People always ask me if I am feeling the effects of the economy at the moment. I always smile and tell them that we are hanging on. Its the truth. The salon that I manage has been there for 50 years. It's going strong. We are hanging on by the skin of our teeth. I have no doubt that if we just need to hold on one more year for things to even themselves out, that we will be just fine. The truth is that my husband and I bought a house with one of those ridiculous adjusting arms and lost it. We started a HUGE business at the beginning of the crash and lost that. We are most definitly affected by the economic crisis. However, I think that this is the wake up call that we all needed. My husband and I now live in my family home with my mother. We lost my father about 5 years ago. This has been such a positive experience. This is going back to our roots. Now, I will admit to being very fortunate to have a very progressive mother that thinks that my husband and I are the cats meow. She knows all about our lifestyle, and says that if this is what is going to keep us together and happy, and no one is getting seriously hurt, well then it cant be all bad, now can it?!? Bless her for being so understanding. My husbands family is not doing as well as mine. He has a cousin that is in the front lines in Afganistan, where we dont belong to begin with. He is fighting a war that none of us believe in. Poor kid. I try to make sure that he gets as much coco rice crispy treats with peanut butter chips as possible. When ever he is based out here in california, we make sure that he gets a home cooked meal, and lots of family time. My brother in law and sister in law have moved in with us this month. This took our 4 bedroom 2 bathroom house and maxed it out. I had no idea that the empty rooms in our house were just that...empty. Having family with us reminds me of times before my father, grandmothers, grandfathers, and other misc family members passed away. My family just cleared out my grandmothers house. We found photo album after photo album telling the story of our lives and the places we had traveled together as a family. There were birthday parties of all sizes, weddings, christmas's of long ago. The one thing that is constant in all of the pictures is that we were a family. A medium sized, happy family that liked to hold court around a big dinner table with a spread that could feed a small african nation. I had forgotten what that was like. Don't get me wrong, Joel and I still have big table dinners with groups of friends that we love and care very deeply for. Its not the same as family though. So, its this spring that I am learning a lesson because of our economy and the things that we hold fundamentally dear. I like having a full house. Spreading chores among 5 people in this house makes life SO much easier. The house is always clean and no one is overwhelmed. We have dinner at the table and talk about our days. Dishes are done, bills are paid, we are all working for a better tomorrow. I know that eventually, my brother and sister in law are going to have to move out and get their own place. It will be a sad day when that happens. But all couples need a little alone time. I dont think that Joel and I will ever leave this house. We have grown accustomed to the easy realtionship that we have with my mother. We live in a desirable location, and best of all, we dont have Home Owners Dues! So, for this wake up call, I am grateful. There are things that I had forgotten about, feelings, emotions, and ties to people that I have neglected. I like knowing that my family is safe, and that we are sharing a life together. I know what you are thinking though. If I like having all of this family around, why dont Joel and I start our own. HAHAHAHA no. Let me clarify all of this with... I am happy to have adults filling the space in my life. I think that I would have to strangle someone if there were whiny children around. 2 English Bulldogs and 2 cats are all the children I need! Fo Shiz! I hope that all of you are finding the things that mean the most to you in these times. The things that are actually important. I know that the weather is cold and harsh right now, but it will warm up, things will get back on track, we will start to wear tshirts and sundresses shortly. This winter will be a great memory of people around a big dining room table, enjoying a well earned meal, and playing dominos while the weather outside raged!