In dire straights

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blujazz25

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I know I should be happy about carrying a life in me. But there are some things that are bothering me a lot today.

First off, my job does not provide much of a stable income. If it comes, it barely enough for me to get through a week for gas and food.
Second, my husband is the only one with a stable flow of income right now, barely enough to pay for rent and BILLS
Third, my rear car window decided to get shattered today. So that is additional expense since insurance will not cover it due to deductible.

I am feeling overwhelmed with all of this. We have late bills, car payments. We can barely go on our own with how expensive things are here, plus the things that need to be paid. How are going to be able to provide this new life that is coming soon? I now that we should trust in His providence, but it has been really hard for me especially because I am the one carrying this baby in me.

Please I need some encouragement, or prayers…I do not know what to do
 
blujazz25 said:
I know I should be happy about carrying a life in me. But there are some things that are bothering me a lot today.

First off, my job does not provide much of a stable income. If it comes, it barely enough for me to get through a week for gas and food.
Second, my husband is the only one with a stable flow of income right now, barely enough to pay for rent and BILLS
Third, my rear car window decided to get shattered today. So that is additional expense since insurance will not cover it due to deductible.

I am feeling overwhelmed with all of this. We have late bills, car payments. We can barely go on our own with how expensive things are here, plus the things that need to be paid. How are going to be able to provide this new life that is coming soon? I now that we should trust in His providence, but it has been really hard for me especially because I am the one carrying this baby in me.

Please I need some encouragement, or prayers…I do not know what to do
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Contact Catholic Charities East Bay, their main office is:

Oakland - Main Office
433 Jefferson Street
Oakland, CA 94607
Telephone:510-768-3100

They’ll be able to help you get assistance.
 
Praying for you. Think about how our holy Mother Mary must have felt when she was carrying Jesus and all of the problems of life she had at that time. She is with you.
 
I was just googling, and you’re right near San Francisco, aren’t you?

It’s no mystery why you might be financially struggling living in coastal CA–it is very expensive and very hard for normal people.

You may eventually want to start exploring the option of moving somewhere cheaper (which might be anywhere in about 90% of the rest of the US) in the course of the next several years. Our family made the move from WA DC to TX some years back and it’s fabulous as far as being able to support a family with minimal financial stress. I don’t know what else to suggest to you, not knowing the rest of your situation, but just keep in mind that there is life outside of coastal CA.
 
As some basic math, keeping housing costs under 25% of income is a good rule of thumb. As a rule, at or around 50% of income spent on housing, the wheels start to come off the family finances. It’s almost impossible to keep things together for any length of time with 50% of income being spent on housing.

I believe St. Vincent de Paul does financial counseling. I also like Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University, although it does cost about $100 for a 9 week course. Well worth it if you have $100, but it doesn’t sound like you do. There’s also the personal finance section at the library. I recommend Elizabeth Warren’s All Your Worth (she teaches a 50-30-20 budget, with 50% being needs, 30% being wants and 20% being savings/debt repayment). Dave Ramsey’s book “The Total Money Makeover”, is also a classic–it’s a step by step approach to debt repayment and building financial stability. Here are the baby steps he teaches at greater length in the book:

daveramsey.com/new/baby-steps/

Good luck!
 
((blujazz)),

Keep trusting and praying to God.

I understand your anxiety about finances.

We have cut back on our own budget as much as possible in this economy.

We gave up cable TV. We have a digital TV in our bedroom, so we watch TV in there off of a regular indoor TV antenna, and I watch TV shows off of our desktop computer. I watch shows off of Hulu.com, for example.

We go to the library and rent DVDs from there for free when we want to see more recent movies. We both like to read so we also go there for books.

I also try and make low-cost meals as much as possible, and we try and shop from discount stores and coupons and store sales and store brands whenever possible. My husband takes his breakfast and lunch to work.

I like to use my slow cooker whenever possible to make soups and stews in it and casserole-type meals in it. I buy cheaper cuts of meat and let them slow cook, and I buy chicken parts and make soup out of them.

Anyway, those are some of the things that we do to try and economize.

Prayers said for you. Try not to worry, although I know that it is easier said than done.

God bless you and your family.
 
Babies don’t cost that much, or don’t have to. Pick up anything you need at second hand stores and garage sales.

There are the hospital expenses. Once you go home the only real costs are usually diapers, wipes, and doctor costs. There are a few gagdets you need, but not many. Diapers and wipes can be cloth and reusable, and you can go cheap, it doesn’t have to be a thousand dollar cloth diaper setup. You don’t need a baby bed. We have never used ours before 6 months. A bouncy chair and swing(with ac plug, or rig it up with alligator clips and a wall plug converter from radio shack) is all you need. Get them second hand.
 
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