In my Budget post, I told the world we were surviving on $13,000 a year (before taxes).

That is no longer true.

*Can hardly contain the excitement of the upcoming announcement*

Josh won a $15,000 scholarship! Part will go to pay tuition bills at the start of each upcoming semester. The other (much larger) part will increase our monthly income from $1300 to $2050!

But all that extra money is merely an optical illusion. Don’t let it fool you. Observe the following new additions and adjustments to our budget which suck up our money.

  1. Rent increases – $40 more every month
  2. We can now afford to get health insurance for myself – $200 every month
  3. We may no longer be eligible for foodstamps – $250 every month for groceries
  4. Our tithe increases – $75 more every month.

So of our additional $750, our monthly income will really only increase $185.

AND scholarships do not get taxed, BUT the part that we use as income must be called such on tax forms and thus will be taxed all at once in April.

*Ouch*

HOWEVER, when I think what we would have done without this money; when I think of how we signed our lease renewal months ago knowing rent would go up and having absolutely no clue how were were going to afford an extra $40 every month, I realize that God provides.

And in His infinite wisdom, He knew it would take an extra $750 in our paycheck to give us that $40.