Rocky and Jayne Jones own a little over five acres out in the country near Strawberry Point, Iowa. They rent an extra eight acres across from their farmette. Can someone make a living on thirteen acres – farming? Rocky says that it can be a second income to say the least. Rocky and Jayne have been raising Boer goats for four years now. They bought their first registered Boer goat at a sale in Kalona, Iowa, and have been raising, selling and processing Boer goats ever since. When asked how they became involved with the Boer goats, they say that they wanted something that their kids could show in 4H and FFA that would be easy for them to handle, cheaper to feed and that would be fun. Well, they got all of that and more with raising Boer Goats. Boer goats are a goat that is raised specifically for its meat. Rocky says that when they first started out, that it wasn’t easy. It was hard getting information about the Boer goats from other people, so Jayne started buying books. Rocky says that he doesn’t read that much, but that Jayne reads the books all of the time, and through the knowledge gathered from the books she purchased, they gathered most of their information about the health and upkeep of this particular breed. Rocky says that their goats do very well with a pellet ration from Kent foods which he purchases from Strawberry Grain. He uses an 18% goat developer pellet for the babies and feeds that until weaned. For the does that are drying off, he uses a 14% pellet formula and for all others, he uses a 16% pellet formula. Rocky says that the biggest thing to know in raising Boer goats is their nutrition program, vaccinations, especially CD&T, a good worming program and good veterinarian service.

Besides raising Boer Goats, Rocky and Jayne raise miniature donkeys, have rabbits, a pot bellied pig and a couple of chickens. They have a waiting list for people wanting to purchase their baby miniature donkeys, that foal in the spring.

Both Rocky and Jayne are members of the ABGA which stands for American Boer Goat Association. They are very excited about their extra job and eager to share their success with others. If you or someone you know is interested in the Boer Goat you can visit their website at

Double Jacres

Rocky and Jayne also meet with a group called Goat Farmers of Northeast Iowa. Contact information for that group is Sue Larson at (563)380-0748 or email her at

graymare@acegroup.cc

. Sue is working on the Goat Conference which will be in June.

You can get some speedy training at your local hospital or community college to learn the skills for positions working with elderly or physically challenged individuals as a personal nurse, jobs at convalescent homes or rehabilitation facilities, or your local hospital.

Third Shift Group Home Chaperone

If one spouse is working regular business hours, you can work opposite schedules and take on a third shift job such as adult supervisor at a group home. These jobs are primarily being available during the sleeping hours at a group home while the residents who can be mentally or physically challenged are sleeping.

School Lunch Room Server

Look into part-time jobs with your local school district. If you have a large school system or live close to other cities, you may be able to find jobs on elementary, middle school or high school campuses. These jobs are great if all of your children are attending school. In addition to lunch room jobs, you could also look into para-educator positions working one-on-one with students in the classroom.

Daycare Provider

Check out the rules in your city or town for in-home daycare. You may be able to provide services for two or three children without having to seek licensing or go through an inspection process. You could earn several hundred dollars each week doing exactly what you’d be doing anyway. To find potential clients, talk to people at your church, other moms and friends who are employed who can recommend you to their pregnant friends who may be looking for a provider. You can also consider providing before and after-school care for school-aged children including driving them to school. Most working parents’ schedules don’t match the local school schedule.

Online, Internet-Based Business

Have an idea of a product you could sell online? You could start your own business that would allow you to work hours that your children are sleeping. Come up with a business plan that is flexible on your time, has high profit margins and can generate income even when you’re not awake.

If circumstances demand that a non-working spouse begins to earn an income, these ideas can get you started thinking about all the ways you could work to earn money while continuing to raise your children.

For more information, the following articles may be helpful:

• The Secret to Having a Clean Home Without Really Trying
• Think Wealthy and Be Wealthy: Secrets of the Millionaire Mind by Eker
• Five Ways to Make a Million Without Getting a Second Job

Anne Mathews is pursuing a graduate degree full-time and teaches part-time at a major U.S. university. If you are interested in writing professionally for this site and others, Ms. Mathews would appreciate the referral bonus: http://www.triond.com/rw/39827.