Thoughts on becoming a STATISTIC

Well, it's been three weeks since we found out John's company is letting him go in November (as well as two others). Turns out the company has been affected by the recession more than was thought at first. The first week, we were so shell-shocked, we just sort of sat around for a couple of days and let ourselves feel numb. Well, at least I did. John, however, got cracking around Day Two by tweaking his resume and making phone calls regarding our new tight budget.

We couldn't even really tell family for a while--it seems like every person you tell makes it more real, you know?

I don't think I've ever had so many questions about the future:

* What will we do about insurance?

* Will we need to get on unemployment for a while?

* Will we both need to work 1,000 jobs to make ends meet?

* Why did this have to happen before Christmas, of all things?

* Where will we be living 6 months from now? Will I like living there though I'm once again, far from kith and kin (aka: my mommy and daddy)?

* Will this help me truly realize how dependent I am on God, that I am nothing, and have nothing, without Him?

I guess the last question is really and truly the only one that matters in His book. In the last three weeks, I've heard some awesome, encouraging sermons, heard about others' plights that are FAR worse than our own, read Scriptures that just really seem to hit on what we're going through, and best of all, have not had the DEEP DARK depression that has so often plagued my existence. In the face of a stressor such job loss, that, my dear ones, is a miracle from above.

I don't know the future, but I know we are in his Almighty, capable, providing hands. And there's no place else I'd rather be.

Two pretty cards

Goodness, I realize it's been a month since I've posted anything. I have lots to say, but tonight I'm just gonna post a couple of cards I made. You can't really tell, but the first one has three- dimensional elements on the left side.

I'll try to write more again soon.

All for now,

Tricia

Pretty purple delight

Here's a card I stitched as a wedding card for a family member who just got married. Not a conventional wedding card, true, but I thought the colors and obvious time it took to stitch the card would be appreciated. :) Be sure to click on the photo to see the design closeup.

We love the Rangers!

In August, John and Hannah took in a game at the Ballpark at Arlington. (We are spoiled to live so close!) They were so excited to cheer for their team. The Rangers went on to win, 4-3 in the bottom of the tenth inning! Hannah likes to take some of the credit that her screaming helped the ball players! Hey, whatever works! ha!

Due to the distracting elements of bleachers, spectators, etc., at the game, I highlighted only J and H in the photos in order to capture their smiles and team spirit (plus that awesome red Rangers ballcap!) for the collage. I purposely did not put a lot of embellishments on the page so the #1 Fans would stand out on the page. :)

Hope you enjoy!

All for now,
Tricia

Helicopters, hiking and Hannah

Well, we've certainly had quite a week. It started out with a bang on Labor Day. John and I took Hannah to Cleburne State Park to go hiking, complete with picnic and walking sticks. We ate our suppers right down at the lake, which was gorgeous. There was a light breeze and the heat of the day had disappeared, leaving us with the usual warm, muggy September evening temperatures. We laughed at Hannah as she kept her eye out for coyotes, armadillo, deer, bunnies--ANY kind of wildlife would have made her happy. Alas, we were alone except for the two-wheeled type (cyclists! ha!). But we had a great time anyway and Hannah was optimistic that we'd see some animals the next time!

The next day, Hannah came home really sick, with 104.0 degrees temp. She had chills and vomiting and was just one sick puppy. Poor baby, the temperature climbed to 104.7. We watched it very carefully, gave her ibuprofen and were ready to take her to the ER if need be. But thankfully her fever went down and we all breathed a sigh of relief. John and I washed and washed and WASHED our hands and so far, we've not gotten sick (as we cross our fingers). Surprisingly, Hannah was only out of school one day and by the middle of that day, her temp was normal.

So where do the helicopters come in? I'm glad you asked! DFW had a tremendous amount of rain in a short period of time, which produced flash flooding. While I was napping, John and Hannah heard a helicopter and looked out the window to see THREE of them, hovering across the street. Turns out all of the residents were having to evacuate and be rescued from their homes--the water rose that fast! The news channels covered the story and poor mom had to watch all of that, wondering how we were. She only called my cell, which was turned off while I blissfully slept (sorry, mom!); guess she didn't think we'd be home to answer our phone.

Anyway, our residence is a lot higher in elevation than those across the street, for which we were so grateful! Besides, with Hannah being sick, it would have been a nightmare to try to run out and go somewhere (and lose all our belongings as well!).

So ... a bit of excitement in the Williams household this week.

All for now,

Tricia

School Days!

We are getting ready to start our fourth week at Burton! Goodness, where does the time go? Hannah is enjoying fifth grade a lot, and I'm really glad all her little girlfriends are getting along fairly well. Hopefully that will continue. We're lucky she's not interested in generating drama that young girls and their "social cliques" do sometimes.

Homework sessions can still be a bit traumatic on occasion--it just seems like it never ends! I know that when she gets home, she's very ready to switch from "school" mode to "play" mode, which I completely understand. She is such a wiggleworm, too, and after sitting still for most of the day, she has lots of wiggles to get out! I think there's a lot more order in this year's classroom, though, and she's able to hear the instructions for her lessons and that has helped ease some of the pressure as well!

Funny Hannah story: in the usual "What I did this summer" essay, Hannah wrote about going to see her Grandma Williams in California. At the end, she was TRYING to say that she and daddy caught the shuttle to the airport to fly back to mommy, but got a little confused and wrote that they "caught the space shuttle back to the airport..." ha! John and I had a great chuckle over that one. We joked with Hannah that we were very impressed! She just giggled. :)

Well, that's an update on our Hannah girl (and us). This Labor Day we haven't done anything too terribly exciting. Last week was kind of a long week and we've been in a mostly vegetative state since Friday.

I'll try to post again a little sooner--can't believe it's been six weeks since my last post!

All for now,

Tricia

A different sort of birthday card

I made this card as a birthday card for a girlfriend who loves to cook. I thought it turned out well and had fun with some new stencils I got. I'm trying to learn how to work with shading a little more and like the effect of my "apron" here.

All for now,
Tricia