What 2009 has to offer...

Hey everyone! Hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! The holidays were eventful for us. First there was the snow.

The snow started on the day before my birthday. I drove Charlie to work, which is luckily really close to home, ( now that he's transferred) and after only 2 hours they told him he could head out early because the snow was really starting to come down. So I drove to get him, going on 20 MPH with my chain-less car. I never drive in the snow, it's a scary thing for me. I was doing pretty good until I got about 5 blocks from his work and I was going down this hill...and the light changed...and then a pedestrian starting walking across...yeah I tried my best to not slam on my brakes and still be able to stop...kind of slid and turned a little into the curb...missing the power pole only because I was going so slow! Oh it was bad...I'm apologizing over and over to the guy walking across the street and he's just laughing and saying it's okay. Needless to say Charlie drove home.

We woke up on Sunday morning, my birthday, to 4 inches of snow! Smart thinking me had gone right to the grocery store after dropping Charlie off at work the day before, so we were set and were able to just relax and enjoy the snow. I didn't have to work Monday..and things weren't too bad the rest of the week so I was able to slowly make my way into work. But then over the weekend it only got worse. I didn't go to work Monday or Tuesday, and made it in Wednesday because I got a ride! We had the rest of the week off for the holidays. Tuesday night Charlie and I used our pots and pans to try to dig our car out..to make it up the street to Target to do our Christmas shopping we still hadn't done because of the snow. That was a scary short trip. Then on Christmas eve Charlie and I both got off early and borrowed a neighbor's shovel to dig our car out of the 2 ft of snow that surrounded it. We weren't even sure we'd be able to make it to our parent's houses for Christmas! We did though. It was just all very rushed. Which mad me sad. But such is life.

The New Year has brought us a little bit of good fortune. Charlie has been at his job for about 3 months now. Things are going good...much much better since he's transferred to a non-mall store that's closer to home. His boss is a little crazy, and things have gotten really strict. Almost to the point of being ridiculous. Pretty much they're on a no tolerance spree. But with the new year, minimum wage goes up...and while Charlie was making more than minimum wage...it went up more than his pay was, so he got a raise! His boss also decided to extend the store hours by 1/2 an hour during the week and an hour on the weekends. So he's getting an extra 2 1/2 hours a week...every little bit helps! We're actually doing really good. Finally not really living paycheck to paycheck...paying debts back...and actually able to have fun every now and then.

In 2009 we will be:

*Renewing our lease, glad to not be moving!
*Saving up for a new car, mine is about to blow up
*Re-paying debts to family members and creditors
*Getting in shape! I will get back to my high school weight...
*Celebrating our 2 year anniversary in May!
*Taking a much needed vacation..even if it's just for a weekend.
*I'll be flying to Indiana in the summer to see my best-est friend and meet my God daughter Gracie!
*I'll be exploring my artistic side, by taking a black&white photography class
*I'll be getting another raise come September, yay!

It may not be much, but it's all things we are looking forward to this year!