Friday was my sister and my annual trek to the mall w/ our Grandma to help her w/ her Christmas shopping!
Here is Grandma & Jennifer!
Of course we made a bee-line for Santa so I could give him my Christmas list!
So... I give Santa my list and walk to the other side of the mall... LOOK at what he gave me! LOL
I was so shocked! Can you see the disbelief on my face? Ha!
We had a lovely day shopping. Enjoyed a nice lunch and by the time we left the mall... the parking lot was a zoo! I was ready to get home!
So... I arrive home and the house has an awful smell! Something burning? I was a bit freaked out! The furnace (heat pump) was running very rough and I knew we had a problem. I called Jim (he was in a closing) and I said "you need to get home soon and you need to call Sean!" Sean is our HVAC guy! Sean comes over about 6:30. The fan or something that has to do with the motor is out of whack. He says it should be fine until Monday. We also found out that the person we had been paying to clean it every year... well, he wasn't cleaning it. (another story). Sean leaves, Jim goes to get some Chinese take-out, I contine to stoke the fire I had built when I got home from the mall. Jim arrives home.... we start to eat the yummy food and the furnace makes an awful noise and we could tell the motor locked up! Uh Oh! Did I tell you that the low for overnight was to be 19 degrees? (Baby it's cold outside) Jim calls Sean - Sean says "Jim I can come out for the repair, but the cost for an after hours call provides an extra charge. Not Sean's charge, but the after hours emergency warehouse/supply surcharge. An extra $200-$300. Uh - NO WAY! We told him we will make due until Monday.
So our weekend adventure began. And that's the way we looked at this... an adventure. We continued to feed the fireplace... the living room was nice and toasty. We had 2 space heaters going - one in the kitchen and one in the back hall. We also have an oil space heater that looks like a radiator that we put in the back bath every winter - it was warming the small bathroom. We have a heated mattress pad (if you do not have one... I highly recommend you purchase one or put one on your Christmas list), we periodically turned on the oven, warmed it up, turned it off and then opened the door to help warm the kitchen. We were very toasty Friday night.
Of course we had to go to bed and that meant space heaters off, fire in fireplace would die out and it would be chilly. On Saturday morning I was definitely bundled up in bed. The warmth of the heated mattress pad... ahhhhhhh! The bed was warm and I could definitely feel the chill in the air. I could hear Jim in the kitchen getting the coffee going and then starting a fire in the fireplace. I got out of bed once the house was warm and toasty... well, the living room and the kitchen were.
We spent a cozy weekend bundled up at home. Not ideal, but we survived. Had it been much colder, we would have packed up and gone somewhere else. We had a lot of offers, and are so appreciative and thankful of friends and family.
As I pondered the inconvenience of a broken furnace and the cold air in the house. I thought of those less fortunate... I have a roof over my head, walls that surround, a fireplace to keep me warm. Some spent a cold weekend homeless. Without shelter, without food and the warmth of a blanket, a fire and the love of family. I said a prayer for them... as I know God loves them. Homeless... my heart breaks. I said a prayer of thanksgiving that I have luxuries that can so often be taken for granted. Heat, a roof, a blanket... He provides for our needs. We complain that it's cold, we complain that snow and ice hinder our ability to get to and from work or play. Yes... it's cold, but aren't we fortunate that our beds are not made under a bridge. Perhaps we need to change the way we think. Winter might not be your favorite... but as scripture tells us: There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven ~ Ecclesiates 3:1 God has given us nature, and He has created nature to cycle. Should we curse the winter because we are cold & it's inconvenient? Or should we embrace it giving Glory to God, as He is the creator of winter. I choose to change my attitude, my way of thinking. Winter might be inconvienent at times (as is 100 degree summer days in my book! ;) ) but praise God we have the luxury, yes luxury of a furnace, a blanket, a bed...a home! We have the luxury of appreciating one season to the next. Winter is inevitable. No amount of complaining will stop winter from coming. We just don't have that kind of power!
So as winter arrives... I pray you can think of the glass half full and not half empty. Embrace it friends... there is more to do than complain!!!!
PS: Sean is here right now getting the furnace fixed. I am thankful that we have a friend who has the talent, training and ability to fix a furnace!
