2011 Gratitude #21

I am grateful that my husband has a job. With a bad economy and so many other people unemployed we are lucky that Les is employed. We are within Maryland's poverty level but that is nothing new to us. We know how to survive. We probably won't get food stamps but we do have WIC and we are being considered for Medicaid. I know you are thinking if we were going to live off of state benefits why didn't we stay in Utah without a job. The best answer I can give you can be summed up in one word: Les. That wonderful man doesn't want to live off of other people's hard work. He searched high and low for jobs in his degree field. Then he searched for jobs that kind of shared skills he had gained with his degree. He looked for jobs that had nothing to do with what he had chosen for a career. He was so concerned that he wouldn't find employment and be able to provide for our family. Almost at the same time two jobs far across the country started competing for him. It gave him his confidence back.
To make our lives more financially comfortable we have been asked why I don't get a job to help out. The simple answer: why give away all my paychecks to pay for day care when I can teach them what I want them to know and I have better rates. We can't afford for me to work. Crazy isn't it. We save more money this way than we would make the other way. I am deeply grateful that my husband has a job and works hard so I can stay home with the kids.