Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Working for a Living

On Monday I started my new job. Who would have thought that 4 hours sitting at hubby's desktop coter would make me so exhausted? I would much rather be on my laptop all day. Once we get my computer hardwired for internet, rather than using the wireless connection, I will definitely consider using the laptop.

Hubby has been working so much that when he finally gets home we just grab fast food for dinner. Our spending habits HAVE to change and soon. We're eating too much junk food.

Back. on. task. is the word of the day.

November is a new month and we will be making some changes in this household!

Tuesday, October 23, 2007

We were out at a local park camping for the weekend at a festival. I came home sick and am trying my best to recuperate before I start my job training on Monday. I'm getting excited about the new job. It is going to be nice working from home and working with others who have chronic illnesses and/or a disability.

Tuesday, October 16, 2007

Eating to Live

I seem to focus much of my time on my financial diet, yet my time may be better spent on my food diet. To put it plainly, I eat too much, eat the wrong things, or eat at the wrong times. What is wrong with me? I know better. For my health, I am better off eating mini meals. I have done this in the past with great success. I must get my butt in gear.

I know that I will never be skinny. My physical limitations and genetic makeup make things harder for me. I have accepted this and will move on. However, I would like to FEEL better than I have lately. My entire system has been really messed up lately. Something is going to change.

Starting today, I will try to eat mini meals every 2 hours. I will also do my best to drink more water (I love water, I just forget to drink sometimes). Wish me luck!

Saturday, October 13, 2007

Finding myself spending W-A-Y too much money on JUNK this week. My goal for this upcomming week is to curb ALL spending. I have to get groceries and I'm sure I will need gas this week since I'm taking my neighbor to the hospital for her surgery on Monday but other than that, I'm freezing my personal spending. No sodas out, no junk food runs, no fast food because we are too lazy to cook. It is all gone.

Today is going to be all about getting the kitchen back in order. My kitchen/dining room area is one BIG long room. At one time there was carpet in the dining room and paneling on the walls (ick) in an attempt to define the spaces. However, the previous owner flipped the house and put in ceramic tile throughout and we covered the paneling with the wallpaper that you can paint and painted the two areas the same color. I do have a roll around counter with storage under it that I use to define the rooms a bit.

Anyway, I said all that to say that when the kitchen is a mess, I cannot be creative in the dining room. My crafts are housed on one wall in that room. I need to do yet another load of dishes, clean the countertops and do a bit of rearranging. I also need to do a few loads of laundry.

Other than these tasks, I have little to do this weekend. Yay for the simple life!

Friday, October 12, 2007

19 Days til Halloween, Halloween, Halloween

Bonus points to those of you who remember that jingle! While I hated the Halloween movies, the jingle from the 3rd movie has stuck with me all of these years.

Wow What a Week!

It has been a pretty busy week. I'm ready for some relaxation but I am not sure I will get any before Sunday!

This week I had to complete all of the paperwork for my new job. Telecommuting makes doing paperwork a little more challenging (to say the least) so it took a while to get it all ironed out. It looks like I will be starting my training the first week of November.

I was supposed to babysit for KK and her little brother on Monday & Tuesday while school was out for fall break. KK ended up getting sick over the weekend so she was here most of Monday before going to the doctor with her mom at 2:00. They had a scare there & had to go through more tests on Tuesday (including an ultrasound of her kidneys). Thankfully KK received a clean bill of health on Wednesday.

Monday afternoon, while I still had KK's little brother (age 4) with me, my friend S called to see if I could take her to the ER. She has been having some ovary issues (one remaining ovary is now enlarged to 5 times the normal size) and the doctor sent her to the ER. We were there until after 7.

On Wednesday, my friend G & her teenage daughters decided that we would help with the local Jaycees' haunted house. It begins tonight and is Friday & Saturday nights until Halloween week when it is all week leading up to the BIG day!

Yesterday, I went to G's house to pick up her daughter and take her to fill out an application for a job. That took most of the day but hopefully C will get the job and all will be good.

Today looks like it is shaping up to be another busy day. I'm up early to take S to get her blood work done in preparation for surgery on Monday. When I get home, I need to get household work done and rest before going to get G's daughters. We have to be at the Haunted House at 5:30 to prepare for tonight. It should be fun!

Monday, October 08, 2007

I just joined Pay Per Post!


This week my blog was approved for Pay Per Post. I had joined a few months ago but never finished getting my blog listed for approval. Frugal Disney Mom posted a few days ago that she had joined and that spurred me into action. I went over to their site and after a few minutes, I had myself all set up and had submitted my blog for approval. Imagine getting PAID for blogging? I knew that I would LOVE making extra money by writing about things. Obviously I have a lot to say!

The basic premise behind Pay Per Post is that you post about the ideas presented to you by the sponsors. After your posts are approved, you are paid either via check or paypal. Of course, I chose paypal since it will allow me to accurately track my earnings.

I hope that I will be able to use the money I receive from Pay Per Post to supplement our income. All funds will be divided in half. Half will go to credit card bills immediately. The other half will be put into our savings account so that we can once again build up our security buffer.

I am really looking forward to this opportunity. Having the extra money will be nice however, for me at least, I can use this opportunity to learn more about products and services that are being offered. Who knows, I may be able to learn about something new!

If you have not yet joined, I recommend that you head over to Pay Per Post and get paid to blog!

Good News

I got a job! I am thrilled to say that I have been offered a position working from home (not as a contractor, but as an employee). I will be working for NTI. They only hire people with chronic illness or disabilities to do work on various contracts that they maintain.

I will be making pretty decent money working part time seasonal. If I'm very good, I may be able to get one of the year round slots.

I am so grateful to have been able to get this opportunity! When I lost my job as a direct result of my medical issues, I was determined to find a legitimate work from home job. It took 5 months but it was SO worth it!

I'm doing the paperwork today. Training should be starting soon!

Thursday, October 04, 2007

Digital Photos

Who do you use to print your digital photos???

Wednesday, October 03, 2007

Technorati

I set myself up with Technorati today. ( Technorati Profile ). I am not 100% sure how it works but it seems like a good way to get some traffic on my blog.

No Good Deed Goes Unnoticed

It has always been my belief that one should always do what they can for those around them. I am a true believer in Karma. I always do my part to help out those around me. While I don't get immediate repayment, I do get the satisfaction of knowing I helped someone in need and that, when the time comes I will get the help I need.

In the past few weeks, I have taken a neighbor to the hospital, pharmacy, and doctor several times. She is dealing with some pretty severe medical problems right now and will be having surgery this month.

I have also helped a dear friend through a financial crisis. While I won't divulge the situation, I will say that she is now on the road to financial recovery.

I have lent out a spare computer to a friend so that she could get on the internet (borrowing another friend's connection) while she is without cable/dsl at her house.

I don't really think about what I do really, I just do what needs to be done. It isn't until someone brings it to my attention that I notice. It appalls me to know that my behavior is not the norm.

Tuesday, October 02, 2007

Shopping Online

The holiday’s are coming. Before you know it, you will be surrying around looking for gifts for the kid’s (and big kids) in your life. This is where the people at Shopping.com come in.

Their electronic toy selection is quite large and they even have some obscure items. I’m pretty sure that Hubbyman would love to have a De Fib Ulator Portable Lie Detector! Can you imagine how fun that would be at parties?


Another great item that I found was Kid’s Computer Desk. I love the bright colors and the sturdy construction.

Shopping from home is so important for me. Having FMS makes going to stores some what taxing on my body. Using the computer and going to companies like Shopping.com makes life much easier!

Selling Myself

I'm am going to start selling my art. I am sure that I will be able to sell them. I was set up at a local festival last weekend and I got a lot of interested parties. We are going to another festival the weekend of October 20th and I plan to sell out there!

Green Thinking

From time to time I will do something that I consider to be normal and then when analyzing it will find that it is quite abnormal.

Today I spent 15 minutes watching television and cutting up 5 t-shirts into various sizes of rags. I used the discarded neck bands to tie them into 3 bundles. It is quite normal for me to grab a rag from under the sink to clean up most any mess, even the icky ones.

For example, our Husky threw up yesterday after eating more than his share of grass. I scooped up most of the mess in one rag and threw it away (after all, I have nothing invested in them). I used a second one to clean up the floor more thoroughly. The second one was rinsed and placed in the dirty clothes hamper.

In our family, one roll of paper towels will last for months. Paper napkins will too as we use cloth 99.5% of the time. I don't find this to be odd but apparently it is not the norm. When company comes over, they ask for paper towels or napkins and when I say we don't use them, I get the strangest look!

Back on Track

Hubbyman started a new job last week. This means we will have an income coming into our household again soon (pay is bi-weekly). It is going to take us a while to catch up and feel financially stable again.