Six Months on the “Job”

August 1, 2011 in Filed Under: General, Goals 1 Comment

As of today it’s been six months since I left my job to be home full time with Jesse! We had been planning to take this step for so long, sometimes it’s still hard to believe we are actually here. We have certainly had our share of challenges in making this life transition, but overall the change has been great.

Having the ability to make a living from home has had the greatest impact on Jesse’s health. After years of being non-compliant with treatments, he has consistently been able to make time for them now. Saving that commute time freed up time he never had to do morning treatments. The flexibility to take time to rest or go to doctors appointments as needed, without having to make up the hours missed from work, has made a big difference in his stress level. I think being exposed to less people everyday and not touching germ-y surfaces helps keep him healthier too. I hope that he is always able to continue working for himself.

Saving moneySince I started staying home the business has really grown, despite our ups and downs. Jesse feels more efficient and has been able to complete projects quicker than he could when he was doing the book keeping that I now do. I also think that our house just runs smoother overall now that I have more time to do things that always got pushed aside. One of my accomplishments has been how much I have been able to shave off of our grocery bill. We were buying too many prepared items and often picking up groceries here or there without realizing how much it was costing us. A little extra planning and a little more time devoted to meal prep has really cut our expenses. Saving money is my new paycheck!

Honestly, I haven’t always been sure this arrangement would work out, but so far… it really has! We are still so sure this was the right move for us. I’m so proud of the company and reputation that Jesse has built. Keep up the GREAT work!

My First Blogoversary

May 14, 2011 in Filed Under: General, Goals 4 Comments

BloboversaryToday my blog turns one! Yay!  Happy blogoversary to me.

Yesterday I happened to be watching my traffic and I noticed that I reached unique visitor #2650!! I still can’t believe that many people have seen my blog. Thank you SO much for reading!!  I love all the comments, emails, and facebook messages I’ve received from my readers sharing a similar experience to what my blog post was about or just letting me know that they enjoyed one of my recipes.  Keep the feedback coming!

I was looking back at my first couple of posts and I think I have improved a lot as a blogger. I have had lots more practice writing over the last year, which has never been one of my natural strengths. My next goal for my blog is to improve my pictures. Jesse and I have been saving up for a nice camera that we have had in the back of our minds for a while now. We’re thinking that we should be able to buy it as our anniversary gift to each other. After we get the new camera, I’d love to take some photography classes and learn some simple Photoshop techniques on how to make my pictures look the way I want them to.

According to Google Analytics my site has seen 6,973 visits from 64 countries/territories. Yes, I know it’s kinda geeky to look up that kind of information, but what can I say? Jesse’s geekyness is contagious. Check out some of the countries that have visited my blog:

Countries 1Countries 2

Neat, huh? Thanks again for reading, and keeping coming back for more!

A Penny Saved is a Penny Earned

April 26, 2011 in Filed Under: General, Goals 4 Comments

Are you watching the Extreme Couponing show?  I think it is just amazing how much these people are able to save.  While I still don’t find it necessary to stock up 1,000 tubes of toothpaste, like the guy on the show, I am learning some extra tips and tricks to save more money on groceries.

I’ve been paying closer attention to how I can match up coupons with store sales.  I’ve been buying some non-perishable items just because they are on sale instead of when I need them.  Then I plan my meals for the week around what I already bought on sale.

KetchupMy best deal so far was on Heinz ketchup.  I buy the Simply Heinz because it’s made with real sugar instead of corn syrup, but it only comes in the small size at the same price as the large size of regular ketchup.  Last week Publix happened to have it on sale for $1.99 and I had printed an internet coupon for $2.00 off any Heinz ketchup.  So… I actually made a penny by taking home free ketchup! Since we had just watched the show the night before, I had to call Jesse on the way home to let him know about my fabulous find. I did still spend over 50 bucks on the rest of the groceries, but it was less than it could have been.

My other recent deal was on spaghetti.  Pasta goes on sale all the time for buy-one-get-one-free, which is the only time I buy it. But I happened to have a coupon for $1.00 off any two Muellers pasta at the time it went on sale.  So by using the coupon while it was on sale, I was able to get two packages of spaghetti noodles for only 9 cents each!

Now I need to work on how to save more money on the gluten free and other specialty items that I buy.  Coupons for those types of items aren’t as easy to find, but they do still have good sales if you watch closely.