tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-650114886879153701.post1588415325000550134..comments2023-10-22T07:09:13.409-04:00Comments on Whatever it needs to be...: Surviving on next to nothing, part 1Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11973984089001877006noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-650114886879153701.post-88643759566650117352010-08-09T10:36:02.209-04:002010-08-09T10:36:02.209-04:00I had no idea about the retirement accounts, that ...I had no idea about the retirement accounts, that is insane! Like penalizing people for being smart with their money and planning for the future. Ridiculous.Erinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06916896512933101955noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-650114886879153701.post-18600418117007952792010-08-08T09:13:13.977-04:002010-08-08T09:13:13.977-04:00Thank you all for the encouragement! I consider m...Thank you all for the encouragement! I consider myself lucky that I've always liked to make things, so it's perhaps less of a psychological burden to me to make rather than buy. It's always a matter of whether I have more time, or more money. Right now I have more time, and while my time may be valuable, it doesn't cost me cash money to put some sweat-equity into maintaining my household!<br /><br />Erin - there aren't too many military families in my neck of the woods (I'd have to travel an hour or so southeast to Groton for that :) ), so it had never occurred to my that military spouses would have those same job issues - of course now it makes perfect sense that employers would feel like that. I'd started trying to sell my jewelry when my daughter was DX'd because I knew I'd have to find something I could do from home - too bad the recession hit before I really got the ball rolling :( Jewelry, of course, is a want rather than a need. I should have started taking classes in web design :)<br /><br />I absolutely agree about the Military salary/WIC thing. It goes along with the rules that say you can't have more than 10K in order to receive food stamps - this includes retirement accounts! They make you spend all the money you've saved before you qualify, thus ensuring that when you retire you'll still have to go on assistance. Great system there!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11973984089001877006noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-650114886879153701.post-56886368295987787502010-08-07T12:35:29.749-04:002010-08-07T12:35:29.749-04:00Alison, great post! It is so nice to be able to s...Alison, great post! It is so nice to be able to see others like you that would rather make the best of a situation and accept the reality and continue to live a good life, rather than the "other type"! I noticed the same thing with the dishwasher detergent, I buy the cheap store brand but have been making my own laundry soap for over a year now. I have the lye I bought a year ago, but still have yet to make soap! With hubby deployed, having the kids underfoot all the time makes me nervous to try... I think I will learn this winter when I have a bit more time after they go to bed. Although your struggle with an autistic child is definitely more challenging, I have the same job issue. Being a stay at home mom was a very easy choice because most people don't like to hire military spouses, knowing they may leave at any point. It's hard to build a career path while on the move. I used to go crazy at bookstores, but now I go in and enjoy looking, but then go to the library and stock up! That's funny you mention the swiffer, I don't have the wet mop but I used my old yarn leftovers to knit a few of the sweeper cloths, I get to learn new stitches at the same time as making reusable sweepers LOL! We were on the WIC program when the kids were little, that really helped with the milk prices once the kids were weaned from breastfeeding. You know what's pretty maddening? I was worried about qualifying for WIC, embarassed, all that stuff that happens the first time and then I found out we had a WIC office on base because I was told "pretty much all military families qualify for WIC"... I thought wow, our spouses have been over in that godforsaken desolate war zone fighting for years and they can't pay us enough to stay off assistance programs? Anyway, I am slowly learning that all the things we used to have as a dual income couple really don't matter anyways, and if I could do that phase over again I would choose to be more thrifty knowing what I know now. Thanks for posting and giving us a peek into your life, you are doing a great job and are an inspiration!Erinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06916896512933101955noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-650114886879153701.post-78372543296480248292010-08-07T11:24:23.620-04:002010-08-07T11:24:23.620-04:00Props to you for putting so much effort into makin...Props to you for putting so much effort into making it work. I need to live on a tighter budget than I do, so seeing a post like this puts things into perspective. Thanks for sharing what works for you!Alana, Author of Domestically Challengedhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12006543608466783617noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-650114886879153701.post-11024199953491576092010-08-07T11:08:09.762-04:002010-08-07T11:08:09.762-04:00I think it's great that you've been so pro...I think it's great that you've been so pro-active in finding ways to lighten your burdens. A lot of people would just sit down and moan about how hard their life is. But you take that route and happiness just flies out the window. Making the best of things, staying positive will always be the better option. :)<br /><br />We live on a really tight budget, too. I've been a SAHM since my oldest was born nine years ago, and sometimes it's a struggle. We always get by though, and you will, too! Better, easier days are ahead!Bethanyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14888242466359929076noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-650114886879153701.post-79726305238255475922010-08-07T10:52:38.911-04:002010-08-07T10:52:38.911-04:00I teach at a high school that is about 75% militar...I teach at a high school that is about 75% military families, so I see how much y'all struggle. Good for you to use your resources at hand to the best advantage. SITS sent me by, and I'm glad they did!<br /><br /><a href="http://scholastic-scribe.blogspot.com/2010/08/obx-real-estate.html" rel="nofollow">OBX Real Estate</a>Melissa B.https://www.blogger.com/profile/13172152515024862967noreply@blogger.com