Last week, Tina Mercer told her husband that she had one wish this December

"As a Christmas present, I would just like to go a month without worrying about what's getting the 10-day shutoff notice," she told him.

A few days later, their phone was turned off.

It's been a rocky few years for Ms. Mercer and her husband, Keith Hilson, but they hope they are now on the cusp of financial stability.

After years as a pizza delivery man, Mr. Hilson recently started working at Popeye's restaurant and got a promotion to manager about a month ago.

Until the larger checks start rolling in, however, it's a constant juggling act just to keep the lights on in their rented Lawrenceville apartment.

Their electricity was shut off recently, as was their phone on multiple occasions, and their cable. To make matters worse, their used minivan died two weeks ago.

"Every month, something takes its turn," she said.

Ms. Mercer currently stays home to care for the couple's youngest child, 14-month-old Kacie, who spends her days happily rolling around on the carpet, running to greet visitors and chasing the cat.

Ms. Mercer said that if she went back to her previous job working in shipping in the Strip District, all of her income would go to pay for day care.

Being at home also allows her to walk 4-year-old Jamie and 3-year-old Jessie to a pre-kindergarten program at McCleary Elementary School, and to get her oldest daughter, 12-year-old Kellie, off to school.

She's also around after school to keep a careful eye on Jessie, who has the same osteogenesis imperfecta, or brittle bone disease, that Mr. Hilson does.

Because of the disease, Jessie broke her right leg at age 2 after a cousin tried to teach her a ballet move. Four days after the cast came off, she broke it again, then twice more afterwards.

Doctors have fitted her with a brace that allows her to safely go to school, but she still needs supervision. Just last week Ms. Mercer caught her flipping backwards over the living room couch -- luckily without hurting herself.

Jessie's medical costs have been covered through Gateway insurance, which is available to those receiving public assistance. Ms. Mercer also receives food stamps, and a Social Security payment from her first husband, who died when Kellie was 5.

Ms. Mercer hopes to return to her job, which she loved, after Kacie is old enough to go to a pre-kindergarten program.

In the meantime, they've relied on their church, Door of Hope Community Church in Lawrenceville, to help fill some of their needs.

The church has provided coats and backpacks for the children, and when Ms. Mercer didn't think that she could afford a real wedding, one church member donated a dress and another made her a veil.

Their home is filled with items donated from members of Ms. Mercer's large family, including living room couches from her aunt and clothes passed down among her daughters from a niece who is now almost 19.

With no money in the family budget for gifts, Christmas could be a bleak season for Ms. Mercer and her family, and for countless other Western Pennsylvania families facing financial hardships.

Thanks to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's Goodfellows Toy Fund and the Marine Corps Toys for Tots, Ms. Mercer's children won't miss out on Christmas. Donations by Post-Gazette readers help to ensure that no child suffers a Christmas without toys.

"I would not know what to do around Christmas without Toys for Tots," she said.

You can make a tax-deductible contribution to Goodfellows using the coupon on this page, or online at www.post-gazette.com/pgcharities.

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