I'm back!!!

I miss blogging! And I apparently need another hobby, so why not? Perhaps you detect the sarcasm??? I'm starting a FULL-TIME job on Monday. I'm excited, inspired, enthused, honored and...scared! I've worked part-time jobs or home-based jobs since Abby was 10 months old. I went back to my full-time job when she was 3 months old, and I lasted 7 months. (And I thought I was bad at math!) She will be 9 this year, and it was exactly eight years ago that I left my full-time position as health reporter at the Herald & Review in Decatur. Gee...time really does fly!

So, what am I thinking? Well, specifically I'm thinking about college savings and a 401k. We've made some headway on our finances the last few years, but we want to move forward on Dave Ramsey's baby steps. Unfortunately, my photography business is stagnant -- I've made $8,000 a year all four years! Of course, I never took out a loan, and each year I invested more and more to make my business better. :) It's been great to us, allowing me grow in my skills and even get fantastic art of my own children during these years that race by so quickly. And I've learned a ton about marketing, which is the field I'll be working in! I'll actually be working at Abraham Lincoln Memorial Hospital in Lincoln, where I've spent the last three years working two days a week. I love the people there and everything I do, so it's definitely something to look forward to!

My kids spent most of the summer in "school" at the Montessori Children's House, and LOVED it -- the structure, the learning, the adventures. That convinced me the timing is right. There are some things that scare me more than others, such as the day they turn 13 and can no longer go to "camps" and the church after-school program. I mean, this is the age they are bound to get into big-time trouble with time on their hands. For the school year, Dan will be home minutes after they get home. So that pretty much solves that dilemma. And a friend of mine said she still hired a high school or college student to ferry her kids places when they were this age. I know I won't leave them to an empty house! And I've got a few years to write a plan. Frankly, if I can't figure it out, I also have no problem leaving the workforce and returning home either. I love that type of flexibility!

I hope I'll find the time to blog -- maybe late at night since I don't watch television -- so I can share my adventure, keep family up-to-speed on the craziness of this life, inspire you with stories about money, faith and raising an ADHD child, and maybe even make you laugh or smile from time to time.

Stay tuned....