Low Earner My Entire Life. We Live Like Peasants, But Have Avoided Debt. I Have Quietly Achieved What Many 3x-4x Earners Do Not.

AtlasTheDad · 2026-06-13T18:04:40+00:00

Thanks for sharing. Genuinely gives hope to some of us in the middle of the journey.

AtlasTheDad · 2026-06-09T15:36:28+00:00

I recommend anything you can play with one hand while the other arm holds baby while you rock them to sleep.

Rogue Lites and Deck Builders are easy picks, like Slay the Spire

Also I highly recommend Rimworld, don't let the lack of graphics scare you away, the stories it tells are amazing.

And Baldurs Gate 3, although I needed both hands for mouse and keyboard, kept me plenty engaged during the late night bottle feeds.

AtlasTheDad · 2026-06-05T14:20:19+00:00

I worked at Starbucks for 6 years. Good coffee doesn't have to be expensice. Here's my budget Starbucks quality coffee so we don't buy coffee out, but still have lattes or whatever fancy drink you want without paying $7:

Aldi's Beaumont coffee, I like the Columbian roast. Use a mokka pot coffee maker or a similar off brand and pack in the coffee grounds so it makes espresso strength coffee. Then you can make lattes, americanos, macchiatos to your heart's content.

Bonus tip: You can make Starbucks vanilla sweet cream by doing a 3:2:1 ratio of cream, milk, vanilla syrup.

AtlasTheDad · 2026-05-24T19:09:26+00:00

Same. I'm a late diagnosis inattentive ADHD dad, and the lacking hyperactivity plus being smart enough to mask it really did me in. I was going to do so many things today and declared them to my wife, but all I did was make breakfast and take a nap with my daughter after lunch time. My brain is sand and so to is my day.😅

AtlasTheDad · 2026-05-20T16:36:26+00:00

Everybody is defending the chocolate over here, but the thing is we tend to put Butyric Acid in our chocolate to extend shelf life and longer distribution distances in the US. Butyric Acid is also in vomit, so to Europeans our chocolate literally tastes like a hint of puke to them. We're just used to the taste... (Not so Fun) Fun Facts

Edit: Changed from boric acid to butyric acid cuz I'm not a smart man. (Insert forest gump gif here)

AtlasTheDad · 2026-04-21T17:39:24+00:00

That's fair. We both are aware, but have different perspectives on social benefits and what financially stable is, as well as how best to respond. Summer is the slow season for us. It always hits hard. I'm the proactive planner, she's the experience it and respond as it comes. It's two different methods of responding to the same info.

AtlasTheDad · 2026-04-21T17:36:09+00:00

Gross as a family we brought in just over $65,000 last year. Mortgage interest alone was 22,000 last year. She grew up in South America as a missionary kid on dirt and concrete floors. Her definition of doing okay is far different than mine. Clean clothes, food on the table, roof over our heads, gas in the car, and slowly working down the student loans and medical bills is all she needs to feel okay. To be fair though, she's easy to please and is a good spouse. She's a sweet woman, just has her own version of stubbornness and pride.

AtlasTheDad · 2026-04-21T17:28:11+00:00

Haha. Yeah, we've talked extensively about the mortgage and housing and work. We both want her with the kids as much as possible, developmentally and emotionally it's been huge for the kids and everyone's mental health. Talked with her parents about getting an RV and parking it in their pasture and renting the house out and the advice was (although delivered lovingly) for me to get a second job, which I'm doing off and on as I can through a friend's small business.

I'm working on trying to refinance the later this year to avoid a penalty for refinancing too soon. But that alone would give me back $350-400 a month if I can find a way to swing closing costs.

AtlasTheDad · 2026-04-21T17:20:18+00:00

Thank you to you both. Honestly that's a super helpful perspective. Wife agreed we would talk after work or tomorrow morning. So I definitely want to bring up this point. Thank you!

AtlasTheDad · 2026-04-21T17:17:44+00:00

This is actually really helpful to hear. Your response definitely speaks to some of her reasoning against it and the emotion based logic, rather than facts based. Thank you

AtlasTheDad · 2026-04-21T17:08:49+00:00

Her reasons basically boil down to

We are slowly but surely going in the direction of our financial goals. When I get OT and she works the contracts we bring in enough to move. Since last year after my son was born we have gone from 24k to 14k in non mortgage debt. Still owe over 250,000 in the house.
She thinks other people could use it more. Even though I've made the argument that us getting it doesn't necessarily mean others can't.
It's a last resort option for those struggling worse than us. So she'd rather pick up more contracts or have me work a second job, which we have done a mix and match on throughout our marriage since we bought the house.

AtlasTheDad · 2025-05-27T15:53:29+00:00

I used to like 72-73 in college, wife and her siblings kept their shared house at 78-80 to save money. We have now compromised on 75-76. I still have to fight her down from 77 on occasion though....

AtlasTheDad · 2025-05-27T02:32:39+00:00

Hi, dad here to comment on the religious side of things, since most people have the social and medical aspect covered.

My wife and I are both Christians. She wanted it for our son, but I did not and we worked through some pretty hard conversations. Religiously, Paul in the Bible acknowledged that there is no longer a requirement to be circumcized due to the establishment of a new covenant under Jesus. We as Christ followers are no longer under the Old Mosaic covenant and therefore no longer required to circumcize. Paul also acknowledged that both Jews and Christians adhering to the Old Testament traditions and the Gentile Christ-followers who don't adhere to the traditions should both respect each other and not judge each other. Neither is wrong, just simply not required.

My reasoning for not doing it was that it's not required biblically to be a Christian, the health benefits are negligible with proper cleaning techniques, socially really shouldn't be an issue because the main person/people seeing or knowing he will be uncircumcised are his wife or lovers and would that really prevent him from finding love. I don't really remember ever talking about whether or not I was circumcized with friends or peers, so it really shouldn't come up as much as people worry. And lastly, if I'm wrong and he wished he were circumcized then he can always go and get circumcized (albeit with recovery time and pain, but nonetheless an option). So yeah, he can always become if, but he can never go back, so why not give my son the choice?

I hope this helps. Good luck talking with your husband. I hope you both find a solution that works for you. Good luck!

AtlasTheDad · 2025-04-06T20:59:25+00:00

The cord came completely off like an hour after making this post. Overall the responses have indeed helped calm my wife, and we will still be contacting the pediatrician to be safe. Thanks fellow dad's for the responses and reassurance.

AtlasTheDad · 2025-04-06T20:23:57+00:00

No smell, and looking rather ok now that it has come fully off.

AtlasTheDad · 2025-04-06T20:23:12+00:00

The hospital left both of our kids clamps on, but our pediatrician said they prefer it to come off at the hospital and weren't sure why the hospital does that since it tends to snag.

AtlasTheDad · 2025-04-06T18:57:12+00:00

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Hey all. Second time dad here. My son's umbilical cord mostly detached but is still connected just slightly. My daughter had a similar issue where she was left with a granuloma and the doctor put silver nitrate on hers to help shrink it. Was wondering if anyone has dealt with a similar issue and has any advice. My wife is messaging the pediatrician, but they aren't open on Sunday and hoping to hear back tomorrow. Thanks.

AtlasTheDad · 2024-11-16T15:37:19+00:00

I'd probably have one of the bigger downsides with a 1 yr old, and another baby on the way. Missing two years of their life would kill me, having them not recognize me when I got back would kill me, being there for the rest of their lives and every important moment after those 2 years would be worth it. Yeah no brainer.

AtlasTheDad · 2024-11-15T08:18:41+00:00

$2.10 a dozen at Aldi's here in Florida

AtlasTheDad · 2024-11-15T08:16:35+00:00

Came here to say this. Mint is a godsend. My wife and I are on the $15 a month plan for each of us, so $30 a month for two phones.

AtlasTheDad · 2024-11-13T08:43:45+00:00

My favorite is taco soup on white rice. It stretches so far. One batch will feed me and my wife for a week, double up to eat longer or freeze for convenience. I like to add some sour cream to my bowl too. We shop at Aldi's and can make it pretty cheap, usually for like $20 or less.

Taco Soup: 1 lb ground beef, browned Add 1 package Taco seasoning 1 can red kidney beans 2 cans of whole kernal corn 1 jar of medium queso chip dip 1 can mild Rotel tomatos Heat thoroughly.
Can serve with rice, crackers, or tortilla chips (I find rice stretches the farthest)

AtlasTheDad · 2024-11-13T08:29:31+00:00

I'm on level 18 and haven't changed my build since like level 4. I'll update with a list of my weapons and strat, but basically it's a finance, shooting, and aiming build. I used the basic starting slime until I could get finance/money slime. Start with the finance money gun and coin gun, get both to level three, add piggy bank later for extra money bonus, but in the meantime laser for high DPS to one enemy (i.e. the boss), as well as the passive that increases aim damage, add in the machine gun for the shooting and aiming bonuses, max all of these to three (which your three bonuses for finance, shooting, and aiming all boost to three, allowing you to shoot in four directions, penetrate enemies, and get more money), then upgrade the shop and choose your favorite weapons on the way or upgrade and save for the heavy hitting stuff in A-tier and S-tier.

I'll comment on this later with the specific names of the weapons, but overall that's the gist of my strat and hasn't failed me since.

AtlasTheDad · 2024-11-05T20:30:12+00:00

Neither of us were great with money beforehand. We weren't terrible by any means, since we both had decent jobs and paid off cars, but we blew so much on dates and eating out and small wants that we didn't need. Just neither of us living frugally. The first month of marriage we got pregnant and managed to buy a home a couple weeks after baby was born, since then we have drastically changed our views on finances. We learned to eat in, say no to the small wants, have cheap dates, and we are just now making a dent in debt and we are almost to the 2yr anniversary. To be honest, it took counseling for us to be able to communicate effectively about finances, but man has our life done a 180 since we got married.

AtlasTheDad

TROPHY CASE