by Hope
On February 23, 2024, it will be an entire year since I had a full time job. And over a year and a half since I had a full time job with benefits.
I walked into work on January 9th ready to go heads down on tax work and anticipated getting fully caught up over the next couple of months.
And then the other shoe dropped. My boss let me go.

Her reasoning was that she was cutting down her accounting practice so she could handle it independently and she was no longer going to need me. She was kind enough to give me 2 months severance. But all my thoughts of catching up, out the door with no notice whatsoever.
I was shook again!
And with that, it has now been an entire year that I have less than full time income. A whole year of not having enough money to even cover my basic bills.
Holding My Breathe
I had a whole slew of posts planned talking about how my No Spend Month was going and what debts I was going to pay with the extra income I was making…But all I could do was turn inward again and start holding my breathe. I had literally just caught up. I came into the year so full of hope.
And then the cycle started all over again. I mean, seriously, how many times do I have to go through this. And why me?
And while I do not tend to be superstitious, I have definitely found that the hard things do come in three’s. First my heat went out, then I lost my job…
And within a couple of days, my glasses broke. Just fell to pieces. And no, I cannot function without them. I literally cannot see. It was a rough week.
Typical me, I turned inward and went silent. Licking my wounds and trying to figure out the reasoning behind this.

Hope is a resourceful, solutions-driven online business manager with over two decades of experience helping clients streamline operations, manage projects, and grow their businesses through digital marketing and technology.
But life has a way of rewriting your plans.
A year ago, Hope made the decision to move in with her aging parents full time – a season she wouldn’t trade, even as it came with its own financial and emotional weight. Earlier this year, she lost her mother, and is now walking the tender, disorienting path of grief while learning what “forward” looks like from here.
Hope came to the Blogging Away Debt community in 2015 as a single mom raising five foster and adoptive children. She’s written through job changes, financial setbacks, and the bittersweet transition to an empty nest. Her kids are finding their footing in the world now – and so is she.
Rooted in faith and fueled by the same perseverance she’s brought to every hard season, Hope is ready to face her finances with fresh eyes and an honest pen. She believes that clarity, courage, and community can change the trajectory of anyone’s story including her own.
She lives in Austin, TX with her dad, loves adventures with her dog Addie, and is figuring out, one step at a time, what this next chapter is meant to be.
