I mentioned in a previous post {click here} that I’ve tried numerous things to earn money from home. Well, I want to share a little or a lot of what I’ve learned with each one of those things. This is my “work-at-home journey”   For some of my mom-friends who want to stay at home too I hope this series will help you find something you can do to help you reach your goal. Maybe it will just get you brainstorming your possibilities

Before the kids came…

I went from working as a Rental Control Coordinator for a national car rental company and an insurance claims company to staying home and selling Pampered Chef. I was preparing to earn money from home before I actually had children.  I got pregnant with my firstborn about 6 months after I started PC. I stopped selling PC maybe 3 mos. or so after getting pregnant. I was so SICK (nauseated). I remember trying to do a show with food and feeling so bad, it was like torture. Nothing like morning-sickness to ruin a job in the food industry

Then, because I have a Bachelor’s Degree I was able to do substitute teaching locally. This paid well-enough and kept me busy but towards the third trimester I had to stop because my blood pressure was going up and soon I had preeclampsia and eventually had to have Brendan about 6 wks early. But subbing can be a good “filler” when you’re in between jobs. I did it years prior when I was in that exact predicament before marriage.

If you have a four-year degree (even if its not in teaching) and you think you’d like to be a substitute teacher you should check with your local board of education and don’t forget about other school jurisdictions that are within a close driving distance for you.  I’ve worked for two different school districts and found the city district seemed to have more work and I think was always hiring subs.

{Side note: From my experience, and I subbed just about anything and everything between preschool and high school, special ed and arts-related- it seems that the lower elementary grades worked me harder, I actually had to teach *gasp! hehe. Middle school was possibly the worst for me when it came to dealing with the kids at that age…and high school might have been the easiest.- Just something to think about!}

So after having to quit the subbing, we moved onto more entrepreneurial types of things… I’ll begin to share in part two!

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Lisa, a multi-tasking/working mama, sells Organo Gold coffee and tea and sent me the Mocha to try.

It was DELISH!

This brand also boasts to be healthier for you because of the Ganoderma Lucidum herb. I didn’t investigate those claims but I know I enjoyed my sample

Would you like to check into this brand of coffee and tea?  Click here to be taken to Lisa’s website, Healthy Drink and More!

I’m in the middle of a summer series promoting other work-at-home and self-employed women. Subscribe here so you don’t miss when those “features” are posted! Oh and there’s so much more going on here at Hall of Fame Moms. Another great reason to subscribe!

I am Marva Morris-Guyton a married mother of 3, an adult stepson, and two daughters.  I am currently an Independent Consultant for PartyLite which is a company that sells candles, candle accessories, spa items and most recently some gourmet food items. I decided to start my business because I needed a supplemental income and did not want to work retail hours to earn an additional $600-800 monthly.  PartyLite allowed me to make my own schedule!

Most recently I have appreciated PartyLite because I was laid off from my full time job and PartyLite has allowed me to keep providing for my family just by increasing the amount of shows I host.  This has meant that my kids can continue in dance classes and my husband did not need to get a second and third job.  I am currently working on building my business by sharing the opportunity with others who also need to earn extra income at their own pace.  PartyLite provides FREE trips which allows me to go places that I normally would not be able to fit in my budget.

I am currently actively recruiting for new consultants in ALL areas. The ABSOLUTE BEST thing about this opportunity is that it is FREE to start!! There are no minimums and no territories! Check out my website www.partylite.biz/growinglites I can also be reached on 609-426-1878 and you can follow me on Twitter under “GROWINGLITES”!  I am looking forward to many more GREAT things with PartyLite and would love the opportunity to share that with others.

You can view pictures at Marva’s website here!

Subscribe here to get Hall of Fame Mom’s updates by email or RSS!  To see the previous featured Work at home moms and self-employed women in this series click here.

When I was pregnant with my first child I desperately wanted to be able to stay home and raise him. I did not want to put him in daycare. I remember scrubbing the tub one day, pregnant, crying about it just between me and God. Joel and I needed two incomes so how were we going to make it happen?

Long story short, I had to quit my job as a substitute teacher due to some high-risk pregnancy complications setting in and I’ve been home ever since!  To see our finances on paper *shudder*, last time I did, I believe showed that our situation was next to “impossible”.  But God has made it possible. Its a financial struggle, but He keeps us floating along.

I became convinced that God is on the side of the mom who wants to stay home with her kids.

Does that mean it works like magic? No. Does that mean every mom who wants this can just quit her job and stay home? No. Single moms,  wives of disabled husbands, and so on will have unique challenges.  But I believe that for mom’s who have a personal relationship with Christ and who desire to be home raising their kids instead of working an outside job that is keeping them from being there for their kids…that God can make it happen for you! He’s doing it for us and I know He is making a way for others.

Now, I’m not God to know what his exact plan for every individual is but I do know that He tells us what His will is in the bible. Its up to us to accept it and believe it and live it. And that requires a good bit of faith! Which the Bible tells us that “without faith, it is impossible to please God”  Hebrews 11:6.

God’s will is stated in scripture for you and I. However, His plan as to how His will will unfold for us as individuals will be different. Same will …different plans.

I do work. I work from home and have been working from home since my oldest (who is 6) was just a baby. I’ve done a number of things to earn a little extra income from home. Such as…

• Selling antiques, old stuff, and clothing on Ebay
  
• Selling the above at a flea market
  
• Selling clothing and misc to  consignment stores
  
• Selling maternity and child items through a twice a year local church sale
  
• Teaching myself how to earn money online by blogging and affiliate marketing
  
• My main source of extra income is doing part-time childcare for other working families.
  
• AND, my husband sells parking and bottled water/or pop during the Pro Football Hall of Fame festivities since we live so close. Which I also blog about. The festival starts in about two or three weeks so you might want to subscribe to my email updates if you’re interested in that.
  

I don’t make a living at what I do it but I do make enough to help with the finances. I have also seen my earnings increase over the years.  And after all, its my husbands God-given responsibility to provide for our family and he does a great job at it…even taking on a second job at times.

But, making the “stay-at-home” thing work goes even deeper than “what can I do to make money”.  I’ve found that part of making this work includes, for me, becoming savvy using coupons and rebate programs and taking advantage of freebies. Now I don’t take advantage of everything that I become aware of but I have learned how to use these to my advantage.

I plan to share some tips on how I went about earning money from the ways I listed above. I hope you will subscribe for my email or RSS updates so you don’t miss that post when it comes up. If you have any work-at-home questions for me please leave a comment and I’ll get back with you. Thanks for reading today!

Don’t forget, I also am featuring a WAHM (work-at-home mom) or Self-Employed Woman each week through the summer. I hope that what they are doing to help their families income might inspire some of you who are looking for opportunities as well

I chose to be a stay-at-home mom while my kids are young. That has meant finding ways to supplement our income. I do what I can.

I’ve sold antiques and used clothing on Ebay; and childrens and maternity items at twice-a-year kids sale locally. My husband and I have sold old books ,etc  at a flea market. We sell parking in front of our home during the Pro Football Hall of Fame Festival. Currently I do part-time childcare from my home as well as everything I have going on with my website.

Actually, my stay-at-home status has given me an opportunity to learn new skills (blogging, wordpress, writing articles,  marketing, etc) without paying to go to school. I’m in the school of “real-life” here

There’s not much glamor in it, but its my life.

What do you do to earn extra income from home? You don’t have to be a blogger or have a website to leave a comment. Anyone can leave one and your email address will not be shared nor will you be added to my newsletter.

Have you noticed how small the job listings have been in the paper? I don’t usually scan them but after some reconsideration of our present economical status at home I did some looking to see whats being offered and there just wasn’t much. But, I did see in the Canton Repository a local business with one or two listings looking for AT HOME WORKERS! Yes, “work from home”. And this is a well known company, recognizable brand.

Keep your eyes open…you just never know!