We have found several useful items due to our willingness to trash pick and dumpster dive.
Starting with the cleanest place to do this; the local recycling center. The boxes for newspapers and magazines are loaded every day. We pull coupons (Smart Source, RedPlum and P&G), popular magazines (these are sold online), & magazines that have coupons in them (Woman's World, Family Circle and All You).
We visit our friends blog (Onefrugalmama.com) to see what local sales we can match with the coupons we've found. (Couponmom.com is another good site, depending on where in the country you live). We also check our local grocers sale ad. We set aside the coupons that we think we will use and sell the rest in lots online. Depending on what you find, this can be lucrative. We've found up to $35 worth of items in one days dig.
The next cleanest dumpster dive tends to be offices and cardboard recycling bins. We use boxes, bubble wrap, and other packaging materials for packing items that we sell online. We do not make money from these items, but they are necessary for proper packaging, and we save the cost of purchasing them.
The dirtiest dive I'm willing to do is road side. I don't have to climb into a bin with unknown items, and can clearly see what I'm picking through. Again, the items we pick up here are either used by us, sold online, given to charity or sold in our annual yard sale. Crib mattresses are a common throw away around us; and because they have a plastic outer, they can be cleaned and sterilized easily assuming they don't have any tears. We've even picked up one still wrapped in the original packaging, which even though we didn't need it, we threw it in the back of the van and within a week heard of a family that was in need of one.
NOTE: If I see something particularly valuable by the side of the road, and think even slightly that the owner may not have intended to toss it, I will go knock on the door and ask before taking it.
My best trash pick was a large dry erase board and aluminum easel (I'd been wanting this item to use for homeschooling, and had priced a similar one at over $100 new at Staples). These were behind an office which was closing and they were still in their original boxes. I did speak with the owner before taking them. He was retiring and selling the building to move out of town. When he learned I was taking the items from the road, he quickly had his crew bring out more; we received more than a case of printer paper, several 3ring binders, stacks of books (one of which sold on Amazon for $70 the next day), and many other useful office supplies. He was thrilled to see the items go to someone who would make use of them, and we were thrilled to get them.
I also sort through yard sale Free boxes for useful items, and consider this road side picking as well.
Many communities have an annual spring clean up where residents can put large items by the road that they would otherwise have to pay extra to dispose of. When we pick up these items, I think of it as a form of recycling.
Even parts of items can be useful; we have a friend who picked up a broken stereo by the side of the road and put it in the back of his truck. He continued around town, digging through piles, and by the end of the day had scavenged all the parts he needed to repair and rebuild the stereo (at NO cost, except the gas of course).
Our town has a monthly bulk pick up day. We mark our calendar for the day and evening beforehand to be out and looking for items we can use.
We know people (some in our own family) who would never pick through things that others had thrown away. That's okay, because if everyone was doing it, we'd never get anything good!
We could be prideful and consider ourselves above trash picking and dumpster diving, but our alternative is to go get jobs; something we are not ready to do. We like being unemployed; there is a thrill in the challenge to make ends meet every month, there is joy in being available to volunteer our time (anytime we want to! We never have to say, "sorry I have to work that day"), and there is something very special about a being in a family that lives, works and plays together. We are extremely blessed!
I hope that you are also blessed by us sharing our story and our ideas. Our goal is to encourage others to look outside the 9to5 double income, kids in daycare norm, and find something BETTER.
Corinne Johnson is a Christian homeschooling mom, and help meet to her husband Don. She is also the author of Vacation Education Books; travel guides for families who love to learn. Learn more about her family, her journey and her books at www.vacationeducationbooks.net
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Eliminating the PHONE BILL
We were paying $80 a month for phone and internet. Depending on the long distance calls that we made, it was sometimes as low as $78 or as high as $82. This included web hosting at $19.95 per month. It took some time and research, but we were able to reduce this a great deal.
Starting with the web hosting. We needed our website to stay active throughout whatever changes we were going to make. We found FREE webhosting through MSN. This allows us to maintain a website, have a web presence, use their templates, etc. and there is no charge. They offer additional services for an assortment of fees, but the basic service (which is all that we need) is free.
This actually saves us more than $19.95 because when items are added to your phone bill, you have to pay a percentage of taxes on the amount. So, we also saved the 6% state tax and the federal tax that would have been added to the bill.
Now, this was not a simple process, neither of us is adept at web design or even understanding all the elements of the design process. We had to do a lot of work, and invest a lot of time to create a new website and to get all the parts in order. This is still a work in progress, but we are no longer paying a fee for it.
The second item that had to be addressed was the actual internet service. It was also $19.95, plus taxes and fees. The main problem here was that it was directly connected to our phone line. Through AT&T, we could cancel the internet, turn off the phone and then order internet only for about the same rate, however, in order to do this, we would have to be offline for over a week while everything got set up. This is not an option for us, as again, we feel it is very important to have our website up and available and we want our readers to be able to reach us if needed. No email for a week would have made this difficult. We also have a lot of items listed on Ebay, and needed to know when they sold and be able to ship them promptly. We found cable internet service for the same price, coming to a total of $22 per month, and not attached to our phone, so that we could cancel the phone service at anytime without affecting our website or internet connection. This is still a cost, but other than taking a laptop to the library all day (which would negate the whole point of us all being home together), there do not seem to be any options for FREE internet service. There are however, many businesses that offer free wifi, and if you do not need to be online every day or for long periods, these can be used to make your internet service a "0" line item for your budget.
The third item to deal with on the phone bill was the remaining $40 that was just for basic phone service. We contacted the phone company and our service plan was $12.99 per month, the rest of the charges all came from taxes and government fees. There was not a cheaper phone plan, and there was not anyway around the taxes and fees. We discovered a service called SKYPE. This is an online phone service and it is not perfect, but it works for us.
You must be online to use the service.
All calls to other SKYPE users are always free.
You can call ANY landline or cell phone from your computer, the fee for this service is $7.99 per month, total! There are no additional taxes or fees for this.
You can sign up for a month at a time or sign up for several months; the longer you sign on for, the cheaper the monthly rates get.
If you would like to have a local phone number so that people can still call you, there is an additional fee for this. It is 2.99 per month; again if you sign up for longer, the rate is reduced.
While we have not managed to reduced our phone bill to zero, we have managed some significant savings. From $80 per month down to $33. This is more than 50% off.
I have to admit that these services are not necessities and if we had to cut back more, they might eventually have to go, however they are essential to the primary sources of income that we have as a family.
Need a local phone number: We own a rental property that requires that tenants can reach us in case of needed repairs, also that prospective renters can reach us when the units are empty and we have an ad in the paper.
Need a website: We publish a series of travel guides for families and most of our orders come through the website. We also speak at conferences, and present our stories in churches, but the bulk of our sales come through the website.
Need an internet service and a functional phone number: When customers contact us about purchasing books or churches contact us about performing for them, we need to be reachable and appear as professional as possible.
Need unlimited internet service: We are online frequently for research (homeschooling lessons and information for book series), as well as selling items on Ebay as a source of income.
If you would like to know more about our book series, presentations or our business, we invite you to www.vacationeducationbooks.net to learn more about our family and our ministry.
Starting with the web hosting. We needed our website to stay active throughout whatever changes we were going to make. We found FREE webhosting through MSN. This allows us to maintain a website, have a web presence, use their templates, etc. and there is no charge. They offer additional services for an assortment of fees, but the basic service (which is all that we need) is free.
This actually saves us more than $19.95 because when items are added to your phone bill, you have to pay a percentage of taxes on the amount. So, we also saved the 6% state tax and the federal tax that would have been added to the bill.
Now, this was not a simple process, neither of us is adept at web design or even understanding all the elements of the design process. We had to do a lot of work, and invest a lot of time to create a new website and to get all the parts in order. This is still a work in progress, but we are no longer paying a fee for it.
The second item that had to be addressed was the actual internet service. It was also $19.95, plus taxes and fees. The main problem here was that it was directly connected to our phone line. Through AT&T, we could cancel the internet, turn off the phone and then order internet only for about the same rate, however, in order to do this, we would have to be offline for over a week while everything got set up. This is not an option for us, as again, we feel it is very important to have our website up and available and we want our readers to be able to reach us if needed. No email for a week would have made this difficult. We also have a lot of items listed on Ebay, and needed to know when they sold and be able to ship them promptly. We found cable internet service for the same price, coming to a total of $22 per month, and not attached to our phone, so that we could cancel the phone service at anytime without affecting our website or internet connection. This is still a cost, but other than taking a laptop to the library all day (which would negate the whole point of us all being home together), there do not seem to be any options for FREE internet service. There are however, many businesses that offer free wifi, and if you do not need to be online every day or for long periods, these can be used to make your internet service a "0" line item for your budget.
The third item to deal with on the phone bill was the remaining $40 that was just for basic phone service. We contacted the phone company and our service plan was $12.99 per month, the rest of the charges all came from taxes and government fees. There was not a cheaper phone plan, and there was not anyway around the taxes and fees. We discovered a service called SKYPE. This is an online phone service and it is not perfect, but it works for us.
You must be online to use the service.
All calls to other SKYPE users are always free.
You can call ANY landline or cell phone from your computer, the fee for this service is $7.99 per month, total! There are no additional taxes or fees for this.
You can sign up for a month at a time or sign up for several months; the longer you sign on for, the cheaper the monthly rates get.
If you would like to have a local phone number so that people can still call you, there is an additional fee for this. It is 2.99 per month; again if you sign up for longer, the rate is reduced.
While we have not managed to reduced our phone bill to zero, we have managed some significant savings. From $80 per month down to $33. This is more than 50% off.
I have to admit that these services are not necessities and if we had to cut back more, they might eventually have to go, however they are essential to the primary sources of income that we have as a family.
Need a local phone number: We own a rental property that requires that tenants can reach us in case of needed repairs, also that prospective renters can reach us when the units are empty and we have an ad in the paper.
Need a website: We publish a series of travel guides for families and most of our orders come through the website. We also speak at conferences, and present our stories in churches, but the bulk of our sales come through the website.
Need an internet service and a functional phone number: When customers contact us about purchasing books or churches contact us about performing for them, we need to be reachable and appear as professional as possible.
Need unlimited internet service: We are online frequently for research (homeschooling lessons and information for book series), as well as selling items on Ebay as a source of income.
If you would like to know more about our book series, presentations or our business, we invite you to www.vacationeducationbooks.net to learn more about our family and our ministry.
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
No Cable, No Satellite, Free TV
We DON'T subscribe to a television service. This amounts to a savings of $50 or $60 per month or more. The cheapest way to go that I know of is a family that 17 years ago, got a cable service plan that cost $13 per month and gave them stations up to channel 13. Over the years, they have managed to convince the local company to 'grandfather' them in and allow them to continue this plan. I don't know of anyone else who has a similar deal, and I'm certain you couldn't get anything that cheap today.
There are many options for television entertainment; cable service, satellite dishes, etc. and many companies offering these services. I've known of people who paid their rent late because they had to pay the cable bill or it would get shut off. I know of people who look at their monthly budget and can't make ends meet, but consider a television service of some sort to be part of their necessities.
I see necessities as food, shelter, clothing. EVERYTHING else is luxury!
I personally refuse to pay for a service that brings video entertainment into my home. I have relented at the begging of my husband and children in the past, however, when Don left his job, it was one of the first things to go. The service was cancelled, and all the equipment (tvs, vcrs, dvd players) were sold in our yard sale. The gaming toys (Sega, etc) were packed away in the basement, and saved for the possibility that the kids might have an opportunity to use them. (We've taken them to Grandmas as a special treat - she has a tv!)
This year for Christmas, my mother bought our daughters a small television and a DVD/VCR combination machine (she thinks taking away television is deprivation). We allowed them to keep them, but set them in a common area - we never allowed our children to have free reign of the television. It is a privilege; chores and schoolwork always come first. But, we live half a block from the library and there are a number of videos and DVD's that we are willing to let our children borrow.
As for appeasing my husbands need for television, we do maintain an internet presence and almost all news, and current events can be found online. Most newspapers and magazines can be read online as well.
We DO take advantage of the websites that provide free television streaming. If you are interested in CBS programs; visit their website and choose a program that you want to watch. It seems that most current shows are available on the site one day after they show on tv, so if you have a Thursday night favorite, you may have to wait until Friday to watch it.
Many stations have their own website, plus you can also use sites like HULU.com or Megavideo.com to watch a variety of programs and even movies. Most of these are free; megavideo allows you to watch 72 minutes at a time and locks you out for one hour unless you pay a fee. This is long enough to watch most programs, but not quite long enough for a movie.
If we really want to watch a movie that they are offering, but can't find it on another site; we do a two nighter. We make popcorn and watch about half way, and find a good stopping point, then return the next night to watch the second half. You do have control to fast forward, rewind, pause, and to start mid-program.
To some people, giving up television seems to be a great sacrifice. I don't see it that way. First, there is the cost (around us, the cheapest plans are $50 to $60 per month - I can do a lot with that amount). Then, there is the time; we only watch a program as a family one or two nights a week, and after the children go to bed, we watch an hour or two as a couple. To spend more time than that in front of an entertainment box, seems like a huge waste of time to me. I even feel guilty about the waste of time that it is already, so I multitask; I take something productive to bed; sale ads, grocery list, coupons to cut, etc., but I take something with me so that I am not completely wasting the time.
Admittedly, I love a good story, and there are several shows that I enjoy following, but when it comes to being together as a family; it is one of the easiest items to give up.
I hope you enjoyed this post, and that you will return for more, as we share how our family of 7 (almost 8) has managed to survive the past year with both adults unemployed.
Corinne Johnson is a Christian homeschooling mom, and the author of Vacation Education Books. For ideas on educational lesson plans to do with your family, please check out my Vacation Education blog and our website www.vacationeducationbooks.net
There are many options for television entertainment; cable service, satellite dishes, etc. and many companies offering these services. I've known of people who paid their rent late because they had to pay the cable bill or it would get shut off. I know of people who look at their monthly budget and can't make ends meet, but consider a television service of some sort to be part of their necessities.
I see necessities as food, shelter, clothing. EVERYTHING else is luxury!
I personally refuse to pay for a service that brings video entertainment into my home. I have relented at the begging of my husband and children in the past, however, when Don left his job, it was one of the first things to go. The service was cancelled, and all the equipment (tvs, vcrs, dvd players) were sold in our yard sale. The gaming toys (Sega, etc) were packed away in the basement, and saved for the possibility that the kids might have an opportunity to use them. (We've taken them to Grandmas as a special treat - she has a tv!)
This year for Christmas, my mother bought our daughters a small television and a DVD/VCR combination machine (she thinks taking away television is deprivation). We allowed them to keep them, but set them in a common area - we never allowed our children to have free reign of the television. It is a privilege; chores and schoolwork always come first. But, we live half a block from the library and there are a number of videos and DVD's that we are willing to let our children borrow.
As for appeasing my husbands need for television, we do maintain an internet presence and almost all news, and current events can be found online. Most newspapers and magazines can be read online as well.
We DO take advantage of the websites that provide free television streaming. If you are interested in CBS programs; visit their website and choose a program that you want to watch. It seems that most current shows are available on the site one day after they show on tv, so if you have a Thursday night favorite, you may have to wait until Friday to watch it.
Many stations have their own website, plus you can also use sites like HULU.com or Megavideo.com to watch a variety of programs and even movies. Most of these are free; megavideo allows you to watch 72 minutes at a time and locks you out for one hour unless you pay a fee. This is long enough to watch most programs, but not quite long enough for a movie.
If we really want to watch a movie that they are offering, but can't find it on another site; we do a two nighter. We make popcorn and watch about half way, and find a good stopping point, then return the next night to watch the second half. You do have control to fast forward, rewind, pause, and to start mid-program.
To some people, giving up television seems to be a great sacrifice. I don't see it that way. First, there is the cost (around us, the cheapest plans are $50 to $60 per month - I can do a lot with that amount). Then, there is the time; we only watch a program as a family one or two nights a week, and after the children go to bed, we watch an hour or two as a couple. To spend more time than that in front of an entertainment box, seems like a huge waste of time to me. I even feel guilty about the waste of time that it is already, so I multitask; I take something productive to bed; sale ads, grocery list, coupons to cut, etc., but I take something with me so that I am not completely wasting the time.
Admittedly, I love a good story, and there are several shows that I enjoy following, but when it comes to being together as a family; it is one of the easiest items to give up.
I hope you enjoyed this post, and that you will return for more, as we share how our family of 7 (almost 8) has managed to survive the past year with both adults unemployed.
Corinne Johnson is a Christian homeschooling mom, and the author of Vacation Education Books. For ideas on educational lesson plans to do with your family, please check out my Vacation Education blog and our website www.vacationeducationbooks.net
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
FREE "almost" cloth diaper covers
I DID IT! Me, who has never used a sewing machine in my life, actually put together and sewed my own diaper covers. Now, these were not actually free, but that is my eventual goal, and these are significantly less expensive than purchasing them, even through used sources.
Don found me a poly blend material that is waterproof; he actually bought me a shower curtain. This is not the plastic liner or a cloth outer, but a blend that feels soft to the touch, is flexible to work with, easy to sew and is waterproof. It was not FREE or even cheap by shower curtain standards ($15), but I've made four diaper wraps from it, and have only used about 1/4 of it.
I started with a Fuzzy Buns size Medium (these are my favorite ones, and the pocket diapers cost about $25) and measured that out as my pattern, onto an opened paper bag. I cut it out and have been using that to cut out the waterproof liner.
I also used a shower curtain liner; this is a thicker, plastic material, less flexible and harder to sew, but I felt it would be extremely waterproof.
I cut the center out of an extra large sweatshirt and turned it so the inside softer part would be what touches baby's bottom.
I sewed the three layers together, waterproof fabric, plastic lining, soft cotton. I added elastic, (my daughter took a sewing class where she learned to make a skirt and then she taught me how to add elastic) and velcro. Tada, it was done. I made the first two this way, the second one turning out much better than the first. I was learning.
The next one, I made the same way, except for the inside layer I used a piece of teddy bear fleece. These are great baby blankets and I love them, but after five kids, I have about 50 in the closet. There is no way I will need this many, even for a January baby, so I figured I could spare one.
This diaper, I took my husband's suggestion and got adventurous, I sewed the three layers together, except I left a gap at the back center between the plastic lining and the fleece, which makes it a pocket diaper. HAH! I'm getting even better.
The fourth diaper, I made with the waterproof outer and the fleece (as another pocket diaper), but I left out the plastic liner to see if it would still work. That would save the cost of that layer and would save the time of sewing in the extra layer. We used it once and it didn't leak, so far so good. They are all going through the wash right now, and will get to go for another round soon.
As far as the additional costs: I scavenged the elastic from a pair of plastic pants that had worn out and were basically shredded except for the elastic;(I later found 8 feet of elastic for 94cents -regular price- at my local Meijer; not free, but nearly) I had some velcro left over from when we used it for attaching our banner to the front of our display table (for conventions). I bought some snap tape when the local Ben Franklin went out of business; sold one box on Ebay for close to what I paid for two boxes, and so basically got to keep one for free. I am going to try adding snaps to the next one, and see how that works. UPDATE: I broke a needle when I hit the metal snap! OUCH!
It wasn't all perfect. I broke the thread so many times on the first diaper, that it took an entire spool of thread to finish the project. I've also broken two needles so far, the first one I don't know how, and the second one I was trying to sew on the snap tape and hit a snap with the needle. My first diaper looks like a mess of thread, but it works. My second looks only slightly better, but again, it works. I'm not creating diapers that I could put on the market and offer to others for sale, (at least not yet). And, I so far have only figured out how to make one size.
However, when all is said and done, I am learning a new skill, I am making something that my family can actually use, and I am NOT spending $15 a week on paper diapers.
If I stop now, I will have four functional diaper covers for a total cost of under $20. If I continue making wraps from the materials I have, the price per cover will continue to decrease with each completed one. Maybe I'll even get good enough at it to make some that look nice enough that others would want to use, and then I would have learned a skill that could actually bring in an income.
Corinne Johnson is the author of Vacation Education Books, a Christian unit study series based on favorite vacation destinations. View our products at www.vacationeducationbooks.net
Don found me a poly blend material that is waterproof; he actually bought me a shower curtain. This is not the plastic liner or a cloth outer, but a blend that feels soft to the touch, is flexible to work with, easy to sew and is waterproof. It was not FREE or even cheap by shower curtain standards ($15), but I've made four diaper wraps from it, and have only used about 1/4 of it.
I started with a Fuzzy Buns size Medium (these are my favorite ones, and the pocket diapers cost about $25) and measured that out as my pattern, onto an opened paper bag. I cut it out and have been using that to cut out the waterproof liner.
I also used a shower curtain liner; this is a thicker, plastic material, less flexible and harder to sew, but I felt it would be extremely waterproof.
I cut the center out of an extra large sweatshirt and turned it so the inside softer part would be what touches baby's bottom.
I sewed the three layers together, waterproof fabric, plastic lining, soft cotton. I added elastic, (my daughter took a sewing class where she learned to make a skirt and then she taught me how to add elastic) and velcro. Tada, it was done. I made the first two this way, the second one turning out much better than the first. I was learning.
The next one, I made the same way, except for the inside layer I used a piece of teddy bear fleece. These are great baby blankets and I love them, but after five kids, I have about 50 in the closet. There is no way I will need this many, even for a January baby, so I figured I could spare one.
This diaper, I took my husband's suggestion and got adventurous, I sewed the three layers together, except I left a gap at the back center between the plastic lining and the fleece, which makes it a pocket diaper. HAH! I'm getting even better.
The fourth diaper, I made with the waterproof outer and the fleece (as another pocket diaper), but I left out the plastic liner to see if it would still work. That would save the cost of that layer and would save the time of sewing in the extra layer. We used it once and it didn't leak, so far so good. They are all going through the wash right now, and will get to go for another round soon.
As far as the additional costs: I scavenged the elastic from a pair of plastic pants that had worn out and were basically shredded except for the elastic;(I later found 8 feet of elastic for 94cents -regular price- at my local Meijer; not free, but nearly) I had some velcro left over from when we used it for attaching our banner to the front of our display table (for conventions). I bought some snap tape when the local Ben Franklin went out of business; sold one box on Ebay for close to what I paid for two boxes, and so basically got to keep one for free. I am going to try adding snaps to the next one, and see how that works. UPDATE: I broke a needle when I hit the metal snap! OUCH!
It wasn't all perfect. I broke the thread so many times on the first diaper, that it took an entire spool of thread to finish the project. I've also broken two needles so far, the first one I don't know how, and the second one I was trying to sew on the snap tape and hit a snap with the needle. My first diaper looks like a mess of thread, but it works. My second looks only slightly better, but again, it works. I'm not creating diapers that I could put on the market and offer to others for sale, (at least not yet). And, I so far have only figured out how to make one size.
However, when all is said and done, I am learning a new skill, I am making something that my family can actually use, and I am NOT spending $15 a week on paper diapers.
If I stop now, I will have four functional diaper covers for a total cost of under $20. If I continue making wraps from the materials I have, the price per cover will continue to decrease with each completed one. Maybe I'll even get good enough at it to make some that look nice enough that others would want to use, and then I would have learned a skill that could actually bring in an income.
Corinne Johnson is the author of Vacation Education Books, a Christian unit study series based on favorite vacation destinations. View our products at www.vacationeducationbooks.net
Living without a job, introduction
In October, 2007, my husband left his position after 17 years. We made this decision together for the strength of our family. We didn't know what we would do or how we would do it, but we did know that our children were growing up with a father who was absent or distant much of the time. Many families live this way, and it is the norm of our culture. We wanted something different, something better. My husband, Don, was led by the Holy Spirit and the encouragement of other godly men, to be a leader in our household. He quickly realized that one can not lead a place he is not part of. His job required so much of his time, energy and talents that church, home and family requests for his time were just reminders of how little time, energy and talents he had left at the end of the work day.
There are two questions, that I have been asked almost daily since that decision was made; "Does your husband have a job yet?" and when I answered that no, he is still home with us, I am asked, "How do you do it?"
The answer to that question is a lengthy and complicated one. There are many steps that we have taken to keep Dad at home, and many of them are just obvious ways of life to me, and yet, I've found, that many people think they are extreme, or don't ever think of them at all.
So, in an effort to share our experience with others, and to encourage other families, we are going to try to give you some insight into the ways that we survive without a paycheck. We are a family of 7, soon to be 8 (in Jan. 2009), we are a Christian homeschooling family, we are honest (we don't rob banks and we do pay taxes), we are not as frugal as some families, but we are more frugal than others, we aren't coupon crazy (although I have found a unique way to make money using these). We own our home, but we do have to pay a mortgage every month, we have one car, and we do have a car payment. We are far from debt free, but we are working on it. We are NOT very different from the average family in the US, and we pay our bills every month, even though neither of us goes to a regular job, and neither of us receives a regular paycheck.
So, I hope you are, like many others, asking the question, how do you do it?
Keep checking back as we share our 'secrets'
Corinne Johnson
There are two questions, that I have been asked almost daily since that decision was made; "Does your husband have a job yet?" and when I answered that no, he is still home with us, I am asked, "How do you do it?"
The answer to that question is a lengthy and complicated one. There are many steps that we have taken to keep Dad at home, and many of them are just obvious ways of life to me, and yet, I've found, that many people think they are extreme, or don't ever think of them at all.
So, in an effort to share our experience with others, and to encourage other families, we are going to try to give you some insight into the ways that we survive without a paycheck. We are a family of 7, soon to be 8 (in Jan. 2009), we are a Christian homeschooling family, we are honest (we don't rob banks and we do pay taxes), we are not as frugal as some families, but we are more frugal than others, we aren't coupon crazy (although I have found a unique way to make money using these). We own our home, but we do have to pay a mortgage every month, we have one car, and we do have a car payment. We are far from debt free, but we are working on it. We are NOT very different from the average family in the US, and we pay our bills every month, even though neither of us goes to a regular job, and neither of us receives a regular paycheck.
So, I hope you are, like many others, asking the question, how do you do it?
Keep checking back as we share our 'secrets'
Corinne Johnson
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