December 17th, 2018 6:30 PM Topeka, Kansas
We had already logged 11.5 hours in the car on our way home from visiting my sister in College Station, Texas and were only 30 minutes from home. Our little 1.5 year old daughter had been amazing all day and we were so ready to be home after 4 fun days away. The car had been running smoothly all day and we weren't concerned at all about making it home, until I heard Marshall say, "We have to get off the freeway now."
We barely made it into the O'Reilly's parking lot just off the freeway. The engine clanked and didn't sound good. I never expected to have engine problems on our car that only had 88,000 miles on it. I also didn't realize this was going to be a month of testing, a month of growing and learning how to trust in my Heavenly Father to help make things right. I didn't realize how much this experience would stretch our marriage and require me to suck up my pride and trust in my husband more than I had ever before. But we made it through and now I have to record the blessings and lessons I learned.
As we sat in the O'Reilly's parking lot, I was calm, yet also worried. We were scheduled to leave for southwest Missouri in just three days for a four week holiday break, plus I had two prenatal appointments before we left. I'm pregnant, exhausted from a full day in the car with a toddler, and have no answers.
But it is funny. Sometimes when everything seems to be going wrong, there are little nuggets of blessings that start to creep into my mind, reminding me that I am still being watched over. Like the fact that we broke down in a city, close to home, when we had driven through a LOT of middle-of-nowhere Texas and Oklahoma that day. And the fact that I had a friend who lived in Topeka who was available to come pick us up and take us home, give me some loving girlfriend support, and remind me that it would all work out. And the tow truck arrived within 10 minutes of us calling, which NEVER happens. So many blessings already!
December 19th, 2018 11:30 AM, Lawrence, Kansas
Our car sat at the dealership in Topeka getting looked at while we drove a rental, hoping for some good news. Marshall and I were shopping at Walmart when I received a phone call from the dealership. They told us that there were no recalls on our engine (dang it), and that they could put in a used engine for about $6500, way over their initial estimate from the day before. My heart sank. We only had $5000 in our emergency fund, and we could not make their offer work. And Christmas was only 6 days away.
December 21, 2018 Lawrence, Kansas to Willard, Missouri
After much prayer and counsel together, Marshall and I decided we would take matters into our own hands and have Marshall switch out the engine. He found one online that would only cost about $3800. We rented a box truck from U-Haul (the only thing they had available) and towed our car three hours south to my in-laws where we would be spending the next four weeks of school break. It was hilarious and looked like we were moving. The car went into his Grandpa's old barn for maintenance, and we waited for the engine to arrive.
Although we ordered the engine right away, it took FOREVER for it to arrive, due to the holidays. I was getting to thinking it would never come and I would be "stranded" forever. And yet again, in the midst of my complaining, I was reminded of my blessings. First of all, Marshall had time before the engine came to help his Grandma around the farm, which was the reason we spent a month out there in the first place. The weather was unseasonably warm and was perfect for outdoor work. Second, I have amazing in-laws who were so supportive of me and watched Adelai when I needed a break and let me borrow their car so that I could go into town and see some old college friends. And third, because it took so long for the engine to arrive, Marshall was able to spend a little bit of down time during the holidays to spend with family.
January 11, 2019 Willard, Missouri
Our engine finally arrived!! Marshall had to drive out to the nearest gas station to pick it up because it arrived on an 18-wheeler that could not drive down his parents' narrow dirt driveway. I cannot state how grateful I am for a husband who is mechanically minded and figured out a way to get the broken engine out of the car and the new engine in. Let's just say that I stayed out of the barn as much as I could because it stressed me out to see my car literally in pieces, hood off, bumper off, and no engine or transmission inside.
January 12, 2019 Willard, Missouri
I was tense all day. As I puttered around the house during this cold and wet day, I realized I was not receiving any updates from Marshall, who was working on the engine in the barn. I knew immediately when he walked in for the night that something wasn't right. I soon came to find out that while he was attaching the transmission back onto the new engine, the outer casing wasn't sitting exactly right on the engine and as he tried to tighten the bolts down, the casing cracked. You can't use a transmission that is cracked. He had tried a few tricks to fix it, but soon realized he'd have to buy a new part.
I wasn't a very cheerful wife that night.
January 14, 2019
School would start in a week and the car still didn't work. Marshall called around salvage yards to see if he could find the part there. Nothing. He finally located the exact piece he needed, but it was in Denver and would take 3-5 business days to arrive. We didn't have the $120 to overnight it. We prayed it would arrive in 3 days. It arrived in 2. Heaven was continually looking out for us!
January 16, 2019
The transmission part arrived and Marshall gets the engine all put back together, lifted into the car, and fluids filled. When he goes to start the car, the check engine light is on, revealing two issues.
The problems never seemed to end.
January 17, 2019
Marshall works all day long and realized that one of the cables going from the engine to the battery had been pinched. He unpinches it and the battery light goes away. One problem down, one to go. I have a breakdown that evening as I'm preparing dinner with my mother-in-law and Marshall hears it. He walks into the kitchen, doesn't say a word and wraps his arms around me. Just what I needed. Again, a blessing.
January 18, 2019 Around Noon
We were scheduled to leave for home the next day, but would it happen? All week long I imagined Marshall and I going out to dinner to celebrate our car working and the beginning of a new semester, but I scratched it out of my hopes and dreams, not expecting our car to work in time.
And then, after so much prayer from me, my parents, my in-laws, and Marshall, we heard a "YES!!" coming from the garage. He had accidentally swapped two cables when he initially put the engine back together, which had triggered the oil pressure warning signal and the battery signal. They were now gone and our car was officially fixed. We celebrated that night.
Through this entire month, I learned to trust in my husband. We had chosen, together, that it was best for our situation for him to swap our engines. There were so many tears and I wasn't always trusting, but I grew and learned and our trust for each other has blossomed. I also learned to trust in my family. To trust that when they said I could use their car for the day, that they actually meant it. I had to trust that I wasn't being a burden to them during those four weeks. And most importantly, I had to trust in my Heavenly Father. I had to trust that because we pay our tithing, I would be cared for. We had prepared by having an emergency savings fund, and because of our preparation, He would make up the rest. And He did. We returned home to Kansas right on schedule.
The question kept coming back into my mind of, "What if we didn't have an emergency savings fund?" The story would have been way more stressful, and even though we returned home with it nearly depleted, we were not in debt. We had done our part, and the Lord made up the rest. How grateful I am for the grace and mercy we receive from Above, and for this experience that has taught me about the importance of trusting and having an emergency savings account (but please don't happen again!).
But it is funny. Sometimes when everything seems to be going wrong, there are little nuggets of blessings that start to creep into my mind, reminding me that I am still being watched over. Like the fact that we broke down in a city, close to home, when we had driven through a LOT of middle-of-nowhere Texas and Oklahoma that day. And the fact that I had a friend who lived in Topeka who was available to come pick us up and take us home, give me some loving girlfriend support, and remind me that it would all work out. And the tow truck arrived within 10 minutes of us calling, which NEVER happens. So many blessings already!
December 19th, 2018 11:30 AM, Lawrence, Kansas
Our car sat at the dealership in Topeka getting looked at while we drove a rental, hoping for some good news. Marshall and I were shopping at Walmart when I received a phone call from the dealership. They told us that there were no recalls on our engine (dang it), and that they could put in a used engine for about $6500, way over their initial estimate from the day before. My heart sank. We only had $5000 in our emergency fund, and we could not make their offer work. And Christmas was only 6 days away.
December 21, 2018 Lawrence, Kansas to Willard, Missouri
After much prayer and counsel together, Marshall and I decided we would take matters into our own hands and have Marshall switch out the engine. He found one online that would only cost about $3800. We rented a box truck from U-Haul (the only thing they had available) and towed our car three hours south to my in-laws where we would be spending the next four weeks of school break. It was hilarious and looked like we were moving. The car went into his Grandpa's old barn for maintenance, and we waited for the engine to arrive.
Although we ordered the engine right away, it took FOREVER for it to arrive, due to the holidays. I was getting to thinking it would never come and I would be "stranded" forever. And yet again, in the midst of my complaining, I was reminded of my blessings. First of all, Marshall had time before the engine came to help his Grandma around the farm, which was the reason we spent a month out there in the first place. The weather was unseasonably warm and was perfect for outdoor work. Second, I have amazing in-laws who were so supportive of me and watched Adelai when I needed a break and let me borrow their car so that I could go into town and see some old college friends. And third, because it took so long for the engine to arrive, Marshall was able to spend a little bit of down time during the holidays to spend with family.
January 11, 2019 Willard, Missouri
Our engine finally arrived!! Marshall had to drive out to the nearest gas station to pick it up because it arrived on an 18-wheeler that could not drive down his parents' narrow dirt driveway. I cannot state how grateful I am for a husband who is mechanically minded and figured out a way to get the broken engine out of the car and the new engine in. Let's just say that I stayed out of the barn as much as I could because it stressed me out to see my car literally in pieces, hood off, bumper off, and no engine or transmission inside.
January 12, 2019 Willard, Missouri
I was tense all day. As I puttered around the house during this cold and wet day, I realized I was not receiving any updates from Marshall, who was working on the engine in the barn. I knew immediately when he walked in for the night that something wasn't right. I soon came to find out that while he was attaching the transmission back onto the new engine, the outer casing wasn't sitting exactly right on the engine and as he tried to tighten the bolts down, the casing cracked. You can't use a transmission that is cracked. He had tried a few tricks to fix it, but soon realized he'd have to buy a new part.
I wasn't a very cheerful wife that night.
January 14, 2019
School would start in a week and the car still didn't work. Marshall called around salvage yards to see if he could find the part there. Nothing. He finally located the exact piece he needed, but it was in Denver and would take 3-5 business days to arrive. We didn't have the $120 to overnight it. We prayed it would arrive in 3 days. It arrived in 2. Heaven was continually looking out for us!
January 16, 2019
The transmission part arrived and Marshall gets the engine all put back together, lifted into the car, and fluids filled. When he goes to start the car, the check engine light is on, revealing two issues.
The problems never seemed to end.
January 17, 2019
Marshall works all day long and realized that one of the cables going from the engine to the battery had been pinched. He unpinches it and the battery light goes away. One problem down, one to go. I have a breakdown that evening as I'm preparing dinner with my mother-in-law and Marshall hears it. He walks into the kitchen, doesn't say a word and wraps his arms around me. Just what I needed. Again, a blessing.
January 18, 2019 Around Noon
We were scheduled to leave for home the next day, but would it happen? All week long I imagined Marshall and I going out to dinner to celebrate our car working and the beginning of a new semester, but I scratched it out of my hopes and dreams, not expecting our car to work in time.
And then, after so much prayer from me, my parents, my in-laws, and Marshall, we heard a "YES!!" coming from the garage. He had accidentally swapped two cables when he initially put the engine back together, which had triggered the oil pressure warning signal and the battery signal. They were now gone and our car was officially fixed. We celebrated that night.
Through this entire month, I learned to trust in my husband. We had chosen, together, that it was best for our situation for him to swap our engines. There were so many tears and I wasn't always trusting, but I grew and learned and our trust for each other has blossomed. I also learned to trust in my family. To trust that when they said I could use their car for the day, that they actually meant it. I had to trust that I wasn't being a burden to them during those four weeks. And most importantly, I had to trust in my Heavenly Father. I had to trust that because we pay our tithing, I would be cared for. We had prepared by having an emergency savings fund, and because of our preparation, He would make up the rest. And He did. We returned home to Kansas right on schedule.
The question kept coming back into my mind of, "What if we didn't have an emergency savings fund?" The story would have been way more stressful, and even though we returned home with it nearly depleted, we were not in debt. We had done our part, and the Lord made up the rest. How grateful I am for the grace and mercy we receive from Above, and for this experience that has taught me about the importance of trusting and having an emergency savings account (but please don't happen again!).
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