Help, My Money Cushion is Gone!

For as long as I can remember I have had one goal...live debt free...have savings. Sadly with a massive debt due to a special needs and sick child, that debt free thing as been more like chasing a butterfly than a reality. Still, I have been steady making progress on paying off debt. I have held onto savings for years, sometimes a nice amount, sometimes enough to keep the account open.

I have been carless for a year now. It was no big deal as our son was unemployed and living with us, which meant I had his car as needed. Recently, that changed. I no longer have his car. Okay, so it was time to deal with the no car issue. We did. We bought a rodeo in need of a new engine one week and the engine the next. Our trusty mechanic who knows we live with way, was happy to get the business. He checked the rodeo and gave me a list of needs beyond the motor and kindly let me shop eBay for the best deals. I was excited and pleased to know in a matter of weeks, I'll be sporting an old rodeo with new parts. One we could pay for out of savings. One we paid cash for...and then...the other shoe fell.

Why is it when you are on top of things, something always fall off? Yesterday as my husband drove in to work, a two hour commute he makes twice a week, the water pump on his rodeo blew up. Yes, it had to be towed in. Yes it has to been fixed...yes he called and asked, "Do we have any money left after buying the stuff for the car?" We did, we don't now that I know the cost of fixing his transportation. And so life goes.

Today I start over. Today I find more ways to build back up the savings it took us a year to save. It would be easy to toss my hands in the air and say we will never win. But we will and you will, if you just keep at it. While I was down watching an online bank transfer from savings to checking wipe us out, I was proud of that savings to keep us from reaching for credit. That's a big win, and I have to keep focused on that point.

How do you cope with broken things, emergencies and the unexpected? As your plan worked? What advise to you have for someone wanting to get back on their feet fast?