Thanksgiving!

Earlier this week I came back to work after an absolutely amazingly fun weekend in California to share in my cousin's wedding! Thankfully there wasn't a lot of sun or it would have definitely made it a little harder to come back to chilly Iowa! Everything went smoothly, made all of my flights - none were delayed and I didn't miss any of them. However, on my way home I thought about stopping in Ames for the night. I had only had about four hours of sleep after an early flight and was nervous about driving home. My head kept telling me to keep going - I was getting tired of living out of a suitcase and just wanted to get home.

It was about that time when my car decided to start acting up on me. The 'antilock brake' light came on and so I pulled over and shut the car off. A few minutes later I turned it back on and continued. The light remained off for a few miles and then came back on. I pulled over again and did it again. This time the light came on right away again. As I neared Ames the speedometer started to quiver and it acted like it wanted to kick into cruise control but it couldn't. The CD player turned off and on. The feel of the car didn't feel right to me so I prayed and cried that it would get me to the Ames exit. It did but I think it was just crawling there. I was just thankful to get it off the busy highway.

I got it into a parking lot and then the 'service engine light' came on, 'add oil' light came on and then it died. I tried starting it but got nothing. Thankfully it wasn't quite five so I was able to call a tow truck and have it towed. I went to college in Ames and have always considered like my second home, it definitely holds a special place in my heart. I called some friends, they came to pick me up and I was able to stay with them for the night. Their little preschooler gave up her princess bed for me to use. She was so cute about it, she came up to me and said "You get to sleep in a princess room." Yay!

I was thankful that it broke down on the way home instead of on the way to the airport. But I think a hotel room would have been slightly cheaper than a $270 repair bill. But then I'm just thankful it wasn't snowing. God was really watching out for me. I've got a lot to be thankful for this Thanksgiving - I may not have a fancy new car or a high paying job but I'm just thankful for a job, a roof over my head, good friends, family, beds and plenty of food and I'm thankful for my new alternator and that my car is running again.