Getting by

I know it's the Holiday's and I'm so excited to celebrate them with my growing family, but I can't help thinking about money.  It's such an awful thing that we have to worry about money.  How nice would it be to just enjoy everything in life and not have to worry about bills and payments.

I've been EXTREMELY lucky that I can work from home and take care of Olivia.  I can make money and spend time with my beautiful daughter.  In that sense I am spoiled.  My job is great and I really do like it.  I work part-time about 10-15 hours a week and make about as much if not more than I would teaching Theology full-time at a Catholic high school.  (Sad I know)  My schedule is super flexible and as long as I get my work in by Saturday at 11:59 pm it doesn't matter what days I work or for how long. I also have the ability to increase the amount of pages I do to make more money.  The only downside is I get "graded" and depending on how many errors I make my pay scale goes down.

Lately Luke and I have been, not struggling, but trying to be conscience of our spending habits.  With the new found glory of a mortgage and home repairs, it's been tough and a little bit of a shock.  I wish we were able to save more every month and I know it has a lot to do with how we spend money.  We've been trying to not go out to eat as much, which we love to do and just watching where our money goes.  I've been thinking about taking on more work, 500 more pages, I already do 1000 a week.  This would increase my time to about 15-20 hours a week and I would make about 350 dollars extra every week.  That's one way we're going to try and make more.  I also was thinking about doing more wholesale food shopping and trying to plan out meals for the whole month and sticking to that schedule. I don't know if that's really feasible but I think I might try.

My question is what do you do, if anything, to save a little each month?  What makes it easier?

Oh Darling Don't You Ever Grow Up

One year ago today the most precious little thing came into my world.  Right around this time I had just delivered our first baby and Luke and I were sitting in the labor and delivery room in awe of the beautiful miracle we had brought into the world.  I can't even express the emotions that go through you the day you have a baby.  If you've had one you know and if you haven't yet, I hope you get to experience the greatest thing any woman can do.  Even though it's a tough process, I mean they do call it labor, it's such a rewarding and exhilarating moment that leaves you with such a high.  I delivered Olivia on my own with the help of an epidural.  I am so in awe of women who can do it without one.  I for one have a major weakness for pain, I take a tylenol at the sign of a headache to prevent it from coming on.  That being said I do not feel weak for having the epidural.  For me it was what I needed to help get me through my labor and deliver my baby.  That moment when you finally see you're little bundle of joy (please excuse the sappy cliches) is unlike anything I've ever experienced.  The joy and happiness you see on your husbands face is priceless and makes you feel like you've just given him the most amazing gift in the world.  I felt like superwoman.  Don't get me wrong it was painful and tiring but the emotion that comes out of you when you first see her (or him) gets you past all of that extremely quickly.  I was talking to a friend of mine recently, who was due to have her baby and she was asking me if I remember certain things about being pregnant.  I said that I truly believe that God makes you forget the bad things about being pregnant and delivering in hopes that you'll only remember the good things and want to have another one.  I really do think that true.

So as we celebrate the first year in Olivia's life I can't believe that she has been ours for so long.  I know we have many more years and memories to come but this year flew by so quickly that I don't want to blink because I'm scared when I open my eyes she'll be having her own babies.  She is honestly the best thing to ever happen to my husband and I and we are so blessed and happy to have her in our lives.  So here's to you Olivia!  Happy Birthday Peanut Princess, please don't grow up too fast.