Borrower is Servant to the Lender

So, I have finally advanced myself to the new century! I have been hearing so much about blogs. But, I have resisted them. Who really wants to read about every detail of my life?

Whenever I was talking with other people who own shops through the same websites that I do, they have all agreed blogs are it. They help your customers feel more of a connection to you. They are the new way to network and get your name out there. This sounds great to me. As a stay at home mom who doesn't remember what a social life is, what could be better? I might actually meet people like ME!

So, I have decided to give it a try. After all, I enjoy some of the blogs I read. Especially those blogs owned by mothers, military spouses, and women in general. I feel relieved when I read about their day and see that mine compared equally to theirs. Their children are here to drive them crazy, just as mine is here to drive me crazy. Our husbands are still hard to figure out, but we love them anyway. Our once pristine vehicles are covered in french fry grease and slurpee syrup. And we have all had to clean bubblegum or vaseline out of our child's hair.

You might be wondering what my title has to do with any of this.

Well...I was initially introduced to the idea of a blog through my store. I started quilting several years ago. I also started teaching quilting to neighbors and friends as my confidence grew. Because of my husband's career in the military and our frequent moves, my career is constantly starting over. I have always thought it would be great to own my own business. But, never had any idea what that business would be in. Until I married my husband 6 years ago, I didn't even really have a hobby. All I knew was work. Now, I have many hobbies and several things I am passionate about. The biggest one being my love of fabric and quilts. I love the idea of a piece of fabric being cut up and sew back together in cool designs.

While this personal discovery is going on, my husband is deployed on and off for the last six years. We bought a house. Sold a house. Bought another house. It still has not sold after more than a year and a half...life happens when he is out to sea. The car breaks, the fridge breaks, the basement floods, bills and more bills. So, with only one income, I am realizing something has to change. But, it is not as easy as it was when I was single to just get any job. Now I have to consider childcare costs. Extra food costs for the nights I won't be home to cook. Uniforms or suits that will have to be bought, since I can't go to work in a mommy sweatsuit. Though if I could, I would be set. It all adds up.

I did not go through the trouble of having a child to have someone else raise him. But, I see that we need to get this money situation under control if we want to be able to take this child anywhere.

So, Dave Ramsey (the world's most awesome financial counselor) opened my eyes to the possibility of being free from debt. He taught me (along with my Bible) that the borrower is servant to the lender. And that I am. So is my husband. So is my son, and while I am at it...my little dog too. We are slaves to the junk we bought that we did not need. And the junk we bought that we did not have a choice. And we are stuck. So, what do we do?

Dear Hubby (or DH) as he will be known from now on...got a second job delivering pizzas. He actually loves it. It is a nice change from his normal job which at times has been non-stop 18-20 hour days for months at a time. He makes pretty good money for the little amount of time he works. I have picked up odd jobs here and there babysitting or creating custom quilts or bedroom decor. When I am not doing that, I am sewing as fast as I can. I make quilts to sell in my stores and at the local trade days. I have been VERY slow lately. I have been working on the same quilt for a month. Not because it was hard, but just finding the time.

Learning all this new technology is TIME consuming. But, now that I am almost set up, I can get into a good routine.

So, from this point on, I hope that I can check in at least three times a week and give a quick update about what my crazy kiddo has done so everyone can see why my head spins and maybe host a few giveaways for the stores.

I hope that you will join me! I would love to hear about your blogs too.