making it work

The lack of recent posts does not signify a lack of post-worthy thoughts or events in my family's life, but a lack of ability to put them into words worth reading.

I have stressing myself out financially lately. The Seattle vacation was expensive, and we came together as a family to tackle the financial strain together. Erin really came through and handled all the details and guided us through it, so that all I had to do was work and make as much money as possible. I love that woman.

And then, I find out that I have won the Napa Valley Wine Contest at work, for the second year in a row, and that I will be going on an all-expenses-paid (my second-favorite three words) trip to Napa Valley wine country. Sounds great, and it is, the catch is that I'm leaving in a week, and I just got back from a vacation. And keep in mind, as a bartender, my vacations are not paid ones, so in a four-week period, I will have only worked two of them. Our already tight budget is getting stretched even further. It may be tough, but somehow, we'll make it work.

And it seems that I picked a fine time to join the mortgage business. The largest mortgage lender in the country is in Chapter 13 bankruptcy, and more are going under every day. Absolutely nothing good is going on the real estate market.

On a positive note, Kai is getting very good at walking. He still falls from time to time, but it's getting less frequent every day. On the other hand, his manipulative meltdowns are becoming more frequent. It's funny because it's so transparent to me. And I have to constantly remind myself not to give in to him all of the time. It's tough now, and it's only going to get tougher. Luckily, he's easily distracted at this age.