This time of year always seems to be stressful for parents.  Most people's budgets are tight enough, but in November and December you have to scratch the bottom of the barrel for Xmas presents, travel, and holiday meals . Unless your one of those people who are wise enough to by Xmas all year long (I'm not, I'm a procrastinator).

This year has been kind of rough. The first few months my husband had been on unemployment due to a layoff, so we were a little behind on some of our bills. We couldn't find him a decent paying job in Kansas City, so we moved back to a little town in central kansas that had started booming while we were away. We both have jobs now, but there were no houses to rent here so we bought ours. Buying a house was our dream, but we weren't financially ready for it. Luckily we got help from the lender and a first-time homeowners deal, and my mother-in-law. She's been really great about not complaining too much on how long it's taking us to pay her off, but I really hate oweing people money. We brought several of our bills from Kansas City here, and I have been paying them off a little at a time.

A couple months after we got here I was put into emergency surgery for a tumor the size of a grapefruit on my ovary. It happened a week before my insurance kicked in so the bills are amazing. I've been trying to pay what I can, but then my kids got strep and I had to pay those dr bills. Now after 9 months here my husband has to go in for surgery on his shoulder and they are making us pay for the co-pays as  we go.

I've been trying to switch from 2nd shift to 1st, so that I have more time with my kids. The 1st time a position came open someone with more seniority got it. I don't begrudge her, she is a really great lady. There doesn't seem to be another position coming open very soon though, so I am going to be a little more productive with my mornings and get a part time job to help catch bills up.

What I keep reminding myself of when I start to feel overwhelmed and stressed out is that, although it has been a rough year it has also been a blessed one. We have a home! Something we've wanted for a few years now. My children each have their own bedroom and a backyard to play in. I can grow a garden and sit in the yard. They are doing good in school. We both have jobs, and even though our bosses are jerks, the jobs are stable. We have insurance, something we couldn't afford in Kansas City. Here with the medical problems that have come up, we can manage to pay them; in Kansas City we would have been up a creek; we may have even lost our apartment if we had had to be out of work. Life is more peaceful here in a little town, and as a family we are stronger and more loving. I even have the chance to go back to school next year to begin the Nursing program because it is only 2 days a week here instead of the 5 days in Kansas City (I haven't decided to do it yet, but it is an option I didn't have before).

I had an incredibly strong feeling that the goddess was not only pushing us to move here, but practically shoving us. I have felt that she has been more involved with our lives this year than ever before. And I am immensely grateful! I will remain calm, I will make it through the rough days, everything will be all right because she is with me.

I hope that as you start into the stressfull season, you are able to see the "the big picture". I hope that you don't have any major problems, but that if you do you are able to slide through them calmly, one at a time, and with grace.

Brightest Blessings!