Raising Extra Money

So...in the words of Dave Ramsey, I'm trying to "sell so much stuff that it makes the kids think they're next". LOL. I've listed several child care resource books plus a couple of other things that I don't need/use anymore. I think I have them all sold to some friends who needed them. So that will be some money for the baby emergency fund.

I've also started writing for Examiner.com as the Oklahoma City area child care examiner. I've posted two articles so far. You can visit my page here. It has links to both articles. I'm hoping to make some extra money this way, too.

I am also checking into becoming a Child Development Associate (CDA) advisor. That is a person who visits child care programs and evaluates them and recommends whether they qualify to get or renew their CDA credential. If I get registered through the Center for Early Childhood Professional Development in Moore, I will get paid to do it. That is a slow process though. I have to apply to become one ($50), get a new OSBI background check ($19) and get college transcripts (sent off for those already). Then the next available training for it isn't until May 7th in Moore. But the pay is enough to cover having to pay a sub while I do it and still make some money. I wouldn't do it very often (I'm thinking no more than once or twice a month because I don't want to be gone from my own business that often). But it would be something different and I think I would enjoy it. I may also apply to become a trainer through them too. It's on the same application so it wouldn't be much extra effort.

We would love to hear other ideas/suggestions for raising extra $'s!

Gazelle Intensity

Dave Ramsey talks alot about being "gazelle intense". He uses this passage from Proverbs:

1 My son, if you have put up security for your neighbor or entered into an agreement with a stranger, 2 you have been trapped by the words of your lips ensnared by the words of your mouth. 3 Do this, then, my son, and free yourself, for you have put yourself in your neighbor's power: Go, humble yourself, and plead with your neighbor. 4 Don't give sleep to your eyes or slumber to your eyelids. 5 Escape like a gazelle from a hunter, like a bird from a fowler's trap.

Then he shows a clip from the Discovery Channel of a gazelle escaping from a cheetah. The gazelle is running for it's life! It always brings me to tears, even though I've seen it several times. Because that's how I feel. Like I'm running for my life from the creditors and I'm not sure I'm going to get away.

If you ever wonder if the Bible applies today, you need look no further than this verse.

New Blog

For those of you that follow this blog, I wanted to sure with you that I started a new blog called Play is the Future. It's about how important I feel play is for children. If you're interested in that topic, pop on over there and read it!

Dave Ramsey LIVE!

Thanks to a friend from church (who couldn't go and sold us her cheap tickets), we got to see Dave Ramsey LIVE on Saturday. It was AWESOME! I feel inspired to get back on track and get gazelle intense! Tom and I have been brainstorming ideas to generate some extra money and get that baby emergency fund built back up. We're going to listen to CD # 2 tonight (we missed last week because of the Valentine Banquet at church). We would appreciate prayers as we resume this journey!

Gorgeous Weather

It's hard to believe that a week ago we had snow everywhere and sub-zero temperatures. The last couple of days have been really nice, although the wind is a little much. However, wind when it's warm is much better than when it's cold. So I'm not complaining! LOL!

I have been working on a list of our current debts and I am almost done with it. I've also been chipping away at the taxes. My sinuses have been making me miserable this week so I'm kind of sluggish and well...eh. LOL. It's much better than it would have been before the surgery but still pretty miserable.

Have I mentioned that we get to go see Dave Ramsey on Saturday? I'm excited!

Our Frugal Valentine's Date

In our quest to get "back on track", Tom and I decided not to go on an official date for Valentine's Day. On the actual Valentine's Day, we went to a banquet at church, that was $20. But on Saturday, when we normally would have gone on a date for Valentine's, I brought home Buy One Get One Free enchilada dinners from El Chico and Happy Hour Sonic drinks and we snuggled on the couch and watched TV. We had a coupon for a free pay-per-view rental that we were going to use, but couldn't find anything we really wanted to watch. So we just watched some recordings. We had the house to ourselves and it was nice.

It's Easy

It's easy to have a good and positive attitude when things are going well. But what about when things aren't? Then it gets harder. I have been feeling pretty discouraged since Friday. Our washing machine pipes and drain have frozen up 3 times in the last month thanks to this insanely cold weather. Friday, I got up there to put the heater up and try again to thaw it out and realized that one of the pipes had broke. I was so grateful to have noticed it before it made a mess. I called a plumber who came out and fixed the problem before the pipes thawed and made a huge mess. Phew. But that phew cost me $102. LOL. Much less than a huge flood would have, however. Anyway, then Saturday, I came home after my class and tried the washer, only to find out that it was leaking from behind the washer. After assuming at first that it was just a loose hose, Tom finally figured out yesterday that it was the water inlet valves, one of them had cracked. Called Sears and ordered another one. $40.95 with shipping and handling and it's supposed to be here "by the 21st". So...possibly another week with no washing machine. Makes me very grateful again for the laundromat here in town, but it's $2 a load so it adds up fast! So, while I"m busy trying to focus on the positive, I"m struggling with feeling discouraged. When I mentioned that to Tom last night, he pointed out to me that Satan is the discourager. We're trying hard to get back on track and of course, what happens right away? "Murphy" comes to visit! So I am reminding myself of my post from last week about handing over everything to God and letting Him handle it. I will not take it back. It is in His very capable hands.