December already

I can't believe it's December already! It's been a little bit of a rough week. Our dog Taco passed away Wednesday evening. He was a rescue the came to us from my sweet friend Mary who saved him just as they were taking him back to euthanize him. She got him to us, and we had two sweet years with him before he passed away. 

Friday we had a family get together at my cousin's house, which was fun. The kids got some fun gifts, and I got to see some family I don't get to see very often. 

Yesterday my mom brought by some groceries, which was a huge help as we were basically out. Right now I would really appreciate your prayers that God will send some funds by tomorrow. We have car insurance coming out, and I don't have the money in there to cover it right now. Nick also needs gas in his truck, and we have about another $85 in bills to cover by tomorrow as well. I know God is able, and I'm grateful already for His timely provision!

 

Little blessings

Happy Birthday to my brother James! (Not that he'll be reading here).

Today I looked at our bank account and realized that a draft I wasn't expecting had come out, overdrawing us a little. It wasn't fraudulent, just something I didn't realize was coming out yesterday. The blessing was that the bank didn't charge us an overdraft fee (not sure why, but I'll take it), and we had enough cash on hand to put in and prevent anything else from overdrawing it.

I went by the shelter again today to look for Pancho (still missing), and he wasn't there, which likely means he's still around here somewhere with a girlfriend. Please do be in prayer though. He's the best dog we've ever had, and I'd really hate to lose him.

I was able to get a bunch of clothes put away and the living room cleaned by the time Nick got home, despite a middle of the day trip across town to get the bank deposit and visit the shelter, so that was nice.

Anyway, I'm off to take a stroll around the neighborhood and call for Pancho. Have a great night!

Meet Pancho!

Gratitude...Wednesday

I just have to tell you guys how very good God has been to us today!

First of all, the whole lost pet saga actually got worse yesterday (yes, this story gets better). Besides the dog that disappeared a few months ago (and the one that disappeared on Monday), Morgan has had a turtle since we went to the beach last year. Now she's been very diligent with Franklin the turtle, feeding him daily, talking to him, etc...

Nick actually fed him on Sunday because he had to add some water to his aquarium. Monday, in all the uproar over the dog, Morgan forgot to feed him, which is not a huge big deal for just one day. Well yesterday she went to feed him and...he was gone. Just not there at all. We searched all around, certain he'd somehow miraculously climbed out of his aquarium (a mind-boggling feat in itself) and fallen to his untimely death. Two pets gone in two days!

Understandably, Nick and I were kind of down last night. Between all the pain Morgan was going through over the pets and a very tight budget lately and for the foreseeable future, things were feeling kind of bleak.

But today...well, today was one big blessing! To start with, today was the kick-off of a new sales program at my job. Sales is not a huge part of my position, but there are some opportunities to supplement your paycheck a little. With the new program they've increased commission on those sales by 33%.

Nick also had a phenomenal day commission-wise at work.

When we came home from work today, Franklin was hanging out in Morgan's floor, quite alive.


Then I opened our car insurance bill to find that our monthly premium for the next year has gone down by $38.00.

And best of all, a friend who knew we were looking for another puppy for Morgan sent me a message telling me to call her mom about one she was looking for a home for. It turns out the mom breeds Chihuahuas. She sells the puppies for between $300 and $500, and she's going to give Morgan one for free!

Happy Gratitude Tuesday Wednesday!

Changes

First of all, very sad news on the puppy front. When I got home today to take her to get her shots, she had gotten out of the fence. Nick and I both searched for hours, but we couldn't find her. Morgan, understandably is pretty upset.

Second of all, there are going to be some changes on the blog, namely the links and the artwork. This has been a difficult decision, and a very personal one, but basically it comes down to the fact that some of the sites I've linked have become a conflict with my faith. I don't make it a secret that I'm a Christian, but I've not had a very good testimony on here all the time. Because I refuse to point out this blog or that, for the time being at least I'm removing all the links except the links to DD forums, implement resources, and literature sites. I'll also be removing some of the more graphic artwork I've posted.

I know this won't be a popular decision, in part because I've always made it a point to promote new blogs, but I feel like this is something I have to do. I know that I'll lose a lot of hits, because understandably a lot of people will de-link me too, but I didn't start this blog to generate hits. That said, I'm very grateful for every hit that I've had, and I hate that this will inevitably offend some people. Please don't email me asking me to re-add your link, because I won't. Also, please don't take it personally.

I've made a tremendous number of friends through the blog, Grace, Paul, Carye, Eva, Bonnie, Ceeci, Reesa, Paige, Joannie, Tanya, Kallisto, Bethie, Cindy, Dave, PaulH, just to name a very, very few. This is by no means an all-inclusive list. I don't want to lose any of you, and I hope that I can continue to be friends with all of you. I ask you to all please respect my decision, even if you don't understand it.

God has been very good to me, and I owe it to Him to live a life that shows Him to others. I know that I'm far from perfect at that, but this is a message He's made clear to me, and I won't ignore it.