There seem to always be one or two days during the holiday season that are rough for me. Days when I miss the traditions of my childhood and struggle with being so far from home. Today was one of those days.
I decided to make the most of it. I asked Aiden to make cookies with Mommy, now it took him a minute to recover from the disappointment that they were not instantly edible, but then he was quite the little helper! He poured in the flour, stirred the dough, made massive finger divots in the plopped cookies, and of course sprinkled red sugar on the tops quite liberally. I have no pictures of the occasion, I simply reveled in the moment with my little guy and soaked up the memory of our first Christmas cookies together.
Shockingly after late morning cookies he actually wolfed down his lunch. Later I would think back and be so grateful. As I reflected on the true meaning for the season and how grateful I was for my day with the little guy I whisked him off for nap. With dinner half baked in the crock pot, and his noisemaker lulling him to sleep...
The power went off.
NEVER good timing of course. I was curious as to the reason as none of the neighbors seemed to be powerless and I had not been notified of any intended cut offs. My cell was of course dead, so a text to Mimi had her giving the power company a call. The only thing they would tell her was that it had been disconnected due to lack of payment.
WHAT?!
Our bank auto cut the check. SOMETHING had gone terribly wrong. I managed to eek out a tearful phonecall to Shem as I knew my battery wouldn't last through a call to the bank or power company to see what had gone awry.
Then this pregnant chick sat down in the kitchen floor and sobbed.
It is winter, it gets dark early, and I had nothing to feed my little guy for dinner without the power to cook it. If the power didn't return within a few hours we would loose all the food in our fridge and freezer, including our little Christmas dinner. This is not what any Mommy wants to face, certainly not a pregnant emotional one.
I managed to scrounge the pantry and find green beans, pears, and crackers. Add the cookies we had baked and while certainly not ideal we would not go hungry. I located a candle and knew were plenty of blankets were. While still distraught at the situation I knew without a shadow of a doubt that we would survive.
Many Momma's don't have that certainty.
I tried to think on that, to be grateful that we could stay warm enough, and still eat, and that we were safe. It was a humbling reality that I will honestly say I don't want to face again. At the same time I think those moments were good for me.
Shem paid what he was told was JANUARY'S bill and they cut the power back on in just under 3 hours. Upon further investigation it is still unclear if it was a bank error in sending the check or a power company error in cashing the check. Naptime tomorrow will find me on the phone.
Currently they have added $60 a month charge to our bill until we reach a $250 deposit. In a household stripping many things from the budget this is not a welcomed addition. Hopefully I can get to the bottom of the problem and have the charges removed.
If not I will try to reflect again on how blessed we are to have a roof over our head, warmth surrounding us, and food to eat.
I gratefully cooked Aiden a steaming hot dinner tonight...which he refused to eat! I couldn't help but laugh at the irony, he probably would have enjoyed his cookies by candle light so much more!
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