Goodbye 2013!

Christmas 2013

While the birth of our youngest child Sophia was an extremely happy day for us, I am glad that the year is almost over.  We have been through a lot this year.  We worked long hours, had one emergency hospital visit, and struggled with our finances.

For me, it was work as usual, including weekend work. It was expected.  But for Ebru, it was a different story. As grateful as she was to even have a job, it was very draining dealing with irate, rude, and sometimes scary customers. 2013 ended well for her since she was able to change careers and improve her work environment.

Prior to Ebru’s career change and managing another child was (and continues to be) a challenge.  We are still getting used to her new work schedule and how that impacts our babysitting needs. So while Ebru is making more money, we are paying the babysitter more because of the longer hours she is needed to watch the kids.  Once we get a good routine going, I am sure we will be better off.  In addition, the trade off for having a professional career in a good company is worth it.

There were no big travels this year due to our finances and schedules.  We did, however, take short trips here and there.  We are hoping next year will be better for us now that we both have a somewhat set schedule.  We are seeing some great deals on flights right now. Just wish we had some reserves to take advantage of it.

We also had the misfortune of having our RV broken into. Nothing major except the TV and DVR were stolen. Nothing that can’t be replaced over time.  We also did not take any RV trips this year due to Sophia being so little and still not sleeping through the night.  We are hoping and praying that she starts sleeping through the night.  I believe it was not until about a year when Justice and Jasmine started to sleep in.  Looking forward to that no doubt.

We also had to visit the ER a couple of week ago because some little girl named Jasmine had to do some fancy smancy twirl and hit her head against the glass entertainment center. It left a big bump on the back of her head. Not fun and not cheap.  Just glad that she is OK. Here’s hoping we have no accidents this year.  God help us.

This year one of us got a red light ticket.  Those suck!  It was a non-busy intersection in a part of town we never hardly visit.  But I guess those red light cams don’t care about our situation.

On a more positive note, we were able to at least get the presents that Justice and Jasmine wanted for Christmas. The expression on their faces and happiness was priceless.  See for yourself in the YouTube video below.

So goodbye 2013!  Here’s hoping for a better year in 2014!