Changes

Life has been so full of change lately and I must confess...I don't always handle change well. For many years, our life was calm. The girls had chosen to live with their mom and the oldest boy had been sent to live with relatives in hope that a new environment might change his ways (by the way...don't try that ever. It just made him feel like we didn't want him around and he found the same thug friends and did the same thug things wherever he went).

Anywho, for several years it was just Joe and I and the two younger boys. We took a lot of trips and just hung out and had a good time. Then, in the last year, everything has changed again. Not changed in a bad way, just changed so that life now is so incredibly FULL all the time.

Girl number one works full time and goes to college full time. She is married and has a step son. They live less than a mile away so we see them frequently.

Girl number two lives in the house directly behind ours (literally ten steps from our back door) . She has a boyfriend and a baby. The boyfriend just lost his job a week ago but is job hunting. She is in college full time. We see them a lot too.

Boy number one is out of prison. The transformation is amazing. He is polite, considerate and even better....job hunting. He will have a hard time finding a job because he has no work history but he's out there looking and I think someone will give him a chance. He rented his very first apartment yesterday and will be living on his own as soon as he gets the water and electric turned on. Until then he's camped out in our basement, eating me out of house and home.

The husband is still laid off, though they do call him in to work sometimes. He never did apply for unemployment and now it's too late.

So are you adding this all up? I am working about 50 hours a week. Some weeks the husband works 20, some weeks none at all. So basically, I, and I alone, am supporting three households. It is neat to see all the kids more. It's neat to see them all growing up and taking responsibility for their lives. It's neat to have grandkids around and kids coming out of every corner again. But sometimes I miss those nice quiet years. However, those years are gone and not coming back. The two younger boys head to high school next year and life will only get busier. Like I said, I don't always do well with change but I'm learning to let go and just enjoy the ride. So many positive things have taken place in the last few months.