Overflowing heart

On the day I said, "I do!" I went from having a few thousand dollars to having -$30,000ish dollars. It was an awful realization. But, Cody and I worked hard. Really, really hard. I worked two jobs as did Cody. I made more money than he did (that's not usually good for ones ego.) but we worked hard. Cody worked on motorcycles, ATVs... Anything with an engine on the side to make ends meet. The problem with that job, we always had lots of money tied up in parts and lots of money tied up in parts when there is no money was quite stressful. But, anytime money came in, we paid our tithing and distributed the rest of the money towards debt and bills and then trusted in The Lord. December, eight years ago, Cody had done a big job on a couple of sleds and we were paid just over $1,000.00. I immediately took it to the bank and paid all of our outstanding bills only to find out the next day that the check had bounced, but there was no way I could take back the money I had already sent. It was a stressful day. We were also in dire need of groceries. Like bad. I took our change container to the store and had it counted. $30.48 was how much money we had to eat. I shopped very strategically and purchased food for two weeks. The next day I stopped by my Mom's house and she gave me a chicken pot pie for dinner. I swung by. Cody's parents house and his dad gave me a bag with a whole chicken in it and two lbs of bacon. Neither of them knowing how poor we currently were. I remember getting in my car and praying. My heart was overflowing with gratitude. We had more than wee needed when we thought we had nothing. Cody went to the bank to pick up the check and the teller working (probably thought he was hot!) told him that she would cash the check for us and then we could deposit the cash and then the guys account would go in the negative instead of ours. We were able to pay all of our bills and avoid any further over draft charges due to her kindness. It was a stressful time in our life. I reflect on it often. When we drove past the Smith's in Idaho Falls this past summer, it pulled at my heart strings. I was filled with gratitude for the things we have. That same December Cody and I were both in need of a new pair of pants and so that's what we gifted each other. We even wrapped them. :) this year as I look under our tree, we have seven presents for each person to open, I'm overwhelmed. We are so blessed. I think it's hard to be truly grateful for what you haven unless there was a time when you haven't. I'm so grateful for the things I have learned, for the things I can teach my children, and for the desire I have to help those in the same position as we once were. 

Merry Christmas!

We are blessed and we know it!