Wow, I found this old post, way way deep in my archives of The Frugal Homeschooling Mom blog. It had been unpublished, and I’m not sure how that happened! It must have happened a year ago whenever I made a switch in blog hosts. I’ve found it interesting to go waaaaayyyyyy back into my blog posts, and pull up the old things I wrote.
I wrote this when Laynie (my oldest) was just 3 and I had only been blogging for a couple of months. Perhaps you’ll find it interesting, it tells a little bit about my initial motivations to be a stay at home mom, and my first excitement about plans to homeschool my child. Perhaps some of you are there. I love the fact that this blog has never really changed from the very beginning – my purposes are still the same – to share my knowledge with other moms like me.
I hope you enjoy reading this, gosh I sure did!
From May of 2009:
After spending 17 months crying in the car, to and from my job as a teacher (and sometimes even at work) because all I wanted was to stay at home with my baby, my husband finally gave in and said I could. I was elated, to say the least.
However, it made a huge difference in our family’s income. I made more than my husband did, so we lost the majority of our income, plus some pretty nice state benefits. But I’ve never been happier, and therefore, my poor hubby is happy too!
No really, we both agree it was the best decision we ever made. We have been blessed beyond our wildest imagination, and we attribute it all to our purposeful decisions to follow God’s will for our family and to be better stewards of our finances.
I’ve learned to live a very different life than I used to. We no longer have a lot of the luxuries that we once thought we “needed.” No cell phones, just the basic cable TV (you know, just the local channels), few dinners out, no brand name clothing (unless it’s second-hand or clearanced), no convenience foods (unless I get them free or really cheap with coupons), etc. I’ve sold a lot of unnecessary knick-knacks from my home and a lot of our clothing at consignment stores and yard sales. We’ve made lots of small changes too (like using cheaper and longer-lasting bar soap instead of body wash with loofah sponges, and making my own cleaning supplies). I use coupons like a crazy woman, and I scan the weekly grocery and drug store ads to maximize my coupon savings (As a result we only spend about $50-$70 per week on groceries). Every little thing has truly added up, and I’ve saved (earned) our family over $400 a month in this way.
It’s a much simpler life, and after a year and a half, I don’t feel like I’m missing anything. Actually, I am enjoying life more now than I ever have. Simpler IS better.
My little girl, Laynie, is such a joy. Now that she’s almost 3 I’m really beginning to come up with a plan for homeschooling her when she begins elementary school (Since I have a M.Ed. degree, and I taught public school for 5 years, I’m looking forward to it). In preparation for that, I am beginning to find things to do with her to prepare her for an official pre-K curriculum in the fall of 2010 when she’s 4.
For now, I am searching the web for free or really cheap resources and activities to fuel her love for learning now. So, as I am searching the web, and gathering information, I figured, why not share what I find with other people who may be looking for fun and educational things to do with their own preschooler? In addition, I’m really getting good at finding ways to save money and earn money, and people keep asking me, “How do you do that?”
So, I started my blog in March, The Frugal Homeschooling Mom. I’m still learning as I go, but it’s been a fun endeavor. I try to focus my posts on free and cheap stuff for moms like me (most of which I have tried myself so I know they’re worth passing along), and free and cheap resources for a homeschool-preschool (which will eventually serve as a store of information as I homeschool any other future children we may be blessed with). I’m gaining new readers every day, and meeting some great new friends. Thankfully, so far no one seems to mind that my grammar isn’t always perfect! It feels good to know that the hours I spend researching can benefit other people too.
