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What do you SAHM do for extra income?? Tell me!!


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I try to make extra money by spending less. :D You could see if your library has a book called Miserly Moms by Joni McCoy. I think the subtitle is "Living on one income in a two income world" or something along those lines. I've also found that by actively managing our money by budgeting, we have a lot more money than before (but you may already do this).

 

HTH a little!

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In the past before we moved I had a home daycare...at the time the only one I was doing school with was our oldest and we were able to get it done during naptime pretty regularly. That would be much more difficult now!

 

I'm trying to get some clarinet students (I studied music ed in college) right now...hoping to get that going soon! I'm also considering several other home business options:

 

Ideas:

-Become a Postpartum Doula

-Start an Errand business (target busy moms and older people who find it more difficult to get out often and get things done)

-I would love to be a certified breastfeeding counselor and visit with new moms and give classes on breastfeeding...don't know how to go about that.

 

I know I've thought of more ideas, but I'm tired and have a cold, and am just not thinking clearly right now! I'd love to be able to do all of the above so that I could really contribute monetarily around a schedule that would allow me to continue homeschooling...hmmmm, I think I would get burned out quickly though.

 

Our youngest is almost 14 months old, and as he is nursing less and eating foods more and more, dh will be more willing to keep him along with the other two so I can do something so I have been thinking about this a lot recently. Just start thinking of things that you would enjoy doing and that would work within the schedule of your family.

 

I also considered Pampered Chef or Discovery Toys...I'm not a selling type person though and just didn't feel comfortable with those.

 

Hope you find something.

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I have tried a number of things from part time jobs to MLMs to childcare.

 

Last May, I started with LiveOps and it is perfect for the homeschool mom (which is probably why so many homeschoolers do it). The day is broken up into 30min segments and you pick and choose your day either ahead of time if you are a planner or just as you go (which works more the great majority of the time but isn't a perfected science). You can work 30 min or 12 hours at a time, it's up to you. Lots of moms work very early morning or very late evening in order to get the best call volume but do so when kids are sleeping.

 

Anyway, you can go to http://www.liveops.com'>http://www.liveops.com to get more information, apply (they are hiring), etc. IF you happen to have an insurance license, PLEASE private message me and I can refer you directly (we both benefit from it).

 

BTW, I also just trained with ACDDirect. Much different program.

 

There are some other companies also. Here is the short list:

 

http://www.babytobee.net/angel/index.html is for warm market telemarketing. It pays $10/hour. You can work 10 to 105 hours per week.

 

http://www.acddirect.com (the one with the PBS pledges)

 

http://www.VIPdesk.com

 

http://www.arise.com (there is money out of pocket on this one. most say it's worth it. I personally don't know, but it was featured on Good Morning America several times)

 

http://www.liveops.com is slow to hire at this time due to a huge hiring spree before holidays. If you are willing to do outbound, that may help. If you have an insurance license, please email or IM me.

 

http://www.alpineaccess.com has MANY projects and shifts within each to choose. Hourly rate. (not as flexible....set shifts though you can pick what you want).

 

http://www.westathome.com

 

http://www.workingsol.com

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and absolutely LOVE it. I mainly work on weekends (just a couple each month) but sometimes have a weekly gig at a restaurant in the evening (not now though b/c the baby is due soon). Pays very well, it's fun, I feel like I'm contributing to our family income, etc. One year, we were blessed to have so much work in one week during the summer that our summer vacation was completely paid for. That was something. Anyway, if you want to look into any aspect of childrens entertainment, just email me! Lucrative field...you know how some parents just want to do EVERYTHING for their child's bday party or big event! If I had the money...I would too!

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I tutor for a national academic and test prep tutoring company. I go to student's homes and only choose those relatively near me with evening or weekend time slots. It's decent money, I've enjoyed most of my students so far, and I have an excellent boss. It's not work *from* home, but I have a dh home at a good time in the evenings with some flexibility in his schedule. I try to earn enough to cover violin upgrades as my children get older and need larger instruments and nice haircuts from my favorite (not cheap) stylist for myself on a regular basis.

 

Jami

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I work for a state-based think tank that's launching a website to track how their state's legislators vote on legislation. It's a non-partisan project and the goal is to provide more transparency for the public as to who is doing what. I take info from the state's legislator's website (the legislative journal onto which the new info is posted daily) and I enter it on to this other site. I can do the work anytime of day/night and it's very part-time (5-10 hrs/week). I've been told that 4-5 other states are thinking about launching sites as well and there may be a need for more workers.

 

Here's a link to a different state that already has a working site (this isn't the one I'm working on): http://www.kentuckyvotes.org

 

It's pretty interesting work and gives us a fair amount of spending money on the side.

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Child care full-time for one other child--hated it.

 

Tastefully Simple-worked really hard, went to Nationals, etc. But it took me away from the family in the evenings, I had to dress-up, and I found out I hate direct sales. Ended up $800 in the hole after working 20 hours per week for 18 months.

 

Taught homeschooling high schoolers writing and literature. Made good money. But it was a lot of work to grade all the papers (albeit, not as much work as you've had working full-time!), prep for the classes, and it took away a morning a week with my own children. Had to let that one go.

 

Now, I'm making money through blogging. I love to write, inspire others, and don't have to leave home or look good, so it's a great fit.If you visit my site and scroll down the sidebar, there's a free download called Blog Profit Blueprints by my mentor, Yaro Starak who has taught me a great deal. It's worth a download, especially because it costs nothing but a little time to read, if you're interested.

 

Best to you!

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but I am very interested to know how you managed working ft and homeschooling. I am about to do the same thing. Dh will be home with the kids but I will be leaving assignments and schooling them on the Wednesdays, Friday mornings and the weekends.

 

To say I am anxious about this change is an understatement but, unfortunately, it has to be done for at least the next year. Tell me your children didn't suffer too much - only you. I can live with the stress that working will bring. But I am going to most definitely miss being home.

 

So, if you don't mind me piggybacking, please tell how it went for you.

 

Thanks,

Amy

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I teach gymnastics 2 nights a week. The money is perfect for covering my two dd's *extra* lessons & activities. My 7 yr. old daughter takes a Young Rembrandts art class and a drama class at our local co-op. In addition, she plays basketball through the YMCA. She also plays soft-ball and soccer. My 4 yr. old takes a music class through the co-op. She also takes a dance class & gymnastics. The monthly tuition for all those activities adds up fast and there's always something else (supplies, costumes, uniforms, etc....) that needs to be purchased.

 

Hope you find what works for you soon!

~ Linda

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It is for a local company. I type in addresses and other info processing rebate requests. I've only been doing it a couple of weeks. 1000 entries per week is doable for me and I end up earning about $120/week. Not a huge amount but plenty for us. All extra money I earn is going towards getting us out of debt.

 

I also started doing mystery shopping. My first check (including reimbursements) for the first month was $89. I figure any money I spend (and get back) is like saving money. Again, not a lot of money, but enough that it adds up.

 

I thought about cleaning offices in the evenings but dh didn't like that idea. It would have been 4 hours every week night. Too much time away from the family in the evenings.

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I am an artist and writer. I used to take painting commissions and show regularly in galleries, but now I only paint what I want. I kind-of-sort-of "retired" (sounds weird since I am only 35) from actively hawking my art a year and a half ago, but I do still ocassionaly show and sell a painting or a few. The writing I do for money is mostly freelance review stuff. I work with a small company that sets everything up. Neither would be enough if I needed to make a steady income, but luckily I don't need to. Honestly, dh and I were discussing me dropping the freelance review writing so I would have time to concetrate on the novel I have been working on for the last year. He has been so wonderful all these years supporting my crazy creative drive, never complaining when it cost more than I made or pushing me when I was making good money.

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I tend to do more book fairs and booths than home shows. The income depends on the amount of effort I put into it, not so much how much time I put into it. The school and library end of the business is great because it is a matter of follow-up and repeat business rather than generating new leads, etc.

 

I am not a great salesman and have a hard time standing up in front of a group of people, but I find Usborne to be pretty easy since everyone loves the books. I did Mary Kay, a tough product to sell when you don't wear much makeup, and Tupperware, hard to justify spending that kind of money when Rubbermaid is cheap and available.

 

If you want more info, particularly the ups AND the downs of this type of business, email me. getfunbooks@hotmail.com

 

Brigitte

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Could you do what you do now, only PT? It never hurts to ask around.

 

My husband's firm was in such deperate need of engineers, they let me work 16 hrs/week - part from home - to help fill the gap.

 

 

I've also:

-Played piano for services at church; accompany kids at spring Solo & Ensemble Contest

-Mystery shopped! I signed up with about 12-15 companies and took assignments at my leisure. (Did this when I wasn't doing engineering - now I'm just too busy!) Most jobs don't pay very well, but I ended up with some free stuff and dinners out, and collected most of my earnings in a paypal account (many companies use paypal) and used it to buy curriculum. Check out http://volition.com/mystery.html and click on "Mysery Shopping Companies List" in the links. The trick is finding companies that have jobs in your area. Don't be afraid to sign up for several - it may take awhile until you find activity in your area. I set up a spreadsheet to keep track of the companies and jobs I did. (Can you tell I enjoyed doing this? I hope to have time to get back to it soon!)

 

HTH, and Good Luck!

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