A Day in the Life of Sarah Maxwell

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The day starts out at 6 am as the alarm goes off. I take Ellie outside and prepare for Bible time at 6:15.

I recently completed a Bible read through, so I decided to work through some random places. Isaiah is so good! I like to journal my favorite verse, something I learned from Sweet Journey.

I’m done with Bible and prayer at 7, and next up is exercise! Anna plans a great workout complete with dips, pushups, pullups, squat jumps, and other exercises.

This sweet, energetic dog is really cute to stay in that little corner while we workout.

Any morning it’s possible, I try to take Ellie on a walk. This particular morning, the temps are amazing. Like autumn. Think pumpkin, sweaters, and maple syrup candles. Mmmmm.

When I get home, I enter Titus2.com orders in for Mary to pack. This involves putting each customer’s order into QuickBooks and then printing labels. I try to do this right away each morning so they’re ready for her, as she likes to pack them while she’s drinking her breakfast smoothie.

Now, I’m finally ready for the day, and I have a great, homemade mocha to enjoy too.

I do bookkeeping for 4 different companies, and today, I am focusing on one in particular. I work on invoicing and a credit card reconcile.

I love opportunities to enjoy the wonderful weather, and I go outside to say hi to the kiddos Mom is playing with during her scheduled time. They love Ellie!

Ellie is a great work buddy, staying with me most of the time, unless it’s her once-a-day special milk bone treat from Dad. In that case, she hangs around in his office until she gets it.

You never know who might be or not be at lunch. Today’s group is small (Jesse is taking the picture).

We have a new friend. We’ll have to share about him later, but he’s really taken to our family.

More invoicing! Yes, I actually use a ball as a chair. I’ve done so for several years and much prefer it over a regular office chair. It’s very comfortable and easy on one’s back. I really should be writing the Mom’s Corner newsletter to be sent soon, but I don’t get that in.

 

I aim to post at least three blog posts each week. This means that every other day, I’m working on a post. Today, I’m finishing out Colorado. Here’s how I produce a post. I use Adobe Lightroom to organize and work on my pictures. In this instance, I already had the pictures imported and flagged. But in a normal instance, I sort through the pictures, flagging pictures I Iike or rejecting photos I don’t. Next, I apply a filter in Lightroom to only show flagged pictures. I toggle through each one, deciding if I like them all still. Sometimes I have WAY too many photos, so I might ask Anna or Mary to help me narrow them down. After that, I will retouch photos. Generally, I apply a bit of brightness, darken the blacks, and add a little clarity and vibrance.

A peek into my Lightroom setup

Finally, I export the images to a quality that is good for the blog. Then, I upload the pictures. I do the best writing a post in WordPress (our blog interface) itself. Sometimes if I don’t have a good Internet connection, such as in Colorado, I’ll write the post first in Pages. But to be honest, that’s hard. I just don’t think so well unless I’m in my blog interface.

Working on a blog post

Next, I insert pictures where I want them in my post. I’ll preview the post also to check and see how the formatting looks or if I’ve missed something. The featured image (on the header) can be tricky to pick out as it has to be landscape and narrow, but it adds interest to the post.

I finish out the day with family dinner on the back deck, Bible time, a walk, and more blog work!

I hope you enjoyed taking a peek into a day in my life.

Love,
Sarah

“Commit thy way unto the LORD;
trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass.”
Psalm 37:5

43 thoughts on “A Day in the Life of Sarah Maxwell”

  2. Hello! Thank you so much for sharing! I enjoyed reading about the person behind the blog. 🙂 I hop onto here every day, so I very much appreaciate the work you put behind the posts. I wish you a wonderfull day Sarah and wish you all the best.

    With greetings from sunny Germany. 🙂

  6. Hi Sarah, thank you so much for sharing! I didn’t know you were also a bookkeeper. Is this a side business you have started? If so, I would love to hear more about you launching your own business! I work as a bookkeeper for my church and find it very rewarding.

    1. I enjoy bookkeeping (well, not to the level of CPA work!), and I’ve been doing it for many years. I do the work as an employee, so it’s not an actual side business.

  7. Sarah, you use your time so well. You are a great role model. I didn’t realize that much went into making a blog post!
    Your morning is very similar to mine.
    Is the cat yours? It’s SO cute!

    1. The cat just showed up one day and seems to like to be around people. We hadn’t seen him in the neighborhood before. There are other cats who cross our back and front yards, but they have homes and aren’t interested in stopping here. When this little guy seemed hungry, we fed him, and he scarfed it up. So for now, he hangs around, and we are enjoying him.

  8. Thanks for sharing your day with us! You sure keep busy! Do you all ever play games after dinner? We have game night every now and then and it’s a big hit here! Settlers of Catan is our favorite. I love to do Bible journaling and often spend time doing that before the family gets up for the day. I enjoyed this post!

  10. Loved this post and love your blog! You are doing an awesome job and your posts always add some sunshine to my day. 🙂 What is your recipe for the homemade mocha?

  11. Thank you, Sarah! That was a fascinating “look” into your (very full and varied) day! 🙂 I wonder if you might some time write a post about the resources you utilized to learn bookkeeping? I imagine I’m not the only blog reader who would find that so interesting and useful in my home schooling curriculum planning. Thank you again! Sharing these “day in the life” blog posts is both fun AND inspiring. Much appreciated!

  13. Love your chair!! I have one to sit on as well. Sure helps the back!
    Is the Maxwell house big enough for everyone to have their own office space or do some share spaces?
    Is that Calia having lunch with you all?

    Thanks for the “day in the life” of Sarah post.

    Blessings,
    Johnna

    1. Yes, that’s Calia having lunch with us while Daddy and Mommy are on an anniversary date. Steve has his own office. I have my computer desk in our bedroom. Sarah’s is in the basement, while Jesse, Anna, and Mary are all share office space.

  15. I have really enjoyed reading the posts you do about each of you girls’ day! And can’t wait to hear more about your new cat friend, too. (:

  16. Thank you for sharing this! So interesting. I have often wondered how all of you work from home – what are your different jobs? Especially the girls. Have you written anything about careers that girls can have in the home? I’d love to hear about that.

  19. I always enjoy reading the blog and seeing Ellie too! It was great to meet and see you at Family Camp this past week!

  20. Love this post! Thanks for sharing about your day. You have a good balance worked out – spiritual nourishment, physical exercise, mental stimulation, and time to enjoy family relationships. It is so encouraging to hear about someone else’s home-based lifestyle.

  22. Hi Sarah,
    Really enjoyed reading about your day and the other blog posts, we have just been on holiday to Wales for six days had poor internet connection so it is nice to catch up.
    Had a lovely time, Wales is really beautiful and like you we did some mountain climbing but not quite as adventurous with our little ones!
    Children all really enjoyed having some fun family time.
    Sending our love to you all,
    God bless,
    xxxx

    1. That sounds SO delightful and amazing! Not having good internet connection actually allows for more family time I’ve found :). Sounds so gorgeous! I’ll e-mail you for some pictures :).

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