Blogging as is not an income driver

I don’t want to depress everyone... especially since it's the holiday but I need to talk about this.  I'm broke.  FLAT BROKE.  That means see the wallet above?  That is what mine looks like.  That means when I open my blog each morning and post, I wonder if my husband is going to turn off the internet.  You see, he honestly doesn't think this blog is worth anything.  It's not that he doesn't support my dreams.  It is the fact that this blog has paid me absolutely nothing.  It is the fact that he wants me to make some kind of money.  I know.  I know.  I can't do much with Jason in the house.  He doesn't go anywhere.  I can't find a paying job that pays enough to fill the bill.  If I get a phone job at home, guess who starts making a lot of noise?  I tried that.  It didn't work.  If I could find a data entry job at home, I get outbid.  Have you tried Odesk.com?  I have.  It stinks trying to figure out how to outbid people that will work for $1.00 an hour.  I so am not kidding.  So trying to find a non phone..data entry or writing job is hard to do.

I found my dream job at home 4 years ago.  I was working as a trainer for a recruiting service.  And guess what, I made what I made when I was working in brick and mortar.  I put in more hours than I care to admit but Faith was going to school at the time.  And no Jason yet.  Then they went belly up about 2 years ago.  I haven't had a paycheck coming in the door for 2 years.  It is not cutting it.

I am hereby coming out and saying.. I'm broke.  I LOVE...  I do mean love to write.  It has been one of the best things I have ever done.  But I hate being broke.  I hate not having money.  I hate worrying paycheck to paycheck if I will be able to afford food, electricity or water.  I hate worrying about paying my mortgage.  I hate the fact that there are so many people out there in the same exact boat as me.  I worry non-stop.  I go to sleep worrying.  I wake up worrying.  I have nightmares about it.  Let me tell you it is no fun.

So I started writing this blog to start blowing off steam and keep a journal about my kids.  I found this awesome world.  I found incredibly awesome bloggy friends.  I read more stories and laughed harder than I have in years.  I want to continue doing it as well.  But...

My husband's salary pays for the bare necessities with nothing to spare.  My credit has fallen to the wayside.  I have made $.00 for this blog so far.  But I LOVE writing this blog.  I LOVE it more than I have ever loved anything.  So much so that I have considered writing a book once again.  You see when I was little I wanted to be a writer.  I grew up and I forgot.  Now I remember.  But the thing is.. can I afford to continue?

I make no money.  Paid posts are now coming to the forefront of my mind.  Google ads may show up on my RSS feed.  This is so that I can continue writing this blog.  So please please don't quit following me if I do.  You may see new ads showing up on my blog as well.  I have to justify me doing this some how.  In the meantime, please I'm not doing this to just spam or annoy you.  I need the money.  I wish I could find advertisers for the blog but I have no clue how to do that.  But at the same time, I have to be able to feel right about that advertisement if I do.  I will not change who I am even for money.

I can't change who I am either.  I write about anything.  Lately I've realized that I stay away from certain topics and don't know why.  I tell jokes.  Ok, most of my stuff is PG rated though.  I think that's because I know my family and friends read it.  But... I'm not always PG myself.  I want to write things that make you want to come read me.  I want to get to know you and I want you to know me.  I want to connect with you.  That connection does not come from money though.

Ok so what I'm asking from all my bloggy friends.. if you have found solutions to blogging and making a living off of it, please leave me a comment about how.  I would so love to do this blog full time but right now I'm just not able to.  My husband wants me to go back to work.  I can't blame him.  Though it does not make sense.  I really appreciate any support you do give me at any time.

Thank you for listening to me complain.

P.S.  I am so far behind in my blog reading and commenting but I will get to you as long as I have electricity sometime soon.

Reality of Recession

Since Jason came into our house, I haven't been able to really work like I used to.  I still do a little recruiting here or there.  Its usually when he is sleeping which isn't much.  Jason wakes up at 6 am every morning.  No alarm clock for him.  It is his internal clock.  I can't focus the time that I need to on work to get things done.  I get so frustrated as I watch the bills stack up.  Its simply a fact of life that we need to deal with.

I've considered a lot of different options.  Such as going back to the brick n mortar work field.  I haven't worked outside the house for over 6 years.  Not since Faith got sick as a small child.  Doctors thought that she had cystic fibrosis.  Thank God she didn't.  I came home because she could not stay well in daycare.  She actually had a ear infection, hand, foot and mouth, and strep throat at one point and didn't act like she was sick.  She was used to being sick that much.  Her pain tolerance level was extremely high.

Until last year, I was recruiting from home.  Now I wasn't making that great of money but I was making enough to keep my family out of the red.  I can't do that with Jason.  He simply will not be quiet if I am on the phone.  Instant red alert to him "Mommy is on the phone I need her now."  So working at home hasn't worked.  I can't go outside the home to work.  It simply is not financially feasible.  That would cost us $1000 a month for both kids in daycare.  That does not include gas, money to eat, clothing expense, etc.  I haven't worked outside the house for six years so the type of job I am going to get would not make sense to do it.

You have to be certified in the state of Kentucky to provide daycare.  Now I could do that.  But I don't have the money for the classes or the daycare while.  Any suggestions?  I am starting to sell Avon virtually since I can't afford to buy the stock that is necessary.

Any suggestions would be great.

Angel Food Ministries

In 1994, Pastors Joe and Linda Wingo began Angel Food Ministries in Monroe, GA.  They felt a need to help their fellow citizens who were struggling after a plant closing by supplying the families with food.  It started out very small but today it is feeding over 500,000 families across the United States.  Angel Food Ministries is a non-profit, non-denominational organization.  This is really good news for stressed out families because of the rising costs and lower income coming into a household.

The nice thing about Angel Food Ministries is that it is open to everyone.  There is no particular income bracket.  There are no applications or qualifications required.  You qualify whether you are getting aid or doing well or struggling.  I have been ordering from them for about six months.  I can testify to the quality of the food. 

Angel Food distributes the food to local churches who feed their parishes.  But anyone can buy from the parishes.  A family can contact a host church directly or order their food online.  The family will then have to go to the host church to pick up the order.  Each box costs $30 and contains fresh and frozen items.  You can purchase the food online by credit card or Food Stamps.  I'm not sure exactly how the Food Stamps work but I know that it is allowed.  

This month's menu:

1.5 lb. Rib eye Steaks (3 x 8 oz.)

1.81 lb. (avg.) Perdue Tray Pack
Split Chicken Breast (2 large breasts)
4 lb. Chicken Thighs
1.5 lb. Pork Chops (4 x 6 oz.)
1 lb. 80/20 Lean Ground Beef
1.5 lb. 100% White Meat Turkey
Burgers (4 x 6 oz.)
12 oz. Deli Ham
1 lb. Frozen Sweet Potatoes
1 lb. Frozen Green Beans
15 oz. Pears (Product of U.S.A.)
12 oz. Orange Juice Concentrate
100% juice, no sugar added - makes over a quart of juice)
3 lb. bag Fresh Idaho Potatoes
2 lb. bag Fresh Onions
32 oz. 2% Shelf Stable Milk
Dozen Eggs
Dessert

Each box is suppose to feed a family of four for a week or a senior citizen for about a month.  As you can see, it is a good amount of food.  The food is the same quality as you would purchase from your local grocery store.  If you were to purchase it in the store, I can guarantee that you would pay twice the amount at least.  I did a check on what we got last month.  I would have been paying $85 for it.  I saved $55 on one box.  Now I order 2 boxes typically.  I, also, order specials that they have. 

They do carry a prepackaged balanced fully cooked meals for people on the go or seniors which costs $28.  They have a dry mix allergen-free food box as well that they sell for $35.  I know that they had a Thanksgiving package coming up as well.

Check out the website, Angel Food Ministries, to find a host church to order from.

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask.  I do completely support this cause.

Free Things to Do With Your Children

This recession has made things especially tight for the family. Most of these are free or don’t cost very much. I was thinking how useful it would be to have a list of some ways to have fun without spending a lot of money:

1. Play sports together: soccer, basketball, baseball, kickball or football.
2. Paint or draw together.
3. Create a fort in your living room out of blankets or cardboard boxes.
4. Go on a hike.
5. Have a sunset picnic at a park or beach.
6. Play board or card games.
7. Go to a playground.
8. Find out what day your museum has a free day. Most do.
9. Play hide-and-seek.
10. Ride bikes or scooters.
11. Watch a movie and make popcorn.
12. Bake cookies (let the kids help).
13. Go to the zoo.
14. Go to the library.
15. Create a scrapbook.
16. Color together.
17. Make play dough from scratch.
18. Make homemade mini pizzas.
19. Go to a public place, people watch, and make up imaginary stories about people.
20. Visit family.
21. Create a treasure hunt for them (leaving clues around the house or yard).
22. Create a family book, with information and pictures about each family member.
23. Fly kites.
24. Donate stuff to charity.
25. Pitch a tent and sleep outside with marshmallows that you roast.
26. Have a water balloon fight.
27. Explore your yard and look for insects.
28. Go for a walk and explore the neighborhood.
29. Make hot cocoa.
30. Play school.
31. Play in the dirt together. Make mud pies or plates. You can even make up restaurant situations.
32. Sing songs.
33. Bake a cake and decorate it.
34. Play dress-up.
35. Thumb-wrestle, play mercy, or have a tickle fight.
36. Play “I Spy” in the car or during a walk.
37. Draw on the sidewalk with chalk
38. Set up plastic bottles and a ball to play a bowling game.
39. Make a mobile.
40. Take a Firehouse Tour
41. Create a collage
42. Make sock puppets.
43. Make pasta necklaces.
44. Go to the dog park.
45. Make a mask out of paper, string, and crayons.
46. Go sledding
47. Play Simon Says.
48. Catch lightning bugs.
49. Go to a community movie. Most cities have them.
50. Make and bury a time capsule.

Mint.com

For years I have used a number of different software programs to balance our money. Quicken, QuickBooks and a number of other financial programs have done the trick. However, I always felt it was difficult to truly know how much money we had. Then recently, one of our friends suggested I look at this great website that helps you get a clear picture of your money. Mint.com is touted as “the Best FREE Way to Manage Your Money”. At first I was very skeptical, as this site basically has access to all of your personal banking, investment and credit card accounts, then gives you a dashboard of where you are spending and if you are within your budget. However, as I started to research it more, and saw the secure features, it became more and more apparent that this is an amazing tool to have. The other amazing parts about it is the way it suggests lower interest rate credit cards & banks accounts to help you lower your debt faster. Plus, of course it can notify you either by email or by iPhone about your current spending and charges posted on the account. Mint.com has become a major asset in helping us get control of our current situation…check it out!

Money

It’s that time again when you are trying to make everyone happy. Trying to keep the budget down where it is suppose to be. Yet it’s impossible. I want to do so many things at once, and nothing seems to get accomplished. I want to be the fun, happy go lucky girl I once was, not dragged down with all this stress and irritation. It seems like if I just had the money to get through this, everything would be fantastic. That the root of the problem, money, it’s never enough, and we don't ever have it. But I know, I KNOW money is NOTHING when it comes to happiness... Yet I can't help feeling stressed out due to the lack of money. I know what's important its family, friends, people, things that cannot be replaced. But I want to be able to give things to my family and friends. I want to buy that pretty dress that Faith wants and doesn't need it. It brings me down when I can't. This time of year is so busy for us and there is never enough to get everything accomplished. October brings Faith's birthday as well as Halloween. November brings Thanksgiving. December as we all know too well brings Christmas and then New Years Eve. I can't seem to balance it all and it’s dragging me down.

It seems like that struggle for me everyday... in almost every way. When will it get easier? When will I see the finish line near? I do the best that I can in teaching my kids not to desire material things, to value the little things in life. Sometimes it’s just not enough. Sometimes I want things, they want things. I hate wanting things. I hate feeling depressed. I just needed to vent a minute before I went insane. Today is not one of my happier ramblings, hopefully I perk up again tomorrow.

Frustrating Parents

I just got off the phone with my sister. As you all know, she moved to Florida a few years back and now I am responsible for making sure my family up here stays together. I am not an organizer. I am not the glue that will hold this family together. I'm lucky to hold my own little family together. She wanted to talk about my mother. My mom and dad got divorced like 3 years ago as well. Great time for sis to have moved. Anyway, so mom is not talking to her lawyer about my dad not paying her. They owned a company together and dad had to buy her out with monthly payments after the divorce. He's not living up to his part of the deal. My mom is struggling with her money because she isn't getting the payments. I need to call mom about it. Now how do I broach that?

Coupons and Shopping

I was watching Oprah today on tv when she was talking to this lady that saves money by clipping coupons. We watched her on tv go from $134 bill to $34. Her site was http://www.couponmom.com/. I went to the site. It will let you bring up in any state the grocery stores in your neighborhood. Now its a free site so feel free to sign up. I really advise you to check it out.

Recession

Ok what part of recession didn't the goverment get? I've known we were in a recession for over a year now. What did they think was going to happen when we went to war? I don't really get on my high horse about government very much but this subject just ticks me off.

I go down the street and see house after house now that is empty because someone couldn't afford their house payment. My heart breaks for those families. I know how easily it would be for us all to be there. I think the government should wise up and stop sending our people over there. We need our money here in the United States not in other countries. So lets bring all of our troops home.. Let's take care of our homeless and economically strapped families. Lets take some money from the rich companies so that us middle class people can survive.

Stop giving our money away to companies that should be able to survive.. I didn't say car company but you know what I was thinking. Cars have gone up every year. Please don't tell me that the car companies can't afford to build them. Please don't tell me that the top executives can't afford to take a pay cut. We all know they can.

I think the people should take back the government. You know we keep electing a president every year but quite frankly..the president doesn't really make the decisions. The houses do. The people need to stand up and say..."We want better health care programs, less taxes...we want to be able to support our families. We want to keep our kids home from the wars. Keep our money in the United States and not out of it. Save flood victims. Save people losing their houses. Help those poor people on the street. Help the middle class that is now becoming the low class."