Here we go....

Welcome to my little corner of the cyber world. I'm excited to begin blogging about my life and my family's journey from two incomes to one. I have been out on maternity leave for the last 4 months and in that time have realized that if we tighten our belts a bit that we could realize our dream of a family with mom at home and dad at work.

I know that my mother's generation worked very hard for me to have the chance to work for equal pay and under equal conditions and I am thankful for their hard work and sacrifice. I'm sorry to say though that things didn't work out the way our mothers probably intended. Many of my friends agree with me that today's mom really has no more choices than her mother before her. When women entered the working world men didn't decide to stay home with the children, instead the glut of employees simply drove up the median household income and thus the prices of everything. Fast forward a generation later and women now have to work because our economy demands two incomes to have the same quality of life our parents had on one.

I have been a teacher for my entire career and have heard every possible theory for why our children are struggling so much more now. I have many ideas about why this is so, most of which, rest squarely on the shoulders of top heavy public education, but I also feel that now more than ever our children are left to their own devices because there is no one home full time. Now before I upset any career women or working moms, please know that I have been both and I have nothing but respect for you all. I believe no one on the planet works harder than a mom who works full time outside of the home because I've been one for the past 5 years. I am simply saying that families are left with few choices when it comes to finances and through no fault of their own the children are paying the price for a society with its economy askew.

After much reflection my husband and I have decided to attempt to live on his income alone. This is going to be a big challenge because we have 3 children and he is a professor at a community college. You may be thinking that we should be able to do this no problem, but you'd be wrong, because you see public school teachers make more than my husband does. It is our goal, our challenge, and our quest to live comfortably on 3,500.00 a month. I will be using this blog to share with the public our working budget, our coupon/sale savings tips, our finds when it comes to cheep family fun, and our memories along the way. It is my sincere hope that over the course of the blog other women who want to be full time moms are able to realize their dreams by what they learn here. I also hope that this becomes a place for like minded women to come together to learn from one another and to support each other.

And so we're off.....