeping up with all she has to do is stressful and tough, but she loves it. We're excited to see our "adopted" sister Suzanne in a few weeks (me for the very first time!) and getting to see the Olsens and MAGGIE (I miss her so much!).

My birthday is coming up and I'm really excited to celebrate it both at school and at SBGH.

Hopefully, I'll be able to write more soon.

~LOVES~

New School Year

D has officially started her school job, as of 24 Aug! She is loving it and keeping very busy with her "little delinquints." She is still trying to get used to the new schedule and getting enough sleep. She comes home exhausted, but happy. It warms my heart to see her smile and act with purpose.

I'm still woring. It seems like all I do. I have officially finished my new hire training and will hopefully be getting a bonus and a pay raise soon. I'm running myself a little ragged, but I'm still doing OK. That is, if I remember to take my meds...not as easy as one would think! But I manage. I'm doing a lot of reading about pain managment and exercise and diet. We'll see where it takes me.

I can honestly say that life is good!

~K~

Catching Up

Wow, I haven't written in QUITE a while. Bad, bad me.

Soooo...what's been happening in Pocatello? Well, I have been working, working working, 30+ hours a week. It's hard work, it keeps me on my toes. I love my residents, I love (like, tolerate, attempt not to strangle...) my coworkers, the pay's OK, it's overall a good place to be. Diane starts work in a week, so our financial situation should stabilize soon. I'm hoping to save some money and go visit my dad for Christmas and one of my brothers might come visit me after Christmas. I'm excited.

We're having a friend of ours stay with us until she can find a place. It'll be different, having more than just us in the place. We'll see how it goes. Angie is a good girl, she just fell on some crappy times. I know how that goes, so I felt the need to help. Besides, she's a great cook, she loves to clean, and she adores my cats. It seems like a good deal all around!

Of the 6 kittens we started out with, we are down to 3. Preemie and Felipila found a great home together in a household of lots of special needs animals like themselves. Belino found his forever home just last Saturday. He still lives in our building, just 2 floors down! FurReal, Tyco, and Bearie are still with us, still driving us and Tinkerbell crazy! But we love them. They're precious, if not annoying.

Maggie is doing well, still spending her days running in circles, driving Poco nuts and obsessing over shadows. I miss seeing her every day, but I know the Olsen's are taking good care of her. Someday soon, we will have a place where we can be together.

Diane is doing pretty good. She is excited for school to start, getting to work with her "little delinquints." She doesn't like me talking about her, so I'll leave it at that. ;)

Well, I think that's all I can think of for now. I'll try to be more diligent in writing in the future.

God Bless.

~K~

Mysterious Blessings

We have been havinh a rough few months.

That's no secret to anyone who knows us. But we have felt an outpouring of love and support in the last few days like we've never felt before. For the first time we really feel the meaning of a Ward family. Our ward has taken such good care of us since we moved in in February. We have home teachers that come consistently and check up on us regularly. We have visiting teachers that are bound and determined to get us involved in absolutely EVERYTHING. They've become very good friends. People actually view us as members of the ward and not just "visitors" even though we're gone so much and we actually get acknowledged and spoken to regularly by other members (in past wards we've felt very ignored and out of place). Our lives are not conventional by any means. We're both single and we both refuse to attend single's wards (SHUDDER). We've both had some issues with inactivity and, on my part, problems with doing things I shouldn't. This is the first ward where we don't feel judged for being who we are. No we're not lesbians (honest, we've heard it!). No there's not something wrong with us. We are who we are and that's ok!!!!

So our most recent blessing from this wonderful ward came with a mysterious knock on the door. Diane was sitting at home (I was at work) when she heard footsteps on the stairs outside. This was nothing unusual so she ignored it. What she didn't ignore was the manic ringing of our doorbell and the running footsteps that followed. She opened the door to find several bagfuls of food sitting in front of our door. We have no idea who left them there, but we are eternally grateful to that mystery someone. We have been running low on food and have been unsure how we're going to manage financially until I get paid (not til the 15th of July). The ward helped us with rent and the power bill, as well as giving us a food order (which we had yet to fill). This unexpected and truly wonderful gift was an amazing blessing for us, a true gift from God.

I'm overwhelmed at my good fortune and the blessings that are coming our way.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I GOT A JOB!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

more to come later...

~K~

Possibilities

I have been offered an opportunity to test run a job to see if I like and can handle it. I go for a "sample shift" on Monday morning (7AM!!!! :(~ *blegh*) and if I do well and I like it, I'm hired! Keeping my fingers crossed!!! This is a good thing because my former employers are trying to screw with my unemployment and the whole process is complicated and frustrating and just plain silly, so if I get a job I won't have to deal with it anymore!!! Say a prayer, if you will. More later.

~K~

Determination

I will make it through this.

I will not give up.

The lord will provide.

I am strong.

Someone out there wants me for an employee.

I will not let stress overwhelm me and make me sick again.

I will take care of my physical and emotional health and become a stronger and better person.

I am capable.

I am loved.

I will survive.

~KKH~

Drowning

OK, so many people have commented on my recent facebook statuses (most of which have been very bleak), so here's the whole messy story out once and for all.

I went to work on Saturday and was out in the community with my client when I received a phone call from one of my coworkers (newly appointed supervisor, actually) asking me to come in to the office after dropping off my client. I agreed, feeling in my gut that something was wrong. I took my client home and headed to the office, stopping on the way to take a panic pill because I just couldn't shake that feeling that this meeting was not going to go well.

I was right.

I was informed (by a painfully shy, stuttering new supervisor) that I had violated HIPPA regulations by talking about clients to a non-employee and that I was being terminated. I asked for clarification in who did I talk to, when and where did this supposedly happen, etc. I was told that I had talked about clients to my friend D (not Diane) at Wal*Mart 2 days earlier. I was confused because, to the best of MY knowledge, Deni was a coworker who was just on maternity leave. I explained this to S and G (who is D's mom and another supervisor) and was informed that she was not an employee and therefor talking to her about clients was illegal (actually a federal offense). I tried explaining that I had no way of knowing this and therefor it was not really an offense at all and was very curtly told that it didn't matter and that I was terminated effective immediately. I was also told that simply talking about clients with ANYONE off work hours was a violation of HIPPA (which I know is untrue). If this were the case, everyone of our employees, supervisors, and the owners themselves would be in violation and be "federally accountable." I have since been told that this company has been looking for any excuse to get rid of me because I'm too smart for my own good and repeatedly called them on inappropriate and sometimes illegal actions (can you say Medicaid fraud???) and they were afraid that I would report them (and do they really think that firing me is going to stop that????).

So it's been a very rough weekend compounding a very rough few months as far as money, health, and general sanity has been concerned. I appreciate the love and caring thoughts that have been sent my way. I am rallying and making the best of the situation and I am determined to survive. It's what I do. I improvise, I adapt, I overcome (oh wait, that's the Marines! heehee). I think Kay Sue said something about bootstraps and carrying on and what not.

I will get my health problems under control. I will stabilize my moods with therapy and medications. I will find a new job. I will get myself back into school. I will make it.

There is no other option.

Infinite Worth

My therapist asked me to think about my strength, specifically the source of my strength, my capacity to forgive and love despite a history of being hurt. I thought about it a lot. I journaled about it. I wrote a poem about it. I talked with D about it. Then I decided to pray about it. That should have been my first course of action, but I'm still getting back into the habit after my period of NOT doing it ever. This picture is what came to mind. My source of strentgh comes from my faith in the Lord and my status of "Infinite Worth" in His eyes. It is because of His love of me that I am able to love others. It is because of His strength that I am strong. It is my worth in His eyes that helps me see the worth of all those around me. I am nothing without Him. And I'm forever grateful of that fact.

Just an FYI...

I am totally not sure how much more work drama I can handle!!!!! I am soooooooo sick of all the crap! More when I have more time...

~K~

A Rant to Start the Week...

Ummm, how much do I loathe being poked with dang needles??? TOO MUCH FOR WORDS!!!! The rheumatologist ordered some super obscure blood tests that the clinic never even heard of, one that they have to order a special tube and call me back in to get, and 1 sharp poke, 1 tingling arm, 1 cramping hand, and $300+ later, we have 8 vials of blood, no answers, and 1 very dizzy Kaitlyn.

NOT my favorite way to start a week, thank you very much!!!

grrrrrr...

~K~

Here's something I thought up the other day. Pray that no one ever reaches number three, most especially me!


My three levels of Writer's Frustration:

1) Writer's Block: A difficulty or halting of the writing process. Overcome by moving on to a different project for a while and coming back to this one later.

2) Writer's Brick Wall: An inability to work on relief project. Frustration and disenchantment with everything to do with the writing process (there are usually tears!) Move on to poetry for relief.

3) Literary Fort Knox: The end of writing as we know it. The end of the world as we know it (thank you REM). A total and complete inability to put words on a page. Complete and total blankness of mind and desolation of spirit. Utter despair.

Poetry from my Frustrated Mind

I write poetry. It helps me vent. It helps me focus. It helps me relax. I write poetry that expresses what I otherwise can't express. I have often told people that I am attempting to write a novel and that when my brain won't let me do that (see writer's block), I write short stories. When I can't write short stories (see Writer's Brick Wall), I write poetry. And when I come upon the literary Fort Knox and can't write poetry, I'm totally and completely useless and can consider the world as we know it to be over.

So here's an example of one of my expressions of frustration in regards to my work. After a particularly frustrating day with a particular large and overbearing client (Kira know's who I'm talking about!!), I wrote this:

Untitled (So far...)

Autism is a world not my own.
I am granted glances in to that world
so foreign and strange
so complex, so beyond my understanding.
The world of Autism is closed to me
but for brief glimpses behind beautiful eyes.
Precious faces
show me a distant land where I am only permitted to visit
"By invitation only."
A rare and short stay.
Minutes, seconds, never more
Before the door closes
and I am forbidden entrance
by that stoic guard of flesh and bone
who hides the person in the world within.
A different sort of person
from you or I.
Living in a body in our world,
but in spirit,
in a world of their own.


I love my job. I couldn't do it if I didn't. But some days are harder than others, for sure. Thank my Lord that I have an outlet like poetry to help me through the bad days. I pray that everyone can find their own outlet to help them through rough and frustrating times.

A Spring Poem

I was sitting at the park yesterday, watching kids run around and just enjoying the fresh air and I was inspired to write a poem. It's one of my happier, upbeat, and family friendly poems so I thought I'd share it. Creative feedback is always welcome. Enjoy!

April Musings

The feeling of Spring drifts
on the air and in the hearts
of all who breathe

The trees, the grass
bloom green, lush

Flowers begin to dot
the ground
in gardens, neat and ordered
in wild, random beauty scattered through
the town

Children laugh and play
with the wild abandon of ones
who know that summer
will soon be upon us

Three months of freedom from
homework, teachers, and classrooms

But for now, anticipation sustains

The sweet air of spring
rushes into stale winter lungs
refreshing all who breathe
Young and old

All feel the fresh, new joy
of Spring.

~K~

Right Now (Thanks Kim, this is great!)

So, I haven't been able to get my Easter stuff posted because Diane fried the computer cord (silly girl), but I have a few free minutes at the library, and this is my version of "Right Now." I got the idea from KKS, thanks hon, you're the bestest!

Right Now...

It's 7:34pm

Diane and I are at the library

The library computers are very slow

Diane has a big stack of books on her lap

I'm thinking about writing a song because of one I heard on the way home from work

I'm thinking about that song ("Hurry Home" by Jason Michael Carrol)

Diane is staring at me and not contributing anything relevant

We both have reliable transportation

We both have jobs

We have enough to eat

We have a roof over our heads

We have each other

One of my friends is in the beginning stages of labor for her 4th child

I'm hungry, it's dinner time

I have a toothache (there's hole issues)

We are not nearly as affected by the war as we could be, thankfully

The sun is going down (it's the first time we've seen it all week!!!)

Gas is $1.97/gallon

Milk is $1.98/gallon

I need to find my scriptures (somehow my largeprint ones got misplaced when we moved and I'm stuck with the small print ones that I can barely read)

I need to be better about reading my scriptures

I need to remember to pray every day

We know that God and our families and friends love us, no matter what



“The most important thing in life is to learn how to give out love, and to let it come in.” Morrie Schwartz

Conference Weekend

It's been a while since I posted, so, here's an update. Diane started at her new job. She loves it. She ahs a guarantee for a job in the fall, and possibly a job again at DI in the summer. Things are looking up for her. Things are looking up for both of us. I finished up my last week at the Shelter, and though I'll miss the job, I most difinitely won't miss the hours. The graveyard shift was just too much. I need my sleep. I go see the rheumatologist on Monday, cross your fingers, say a prayer, whatever. I need answers, I need to stop being sick all the time. It royally stinks. Can't deal with it anymore. I'm increasing my hours at A&CDC, don't know if that's a good thing or not. hahaha. I have issues with some people there, but I love the work. I think I might be getting burned out with the job, though. It takes a lot out of ya. I'm hoping to go back to school in the fall, but that's kind of laughable, seeing as how I have no money to pay back the other school to get my transcripts for the new school. Lame. I'm darned if I don't and danged if I do. *sigh* I dunno. I feel like I'm at a real standstill in my life. Not movinig forward and in great danger of moving backwards. And I don't know what to do about it. I'm stuck. Suggestions would be greatly helpful...aaaaaanywho, it's Conference weekend, super exciting because we went up to D's parent's house and we're watching on TV, which means I can fiddle around and listen at the same time, which means I get so much more out of it when I can do something with my hands. It's great. Soooo...yeah, almost lunch time which is good cuz I'm starving!!!

~KKH~

A Quick Update

This not having internet thing really sucks, FYI.

Diane accepted a job as a behaviorist at one of the local elementary schools today!!! We're super excited because it will help, not only financially, but emotionally too. Thanks for all the love and support and prayers that have come our way!

I'm still sick off and on. My appointment with the rheumatologist got moved to the beginning of April, so we still don't know anything.

We've both gotten in to see the psychiatrist/NP/PA to get back on our meds (another big help) and that's another whole interesting story in and of itself, which I will write when I have more time.

Other than that, life is the same. I promise to update soon and catch up on reading all of your wonderful blogs soon!

Love and Hugs, ~K~

Health and Heartache

February was a rough month. I started having health problems and D got into a pretty deep funk about not having a job and we moved into a new apartment that was supposed to be affordable, but we still had to have assistance from Church to pay our second month's rent and assistance from D's parents with the first. I ended up in the emergency room (something we absolutely CAN'T afford with no insurance)and they did a bunch of expensive tests that told them absolutely nothing, and now in 2 weeks I have to go see a specialist. I know, and D knows, and her parents both know, that there's something wrong, even if the bloodwork and the tests say there's not. Everyone has been praying for me and I feel really blessed at the outpouring of love. I just need to know what's wrong so I can start doing something to make me feel better. I can't keep missing work and going to doctors that I can't afford, and I most definitely can't keep going on like I've been for the past month (going to work and coming home and sleeping, not being able to keep hardly any food down, and being in intense pain all the time). It's frustrating also, because I have several projects that I've been working on and I've had to put them on hold because I just don't have the energy to hold a pen or sit at the keyboard to type for very long. Right now, I'm laying down and my friend is dictating my words for me because I just felt that I needed to write something so my friends won't think I've fallen off the face of the planet!!! I do love you all and I miss spending time reading your blogs and talking to you and just being a part of life in general.

More as soon as I'm able!!!

~K~

Caught By Surprise

OK, not all of you know about my friend Savannah, who passed away this summer, but for those who do, you can understand this experience. For those who don't know the whole story, here's a brief synopsis, and I mean VERY brief. For the whole story, ask me and I can share or if her mom doesn't mind, point you to their blog.

Savannah was the daughter of some dear friends of mine. I babysat their kids when I lived in Maine. Savannah fought a very long and valient battle with cancer and passed away in August. That's the briefest version I can come up with and not make myself bawl. The rest of this post will be hard enough to write without crying and crying will be awkward, considering I'm at work and, well, it would just be awkward. So, here goes...

On Tuesday night I took my client to McDonald's for a snack and to play in the playplace. I was sitting at a table watching her explore, when a lady behind came in with a tray full of kids meals and called her grandkids over to eat. There were three names that she called. I don't remember the scond and third names because the first that she called stopped me cold. The little girl's name was Savannah.

My heart clenched, and my eyes immediatley filled with tears. I was immediately pulled into my own memories of playing with and taking care of the Pink Princess and her 2 younger siblings. I thought of all that she struggled through and how inspiring her life was and about how I didn't get a chance to see her when I visited in July because my trip plans got changed and shortened and how guilty I felt because I never got to say goodbye to her. I was overwhelmed with emotion and I probably weirded out everyone around me...oops...

I found myself sitting silently with tears streaming down my face remembering all the happy and sad things about my times with Savannah and her family. She has been such an inspiration and a beacon of strength in my life and I'm not sure that I've ever really made it clear to her or her family how much she really meant to me.

I hope that this makes things a little clearer. I love Savannah and her family like they're my own family and I feel that, even though she's gone, that she watches over us from Heaven and she is still a big inspiration in my life and in my writing. My writing has changed since getting to know her. It's become more...I guess you could say more about light and life, and less about the darker aspects of things that I have written a lot about in the past. I can honestly say that she is currently my muse, the spirit behind much of my current creative activity and I feel blessed to have been a part of her life, even if it was a small part. I know that she was, and ever will be part of mine.

This is the poem that I wrote the night that I heard of her passing. I sent it to her family, but I am now posting it for all of my blogging friends to experience, and hopefully to enjoy. Please let me know what you think.

Free

Beautiful princess, precious and sweet
Waiting at her Maker's feet
Gently, He gathers her into His arms
Vowing to shelter her from further harm
Sadly she leaves the ones she loves
Promising to watch over them from up above
She leaves her prison of sickness and pain
To live forever on an exalted plain
Glorious in her Heavenly glow
All will miss her, that we know
But happy, also, we must be
Her beautiful spirit has been set free.

Ummm...So, yeah...

OK. SO this week has been pretty much a nightmare (see last post) and I decided to go out and blow off some steam last night with Deni and a bunch of other peeps. Karyoke is a great way to clear your head. And then the night got all weird and random and now I think I might sort of kind of have a boyfriend. Weird, I know. Random, too. Deni's brother just moved back to Pocatello and we sort of hung out and talked a lot and I really like him and he likes me (shocker, much???) and so...yeah. I guess we'll see.

Oh, and someday I really should learn that staying out until 2am and then going to work at 8am is a really, really dumb idea!!!

Everyday Angels

It has been, I will freely admit, a nightmarish week. We found an apartment that we love and want to move into and our application was approved. The landlady told us to bring ha;f of our deposit in on Monday. Of course, what none of us remembered was that Monday was a holiday and absolutely everything was closed. Oy. So she told us to bring it in on Tuesday. So D went in to get the money to put into a money order (the new rental company only accepts money orders. Frustrating and dang inconvenient, but...what are we to do???)only to find out that the bank issued credit card that is extremely overdrawn and past due found out that D is in the process of filing for bankruptcy and went into the checking account and took $450 out. They did this without informing us, which apparently they have full authorization to do, and so we paid our bills thinking that there was money in the account from the recent paychecks that I deposited, and the account was $300+ overdrawn.

Can you say PANIC???????

So D calls me in hysterics and I start to panic. I mean, our lease is up in 2 weeks, we absolutely cannot afford to keep paying $625 for rent plus all of our other bills and the new rental company can't hold our apartment without the deposit. What are we going to do? We have exactly $46 to our names between us, in cash and we're already past the deadline for turning in part of the money. It seems like we're totally and completely screwed.

But someone is looking out for us.

I call the rental agency and explain that there were some "technical difficulties" at the bank (a nifty way of saying it without actually explaining the embarrassing truth) and they agree to hold the apartment with a $200 deposit due by Wednesday, and the remaining $175 (to equal 1/2 the deposit) by Friday (when I get paid) and they are allowing us to pay the remaining half of the deposit in small increments added onto our monthly rent as long as it's completed by March. Hallelujah.

Now, if we can only come up with that $200...enter another angel.

My wonderful and amazing friend and coworker, Deni, loaned us the $200 out of her school money and child support money. Now, understand, I was very much against this, as Deni is a single mom of 3, soon to be 4, little children. SHe works full time and is going to school. She really is a superwoman. I resisted and refused until she very politely kicked me in the butt and explained that she would not offer to help unless she knew that she could afford it. "All my bills are paid, my kids have food and clothes, no one is wanting for anything. If I thought otherwise, I wouldn't offer. So shut up and take it." Well, I guess that settled things. :D

So things are working out much better than we could have possibly expected. We have earthly angels looking out for us, all under the watchful care of our wonderful Heavenly Father. I'm thankful every day for the simple miracles and wonderful gifts that we receive.

A Frustrating Weekend

Well, it's been quite a weekend. Not nearly as productive as we'd hoped, but...such is life, I guess.

Diane's procedure went well. She was in and out in 2 hours, including wait time. She had the kind of anesthesia that doesn't put you completely under, but you don't remember anything afterwards. She said some pretty cute things coming out of it, but I won't embarrass her by posting them. She knows where I sleep. :S She's doing fine now and has spent a very busy and frustrating weekend doing bathroom remodeling.

Things have been going wrong all weekend. The tub didn't fit, then the wall had to be taken out, then the paint rollers wouldn't dry out, and the tub wasn't stable enough. Tiles got broken and the dust from sanding the walls made me absolutely ill. We were hoping to get a lot more done than we actually did, but Diane's gonna come back next weekend and help out some more (I have to work).

I have some pictures of our renovation efforts, but my camera battery needs to be charged before I can download them and take some more. I'll post them as soon as I'm able!

Work, Work, Work, and just a Little Play

I know I haven't posted in quite a while, but it's very hard to keep up with all of my online stuff without internet access. We can occasionally get a weak signal from one of our neighbors and steal some free internet time, but it's rare. There's always the library, but with my work schedule, that doesn't always work so well. I can use the internet at work when I work graveyard shift (like right now), and we take full advantage of the internet when we visit Rigby (like this coming weekend!!!).

So, here's a quick update of what's happening in my life.

I started my new schedule at the shelter tonight. Instead of working one shift a week I'm working 3. One day shift and 2 graveyards. I'm also working anywhere from 20-40 hours a week at the A&CDC, so I'm ALWAYS busy and NEVER home. But it's ok, because I'm earning money, so hopefully I'll be able to go back to school next fall (keeping my fingers crossed).

Diane is still looking for a job, without much success. Please pray for her. She's getting very discouraged because her unemployment runs out after this week and she feels like she's a burden on me (she ABSOLUTELY is NOT, but that's how she feels). It's harder on both of us because we've been without our medication for a while, so we're testier and snappier than we usually are. We're trying to get in to see the doctor as soon as possible.

This Thursday, Diane will have her final procedure in her long and complicated "simple procedure." This time they're removing the stint in her liver that was placed there to stop the leak that was made by her first surgery. It's a simple day procedure (in theory) and we're going to spend the weekend at her parents house, relaxing and also helping remodel the bathroom. I'm excited because I get to paint and I looooooove painting!!!! YAY!!!!!

I'm excited because I've finally started making some friends here in Pocatello and they get me out of the house occasionally, which is always a good time. I love to go out on Saturdays and sing karyoke. One of the friend's I've made is Deni and she has 3 of the cutest kids in the whole world and they looooove me (*grin*). Zach is 6, Maddy is 2, and Mary is 8 months. Baby Kenny is due in May. I love helping her out with her kids and being an honorary "Auntie." It's always good to have kids around to spoil rotten!!!! When Deni has to work late, I pick up the girls from daycare and they get to hang out with me. Good times.

Last night, they accompanied Diane and I around town as we looked at possible rental places, because our lease is up at the end of the month and we're rather anxious to find a new place because we have very obnoxious upstairs neighbors. We're hoping to find a house or townhouse or duplex to rent so we don't have upstairs neighbors. They're just not our favorite things.

I told Maddy that we were looking at houses and she proceded to point out EVERY house we passed. "There's a house. There's a house." She's so cute! Mary just napped through most of the drive. Daycare is exhausting, you know.

Aside from my mad-crazy work schedule and the occasional outing with friends, our life is pretty quiet. We spend a lot of time at home watching movies and TV on DVD. Oh, and playing Sims on the computer. Mustn't forget that. :D

Occasional drama, more than occasional stressful moments, but overall life is good.

Happy New Year

After a very long day of work, I spent a wonderful evening with Diane and her family. We spent the evening playing games and I spent a lot of time do cross-continental texting. We rang in the new year and then I crashed HARD. I slept for a very long time, I don't even know how long and today I spent the day recovering from a night of too much junk food, cider, and 'nog. I have high hopes for this coming year. Things are looking up for us, slowly, but surely, and I just have a good feeling about it. Trying to keep a positive outlook on things. I hope the New Year brings you all the joy and happiness possible. God bless you all.