A Birthday & Uncertain Times

On April 14th our little "Stinkerbell" turned three! I still can not believe it. Our precious little girl has been with us for three whole years.

She is ornery (hence the nickname "Stinkerbell), full of energy and full of fun.

She has a serious side too. She likes to have her "me" time and go off and play by herself. She is stingy with hugs and kisses but loves to be tickled. When she does give out hugs they last long enough to make up for the ones you've missed out on.

Her giggle is infectious. She loves to dance, dress up, and have tea parties- adorned with pearls and a designer handbag. She is also the first to jump in the puddle or sit in the mud with trains and bulldozers. She loves her big brother and her baby sister and is the little mother hen around our roost. "Bear" has the best mommy of all!

She is spunky, feisty, strong-willed, and very independent. Her famous catch-phrase is "NO! I do it!"

Bella has had a lot of health issues for her young age but has been a strong little trooper- always surprising the doctors and nurses, and mommy and daddy too. Recently, God gave us the answers to her problems and we finally feel like we can breath a little more freely and squeeze her a little tighter.

There are so many things about Bella that I adore. So many reasons I love her. So many days that have been filled with sunshine and giggles. I am ever so grateful that God decided that I was good enough to raise her as my own. I am blessed!

Mommy loves you Bella. Even though you are getting bigger you will always be that little peanut I used to rock to sleep. Thank You for three wonderful and whimsical years Stinkerbell. I am so glad you were born. Boop!

Even in the midst of such a joyous occasion, our minds were burdened with feelings of uncertainty. With the terrible economic crisis that is blanketing the country, my husband and I have always felt a sense of security and confidence in his job. That was, until this past Monday. The more we hear, the more the news seems to be discouraging. My husband does not make what most consider big money but he works hard and he provides for our family. We are happy and I am happy because he loves what he does. The very thought of investing thirteen years in to a company and suddenly being without makes me sick to my stomach. The worst part is- if my husband were to lose his job, we would also lose our home. As I have mentioned before, our apartment is included in his pay. If for any reason he is let go, we would have to move from our home within seven days. Seven days. It would definitely turn our world upside down.

Surprisingly enough though, I don't really feel stress or worry about the situation. I know in my heart that God will take care of us- and He will provide for us, come what may. I continue to pray that God give me the Faith to trust Him, that no matter what happens, we will be alright.

A friend told me the other day that his false sense of security was coming from his job- and not from God. That gave me an AHA! moment and I realized then that I needed to shift where my faith was directed.

For now we are cutting back every where we can and trying to pay off things as much as possible. I actually shut my cable and internet off over a month ago. I assumed that as long as I had a laptop I could go wireless.............needless to say that is part to blame on the erratic posting. I have learned that my technological knowledge is not as vast as I once thought!! Thank you to my neighbors for unsecured networks that made this post possible!! hee hee

It is definitely a scary time right now in the country as far as the economy goes. But as I sat watching my children climbing on and dancing around with my husband the other night, I made a promise to myself. I will NOT allow fear of the unknown to take the joy away from the right now.

~Heather:)