When we published our 50th edition of Home Economics earlier this spring, I sent a mass email to all the women who had previously shared their stories and asked for updates. I also casually asked if anyone would be interested in doing a second edition of Home Economics so readers could see how things changed over the course of a year or more.
Lindsey Stanberry
Today, I’m excited to publish our first follow-up edition. Last time we heard from today’s writer (Home Economics No. 20), in January 2025, she had recently started a job with a $300,000 salary and a $300,000 annual bonus. She and her husband had been spending close to $6,000 a month on child care for their two small kids. And the family was preparing to move from the Bay Area to Reno, Nevada, to experiment with intergenerational living in a more affordable city.
It’s pretty incredible how much can change in 18 months—both good and bad. As you’ll read in today’s entry, she lost her high-paying job in January 2026 and is now struggling to find another comparable role and salary with an employer that still allows remote work. On the bright side, her child care costs have dropped dramatically, and, as you’ll see, her 401(k) and investment accounts grew significantly, as she and her husband were able to save considerable amounts over the last year.
Lindsey Stanberry
Even as we were going back and forth this week with edits, more news came in that changed this family’s financial picture. “Life comes at you pretty fast,” she joked in the comments, a nice nod to Ferris Bueller. And it really does. All we can do is try our best to save during the good days and remember in our lowest moments that we don’t really know what tomorrow holds.
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Age: 40
Location: Reno, Nevada
Relationship status: Married
Age of partner: 41
About me: I’m an ambitious mom living in Reno, Nevada. I have two kids—four and six years old—and I have been married to my husband for nine years. We have an intergenerational setup and live in my dad’s house. My dad is 78 years old. There’s a lot of caretaking around these parts! 😂
I’ve been playing on the corporate jungle gym for most of my career and have been fortunate to have high-paying roles in the past, but I got laid off in January and am now looking for work. We moved to Reno from the SF Bay Area in 2024, and at the time, my husband decided to take a career break as a stay-at-home dad. Now, the race is on to see who can get a job with benefits faster—we have COBRA health coverage through June thanks to my old employer. This job market is tough and has been discouraging at times for both of us.
Income:
- Your job title/salary: Freelance while I look for a full-time role. I have two part-time clients that pay a combined $8,500 per month. I signed one in April, so I will start billing at the full rate in May. I’ve been earning $6,000 from the first client. Both are month-to-month arrangements.
- Partner’s job title/salary: After I initially filled out this form, my husband landed a new job and is starting on June 1. He will earn $60,000 per year. It’s a lower salary and title than he was hoping for, but it’s with a growing company where he hopes to be able to progress his career. It also solves our health insurance problem.
- Your monthly take-home pay (paycheck amount after taxes and other deductions): This is a hard question to answer. I got my severance payout in January, which was about 14 weeks of pay plus COBRA coverage through June. I put $25,000 in our checking account with a goal that we live off of that until June. The rest went into savings. I’m also bringing in money from the freelance gigs, but that fluctuates.
- Partner’s monthly take-home pay (paycheck amount after taxes and other deductions): $0. But that will change once he starts his new job in June.
- Total monthly income: Variable right now, but I try to budget for us living on around $10,000 a month.
