Monday, January 30, 2012
The Creator of This Blog Must Have Been Inspired By My Kids...
I love the blog Sh*t My Kids Ruined. So. Very. Much. I'm not the only one with broken mini blinds and 2 year old Vaseline grease spots on my walls.
A Big Decision
Lately, as you're aware, I have been stressed out concerning the state of our finances, and about losing one of my classes/half my pay due to low enrollment (see previous post).
When I first heard the news about my canceled class, I was despondent, and I was also dead set on finding a full-time job. The income, according to my rationale at that point, would skyrocket us out of debt and afford our family opportunities to grow as a result. I was going to sit down and start putting in my resume and CV ASAP.
But it didn't feel good.
NOTHING felt good.
I was more lost than ever. A full-time job was the answer I was looking for, right? I mean, I had a very strong assurance that our financial goals were something we are meant to tackle this year, so when the class was canceled, I assumed that meant for me to look for something better. And seeing as my part time teaching pay is as much as a minimum wage full-time job, I thought this magical door to a higher paying full-time job would appear before me, and all would be right in the world.
It just never felt good. It never felt right.
So, what feels good?
The decision to stay home with my children and work part time teaching as I do now, when hubby is able to be home with the children in the evenings. Also, I felt very strongly to pursue a business idea I have been toying with for a while that would also allow me to set my own schedule and pay rate, though by no means making a high-powered career salary.
This is the only thing that sounds good to me. The only thing that feels right.
So, needless to say, I am terrified. This means a lot of scraping by, a lot of sacrifice, a lot of worries, a lot of frugality, and concurrently raising my children/maintaining a home/teaching part-time/starting a small business. But this feels so right, and I'm motivated to see it through. Fears and all, I know that the right thing for me at this time is to spend most of my time with my children, making our home and family the main priority. It's not the right decision for everyone, and I'm still very envious of full-time working mamas, but it just doesn't feel right for our family at the moment. I am trusting that we will be able to work through this period of transition for our family, while fulfilling our goals, and making our family our top priority.
When I first heard the news about my canceled class, I was despondent, and I was also dead set on finding a full-time job. The income, according to my rationale at that point, would skyrocket us out of debt and afford our family opportunities to grow as a result. I was going to sit down and start putting in my resume and CV ASAP.
But it didn't feel good.
NOTHING felt good.
I was more lost than ever. A full-time job was the answer I was looking for, right? I mean, I had a very strong assurance that our financial goals were something we are meant to tackle this year, so when the class was canceled, I assumed that meant for me to look for something better. And seeing as my part time teaching pay is as much as a minimum wage full-time job, I thought this magical door to a higher paying full-time job would appear before me, and all would be right in the world.
It just never felt good. It never felt right.
So, what feels good?
The decision to stay home with my children and work part time teaching as I do now, when hubby is able to be home with the children in the evenings. Also, I felt very strongly to pursue a business idea I have been toying with for a while that would also allow me to set my own schedule and pay rate, though by no means making a high-powered career salary.
This is the only thing that sounds good to me. The only thing that feels right.
So, needless to say, I am terrified. This means a lot of scraping by, a lot of sacrifice, a lot of worries, a lot of frugality, and concurrently raising my children/maintaining a home/teaching part-time/starting a small business. But this feels so right, and I'm motivated to see it through. Fears and all, I know that the right thing for me at this time is to spend most of my time with my children, making our home and family the main priority. It's not the right decision for everyone, and I'm still very envious of full-time working mamas, but it just doesn't feel right for our family at the moment. I am trusting that we will be able to work through this period of transition for our family, while fulfilling our goals, and making our family our top priority.
Friday, January 27, 2012
Passing the Test
The hubby and I have set some financial goals for our family that we hope will allow us to start breaking free from the bondage of debt. And while difficult lately, seeing as we have been down to one income, running behind on bills, etc, we have held to the fact that I would be starting work soon, and that we could finally start making progress on our goal to eliminate credit cards from our lives.
I signed a contract on Monday to teach two sections of an English class at the local university where I am an adjunct lecturer. Everything was a go, and I was excitedly awaiting the idea of the usual paycheck, knowing we could finally get to work on our goals.
On Wednesday, the start of the semester, I received word that one of my classes was canceled due to low enrollment, even though there was a contract signed--meaning my pay would drop by 50%.
I was devastated. Actually, to be honest, I still am. I felt like our goals were shattered. I felt forsaken. I had felt that we had made the right choices in setting our goals and were following the correct path, and now we will still be struggling in a land of being perpetually past due on bills, let alone getting out of debt.
This is definitely a time where I need to learn to exercise faith. I still feel very strongly that the goals that we have in place are still the right ones. I am trying to remember that, as the saying goes, "When one door closes, another one opens." I am praying that I will be able to know where to go from here. (Would it be too much to ask for God to mark the door with a flashing neon sign that says "GO HERE!" in ridiculously big, bright lights?)
I found a quote that seemed particularly fitting: "Worrying does not empty tomorrow of its troubles. It empties today of its strength." The quote is from Corrie Ten Boom, and I am desperately holding onto those words right now. I am a chronic worrywart, and a lot of times, I allow worry to take over and rob me of my strength and ambition, and if there ever was a time to hold fast and true to my goals, it is now. I need to be strong for my family, and to work on ALL of my personal goals to better myself not just for them, but for me, too.
Here's hoping I have the strength and the discernment to know how to accomplish the goals that are so important to us. I feel like I am being tested, as is my family, and usually I feel as though we are tested in our lives when we are close to heading down the right path. Here's hoping I pass this test with flying colors.
I signed a contract on Monday to teach two sections of an English class at the local university where I am an adjunct lecturer. Everything was a go, and I was excitedly awaiting the idea of the usual paycheck, knowing we could finally get to work on our goals.
On Wednesday, the start of the semester, I received word that one of my classes was canceled due to low enrollment, even though there was a contract signed--meaning my pay would drop by 50%.
I was devastated. Actually, to be honest, I still am. I felt like our goals were shattered. I felt forsaken. I had felt that we had made the right choices in setting our goals and were following the correct path, and now we will still be struggling in a land of being perpetually past due on bills, let alone getting out of debt.
This is definitely a time where I need to learn to exercise faith. I still feel very strongly that the goals that we have in place are still the right ones. I am trying to remember that, as the saying goes, "When one door closes, another one opens." I am praying that I will be able to know where to go from here. (Would it be too much to ask for God to mark the door with a flashing neon sign that says "GO HERE!" in ridiculously big, bright lights?)
I found a quote that seemed particularly fitting: "Worrying does not empty tomorrow of its troubles. It empties today of its strength." The quote is from Corrie Ten Boom, and I am desperately holding onto those words right now. I am a chronic worrywart, and a lot of times, I allow worry to take over and rob me of my strength and ambition, and if there ever was a time to hold fast and true to my goals, it is now. I need to be strong for my family, and to work on ALL of my personal goals to better myself not just for them, but for me, too.
Here's hoping I have the strength and the discernment to know how to accomplish the goals that are so important to us. I feel like I am being tested, as is my family, and usually I feel as though we are tested in our lives when we are close to heading down the right path. Here's hoping I pass this test with flying colors.
Monday, January 23, 2012
Sopapilla Cheesecake...Om Nom Nom....
Bless you, Pinterest, for introducing me to Sopapilla "Cheesecake." It was creamy, decadent, warm, gooey, and all around wonderful. And now, I am sharing it with you! (The original recipe can be found here.)
Sopapilla Cheesecake
Ingredients:
-3 cans crescent rolls
-2 (8oz) packages cream cheese, softened
-1 cup sugar
-1 teaspoon vanilla
-1/4 cup butter (melted)
-Cinnamon & sugar
Instructions:
Unroll and spread 1 & 1/2 can crescent rolls on bottom of ungreased pan. Combine softened cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla with mixer on medium speed, until creamy/mixed. Spread mixture over crescent rolls. Unroll and spread remaining crescent rolls over mixture. Spread melted butter over the top and sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes.
Sopapilla Cheesecake
Ingredients:
-3 cans crescent rolls
-2 (8oz) packages cream cheese, softened
-1 cup sugar
-1 teaspoon vanilla
-1/4 cup butter (melted)
-Cinnamon & sugar
Instructions:
Unroll and spread 1 & 1/2 can crescent rolls on bottom of ungreased pan. Combine softened cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla with mixer on medium speed, until creamy/mixed. Spread mixture over crescent rolls. Unroll and spread remaining crescent rolls over mixture. Spread melted butter over the top and sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes.
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Happy Holidays?
I am a bit of a Scrooge when it comes to all things holidays.
It's not that I don't enjoy the idea behind holidays, because as a rule, I do. I used to think Christmas, Easter, Valentine's Day, and Halloween were magical when I was a kid. I remember staring, fascinated, at our Christmas tree. I remember hunting leprechauns with my Kindergarten classmates. I anxiously awaited a box of Valentines every year, and of course all the candy. I remember a sense of awe and wonderment whenever a holiday came around. I miss that.
I find that I want my children to find the holidays just as breathtaking as they grow up. But, the problems I struggle with during the holidays tend to stress me out and want to sometimes crawl into a hole. I hate, hate, hate the commercialism that seems to accompany each special day. I loathe the commercials that tell us how much we are lacking and failing our families if we don't do x, y, and z this year. I struggle trying to balance extended family with our own little brood, and all of the stress that can bring to the (literal) table on holidays. I never quite know what to do for other people, the right things to make, say, buy, and so forth. So, what should be magical ends up turning into a bit of a fight, and I wait for the holidays to simply be over.
But, not anymore.
I have resolved this year to make more of each special day as it comes. The hubby and I made a romantic dinner and dessert on New Year's Eve. I threw an actual birthday party for my son, and gasp! It turned out OK, and he loved it. I have plans to do projects and special little things for my family from February 1st up until Valentine's Day. Nothing major, and nothing expensive, but definitely things that will show my family that I care about them, and that will hopefully teach The Goob to show love to others as well, seeing as we also have little things planned some of his loved ones, too.
My goal in this is to learn how to love holidays again, and how to find that magical spark, for myself, and for my family. I have a goal of learning how to reject the commercial and focus instead on showing love, making more handmade and heartfelt gifts, and learning to appreciate the little things that make the holidays so great. I want the holidays to be about love and happiness again, and not simply what needs done and how much money needs spent.
It's not that I don't enjoy the idea behind holidays, because as a rule, I do. I used to think Christmas, Easter, Valentine's Day, and Halloween were magical when I was a kid. I remember staring, fascinated, at our Christmas tree. I remember hunting leprechauns with my Kindergarten classmates. I anxiously awaited a box of Valentines every year, and of course all the candy. I remember a sense of awe and wonderment whenever a holiday came around. I miss that.
I find that I want my children to find the holidays just as breathtaking as they grow up. But, the problems I struggle with during the holidays tend to stress me out and want to sometimes crawl into a hole. I hate, hate, hate the commercialism that seems to accompany each special day. I loathe the commercials that tell us how much we are lacking and failing our families if we don't do x, y, and z this year. I struggle trying to balance extended family with our own little brood, and all of the stress that can bring to the (literal) table on holidays. I never quite know what to do for other people, the right things to make, say, buy, and so forth. So, what should be magical ends up turning into a bit of a fight, and I wait for the holidays to simply be over.
But, not anymore.
I have resolved this year to make more of each special day as it comes. The hubby and I made a romantic dinner and dessert on New Year's Eve. I threw an actual birthday party for my son, and gasp! It turned out OK, and he loved it. I have plans to do projects and special little things for my family from February 1st up until Valentine's Day. Nothing major, and nothing expensive, but definitely things that will show my family that I care about them, and that will hopefully teach The Goob to show love to others as well, seeing as we also have little things planned some of his loved ones, too.
My goal in this is to learn how to love holidays again, and how to find that magical spark, for myself, and for my family. I have a goal of learning how to reject the commercial and focus instead on showing love, making more handmade and heartfelt gifts, and learning to appreciate the little things that make the holidays so great. I want the holidays to be about love and happiness again, and not simply what needs done and how much money needs spent.
Saturday, January 14, 2012
Through the Generosity of a Friend...
I now have an ample long-term food storage!! The hubby and I have made it a priority to keep short-term groceries and basics in hefty supply. We have a freezer full of meat, cheeses, breadstuffs, butter, and so forth. We have pounds and pounds of pasta, dozens of baking mixes, spices, pasta sauces, small canned goods, etc., and I'm proud of this because it's one of the few things I feel we have done right sometimes with our finances and our home. But, building a long term food storage in #10 can form has been a much more difficult venture. It's expensive, and right now, money is tight. But, a friend is moving and couldn't take her storage with her, so we were able to take ownership of it. Between what we already had and her supply, we now have a very good long term storage. I don't plan for some apocalypse or some tragedy, but we do live out in the country and are often without power, or snowed in, and often for a few days, so it's nice to have something on hand. Plus, it's nice to be able to cook nearly anything I want when I want to, and I like the idea of having food on hand to give to neighbors and family if something ever would happen, like a natural disaster. Our church counsels us to keep a food storage, so it has been important to us. I am so grateful for the generosity of our friend, and this is such a blessing for our family today.
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
How My New Year's Resolutions Are Going....
I figured I would take some time and assess how my resolutions are going, resolution by resolution:
1. Spend less money on things that can be avoided. This means eating out less (and cooking in more), looking for gently used clothing or items when I can, working my food storage to my advantage/buying in bulk, avoiding buying "stuff" on credit cards, and focusing less on "wants" and more on "needs." I don't have to buy things to make me happy. I'm doing "better" in this category. I would not, however, say I am doing perfectly. I can't quite squelch all of my impulses just yet, but I've turned down opportunities to shop or spend excess money at times, though I admit I have spent money on some fun things. I tend to find myself saying, "OK, money is tight, so I won't spend anything," and I don't think that is practical. I need to find a balance. But do I honestly feel like some of my attitudes are staring to change? Yes. I hope I can keep it up. We are also doing a great job at buying food in bulk and snagging great deals on needed items like clothing and shoes. We have been trying to focus more on what we need as opposed to what we want.
2. Get out of credit card debt as much as we can. Use as much of MY income as we can to do so. Pay even a few dollars more than the minimum payment every month. This is going to be a long road. We will struggle making more than the minimum payments while we are behind on some of our bills. I also have not started back to work yet. So, another work in progress.
3. Work harder to get bills out on time. I am a lazy and ineffective bill payer, and sometimes juggle bills around intentionally. Another item that will take time. The hubby and I are working on trying to communicate better and come up with game plans, though, and for us, communicating is a big key to this. So, we're trying.
4. Be a more loving and compassionate wife to my husband. I can be a contrary butt sometimes. Trying. I will be brutally honest and admit that my hormones have affected my libido levels, as did depression. But, I think we are rediscovering each other as husband and wife, and not just pals, and it's been good for us. I think the hubby agrees. I'm just not an affectionate soul physically, so this is really hard for me, but I'm also enjoying it.
5. Be more patient and loving toward my children. Appreciate them more. React with love more than anger when I am frustrated. This is hard sometimes. I have a four year old who isn't pottytrained yet. And I have a new baby. But, I'm trying to learn to pick my battles, and appreciate them for who they are, and learn to focus on their needs instead of my wants.
6. Work harder to get my grading done on time and my classes more organized this year. I'm always grading papers at the very last minute. Same thing with grade calculations. Not anymore. My syllabus is due to my boss in five days. I haven't started it yet. I fail at this one.
7. Buy more locally grown and produced foods. I love fresh produce and homegrown yummies. And I'm lucky to live somewhere where they are accessible to me and within our budget. I'm going good here! Over the weekend, we went to a bulk foods grocer in our region, a new place to check out, and I was able to buy local bulk foods, produce, baked goods, meats, and cheeses. I even used this store to snag some of the supplies for The Goob's birthday party.
8. Take an active interest in cooking meals for my family and enjoy it even more. Working on this. Gathering recipes, planning fun desserts for our family this week...it's been fun.
9. Exercise for a half an hour at least three times a week. Today was the first day I even attempted exercise. I exercised for ten minutes and thought I was going to die. I suck at this. I'm pitiful.
10. Work to keep a cleaner, more organized home. Between getting new things for the holidays/birthdays, mess from said celebrations, etc., my house is a disaster. I plan on fixing that, ASAP. I'm using Pinterest for organizational inspiration. And I have been purging out old stuff, and I got The Goob's closet cleaned out, for the most part, and purged a ton of The Bean's clothing.
11. I will make/do a project at least once a month. Use Pinterest for inspiration. I totally have rocked at this resolution. Yay for me! The blog is proof!!
12. Be more charitable. We have been donating to our local animal shelter every pay check. I'll be taking bags of stuff to Goodwill soon. I've been trying to give things we don't want anymore to some people in need. I have done a few charitable projects at church. But, I could do better. I don't always take advantage of opportunities.
13. Give more homemade gifts this year. I bought the supplies to make homemade gifts for my mother's birthday, AND I have plans for Valentine's gifts this year that are handmade! I'm so proud of myself in this department, because it is SOOO not my forte.
14. Work harder to celebrate holidays and enjoy them more than I usually do. I'm doing this! I enjoy holidays, but find myself becoming depressed because holidays have so many requirements, so much stress, and I haven't had the best of experiences with them over the years. But, I am working to change this. We had a great celebration for The Goob's 4th birthday, and The Engineer and I had a great date night at home on New Year's Eve. I also have plans for Valentine's Day, St. Patrick's Day, and Easter. This is another area where I am proud of myself.
I encourage you, if you have made resolutions, to assess them every now and again, and see how you are doing. Obviously, some of mine are broken already, but I'm trying to dust myself off and start again. Each new day is a brand new start!!
1. Spend less money on things that can be avoided. This means eating out less (and cooking in more), looking for gently used clothing or items when I can, working my food storage to my advantage/buying in bulk, avoiding buying "stuff" on credit cards, and focusing less on "wants" and more on "needs." I don't have to buy things to make me happy. I'm doing "better" in this category. I would not, however, say I am doing perfectly. I can't quite squelch all of my impulses just yet, but I've turned down opportunities to shop or spend excess money at times, though I admit I have spent money on some fun things. I tend to find myself saying, "OK, money is tight, so I won't spend anything," and I don't think that is practical. I need to find a balance. But do I honestly feel like some of my attitudes are staring to change? Yes. I hope I can keep it up. We are also doing a great job at buying food in bulk and snagging great deals on needed items like clothing and shoes. We have been trying to focus more on what we need as opposed to what we want.
2. Get out of credit card debt as much as we can. Use as much of MY income as we can to do so. Pay even a few dollars more than the minimum payment every month. This is going to be a long road. We will struggle making more than the minimum payments while we are behind on some of our bills. I also have not started back to work yet. So, another work in progress.
3. Work harder to get bills out on time. I am a lazy and ineffective bill payer, and sometimes juggle bills around intentionally. Another item that will take time. The hubby and I are working on trying to communicate better and come up with game plans, though, and for us, communicating is a big key to this. So, we're trying.
4. Be a more loving and compassionate wife to my husband. I can be a contrary butt sometimes. Trying. I will be brutally honest and admit that my hormones have affected my libido levels, as did depression. But, I think we are rediscovering each other as husband and wife, and not just pals, and it's been good for us. I think the hubby agrees. I'm just not an affectionate soul physically, so this is really hard for me, but I'm also enjoying it.
5. Be more patient and loving toward my children. Appreciate them more. React with love more than anger when I am frustrated. This is hard sometimes. I have a four year old who isn't pottytrained yet. And I have a new baby. But, I'm trying to learn to pick my battles, and appreciate them for who they are, and learn to focus on their needs instead of my wants.
6. Work harder to get my grading done on time and my classes more organized this year. I'm always grading papers at the very last minute. Same thing with grade calculations. Not anymore. My syllabus is due to my boss in five days. I haven't started it yet. I fail at this one.
7. Buy more locally grown and produced foods. I love fresh produce and homegrown yummies. And I'm lucky to live somewhere where they are accessible to me and within our budget. I'm going good here! Over the weekend, we went to a bulk foods grocer in our region, a new place to check out, and I was able to buy local bulk foods, produce, baked goods, meats, and cheeses. I even used this store to snag some of the supplies for The Goob's birthday party.
8. Take an active interest in cooking meals for my family and enjoy it even more. Working on this. Gathering recipes, planning fun desserts for our family this week...it's been fun.
9. Exercise for a half an hour at least three times a week. Today was the first day I even attempted exercise. I exercised for ten minutes and thought I was going to die. I suck at this. I'm pitiful.
10. Work to keep a cleaner, more organized home. Between getting new things for the holidays/birthdays, mess from said celebrations, etc., my house is a disaster. I plan on fixing that, ASAP. I'm using Pinterest for organizational inspiration. And I have been purging out old stuff, and I got The Goob's closet cleaned out, for the most part, and purged a ton of The Bean's clothing.
11. I will make/do a project at least once a month. Use Pinterest for inspiration. I totally have rocked at this resolution. Yay for me! The blog is proof!!
12. Be more charitable. We have been donating to our local animal shelter every pay check. I'll be taking bags of stuff to Goodwill soon. I've been trying to give things we don't want anymore to some people in need. I have done a few charitable projects at church. But, I could do better. I don't always take advantage of opportunities.
13. Give more homemade gifts this year. I bought the supplies to make homemade gifts for my mother's birthday, AND I have plans for Valentine's gifts this year that are handmade! I'm so proud of myself in this department, because it is SOOO not my forte.
14. Work harder to celebrate holidays and enjoy them more than I usually do. I'm doing this! I enjoy holidays, but find myself becoming depressed because holidays have so many requirements, so much stress, and I haven't had the best of experiences with them over the years. But, I am working to change this. We had a great celebration for The Goob's 4th birthday, and The Engineer and I had a great date night at home on New Year's Eve. I also have plans for Valentine's Day, St. Patrick's Day, and Easter. This is another area where I am proud of myself.
I encourage you, if you have made resolutions, to assess them every now and again, and see how you are doing. Obviously, some of mine are broken already, but I'm trying to dust myself off and start again. Each new day is a brand new start!!
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