My Stressful Job

Post contributed by Alfredo Gaines

My job is really stressful. I know everyone says that but it’s like really, really stressful. I love being at work but the hours have just gotten out of control – I’m here for 60 and 70 hours a week sometimes and it leaves little time for me to have a life outside of work.

I tried really hard to be on the kickball team but I kept having to miss games and I try to go to parties when I can but it’s tough. The only thing making me feel like I’m actually connected to the real world is my DIRECTV Award Winning DVR…I just record my favorite shows and watch them when I want, sometimes at 3am when I can’t sleep because I’m up stressing about work.

I know I should get more of a life but I feel like until I get married I may just work as hard as I can. The problem is that I’m never going to get married because I can’t meet anyone with my schedule the way that it is!

Disclosure: This was a paid post.

Sponsored post: Fast Forward Academy

I am a word person. I write, I edit, I proofread. Words. Numbers aren't really my thing at all. In fact, numbers are my husband's specialty, his work, his career. In the decades we've been together, he's supported our family as a bookkeeper, a controller, an accountant. I feel at home with words; he feels at home with numbers.

Which is why it's so odd that I'm the one who does our taxes. Year in, year out, I plug all our numbers into Turbo Tax and either rejoice or cry, depending on the result. I do the same for family members. I never looked to Registered Tax Return Preparer by any means, but I did taxes for my daughters for years. Now that they're out of the house and unafraid to do their own—thanks to Mom's rallying cry of "You can do it!"—the only taxes I do other than mine and my husband's are my younger sister's.

Although I've managed to successfully do taxes for years and years, words are my passion so I won't be seeking out paid jobs for doing it or signing up for tax preparer certification. Maybe my husband will one day, though. Like I said, numbers are his thing.

Disclosure:  This was a paid post.  Links were provided but opinions and anecdotes are my own.

Review: Yum Yum Dishes

A little over a month ago, I received for review some Yum Yum Dishes. They may sound like whimsical little containers of goodies, but Yum Yum Dishes aren't that at all. In fact, they're empty dishes. But goodies are the focus of the Yum Yum Dishes as their purpose is to help learn portion control when gobbling snacks and sweets and more.

I received for review the 4-ounce Yum Yum Dish bowl with plastic lid and the 9-inch Yum Yum Dish dinner plate. Both are ceramic and safe for the microwave, oven, and dishwasher. And they are indeed whimsical, painted in cheery colors and emblazoned with "Yum Yum time is..." on the rim and "over" at the bottom (for the bowl; the entire phrase is in the center of the dinner plate).

The Yum Yum bowl is perfect for keeping snack portions to a reasonable size. It's the ideal size for ice cream and such, but filling it with M&Ms is probably not what the makers had in mind. Same with peanuts, I think. But in using it for chips—my favorite kind of snack—just a few fit in the bowl, which made me consciously aware of how many chips make up a true serving, how many I should (or should not) be eating. Now, even if not using the Yum Yum Dish, I consider the size of my snacking portions.

The Yum Yum dinner plate is marked with portion sizes as they should be for a meal: half the plate is dedicated to "Veggies" and the other half is evenly divided for "Protein" and "Carbs." The idea that veggies should fill half one's dinner plate is not a new concept to me, but the Yum Yum plate was a good reminder. And a reminder to use only a quarter of the plate for carbs—which I'm really bad about doing because I love, love, LOVE carbs. Especially in the form of mashed potatoes. Or macaroni and cheese.

The Yum Yum bowls are perfect for serving snacks to kids, too, so I'll surely have mine on hand when the grandkids visit.

What I love about Yum Yum Dishes: They're cute and serve their purpose. Even if not used for all snacks or meals, I now keep them—and the proper portion sizes—in mind.

What I don't love so much: The plate seems rather small. But that's just proof that I, like many folks, have lost sight of what a reasonable dinner plate really looks like.

Yum Yum Dishes were created by Tracy Adler, a mom and former restaurant owner. They're sold in prepacked sets of four ($24/set for the bowls; $34/set for the plates) and can be purchased on the Yum Yum Dishes website.

Sponsored post: Mission Tuition

I am a firm believer in a college education. Not because I went to college and think my kids, grandkids, and all progeny going forward should attend my alma mater. No, I believe in a college education because I didn't get one. At least not beyond an Associate's degree.

With our daughters, my husband and I required they attend college for at least their freshman year. If they hated it after that, they could quit. One quit, the other two continued. And the one who quit kicks herself fairly often for making that choice.

A college education is important for reasons that go beyond the academics and the degree received. The social experiences, the friendships made, the expanded horizons are just a few of the perks of attending—and graduating—college.

It's not easy to put kids through college and I wish I'd have known about Mission Tuition—if it was even around then—when planning continued education for my daughters. Through Mission Tuition, parents, grandparents and others can shop online at participating retailers and have rebates deposited directly into an education account for a designated child. The list of retailers includes favorites such as Best Buy, Petco, Overstock and more.

Grandparents who want to help out with a grandchild's college fund might consider the free and simple way of doing just that through Mission Tuition.

Disclosure:  This was a paid post.  Links were provided but opinions and anecdotes are my own.