WELCOME 2009

I can't say as though I am sad to see 2008 end. It has been a tough year and I am glad that we have a fresh start. The last half of the year was tough and the last few months have brought on some very difficult trials. I am a firm believer that from trials come blessings and that is definitely the case for our family.

I have had some personal challenges and losses which have tested me more than I have ever been tested. As a family we lost some friends that meant a lot to us. I guess from these experiences I have learned that the only people you can really trust are your family. Although it was painful we needed a reminder that family comes first. This has proved to be a great blessing to us.

We also received countless blessing this fall when Jon lost his job. He technically was never without work because he has a lot of skills he can rely on and thankfully his family put him to work. We received so much support from both of our families it was quite humbling. We owe a lot of thanks to a lot of people. Although it was mentally and physically trying it ended up being a great blessing because the job he found is much better. From this we learned to be more mindful of others that may be in need of help.

In December the kids and I were involved in a head on car accident with a Dodge Ram that was going to fast for the conditions. Both cars were totalled and we were all very lucky. I had just picked the kids up from school and we were off to tumbling for Ally and than batting practice for Jake. Jake was sitting in the front. Luke was behind my seat and Ally was in the far back seat. All 3 kids were eating the snacks I had brought them. Jake was eating a nacho cheese and salsa Lunchable which went all over everything. I mention this because if you ask Luke about the accident all he talks about is the cheese all over the car and if we were going to clean it up. As far as injuries, Jake and I were banged up. He had burns on his face from the airbag and they xrayed his lungs because he was having chest pain. The drivers side pretty much collapsed from the impact and I was pinned in my seat. My right leg and knee have some issues. The window shattered and so I found glass in my head for days after the crash. All things considered we were being watched over. About 2 minutes before it happened I told Ally to put on her seat belt on the correct way since she always puts the front strap behind her. I also made sure Luke had not slipped out of the top part of his car seat like he always does. As a result the two little ones did not get any injuries. As you can tell from the pictures above that we could have been seriously hurt. One lady who witnessed the whole accident was crying when I talked to her because she was sure that someone had been killed. We were definitely blessed that day.

After that our brand new expensive gate blew off and Jon lost a hub cap. We were all really sick for 2 weeks straight right before Christmas. It was a non-stop trip to the doctor without insurance. Some of these may seem like little things but when they are all added together you start to think you are cursed. I didnt even dare leave the house. That was how we ended our year. So we are definetely stronger from the year 2008 but never want to relive it. We will take the lessons we learned from our trials and APPLY them. Welcome 2009!!