I wrote about my quest to rid myself of the excess clothing that had somehow started to take over my home and I would like to say that it was INCREDIBLY successful. I ended up donating about 10 trash bags full of clothes from myself and my four children. We have a ton more space and now hopefully less laundry! I have found it so much easier to get myself and the kids dressed in the morning now that we don't have to search through clothes that are ill fitting or ripped, etc. I am really hoping that I can keep a one in, one out policy.
Cleaning out the clothes inspired me to get it going with other stuff around the house as well. I am thinking the kids toys are next up! Maybe I should start with the ones that are all over my living room floor that I have asked that they pick up? ;)
Friday, August 5, 2016
Thursday, August 4, 2016
Staying Positive
My life is starting to feel like it is really just a combination of a series of unfortunate events. I try my hardest to stay positive and keep my eye on the good stuff. But, if I am going to be honest with you, it is hard to stay positive when things just keep going wrong. Whether it is one big thing or a bunch of little things, there always seems to be something new to remind me that maybe, just maybe good things aren't supposed to come.
I really don't want much in life. I want stability. I don't want to spend my days stressed about where rent money, gas money, bill money will be coming from. I want my kids to have their needs taken care of. And every once in a while I would love to pee or shower alone. Maybe even sleep a solid six hours at once. I don't need to be rich and I surely would not like to be famous. I would just like to take care of my family.
The last like two years have been rough for my family. My boyfriend lost a really good job which sent us into a spiral that we have been slowly getting out of but there seems to constantly be SOMETHING waiting to pull us back down. After he lost his job, he found another that paid less and I was unable to find work due to the things I have mentioned in another blog post. He was able to find another good job with comparable pay and then that business closed right when we were fully caught up with bills. Years of living paycheck to paycheck tends to make a savings account a good idea but highly inaccessible. Especially when you add things like children and other emergencies that like to pop up. After losing the second job we also lost our apartment. Somehow we were able to get a hotel room and survive in it for 16 months. I was able to find a job as well. But, of course since me finding a job was a good thing, the other shoe dropped. However, those lemons were able to be turned into lemonade. We have survived. Some days I am not even sure how. But, we have. And now we have this sweet apartment and my boyfriend has his own business.
Some of my friends know that I have been looking for work, so they will send me job openings that they come across. For the most part, I haven't heard back from most of the places. It doesn't matter how many times I write and rewrite and have people review my resume. I just am not hearing back. BUT, I finally heard back. It is for a work at home position. Which would mean that I would be able to keep the baby home with me while the toddlers attend daycare and the big girl is in school. Awesome, right?! Right. But, then my computer decided it didn't like that plan and now my WiFi card is no longer working and the battery also needs to be replaced. Simple solutions really... when you have the money to do it. I'll figure it out, like we've managed to figure everything else out. But, I am so damn tired of lemonade.
I really don't want much in life. I want stability. I don't want to spend my days stressed about where rent money, gas money, bill money will be coming from. I want my kids to have their needs taken care of. And every once in a while I would love to pee or shower alone. Maybe even sleep a solid six hours at once. I don't need to be rich and I surely would not like to be famous. I would just like to take care of my family.
The last like two years have been rough for my family. My boyfriend lost a really good job which sent us into a spiral that we have been slowly getting out of but there seems to constantly be SOMETHING waiting to pull us back down. After he lost his job, he found another that paid less and I was unable to find work due to the things I have mentioned in another blog post. He was able to find another good job with comparable pay and then that business closed right when we were fully caught up with bills. Years of living paycheck to paycheck tends to make a savings account a good idea but highly inaccessible. Especially when you add things like children and other emergencies that like to pop up. After losing the second job we also lost our apartment. Somehow we were able to get a hotel room and survive in it for 16 months. I was able to find a job as well. But, of course since me finding a job was a good thing, the other shoe dropped. However, those lemons were able to be turned into lemonade. We have survived. Some days I am not even sure how. But, we have. And now we have this sweet apartment and my boyfriend has his own business.
Some of my friends know that I have been looking for work, so they will send me job openings that they come across. For the most part, I haven't heard back from most of the places. It doesn't matter how many times I write and rewrite and have people review my resume. I just am not hearing back. BUT, I finally heard back. It is for a work at home position. Which would mean that I would be able to keep the baby home with me while the toddlers attend daycare and the big girl is in school. Awesome, right?! Right. But, then my computer decided it didn't like that plan and now my WiFi card is no longer working and the battery also needs to be replaced. Simple solutions really... when you have the money to do it. I'll figure it out, like we've managed to figure everything else out. But, I am so damn tired of lemonade.
Wednesday, August 3, 2016
Job Hunting is a Bitch...
I'm frustrated. I was supposed to go back to work at the end of February however after some daycare complications that were beyond my control, I ended up having to quit my job since they would not hold the position for me longer than the last day of my medical leave. Like, my medical leave ended on Thursday and they wanted me back on Friday first thing in the morning type deal.
Since that happened I have been looking for work. I have sent countless resumes out only to hear just about nothing back. The reality of the situation is, I get it. I have no college degree. And while I have some work experience, I do not have a solid job history due to being mostly a stay at home mom all of this time. The job search seems to be dead set on reminding me that I have no real value outside of raising kids and to be honest, even that is questionable at times. I mean, I've managed to keep 4 kids alive, fed and with a roof over their heads yet those things aren't really skills I can list on my resume. If anything, for most employers that makes me a risk.
There is little comfort in the fact that I am not alone in this struggle. There are a ton of moms who take time off, whether willingly or unwillingly, and are unable to reenter the job force. I have friends that are college educated, that decided to stay home and are now unable to get jobs. I have friends that were unable to justify paying high daycare costs due to what they were being paid and stayed home only to not be able to get a job after.
So, what are we supposed to do? If we stay home we are useless. But, if we don't we don't care about our kids. There is so much pressure on moms to be in both arenas and no real options for how to make it happen. It truly feels like a lose/lose situation most of the time. While there are some women who are able to balance both working and being a mom, there are many of us that would like to achieve the same but have many roadblocks.
Since that happened I have been looking for work. I have sent countless resumes out only to hear just about nothing back. The reality of the situation is, I get it. I have no college degree. And while I have some work experience, I do not have a solid job history due to being mostly a stay at home mom all of this time. The job search seems to be dead set on reminding me that I have no real value outside of raising kids and to be honest, even that is questionable at times. I mean, I've managed to keep 4 kids alive, fed and with a roof over their heads yet those things aren't really skills I can list on my resume. If anything, for most employers that makes me a risk.
There is little comfort in the fact that I am not alone in this struggle. There are a ton of moms who take time off, whether willingly or unwillingly, and are unable to reenter the job force. I have friends that are college educated, that decided to stay home and are now unable to get jobs. I have friends that were unable to justify paying high daycare costs due to what they were being paid and stayed home only to not be able to get a job after.
So, what are we supposed to do? If we stay home we are useless. But, if we don't we don't care about our kids. There is so much pressure on moms to be in both arenas and no real options for how to make it happen. It truly feels like a lose/lose situation most of the time. While there are some women who are able to balance both working and being a mom, there are many of us that would like to achieve the same but have many roadblocks.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)