Feeling Blessed and Wanted To Share It

I have a blessed life. I know sometimes it seems like I only focus on the negative, but I think of the positive a lot. I have a blessed life. I have a life full of riches that are far more important than mere wealth. I have an awesome God who provides me the strength and patience I need to get through the not so awesome times. I have a wonderful husband, three exceptionally smart and beautiful daughters, one (now perfect) little angel waiting to be held on the other side of heaven, a beautiful and talented sister who loves my children almost as much as I do, shelter over my head, great transportation, and food to fill my family each day. I have an immensely BLESSED life. I have been blessed on so many different occasions by the kindness of others. I have wonderful friends. I have been blessed to be welcomed into a great community of loving and caring bloggers who make me feel like I'm someone important in their lives. Yes, I'm very blessed indeed.
I woke up this morning feeling great. My kids are happy, my husband is happy, and I am happy. This time, one year ago, I couldn't say the same thing. Bobby was recovering from his surgeries and we were living day-to-day with no idea how to make ends meet or pay the bills. School was starting and the girls needed so many things we were unable to provide. We had no idea how we were going to pay the electric bill (or any other bill for that matter.) Still, I had a very blessed life. The Lord provides (as I ALWAYS say!!) My wonderful and kind aunt (and her daughter, my cousin) decided to send us a package. In this package was a TON of clothing and school supplies for my girls. Beautiful things, hand-picked by them, with my girls in mind. They sent so many things that I remember crying as I looked through the boxes. New shoes, jeans, shirts, socks, paper, folders, crayons, pencils, you name it. It was everything they needed or wanted and it was such a relief for me, as their mother, to be able to send them off to school with everything they had desired. But even more than that, it was a fantastic and awesome feeling to know that we weren't struggling alone. We had someone willing to help us provide for our family when we weren't able to. Not long after, a remarkable woman who called herself "Aunt Deb" heard of our struggles and sent me a check. To be more specific, not just one check, but several. I never met her, or talked to her, but she was a kind christian woman who learned of our situation and wanted to help. We never knew when the money was coming, it just arrived in the mail at different times, but always at the right time. Always at a time when we really needed the help. I remember one Saturday, we woke up early and the house was freezing. Our heat had gone out over night and was broken beyond repair. I was crying because I didn't know how we were going to keep the kids warm or replace the heat. It seemed like all my hope was lost, but there, in the mail that Saturday morning, was a check from Aunt Deb. She was our own personal guardian angel. We bought a heater and the house was warm and my tears dried and we felt so very blessed to be cared for and loved by one of God's angels. Then, the floor in our bedroom fell through. Just like that, one day it was there, seemingly solid, and the next day, our bed was on the ground UNDER OUR HOUSE!!! It was horrible and it was scary, and once again, hope seemed lost. Do you know how much it costs to replace a floor? We don't. We have no idea how expensive it is to replace a floor because we didn't have to. I made a comment to a friend at the pharmacy I use and just like that-problem solved. I was just venting, lamenting my worries to a friend and she said, "Kaleena, don't worry, the Lord will provide!" And He did. A few days later, my friends at the pharmacy made arrangements to come in and fix the entire room. They got the materials donated and the labor donated and I got to help. The ladies from the pharmacy even came and helped me paint. The carpet people let me pick out my new carpet. It was awesome and it was way beyond my wildest dreams. To see these people, most of them strangers, come together to help my family, is something I will never forget. I have never felt so blessed. When it came time to dress Laney for the colder winter months, we were blessed again, with kindness from two lovely ladies who purchased brand new clothing. My Laney was the best dressed baby on the block last winter! When Christmas came, I was worried that my girls would have nothing to open on Christmas morning. I shouldn't have worried, because once again, the Lord stepped in to provide the help we needed. The girls' school took up a collection among the staff to assist us with bills and a little Christmas help. I'll never, as long as I live, forget the knot the welled up in my throat when I opened that envelope to find almost two thousand dollars! It was definitely enough to keep us stable until Bobby was able to get back on his feet. I will never know who made those donations, and they will never know how much it meant to us or how loved and cared for we felt. I have a blessed life.
The point to this story, well, there isn't really a point. I just have a blessed life and wanted to share some of my story with others.
A few weeks ago, I posted about a group called Pass It On, Baby! I am in the process of boxing up some things to ship to a family in need. Those lovely outfits that were gift to my Laney last winter? They will be enjoyed this winter by a little girl that needs clothing just as bad as Laney did last year. I am so happy to know that the beautiful clothing that Laney received from those two ladies will be worn by another beautiful little girl. It does my heart good to be able to pass along some of the help that we were fortunate enough to receive from others. If you haven't visited this blog before, I urge you to do so. I know that at one time or another we have or will all need a little extra help. So think about that. Let someone else help you if need be, then take that kindness, when you are able to and Pass It On, Baby!