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Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Supporting the Work-At-Home Spouse


I am finally doing something I love, doing it from home, and am doing it with very little help from anyone else.

However, this was not always the case.  There was a time when I was in Direct Sales for a popular skin care provider, and I was failing miserably.  Part of my failure was my fault.  I am not a natural sales person.  I am so far right on the "desire to please others" spectrum that I often found myself being talked out of my own product (which I might add is STILL my favorite skin care product today.)  I am also deathly afraid of giving the impression of hassling anyone, especially friends and family, who are most often the very ones you must rely on to get ANY business up and running. 

So, in many ways, I shot myself in my own foot.

But... In many ways, I did everything I knew to do.  I was passionate about the product.  I was eager to get the word out.  I cold called complete strangers.  I attended business expos.  I put up fliers around my community (and got in trouble for it... hmph.)  I gave away free product.  And... as a Mil Spouse, I expected other Mil Spouses to at least attempt to help get the word out, if not at the very least place a one time order.

I know... Who am I to expect such a thing?

Well...  Let me tell you who I am to expect such a thing.

I am a Military Spouse.  I attend (well, I try to) as many of my Mil Spouse friend's parties as I can.  Whether it is MaryKay, Pampered Chef, BeautiControl, PartiLite, Scentsy, Melaluca, ThirtyOne, Premier Design, or any of the different variety of Direct Sales companies represented among my friends, I try to be as supportive as I can.  If I cannot afford to place an order, I make sure I pass on the information to someone else, who might.

I know how hard it is to make ends meet on a single income family. 

I know how hard it is to make friends among strange women every time you PCS.

I know how these parties not just offer a TINY boost to one's income, but they more importantly offer the woman a chance to meet new people, to make connections, to find other ways to get involved.

I am also a stay-at-home mom.  This means, in addition to working my butt off to help bring in some income, I also run the house.  The chores that I used to do in the evening, when I got home from my eight hour job, I now expect myself to do before my hubby gets home from his eight hour job.  I expect the laundry to be done, the dishes to be washed, the floors to be clear of clutter if not vacuumed and mopped, the animals to be taken care of, the errands to have been run---all before picking the Kiddo up from school and before DH comes home ready to relax. 

I know working from home, whether in Direct Sales or in a home business started from scratch, is no piece of cake.  No matter what the happy images imply all over the internet vying for you to join their team- working from home is hard as heck!  Time management takes on whole new dimensions.  (Yes, I said dimensions... managing time while working from home and being a Wife and a Mommy means working in three almost separate worlds at times.)

So, no, I do not think my expectations from other Mil Spouses were out of order.  As part of the Military Community, we are expected to help each other, to boost each other, to build each other up.  While many may disagree with me, which I find selfish and sad, I do everything in my power to make sure my friends know I support them, even if I can not do that financially.

 
One way I do that is by sharing their business links (if they have one) here on my blog.  If you look on the left side, you will see home businesses, not linked to Direct Sales, of friend's of mine.  These women are even more in need of referrals and business than those in Direct Sales, because they are not just handed the tools in a prepackaged kit from a company, need our support. 

These home-run businesses feature incredible women with incredible talent.  These women have discovered a talent, have honed it to a skill, and have turned that skill into a home-business from the ground up.  They have to market themselves.  They have to build their own clientele.  They have to put out their own word to get their first clients to take a chance on a product no one else has.  Plus, they have to compete with mass produced products that might be made cheaper (and less quality, I might add.)  And most of us, pass them over because we know we could find a similar product, though machine made, with minimal human touch, at a local discount store, never giving thought to supporting some distant multi-million dollar conglomerate instead of supporting someone right here in front of us, who truly needs a little support.


While I will keep adding more and more to that list as I am made aware of their links, I know YOU know women like this: strong, motivated women who choose to remain home for whatever reason, and who offer a product or a service that reflects their beauty and talent. 

I challenge you to refer them out, or give them a chance to provide you with a product or service you can't find at Wal-Mart or the Mall. 

I challenge you to support our work-at-home Spouses!

Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Regarding the Boston Tragedy

Copied from my Facebook page:

"In talking to the Kiddo about the tragic events from yesterday, I asked him to pray with me for the people in Boston. Before we could start, he asked me if God couldn't stop these kinds of things from happening.  

My response was this: Yes. God COULD stop all the horrible events in this world. However, we were created with free will. We were created to choose to do the right thing or the wrong thing. For every decision we make, we face the consequences, good and bad. Sometimes, people choose to be bad, to make bad decisions, and those decisions affect innocent people. God COULD stop that, but that would strip us of our free will. God COULD allow only good things to happen, but then we would not need Him, we would not value all He has given us, we would have no value for life, or love, or freedom. 

In stark contrast to the horrifying loss of life, and the damage inflicted on so many other lives, I have the choice to focus on the terror and fear of the event, or I can choose to focus on the way people have stepped up, the way prayers were asked for immediately, the way complete strangers jumped to help others, the way ordinary men and women ran to help. I choose to focus on the way the BEST of humanity responded to the tragic event, and I praise God for those people who CHOSE to respond with love, hope, and help."[edited]

Let us pray for the men, women, and children affected by yesterday's events.  Let us focus on the bravery of those who stepped up to help.  Let us focus on the help given, the love shown, the hope offered.

God bless!
 


 
 

Thursday, April 4, 2013

Tribute to My Air Force Brat

Okay... He really is not a "brat."  In fact, he is quite the opposite.

This little boy has changed my life in ways I never dreamed.  I know every Mom knows what I am talking about, whether she has one child or multiple children- a child changes a woman's outlook on life.  Then as the child grows, they change a woman's life- completely and utterly.

Almost nine years ago, this little guy could not wait to make his appearance.  So he decided to make his debut into this world almost five weeks early.  The pregnancy is not one I would have called "difficult" despite the fact I was still Active Duty at the time; the stress of working ten hour days clearly took its toll on me, and I think my little guy knew my body could take no more.

Not long after he was born, his Active Duty Daddy had to PCS on an unaccompanied tour to South Korea for year.  While Daddy was gone, my outlook on life changed completely.  I remember picking up my little miracle from a dear friend's home after work one evening.  It was late.  The Kiddo was attached to my friend and didn't want to leave.  Then when we got home, I got a measly hour with him before he conked out for the night. 

As I held him, marveling over his perfect face, tiny fingers, and tiny toes, I realized I had no business letting anyone else care for God's gift to ME.  The decision to leave Active Duty was only hard when it came to discussing it with my Hubby who was thousands of miles away, hoping he would understand my desperation to truly care for our child.  Thank God, DH loved me and trusted me enough to take a leap of faith, even though it meant we were going to struggle financially.

From that moment on, I became full-time Mommy. 

I watched this angel from Heaven grow and learn. 

His smile could buoy my heart, and his tears could tear my world apart.



I have watched this little boy work through situations that other children would have just given up on.



I have had discussions with this little boy that I have not even had with other adults.



I have been blown away by his observations of people and the world.



I am humbled by his sweet nature and his faith in things unseen.



I am awed by his imagination and his wonder.



His boundless energy and enthusiasm astound and exhaust me.



His never ending desire to learn something new keeps me on my toes and inspires me to keep learning.

I know that military life is not easy for children.  Up till recently, our kiddo has not had any issues with moving, with TDY's, or with deployments.  This time though, with a PCS coming up, he has had more questions.  He has voiced his concerns and his fears, and I realized for the first time that my own excitement to move on did not take into account my tender hearted boy.

I have no doubts that this little boy will tuck away his fears and put on the smile he wears so easily.   I know he will put on his tough skin, push away the urge to cry, and play a part he thinks we want him to play.

Whether that is right or wrong, I think this varies for every child and every family. 

But I honor him today for all his incredible talents. 

I honor him for choosing to be happy in a life he has no control over.  

I honor him for choosing to love and learn, to have a positive outlook despite the lingering questions and fears. 

I honor him for doing what military kids do- they just do it.



To my precious blessing- I love you!

Wednesday, April 3, 2013

Military Spouse Summit 2013

While blog hopping this morning, I ran across another bit of information concerning MilSpouses. 

(Thanks to Aim High Erin for posting this on her delightful blog.)


Now, this is not something I am able to go to- but for those of you in the DC and surrounding areas, this might be something you would be interested in attending.   If you cannot, please pass the info on! 

Monday, April 1, 2013

Homemade Dishwasher Tabs


I saw the idea on Pinterest ( and found a set of directions on Glamorous, Affordable Life )and figured since I am going to start making my own laundry detergent, which uses some of these ingredients, why not make my own dishwasher detergent or tabs.

I spent approximately $15.00 on tools and ingredients.   Granted, you don't have to buy the tools like I did.  I just didn't want my kitchen tools to get mixed up with laundry and detergent mixing tools.

I got all the tools from The Dollar Tree.  They included a 2 gallon bucket, a 2 C measuring cup, measuring spoons, ice trays, and a glass bowl.




What you need:
1 box Borax
1 box Arm&Hammer All Natural Washing Powder
4 C Epsom salt
5 Tablespoons lemon juice

What to do:
In your bucket (or large pot) mix the dry ingredients thoroughly.

In glass bowl, pour 2C dry mixture.  Mix in 5 T lemon juice.  Mix well.

Mixture should be moist with small clumps.   Should pack well.

Press moist mixture into ice trays.  (I used the empty ice tray to help pack the filled ice tray-- was easier than using my fingers or a utensil.) 

One batch fills two ice trays.

Set trays out of reach of small fingers, and let dry for 48 hours.  Once they are set, move into a plastic ziplock bag or other airtight container.

Store the rest of the dry mix and all the tools in the bucket.  Cover and store somewhere out of children and pet's reach.  Total mix should make approx 250 tabs. 

((I have tried out one of the tabs in my full dishwasher this morning.  They worked just as well as store bought tabs!))

Note:  Once the tabs were dried, I flipped them onto an old cookie sheet, and then moved them into a recycled dishwasher tab container.  There was a lot of loose powder on the cookie sheet that I am storing in a small ziplock baggie.  I will use that powder for cleaning my disposal, or for scrubbing my sink.  :)

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