Jen's Last Step
Donation protected
Hello, my-friends-whom-I-hope-are-still-my-friends-after-this,
I am in a bit of a pickle.
Some of you may know my situation, but here's the gist for those who don't:
At the end of December, I was finally able to remove Lilah and my pregnant self from a bad situation. We were graciously welcomed into a friend's home, but we all knew this arrangement was to be a temporary one. The plan was that I would find a job, and apply for economic assistance through the state to pave a path to being self-sufficient.
Which I did. The problem with that was that unless I was able to receive correspondence at my actual residence, my case would not be processed and would eventually close.
Which it did. Among the things I needed immediate and temporary help with was child care assistance so I could work at one of the many places I applied to.
Well, guess what? I got hired. Another bonus (and blessing) of gaining employment was that a friend was giving me a car to make payments on so I can get to and from work, regularly attend prenatal appointments, and provide a safe and warm form of transportation for my daughter. I got that car on January 24th.
Job: check. Vehicle: check. Permanent place to live....
Not so check.
Even with a good-paying job, and having sold my photography equipment, I don't have enough to get my daughter and myself into an apartment for quite some time. Time we don't have. Her father isn't paying child support, and with the custody case he started, child support may not be determined for quite some time. Time we don't have.
In order to work, I need Lilah in daycare. In order to get her into daycare that I can afford right now, I need child care assistance. In order to get child care assistance, I need to have the ability to receive mail where I am living. Another snag is that with this job, and no rent or utility payments, the state views my income as solely mine with no expenses..
I cannot move my daughter again unless it is into our own permant home.
The start date at my new job is the 16th of February. I may not get my first paycheck until March, and even then it may not be a full paycheck. The money that I have received, and may receive, from my photography equipment will go solely towards getting into an apartment.
However, as much as I want and need to move with my daughter, as a single mother of soon-to-be-two children, I cannot make rash decisions without a plan. I need help to be able to get back on my feet after being a stay-at-home mom for a year and a half. I need to put myself into a position to provide for my little family.
Another snag... Someone is providing us with some apartment furnishings on the 20th. Furnishings I don't have a place for.
So here is where you come in, my friends. Here I am in my weakest hour of my darkest night asking you for help.
My goal is $3,000 so that I do not worry that we won't make rent until I am regularly receiving two full paychecks a month. I don't expect to reach nearly that amount, though that is what I calculated would be the most beneficial to my family. I know many of you have families of your own, expenses of your own, but even a few dollars will go a long way to helping me give my daughter and unborn child a home with the safety and stability they deserve.
If, for some crazy reason, my goal is exceeded, all remaining funds will go into a savings account for my children.
I am in a bit of a pickle.
Some of you may know my situation, but here's the gist for those who don't:
At the end of December, I was finally able to remove Lilah and my pregnant self from a bad situation. We were graciously welcomed into a friend's home, but we all knew this arrangement was to be a temporary one. The plan was that I would find a job, and apply for economic assistance through the state to pave a path to being self-sufficient.
Which I did. The problem with that was that unless I was able to receive correspondence at my actual residence, my case would not be processed and would eventually close.
Which it did. Among the things I needed immediate and temporary help with was child care assistance so I could work at one of the many places I applied to.
Well, guess what? I got hired. Another bonus (and blessing) of gaining employment was that a friend was giving me a car to make payments on so I can get to and from work, regularly attend prenatal appointments, and provide a safe and warm form of transportation for my daughter. I got that car on January 24th.
Job: check. Vehicle: check. Permanent place to live....
Not so check.
Even with a good-paying job, and having sold my photography equipment, I don't have enough to get my daughter and myself into an apartment for quite some time. Time we don't have. Her father isn't paying child support, and with the custody case he started, child support may not be determined for quite some time. Time we don't have.
In order to work, I need Lilah in daycare. In order to get her into daycare that I can afford right now, I need child care assistance. In order to get child care assistance, I need to have the ability to receive mail where I am living. Another snag is that with this job, and no rent or utility payments, the state views my income as solely mine with no expenses..
I cannot move my daughter again unless it is into our own permant home.
The start date at my new job is the 16th of February. I may not get my first paycheck until March, and even then it may not be a full paycheck. The money that I have received, and may receive, from my photography equipment will go solely towards getting into an apartment.
However, as much as I want and need to move with my daughter, as a single mother of soon-to-be-two children, I cannot make rash decisions without a plan. I need help to be able to get back on my feet after being a stay-at-home mom for a year and a half. I need to put myself into a position to provide for my little family.
Another snag... Someone is providing us with some apartment furnishings on the 20th. Furnishings I don't have a place for.
So here is where you come in, my friends. Here I am in my weakest hour of my darkest night asking you for help.
My goal is $3,000 so that I do not worry that we won't make rent until I am regularly receiving two full paychecks a month. I don't expect to reach nearly that amount, though that is what I calculated would be the most beneficial to my family. I know many of you have families of your own, expenses of your own, but even a few dollars will go a long way to helping me give my daughter and unborn child a home with the safety and stability they deserve.
If, for some crazy reason, my goal is exceeded, all remaining funds will go into a savings account for my children.
Organizer
Jen Ritt
Organizer
Burnsville, MN
