Good news

I was reading through some past postings and thought I would update you on what has transpired since the "unemployment" post. Despite the loss of Troy's job and the frustration with the unemployment red tape, a few very good things have happened. Troy is almost finished with all of his coursework. He was able to get placed in Bagley to student teach which will begin in January. He was able to have a second appeal with unemployment, and we are waiting to hear what the judge decided. We have been waiting for a few weeks which we hope is a good sign. Last time he was denied, we heard back within two days! And the best news--because he is a "dislocated worker" he qualifies for services through Rural MN CEP, an agency that helps people find jobs, and they are paying for his spring tuition! The tuition is roughly the equivalent of what he would have made had he stayed at the radio station working part-time and gone to school.


Last year I had the realization of how important it is to focus on the positive things in life. This has helped me as we have made adjustments with job loss, income, etc. Through life's ups and downs, the Lord shows Himself faithful in ways we would never have imagined.

Words that make sense

Here are a few words in Mateo's vocabulary that make pretty good substitutes until he gets the hang of the actual word.

Real word
1)M & M's
2)Bo Peep
3)hop scotch
4) Rudolph the Rednosed Reindeer

Mateo version
1)nummy nums
2)Bo Sheep
3)hop chalk
4)Reindolph

Early warning signs?

Should I be worried that my 3 year old is exhibiting some signs of OCD? Like for example when he has to make sure the DVD has to be turned so that it's right-side-up in the DVD player before he closes the lid? Or when he spotted a Kool-Aid packet lying on the floor in Wal-Mart and made me put it back where it belonged? Or when he always locks the inside lock on the car door next to his car seat? Or when he noticed among the colored row of beach buckets on the floor in the dollar store there was a green shovel in the yellow bucket and told me to put the green shovel in the green bucket? Hmmmm...

Where did the time go?

It's the middle of December and my last entry was November 4th. Where did the time go? For posterity (a word that my mom likes to use) I am going to do a quick fill-in-the-blank summary. The first part of November had me making preparations for Mateo's third birthday party which we celebrated with family and friends on November 5. My extra-curricular at school, the junior high play, was in full swing. I had to get 21 kids ready to perform the weekend of the 21st. The weekend after Mateo's party, we spent time at my parents for deer-hunting--not to hunt but to hang out with cousins which is always fun! It brings back memories of the good old days. The next week the play did go on despite two kids not being in the show--one exit was more dramatic than the other. The main thing was that everyone had finally learned his/her lines. The following weekend we spent a long weekend in Coon Rapids for Thanksgiving and had fun at the Mall of America with Mateo. After that it was back home to get Christmas decorations up, cards mailed, and cookies baked. I have also been doing some preliminary speech stuff after school getting geared up for the 2009 season. Today is Sunday and if it weren't for the blizzard outside, I would be getting ready to play Mary in the church Christmas program and then making gingerbread houses after the service. Believe it or not, I'm really okay with staying at home, relaxing, and not doing a whole lot of anything for just one day!