I just had to post. This is what an almost 2 year old looks like, when you let him watch Despicable Me for the 3rd time in one day!! I just love this smile more than anything in the world!!
Month: January 2012
How Much is A Homemaker Worth??
I have found that since joining the club of the Stay at Home Mommy, my day seems longer. Busier. Well duh, that much is obvious. I have a toddler at my feet, or in my lap at all times. Cooking, cleaning, laundry, watching t.v, and as I’m typing this post now…here he is. Right square in the middle of me.
My day is not just busier because of Sgt. Stinky, but now I have way more to get done in a day than I ever did. Man, I used to think that going to work for 8-9 hours and sitting in front of a computer, making phone calls was rough. HAH!
Lets examine a homemakers daily tasks, and what those would cost to hire someone…shall we!!
Private Chef
Meal preparation is a major task of any homemaker. Breakfast, lunch, dinner and all in between. There is plenty of cooking and meal planning to be done. The American Personal Chef Association reports that its personal chefs make $200 to $500 a day. Grocery shopping must also be factored in. A homemaker must drive to the supermarket, purchase the food and deliver it to the home. Grocery delivery services often charge a minimum fee of $5 to $10.
Total cost for services: $1,005 per five-day work week x 52 weeks = $52,260 per year.
House Cleaner
Everyone loves a clean house!! This not only makes for an efficient household, but it just makes ya feel good!! Typical cleaning duties include vacuuming, dusting, sweeping, scrubbing sinks as well as loading the dishwasher and making beds. Professional maid services will charge either by the room, square footage, or by the hour. For example, bi-weekly cleaning of a 900-square-foot, two-bedroom apartment with five rooms, costs $59-$124 . A 1,300 square-foot, single-story home with seven rooms runs $79-$150 . A 2,200 two-story, three-bedroom home with nine rooms averages $104-$180 . In addition, tasks such as oven or refrigerator cleaning and dusting mini blinds can run an extra $20-$25.
Total cost for services: $118 per week X 52 Weeks = $6,136 per year
Child Care
We all know daycare is EXPENSIVE!! This is one of the main reasons I have stayed home. It wouldn’t make sense to go back to work when almost half of what I make is going to pay for daycare. Homemakers provide Full-time, live in care. This type of service from a Nanny Agency is costly. It also comes along with a host of perks for the Nanny, such as health care, paid vacation, sick days, federal holidays off, dental and vision coverage, and sometimes..bonuses. Wow. The International Nanny Association’s 2011 survey found that nannies make $600 to $950 per week in gross wages, on average.
Total cost for services: $600 a week plus perks/benefits x 52 Weeks = $31,200 per year.
Personal Driver
A private car service might seem like a high-end luxury to most, but the beneficiaries of a homemaker get this service on a daily basis. Companies like Red Cap, which provide personal drivers that use the client’s own car as the means of transportation, offer a glimpse into the cost of this homemaker task. An elite membership which includes 365 days of unlimited, round-trip service is $1,000 a year plus 33 cents – $2.03 per minute.
Total cost for services: $1,000 per year + [(estimated miles driven 8000 miles / 50 MPH) x 60 min/hr x $0.33 per minute] = $4,168 total per year.
Laundry Service
While homemakers launder your clothes for free, this task comes at a cost when using a laundry service. Professional laundry services charge by the pound. For example Susie’s Suds Home Laundry Service, Inc. in Texas charges 90 cents to $1.00 a pound to wash, dry, fold, hang and steam your clothes. Items that take longer to dry such as comforters, blankets, rugs and winter clothes are assessed at a price of $12-$15 each.
Total cost for services: $0.90 per pound x 4 pounds of clothes per day x 5 days per weeks x 52 weeks = $936 total per year.
Lawn Maintenance
Basic maintenance of the exterior property is a less common, but still possible duty of a homemaker. This could include things like mowing, debris removal, edging and trimming the lawn. These services cost about $30 a week on average.
Total cost for services: $30 per week x 52 weeks = $1,560 total per year
So what does all this mean?? The total for all services for a year of work is $91,261.00. This tells me that we are all wayyyyyy underpaid!
The duties of a full-time homemaker are far too often, taken for granted by their family. However, if that person were to take their skills out into the job market, they could earn a considerable wage. Homemakers contribute way more than just these few tasks. The love that they bring to the home is priceless, and for sure couldn’t be done without.
“Sweet Red” Spaghetti Sauce Review and Giveaway!!
Seriously, so yummy!!!!!!
So the sauce turned out awesome!! The house smells amazing too. Seriously, I wish you could smell through your computer. Yummmm!! Using the Sweet Red was a great choice. The flavors in the wine, once cooked down go really well with the heartiness of the sauce. I won’t be using Sangria anymore…Sweet Red from now on, it is! I tried a glass too, as I was cooking, and I will definitely be buying a bottle of my own. So good!!
One lucky reader will have the chance to win their very own bottle of Flipflop Sweet Red!!
Want to win??
Ways you can Enter:
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Remember to leave a comment including your e-mail address below. Make sure to leave one comment for EACH ENTRY. The contest will close February 12, 2012 at NOON CST. Winner will be chosen using Random.org , notified by e-mail, and announced Monday February 13, 2012. The winner has 48 hours to respond, or a new winner will be chosen.
**Disclosure: I received two bottles of Flipflop Sweet Red Wine to review. No other monetary compensation was made. All opinions are 100% my own**
“Sweet Red” Spaghetti Sauce
My husband loves spaghetti. Like LOVES it. His mom always made her sauce from scratch, and what is different about her recipe (and what I like the most!) she uses an entire bottle of Sangria.
I was lucky enough to have Flipflop Wines send me two bottles of their Sweet Red wine. I am going to use the whole bottle(minus a glass..ya know for the cook!) in place of the Sangria. Then tonight I will post pictures and open up entry for the Giveaway!! One lucky reader will win their very own bottle of Sweet Red!!
So here is the recipe, and I am getting started on my batch in about 30 minutes. That way it has plenty of time to simmer on low before the hubby gets home.
“Sweet Red” Spaghetti Sauce
You will need:
- 1.5-2 pounds ground beef
- 1 Bottle of Flipflop Sweet Red Wine
- 1 sm. can tomato paste
- 1 lg. can crushed tomatoes
- 1 blue tray of sliced mushrooms
- 1 med. onion, diced
- 1 clove garlic (about 5 heads) smashed. You can totally adjust the garlic, depending on how much you like it.
- 1 stick of butter
In a large sauce pot, season ground beef with salt and pepper, and brown thoroughly. Once cooked, drain and add your can of tomato paste, crushed tomatoes, and bottle of Sweet Red wine. Mix thoroughly, and simmer for at least an hour. Checking and stirring the sauce every 20 minutes or so. I usually keep my sauce on a medium-low heat for about an hour and a half, until it reaches the thicker consistency that we like!
After you have the sauce started, in a separate pan melt 1 stick of butter and saute your sliced mushrooms, crushed garlic, and diced onion. When the onions have turned opaque, add it to your sauce and stir thoroughly. The longer you let it cook, and the lower the heat, the better it will become!!
I can’t wait to see how this turns out!!
Spaghetti Squash Lasagna From Lori!
So as promised here is a guest post from Lori at My Kinda Rain. She sent over an awesome Spaghetti Squash Lasagna Recipe. I can’t wait to try this one out.
Thanks so much Lori!!
I have never been a really big meat eater.
I LOVE veggies.
LOVE.
In a effort to get my family on board with eating less meat I had to be creative and I had to research ways to get them to eat just about anything.
We love Italian food. Lots of pasta, sauce, and meat.
Not always a healthy option.
I found a great recipe online and thought I would try it out on my family. The kids were hesitant and only ate a bite or two but my husband and I loved it! It is now one of my favorite meatless dishes. Very comforting and delicious!
Spaghetti Squash Lasagna
Skinnytaste.com- my changes are in italics
Servings: 4 • Serving Size: 1 lasagna • Old Points: 6 pts • Points+: 7 pts
Calories: 291.0 • Fat: 13.7 g • Protein: 19.6 g • Carb: 21.0 g • Fiber: 2.7 g
Sodium: 358.3 mg
Ingredients:
- 2 cups marinara sauce- I make my own so I can control ingredients.
- 3 cups cooked roasted spaghetti squash
- 1 cup part skim ricotta
- 8 tsp parmesan cheese
- 6 oz part skim shredded mozzarella I used Weight Watcher Shredded Cheese
Directions:
See instructions on how to roasted spaghetti squash here.
Preheat oven to 375°.
In four individual 5 x 7-inch oven safe baking dishes, ladle 1/4 cup quick marinara sauce on the bottom of each dish. Top each with 3/4 cup of cooked spaghetti squash and spread evenly. Top each with 1/4 cup ricotta. Sprinkle 1 teaspoon of grated parmesan cheese and .75 oz mozzarella on each. Add the remaining sauce, parmesan and mozzarella cheese. Cover with foil and bake for 15 – 20 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and the edges begin to bubble; uncover and cook an additional 5 minutes.
Add a nice salad to this meal and it is complete and healthy!
Enjoy!
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