Lyrics to my prayer

This song really spoke to me about all that we have been struggling with lately. Especially the second verse about pressed but not crushed, persecuted but not abandoned...thanks again for all the prayers. Please keep them coming....
Until next time......


I'm trading my sorrow
I'm trading my shame
I'm laying it down for the joy of the Lord
I'm trading my sickness
I'm trading my pain
I'm laying it down for the joy of the Lord

Chorus:And we say yes Lord
yes Lord yes yes Lord
Yes Lord yes Lord
yes yes Lord
Yes Lord yes Lord
yes yes Lord Amen

I'm pressed but not crushed
persecuted not abandoned
Struck down but not destroyed
I'm blessed beyond the curse
for his promise will endure
And his joy's gonna be my strength
Though the sorrow may last for the night
His joy comes with the morning

13 days and Counting~

Well its been almost two weeks since we lost our job here! We are still faithfully optimistic but it can be really hard at times. We have been blessed with an awesome family support system and group of great friends! This is not easy on us but we are trudging through it and hoping to come out better on the other side!

Some positive has come out of job loss~ Since we home school our kids they have had the benefit of learning from both Mom and Dad these past two weeks. Marc is great with helping out, ( I secretly think he is liking keeping his mind busy) much better with science experiments than me, and I think he enjoys relearning with the kids lots of the History stuff. Needless to say it can be a little too much togetherness at times but we are managing. :)

We have had lots of resumes sent out but are always looking for the next lead to follow up on. For many of you who have been out of a job for any amount of time you know how frustrating that whole hurry up and wait routine can be. Marc so far is very positive about the future and we are just striving to keep life as normal as possible for our kids. They have been pretty good all in all with the change of having Daddy home, to me at times it can be a constant reminder that we aren't getting a paycheck each day he is here. I am sure he feels that way as well. I keep telling him that life is this way for many people right now and its not anything to do with him personally just the way the world is right now! The economy stinks and we just fell victims to it!

Well anyhow I just wanted to update you all as to what has happened so far...keep praying for the job we are supposed to have, that it will be in the perfect time and one Marc clearly enjoys!

Thanks again for all the prayers and well wishes, as well as the many anonymous gifts that have come our way!

Until next time....

Life

Well its only the first week of being out of a job and it feels like a lifetime!

Right now I am frustrated with the government and its hoops you need to jump through to get things done. We are currently working on just the insurance issues. We don't qualify for MI Child insurance which is offered through the state of Michigan. They have sent an application for Medicaid in for the kids, I say they because when you apply for Michild, if you don't qualify it automatically applies for the medicaid. I am also working on getting some other insurance for Caleb thru Children's Special Health Care Services, this he qualifies for due his Cerebral Palsy. They have their owns sets of hoops to jump through, I am going to try to tackle that one again tomorrow. It requires me going to the doctors main office and having them fax the medical records to them and then they will let us know in approx two and half weeks if we can maybe get that~ UGH! Today I feel like screaming! I just want them to be covered in case of an illness. Being that its January and they are all asthmatics going without insurance is like almost crazy!

Marc is doing okay so far, he is I think still in shock. I am in the mode of let's send that resume to wherever and as many places as we can possibly get it, he is more reserved at this point. I just want to be proactive....

I changed my school schedule around a bit, I dropped the anatomy and lab (which is one class but meets separately) and added a math class I needed and left the computer class alone ...so I still have the same number of credits but a little more time open. While my mind is scattered right now I felt it better to hold off on the science class, they count as heavily weighted grades going into the nursing program. Anyhow I am okay with what I have so far so we will see....

The kids have their moments, they are like me ....sometimes more worried and aware that things aren't the same and other times oblivious to all the what ifs. My worrier, Luke, is the hardest one to assure. Honestly I think he just wants to be assured that his life isn't going to change all that much, really isn't that what we all want??? I want to hear that too! :) Anyhow, I have constantly told them that no matter what we will be fine, together and taken care of. Stuff is still just that STUFF, not all that important. :)

If you are praying for us~ THANK YOU! If you are looking for specifics to pray about here ya go!
1) Our health ~especially the kids.
2) A new job with benefits of course
3) Provision for all our needs, for physical,spiritual, and emotional.
4) Pray for this special healthcare to go thru without a hitch so that Caleb can return to therapy asap!

Marc & I have been really encouraged by the song by Tenth Ave North this week, it seems it is always on when we get in the car. "By your side" I have included the words below..check it out on itunes or youtube for the music ~

Thanks for the prayers ~keep them coming!
Until next time......

Why are you striving these days
Why are you trying to earn grace
Why are you crying
Let me lift up your face
Just don't turn away
Why are you looking for love
Why are you still searching
as if I'm not enough
To where will you go child
Tell me where will you run
To where will you run
'Cause I'll be by your side
Wherever you fall
In the dead of night
Whenever you call
And please don't fight
These hands that are holding you
My hands are holding you
Look at these hands and my side
They swallowed the grave on that night
When I drank the world's sin
So I could carry you in
And give you life
I want to give you life

Job loss and January blues

Hi everyone,

Well its just frigid outside right now, although today was what they are calling a warming trend, its reached 21 I believe. The last few days its been like 5 degrees and we are just chilled to the bone ~ Brrr...I am so tired of Winter already and its only January.

Thursday was my birthday, a memorable one at that. My husband lost his job that day. We were pretty shocked to say the least. Even when you know its a possibility its always in the back of your mind that it won't really happen to you. Well here we are....we have never been here before. Its a whole new world...

We don't know what to do first ...we have filed for unemployment, applied for health insurance for our kids, and basically don't know what to do next. We don't haven enough to make it even a month honestly with a paycheck...unemployment is $350 dollars a week for a family of five ~ We are stressed but also trusting in what we know and that is that somehow God is going to provide for us. Not that I expect that its not going to get a whole lot worse before it gets better but that he is going to bring us through this and make us better for it.

My mind is going a million directions right now and my concentration is just lacking. I can't think about it all at once or its overwhelming. The first night I went to bed in a haze, chanting to myself "When I am afraid I will trust in you", I know that even in my subconscious all night that kept me going, I also awoke that night about 4am and began searching for the verse that had popped into my head while asleep, "my God will supply all your needs according to his riches in glory!" God is providing already, I see that in many ways. First he has calmed my spirit at times when I didn't think he could. He has provided great awesome friends to call and check on us and let us know we are in their prayers, I can feel those prayers holding us up! He has given us our family that no matter what will stand by us through it all! He has provided in telling our children and for them to accept that even if we lose it all we still have each other, he has taken their fears and comforted them at this scary time. But most of all he is teaching us to let him provide and let him lead since we really can't control anything that happens at this time. We are faithful and we are blessed by more than stuff we are blessed by knowing that we have a hope that far exceeds anything earthly things! We have a hope and a future and its in his hands we wait ......

Our prayer requests currently are :

1~ a job for Marc that he enjoys and that pays the bills
2~ the ability to keep our home, and the utilities on.
3~ our children and ourselves to stay healthy during this down time with insurance or jobs.
4~ our spirits to stay encouraged and upbeat and not let Satan take control.
5~ for the so many others around us that are also unemployed and their families.

Until next time.....

A New Year~ Means New Goals

Well its already the 6th day of January and I am just getting around to updating you all on life~ Its already been a busy year for us! I made lots of new goals (not resolutions, just goals), I of course added some things to our already full school schedule and am seeing how that works out in real life. (looks good on paper) I also have made some changes to the ways we spend our money~ more out of necessity than want but all the same its in the works. It can be very hard to budget when you have little to work with but we are trying to cut back and lean up this year!

Lets see our biggest adjustment of the year thus far is that our income was cut by 20%, as well as time spent at work, vacation time, personal days etc...With all that said we are still among the lucky to be employed in Michigan. If you have that perfect job for us somewhere please don't hesitate to call me or email though at any time! :) We are praying the Lord provides what we need when we need it this year as we have done for some time now. The times are shaky in this day and age, people around us are losing their homes and jobs and just downright nervous...its when we are at those points when God I believe is at his best! I picture him looking at us and saying ..."HELLO~ haven't I always provided for you? Would I stop now just because of the state of the economy? Aren't I bigger than all that "stuff"?"..... He wants us to find our perfect rest in his peace.

So we went back to school here at home. We homeschool if you haven't already heard that by now. Anyhow~ I have to really watch to make sure they are working and getting things done and not just telling me they finished things. We kind of fell into that trap when things got busy I took them at their word they had done what we had assigned after each lesson and found that not always was that really the case. I am much better now to correct immediately and not let time pass between those corrections. :) (MEAN MOTHER I AM) LOL :)

Caleb is back to preschool this week, Monday was back to our routine for him, although we didn't make it to Speech Therapy this week. Preschool is starting the alphabet now and letter sounds more aggressively then the beginning of the year. He loves school, did I mention that already? Loves the kids, and the teachers and just about everything they do! :) He is my social butterfly though~ I find this funny after too very quiet and reserved kids~ he is my one who can't seem to be alone (much like his mother). He has been a huge blessing to all of us, he keeps us all laughing at all times.

Tomorrow we head back to MAFA (our older two attend this on Wednesdays throughout the year), the boys are excited to get back to their friends there. Also we have orthodontic appts, dentists appts and preschool to get too! It will be a mother taxi day! Thankfully I don't start my classes till next week or else this Wednesday would be way too long!

As I type I am listening to my baby cry in the shower ....he hates it! I need to go to rescue him....or his father which ever needs more rescuing....

Until next time.....