Four Things

-Have I mentioned that J and I are playing on a co-ed softball team this year? I'm a little nervous for it (because I'm super competitive when it comes to softball and I don't feel like I'm in good enough "softball shape" to play) but we're doing it just to have fun. The first game is the 25th. Justin's band is playing a fundraiser the night of the 24th, so it should be a busy, busy weekend.

-Also, my allergies are going CRAZY this year. I have a constant sore throat from all the snot dripping down it! I've been a little nervous that we might have to cut out my allergy shots because they are just SO expensive with Justin's work insurance right now. Right now, it's a no deductible plan, but we have to pay 50% of everything. Which is just really hard. However, Justin just told me that in May, the company will be going back to their old insurance, which means that allergy shots will be $5!!! And, right now we have to pay $300 a month to keep us all on his insurance. In May, the company will start paying for us all again. Do you know how many different ways we could use an extra $300/month?!

-The above is a great example for me of God providing in our life. I remember talking a lot with my prior co-worker Emily about staying home with Lizzy. I've talked about Emily on the blog before here, but she's also now blogging, and you should totally check out her blog! Anyway, I distinctly felt like God was calling me to stay home with Lizzy--and I might add that this was strange for me, because I have never before felt like God was calling me to do anything. I was one of those people who would totally roll their eyes when people said 'God spoke to me', because I thought they were full of it (and honestly, when people say that God spoke to them about where to go for dinner, I still roll my eyes. Though that's probably bad of me). Anyway, I remember praying and praying, and feeling so confident that I was supposed to stay home. But also being really nervous about how that would actually work, because it just didn't work on paper. Yet, it has worked. In fact, things actually work BETTER than when I was working in a lot of ways. This has been a powerful lesson for me about how when you're doing what God calls you to be doing, your basic needs WILL be provided for. Do we have money to go to the movies, and go shopping? Nope. But our basic needs are met, and that's all I need right now.

-And because I love pictures, here's a shot of Lizzy over the weekend, doing her favorite thing--standing. Anyone who knows Lizzy can attest that she hates to lay down (she thinks you're trying to put her to sleep), and LOVES to stand!

State of The Union

Today, another mill closed. This is the second mill to close in two weeks, and has resulted in over 300 layoffs. For a city our size, that's HUGE.

A friend of the family's, who is a local plumbing inspector, told me on Sunday that he's been given a 20% pay cut and knocked down to part-time. Because of his new part-time status, he now has to pay an additional $200 each month for his insurance.

A school teacher friend and her husband are losing their house because her husband's company gave everyone a $4/hour pay cut. She's also taken a pay cut, and between the two of them, they can no longer afford their mortgage payment.

Justin heard today that a local plumbing supply shop all took a 10% cut in pay. It was that or lay off half the company.

Basically, my point is that it's a scary time in our economy right now, particularly for those of us who work (or whose husbands work) in the trades. Construction is down right now, and consequently EVERYONE involved in manual labor is feeling the burn. And I'm positive that this directly relates to the huge increase in the number of kids being taken into foster care I'm seeing. When I first started my job, about two to four kids came into foster care each week. Now, it's two to four a DAY. I'm seeing a huge increase in substance abuse and domestic violence. I guess it's a scary time to be a kid in this economy too. AND a wife.

Worth A Thousand Words

In what just may have been our worst monetary decision of 2009, Justin and I decided to get the DSLR camera today. We were going to wait until the end of the month, but Canon is having a manufacturer's special through the 17th that allows for a second lens at a greatly reduced price. We were going to order it off of Costco, but decided that we really wanted to play around with it first. So, we headed off to a local camera shop to test it out. As expected, the camera kit was more expensive at the local shop. However, after spending about a half an hour talking with the guy, we decided to go ahead and purchase it from him. Even though it was slightly more, J and I were able to support a local business, which we both think is really important. Then, after we bought the camera, the guy spent an hour teaching us all kinds of tips and tricks that it probably would have taken me months to figure out from reading the manual...we both left feeling like spending a little more was really worth it in this situation. So without further adieu, here's some of our pics from our first day shooting:

Kait called to tell us that the moon was supposed to be HUGE today. Sho nuf, it was ginormous! We had to pull over and take a shot...

Justin's really excited about the camera too. He snapped this one, which I think is unusual, but kind of neat.

I wanted to experiment with the Christmas lights in the background. J was my test subject. Not too bad for an after-dark shot.

I think I caught Logan by surprise :)