I have firmed up plans for the summer job. I will earn about $1170 for 13 days of work. Work that is basically caring and entertaining a couple of girls, along with my own kids. No errands or cleaning, just taking them places to have fun, keeping them happy while the parents are at work. I think I can manage that, especially since I would need to do that for my own children, anyway!


I don't have plans for the extra summer money, I imagine I will put it in savings for now. When I build up my savings to $5000 I transfer it to my taxable investment account and start again. This will help me reach my goal more quickly. Which is great because savings has been very slow lately.

I have two more weeks of class, then I am done with class #3.

I have an important meeting tomorrow via Skype. I don't want to jinx myself by talking about it here, but I will update all when I get more news. It will mean changes at work and home but also great career advancement and a nice salary increase. Change is not always comfortable, but it is the only way to grow.

After a grueling week of packing at school, I was able to check out for the summer. I am sore, feels like I have a stomach bug, and I can barely keep myself awake for my girls' sleep over. But I made it, and I'm hopeful that after a restful night of sleep I will feel better.

I have $78 dollars left over from last payday, so I will transfer that over to savings this weekend.

I may have a short 3 week job in DC this summer, as a nanny to a family while the regular nanny is on vacation. I can bring my girls with me during the day, and the kids are the same ages as my kids. So I would be getting paid to entertain the kids all day. Obviously I've simplified it but still, a great way to earn some good extra cash for a few weeks. Plus I will be in DC, spending time with SO. I'll see how that pans out soon.

then a much needed break! The first week of break will be spent at home, as we have a variety of appointments and errands. Also an end of the school year party we are hosting, a sleep over, and a dance recital. Then we leave to spend a week in DC with SO, before flying out to the midwest for a week over Independence Day weekend. Finally back home for some downtime around the 9th of July. I'm excited about it all, I'm ready for some fun with my family.

I only have a few more weeks left of class #3. I need to think about when to register for class #4. It is only going to be offered a few more times so I don't have too much choice in the matter. But I don't want to overwhelm myself, it does take a lot of free time, and in early fall free time is very limited. I'll look into that this weekend. Not to mention that it costs me $890, that I pay out of pocket.

I should be back to saving a decent amount each month, as I finally have some sort of budget for expenses in the house by myself. I won't be able to save as much as I did when SO lived here full time, but that is just how things have to be for now. I'm grateful we can keep the house and manage 2 households comfortably.

As a side note, my plants are doing well. The hostas have just exploded, those babies have been coming back for 3 years now. I planted some annuals that are growing and look healthy. I also planted an azalea bush last weekend, and it looks like it is surviving. So my yard may not look like Better Homes and Garden, but at least it looks like we care, and most of the plants are alive! Baby steps, right?!

I am long overdue for a visit to extended family in the midwest. Mostly due to my divorce and change of lifestyle, as I hadn't revealed any of this to the family at the time, I wanted to spare my mother the backlash. Now my extended family knows about me and my life, and I would like my daughters to see a bit more of that side of the family. I priced tickets and a rental car, we may be able to get out there for about $1500. This will slow down my savings, but perhaps I can make it up elsewhere throughout the year.

Besides this trip to the midwest, we will also go to Hershey, PA for a long weekend. It is only a few hours from SO's DC home, so we are planning a trip up there in early August.

There has been so much anxiety about the move and jobs and schools for the past several months, now that these concerns have been taken care of I am ready to have some fun with my family!