Monday, December 26, 2011

Blessings

  • Taking the only night before Christmas that my hubby and I both have off and making our own Christmas celebration.
  • Christmas with his family where all I have to bring is salad.
  • Christmas with my family next week.
  • Presents that are way too nice.
  • Presents we were able to buy people with our limited budget.
  • Too many decorations at our house.
  • Other people's decorations we can drive by and see.
  • Baby coming. Baby getting presents that are practical and adorable.
  • Hanging out the next day in my jammies until the nephews come over.

Sunday, December 18, 2011

I Can Do It

My mom taught me one simple philosphy when it comes to accomplishing things: How hard can it be? And, sure enough, with a little time/patience/training, it turns out that most things are doable.
Including, it would follow logically, being a stay-at-home mom (really a work-at-home mom). So there must be a way to do this. And I've been thinking about my skills (actual or imagined) and how they could bring in money.
Things I know I can do:
  • Write/edit/proofread. This is my current full-time gig, and it can be done from home. I know there's at least some freelance work of this type out there ... I just need to find it.
  • General office work. Microsoft Word is basically my bitch, I'm fluent with the other Office products, and I can file and organize with the best of them. It seems like there must be situations out there where I can do this type of work from home ... or during the hours baby is home with Daddy or in an environment where baby could be in a playpen.
  • Take surveys. I have opinions. I can share them. I know there is only a small amount of money in this, but it's better than nothing.
  • Knit. I admit this would take a little practice, but I've done it before and I can do it again. Fast enough to make plenty of money? Dunno.
  • Give plasma. I honestly don't mind doing this, contrary to the stigma it sometimes gets. (I'm not sure how long I have to wait after baby to do this.)
  • Clean.
  • Baby-sit. But I don't see myself doing this full time. Also house-sit or dog-sit.
  • Run errands. Plop the kid in the car seat and go to it.
  • Answer phones. I used to be an inbound telemarketer. I have a good phone voice, and I can read scripts smoothly.

And I'm sure there are other things. At this point I'm considering anything that can be done from home, in an environment where baby can hang out, or during the hours hubby is home (which is until noon most days).

Other ideas?

Sunday, December 11, 2011

Decisions

So I find myself with child. Which is all good and planned and good news. But it does lend itself to some possibilities, each with pros and cons. And I'm usually pretty decisive, but unfortunately sometimes it's about more than what I just want.
Option 1: Stay with my current job.
  • Pros: Stable, I know I can do it, doesn't require any change.
  • Cons: With the commute, I'm gone for 12 hours a day. And I really, really don't want to do this.

Option 2: Find another job closer to home.

  • Pros: Nice short commute is more conducive to being a working mom. Stable income. Gives me time to be away from the kid.
  • Cons: I don't actually have this job. And the job market around here is not fantastic.

Option 3: Stay home with the kid. (Note: Just not working is not actually an option for me. So it's a work-at-home scenario.

  • Pros: Plenty of time with the kid. No daycare costs. Time to bake artisan bread and hang my clothes on the line and do indie stuff. The more I think about it, the more I want to do this.
  • Cons: I would need to cobble together a fairly significant income, which would be a lot of work. I may get bored/lonely/fat if I am home all day. Loss of insurance/retirement benefits. Hole in my resume.

Help, reader(s). I am leaning toward 3, but I'm pretty risk-averse. And part of me fears that I like the idea of staying home more than I would actually like staying home. I know there's plenty of money out there, but I would need to pretty consistently hustle for it. I may have a few part-time opportunities in the wings, but no sure things. And I like sure things.