Is God trying to guide me...am I really that stubborn

Well I am giving the update for what we found out through our interviews today. The first meeting we had was with an in home daycare provider that Sara and David would be the youngest kids there. This was a small daycare with the majority of her kids being of school age with a set of twin 3 year olds that come a few times a week. We talked with this provider for about an hour, she told us basically that she would implement whatever curriculum we wanted the children to have. This was a nice feature and will allow us to feel more involved in the learning process and know exactly what they should be working on at home and at daycare. We have Baby Can Read , so I feel very comfortable leaving this with her and the kids can work on it. So, there we are talking in the driveway about how she used to live in Orlando like us and only lived there for a short time when I realize that we are going to be late for our next appointment. I rush my wife and the provider to a quick close of the conversation and we rush to the car, and then guess what happened..Well, I bet you won't know unless you drive a 1999 malibu as well. The stupid Anti Theft system came on and disables the motor from being started. So, here we are sitting in our car after we rushed away from a conversation waiting on the system to override itself so we can leave. The only problem is it took five ten minute sessions of the override to happen.  I then begin to think if this was God's way of taking free will away from me by disabling the car, because as our discussion became leaning more towards going with the provider's driveway we were blocking I got an idea to try the little trick that got the car started. That or the relief of stress in my brain thinking of the money we can save cleared my thoughts to process new information. Now, it is 4:30 and we are late to two appointments. So, we call the two of them and ask them if they can just tell us their rates over the phone to see if it is even worth it for us to drive over there and see it.They both agreed to and we found that with the reduced rates dcfs pays out for in home care providers that we would only save around 100 to 150 dollars. This did not sound worth it since we had just come from a provider where all we would be paying is the copay which will save us 560 a month.(Woohoo was the emotion I felt when doing the calculations. So now we have found someone that is licensed, trustworthy, and affordable. The checklist I linked earlier was only used in one place since the fact that we couldn't afford the other ones nullified their entry into our daycare competition. I am super excited since this 560 a month means we can fix the car, have the kids do more activities, and gives us money to save and put away for a rainy day. The thing we should remember is that it is not the quality of the equipment that is important, but the quality of instruction and human interaction that is. My advice to any parents out there in the same or similar situation is to not think twice about seeking out cheaper childcare alternatives. Find a qualified individual that does not have the huge overhead of a large building or the other expenses that come with it. The human being that is taking care of your children is more important than some fancy playground they might or might not have. Do not ever forget the human component whn choosing places for your children to attend, whether it be karate, dance, or schools.

Back to writing

I have recently felt the need to begin writing again. It has now been over two years since my last blog post and it saddens me. It has been a very busy two years though. We moved to Illinois...again to have our second child, David Gabriel Trammell. He is now 18 months old. Our daughter Sara is 3 years old as of 6/20/2011. I started going back to school after we moved up here. I am currently working at a hospital in the food and nutrition department part time. Man, it seems like I can never get fully away from food service. I have been working with food in some capacity for 7 of my working years since I was 14. I really think I want to take this blog in a little bit different direction. I am different than I was two years ago. My life plan two years ago was to help my aunt and uncle with their camp and conference center for the rest of my days on this place called Earth. Things did not work out that way and here I am sitting 10 hours away from them and having barely spoken to them in two years. That is sad isn't it? With all the modern technology we have that somehow I have been able to not have communication with somebody, let alone family. I want to write about family in this blog and how it should be. I have grown up the majority of my life without it and recognize the importance of it. I do not see family being simply defined as blood or legal relationships, but a network of people that you can rely on and have trust in to know they will be there for you through the thick and the thin. By the way I have not found that complete network, but am searching ever for it. I will continue to post as I work my way through this ever tangling world of people and relationships with those people. I will write about my family and the things we are doing. If not interested then don't waste my time by leaving me a message or comment. I have also begun to research my family history and seek out my father whom I have only met once and have no for sure idea where to begin. I am on a journey called life, and I will be bringing whomever wants to come along with me through this blog.