In todays world, EVERYTHING is expensive! The gas is crazy and the groceries are ridiculous. People are struggling to pay rent and bills. People are paying more for groceries, gas, and bills than they make. Most people are living pay check to pay check.
I’m an assistant teacher, so my pay is definitely not great. Even teachers with a masters degree don’t make what they honestly should be making.
Here’s a few things I’ve done just to make ends meet.
1. Mercari. It’s a free app where you can sell stuff. You can sell just about anything from babies clothes and items to home decor. We’ve even sold guitar hook ups and fishing gear.
We’re currently in the process of remodeling a home and financing is not an option for us. We want to pay everything in full and we’ve been successful so far. But, I had to go on maternity leave for just over 6 weeks, and that’s put a damper on our finances. So I currently have a pile of stuff on my couch that is posted on the app or is ready to be posted.
2. Cleaning services. My husband and I clean an office building once a week. We use this check strictly for our vehicle payment. It’s just enough to cover it and we probably couldn’t live comfortably nor do the things we do without this small income.
3. Fill in baby sitter. I have 4 children and 1 of them has a very busy schedule. I also work August-May. So babysitting full time is not really an option for me. But I will fill in when a baby sitter calls in sick. No one ever thinks about doing this either. Just advertise with social media and word of mouth.
I hope these small 3 tips help you out of your bind. It’s not a get rich quick scheme, by no means. But it may just help you get to your next pay check.
As always. If you have any great tips and tricks that you want to share with me, leave them in the comments of this post.
Geyser Falls Water Theme Park in Philadelphia MS. From left to right: me, my husband Jamie, a family friend Ashley, my niece Chloe, my daughter Mags, my son Eli, my daughter Morgan and my Step Dad Clark.
I know what you’re thinking! A water park is the perfect place to be during a heat wave. Or.. maybe you’re thinking “who goes to a hot water park during a heat wave?” Either way! DON’T DO IT!! When I say heat wave, I mean record breaking heat in Mississippi!
If you do, a little motherly advice! Don’t let your pre teen wear anything BUT cheap 50 cent flip flops from Walmart! And we didn’t just have one preteen, no sir!! We had 3! And NONE of them wore 50 cent flip flops. In fact, they didn’t even wear flip flops! Insert palm to face here!
Number 1. The concrete was so flipping hot that about mid day you couldn’t even walk on it. I mean it was painful to even step foot in front of foot! Even running didn’t help. And not to mention by the time it was so hot that we had to run, our feet were already blistered and tender. So running honestly felt like we were ripping skin from the bottom of our feet. But hey, I got my cardio in for the day in multiple ways!
Number 1.5 (because we’re still on the hot concrete topic) I’ve never been to a decent water park that didn’t have a 20 plus minute wait to get on an attraction. But waiting on hot concrete is a no go! Y’all we ran! I felt like I was back in high school running stadiums! Running up concrete stairs to the tippy top of this free fall slide was definitely one way to lock in your ticket on this slide. No way you’re changing your mind once you got up there and realization sets in that you’re 32 years old and about to basically jump off of a cliff. A cliff that you haven’t jumped off of since you were a pre teen and hadn’t had 4 kids and brittle bones and aches that pop up out of no man’s land! Or maybe that’s the way to do it. To set your fate with the massive free fall slide! You decide! Also, maybe I should’ve already mentioned this. You couldn’t take your shoes. You had to leave them at the bottom of the slide.
That brings us to number 2. There are three slides to choose from at the top. You have a “three fall” where you hit three humps on your way down. You have “free fall” where you jump off the cliff. THEN you have “night fall”!! It’s a fully inclosed tube that twist and turns and free falls at every turn! It’s not bad UNTIL you’re in a heat wave. It’s pitch black and it’s HOT. You honestly feel like your breathing in bodily fluids, chlorine, carbon dioxide, and maybe a touch of oxygen. There’s literally steam coming out of each end of the tube! Just don’t do it! Unless you’re good with not breathing oxygen. Then go for it!
Number 3. People stink! Including yourself! Sure you have water cooling you down and washing the sweat from your body, but the smell of your clothes! Have you ever been sweating, cooled off, started sweating again and then cooled off again? That’s the smell of every person at the water park! It’s just stink mixed with sunscreen. And it’s EVERYBODY! Don’t think you’re excluded! Because you’re not unless you just don’t swim or cool off. Then you have to stand a foot apart in long miserable lines and breath in everybody else’s stank and disposed air.
Number 4. The pre teens were hot, tired and bored after about 2 hours. Their feet were cooked. The lines were long. They were hungry and the food was expensive. They were just DONE!
Number 5. The sunscreen doesn’t work unless you reapply every 30 minutes! Don’t ask me why because I’m not a doctor by no means. But we applied and reapplied every hour. We still burned!! And we used 50 spf… and no it was not expired! If you have advice on this, please give it to me!! TIA!
This morning… hmmm.. well Ricket did sleep in, so I got that going for me! (If you’re lost on a name, refer back to my first post). But boy! He is fighting his sleep at nap time something fierce now a days. He has had a pretty decent sleep schedule since summer started. Wakes up the same time every morning, naps the same time every day, and bed same time every night.
But, the last few weeks have been rough. When he’s tired he wants to be held. But not just held and rocked. He wants to be held and walked around on your hip. IF you can pop the bottle in his mouth for more than 20 seconds while he’s squirming and fighting, you’re good to go. He will gradually fall asleep.
These tips and tricks I’ve learned over the last few days have helped tremendously!!
He’s just starting to hold his bottle. So, if I lay him down on my bed and let him hold his bottle, he does SO MUCH better! He can squirm and get comfy how he wants and he’s not stopped by my arms or stuck in one position. He usually even falls asleep like this.
If I can keep him still long enough, I can rub his little face and eyes. He usually will either fall asleep or he’ll relax enough to drink his bottle. I just gently run my thumb and index finger in circles up his nose, over his eye brows, then under his eyes back to his nose.
Sometimes, if it’s day time and a little bright, I can give him his favorite blanket or a rag. He’ll pull it just over his eyes and he’ll relax and usually fall asleep. This is usually with him holding his own bottle. But then sometimes he’ll finish his bottle and try to eat the rag. Face palm now.
These are just a few tricks I’ve figured out that works for him. You may not have the same outcome. But, if you’re at your wits end like I’ve been lately, it’s worth a shot.
Good luck mama!! If you have any other tips or tricks you think I should try, just leave them in the comments section of this post!
Hello. My name is Heather Martin. I am a mom of 4, a wife, a baby sister, a daughter and step daughter, an aunt, and a very busy woman!!
I have a 12 year old (Maggie aka Mags) going into Jr High and we are just beginning a new adventure with volley ball, band, and beta.
I have a 7 year old (Morgan) that is going into 2nd grade and is starting a new adventure in a talented and gifted program.
I have a 4 year old (Eli) that would’ve started k4, but we didn’t survive k3, so we’re going to revisit our journey in k5. More on this subject on a later date.
And last but not least, I have a 5 month old (Steven Tate aka Ricket). We are on an adventure with a weak eye muscle (more on this later), scooting, formula shortages, trying out new baby foods, and discovering and learning all kinds of new things!
My story is COMPLICATED!! It’s crazy!! So buckle up butter cup, the ride will be bumpy!! Like Mississippi roads bumpy! But I hope you enjoy the ride and be sure to return regularly! Also, thank you for stopping by!!
Just A Mom Daily 