I am sorry to hear that your husband lost his job. Financially, it is tough for most folks and has been for a while. You guys don't have an emergency fund? No savings? You should have been stashing money away for just this scenario. As for the questions you asked:

Don't you already know the answers to most of your questions? If you filed bankruptcy a few years ago, haven't you been down this road before?

In my opinion, you SHOULD contact all the companies you owe money to and try to arrange payment plans. Explain your current situation, tell them what you can afford (no matter how little the amount) and begin to pay it off. They might not be receptive at first, but be firm; they will eventually take any installment amount over nothing at all. It will probably take years to pay off, but it is the right thing to do. Knowingly avoiding debts that you incurred is irresponsible and just plain wrong.

As for nursing school, how are you planning to pay for it? More debt? That is just digging yourself further in. Besides, you probably won't get any financial aid because of your previous bankruptcy and filing bankruptcy down the line won't make student loans 'go away' even if you do get them.

Filing bankruptcy is a last resort and, in my opinion, over used and taken advantage of in our society.

If you didn't learn from your mistakes the first time, maybe you should take a hard, honest look at your financial life NOW and try to avoid repeating them over and over. Scale back on spending. Sell the car you can't afford. Clip coupons. Eat rice and beans for dinner. Cut costs all around. I am sure there are many books at your local library on the subjects of budgeting, saving, debt relief, etc., that can help you implement a better financial plan for the future.

You need to change your financial habits NOW or you will be in debt forever and, quite possibly, unintentionally teach your kids the same bad habits.

Yeah, I get all of that! We filed BK on the advice of my mortgage broker(that I worked for) and we hadn't wracked up credit cards, never had car payments/ It was mainly medical bills, a broken lease, and a few other things. Bottom line, yes we did take advantage of the BK laws so that we could turn our credit around. Then we started making more money and had a growing family. Im guilty of using credit when I had no business. But, at this point in time, I cannot afford to pay my creditors anything!! That may change in the next 2 months or so. My priorities are my living expenses and food for the kids, Gas for the cars and selling them isn't an option. We are upside down in those too. Everything you say "sounds" great! But all of it just isnt practical! My QUESTION is how long before they start coming after us? Like judgements and such? Do you know? That is what I'm looking for! Thanks for your advice....I think I've heard most of it before...oh Yeah, Suze Orman...... Maybe at a different point it will all make sense...right now it's about immediate survival!

Yeah, sorry, but sometimes people just need to hear the harsh truth. It took a good friend of mine to chew me out to get me to shape up and change my habits years back. I didn't mean to offend, and if I did, I apologize. I know you are stressed; I have been there, too. To try to actually answer your questions this time (sorry!):

In my past experience, it took about 6-8 months after I stopped paying my bills for them to go into collection. During that time, the late fees will be tacked on and the default interest rates (25%++) will probably kick in and keep going, month after month.

In terms of sueing you, I'm guessing that probably would take at least a year or more (I have never gotten that far, personally), depending on the amount(s) you owe. If you owe thousands, the chances are greater of being sued than if you just owe hundreds. The bigger the fish, etc.

I can understand that you must prioritize your budget and where the money goes, but there are a few things you can try to avoid defaulting.

I know I said it in my last post, but before you get to the point where the credit cards and/or car loans go into default and go to a collection agency because you have completely stopped paying, I urge you to try calling all of the companies that you owe money to. Explain the situation your are in now, let them know what is going on, and see if they can alter your payment structure to make it easier to pay something, ANYTHING per month. If you think you can pay something more, in a few months, let them know. In this economy, companies are more likely to listen and negotiate to get something, over nothing.

If you make an effort to communicate and deal with them, you may be suprised that they will be willing to work with you; rather than sell your debt off and possibly get nothing. They might lower your monthly minimum payments and/or your interest rates to help. If you try and it doesn't work, well, at least you will know that you made a good faith effort to communicate and try to do the right thing.

I hope it works out for you. I will check this thread later. If I can help you further, I will try.