Do I have a sign on my back that says "Kick me while I'm down"?!

[MommyRaven]

Generally, I try not to be so fatalist. However, since about the middle of July, my family and I have been hit with at least two major emotional/financial issues a week (I am not exaggerating). It started with my mother (who was my primary babysitter because we could not afford to send our DS to daycare more than twice a week, and my work schedule is so sporadic I had a hard enough time keeping the days he was promised over there) tell me she was leaving town on a personal mission and had no clue when she would be back (a few months at least). My hubby and I discussed the options, and unfortunately with the ONE WEEK NOTICE she gave me, my only option was to quit work (it's a little difficult to go in for an interview at a new job with a kid in tow, even if I did have the time to hunt for one) and the daycare and DH try to find a second job (dangerous, because he works with saws all day and thats not a good combination with a regular schedule of maybe three hours of sleep a night.) Thankfully, the daycare said they could work with us for a little while until my childcare assistance goes through. But since then my hours have seen even more drastic cuts at work (I work fast food making less than $8 an hour and part-time), my hubby has seen 2-3 day layoffs at work more and more regularly (one of the last ones was 3 weeks), we have been hit with unexpected bills that aren't just a few dollars (apparently the State missed the memo that my hubby is paying child support, and now he's apparently $5000 in the arrears), our food stamps were never deposited for this month and our caseworker is avoiding calling me back AGAIN, I have heard nothing about the childcare assistance which should have been pushed through, my car has an electrical issue where it won't release the key from the ignition, and most of our bills are late and facing shut off. To top it off, my DS is picking up on our stress as well as coping with his Gramma leaving without saying goodbye (yeah, she up and bolted a few days after she gave me her one week notice) and erupting molars and canines all over the place. I got a line on a couple of new jobs, but one requires a 40 minute commute during the day that may not fall within the hours of daycare, and the other may require job experience I don't have. Funny thing is, all of this started happening right in the middle of me quitting smoking, and I'm only off the cancer sticks now because I can't afford them!

[MrsGregory]

I used to love Camels.

Think of it this way:  if you can stay a non-smoker, in a year or two when everything is smooth sailing again you can be that legend that quit smoking in the middle of all of this, and no one will ever, ever mess with you.

 

[CatsCradle]

So sorry, OP, that you're going through all this.  I have to say (based on my very personal experience) that problems are magnified ten-fold when you're body is going through a withdrawal from nicotine.  Giving up smoking was one of the hardest things I ever had to go through (the emotional withdrawal was probably harder than the physical, or at least it was for me).  Keep us updated on how your job situation pans out.  I feel for you, I do. 

Edited for poor spelling.

[MommyRaven]

MrsGregory: ROFL right! I still have coworkers coming up asking if I want to go out for a smoke. Sadly, some already knew I had quit, so they make this huge apology and get all embarrassed.

CatsCradle: Thanks, and when it comes to work things seem to have already started looking up (jeez, you guys must be my guardian angels or something. I go through what we have been calling at home "The Month of Hell", drop in here to blow off some steam, and things start turning around within a day!) I get to work yesterday and find out we had a huge amount of people quit/ get fired, so the managers were hustling to get a ton of shifts covered and I'm forecasted a 38 hour work week next week. Part of me (and my husband) wants me to get this receptionist position here in town, but that's the one that I have minimal work experience for. At this point though I'm beginning to think they may have File 13ed my resume, as the only word I've gotten is a quick "I'll give this to my hiring manager". Of course, it was only a week ago when I turned it in. 

[Minerva23]

Keep your head up and think positive - things can only get better from here.
 

[MommyRaven]

*UPDATE* Bleh. So, things blessedly started looking up for a few days, then went right back to the same old boring hand. Both jobs I had applied for 86ed my resume, I found out that the food stamps were cancelled because we make too much (funny, I was unaware $1500 a month combined income on the high end for a family of three was too much), and my husband has been seeing layoffs from work at least once a week now. I also found out our checking account fell below negative $800 AGAIN this month because of returned checks. To make matters even better, DH has a tendency to get a little emotionally abusive with me when he gets stressed, and has gone from asking me daily to quit my job so he can become the sole breadwinner to ordering me to quit because he is too tired to watch our son when I have to work late and he never gets to relax (when he goes to friends houses daily). That's interesting, my last actual day off/time to see friends lasted for three hours and was about three months ago, and he got snitty because he had to watch DS and I wasn't home with him. And my mother in law is coming into town in two weeks, a very stubborn woman who treats me like a toadstool whenever I am around her.  I give up. It's my birthday in two days, let's go to the juice bar, and the first round is on me. Wheatgrass shots for everyone, lol!

[MrsGregory]

Um... do you want a shot of vodka in your wheatgrass?

Sorry... I'm that friend. 
 

[MommyRaven]

XD Oh yeah. Actually, our new neighbors decided to bring by strawberry daquaris last night (and they were NOT weak by any means). Besides, I'm not a big vodka fan. I'm all about the rum on the rare occasion I do partake.