Title changed from sugar mama to just plain mama

As many of you know, I have happily worked for a company called TestOut as a a writer and course developer since I graduated from BYU. Because Sam has been in school full-time finishing his masters, I became his sugar mama and worked full-time and my job provided insurance for our family. I really can't toot my own horn too much though, because in addition to Sam's heavy school load, he's always worked 20-40 hours a week at his job, thus allowing us to put money in savings for a downpayment on a house. Together, we have been extremely blessed with wonderful jobs that we love, that have paid us well, and that have always been flexible for our needs.

Few people seem to really know or understand what my job entailed, so I figured I'd explain. Essentially what it comes down to is that there are important IT certification exams (i.e. A+, CISSP, CCNA, Sequel Server, MCSE, Server 2008, etc) that people need to pass in order to prove that they are experienced enough for different types of jobs in IT. TestOut creates software that includes instructor sessions, simulations, demos, and all-inclusive text that provides the information necessary so people can study and pass their IT exams. I was responsible for writing the text that gave a comprehensive outline and explanation of every aspect of the topics covered on the exams. My written work appeared as an accompaniment to each section of the course on the DVD and was frequently offered as a textbook so people could take a hard copy with them to study. I also took on other projects such as editing videos, editing marketing publications, and populating 3D environments for our Crime Scene Investigation product.

Now that I've cleared up just what my job was, I'm sad to say that I will no longer be working for TestOut. It was the best job I could have asked for as a new college graduate and I'm totally bummed to leave it. I'll miss learning new things, being a part of outstanding products, and being with all of my good friends I made there. I anticipated being able to work full-time (half of my day from home, the other half in the office) or at the very least being either part-time or working as a contractor, but none of those arrangements would work for the company well. They either wanted me full-time, 40 hours a week in the office, or they'd have to replace me. My boss really pushed for me to be able to stay in other capacities, but it just wouldnt work well for the company employee policies as a whole.

I don't want to leave, but I really cant bring myself to leave my sweet little Adelaide at home all day with someone else and be working so much that I'd only see her for a few hours before she went to bed. So with my baby girl in mind, I'm quitting TestOut as a full-time employee, and looking for work that I can do from home, though it will be a blow to us financially. I may still be able to be a contract writer for TestOut, but it's not anything I can count on. We have enough money in savings to last us until sam graduates with me not working at all... but it would be cutting things very tight and would also completely deplete our chances of having a downpayment on a house next year.

The silver lining:
Though Sam has been working full-time for the last year+, he didn't have full-time status or benefits through The Generations Network. Lucky for us, when his manager found out that we would soon be without benefits, she pushed hard for him to get promoted to full-time status and we found out yesterday that he's been approved. So knowing that we won't have to go without insurance is WONDERFUL news, we feel very blessed and grateful.

I'm going to take a bit more time just enjoying being here for Addie, but by the end of the summer I definitely hope to have a new job set up that I can do from home.

Just to make this post more aesthetically pleasing, here's a random pic of me and my niece Katelynn at our wedding. She was so cute that day, I doubt anyone was paying attention to me. It totally makes me freak out that that adorable toddler is now nearly 5 and a half.