Matthew has been saving his money since he found out about Monster Jam. He wanted to go to the World Finals in Vegas. He saved EVERY SINGLE PENNY. All of his tooth fairy money, birthday money, loose change he found in parking lots or in the house. 2 years ago he told me and I quote cuz it is burned in my memory- "don't worry mommy, I know that you will never have enough money so I will pay for the Monster Jam trip." Heartbroken. Absolutely heartbroken. I felt like the worst mom in the world and I spiraled down. I struggled for a while saying to myself that without a husband helping pay the bills, I could never do anything so big.
So 2 months ago when I decided that I was going to make a change to my life to better my child, the first thing I did was plan a trip. I raised my head up and decided to show my son that we can do anything we want to do. I used my next paycheck to buy the double down tickets. I would NOT worry about the bills, this trip is important. After I had the tickets I told Matthew that I was trying to plan this trip but I needed his help. Boy did he help! He let me sell a lot of his toys on Craigslist to pay for the plane tickets. Then he asked me what else he could do. We came up with ideas and he sold Hershey kiss roses for Valentine's day. When that started working, he told me he was going to pay for the hotel for all 8 nights we were there. I laughed but then saw the look of pure determination on his face and said ok. He made magnets and started selling those. He talked to everyone he saw, walked up to people he did not know and somehow encouraged them all to buy his stuff (don't worry, I was with him the whole time). He made more than enough to pay for the hotel and he was so proud. I started selling stuff on eBay to bring in extra money and together, we made this trip happen. No husband, No dad, no one helping pay the bills. We did it ourselves!
Saturday, March 28, 2015
Tuesday, March 24, 2015
Falling in love with Monster Jam
When Matthew was one, his grandparents and I got free tickets and took him to see a small monster truck show. It was simple and muddy. It was love at first sight. He wanted a toy monster truck so bad but they were expensive there so we went to Wal-mart and let him pick out a truck. Boy were we shocked to see a grave digger truck! We had NO idea he was still around! Awesome! Since I saw grave digger when I was younger, I thought it was really cool that my son could get to know him too! We met a guy who drives a monster truck who told us about the SPEED channel (has now moved to Fox1 sports). We raced home, turned it on and Matthew did not move until the Monster Jam show ended. He immediately wanted to watch more. He was hooked, 120%.
Now here we are, 6 years later. Matthew has NEVER waivered. He is still 120% in love with Monster Jam, has over 30 shows saved on the DVR (he would have more but there is no room) he knows who drives what truck, he can tell you what trucks they used to drive and well.....he can tell you a whole lot of other information about these trucks, don't believe me? All you have to do is ask him, but here is your warning, once you start up a conversation with him about Monster Jam, he will talk your ear off with an excitement that you can not even imagine.
He has a Monster Jam room (as soon as we get our own place, it will be set back up cuz he really misses it!), he collects the smaller trucks and at last count he has 500 of that size (thank goodness for cheap prices and yard sales!) This year his picture made it into the Monster Jam Yearbook and yes, he thinks he is a celebrity now! LOL. He has talked about what his own monster truck will look like and was very upset when he recently found out you have to be 18 to drive for Monster Jam.
No matter what other people say or think, Matthew has stuck to his dreams. He will tell you that he WILL be a monster Jam driver. Not IF but WHEN he drives, what he plans to do. He follows the career of all the drivers, he has no favorite driver or truck. He loves them all and gets excited when the win and cries when they lose. Never a dull moment in this house.........
Now here we are, 6 years later. Matthew has NEVER waivered. He is still 120% in love with Monster Jam, has over 30 shows saved on the DVR (he would have more but there is no room) he knows who drives what truck, he can tell you what trucks they used to drive and well.....he can tell you a whole lot of other information about these trucks, don't believe me? All you have to do is ask him, but here is your warning, once you start up a conversation with him about Monster Jam, he will talk your ear off with an excitement that you can not even imagine.
He has a Monster Jam room (as soon as we get our own place, it will be set back up cuz he really misses it!), he collects the smaller trucks and at last count he has 500 of that size (thank goodness for cheap prices and yard sales!) This year his picture made it into the Monster Jam Yearbook and yes, he thinks he is a celebrity now! LOL. He has talked about what his own monster truck will look like and was very upset when he recently found out you have to be 18 to drive for Monster Jam.
No matter what other people say or think, Matthew has stuck to his dreams. He will tell you that he WILL be a monster Jam driver. Not IF but WHEN he drives, what he plans to do. He follows the career of all the drivers, he has no favorite driver or truck. He loves them all and gets excited when the win and cries when they lose. Never a dull moment in this house.........
Sunday, March 22, 2015
Why this blog is here
We all have moments as a parent that we doubt ourselves. I know that I have always struggled with my own obstacles that are all purely in my head. For instance, my seven year old son wants to be a monster jam truck driver, a professional football player and a singer on the radio just like Luke Bryan. Those are HUGE dreams that seem impossible to this simple, struggling woman. We do not have that kind of money, power or even friends in the fields that can help. What is a mom to do??? For years I have used excuses, I am a single mom, acting as both mom AND dad to my son, I am working full time and doing part time work on the side and yet after bills, I still have no money, I have alot of debt, we live with my parents and life is not generally fun or pleasant. See, lots of excuses.......
Well, about 2 months ago I decided to change my thoughts and actions. ANYTHING is possible and my son can be whatever he wants. Dream big baby, cuz you WILL get there. This blog is designed to share his journey with you as well as a way for me to keep myself on track. The question now is what can I do as a mom to get my son ready to make his dreams come true. I am terrified but ready. I am going to put my fears aside and encourage him to take classes, try racing and well....anything else that will get him a step closer to his dreams. Follow us as we make changes to our life and show the world that even a kid being raised by a poor single mom can make his big dreams become a reality!!!!
Well, about 2 months ago I decided to change my thoughts and actions. ANYTHING is possible and my son can be whatever he wants. Dream big baby, cuz you WILL get there. This blog is designed to share his journey with you as well as a way for me to keep myself on track. The question now is what can I do as a mom to get my son ready to make his dreams come true. I am terrified but ready. I am going to put my fears aside and encourage him to take classes, try racing and well....anything else that will get him a step closer to his dreams. Follow us as we make changes to our life and show the world that even a kid being raised by a poor single mom can make his big dreams become a reality!!!!
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