Good Grief - Where does the time go???

OK, it's really not funny anymore. I mean, I really want to develop this blog ... but it's becoming increasingly apparent that it ends up on the back burner. I'm sorry about that, dear reader. I guess I just get so plugged in to everything else that I'm trying to make money from, that I forget to come and write on this blog.

I promise to try and do better. Starting tomorrow ....

Are We Having Fun Yet?

Have you heard the phrase, "time flies when you're having fun?" Well, I'm beginning to relate to that phrase, although not exactly to the "t". I'm still trying to figure out exactly when the "fun" begins. I'm sure that there have been moments of fun, but I'm not sure that we are really in the "fun" mode yet.

Don't get me wrong, staying home is really beginning to grow on me. But finding the time to do all of the things that I need to do know to make ends meet is becoming an interesting challenge. Take this blog, for example. I've been meaning to post on here daily. However, a quick glance reveals that has not been the case.

So, what gives? I mean, how hard could it be to come here and post once a day? Well, if you have never blogged before, than let me tell you, it is harder than you think. If you have blogged before, then you know exactly what I mean.

Somebody should be sure and let me know when we start having fun, OK?

A Day In The Life Of ...

Ever wonder what a day in the life of a SAHD WAHD looks like (OK that acronym wasn't funny!)? Well, I thought I would share with you what my day was like today. I'm sure that every stay and home dad and work at home dad has a vast and different experience, but I have always been intrigued, and I though you might be intrigued as well.

So, here's what happened at my house today.

• 7:30 AM - Kids woke up. They are now my alarm clock.
• 8:30 AM - Watched 'Home on The Range' with the kids on DVD. We promised them we would watch it with them last night.
• 10:00 AM - OK, this is when I actually started 'working', if you can really call it that. I have a writing assignment that I started last night, and should finish up today.
• 12:00 Noon - Time for lunch. Spent more time with the kids. Not like they were not here while I was writing, but my wife pretty much kept them occupied so dad could 'work'. Unfortunately, we really don't have a spare room to set up as an office, so the PC is in the corner of the living room. Sure, I can type in the middle of a three ring circus, can't you?
• 1:00 PM - Watched some NASA videos with my son. He is really into the space thing, so this was cool. It is one of my interests as well.
• 3:00 PM - OK, it's back to the grindstone ... well, actually the keyboard. I picked up a second writing assignment, so I can begin working on it as soon as I am done with this one. I missed a tech support assignment on the tech job board ... someone else picked it up while I was offline with the kids. Oh well, life's full of opportunities ... you just have to decide which ones are the most important.
• 5:30 PM - Dinner time. We take time to eat together, although it is usually in front of the boob tube. I guess it's better than nothing, but this is an area I would like to improve on.
• 7:30 PM - Back to the writing gig. The kids are in bed now (their bedtime is 7pm), which allows me much more coherent thoughts when doing creative writing (if it can be called that).
• 9:30 PM - Woo Hoo! I'm finished with my writing assignment for the day. After roughly six hours of work, I've completed 15 keyword articles for submission. I also received payment offers on two exclusive articles I submitted over at Associated Content. This makes the day a productive one.
• 10:00 PM - After a short break, I'm back online, going over my blogs (I currently have 5 semi-active blogs that I am trying to get in shape to qualify for an advertising program). I'm posting, posting, posting, trying to get everything in shape for the advertising market that's out there.

I don't know when I will call it quits tonight, but it will probably be after midnight. I've always said I would rather burn the midnight oil for myself, rather than for someone else. Now is my chance to see just how productive I can be ... for me.

Come back tomorrow, and perhaps we'll have another chance to visit.

Time Flies When You're Freelancing

My, my, my ... how time flies when you are freelancing! It seems like it was just a few days ago when I posted last to the blog here. I'm really going to have to try harder to stay on top of things here.

I don't even know where I've been since we got back from the out of town trip. I've done quite a few articles for pay, including a nice news piece on the flooding in central Texas. I've gone out on another service call since last week, and I've done some independent system consulting as well.

All-in-all it's still a bit slower than I would like, although I have found another group of online sites to explore and add to my ever-expanding plethora of work-at-home freelancing sites. Most of these center around writing, as I like to write.

Scheduling is still an issue. I have yet (even after almost a month now) to nail down a good working schedule that I can keep on a consistent basis. If only I could do that, I feel like I would succeed in becoming a bit more organized with my writing plan. At this point I'm signed up to write for 4 organizations that will actually give you a list of content they are looking for, as well as accept non-solicited articles. In addition, I'm currently surfing the job boards of two bid-for-the-job freelance sites. The problem with these sites is that there is so much competition for these jobs from the overseas markets, that it looks like it is next to impossible for the American writer to make it worth their time, bidding so low that it amounts to less than minimum wage work.

OK, so much for catching up on what's happening since last week. I'll try to be more faithful and post here more often.