Hello again...

Sorry it has been such a long time since we have written. The past few weeks have been a little crazy. For some reason February can be a busy month work-wise. I spent almost a week on retreat and have had to work several weekends. Needless to say, my energy has been pretty low!

As some of our family and friends may know, Eric was very recently laid off of work as a project manager. His employer, a major high-end retailer, had to let over 400 people go this last week. Previously they had let go of another 300-400 individuals. Eric's former job was founded in individuals spending disposable income and due to the economy, people are just not shopping like they used to. And while the shoppers who frequent this retailer have tended not to be affected by our struggling economy, they have chosen to be more careful at this time with where their money is going.

Here in North Texas many of our major employers have had to let literally thousands of individuals go. As a caseworker for a congressional office, I have dealt with countless phone calls and visits from individuals who have lost their jobs, homes, health care, etc. It is truly a humbling experience to see several houses in our neighborhood go through foreclosure proceedings. While we are ALL being affected by the current recession, we have to trust that this too will pass. For the time being, we will all hunker down and rely upon those lessons we were taught by our grandparents generation. They did not wait for someone to come help them through hard times. They lifted themselves up and did what they had to do to get by. I still remember my Nana and Grandpa Martinez who saved EVERYTHING. When they passed on several years ago I heard stories about the things that were found in their house. Old empty Quaker Oat containers, the plastic bags bread come in, clothes we would have considered "past their prime", etc. Everything had a use unlike today where we have filled our lives with "disposable goods." I think we can all take a page from their book, and I know we certainly intend to.

We thank all of you for your thoughts and prayers. Our God is a faithful one.