As I sat and listened to Matt bang around the kitchen, trying to clean up after breakfast, I realized it was probably time to celebrate a success

Before having this, Matt would fiddle with the gas stove knobs and turn the gas on which was so very dangerous

It was hugely stressful, it could happen anytime of the day or night and it got to the point that I just couldn’t live with the stress of always having to be vigilent about the gas

Its made the world of difference in that particular stress point, a world of difference

The other stacked cooking tool is an electric skillet with a steamer basket on it

Between the rice cooker being able to cook oatmeal, quinoa, farrow, anything that requires water and heat and the electric skillet that cooks eggs, meat, pretty much anything you would put in a pan, we have been able to still cook what we need for the daily meal

These tools are so much safer because Matt can’t remember or figure out how to use them

We had a separate electric table top oven that we had in Smithfield that we moved out here that we also put on the counter top

I keep that unplugged so he can fiddle with it but can’t turn it on

So we’ve accommodated the change pretty well I think, it was a very creative solution to a huge problem

I can let him bang around the kitchen without worry that he is going to blow up the house or burn himself

He may well break something, or throw something away that needn’t be thrown out

But most of those kind of things can be replaced easily

I am grateful for Ken’s talents and willingness to make this covering for us

I am grateful for Barb suggesting the small rice cooker and supporting us in so many ways

She, Barb, also gave us a card deck called “Grateful AF” last year

A woman who had a very rough childhood, including abuse and homelessness, created this deck of cards

As her story goes, at first when someone told her she should be grateful, she felt totally indignet, mad, that the world owed her a reconning before she would every have the ability to be grateful

Then someone gave her a 59 cent taco at Taco Bell, she said thank you for that gift

That thank you turned her life around, just saying thank you, just being grateful

We pulled the cards out this week and got a great laugh out of them

It was also a great reminder, in my period of burn out, when I can’t just jump of this train at will, escape, that gratefulness is a salve

We have so many acts of love and kindness to be grateful here, if you have been part of the village and have been helping us, while not mentioned in this post celebrating this meaningful assist, know we are grateful for what you have done to help us

So I want to say that I am grateful AF for Ken and Barb! They are difference makers in our lives for sure

I want to say I am grateful AF for everyone in our village who has cared enough about us to lend a hand, or several hands, over the last 18 months since we moved to California

And to all my family members in Virginia that lent a hand when we were there, and continue to lend a hand while we are here, we are grateful AF to you too!

I do not know how people do this alone, without a bigger village to lean on, I just don’t

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