Well, hello.
In case you haven’t noticed I haven’t done an income report on the blog the past few months. Instead, I moved the monthly ones to email. (Join the email list at the bottom of the post if you want to get those.)
I felt like I was being too repetitive each month and decided to switch to quarterly on the blog. This way I could document the things I’m doing and look at my progress (or lack thereof) in three month segments.
So if you’ve been missing my income reports let me getcha caught up!
January – $5,545.04
In January I earned a total of $5,545.04
It broke down like this:
- Freelance Writing and Virtual Assistant Work – $1,200
- Affiliate Income – $1,580.86
- Ad Networks – $2,614.18
- Sponsored Posts – $150
January’s income came in right around the normal mark that I expect. I felt like this was pretty good for January seeing as most of the money was earned in December. (I only report the money I actually receive for the month which is usually earned the prior month.) December is normally one of the slowest months of the year and I didn’t really work when my kids were home on Christmas break so I’m fine with January’s outcome.
In January I did start working ahead on blog posts. I’d get two weeks ahead and then would have a sick kid, fall behind just a little, catch back up, and then have another sick kid.
Lots of sickness passed around during the end of January and beginning of February. Each daughter missed a whole week of school a piece (separate weeks though!) due to sickness.
February – $5,359.11
In February I earned a total of $5,359.11
It broke down like this:
- Freelance Writing and Virtual Assistant Work – $1,200
- Affiliate Income – $1,588.19
- Ad Networks – $2,570.92
- Sponsored Posts – $0
I started working ahead and in my opinion working much smarter in January. Because of this I had *hoped* that February’s income was going to be higher than it ended up being. But it didn’t work out that way.
In February I kept on working ahead on posts (I’m trying to get a couple months ahead before the summer hits) and stayed consistent with email. This alone has been a pretty big win for me!
I also did a heavier promotion of my very favorite blogging course than I normally do with fairly good results.
Even though this happened the last week of February and first week of March I won’t get paid for it until May or June. So I won’t be able to report that income until then!
March – $7,159.04
In March I earned a total of $7,159.04
It broke down like this:
- Freelance Writing and Virtual Assistant Work – $1,200
- Affiliate Income – $3,505.93
- Ad Networks – $2,353.11
- Sponsors – $100
In March I felt like I was getting things done! I was very productive and got even farther ahead on my posts which feels so good. I can’t remember the last time I’ve been this far ahead. (Okay, I’m NEVER usually this far ahead.)
Some of my work from the previous months started paying off and March came in higher than the previous two months. After three months of working harder than I normally do it was nice to see that number bump up a little.
Also in March I experimented with some Facebook and Pinterest ads, neither of which had much benefit. I may use $100 per month or so going forward to run experiments on FB or Pinterest.
Recommended Blogging Tools
If you’re wondering what tools I recommend for blogging, here’s a list:
Domains and Web Hosting –Bluehost. If you’re interested in blogging but haven’t yet started you can get hosting from Bluehost for as little as $2.95 per month PLUS a free domain name when you go through this link which is just for my readers. If you need help getting set up you can find a step by step tutorial here.
Social Media Scheduling – For Pinterest I use Tailwind. I started using this about a year ago with great results. Tailwind is affordable and super easy to use. You can get a free month of Tailwind with this link.
I’m also subscribed to Hootsuite as I used to use this for scheduling my virtual assistant clients Twitter accounts. I still use it for mine. Although, truth be told I don’t really love it and could probably do without.
For Facebook I just use the built in Facebook scheduler.
Bookkeeping – GoDaddy Bookkeeping. I absolutely love this bookkeeping software. You can read my full review here.
Photos – I find a good majority of my photos on Pexels. This site is free with copyright free images. If I can’t find one there I’ll buy an image off of 123rf.com or look for one on Haute Chocolate which I also have a subscription to.
I use PicMonkey to edit all of my photos.
Best Blogging Course – Elite Blog Academy. If you’re looking for the best blogging course I highly recommend Elite Blog Academy. It is expensive but it was what helped me go from a couple thousand dollars per month to at least $5k per month. (Join the waiting list or read my review here.)
What I’ll Be Working on Over the Next Three Months
My main goal over the next month is to get ahead on my posts by two months. (I’m about a month ahead now.)
Do you want to know why???
I’M PREGNANT.
Shew. It feels good to finally announce that.
If you’ve been a long time reader you’ll remember that back in the beginning of 2015 I got remarried. It wasn’t too long after that when I got the itch to have another baby. And since my husband doesn’t have any biological kids of his own, it seemed like an easy decision.
So, we started trying for a baby only to have two miscarriages and one chemical pregnancy – all in a row. We were about to give up when I became pregnant this time around.
Because of all the bad luck we’ve had we didn’t tell anyone about the pregnancy until we were well past the three month mark. And I’ve been super nervous about announcing it but I’m pretty far along now so all should be well…
We’re expecting to add a third baby girl to our family around May 25th! Apparently I’m just meant to be a girl momma.
This pregnancy has lit a fire under me. I’m gonna keep working hard over this month and part of next to get as far ahead as I can. I want to be able to take at least six weeks (mostly) off to be with the new baby and my other kiddos on their summer break.
So there’s my income report and major life announcement all wrapped into one! I hope your past few months have been as good and as exciting as mine.
Now I’m off to work hard and enjoy as much sleep as I possibly can before May hits.
Congratulations, Alexa! Praying all continues to go well for you and baby. I bet your two girls are going to be wonderful big sisters 🙂
Thank you! And yes, they are very excited. They’ve become obsessed with playing with baby dolls since they’ve found out they’re getting a baby sister.
Loving this kind of post, first of all CONGRATS !!!
Thank you 🙂
OMG Congratulations!!!! I am so excited for you!!!! We just had our third baby girl in October and she is such a dream! It’s also been so fun watching my older two become big sisters. I’m so happy for you!!!!
And congrats on the income!! Woot! Isn’t blogging the best?! We can make great money while staying home with our kiddos 🙂
-Sarah http://www.thefrugalmillionaireblog.com
Thank you! And yes I definitely feel lucky to be in a position to stay home and be able to work ahead on things 🙂
Congratulations on your pregnancy!
Thank you!
Congrats Alexa! I’m having #2 in July and the pregnancy has also lit a fire underneath me to get prepped before baby comes. 🙂
Awesome. I actually enjoy this prepping energy I have now!
Congratulations on the awesome income…but more so for the success getting pregnant! I’m so glad that you and your hubby were able to create another little life together 🙂
Thank you!
Congrats
Thank you!
Yayyy! Congratulations, Alexa!! I’m so happy for you and your husband! I know the girls will be wonderful big sisters.
Thanks 😉
OMG!!! Congratulations! I am so happy for you!! My youngest one is going to be 1 year in May.
Wow, that’s crazy. Time goes by SO fast. And thank you 🙂
Congrats on the new addition to your family! What a blessing!
Thank you 🙂
That’s awesome news! Congratulations!
Thank you!
Congrats, Alexa! On the pending arrival, and on the quarterly income. I noticed you hadn’t done an income report in a while. I just signed up to your email to get them monthly again. Yours are always so inspirational!
Thank you 🙂
Congratulations!! I’ve been following your blog for about 4 years, so this is such great news!
Thank you!! And thanks for reading for so long 🙂
Congratulations! Hearing such good news hidden away in an income report was a wonderful surprise! I first found your blog when I was thinking about signing up for EBA (which I did), and came back today because I liked your writing style so much. Looking forward to following your blog.
Thank you, Jennifer!
Congrats on the new addition and on the blog income!
Thank you!
AWWW!!! CONGRATS!! GIRLS ARE THE BEST!
Thanks 🙂 I’m not sure what I’d do if I got a boy. I might be lost !
Congratulations on the new addition to the family and for that awesome income report. Hope to get there some day.
Thanks 🙂 And you can do it!
You are such an inspiration. Congrats on getting married again. You may not have thought that would happen. Congrats on your baby on the way.
I definitely DID NOT think that would ever happen again. It’s funny how quickly things change. And thank you 🙂
Congratulation Alexa, You are a true inspiration to young persons, moms, working home professionals. God bless you with a lot of happiness in your family.
Harry Singh :- http://www.polconline.com
Thanks!
Congrats!! Hope all goes well with you and the baby. And thanks for sharing your excellent income results too!
Thank you!
Congratulations on expanding the family and bringing in some great affiliate income.
Thanks 🙂
Congrats Alexa!!! That’s definitely such good news 🙂 You’re also killing it on the affiliate and blogging income. Keep up the good work!
Thank you!
Congratulations dear! So happy to hear this good news.
Your income report is very inspiring. Great work!!
Thanks !
The income report is wonderful and so encouraging, but it pales in comparison to a new baby! So happy for you!
Thank you 🙂 🙂
Congratulations on a great first quarter, and congratulations on your pregnancy! <3
Thank you!
Congrats!!!!
Congrats! Just learned about your blog! Keep up the good work!