Cash Money: $5,370 in May Income and Life Updates
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I know what you’re thinking. My monthly income update is late…again. I’m sorry. I’ll try harder next month. Maybe.
May was another decent month, although I wish my earnings were slightly higher. The problem is, I’ve hit somewhat of a plateau in terms of how much I can earn. If I want to earn more from my freelance writing jobs, I need to either raise my rates or pursue more writing jobs. Neither option sounds like a good one. I’m currently trying to convince my website to earn more money as well, but you simply cannot force these things. They have to happen over time.
Cash Money Update
Anyway, let’s get back to the topic at hand. The total amount of cash money I grossed as a self-employed goddess in May was……*drumroll, please*
$5,370
This total includes all of the money that I made from my various streams of income:
- Credit Card Sales
- Consulting
- Freelance writing
- Affiliate advertising
- Ghost Writing
Please remember that I make the majority of my income from a variety of freelance writing jobs, not my blog. If you’re interested in learning how to get freelance writing jobs, please check out this post:
How To Get Freelance Writing Jobs
Other than my earnings plateau, my online endeavors have been going quite well. Our other website is also growing and starting to gain some search engine traffic, which is pretty darn exciting. Club Thrifty turned two this past May and I couldn’t be happier with how things are going. I know that if I just keep moving forward and focusing on new goals, awesome things will happen!
Life Updates
In other news, my youngest daughter turned three this past weekend. She is pretty excited to be three, but insists on telling people that she’s five. She’s also super stubborn and unwilling to become 100 percent potty-trained. It’s making me crazy! I love having kids and I know what I signed up for, but I am so sick of buying diapers. Enough.
It’s hard to believe that my oldest will go to kindergarten later this year. Our schedule is going to change slightly but I love that I’ll be able to take her to school and pick her up, or at least drop her off at the bus. It’s true that being self-employed can be tricky and risky, but the freedom I’ve gained has been absolutely amazing for our family. There was a time when I would’ve had to hire someone to take her to school and pick her up, or at least watch her before and after school. Working at home isn’t perfect, but it does allow at least one of us to be available for the kids and their activities.
On a personal note, I’m having trouble staying motivated. I love summertime and it usually makes me feel full of energy, but this year has been different. It’s 10:00 a.m. as I write this and I could literally get back in bed right now and sleep all day. I don’t know why I get in these moods, but I really wish I could snap out of it. I have so many things to do and I hate forcing myself to do them!
I think I’m slightly depressed about my dog, Pablo the freeloading genius. He got attacked by some kind of animal over the weekend and hasn’t been himself. We’re not really sure what happened, but he has several bite marks and scratches, as well as some bruising on his stomach. He was so sad this weekend that he wouldn’t even eat hotdogs. I think he’s on the mend, but he would appreciate any positive thoughts he can get.
Make sure to check out a few of my latest posts about travel-hacking:
Travel Rewards 101: A Beginner’s Guide to Credit Card Rewards
Travel Hack Your Way To Disney World with the U.S. Airways Premier Card
That’s all that’s going on with me. What’s going on with you? How do you stay motivated when you’re feeling tired and lazy?
Between the tiredness and the “I’m late” graphic (and the fact that there’s a giant baby boom among my friends right now), it made me think there was something else going on in your life lately. =) just kidding, I swear.
I am definitely not pregnant. The shop is closed!
Oh l hope Pablo feels better! I bet it is one of those a***holes that let their dogs walk themselves! and say stupid things like ..”oh he wouldn’t hurt a fly”. Not the fly l’m worried about dumbass!!! Thanks for letting me rant. Ooohh…Mrs Pop might be on to something..lol :0))
We have no idea what happened to the poor guy. I wish we did!
Oh no! Poor Pablo. I hope he’s been vaccinated for rabies? I totally get a case of the summertime lazies sometimes. It’s so nice out, who can stand to be outside?
Yeah, he’s had shots. I think he’s going to be fine. He’s just sore.
Did you get the bites checked out? He looks adorable but oh so sad.
I can totally relate to being tired of buying diapers. We have one in diapers still and another in pull ups at night and it’s a massive budget suck. But, what can you do? I’m with you there on the motivation. My wife says to take a day or two off, but that’s not really a possibility.
I hear ya!
Poor doggie. Hope he recovers soon!
Our daughter has been completely potty trained at home for almost a year now… so long as she’s bare-bottomed. She doesn’t understand the concept of underpants. The not-great transition daycare she was in when she was potty training at home refused to take her to the potty in their class so whenever she is wearing something she thinks she should pee or poo in it, even though she also pees and poos on command on the potty at the new good daycare. So we still buy diapers for when we go out and for daycare (she wears cloth diapers to sleep in). I keep hoping we’ll be able to explain the concept of underpants one day and it will just click.
Ha! Well, at least you’re making progress. We are too but it just doesn’t seem fast enough. Our oldest was already potty-trained by now.
I’ve also been trying to convince my website to make more money, but it’s not responding how I’d like it haha. It’s great that you have the flexibility. I stay motivated because we have a lot of student debt and want to renovate our house. That alone will probably keep me going for at least a few years here. I know that doesn’t help you though.
I officially received – and accepted – a verbal offer for a new position and the move date is set. My whole team is aware and I’m in the process of transitioning all my tasks which will be a pain. At the same time my motivation is at an all-time low, as you’d expect. I honestly am having trouble getting through the work day with no long term projects or things to keep busy. I guess that’s what happens when you know you’re leaving.
As far as the blog my motivation is a bit low as well. I got slapped on the writs by Google so a big income stream is gone (they did forgive me, but not taking chances!). I bought a new domain and have a new idea for a business that is different than a blog but still web-based. I think it could be huge but I’m having trouble deciding how to approach it. I really need an engineer to help me with it, but that’s hard to do unless I sink my own money into it (which I don’t want to do). It’s hard to get investors until you have some sort of working prototype or something established, so it’s a catch-22.
I win for longest comment!
Congrats on your new position at work!
Yeah, I heard about the Google slap. That totally sucks!!!! They are so random about it.
Thanks! Yeah I don’t want to risk anything with my site going forward so it’s a big drop as far as income is concerned. With that being said it’s forcing me to re-evaluate a few things and do what I can to make my site have more sustainable income.
I’ve been working almost full time in the office for about a month because everyone is on vacation and it’s been really busy, which is great, but I am soooooo unmotivated to be in the office full time. I know I’m whining, but I think you probably understand how I feel. So sorry about Pablo. I hate when you don’t know what happened to them but they hurt.
Sometimes you just have to give into the lazy blues for a day or two. Works for me anyway! Of course, it means you spend the following few days catching up on everything, but I find it worth it.
Sorry to hear about Pablo – hopefully he’s mending and feels himself again soon!
My oldest will be starting Kindergarten this year too! Like you, I am so, so, so, glad that I have the ability to take her and pick her up from school!! I’ve heard bad things about the school bus around here and I feel really lucky to have the option to drive her.
And my youngest just turned four last month and she’s till wearing a pull up to bed. She potty trained pretty easily at three, but she still pees so much at night. I’m waiting for the day when I can stop buying freaking pull ups!! My oldest daughter was wayy easier.
And congrats on the awesome income again!
Aww I’m so sorry about Pablo! I hope he feels better soon! My friend’s (small) dog was attacked by a much larger dog and it was not pretty. She’s looking into taking legal action.
I’m having trouble staying motivated as well. It’s just something about summer. Always thinking about planning another vacation 🙂
Sorry to hear about your dog. Our dog lost a leg and then got attacked again. He has never been the same. This month has gone well for income, but next month is going to be terrible. I have been out and away moving that I haven’t had any writing jobs and my focus has been elsewhere. You know how it is.
Awe poor Pablo! 🙁 Your girls are so darn cute!
I think you’re doing great! It’s amazing you’re making that kind of income from those sources. I know the feeling of plateauing, but with anything, if you want more, you pretty much have to give more. And if it’s any comfort, I’m a huge proponent of increasing rates. I charge $20+ for babysitting jobs now (who doesn’t want a lawyer babysitting their kids?! haha). And people do pay it!
Wow, kindergarten what a milestone! I don’t know what we’ll do when my son is ready for school. Hopefully one of us will be able to stay home otherwise it will be tough. Hope Pablo is feeling better!
When I’m feeling unmotivated, I find something to recharge myself. Review past accomplishments, evaluating my status/goals, and continuing to have dreams about the future all help. Sometimes it may also mean taking a good nap…nothing wrong with that. 🙂
Nice earnings, even as you seek to get them to increase! Your daughters are very cute and best wishes to Pablo. I hope he’s back to enjoying his hot dogs soon!
I definitely go through periods motivation lulls and when I do, I realize I have to let myself “indulge” in the chilling out or doing “nothing” and then once I get it out of my system, I actually move forward with new found energy. And I hear you on the potty training! My son was 3 and a half before he committed to it. After a year of trying to get him to do it, one day, he declared it was the day and that was it.
Sorry about your dog 🙁
When I get in a funk like you describe I usually find it’s due to my diet. I’ll have a string of days where I eat poorly for some reason and then wonder why I feel so unmotivated. Try eating a lot of fruits and greens over the next couple of days.
Your girls are just so adorable, Holly. For some reason, I thought they were a little bit older than they actually are too. 🙂 I can be bad with ages sometimes. My girls have to occasionally correct me when people ask me how old they are. Oops! I sometimes lose my motivation in summer too. I’d rather be a the beach. When I get to that point, I just know I need some “me” time. Sorry to hear about poor Pablo. I hope he is feeling better soon and back to eating hot dogs again!
Happy Birthday to your little lady! I’m sorry to hear about Pablo, I hope he feels better soon!
Congrats on another great month! I’m so sorry about Pablo, I hope he feels better.
P.S. You have such beautiful children! 🙂
I think all of us need a little motivation now and then. I try to keep a routine, but step away when I have writer’s block or something else that affects my productivity. I find reading novels helps and riding my bicycle. It seems to re-energize me.
Hey Holly and congrats on the numbers 🙂
“I’m currently trying to convince my website to earn more money as well, but you simply cannot force these things.” – Yeah, I hear ya! Websites are a tad finicky when it comes to such things!!
As for your summer-time slump, don’t beat yourself up over it too much, it is after all Summer and life should slow down a little more than usual.
Take care and thanks for sharing. My best to all.
Lyle
I’ve been in a slump as well, though waking up with headaches doesn’t help in wanting to stay up! I’m sorry to hear Pablo was attacked, I hope he starts feeling like himself again soon. Your girls are so cute, those smiles are priceless!
I’d gleefully take $5k+ in monthly income. You’re a rock star, Holly!
Your daughters are so stinkin’ cute. I can’t believe your littlest is only 3. She looks like she could pass for 5 🙂 Breaks my heart a little bit about your dog. I hope he’s on the mend soon.
How DARE you post your income update late???? Haha jk, do what you want, girl!
Your daughters are absolutely adorable!
Better late than never right! Summer time certainly makes things just a little harder to type into the computer, I’m sure you will get sick of being outside enjoying yourself all the time;)
Congrats on another great month. My goal is to at least breakeven with my site. Seems like things are picking up but you’re right, it does take a while. Keep up the great work. Hopefully you hit that next level soon!
So sorry to hear about your dog……maybe it was another dog, or cat? Either way thats not good at all. Hopefully he can have a speedy recovery and get back to eating hot dogs 🙂
It’s crazy how time flies and suddenly your kid is about to go to kindergarten! Very sorry to hear about the incident with Pablo and I hope he gets his mojo back soon.
I’m sorry to hear about Pablo! It’s so frustrating when our furry friends aren’t themselves. I wish they could speak! Happy birthday to your little one, and congrats on the great month of income. I need to ramp up the affiliate income with credit card sales.
As far as potty-training goes… Well, my son just got done, and he is 3.5 years old! How do you like that? 🙂
You may have hit a plateau but that’s still a good number to hit! Well done for being able to make that number through your online endeavours. You girls are sooo cute they totally steal this post!
I can imagine being able to work at home with the kids has it’s benefits as well as it’s cons. I think it’s great you’ve got that opportunity. My mum was home with us growing up and I can always remember her being there when we needed her. You had an awesome May and I”m sure writing freelance is lots of work but if you love what you do then it’s more of a hobby than a job. Keep up the great work. Sorry to hear about your dog.
I’m sorry about your pup!
I write lists when I’m lazy. One, sometimes when they are finished, the motivation just comes. If not, I know what I need to do and what items are a priority when I finally do have energy. 🙂
Awww.. so sorry to hear about Pablo…. will be great to get an update. I hope he’s doing better now. I have such a soft spot for pets and kids (who doesn’t?) but I just hate it when they suffer. I’ve actually just been reading about Murray on LBee and The Money Tree and bawling my eyes out. Still missing my dog who died in Jan 2013!!! We think about getting another but budget and other considerations have stopped us… so far.
Oh no, poor Pablo. Hopefully you can let us know how he is doing. Great job with the freelance stuff!
I think freelancing while being a stay at home mum would be amazing. Bravo to you 🙂
I am not a stay-at-home mom. My kids go to daycare while I work.
Fellow freelancer feeling the June Blues with you. No idea why motivation has been so hard this month, but I’ve felt exactly like you do. Hopefully July is mentally easier.
And so sorry about Pablo, poor little guy! I hope he is back to his old self. *HUGS*
Ugh, July isn’t starting off so well either. =/ The upcoming holiday isn’t helping anything!