36: The Call!

The call came today!

My hubby got the call ... they offered him the position! Yippee. I am so, so happy and excited for him. Today, we told the kids that daddy is going to be a __________! They were thrilled--although I think my daughter had already figured it out.

So, I was sitting at my desk just after 10 a.m. when I got an e-mail from hubby. "I got it. Call me."

Well, we had been talking about "it" for so long. "It" was always "the call." So, when he said "it," I was going crazy ... "It what?! The job?! The call?! The offer call or the rejection call?!" I couldn't stand it anymore and I called.

"What happened?!"

"They offered me the position!" I could hear him smiling. "I start in three weeks. October 27."

"Yay! That is so great! I am so happy for you ... We'll talk on my lunch break."

I rushed home on my lunch break, where he gave me all of the details ... when the call came, how it came, what he said, what she said. We celebrated, hi-fived each other, hugged. We were sooooo happy. And then, that other thing hit us:

"Oh yeah ... day care," he said to me.

We spent my lunch break together in front of the computer and on the phone. We called our local Child Care Resources agency to see if they could help--because that's what they are there for ... to help struggling families with child care options.

But, we had quickly discovered again what I had already known--that they are there for single moms ... and they foster an environment of settling for less ... they encourage people to cheat the system through an all-or-nothing mentality. I know quite a few women who have done that -- and, for years.

Okay, so we weren't going to get any help from them. I got in my car to drive back to work and I was doing the math in my head. For two children to go to child care and for the two older ones to go to after care, this is what it looks like:

• $700 for the baby
• $600 for the toddler
• $300 in "Aftercare" fees for my oldest son.
• $300 in "Aftercare" fees for N, my daughter.

Grand total=$1,900 per month.

My husband, as a recruit, is going to bring in a little over minimum wage. They are going to send him to school and only after he graduates and gets a position will he start getting paid for real with a decent salary.

Okay, so let's do the math: I will be paying just under 50 percent of our entire income towards day care. I just do not know how we are going to manage. I just know that somehow we will.

But, I refuse to stress over the seemingly impossible day care bill. I simply refuse. Instead, I will finish the night out ... celebrating the good news of today.

And since I always say it out loud: "Thank you, God. We are so grateful for who you are and everything you give us."

So, any guesses on the job title?