high bank balance on date of filing

[2011]

my house was damaged in the recent hurricanes and finally checks from the insurance company are streaming in... I deposited a couple ( enough to pay the contractors for work in progress). Because of the holidays, I will not be having any more work done for a few weeks. I have not ( and I suppose I should not) deposited any other insurance checks ( and am expecting a few more before claim is closed) because I was worried how having high balances in my checking account would look to the trustee... but I have a check out to a contractor that has gone on vacation til January 5th which means more than likely it will not clear before I file next week ( Dec 27th)...
Is there a way to explain this balance when filing??
This "income" should be exempt from what Ive read so far ( though Im doing an upcoming weekend power study session )

[free2breathe]

You can explain it, but it won't likely matter. The trustee doesn't care about outstanding checks. When they see your balance on the date of filing, they view it as property of the bankruptcy estate. I found this out the hard way. Exempting it, if you can, is your best hope.