Articles written by Melissa Avery

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About me - Melissa Avery

I am 41 years old and I live south of Atlanta, Ga. I have a Bachelors Degree in English and plenty of life experiences to draw from. My most recent years have been taken up trying to raise three children while living with Fibromyalgia. Not easy when your husband

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Parenting & Pregnancy > Working Parents Stay at home vs. working moms: Why the debate is irrelevant: 2 of 34
The argument of stay at home moms vs. working moms is irrelevant because there shouldn't even be a distinction between the two. Both are working moms, the only difference is that one works at home for no paycheck and the other works outside of the home and earns an individual income. Both work their tails off to provide for... More..
Home & Garden > Furniture Furnishing a house on a budget: 2 of 24
My family is house rich and money poor. Buying our first home was a great achievement for me, as I have never owned one before. Now the challenge is furnishing our home as inexpensively as possible in order to have money left over for other things like, say, food, electricity, gas and the like. Fortunately, I have a solid... More..
Pets & Animals > Animal Rescue & Adoption Do rescued animals make good pets?: 17 of 105
Shelter animals make wonderful pets. I have never had a dog that wasn't adopted from a shelter. My earliest memories include a Pomeranian named Nuisance that my parents adopted right before I was born. That dog was a sight to behold! Red and white coloring made him look like a fox and he had an attitude to back it up. My dad ... More..
Creative Writing > Memoirs Testimonies: Living with Fibromyalgia: 7 of 39
It started in my mid - twenties with a persistent, agonizing pain under my left shoulder blade. Following that were bouts of severe fatigue and depression that eventually led to me losing my job. During these bouts I would become disoriented, unable to focus long enough to make it to job sites, and find myself back at home ... More..
Health & Fitness > Depression What thoughts run through your mind when you are depressed?: 13 of 47
I have never been a bubbly, happy person. I have certainly wished to be and have tried to be, but I'm just not that way. I've always thought too hard and been too critical of myself. Nothing is ever good enough and if someone else points out my mistakes it only serves to confirm my own thoughts of falling short. Most d... More..
Home & Garden > Home Interior Home decoration on a budget: 8 of 26
Redecorating on a budget sounds all good, but realistically it takes time, patience and knowing what you want. Sometimes these things are harder to come by than you would think. The phone rings, the kids scream or the dishwasher explodes all over the floor. Despite all of these issues, it is possible to make improvements i... More..
Celebrations & Holidays > Wedding Budget Tips for a great but low budget wedding: 10 of 32
I got married on a yacht in the San Diego Harbor at sunset. We had about 100 people at our dinner cruise reception and the DJ was great. We paid less than $3000.00 and that includes two hotel rooms, the wedding on the yacht and airfare from Denver to San Diego. It is entirely possible to have a beautiful wedding on a budg... More..
Society & Lifestyle > Racism Reverse racism: The other face (of discrimination): 13 of 40
As far as I know, I am White. I was raised poor White, sometimes in a trailer park, in the South. Based on the horrific stories of racism in the South, one might think that the only discriminatory acts I witnessed were against minorities. Not true. When I was in Junior High School, or Middle School as it's known now, ... More..
Parenting & Pregnancy > Children's Activities (Other) Ways to entertain your toddler on a budget: 13 of 37
I am a mother of three and I can say that keeping a toddler entertained on a budget is a lot simpler than it is for my twelve year old. I miss the days when she was as easily, and cheaply, entertained my two younger ones. Over the years I have utilized things I did as a child and some things I picked up along the way. As a v... More..
Relationships & Family > Marital Conflicts When your spouse is in the military: 14 of 32
In 2003 my husband received orders to Fort Carson, Colorado and in March we packed up the house, the daughter and the dog and headed out. At the time, I was 8 months pregnant with my son and, needless to say, that was a very miserable trip; but the Army waits for no baby when it's time to report in. Not to mention I had to l... More..