A Merry Life

Healthy Living & Budgeting Blog | Health, Wealth & Everything Else

2018 In Review

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It’s not lost on me that I’m reviewing 2018 a full month into 2019. Am I even a blogger still? As you may have noticed, I don’t blog as much anymore!

However, I’m still active online but in a different format: YouTube! In 2018 YouTube was a huge focus for me. I love to challenge myself to learn and grow and the medium of video was my personal challenge last year. It was both one of my goals for the year and a great way to explore a new form of communication.

So my year in review this year will cover the main themes and growth of the year as well as include lots of videos. Enjoy!

Baby

Highlight of the year: I had a daughter!

I started the year as a pregnant person and ended up with an 8 month old! It’s crazy how much my life changed from the beginning of the year to the end and that is 100% because of my little one.

I adored maternity leave and my time off with her! I’ve rearranged a lot of stuff in my life to spend more time with her.  She’s been so wonderful and has triggered such massive change in my life.

Be the end of 2018 she was 8 months old! It’s crazy to think we started the year without a child and ended with a little one developing a personality. I don’t think I’ve had many years with such a drastic life change.

Spiritual

I had an existential crisis. Having a child triggered an existential crisis during my darkest moments of postpartum mental illness. I questioned the meaning of life, the purpose of my life, the point of it all. I had panic attacks about dying and about living. Mentally I hit an all time low, triggered by a lot of things, including hormones postpartum.

During this time I lost, found, and deconstructed my faith. This is still in progress in 2019 as I rebuild and reconstruct my faith based on the Bible, prayer, and what God reveals to me. It’s an interesting process and full of layers and depth and questioning and authenticity. I have no answers but every day I find new questions and answers. I’ve learned that we all have a soul, we all have a spiritual aspect to us, even if we ignore it. Eventually that will surface in one way or another.

To be honest I’m not a super religious person despite going to church on and off since I was 13 and growing up with a basic Christian faith and moral framework thanks to my mom. I’ve always been interested in different religions but I actually wasn’t allowed to attend church before the age of 13 so I’ve had a complicated relationship with both organized religion and God. I’ve had periods of abandoning faith and discounting the importance of it and also periods of feeling a pull that I couldn’t quite understand.

This year God truly showed up in my life in a real and tangible way for me, pretty much right when I’d decided I believed in nothing and life was meaningless. The people who know God showed up too and walked beside me in my personal darkest moments.

I’ve found myself desiring deeper connection with the faith community and found a home in the Methodist church, one that is focused on helping those with mental illness (among other things). I felt called to commit myself to being part of this faith community and supporting it after it supported me through one of the darkest times in my life. Their support and acceptance meant so much.

I still don’t know much, but I know that God pursues us and promises if we seek we will find.  If you’re the praying type, please pray for me on this continued path.

Mental

Lowlight of the year: My mental health spiraled negatively out of control, as I mentioned in my spiritual journey recap.

I started therapy this year, originally because of the postpartum issues. I learned that while the childbirth and postpartum triggered something in me it went much deeper than that. I had never dealt with the abuse and trauma from my childhood. I had never dealt with the suicide of my half-sister. I had never dealt with the negative messages constantly in my head and my inability to love myself. So now I’m dealing with ALL of it. I full believe my healing is both spiritual and mental and God set me out on this healing path.

I’m working with a therapist who is helping me heal with various techniques, from EMDR to CBT to mindfulness and self-compassion. It’s a mishmash of learning skills I never learned early in life due to a dysfunctional home life. I’m learning how to think properly, clearly, and with compassion for myself. I’m learning how to regulate my emotions. I’m learning how to be a healthy and well-rounded adult so I can pass on those lessons to my daughter. Nothing has motivated me as much to get help before. Now I’m actually dealing with my mental baggage so that I can help lighten her load and guide her through life.

Health

My health and fitness journey was put on hold when I had a baby. I worked out until I was 8 months pregnant but my eating during pregnancy was not ideal.

Afterwards as I struggled with my mental health I also struggled with my old friend: binge eating.

Since I didn’t know how to cope with my mental stuff, I turned to my favorite form of coping and relief: eating. Obviously this complicated my health after childbirth and it’s continued to plague me. While it’s more under control and the current focus of my therapy, I’m still struggling with binge eating when I get overwhelmed.

However, despite the struggles, in 2018 I started and completed Whole30!

I completed the full 30 days with 99.9% compliance (slip up was weighing myself and a cough drop half ingested, so… LOL).

I honestly never dreamed I could go a month without sugar. The fact that I did it and did it with compliance gave me great hope for my future. I can eat heathy and I can feel really, really good. I’m not there yet but this was a huge accomplishment in 2018 and I’m glad I did it because now I know… I can.

YouTube

YouTube was a huge part of my life in 2018. I made videos for fun, for work, for side income, for sharing special events, for keeping memories for myself. YouTube is such an interesting thing and I’ve loved the journey!

Lowlight of the year: My YouTube channel was demonetized.

Highlight of the year: My Youtube channel was monetized and grew beyond expectations.

It’s honestly crazy that I make videos because struggle with my self-image on camera and I had major speech issues earlier in life. I went through a couple years where I didn’t share much online because I realized I’d confused real life and “online” life in many harmful ways, but now I’m enjoying sharing videos in a healthy and positive way.

I never thought I’d be a “YouTuber” but I started making more videos to get used to equipment from work and here we are!

Financial

Highlight of the year: We saved an emergency fund!

Highlight of the year: We got our finances in order and paid for baby’s birth!

Then after these things I started paying off parent plus student loans that have a long and complicated history but I’ve taken full responsibility for them.

My debt snowball plan is teaching me how to take responsibility, stay disciplined, and achieve a big goal. At least, that’s the plan! In 2018 I knocked out a couple of the little loans and got off to a good start with paying back this debt.

 

Fun

2018 was a year full of fun as well.

We went to a lot of sporting events! We went to football and basketball games. Penny is a fan of the Memphis Grizzlies and Memphis Tigers.

We went to a lot of parties! Before and after Penny, there was a lot of celebration this year.

We went to Alabama, the first trip as a family of three!

I went rock climbing! And did 5ks! And started doing yoga weekly, which I’ve loved!

It was a super fun year! I’ve hated it at times and loved it at times. It felt like the longest and the shortest year ever. 2018 was something special!

Inspiration For Making A Lifestyle Change

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Sometimes you wake up and think… this is me? This is my life? It’s all… wrong.

You realize you are not living your best life possible. You might be overweight or you might feel tired all the time. You might hate your job or feel you need to do something adventurous for one. It’s a terrible feeling to feel like you’re not living your best life possible. It’s something that makes you immediately want to change your behaviors and go do something that will make a difference in your life.

How to know when it’s time for a lifestyle change

When you come home from a long work day and break out takeout food, plop on the couch, and don’t move away from the TV again, it’s probably time for a lifestyle change. Then the next day you do the same thing again. There is more to life then this daily grind that leaves you beat and accomplishes little! You’re just trying to get through life and living for the weekend and not living the healthiest best life possible.

Believe me, I know. I’ve been there. I’ve done that for a long time. But I want more out of life!

It’s time for a lifestyle change when the life you’re living doesn’t make you happy.

That’s it! When you are just going through the motions instead of enjoying life and fulfilling your purpose – make a change! It’s something you can do. You don’t have to resign yourself to a life lived less fully.

Other signs you might need a lifestyle change:

  • you can’t sleep at night because your mind is overworking
  • you have a health crisis because you aren’t taking care of yourself
  • you feel overwhelmed with your current life
  • you feel like a robot moving through your daily life
  • you dream about escaping it all via a vacation or retirement
  • you are cranky and irritable with everyone around you
  • you lie about your life to others
  • you feel anxious all the time
  • you talk about making changes all the time but don’t do it

Those are some of the things that you might be suffering from if it’s time for you to make a lifestyle change.

Making Lasting Lifestyle Changes

The American Psychological Association offers some tips on making lifestyle changes that actually last instead of just fizzling out:

  • Make a plan that will stick. Your plan is a map that will guide you on this journey of change. You can even think of it as an adventure. When making your plan, be specific. Want to exercise more? Detail the time of day when you can take walks and how long you’ll walk. Write everything down, and ask yourself if you’re confident that these activities and goals are realistic for you. If not, start with smaller steps. Post your plan where you’ll most often see it as a reminder.

  • Start small. After you’ve identified realistic short-term and long-term goals, break down your goals into small, manageable steps that are specifically defined and can be measured. Is your long-term goal to lose 20 pounds within the next five months? A good weekly goal would be to lose one pound a week. If you would like to eat healthier, consider as a goal for the week replacing dessert with a healthier option, like fruit or yogurt. At the end of the week, you’ll feel successful knowing you met your goal.

  • Change one behavior at a time. Unhealthy behaviors develop over the course of time, so replacing unhealthy behaviors with healthy ones requires time. Many people run into problems when they try to change too much too fast. To improve your success, focus on one goal or change at a time. As new healthy behaviors become a habit, try to add another goal that works toward the overall change you’re striving for.

  • Involve a buddy. Whether it be a friend, co-worker or family member, someone else on your journey will keep you motivated and accountable. Perhaps it can be someone who will go to the gym with you or someone who is also trying to stop smoking. Talk about what you are doing. Consider joining a support group. Having someone with whom to share your struggles and successes makes the work easier and the mission less intimidating.

  • Ask for support. Accepting help from those who care about you and will listen strengthens your resilience and commitment. If you feel overwhelmed or unable to meet your goals on your own, consider seeking help from a psychologist. Psychologists are uniquely trained to understand the connection between the mind and body, as well as the factors that promote behavior change. Asking for help doesn’t mean a lifetime of therapy; even just a few sessions can help you examine and set attainable goals or address the emotional issues that may be getting in your way.

Making Your Personal Lifestyle Change Plan

It’s also important to make your own plan once you select the lifestyle change goals that matter most to you. Harvard Health has a great list of 7 ways to make a healthy life change and a variety of resources on how to implement a lifestyle change that will stick. Here are their suggestions for making a lifestyle change plan:

  1. Select a goal. Choose a goal that is the best fit for you. It may not be the first goal you feel you should choose. But you’re much more likely to succeed if you set priorities that are compelling to you and feel attainable at present.

  2. Ask a big question. Do I have a big dream that pairs with my goal? A big dream might be running a marathon or climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro, wiggling back into a closet full of clothes you love, cutting back on blood pressure medication, or playing games and sports energetically with your children.

  3. Pick your choice for change. Select a choice that feels like a sure bet. Do you want to eat healthier, stick to exercise, diet more effectively, ease stress? It’s best to concentrate on just one choice at a time.

  4. Commit yourself. Make a written or verbal promise to yourself and one or two supporters you don’t want to let down: your partner or child, a teacher, doctor, boss, or friends. That will encourage you to slog through tough spots. Be explicit about the change you’ve chosen and why it matters to you.

  5. Scout out easy obstacles. Maybe you’d love to try meditating, but can’t imagine having the time to do it. Or perhaps your hopes for eating healthier run aground if you’re hungry when you walk through the door at night, or your kitchen cabinets and refrigerator aren’t well-stocked with healthy foods.

  6. Brainstorm ways to leap over obstacles. Now think about ways to overcome those roadblocks.

  7. Plan a simple reward. Is there a reward you might enjoy for a job well done? For example, if you hit most or all of your marks on planned activities for one week, you’ll treat yourself.

What’s my personal lifestyle change? 

Whenever I share inspiration it comes from a place in my own life where I’m hoping to make changes. What exactly about my lifestyle do I want to change? Well, a couple things!

My life has changed drastically over the last five year but I’ve found myself falling into some habits I don’t want to carry over to the next five years. There are many things currently that are amazing in my life (marriage, spiritual life, etc.) but these are a few areas where I want to make changes.

Weight. I gained a ton of weight as a teenager who was very unhappy and unable to cope with a traumatic and abusive home life. This isn’t how I want to live the rest of my life so I’d like to lose weight and be a model example for my daughter. Enter the “lifestyle change” king (or perhaps queen). I am starting my weight loss journey in an attempt to follow in the footsteps of many others who were once where I am and are now happily lighter and healthier. My goal, of course. is to lose weight. I want to wake up every day and think, “I feel amazing, energetic, and strong. Today is going to be so much fun! I can’t wait to do something fun with Penny!”

Find financial freedom. I enjoy my current job but it offers very little flexibility and the financial situation we are in does not allow for much freedom. This is a secondary goal to my health but it’s a huge one in terms of how much our lifestyle will change once we pay off all debt.

There are other things but these are big ones. They are both about being active and being in touch with myself and my surroundings. Being checked in to my life instead of checked out. Most lifestyle changes are all about taking control of your life and making yourself be checked in instead of checking out with distractions.

I hope these inspirations and ideas for lifestyle changes motivate you! It truly is possible to  change your life in a variety of ways and live whatever type of life you imagine. The world we live in is full of possibility and we are the luckiest that have ever lived – we have freedom to change and choose the life we want. Go do it and go enjoy it!

I Finished Whole 30!! | Whole 30 Week 4

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You guys I did it. I finished Whole30!

I seriously can’t believe I did the Whole30 days. I finished right before Thanksgiving which is terrible timing for re-introducing foods, but I’m still amazed that I was able to do Whole30. I never thought I would even come close to be honest. As a serial failed dieter, Whole30 seemed like the most extreme eating option possible and something I was destined to fail at.

I struggled during the last week of Whole30 possibly more than any other time during it. For some reason I thought it would get easier as I finished but I struggled with being sick for so long. However, I knew I could finish after doing several weeks and I did it!!

The sense of accomplishment at the end was more than enough to do Whole30. The other benefits I gained were small in comparison to how proud I was of myself when I completed the 30 days. (I’ll hopefully share the benefits, results, and reintroduction process in a video coming soon!)

I had a lot of great food during the last week of Whole30 even if I was sick! Some of my favorites:

Asian style lettuce wraps with egg

Taco salad with Mexican cauliflower rice

and shrimp green curry with cauliflower rice!

I also tried our RX Nut Butter this week and let me tell you…

…. it was a treat! I’ve enjoyed plain almond butter throughout my Whole30 experience but this takes things to the next level.

I decided to do Whole30 for a reset on my eating habits before the holidays and to find out if eliminating certain foods would make me feel better.

At the end of the 30 days, even with constant colds, I did feel better overall. I found myself with more energy and pep in my step, especially in the morning. Lack of energy was the main reason I decided to do this and it’s something that really drove me when things felt hard. I was so tired of feeling lethargic all the time. Whole30 did really help with that and at the end I was thrilled with how much more energy I felt.

Clearly removing processed foods and sugar from my diet worked well for me. I’m so thankful I decided to do Whole30 with my sister-in-law. I’ve learned so much about what I can do and how food makes me feel.

Whole30 Posts

If you missed any of my previous posts about Whole30, you can catch up here:

Whole30 Resources (affiliate links*):

If you are considering doing Whole30, here are a few resources I’ve found that are pretty useful!

Here are some of the condiments and foods I’ve found that are useful for making food better while also staying compliant.

Hopefully these resources help you on your Whole30 journey! It’s hard but worth doing!

Whole30 Week3 Recap | Whole30 Grocery Haul at Trader Joe’s

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In week 3 I had a great week preparing for Thanksgiving and finding new Whole30 favorites at Trader Joe’s!

Highlights of Whole30 Week3

In week 3 I perfected the Whole30 Thanksgiving stuffing recipe I used for Thanksgiving this year. It really was awesome to create my first Whole30 recipe instead of just following all the awesome ones I found online. The best thing about Whole30 is that I’ve been inspired to cook more and be creative in the kitchen. That was something I stopped doing during pregnancy due to a host of food aversions (especially handling raw foods) and didn’t pick up after Penny was born due to time and exhaustion of being a new parent. It feels great to be in the kitchen again so much!

Another fun thing was my grocery trip to Trader Joe’s for some Whole30 items. I picked up:

  • riced cauliflower
  • butternut squash
  • raw pecans
  • shaved brussel sprouts
  • broccoli slaw
  • rainbow carrots
  • rainbow potatoes
  • almond flour
  • ground turkey
  • shrimp
  • thyme
  • coconut aminos
  • tomato sauce
  • tomato paste
  • coconut milk

Those ingredients combined with what we had made the Thanksgiving veggie filled stuffing, Whole30 meatloaf with rainbow carrots ad potatoes, turkey filled lettuce wraps, and shrimp curry! Delicious meals from super basic ingredients. That’s the best part of eating this way: food still tastes good and is good for you!

whole30 week 3 results

Why I’m Doing Whole30

I decided to do Whole30 for a reset on my eating habits before the holidays and to find out if eliminating certain foods would make me feel better. This is week 2 of Whole30, which is an elimination diet designed to help you get back to basics and reset your eating. After the restrictive 30 days you add back in foods one at a time to see how they affect your body. This helps you create the perfect diet for you.

Here’s the intro to Whole30 from the rules page:

“Certain food groups (like sugar, grains, dairy and legumes) could be having a negative impact on your health and fitness without you even realizing it. Are your energy levels inconsistent or non-existent? Do you have aches and pains that can’t be explained by over-use or injury? Are you having a hard time losing weight no matter how hard you try? Do you have some sort of condition, like skin issues, digestive ailments, seasonal allergies, or chronic pain, that medication hasn’t helped? These symptoms are often directly related to the foods you eat—even the “healthy” stuff. So how do you know if (and how) these foods are affecting you?

Strip them from your diet completely. Eliminate the most common craving-inducing, blood sugar disrupting, gut-damaging, inflammatory food groups for a full 30 days. Let your body heal and recover from whatever effects those foods may be causing. Push the reset button with your health, habits, and relationship with food, and the downstream physical and psychological effects of the food choices you’ve been making. Learn how the foods you’ve been eating are actually affecting your day-to-day life, long term health, body composition, and feelings around food. The most important reason to keep reading?

This will change your life.”

The words this will change your life sold me. I’m not sure I’m completely changed yet but my eyes are being opened to a lot of things I had not previously considered or put much thought into! This reset on my eating is definitely what I needed personally after a rough pregnancy and postpartum period where I felt worse than ever before.

Whole30 Resources

If you are considering doing Whole30, here are a few resources I’ve found that are pretty useful!

Here are some of the condiments and foods I’ve found that are useful for making food better while also staying compliant.

Hopefully these resources help you on your Whole30 journey! It’s hard but worth doing!

Taking Control Of Debt With A New Debt Payoff Plan

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Honestly I’ve been trying to ignore it and rationalize it away, but the fact remains. There are loans out there from my education and I need to pay them.

Does this sound pretty confusing? Yeah, well officially these student loans aren’t in my name. They were supposed to be paid by someone else and I was promised my education would be paid for. Unfortunately I was lied to and the family drama behind the situation is something only my therapist really needs to know about.

If you’ve ever listed to the Dave Ramsey show, I would be one of those callers where he tells them they legally and morally don’t have to pay the loans. That’s true in my case. These don’t affect my credit, and the deal originally was that I wouldn’t have to pay them. The loans are not in my name and I thought they were going to be paid by someone else. It’s a long story and I’m not sure sharing it would help anyone.

Well, budgeting friends, I feel like it’s my problem now. There are a few loans which I thought were getting paid but instead were being defferred over and over until the loan company ended that option. They wanted a $420 payment this month which is how this came to my attention and why it’s now getting wrapped into our financial situation.

So needless to say, I’m going to try to let the past be the past and move forward. I’ve ignored these for about 10 years but in that time they’ve grown a ton and the interest is insane.

These loans are my responsibility even if they aren’t in my name. I’ve taken responsibility for a lot of things in my life recently and therapy has empowered me stop being a victim so often. While I could easily play the victim card here or the “not my problem” card, I’m just going to take this under my control and deal with it.

Debt Snowball Total

So here’s how it shakes out. Welcome to our new debt snowball.

Loan 1: $1,043.99
Loan 2: $5,400.05
Loan 3: $5,792.96
Loan 4: $31,129.13

Total debt: $43,366.13

The final number makes me want to be sick. It feels like loans for education that really wasn’t worth it at all since I’ve changed my career field. Kids, go to school without loans. Don’t be dumb like me.

I feel like every month that passes our financial situation feels more stressful but I know hiding my head in the sand doesn’t help. That’s how these loans grew to this level from where they started. They weren’t this level before but looking at the statements now I can see where interest and fees have grown them to an insanely high amount.

I feel like have to take responsibility and figure out a way to handle the situation like an adult because the family member that this will otherwise affect does not deserve the hardship after trying to hard to do the right thing.

Plan Of Attack

As I told my husband today via text: Debt is the worst.

I don’t quite know how to deal with these things that I need to pay for and don’t know how to make it work and still have a life. When I paid off debt before I simply worked a ton and threw extra money toward the debt. Now my life is so different and I don’t want to spend my entire life away from my baby. I’m torn by this difference and not quite sure my plan of attack.

I know for sure I want to eliminate the smaller debts quickly. I think at least the first two will be paid with our emergency savings so they stop accumulating interest.

Then I may end up putting the bigger one on the back burner for a while and just make the minimum monthly payments and throw any extra side income at it. I don’t feel like our lifestyle is currently extravagant and I don’t want to sacrifice a ton to pay off the debt quickly. My plan for the last two larger loans is to just make more money!

In the past making money money definitely meant leaving the house to work more hours at my main job or at a side job. Now I’m going to focus on continuing to grow my online income so I can throw whatever extra amount each month into the payoff plan. That is money we generally don’t count on for our day to day living and budgeting, so I won’t miss it as much while making debt payments.

So that’s where I’m at today. I’m a bit defeated by the whole situation, which is not the first time I’ve felt like the rug was ripped out from under me regarding my education. But I’ve also made plenty of mistakes by ignoring the reality of the situation so today I’m just stopping that and moving on.

My plan is pretty simple:

Accept reality.
Make more money.
Pay off the debt.
Move on.

debt payoff plan for student loans after ten years

Whole30 Thanksgiving Stuffing | Gluten-Free Paleo Dressing

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When I started Whole30 I didn’t think much about the fact that my food reintroduction period would be during Thanksgiving. I didn’t realized that meant I would still need to eat mostly on the Whole30 plan as I reintroduced foods slowly. I wasn’t going to be able to dive mouth first into a plate of a traditional Thanksgiving foods.

My loss is your gain because that prompted me to create some Whole30 versions of my favorite Thanksgiving foods. Today I’m sharing my Whole30 Thanksgiving stuffing. I read no less than 10 Whole30 Thanksgiving stuffing recipes, thought about what made stuffing delicious to me, and created this recipe from that process.

First I had to consider, what makes stuffing, stuffing? Well, the herbs of course! That meant sage, thyme, and rosemary had to feature prominently in my stuffing.

And of course the vegetables in most stuffings – celery, onion, carrot – had to make an appearance.

But what about the rest? How do you make something even resembling stuffing if you can’t use grains? The solution most of the recipes I read didn’t seem to answer this well. Some used cauliflower, some used eggs to bind everything together, and one used a lot of almond flour. I decided to take what seemed like the best ideas from everything I found to make the best version.

(Researching Thanksgiving stuffing recipes for Whole30 is where I learned almond flour is allowed on Whole30 as long as you aren’t using it to make desserts or pasta recreations. It’s ok as a binder which is what it is in this stuffing recipe. Here’s what they say about it: “Yes, you can have almond flour, coconut flour, tapioca flour, cassava flour and other non-grain-based flours, but it’s context-dependent. You can use it in place of breadcrumbs in your meatballs, to dredge a piece of chicken, or to thicken a sauce or stew.  You may not use it for Paleo baking—to make muffins, pancakes, bread, cupcakes, cookies, waffles, biscuits, tortillas, pizza crust, or anything of that nature; nor can you have it in pasta or gnocchi recreations. We call those recipes Sex With Your Pants On (SWYPO) foods, and they are expressly off-limits during your Whole30.” One could probably argue that recreating stuffing is a SWYPO food, but since I eat it one month of the year and the almond flour is really only there to bind and thicken… I’m gonna go with it’s cool.)

Whole30 Thanksgiving Stuffing

I don’t want to brag, but I think I succeeded in creating a good stuffing. It was a hit when it debuted at a family dinner and is already requested by both sides for each Thanksgiving dinner we will be attended.

The best part? I really don’t think anyone will miss the grains. You really don’t even notice!

Whole30 Thanksgiving Stuffing Recipe

To create this recipe you’ll need a cast iron pan or a casserole dish. I used my Lodge 3.6 Quart Cast Iron Casserole Pan (seriously this sucker is amazing).

Whole30 Thanksgiving Stuffing Ingredients

  • 2 tbsp olive oil, or avocado oil
  • 1 medium butternut squash or 2 cups diced into 1/2 inch cubes
  • 1 tbsp minced garlic
  • 1/2 large onion diced
  • 3 celery stalks diced
  • 3 carrots peeled and diced
  • 1/3 cup almond flour
  • 3 eggs whisked
  • 1 tbsp rosemary
  • 1 tbsp thyme
  • 1 tbsp sage
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper

Pecan Topping ingredients:

  • 1 – 1.5 cups unsalted pecans
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 tsp rosemary
  • 1 tsp thyme
  • 1 tsp sage
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Whole30 Stuffing Directions

  • Preheat over to 400 F.
  • Mix squash in 1 tbsp olive or avocado oil sprinkle with sea salt. Line baking sheet with squash.
  • Cook butternut squash cubes in over for 30 minutes until soft. Give it a few tosses during cooking.
  • Heat olive oil in large cast iron skillet over medium heat.
  • Cook sausage removed from casing if using, then remove from skillet.
  • Add onion, celery, carrot, garlic and saute until soft, about 7 to 8 minutes.
  • Add cauliflower, herbs, salt and pepper, mix well. Add 1/3 cup water (or compliant chicken broth.) Cook until tender about 10 minutes.
  • One the squash is done cooking, turn the temp down to 350F.
  • Mix everything together, toss to combine. Taste and add more salt, pepper, or herbs as needed.
  • Stir in almond flour and mix well.
  • Stir in eggs and mix well.
  • Bake for 25 minutes uncovered at 350 F.
  • Prepare the pecan crumble topping. While stuffing cooks, warm pecans in skillet with olive oil and extra herbs.
  • Remove the stuffing from the oven and scatter the pecan crumble across the top.
  • Bake for 20 more minutes uncovered.
  • Serve warm.

Enjoy this on Thanksgiving if you are planning your own paleo or Whole30 Thanksgiving!

October Online Income Report

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Welcome to another monthly online income report! You might be here because you wondering, “how much money do bloggers make” or, “how I make money blogging”, which is what I am going to be talking about today.

I’m calling it an online income report since it not only incorporates the blog income but also YouTube earnings. Having several sources of online income growing at the same time makes sense to me in case one ever disappears.

Motivation to rebuild my online income is at an all time high after going back to work after having my baby. I’m not sure I’ll ever stop working a regular job, but having income coming in from other sources gives me many more options!

Why Share An Online Income Report

A couple months ago I decided to take my blog seriously after years of just being a hobby blogger.

During that time of blogging on and off I watched other bloggers like Pinch of Yum, Busy Budgeter, Just A Girl And Her Blog, post monthly blog income reports where they grew from hundreds to tens of thousands of dollars a month. I realized if they could do it, why couldn’t I? Even if I only made it to a couple of thousand dollars a month, how would that change our lives?

Currently I’m nowhere near a full time income. I started tracking my income with a rough monthly range of $300-$500 per month and hope to grow that amount to better help support my family.

This is a process for me as I reorganize, refocus, and build from a place where my blog was abandoned for a couple years. If nothing else, I want to see what I can do.

I don’t know how long I’ll be doing these, but I’d at least like to chronicle the experience while I’m focused on earning enough extra income to pay for new expenses like daycare!

Previous Income Reports

If you’re interested in past income reports, you can see my last few here:

October Online Income 

Here’s my earnings broken down by type with the sources listed below:

  • Affiliate Marketing: $350.51
  • Advertising: $208.19

Total Income: $558.70

I hit my goal of $500 earned for the month!

YouTube Earnings

My goal at the beginning of the year was to earn $600 a month on YouTube between my two channels.

My YouTube channel outperformed all expectations I had for income this past month. I earned over $90 from my channel which blew me away! I’ve been grinding away making videos whenever I had time around my work / baby / social schedule so I wasn’t sure how much more I’d earn now versus when I was monetized before. Apparently the answer is 5 times more!

It’s nice to see that the work I’ve been putting into videos and my channel has started to pay off. It makes me want to double down on the Youtube channel because I know if I can earn $90 and have $10 days then I really can earn $600. Or more. I see the huge potential there as a content platform.

I also watched my niece watch YouTube videos one after another after another last night. She could do it for hours. I have no doubt that because kids love YouTube so much that the platform has a bright future. Perhaps all these little ones growing up on the site will eventually hop over to my adult content and learn a little bit about budgeting and living a healthy,

What Didn’t Work Well 

I didn’t focus on consolidating my outdated defunct blogs as much because the work is tedious and doesn’t thrill me. I know I need to move the content over but it’s not as much fun so I keep pushing it off.

I also didn’t do much with Pinterest. I know that Pinterest can be key to a bigger source of traffic but it’s just so mysterious to me in some ways so I keep putting it off. I did make a Pinteresty type image for a couple posts.

What Worked Well

I ran a very loose content schedule for the month and that helped with video production especially. I definitely moved things around as I went but having a basic structure helped immensely so I knew which videos I needed to work on and when. I’m thinking about buying another planner to try and stay more organized with my content creation in 2019.

Amazon income was up for the month thanks to improved website and YouTube video search rankings. I’ve been low key focusing on fixing SEO problems and improving what I can with minimal effort. With affiliate income I’ve noticed you don’t need huge amounts of traffic, you just need the right traffic. So focusing on SEO and improving the searches that bring people in is helping connect those people to the products I use.

I also focused on registry bounties on Amazon and that source of income has been consistently growing. I’d like to find more ways to implement this since I personally use a ton of Amazon services in my own life.

My A Merry Life youtube channel has also grown and the first month of remonetization was quite exciting! I did not expect to earn over $90 but it seems that some of my recent content about budgeting has hit with an audience. I know I personally like watching videos about money and budgeting so maybe I’ve just found my people! The growth of the channel seems to be continuing so I’m focused on making several videos each week.

Goals For November

What I’m planning for November:

  • Make 3 videos for YouTube per week
  • Comment on an average of 3 other channels
  • Create at least 1-2 blog posts per week
  • Work on Pinterest strategy! Do it!
  • Earn $500 for the month in extra income

Popular Posts & Videos

Content creation has gone well despite limited time! I managed to write a number of posts and create YouTube videos every week.

Posts published in October:

Personal finance posts:

Life posts:

Listing out all the posts I did in October reminds me that I actually did create a decent amount of content!

Popular posts on A Merry Life last month:

Popular YouTube videos on my channel last month:

Want to start a blog and earn money too? Check out these posts:

Want to start your own blog?

Blogs are popular these days. There are so many people now making hundreds to thousands to even tens of thousands of dollars a month from blogs they started. It’s truly a limitless opportunity.

Starting a blog is incredibly easy and very budget friendly these days with cheap hosting and WordPress.

You can create your own blog with this easy-to-use tutorial.

I’ve got a whole section on this site that helps answer blogging questions and talks about making money blogging.

5 Months Baby & Mom Update + 6 Months Baby & Mom Update

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This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure for details.

I realized today when I went to post my 6 months update, that I never shared my 5 month update either! The older Penny gets the busier we are the less time I have to keep up with all the online activities I want to do.

So today I’m sharing my videos from both months! It’s so fun to watch as Penny grows in each video and see how she has started growing and coming alive.

5 Months Baby Update

At 5 months old Penny was rolling over and starting to scoot around a lot. She’s gained weight and progressed really well so we are happy with her progress! She’s now starting to eat real food and doing soooo much more developmentally wise. It’s a super fun time of her life for us!

6 Months Baby Update

Can every month get more fun? Because 6 months has been super fun!! Penny is eating more foods, moving so much more, and still bouncing and smiling all the time!

Unfortunately we got our first double ear infection this month and our first round of antibiotics. We’ve had a bunch of colds so far in the last few months, but Penny is such a champ. She really doesn’t get too upset and we didn’t even realize how sick she was when she had ear infections. She really is a happy baby 95%.

Mom Postpartum Update

I’ve been continuing on my recovery and have been working on therapy to work through things that have come up. I highly recommend therapy for new moms if it’s possible and honestly for everyone. I have gone through a couple therapists to get the right one but now things are really clicking.

I’ve also made plans to start physical therapy / pelvic floor therapy. Before I had a kid I had no idea this existed, but turns out it is a thing!

I’m also working on my health through doing Whole30 and getting my eating and overall health under control.

Past Mom & Baby Updates

Catch up on Penny’s growth from past months!

Thank you for watching and cheering us on!

Whole30 Week 2 Results & Recap | Traveling On Whole30

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Whole30 Week 2 was a roller coaster compared to Whole30 Week 1!

Highlights of Whole30 Week2

Meals in the beginning of the week when I hadn’t prepped and was getting sick weren’t great, but things turned around! Meals for the rest of the week were delicious and I started to focus more on what I could have instead of what I was missing. I really enjoyed whipping up meals I could eat while passing on junk food.

Whole30 is really not about weighing yourself and they discourage it during the 30 days. It’s the final rule in what not to do on Whole30. However, if I was going to break the rules for something, this was it. I weighed myself at the end of week 2 just to see how it was going in that department. I’ve lost 9 pounds. Woah.

I’m not sure I’ve lost 9 lbs in a whole month before so doing it in two weeks is crazy. My face has also thinned out a bit and my clothes are all fitting better. Both of these things show how bloated and blah I was before and how much crap I was consuming daily. By the end of week2 when my cold was easing up I finally felt more energy as well.

In just two weeks those are pretty drastic results.

Traveling On Whole30

This past weekend we traveled to see family in Alabama. I was really nervous about it but decided I would prepare the best way I could and hope for the best. Luckily, I didn’t starve! Here are a few ways I made it work.

I brought my own snacks. I brought various fruits, nuts, larabars, and compliant turkey deli meat. I made sure I had snacks for the 6 hours on the road and for the outings planned with family in case there was nothing I could eat. These snacks came in very handy and totally saved me for a couple snacks and one lunch.

When eating with the family, I made my own meals out what I could use from their meals. For example, I took some plain coleslaw and made my own dressing since I couldn’t eat the one they had. And I used the taco meat from tacos they had to make my own salad with tomatoes, meat, and compliant salsa verde. Making my own meal using parts of the meal I could eat wasn’t that difficult and it allowed me to eat with the family without making a huge deal about my diet.

I also planned to eat out at least once and looked up compliant meal options at restaurants. Let me tell you, that’s an adventure in googling. “What can I eat at restaurants on Whole30?” “Is this restaurant ok for Whole30?” “Is any fast food Whole30 compliant?” I finally settled on Chipotle which had some compliant items. I settled on a salad bowl with double carnitas, pico, guacamole, and salsa.

Things I’m Changing For Next Week

After publishing this video I read the “can I have” section on Whole30’s website and won’t be doing smoothies for the remainder of the 30 days! Here’s why.

While technically it’s just fruit which is allowed, I totally understand the reason why they’d rather you not have smoothies. So those are out! Luckily I’ve only have a couple during the first two weeks. It’s also why I’m eating less larabars (tho they were so handy for the trip for an emergency option). I really want to stick with the intention of the program and slay the sugar dragon inside this sugar addict.

Obviously next week I’m not going to be sick so things should be easier! Not being able to have cough drops or cough syrup or any of the typical things I have during a cold was pretty sad, but this next week should be full of healthy feelings and energy.

Why I’m Doing Whole30

I decided to do Whole30 for a reset on my eating habits before the holidays and to find out if eliminating certain foods would make me feel better. This is week 2 of Whole30, which is an elimination diet designed to help you get back to basics and reset your eating. After the restrictive 30 days you add back in foods one at a time to see how they affect your body. This helps you create the perfect diet for you.

Here’s the intro to Whole30 from the rules page:

“Certain food groups (like sugar, grains, dairy and legumes) could be having a negative impact on your health and fitness without you even realizing it. Are your energy levels inconsistent or non-existent? Do you have aches and pains that can’t be explained by over-use or injury? Are you having a hard time losing weight no matter how hard you try? Do you have some sort of condition, like skin issues, digestive ailments, seasonal allergies, or chronic pain, that medication hasn’t helped? These symptoms are often directly related to the foods you eat—even the “healthy” stuff. So how do you know if (and how) these foods are affecting you?

Strip them from your diet completely. Eliminate the most common craving-inducing, blood sugar disrupting, gut-damaging, inflammatory food groups for a full 30 days. Let your body heal and recover from whatever effects those foods may be causing. Push the reset button with your health, habits, and relationship with food, and the downstream physical and psychological effects of the food choices you’ve been making. Learn how the foods you’ve been eating are actually affecting your day-to-day life, long term health, body composition, and feelings around food. The most important reason to keep reading?

This will change your life.”

The words this will change your life sold me. I’m not sure I’m completely changed yet but my eyes are being opened to a lot of things I had not previously considered or put much thought into! This reset on my eating is definitely what I needed personally after a rough pregnancy and postpartum period where I felt worse than ever before.

Whole30 Resources

If you are considering doing Whole30, here are a few resources I’ve found that are pretty useful!

Here are some of the condiments and foods I’ve found that are useful for making food better while also staying compliant.

Hopefully these resources help you on your Whole30 journey! It’s hard but worth doing!

November 2018 Budget With Me

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This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure for details.

Happy November, friends! It’s one of the best months of the year. Lots of crisp fall days, delicious foods, and time with family make this one of my favorite months of the year.

This month’s budget has a few changes in income and expenses after October’s budget. I’m a bit nervous about some of it but also excited about it all!

November 2018 Budget

I’ve planned out out our November budget in EveryDollar and in my Happy Planner so I’m ready to tackle this month! Budgeting with fun stickers in my planner makes budgeting something I’ll actually do. I have tried spreadsheets before and… they just don’t work for me.

This month I’m anticipating $5,000 in income, which includes $300 of online income that will be earned and moved over from business savings, hopefully. I’m hoping to reduce our monthly budget to match our salary income and stop moving online income over. I’d rather use that income for other goals.

Here’s the budget so far for November:

  • Mortgage – $1200
  • Giving – $470
  • Daycare – $480
  • Therapy – $390
  • Utilities- $225
  • Phone – $160
  • Cable/Internet – $85
  • Gym – $87
  • College Fund – $25
  • Auto Insurance – $160
  • Gas – $125
  • Groceries – $400
  • Dining Out – $150
  • Shopping – $100
  • Fun/Dates – $50
  • Personal – $200
  • Pets – $50
  • Medical $50
  • Alabama Trip – $100
  • Other – $175
  • Sinking Funds – $300 (from extra online income)

Grocery Spending

It turns out when you do Whole30, you don’t spend as much on food! When you can only buy the basics – aka real food – you don’t spend much on fancy extra items. Or drinks. I have a feeling because of the way I’m eating now it’s going to be even easier to stay within budget, even with eating lots more organic foods and high quality meats.

Just like Whole30 has helped me realize how much sugar I consumed without thinking, it has also helped me realize how much money I waste on food! I spent quite a bit of our budget on things I didn’t need at all.

Tithing

Obviously this month I’ve adding in tithing and that has increased our giving budget generously!
In the past I’ve always given to my church sporadically and donated more time than money. I’ve felt the call recently to be more diligent in my tithing and after talking to my husband we decided to put this into our budget. I’ve felt called in my Bible studies recently to obedience and after many readings and studies on sacrifice and faithfulness I feel that the tithe of 10% is simply something I need to do.

Despite that call I definitely wanted to argue with God. I have a long history of wanting to do things my way despite clear evidence that God’s way was different and infinitely better. So of course I wanted to argue… “We are barely making it each month! We aren’t saving enough! I’ve already added expenses for therapy and cut my income! We can’t add a tithe now! It’s crazy!” Seriously, I tried to argue, but I lost. God kept putting me in my place and reminded me that I need to tithe and that He will provide.

There have been many lessons recently about it but the verses that stood out the most to me were Matthew 6:26-27: ” 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life[a]?”

Reading this and also the journey of God’s people through the desert with Moses was an incredible reminder that God will provide exactly what you need. Yes, I need to make wise choices with money and follow good financial principles, but worrying over money and clinging to every last cent I can stuff into savings is not what I’m called to do.

So we are tithing now and giving 10% to the church. I’m still a little nervous about it, ya know? Money has been my sense of security for a while and now I’m stepping out to stretch more than I feel we can handle. But throughout my postpartum journey of internal despair, destruction, and rebuilding, God has been there guiding every step of the way and it feels like I need to do this too.

As a Christian I feel like this is something I should be doing but even past the religious aspect, I think we all should probably be giving more if we are able to meet our basic needs. Find a charity you support that does good work and see if you can increase your giving levels.

Christmas Savings

I’m adding another hundred dollars to our Christmas sinking fund and also using my third paycheck this month to save up for both Christmas and our new couch! I haven’t decided yet on the exact split of that paycheck, but once I decide for sure I’ll share an update.

I’m not used to being paid biweekly (previously it was bi-monthly), so three paycheck months are still new to me, but it seems like a great opportunity to use the extra paycheck for goals outside regular savings. I’m planning to simply not count those paychecks as they come and use them for special budgeting purposes like savings or Christmas.

What I Use To Budget

Below are some of the items I use to budget with! I get a lot of questions about what I use with my planners and the apps I use to keep my budget on track every month so I want to share the budgeting tools I use to make budgeting both functional and fun.

Happy Planner – I use my Happy Planner for everything including budgeting! I find writing down my budget and checking in on paper helps me to better remember and makes it feel more real.

Budget Stickers – I use a variety of budget stickers in my videos from Me And My Big Ideas, Erin Condren and various Etsy shops. I’ve linked my favorite budget sticker Etsy shops I use all the time below (affiliate links):

Every Dollar – My husband and I both use a shared Every Dollar app account where we actively track our spending. This works best for us since my husband doesn’t use a planner and we have joint bank accounts and expenses.

Mint.com – I’ve used Mint for over years as a passive net worth tracker. It’s a more passive option and I don’t actively update it except for once or twice a year when I want to gauge my net worth progress.

Hopefully these tools will help you with your budget whether you love pen and paper or technology!

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Disclosure!

Note: Affiliate links may pop up on the site when I'm recommending something. They are free for you to use, but they help support me by giving me a small commission of any sales. It's like leaving a tip for good service while buying something you'd purchase anyway. Thank you for supporting A Merry Life!