Back to Work - Is it worth it?

It has been just about three months since I re-entered the work force after a seven year hiatus. Working outside the home is not something I'd thought I'd do for a long time. Working as a waitress is not a job I thought I would ever do again. So, three months later has it been worthwhile?

It was a huge adjustment at first. The first two months I was working a lot, 5 days a week, and my hours varied. It was a big adjustment for me to get things done at home before going to work. It was an adjustment for Tim and the kids to not have me here for dinner and bed times, and it was an adjustment for my parents (mostly my dad) who watched the kids until Tim got home. Adjustment periods are hard and stressful. 

I was actually surprised at how much I didn't mind going to work. As a homeschooling stay at home mom, finding, no making, time for myself just wasn't happening. Working, of course, isn't exactly time to myself, but it is a change of pace from the 24/7 of mommyhood. It is a place where I answer to a name other than Mommy. It is almost refreshing. 

Even so, working five days a week was taking its toll. I had trouble keeping up with things before I went back to work. Being gone five nights didn't help that at all, and made me just plain tired. I have since cut back to three shifts. I work two long shifts on the weekend, and one short shift during the week. That schedule shift has really helped. 

I started working to pay off some debt. How is that working out? 

We are paying off debt. It feels really good. One of the things that concerned me about going back to work was that if I were working and we had more money coming in that we would just spend more. We have enjoyed a couple of small splurges, but the money I earn is specifically earmarked for debt. We make sure it goes to debt by keeping it separate from the rest of our money. 

It maybe sounds a little unsophisticated, but I keep my money in a coffee can. It is  pictured above. I call it my debt can. I put all my tips and all my checks into the can. Tim also sometimes puts extra money he has earned in there. The first priority of the can is student loan debt. When there is enough in there for that,  off to bank we go to deposit it. Then the payment is sent in right away. Money that accumulates in the can for the remainder of the month is deposited and paid onto other debts.  This extra payment is beyond our budget and snowball. It is simply an extra payment to get rid of debt.

Since I began working, we completely caught up on our student loan payments, paid off two credit cards, and are almost caught up on the rental house. I never thought we'd get caught up on the rental house, and was completely ready to let it slide into foreclosure. Now, we are hoping to keep up with it long enough for the market to come up to the point we can actually sell it. (It may be awhile.)

For me, going back to work was a last resort. We had cut and pinched and trimmed the expenses everywhere we could. Still, we were left with a pile of debt we could not keep up with. The only thing left to do was to increase our income. Going back to work has been stressful, but being buried under a heavy mountain of debt was even more stressful. We are adjusting to the schedule change, and I'm enjoying some time out of the house. I even lost ten pounds, but most importantly we are making progress on that mountain of debt. Getting rid of that burden makes any stress or tiredness of working seem very insignificant. My going back to work has definitely been worth it for my family.