Thirty~One

Last weekend I signed up to be a consultant with Thirty~One. I'm pretty excited about this new venture. I've really been struggling with finding a way to earn a part time income without having to put Andy in child care and also enjoy what I'm doing. In November I became a full-time stay at home Mom when I was laid off from my job. Before that, I did a combination of working from home, bringing Andy to the office with me when he was younger (he was every one's favorite co-worker!), taking him to a sitter's house in the mornings and for the last few months of work, we had a wonderful sitter come to our house in the afternoons and I was home with him in the mornings.

I love this picture of Andy at work with me! I was so incredibly lucky because I worked for a construction company and they had a separate back building that was mostly used for storage and files, but it also had an un-used office and a bathroom. They moved my phone and computer to the back office and I set up shop in there! It was okay if he cried because no one could hear him! I had a pack n' play for Andy to nap, a swing, a play mat, an exersaucer and even my brother's old mini-fridge to keep my pumped breastmilk! It worked well until he got closer to 6 months old... then it was time to send him to the sitter!

(geesh! Looking at that picture now it's hard to even remember him being so little!)

It's working out well for our family to have me stay home with Andy. There seems to be less stress overall (most days!) But, we have definitely taken a significant financial hit. However, I think that a lot of what I've been feeling has been more than just finance driven. I have been wanting to have an outlet for ME that allows me to earn money and get out of the house. I just feel like it's something that I need.

A few weeks ago my neighbor had a Thirty~One party and I totally fell in love with the products. My first thought was I could totally sell this stuff! I also liked how reasonably priced everything is! So, after much thought and discussion with my husband, I decided to take the plunge. My start up kit arrives on Monday and my first party is on Friday! I'm actually hoping to be able to build my own team and help others be successful as well. I think I will feel like I have a little more balance in my life with this new venture!