Recent Accomplishments

I've spent 2011 freelancing and trying to get an Etsy store going. Since I only work at the coffee shop a couple days a week and Elizabeth is currently as low-maintenance as she'll ever be, this seems like it should be relatively easy. But now it's May 17 and I feel like I haven't made it nearly as far as I wanted to or should have. Some of it is my fault, sleeping in and such. Then there's the gray area where I occasionally play the pregnant card and can't decide if that's good that I'm recognizing that I might need an extra break, or if I'm just milking my current condition for another nap. And some of it, I think, is just things taking longer than anticipated.

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I've been getting frustrated on a daily level too. It seems practically impossible for me to ever complete a full day's to-do list on that day. I'm currently still working on yesterday's to-do list. By the end of most days, I'm grumpily stewing over the one or two things I haven't done and seem to have completely forgotten the things I did accomplish. I'm starting to think I set my daily goals too high, which is why this week I only have 3 tasks per day. We'll see how that goes. They are generally not small tasks.

So in the spirit of being positive and spending more time celebrating accomplishments than cursing things still not done, let's look at what I have accomplished so far this year:

+ I'm still growing a tiny human, who seems to be as healthy and happy as a fetus can be. That's pretty impressive by itself.
+ I've filed all the paperwork and general nonsense to be legally self-employed.
+ I designed (several times) my own website in WordPress after years of being in Blogger. (Actually I just redid things a bit a couple weeks ago if you're reading this in Google Reader or something and haven't seen the changes yet. I think it's pretty adorable but welcome kindly-worded feedback.)
+ I have an Etsy shop and sold something to a total stranger.
+ I have mostly re-instated my daily(ish) chore chart, which means my back doesn't hurt horribly after cleaning and the house is generally cleaner.
+  I have gotten one small, recurring freelance writing job and one large, one-time web writing job.
+ I'm working part-time at a coffee shop which is actually kind of fun. Sometimes I think that if I was there for more than 10 hours a week I wouldn't like it as much, but that's irrelevant.  I prefer it to several jobs of my previous jobs. I'm sure the free coffee and day-old pastries help a lot too.
+ Nursery progress is finally (!!!!!!!!!) being made. Crib and mattress are in the mail. Fabric has been selected. There is a legit plan. (More details next week I hope.)
+  Thanks to the first time home buyer tax rebate, we're doing a lot of stuff around the house which is very exciting. Boo on painting, but yay for shopping!

So really, it's been a pretty productive year. And as I keep reminding myself, despite the doubts I have on the subject, I'm sure I will find a way to actually get things done even after Elizabeth is here. (Or at least there are a few kind friends who have told me so.)

Job Update

I have jobs (intentionally plural)! I'm super thankful that my stint with unemployment was brief, but not so brief that I didn't enjoy a nice break. Really, if you're going to be unemployed, I think my unemployment was about as perfect as it gets, lasting about a month. I am way more blessed than I deserve, but that's generally always been the case.

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So what am I doing now? Well, I knew I didn't want another full-time job since I'm hoping to stay as home with baby as much as we can afford. After looking into a couple part-time positions in an office setting, it seemed like I wouldn't be making enough to justify the costs of part-time daycare. Not to mention that there are additional ways to save money (cloth diapers, less breastfeeding accessories) by keeping baby at home. I have had a couple freelance jobs come up which is wonderful and I'm sure excited about them and hoping for more. In a perfect world, I would make enough freelancing to just do that, but at this point, we could use a little extra money, so I'm now barista-ing at a local coffee shop.

I got the coffee shop idea from Our Little Apartment. And while it's not really what I had in mind for myself at 27, I think that this is honestly what's best for me and Lee and baby at this point in life. Since coffee shop opens ridiculously early (5:30!!!) I'll be able to go in a few mornings  a week while Lee stays home with baby. He'll be able to answer some e-mails, make some phone calls and then I'll be home around 10 and he can head in to work. It won't be a lot of extra money, but it won't cost us anything (but gas) to earn it.

I started there a couple weeks ago and so far I love it. My coworkers are super nice. The coffee is super tasty. We're all organic and fair-trade, which I think is awesome. As a local business we do lots to help other local businesses. It's a good company to work for. And there is something strangely fun about making the drinks. A woman was watching me make her latte yesterday and commented, "It really is a bit of an art to make these." Yes, it is.

While I'm super thankful for my jobs, we are far from the income we used to have. But honestly, I've never been happier. I was in a funk this morning, so I took a walk. I can make myself pasta for lunch. When my brain just won't work, I can embrace that, veg out for a bit, and then get back to it at a time that's better for me. I wear sweatpants a lot. I take afternoon naps. Life is grand. :)