I had a friend come over last week with her kids just to hang out. It was a pretty low-key and we didn't really talk much about anything in particular except as she was telling me about her parents, she said something that has just stuck in my brain. She was explaining how her family were wealthy and in fact, when she turned 18, they bought her a brand-new car. But then, they like so many other families lately, had felt impressed to move to a different area (state) and then were just faced with such financial difficulties. (Her dad's company closed the area he was working in and offered to relocate them or have early retirement. He took early retirement.) The same thing happened to her. The same thing is happening to us. I wondered outloud to her that perhaps we are being prompted to move away because we weren't be tested enough. That perhaps we needed different challenges that we would not have experienced back in our old home. She nodded and then we got distracted with the gazillion kids running around. Okay, not a gazillion but 8 kids and really? More than 3 is truly a gazillion.

Now, to back-up to our experiences the week before Christmas. We had a little money that we were going to use for the kids' Christmas presents. It was going to be a very meager Christmas but hopefully with getting the dog, the older kids wouldn't see it as meager. Then guess what? Yep. Our only working vehicle, my van, decided to have brakes go out. Our Christmas funds went into fixing the brakes. Our home-teacher helped my husband re-do the brakes but then there was no brake-pressure! I still shudder to think how the heck Hero managed to get the car back home. Anyway. Hero called a brake shop and they said it would be around $250+ for the thingamajiggy to be replaced. At that point, I just lost it. We had not bought ANYTHING for the kids and were counting on the little we had leftover from his paycheck to get a few things. But how do we get around without a vehicle? Remember, Hero's car - the transmission went out. So he's been using my van to get to & from work. And because of his sucky schedule at the time, I had to do a lot of coordinating & begging to get rides to activities, church, etc. PAHHHH!!!! He then called our mechanic (a former Bishop) and left a message to see what his fees would be to get the thing replaced. And then? We waited. And fretted. My anxiety which was already going over the top just me get frantic and saying, "He's always slow to get back on messages. We should just go with the brake-shop and just get it done." Hero just held me and we both just started sobbing. He offered such a beautiful, heart-felt prayer that things would work out. For a confirmation that we were doing the right thing. Then his phone buzzed. It was the mechanic. Hero explained the situation of the van and the mechanic dropped everything on his plate and waited for Hero to bring the van right then. He had Hero assist him in taking the car apart and replacing the thingy. Total cost? Of the brakes + thingy + labor? Just under $300. Ugh. But YAY - a lot cheaper than what we had anticipated. He left for work and a little later, there was a knock at the door. A man said, "Sara?" and handed me an envelope. I was so dejected at that moment... thinking it was some kind of notice, eviction, SOMETHING that we had to pay right now. It was an envelope with a sweet note and $240 in it. I know - I bawled. Then later that evening, another knock at the door. A bag was left on the doorstep with candy & a card. With another $50. Brant & I were so wound up from the stress and then all this? The money we spent on the car was returned to us through the generosity of others dollar for dollar.

President Uchtdorf's talk from the Christmas Devotional 2012 - talked about how we should accept gifts with grace. It struck me at that time that instead of fretting about what I can do to repay or reciprocate, to just accept with grace.

It was a beautiful Christmas. Not just for being able to provide presents for our kids. But for being given gifts that were from the heart. From hearts that were tuned into the Spirit. How sad it is that it is so easy to forget that Heavenly Father is not just aware of us, but wants us to be happy.