Not Complaining

Hmmm, as I was getting ready to write a post about "Giving Up Something You Love" when I saw that I was planning on writing a post about not complaining, a challenge from the Proverbs 31 Women. It got me to thinking, do these two things go hand in hand?
I was going to start this post as a vent of sorts. Because it really drives me crazy when say "you're so lucky that you get to stay home" or "oh, your husband is a lawyer".
I would like to go off on those people and explain to them that yes, lawyers typically make a lot of money...in the city or when they work for a firm or once they have paid off the astronomical amount of student loans they have. I'm very proud of my husband for taking a harder path and choosing to become a lawyer, but students loans stink! He returned to our small town and opened up his own office. Would we like to have had the loan towards a big, beautiful house instead? Yes. However, I think love grows best in small houses. Does the fact that my husband is a criminal attorney affect his pay? Yes. Seems like criminals don't like to pay their lawyers.
With that being said...me "getting" to stay home isn't so. I "choose" to stay home. There is a difference, one is a luxury and one is a sacrifice. The amount of money we live off of every month has surprised some people. Not trying to gain sympathy or act like we're doing it better, just stating a fact. Do I wish we had more money, yes! However, I choose to stay home because when I was working I was giving 100% at my job and not having enough to come home and give to my husband, my child, and my home. I still don't always have enough to give to everyone, but it's a lot better. I get to spent time enjoying W grow up, I have time to connect with my husband, and my house is...well, it's in better shape than it was. My mission for now is to support my family in sacrifice.
The hardest thing I've faced is saying 'no' to things. Saying no to buying a pop when I'm tired and I need a pick me up. Saying no to hair cut even though I really need it because we simply don't have the money for it. Saying to no to new toys and clothes for my daughter on her birthday, saying no to outings with family and friends, saying no to dates with my husband, saying no to trips with family...
Then it hit me. Maybe instead at looking at the negative aspect, saying no, I should look at it from the positive, saying yes. I say yes to staying home with my daughter and getting to watch her build at her tool bench. I say yes, to spending a quiet evening at home with my husband watching a movie on a Netflix account we mooch off our friends. I say yes to keeping true friends who understand our financial situation and come to visit us to help us save. I say yes to family members who share their wealth during our time of trouble and go on trips that they help out on, not because they feel they need to but because they want to because they want us there. Most importantly, saying yes to trusting that God will provide because some months that's what it boils down to, God providing and that's nothing to complain about.