To End the Year! Hello, 2022!

So much of this year has had some extreme shifts and changes that I am amazed we were able to adapt to. We have learned a lot from previous experiences and new first-time experiences during this long yet short year.

To recap: last year during January we were kicked out of a family member's place after they broke their agreement with us. We didn't have a vehicle, a place to stay, or much money to only pay for one of those. It was an extremely stressful time as the family suddenly turned on us.

Though this wasn't the first time we had started from scratch. Losing everything and having to pull something together to stay alive. With some help from my parents, we managed to find a place to stay, found a cheap vehicle, and were able to finally search for a job. It was tough. We were stressed. Pretty much all the time.

Then we had issues with many coworkers at our Sodexo job and are awaiting a reply from the EEOC. We learned a lot from that situation about self-advocacy, perseverance, and resilience. We don't like being taken advantage of and we don't want to be forced to be silent about these situations. So we now know what are the proper steps and information needed in certain scenarios. With such high anxiety, we never really stood up for ourselves in this manner. So progress on this end!

Next was the struggle with my back meaning many jobs we normally tried to take I couldn't do. There was the stress of not being able to work and making ends meet. Started pain management which has helped me be able to keep going for the past couple of months.

This stress lasted from June to October. So for five months, we did our best to stretch things and make ends meet. We don't spend a lot as is but while in pain, the small amount we need to earn is actually quite a challenge.

But we did it.

Now it is the end of the year and we still have the car we bought earlier (we were sure it was going to break down in the first few months), we decided to stay at this great apartment for another year, we found a job with great management that is willing to work with our schedule needs...and we are making ends meet! On top of that, we are able to actually spend a little money here and there for food and for pieces needed for various projects. We have become more motivated and active in accomplishing things meaning projects were being completed or moved forward.

We had a lot of ups and downs early on. The months we didn't have a consistent job meant we had the challenge to make money but always made what we needed. We became more confident in our ability to pay our bills completely, and on time. With that, we also had more time to explore our other interests, providing us relief and joy. With the lack of stress and constant shifting gears, we could focus on different aspects of life and slowly improve them.

I think we are on an upward momentum and this upcoming year will be BETTER than this past year was. We are excited to see what we can accomplish! Hope you stick with us and join us for our next adventure!