Just Checking In

We talked a lot about how to get started on the debt elimination journey and creating a savings.  I hope things are going well for you and you have started to make a dent in your bills.  Whether you are paying it off $1 or $100 at a time, the objective is to keep going.

To keep you motivated since we started this journey together I have accomplished paying off two cards and have saved almost $200.  I share this because I want you to know that you can do it.  I do not even make $18000 a year so if I can do it I know you can too.

I have faith in you that you can do this,  You just have to stick with your plan.  You made a goal and a commitment to get debt free.  Lets keep going together.  Remember the great feeling you will have once you pay off all the debt you owe.  Knowing you will have extra money each month because you do not owe $100's of dollars to credit cards and student loans.

I am proud of you for the hard work you are doing.  I am proud of you for deciding to finally get out of debt.  You have taken a big step and I know you can do it.  I will be here each step of the way to help you as much as I can.

Soon I will start telling you about the ways that I make extra money in my spare time to help off set the money that I am putting toward my debt.  I am actually buying my daughter a new backpack and because I work to make extra money and gift cards I am getting this $50 backpack for free.  So it is absolutely worth the effort.

Until next time, I am glad we are on this journey together.

Start Small

Ok so far we have talked about making your debt pay down book, and finding an amount that you are comfortable paying each week.  We made a quick side step and mentioned using tax money to pay some thing.  We will now get to the next step.  This is where the real work starts.  This is where you will actually start to pay off debt.

Every one has a different theory on this part.  Some say pay the bill with the highest interest rate while others say pay the amount that is smallest first.  Both are good ideas and can work.  I like the idea of seeing real progress though.  I want to know that me effort is making a difference in my debt.
This means I choose to pay the smallest bill first.  I actually just paid off one card and am now working on my second.  I feel like seeing a bill hit zero gives me motivation to keep going.  It is like having ice cream after a long day or your cheat day on a diet.  You can see that you are really making a difference in your debt.

So your job today is to find the bill that has the smallest amount owed.  I do not care what it is it just has to be the smallest.  This is the one you are going to work on first.  Now remember this is on top of your monthly payment.  So if it is big enough you will still get your monthly bill and you will pay the minimum that you always have but what ever the amount is that you decided was your extra amount you will pay this every week.

Currently I am working on my JcPenney bill.  I have $84 to go, so this week I will pay the $20 that I have dedicated to debt pay down.  I will have this bill paid off by the end of the month.  This will be the second bill I will have paid off and it is a great feeling.

Welcome to the journey.  I will be with you the whole way

Down With The Pounds

So I am down 5 more pounds.  I am working on eating out less to start.  I got a little side tracked and was eating out a little too much.  I have continued to have my smoothies with the protein powder.  I really like buying the frozen fruit at #Target.  It is very tasty and makes things very simple.  I have the #Nutribullet and I just put in the fruit and powder and blend it in the to go cup and drink it at work.

I have not started back to the gym yet.  I really need to go but I have napping way to much again.  That is a big down fall of mine.  Over the years I have been napping so much it is crazy.  I take my daughter to school then come sleep until the last minute before work.  Sooo not healthy.  Today I decided to stay awake.  Napping is a hard habit to break when you have been doing it for like 9 years now.

So what is your favorite way to spend your extra morning time?  What do you get done before leaving to work?  I will have an extra hour after I go to the gym when I start o I want some ideas of things I can accomplish with my extra time before I have to get ready to go.

Weight Update

So I am down 5 pounds.  It is not a ton but it is a start.  I have continued to use the smoothies with the protein powder.  I have tried not to eat fast food as much and keep the sugary drinks low.  I will never completely cut out #coke but I do try to not over do it either.  My goal is no more than one a day but some times I have more than that and it is ok too.  I will be attempting to go back to the gym starting Monday however I have been in quite a bit of pain so we shall see how that starts out.

I am not trying to starve myself nor deprive myself.  I am just trying to be a healthier me and a more confident me.  You do not have to be a size 2 in order to be happy.  If you are being healthy and you are you are happy at a size 10 then that is fine too.  It is all about how you feel about yourself and if you are happy.  Now I am not promoting being 300 pounds and thinking that is fine but I am not saying you have to be a twig either.  If what you are doing is making you unhealthy or unhappy then you should fix it. You do not want to die at 35 because you loved cheeseburgers too much but having them now and then is not the end of the world

I will continue my journey until I am happy with the results.  I am not sure what size that will make me.  I do know that what ever size I end up it will be what I am happy with and not a number that some chart has labeled me as needing to be.

On To Healthier things

Awhile back I was going to take you on my journey of weight loss.  Unfortunately things did not work out the way I planned.  I was not on a good schedule and such.  Well I am going to get started again.  To update everyone I am no longer pregnant so I can start this journey again.  I will be honest so others can feel more secure in doing this as well.

I am starting out at 199 pounds.  This is quite big for me since I am only about 5 foot.  I gather all my fat in my mid section so it looks very odd.  I used to weigh about 104 pounds so I went up quite a bit obviously.  I hope you will join me in this if nothing else just to be a healthier you.  The whole goal is to be healthy.  I will tal about numbers but the real goal is to think more about our bodies.

My first effort is my morning smoothie.  I have a #Nutribullet and I use frozen fruit for the most part.  I do add bananas and apples at times as well.  I then add some protein powder and then blend it and take it to work with me.  I need to add exercise so I have a gym membership and intend to start going starting on Monday.  Lets do this together.  It is better when you have motivation and a group to do it with. The more support we all have the better we will do.

#letsgetmoving

No Card No Problem

So I explained to you how I have ditched my Debit Card and use cash now.  I do have a couple credit cards for emergency purposes.  I would just like to clarify that.  I love using cash for many reasons.  I can see it go.  I know exactly what is happening to it.  When it is gone it is gone so there is no over drafting my account on accident.  As stated in my article about how to save money we don't have it helps me build up my savings with out even noticing it is gone.

When you use your debit card you just swipe but you do not really have that connection of giving it away.  When you have to physically give it to some one it clicks a little different and when they hand a little less back than what you gave them, that is a connection.  If you are out shopping and only have a certain amount of cash on hand to spend you know you can not go over.  There is no picking up a few extras because you know you don't have it.

Another question is now how do I pay my bill?  Well there is the old fashioned method  Write a check and mail it to whom eve you need to pay.  This does require buying stamps and with a few companies envelopes.  If you have a Dollar Tree near you this  is a great place to save money on stuff like that.  Then there is the newer method.  It is electronic withdrawal which the company can set up over the phone or you can set up an account with the company and make a payment each month or  there is .online banking.  I still have a checking account for certain things so I use my online bill pay.  My money get directly deposited in my account on pay day and then I go into my bill payer and tell the bank when I want the money o be sent to the company I am paying.  It is super easy and convenient.  You can even make payments to people so if you need to pay back "Aunt Jackie" who you only see like maybe once a month you can put her in your bill pay and then she will get a check right from the bank.

You have many options to help deal with this new adventure.  It does take some time and a little effort but if you stick with it you will find that you will see progress that is actually getting you some where.  It didn't happen over night but slowly I have figured out what is working and I am getting there.  Next I think we will talk about how to tackle paying bills in general especially if you get paid less than weekly.  Thanks for reading and lets get saving.

How Do We Save Money We Don't Have

So there are articles everywhere on how to save money.  They explain how to save a bunch and get your debt paid off.  The problem you ask?  Well they always use big number like saving hundreds or thousands at once.  Sometimes it is even you should save 50% of your income.  Well if you are like me you don't have that kind of money.  If you put that much in savings your bills would never get paid off.  So what is the solution?

Well I have tried a lot of things.  One thing that was useful was the envelope system.  This is where you take out the exact amount of money you will spend from your pay check and label an envelope for each thing you would spend money on.  For example your car loan, groceries, eating out if you intend on doing that.  You only take cash out of the envelope that you intend on using it for.  Once the envelope is empty you have no more money for that particular activity until you get paid again.  In theory it really does work, if you can stick with it.  I was able to for  little while but then I found myself sneaking a dollar from this envelope to go to the other envelope and then I gave up.  If you can do it then by all means go for it.  Just wasn't my thing.

What did work you ask?  Saving the money I already had.  Didn't I just say I had none to save?  Well that is the trick.  First you get a jar and a savings account.  Preferably find a saving that you will earn decent interest from.  Then comes the easy part.  Say you have a $20 and you spend say $13.75,   You now have 6.25 in change.  Take the $1.25 and put it in the jar.  Every time you get coin or dollar bill you put it in the jar.  You are less likely to miss small change than you are trying to put away a $10 each time.  Then when your jar is full you take it and put it in your savings.  Then the best part it is so easy.  You leave it there.  For me it is a little easier because I work at a bank so I can deposit mine as soon as I get them.

The beauty of this is that you don't really notice your money going because it is such a small amount at a time.  I mean will you really notice that $.20 cents is not in your pocket.  Most likely not.  It is actually nice to not carry around loads of change.  It adds up quicker than you think.  Before you know it you will have saved $100 easy.  Now you have options once it builds up.  My advice?  Leave it alone as long as you can.  Although if you have saved $100 and have a bill that needs to be paid off then do it.  The nice thing is what you can do with that extra money.  This will be the topic of my next post.

Remember if you have ideas please share.  We are in this together.  You may have a suggestion that I have not even thought of.  Thank you for reading and see you next time.

Just Checking In

So I have given you a lot of advice in my last few posts.  I am just wondering if any one has started using them or has any success to share. Have you tried a budget yet?  How does your family feel about cutting back?  What have you decided to save for?  I would like to hear your thoughts on things.  Do you think these are good or bad ideas?

These are things that have helped me.  I kept looking for help myself but all the articles seemed to be geared toward people with a lot more money so I decided I would share what I have learned and used as a person that has very little wiggle room for saving and spending.  I only work part time and have a daughter to support so a big budget is not something I am accustomed to.  I wanted to help other people so I hope I am getting out to at least even one person to make a difference.

Ditch The Debit Card!!!!!!

Ok, so I know what you are thinking,  This lady is crazy!  You can not possibly  make it through the day without your little plastic friend.  It would bring an end to your world if you didn't have that little rectangle available at all times.  If you could not simply swipe the card through the reader then what would you possibly do?  It is ok I have a plan and a reason.

So true a debit card is convenient.  Yes it is way more simple than carry around cash. The thing is that problems can also arise out of a debit card that can really wreck your road to recovery.  Debit cards are so easy to use that a person can get carried away just swiping all the time.  One little mistake and you could be cleaning up the mess for an extra month or more.  Who wants to deal with all of that when you are already trying to get your budget together.

 1.  You go on a day of errands and have to hit 5 stores that day. You do good on the first couple of stops making sure you put your receipt away but by the 4th store you are tired and just want to be done and forget to get it.  While this seems easy enough, what if it is for gas and it only shows up as 0.00 because it is still pending and you wait 2 days to fill in your check book.  You forget how much you spent and guess you are $3.00 off on your guess now your book is wrong and you go about your spending.  Then BAM!!!! Over draft charge.  You may even forget to write it in all together in the first place and there it is a fee just because you forgot one transaction.  Now you are negative and either have to keep using the card and make it worse, use your credit card which will now incur interest or dip into your savings.  All of which defeat the whole purpose of what you are working for.

2.  You buy a trial of something because you can put it on your card and it seems cheap.  Then you forget to cancel it and now you are paying $80 for a trial item because they have your card number and can automatically bill you.  Once again you are hit with fees and looking to pay for everything you just did again defeating the purpose.

3.  As we have found time and time again they are not super secure either and when you are trying to save money because you don't have any, you can't afford an act of fraud.  Depending on the situation it could take 30 days before you get your money back.  My guess is if you are reading this then you can not afford to wait 30 days to get your money back

Now lets get to what you should do.  CASH!  That is right plane old paper bills and coins.  This is the perfect way to stay on track.  I am not saying no electronic use.  You can pay your bills online to save driving every where and wasting gas which of course costs money.  You keep track of how much you have after bills by doing that in a check log.  What is left after you get paid and deduct your bills is the cash you have to spend until your next payday.  THAT IS IT.

You only get what your check log says you have.  You then take out the cash and that is what you use.  This is also helpful because it is more visual too.  You are physically giving away your hard earned money which can be harder the less you have.  When you actually have to hand over a $5 for that one cup of coffee it starts to sink in that you are giving away a lot of money for one little thing.  You go out to eat and you have to use a $20 and only get a $5 back it really does hit a nerve and you will start watching what you are doing more.  When you only have $20 left and payday is still 4 days away you will be much more careful.

How do I know this?  I have been doing it now for 5 months.  I don't even have an ATM card now.  There are times where things have come up and unfortunately I have had to use a card or my savings and that is also life.  The important thing is that because I have been working to change my situation I actually had money on my card or cash in the savings.  I made sure to keep myself accountable.

It isn't always easy and I know every situation is unique.  I am not going to tell you to save $50 every check because I couldn't do it and still have money.  I am giving you tips to help you get the start you need and you can customize it to fit you.  I work at a bank so I can get the money out when needed but you may still need an ATM card just in case, that is what will work for you.  Until next time.  Keep up the good work.  I would love to hear if any one has been using my steps and how it is working for them.

Lets Do A Recap

   Ok so now that I am back online we are going to recap my original posts to make sure we are either still on track or get back on track.  No matter where you are the important thing is that you keep working. I have had times where I have either pulled from my savings or just stopped doing what I needed to do to keep it going.  What matters is that you get back to what you were doing.  The important thing is to get out of debt and be free of the trouble it brings.

  So first you have to have a goal.  A real reason that this is so important to you.  Whether it be to buy something, have a big nest egg, or you are just tired of struggling.  You have to have a real reason or it will not be as important to you and you will not try as hard.  Everyone needs to be on board with this if you have others in your household.  If you are single then you are going to have to work hard to keep yourself committed to the final goal.  This is not going to be easy but when you are able to achieve your goal because you worked so hard it will be totally worth it.

   Now that you have decided why, you have to do.  Set up a plan.  Pick a credit card you want to tackle first or maybe it is your car loan that you want to eliminate.  What ever it is that is going to be your main priority until it is paid.  Even if in the beginning you only round the payment up to the next dollar.  Say your payment is $50.51 then you pay $52.00.  Even if you did only that for a year you would pay an extra $5.88. This is $5.88 less you will be charged interest on.  If you get a raise then you need to decide what extra you can put toward that bill.  You will do all that you can to pay off that extra bill.

    Next this part is something you will have to decide on your own.  Some people swear by it, I myself have never been able to follow one.  I am talking about a budget.  Some people really like them and use them religiously.  It is a blue print of how you will spend your money each month.  It only works if you actually do it every month and stick to it.  That is my down fall,  I really have a hard time redoing every month.  If you are the type of person who needs structure this may be the right choice for you.  If you think you can handle it month after month and stick with your plan then you may not need one.  This part is totally a personal choice.  You can always try it and if it is not for you then do it your way.  As I have said before the most important thing is that you do it.

That is all for the recap.  I hope you will come back so that we can finally do our next piece,  Ditch The Debit Card.  I will be talking about why I have learned it is better to go all cash while trying to eliminate debt. I hope to see you back soon.  As Always feel free to share your thoughts and ideas.  We are all in this together.

Big Sorry

I wanted to check in.  I am still without a computer.  I gave it to a friend to look at and they still have not and now they are on vacation.  I am debating whether or not to just get a new one.  I am still going to pick up on the series as soon as I have a stable way of writing.  Thank  you to all that are supporting me and staying a faithful reader.

Saving Money and Getting Out of Debt: To Budget or Not To Budget

I would first like to thank all of you for reading this blog.  I am very excited to announce that I have 1000 views as of today. I hope that I am helping people.  I set out to just start  blog and see where it went.  It has become more than that, it is now a place where I am determined to have an impact on peoples life.  Thank you for reading and being with me.

So we are on the journey to financial freedom.  A lot of people feel that having a budget is he holy grail of saving.  They claim it will keep you on track each month, that it will hold you accountable for your spending.  This does work for some people. 

Me personally, I do not use one.  I always forget to update them and then they make no sense.  Also for me it is just a reminder of how broke I am all the time.  I just do not find them helpful.  I am not saying do not use one, I am just saying I do not like using them.  This is something you will have to decide on your own if it is gong to be helpful or not.

If you decide to use one, make sure it will work for you.  If you are not a complex number person then do not choose a complex way to budget.  Go with the basics.  There are free budget forms on the internet that make it easy to do.  Make sure you are honest with the numbers.  You will not fix the problem if you are not willing to be honest about it.  Make sure you have all the numbers and categories you need.  Then simply add up your bills and essentials then subtract them from your income.  This will be the extra money you will have to work with. 

At this point hopefully you have a positive number.  What ever it is this will be the money you will use to Save and get out of debt.  Even if it is only $1 I can help you work with this. It will be weird at first but you can do it.  I am in this with you I am doing it right now so I know what I am talking about.  I only work part time but I have paid off a credit cards and my car.  This is with just y pay  check and every now and then I get child support but not every month.  I also have an IRA and two college funds going for m daughter.  If I can do it so can you.  Please feel free to ask questions I am here to help.

Saving Money and Getting Out of Debt: Have an End Goal

So you have made the commitment to save money and get rid of your debt, now what.  Your next step is to have a final result for why you are going to make this commitment.  You have to decide why saving is important to you.  What is in it for you?

What is it you are saving for?  Do you want a new car, or maybe a house.  Maybe you have kids and want to be able to pay for their education.  Maybe you are just tired of giving your money away to fees every month.   What ever it is you have to know what your working for.

This is important because if you are not working toward a goal you are more likely to go off track.  You will use excuses about why you will do it later.  You just tell yourself you will do it later.  Or just give up because it is not worth it.  With no goal you have no purpose and that can lead to failure.

For me it is being able to provide better for my daughter.  I want to be able to be able to send my daughter to school without taking out a bunch of loans.  I want to be able to not worry about my future when I am older.  I want to know that I will always be able to take care of myself and not burden my daughter when I am older.

What ever you reason is use it as your motivation for this journey.  It will help you when you fell like giving in to extra spending.  It will be the center of your change.  Make it something good to, something that will really keep you going when you want to give in.  Believe me, there will be times when you will say all this is too much and I just want to give up and do what everyone else is doing.

I am happy to have you on this journey.  I hope you will continue to follow me and find your freedom. 

Spring Cleaning Not Really Happening

So it is that time of year where everyone starts deep cleaning their homes.  Getting rid of stuff that is no longer needed.  The organization plans are under way and the idea of the perfectly decorated home is in place.  It is a magic time of refreshing our space.

This is what we intend to do.  The reality of the situation is not so magical.  There is the hours of sorting, moving things around, and the cleaning of everything.  It seems like a never ending task that will consume are nice days.  Who wants to be inside cleaning now that the grass is green and you can go outside for more than 1minute with out being a popsicle.

So here is a nicer way to get it all done.  Each night clean for 10 minutes.  Set a timer for this 10 minutes.  Get going on your one space for that 10 minutes.  Say you want to do the kitchen counter.  For 10 minutes you concentrate on only that one thing.  When the timer goes off it is over.  You are done with it for that day.  It makes it seem less overwhelming than just setting out to clean a whole house with no real end in sight.

You can adjust the time or times per day but the idea is to make it less over whelming.  Have the kids help too.  If they have a playroom have them sort old toys from the ones they want to keep.  This way the toys won't get out of hand and you won't feel like you are going crazy by not getting it done.  Older kids can do other jobs like the bathroom, or laundry area.  Have them do the same thing in their room.  While you work on a room in the house they can be doing their room too.

Older kids can be a big help.  They can do their own clothes for example.  So for 10 minutes they go through their closet and decide what they no longer want or what they have grown out of.  They can vacuum and dust so once the rest of their room has been organized they can do that as well.  It will help them learn the rewards of cleaning but not get overwhelmed with the whole thing.

The whole idea here is to get the house clean and organized with out everyone freaking out or getting so overwhelmed that nothing really gets done.  If we get too stressed we will never finish it because we look at it as more of a punishment.  Small step make it rewarding.  Once you get one done it will make you feel good about the accomplishment and be ready to do more

When The Ex Comes Calling

So I found out my mom was in the hospital the other day but I was trying to stay calm because my dad said it wasn't to serious.  I went through my day the next day at work and just tried to keep my mind off the problem.  Then I saw a number on my phone and there was a voice mail so I checked I checked and was quite shocked at who it was.

It turned out to be my first ex-husband!  Now I really don't talk to him.  Our relationship went pretty much like this last one.  In the end he cheated but he is my daughters biological Father so he left me pregnant with not much to my name.  I have since gotten over the situation since I can't change it.  We have talked before so whatever.  Some how this voice mail seemed different though.  It just said call me at this number.  Well I thought about it and I did. 

When he answered he asked how I was.  I said fine then he said he had been itching so he knew he should call.  What he was talking about is that we got matching tattoos before our wedding but they are in Japanese so they just look like another tattoo.  After the divorce mine would occasionally itch an swell and with out fail every time it did he was up to something.  So I finally told him about it, so I guess he felt his acting up and decided to call.  Weird timing so I told him he was right and explained my mom.

We talked for 2 hours that night and I really let him have it for the things he put me through.  We talked about all kinds of different things.  We talked about my up coming divorce and I yelled a lot about things.  He told me things he had heard years ago and we just had it out and went through a lot of emotions.  At one point he mentioned me being mad at him and still hating him. Well I corrected him.

You see the truth is that I don't care any more.  I forgave him and stopped being mad about the marriage a long time ago.  I explained to him what I was mad about was his choices.  He choice to cheat, to leave, and to not be part of my daughters life.  That made me angry but it was also his problem.  He made those choices and what happened was neither here nor there.  I was long over the cheating and being left behind and my daughter doesn't even want to know his name so it is what it is but he made crappy choices.

We had a grudge match conversation.  We went at each other about all the faults that happened, who's fault it was that things ended, who cheated on who.  You name it we probably covered it.  I even started calling him names by the alphabet.  it was a very intense conversation.  In the end we said good night and talk later.

We talked another 2 hours yesterday.  It was kind of healing talking to him.  We never had a real closer to our marriage.  We lived in different states when the whole thing happened so it never really got resolved.  When he did move back it was more of a competition to prove who had moved on better.  Which I ultimately won that  one so that was satisfying.  We sat another 2 hours going through the same routine as the night before.  This time though I really let him have it.  Let him know what him acting like he did caused.

I wanted him to know.  He went through the routine of supposedly I cheated on him and whatever.  Finally I said your right.  Whoever you think I cheated with your right.  I did from now on who ever you mention that's who I will agree with.  I told him that now he can tell people I did it so he could feel justified about what he did.  Now he could blame me for every thing and the dismantling of our marriage.  This really got to him.  He didn't like it at all.  I simply took his ammunition from him.  That was good too.  It made him have to think about his actions for once.  After I finally just said your right it was my fault.  I gave up everything for you and did everything for you but in the end it was my fault that our family broke down.  I told him make sure he told people this too.  I no longer wanted people to think he had done me wrong.  Once he couldn't really make me mad about it, it kinda forced him to really look at the situation.  We talked a little longer then said goodnight. 

I text him tonight but he really can't talk to me.  I took away all the things he had over me to make me so angry these last 13 years.  The only thing he was left with was the cold truth and that hurt a little.  He always mentions that he knows he screwed up but he always says I had a big part in it and would never really let it go so when I finally said call me what you want and think what you want.  He no longer had control to make me angry of accusing me of random things.  I hope next time we talk that we can have and actual conversation with out dragging things out but who knows.  Only time will tell.  I just hope it doesn't take another 13 years for us to have a civil conversation

Time for Goal Planning

So with a new year coming it is time to assess what it is that we want to accomplish.  We start planning out what we will make out of the new year.  What kind of amazing things will we do this year that we have never done before?  It is a time to get creative and dream big.

Although if you have not had the best year you may just be trying to plan how to survive the next year too.  Sometimes it is just the hope that the new year will be better than the one before that gets people through this time of year.  It is the dream of great things to come that helps one hold on.

Then there are people like me.  I am going with both.  I have hope that with this difficult year ending I am headed for a great year ahead.  I have changed the way I think about things, I am practicing better actions and trying to look past peoples flaws to really feel compassion for them.  I have big goals for this up coming year.  I want to save enough money to redo the house I am living in, start my own business, and pay off my bills.

How do you achieve big goals?  First you have to have some.  Sometime people get so down that they just give up working toward anything.  when you stop dreaming you are really just coasting through.  Start thinking of things you have wanted to do.  What is something that has always been an interest to you but you just never did it?  Is there something you wanted to do but as you got older and started a career or family you set it aside?  Well it is time to get back to those things.

Next put it in writing.  You have to make yourself see it.  Make a to-do list so to speak.  Just like you have a list to check off each day you can make a list for the year.  Put down everything you would like to accomplish this year and put it somewhere you can see it on a regular basis.  If you can see it you can do it.  It will help you stay on track if you can see what it is you want to do.

Then prioritize.  Put the items in order of which you want to get them done.  What is most important to you should go on top of the list.  Then continue down the list and whatever you can handle doing last should be last on the list.  Don't just go random in listing.  really make this list important.  Make it so it is something you will check in on regularly to accomplish.

So now that you are thinking about it get going.   Start the yearly to-do list.  Make it fun too.  You can even make it a family thing to have even more fun.  What ever you decide just make sure you do it.  Then remember like any list, if you don't finish it this year it can roll over to the next.  So lets get listing and see what we can accomplish this year!

New Year approaching, Proceed with Caution

So this year is almost over and that means a whole new start again.  This year has definitely a struggle so I am ready for a new beginning.  On the other hand I worry that I will bring this year to the next and that is not a good thing at all.  I want to start 2014 clean. 

My divorce will be official in March so i can finally move past all this drama.  My finances seem to be looking up so that is very relieving and mine and my daughters health have improved so I am super happy.  I am excited by all the blessing we are receiving.  It is hard to get too excited since I have been at this point before and then got sent all the way back to the start again.

I am very proud of myself for hanging in there and keeping my faith even when everything looked like it was over.  I still have a ways to go to be back where I was but the fact that I am on the right path is very exciting.  I feel that 2014 will be the year of recovery.  I see things getting better and better from here.

I encourage anyone who has been struggling to really reach deep.  Know that if you keep strong and keep your faith you can get through what ever is holding you back.  It may take some time but do not give up.  There is a bright side that will come through.  Please stay positive and just be true to yourself and it will work out.

Make sure that you pay real close attention to the people in your life too.  They can have a real impact on what happens.  Make sure you are trusting the right people and staying for away from the wrong ones.  Having positive people in your life that help you reach your goals can get you far.  You need people that will help you when you have nothing.

It is going to be a great 2014 just make sure you pay attention to what you are doing and don't give up.  Stay blessed and you will be impressed with how far you go.

Starting Again

So I was doing really well with the blog and then got distracted but I see many people are still looking.  I am going to get back to it and we will see where it goes from there.  I have been up to so much this year.  I have been just so busy and working on so many different things. 

This year I started out separated and not feeling to happy.  I am now only three months away from my divorce and doing ok.  I have gone back to church more often and I am feeling much better in my faith now.  I am learning a better way to pray and to trust God even more.  It is nice when you can just feel great about things. 

 My job not so awesome but I have one and right now that is a bonus.  I can kinda pay my bills and I can feed my daughter and myself so that feels good.  My car is almost paid off so that will be nice when I am done with that.  It will be extra money to put toward some other bills.  I have been turned down for full time three different time so that has been a little crushing for me.  I applied for another one but not getting too excited about it because I have a feeling I am not getting which has a lot to do with the position itself and a little with my employers.

I have reduced my medications drastically which has been a very nice change for me.  My daughter has been having less seizures which is very exciting and her grades are up from last year along with her reading skills improving this year.  This is something she has struggled with for years.  She also got nominated for the new Leadership club at school.  She makes me so proud.

I have also been working on getting my business up and going strong.   I have made some changes to what I am doing and I hope I can get things going so I can work for myself and have more time with my daughter.  She is growing up to so fast I want to get as much time with her as I can before college comes around

Well that is a quick catch up of some of the things that have been going on with me since I have been absent from writing.  I hope I can keep you interested and get things going on the blog regularly again.  Thanks for reading.

Happy Days

So I have been busy the last two days and I hope it pays off.  I really want to get stuff together.  I am planning to file my divorce papers Wednesday which is sad.  I have been trying for a year with no change so I feel it is time to move on.  I have been working on the house trying to make it feel a little more like my home instead of my parents home.  We are making progress slowly but surely.  I feel things are turning around slowly in my favor.  It feels good for a change.

Work not so much.  I am not the favorite at work by any means so things can get a little sticky now and then.  It is a love, hate relationship.  I love my paycheck coming in but hate that I have to go to work.  I am trying to find something I can do that I really enjoy.  Maybe starting my own business.  I would much rather be the boss than keep working some place where I do not feel respected. 

I am just going to Keep Swimming.  It has to go up from here.  I do feel sad on some things but happy that I am strong enough to keep going.  I am thankful to the people who continue to support me even when I don't want to support myself.  It has been a long year and it looks like I am finally heading in somewhat the right direction.  I only hope the next year goes even better.

Well it is late and I have  plans in the morning.  Have a great day.

Still So Busy Does The Stuff Stop Coming

So today at work was crazy.  I kept making all kinds of small mistakes that were so annoying just because they were so minor yet mistakes. I did however get out an hour early so that was nice although I still didn't get home until the same time so that was not fun.  I have so much I want to get done but no time.  I have been working 6 days a week so that really cuts into my time.  The problem is that I am part-time so it does not add up to as much as you would think.  Last year I didn't even clear 20000.  So while in theory it sounds good not so much.

I must admit though that I am happy to have a job.  There are many people who are jobless so it could be worse than it really is.  I really am glad that I can sorta pay bills and take care of my daughter.  There are times my budget is more than tight.  I mean the budget is sooo tight my bills are like a muffin top spilling over, but with no job it would be even worse so I have to be positive on some level.

I am still very confused on what is going on in my life but I also know that being angry and sad all the time is not going to help anything.  I some how need to find better balance in my life.  I am so stressed all the time about how I am going to get things done it completely takes over my life and I get really emotionally drained as talked about in yesterdays post.   I need to start learning techniques to help me just let all this go and be more invilved in life instead of worrying about it so much.

Well that is my thought for today.  I need to get to my other things before bed and that will be soon since I have still not been getting much sleep trying to get it done.  Have a great day