other things, but teh rewards are already starting to show. We made or first mortgage payments without tapping into our savings. Things may finally be turning around, and hopefully we can build a savings that can be left for emergencies and such.

The downsides include first and foremost, a severe cut in time spent with the family, especially the kids. Even the 3.5 year old asks for me more often. Three days of the week I'm leaving for work no later than 7 am m(that's if we're not starting at 5:30) and getting home after 10 pm. The other four days are "short" little 8 hour shifts.

Hopefully I can maintain this for sometime. Once I drop anymore hours at my first job (now considered my second job), I lose the benefits there. The benefits at the new job aren't as good and we need the better of the two.