Re: Been there, did that too.
During those long periods between contracts or jobs in my business, and when my wife wasn't pulling in what she gets now. Like you, I managed to haul out of the credit card hole each time. It helped a little bit that in those Days of Yore, credit card interest was still deductible.
Home equity saved our bacon a couple of times too. Might be the one good thing we got out of the housing boom. Of course, since I was careful not to borrow nearly as much as they said I was eligible for (a common booby trap back in those "easy mortgage" days), I'm still quite a ways above water, even in this market.