Living here in TX has its benefits! Car insurance is almost 50% less expensive than PA, our mortgage is 200% less than MA, and we have Noah at one of the best schools in the whole of the district! We are doing well here in smalltownville! But...money is always tight and costs continue to rise for food, pre-school and gas. Just last week we found out that pre-school for the three youngest will go up by $40 per child next year!!!!!!
When we first got here last year the Sr. Pastor at the time somehow got us into our churches pre-school using $$ from a Pastor's only fund. It was a generous gift and allowed us to work and get settled and have the kids totally taken care of M-F til noon!!!!
When the new Sr. Pastor got here mid-June, he had other uses for that $$ and we were told that we'd have to start paying...well, that took a few months to figure out and he also tried to negotiate a discount for church staff and told us that we were OK until the new budget was passed...the discount was vetoed in the preschool board (not the church board!!) and at the end of Jan. the new budget was passed...we did get a nice raise but not enough to cover the cost of Keighley and Isaac's preschool.
RIck started subbing and God is good we are able to cover their costs! WHEW!!!! Well, there was a miscommunication about January's payment...we thought we were covered for Jan and come to find out that we weren't...we were brainstorming with ways to pay for it when we recived a gift from a few members in the church ($320) in CASH!!!! WOW, AMAZING....what a generous and well timed gift!!!!
The Sunday night the envelope was handed to me was a crazy one...we had our kids to get in the van, youth group kids to see off, stuff to load up, papers to be handled, Adult leaders with questions and so on...the envelope made it into the van and then disappeared!!
It was gone...vanished...not in the van, not in the office, youth room, bedroom, other van, garbage, under the couch, in Noah's piggy bank, in Keighley's basket, in the bathroom, kids room, kitchen, front porch, recycling....it wasn't ANYWHERE!!!
A stoney silence came over the house as Rick and I really wanted to cast blame on the other and we couldn't...we couldn't remember who had handled it last....I had opened it, but Rick had cleaned out the van...I had unloaded stuff but Rick had cleaned off our kitchen shelf that keeps all our paperwork... ARRGGGRRGGG....it was very stressful....
A few days ago I decided to make spring rolls for dinner...needed to check the recipe and make sure I got the right stuff...as I opened the cookbook out slide an envelope....THE envelope...full of cash!!!!!
That dreaded night of long ago, we had made cookies in youth group to illustrate a point and I had my cookbook there...one of us must have put it inside for safe keeping...it found its way back on the shelf...but not remembered when the search was on....
So, with much relief and much gratefulness we have our wonderful gift. RIck and I made up...and life continues on here in smalltownville TX!
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