Homestead Goddess

Here are my top 3 go-to resources that satisfy my desire to be an earth-loving, frugal homestead goddess.

Please note: I do not work for nor am I not paid by any of the organizations below. I rely on and am confident in the validity of the information they provide, which is why I want to share them with you.

Environmental Working Group - I use nearly all the EWG Consumer Guides to make more informed decisions about what I buy. They've researched everything from sunscreen to fruit, meat to cleaning products, and water to cosmetics.

• SkinDeep(R) Cosmetics Database is the most user-friendly in my opinion because you can just search for the products you use or would like to use by name and the products is ranked on a scale of 0-10, zero being the least hazardous to your health and 10 being the most hazardous. 
• The pesticide in produce guide and the sunscreen guide are also offered as apps, so they're pretty user-friendly, too.

Freecycle - What's cooler than finding a treasure for dirt cheap at a garage sale? Getting it for FREE! There are tons of Freecycle groups across the nation. You can join the one in your area to help reuse/repurpose items that other people no longer need or want. I've been a member of the Austin Freecycle Network for several years now, and I've seen offers for everything from fabric scraps to patio furniture, mattresses to maternity clothes, and doors to dryers. You can ask for stuff, too. I've seen requests from teen moms, nursing home caregivers, college students, teachers, and more.

The Library - Yes, I said it. I LOVE the library. Maya loves to read. She especially loves to read books over and over and over again. She consumes books like you consume air. And mommy eventually tires of reading these books. I appreciate having a due date, and Maya's happy because she gets to choose new books. We've also attended a puppet show at the Library, we use the educational computers every time we visit, and we've picked up free resources and materials to take home for arts and crafts projects.

I have plenty more resources, but these are by far my favorite. I hope you get some use out of them, too.

With love,
dawn marie

How NOT to Achieve Work-Life Balance

Let's talk about work-life balance. I am the person who knows the dictionary definition of work-life balance, who has taken professional development classes about it, read books about it, and tried to incorporate all the tricks into her daily life to achieve a perfectly harmonious existence.

When I worked for pay, I took my work home with me. I didn't know how not to.

• As an English teacher, I took home papers and journals to grade while I sat in front of the TV.
• When I worked as a marketing assistant, I went in to the office on Saturday mornings to complete reports. Reports! 
• As a public speaker, I spent hours in bed thinking about what I was going to say the next day. I couldn't even escape these thoughts in sleep because I dreamt about how it would all play out.

Now, I'm a stay-at-home mom. My life is my work. My work is my life. Right?

Work-Life Balance? Unfortunately, I cannot offer you a solution to this problem, but I can tell you what not to do.

DO NOT take coffee breaks, smoke breaks, potty breaks, or lunch breaks. If you do take a "break," be sure to take your work with you so you can continue to research whatever topic you were working on when you got up from your desk, table, chair, exercise ball, or whatever.

Sitting on the toilet? Use your phone or tablet to research new activities, discussion topics, breaking news, etc. Send emails from your laptop or mobile device.

Drinking coffee? It only takes one hand! Use the other to run a report, type an email, read an article, build something useful, etc.

Eating? Eat at your desk! Eat in your car! Eat while walking, talking, running, driving, etc. If you're sitting at a table, schedule a working meeting and order sandwiches! For crying out loud, DO NOT waste precious seconds when you could be doing something!


DO NOT take sick days. If you are ill and can still stand up, go to work. Your coworkers will not mind if you're spreading germs as long as you use tissues, signal that you don't want to talk with a cough, and spray your area with Lysol periodically.

If you are too sick to stand, but can sit upright, carpool. If necessary, stay home, but continue to work remotely. If you are too sick to stand or sit, continue to answer emails while lying in bed for as long as you are conscious.

DO NOT send your coworkers or employees emails during business hours. If a response is needed immediately, and, if they are in yelling distance, then yell. Otherwise, wait as late as you can in the evening (bonus points if it's after midnight) to send your email, and be sure to cc your boss. This will ensure that everyone knows how dedicated you are and may also improve your chances of being promoted, so you can do more work.


DO NOT succumb to chit chat unless the conversation pertains to your work in some way. Relevant discussion topics include: Your boss, your coworkers, your working conditions, news stories that relate to your work, stuff you have in common that might be beneficial to your work, the person you met at a networking event that might help you do your work better, the idea you had while laying in bed trying to sleep last night, etc.

DO NOT waste time on recreation. If you like social media, join groups that support and/or discuss your line of work. Pin pictures, links, ideas, etc. that relate to your job. Friend people on Facebook that you met at work. Add your coworkers and colleagues to your circle. Most importantly, always, always, ALWAYS, link back to your company's website and provide your email contact information.

If you get an hour of alone time in the evening, read a book/article/story/blog that can potentially increase your knowledge of your field. Better yet, blog about your work and get your friends to read it. Be sure your blog links back to your company's website.

If you are mingling at a party, be sure to say, "So, what do you do?" Immediately follow this with a discussion of how your jobs relate. If they do not relate, hand them your business card and MOVE ON!

I hope that these tips help you as much as they have helped me in my career(s). For further terrible career advice, email me, friend me on Facebook, follow me on Pinterest, connect with me on LinkedIn, etc.

Staying Home

What is it like to be a stay-at-home mom? A SAHM with an expensive degree who could be working and making a substantial financial contribution to the household?

It's a luxury. An exercise of the mind, body, and spirit. A daily challenge. A guilt complex. A joy. Fulfillment. Real, unadulterated happiness.

Being there when she discovers butterflies, fine art, and recycling. Being there when she shoves a friend and lies about it. Being there when she writes her own name at the age of three and tells me she wants to learn to write mommy's and daddy's names, too. Being there when she teaches the other girls in her dance class how to bunny hop.

Being there when she picks her boogers and eats them. (Blech!)

Being THERE.

It is also frightening and worrisome. I worry that she'll miss out on opportunities I can't provide. I worry that I'm being selfish; that I'm putting my desires ahead of the economic stability of my family and home.

I am proud to be a part of a movement that really doesn't have a name, yet. A movement of educated women who choose to stay at home with their children when they could be working and bringing home a paycheck. I'm confident that I made the right decision for my family.

The purpose of the women's rights movement, as I see it, was to gain equality. To be allowed the freedom to choose. To be free.

Just as I do not believe that women are inferior to men by nature, nor do I believe that they are their natural superiors either. Simone de Beauvoir, 1976
When one enslaves a woman, one also enslaves a man. I cannot recall who said this or to whom this quote is attributed to, I have made it my own. I believe it in my core.

True equality means that my daughter will have the chance to be or do anything she puts her mind to.

Being a SAHM means that I have the opportunity to show her all the possibilities of her life and allow her to explore them. I can encourage her, support her, guide and love her through her triumphs and her failures, big and small.

I can do the same myself. Perhaps, one day, I can do the same for a son should he ever choose to be mine.

I can be THERE.