Today is day 12 of our new living situation. Living in a home is a first for some of my kids. Some of the younger ones have only known RV living. This house is modest in size under 1,300 sq ft, but after living in approximately 235 sq ft for the last almost five years it feels substantial!
Yesterday my husband started his new job at Blue Origin as an aerospace engineer. The story of how he got this job is the kind that little boys only dream up!
As a matter of fact, yesterday me and my girls were all enjoying the open kitchen space when my oldest daughter was thinking out loud and said, “I can’t believe we are living in this home all because Nile has a Youtube channel!” I could only laugh because as crazy and far fetched as that sounds she is right! My oldest son started a Youtube channel last fall and 30 days after starting it he got really focused on fine tuning it.
So, he started to research how to put the best material out he possibly could and within a month he had over 1,000 subscribers! We were all amazed at the immediate support he began to receive. Nile soon had people funding his Gofund account and sending him gifts for his Kitfox plane that he is restoring on his channel. He affectionately named his plane Kitfox1000 because it is the 1000th Kitfox manufactured.
People fell in love with my 17-year-old pilot son and have been sending him financial support like crazy!
One of his fellow pilot friends, that he thinks the world of, sent him a propeller for his plane! Last year, I used to watch my son watch guys like Trent Palmer on Youtube with awe in his eyes. Nikk Audrend and Trent Palmer were doing what he dreamed of doing.
My son has been dreaming of flying since he was only 2 years old. Some kids love basketball and dream of meeting Shaquille O'Neil, well these fellas were like that for my son!
My mind was blown that after a month on Youtube not only are these guys in personal contact with Nile, but they are openly supporting his dream. Like I said, “Nikk sent him a propeller for his plane!”
You are probably thinking, OK so how did you get your rental and not have to pay rent? And, I am definitely getting to that. But before I do, I really need to mention that as hard working as our family is; the past six months have been our hardest ever in 21 years of marriage.
For the first 15 years of our marriage, my husband was in law enforcement and was on a salary. In 2012 he was at the height of his career and was even featured on National Geographic for his role at his level 4 prison. He had plans of retiring from law enforcement, but fate had a different turn for us. He ended up getting hurt in a prison incident and then rear-ended at a stop sign that injured him so severely that he was told he would never even be able to hold a desk job. So, he was retired at the ripe age of 38.
At that point, we decided through much prayer and discussion to sell our comfy home in the country with just under 3,000 Sq Ft of living space and move into our recreational vehicle full-time! Yes, we became 100% debt-free and moved into our RV! I have posts on that journey I will be posting soon. Living in the RV has been the best of times and the worst of times!
We were finally at a level of normal in 2017 when something wonderful happened…
My husband was healed from a severe back injury! This was AWEmazing except that meant he was no longer eligible for early retirement. So almost immediately all our income, which was sizable, and benefits got cut off to zip, zilch! For the next year, my husband and son Nile started a construction company. Things were looking hopeful until last fall when my husband took on a project that he committed to. This project had roadblock after roadblock! Other servicemen would not show up for appointments, permits were delayed, engineered plans were late by months etc. The project was a standstill and so was our income. So, for about 6 months we were living on emergency food supply we had in storage. Things got really bad a couple of months and we couldn’t even pay our utility bills on time. It was humbling. I never thought we would be in such a predicament this far into our marriage, but there we were flat broke.
Enter in Nile’s Youtube channel! I mentioned his devoted supporters earlier, well one of those guys contacted Nile via a comment on one of his videos. He noticed we might be in the same vicinity as him. This started a light dialog and it turned out that we were only 2.5 hours from his job area. He ended up calling one night and asked to talk to my husband. This was interesting for my husband to be talking to one of Nile’s supporters. He was really nice and right off the bat he told my husband that he saw him in a video with our son and thought he might have some skill in machining. Well, my husband has an affinity for machining! I can even remember him telling me that if he could do anything after he retired he would have a little machine shop because he enjoys it so much.
The call was extended as this guy went on to share a job opportunity opening at his company Blue Origin. Yes, this is Jeff Bezos company, the richest man in the world! The job opening is at a location where there are only about 50 employees. He thought maybe my husband Clinton might be a good fit. We all sat with our jaws dropped to the ground! We couldn’t believe our ears! It was an opportunity of a lifetime being offered to us all because my son has a Youtube channel! Of course, my husband had to go through a lengthy and tough application and interview/presentation process, but he did it with flying colors!
Now here we are living in a home with rent being covered by the company! Yup, we don’t have to pay for rent! Another perk is that they provide all the crew with a daily catered lunch and provide snacks throughout his shift! This may seem small, but let me tell you there was a time I prayed to God because my boys were not having enough food to take to lunch and I asked Him to provide food for them. So, not only is he getting free lunch, but I don’t have to get up make it for him which is a huge help for this mama of eight kids. This will also save us on our grocery budget.
The Moral of this story is:
When life seems like it’s never going to change...
When you have no visible options for growth...
When funds are lower than the basement...
Do NOT give up hope!
Keep the faith!
Stand upon God’s promises for your life and continue to believe that better times are coming! Believe that God will make a way in the wilderness and bring water from a rock! Don’t lose hope! Your miracle may just be around the corner! When you get yours come back and tell me about it! I want to rejoice with you. If you have a story that has already happened please share!