Bookkeeping by Alli, LLC

Bookkeeping by Alli, LLC I help business owners reclaim time and increase profits through accurate and timely financial data. Contact me for a free review of your books!

Spend more time building your business or enjoying life by hiring a bookkeeper. With accurate financial data, you can make sensible decisions and see at a glance where your money is going and where you may be leaving money on the table. But bookkeeping is its own skillset, and not one that is every business owner’s greatest strength. If you already work in QuickBooks Online, I can clean up your bo

oks and ensure you are current and ready for the year ahead. If you're new to QuickBooks Online, I can get you all set up so we can get to categorizing. In all cases, I provide ongoing monthly financial reporting so you always have a current picture of the financial health of your business. A good bookkeeper saves you an average of 10 hours per month. That's 120 hours per year to put toward what matters most to you – whether that’s growing your business or spending more time with your family. Entrusting your bookkeeping to me can help you realize the following benefits:

- Have all transactions categorized so you can see exactly where your business is most profitable, where there is room for growth, and where your money is going each month;
- Receive monthly reports so you can make sound, timely decisions based on current data for your business;
- Have a clean set of books to give to your tax preparer, which can help you realize tax savings;
- Avoid late fees and penalties for missed deadlines;
- Manage payroll with ease, knowing that an expert is ensuring proper calculations of wages and deductions. I began my professional career as an office assistant at an estate planning law office, doing bookkeeping, payroll, and client services, before taking an administrative role at the University of Iowa. After 13 years as a department administrator, I decided to return to bookkeeping to use my skills in a different way while gaining more flexibility to spend time with my husband and three children. I would be thrilled to apply my love of organizing and categorizing to your financial data so you can focus your time and energy where it matters most to you. Contact me now for a free evaluation of your books!

08/25/2026

A bookkeeping mystery turned into an unexpected side quest this week. 🐉🗡️

The original mission: figure out why a Square clearing account had a suspiciously large balance.

Simple enough, right?

I started digging. I traced deposits, reviewed transactions, and pulled Square Sales Summary reports to compare everything against the journal entries I had recorded.

And then…

🎵 Dun dun dun… 🎵

The side quest appeared.

The historical Square journal entries didn’t seem to match the freshly pulled reports. Cue the moment every bookkeeper knows:

“Wait. Did I mess something up?” 😳

So I did what bookkeepers do best: followed the trail.

And the culprit was something I absolutely did not expect…

My computer’s time zone. 🤦‍♀️

Since moving to Georgia, my computer had switched from Central Time to my local time zone. Apparently, even computers need a little “where in the world are we?” adjustment when you move across an ocean.

Once I fixed that, the reports lined up again. The side quest actually proved that the journal entries were correct!

Back to the original mission: the large clearing account balance was caused by a few deposits that had accidentally been categorized directly to income instead of flowing through Square clearing.

Mystery solved. Books cleaned up. Detective hat retired… until the next accounting adventure. 🕵️‍♀️

This is one of the reasons I love bookkeeping. It’s not just entering numbers — it’s investigating, asking questions, and figuring out what the numbers are trying to tell you.

(And yes, sometimes the answer is “check your computer settings.” 😂)

08/19/2026

A conversation with a client has been on my mind lately.

We're working through a pretty complicated bookkeeping cleanup together, and I joked, "Don't worry—we're making good progress. Pretty soon we'll be in maintenance mode, and you won't have to dread my phone calls anymore."

He laughed and said,

"I only dread your phone calls because this stuff makes me feel so stupid."

I don't think he realized how much that sentence stuck with me.

Because here's the thing...

I've never once looked at a client's books and thought, "Wow, this person is dumb."

What I usually see is someone who's been busy running a business.

Someone who's been taking care of customers, managing employees, solving problems, putting out fires, and trying to keep everything moving.

Bookkeeping is just one of the many hats a business owner wears.

Some people enjoy it.

Some people tolerate it.

And some people's talents simply lie elsewhere.

That's okay.

I don't know how to repair a furnace or rewire a house. I don't know how to design a logo or build a website. I happily call someone whose talents lie in those areas.

Bookkeeping happens to be one of my talents.

So if your books have gotten behind or become more complicated than you expected, please don't let embarrassment keep you from asking for help.

My goal isn't to make anyone feel bad about where they are.

It's to help them get to a place where they can stop worrying about it.

And honestly, that's one of my favorite parts of this job.

08/12/2026

Confession:

I'm a bookkeeper who never really liked math. 😄

Growing up, my favorite subjects were English literature and foreign languages. I was the kid who wanted to read novels and figure out grammar rules in a new language.

So how did I end up becoming a bookkeeper?

It took me a long time to realize that what I love isn't numbers.

It's patterns.

That's what fascinated me about languages. At first they seem full of random rules, but eventually you realize there's a beautiful logic underneath. Once you see the pattern, everything starts to make sense.

I loved the same thing about literature—seeing themes emerge and making connections that weren't obvious at first.

Bookkeeping turns out to be exactly the same.

When an account doesn't reconcile or a balance sheet looks strange, I don't see a bunch of numbers.

I see a puzzle.

There's a reason the numbers don't make sense. There's a pattern hiding underneath them, and I genuinely enjoy finding it.

Once you understand the pattern, the numbers tell the story of the business.

So no, I don't actually love numbers.

I love bringing order to chaos.

The numbers are just the language.

First day working in Georgia! The kitchen table is a temporary work area, as we’re still working out a few kinks with th...
08/04/2026

First day working in Georgia! The kitchen table is a temporary work area, as we’re still working out a few kinks with the WiFi to get it to catch reliably in my office space down the hall. Happy that all other tech seems to be working as expected and it’s business as usual for my clients.

Do I look a little jet lagged still? 🤪

07/28/2026

One of the fun challenges of growing my bookkeeping business is discovering that every time I figure out a system...I eventually outgrow it. 😄

When I first started, I only had a few clients. I assigned each one a day of the week, and it worked perfectly.

Now that I have more clients, I've realized my brain gets tired from constantly jumping between different businesses and different kinds of work all day long.

So I'm trying something new.

Instead of giving each client a specific day, I'm giving each type of work a day.

One day for processing transactions.
One day for reconciliations.
One day for meetings.
One day for marketing and learning.

I'm hoping it means less time switching gears and more time doing deep, focused work for my clients.

It's funny how growing a business isn't just about getting more clients. It's also about letting go of systems that worked yesterday so you can build better ones for tomorrow.

I'm still experimenting, but that's part of the adventure.

For my fellow small business owners: what's one system you've changed as your business has grown?

We're moving to Batumi this month.Actually, in about a week.😳One thing I've learned during this process is that finding ...
07/21/2026

We're moving to Batumi this month.

Actually, in about a week.

😳

One thing I've learned during this process is that finding housing in Batumi is very different from finding housing in Iowa City.

In Iowa City, especially with the university, you sign leases months in advance. People are often locking in August housing in February or March. It's predictable, organized, and makes the planner in me very happy.

Batumi works differently.

Most apartments are rented to whoever is ready right now. There isn't much incentive for owners to hold a unit for someone arriving months later, especially with summer tourism driving up demand and prices.

So instead of securing housing early, we had to wait.

And watch.

And trust that something would work out.

Not exactly my favorite approach.

Then something unexpected happened.

The owner of an apartment we'd been watching turned out to have gone to school with my late father-in-law, Basa. Because of that connection—and in fond remembrance of him—he agreed to sign a lease with us back in April and hold it until our arrival in July.

It's an arrangement that is unusual in Batumi, and we're incredibly grateful for it.

The whole experience has reminded me that what feels "normal" is often just local custom. Things can work very differently in different places, and sometimes you have to let go of the idea that there's only one right way to do things.

As we've prepared for this move, I've also been thinking about uncertainty in general.

You can't control every timeline. Plans change. Opportunities appear unexpectedly. Sometimes the best thing you can do is prepare well and trust the process.

That's true in life, and it's true in business.

The difference is that while some uncertainty is unavoidable, your finances shouldn't be a source of additional stress. Good bookkeeping can't eliminate surprises, but it can give you confidence that you know where you stand no matter what comes next.

For now, though, I'm mostly focused on packing boxes and preparing for a big adventure.

Batumi, here we come. ✈️

07/15/2026

This is something I see all the time with small business owners.

Your bank balance feels like the quickest way to check in on your business… but it’s also one of the most misleading.

I’ve worked with so many people who thought they were doing great—until we looked a little deeper and uncovered unpaid bills, inconsistent cash flow, or profits that weren’t nearly what they expected.

A bank balance is just a snapshot.

It doesn’t tell you what’s coming next—or what’s already been committed.

Real clarity comes from understanding:
• What you’ve actually earned
• What you’ve actually spent
• What’s still owed (in both directions)
• And what your numbers are trending toward

That’s where solid bookkeeping makes all the difference. Not just clean records—but clear, usable reports that help you make confident decisions.

Because “I think I’m doing okay” and “I know exactly where my business stands” are two very different places to operate from.

If you’re ready for the second one, I’m always happy to chat.

I'm not blushing, you are. 😊Kind words from a satisfied client make my day:"I could not recommend Alli enough- collabora...
07/08/2026

I'm not blushing, you are. 😊

Kind words from a satisfied client make my day:

"I could not recommend Alli enough- collaborative, thoughtful, and truly amazing at what she does.

She goes the extra mile to understand your business and provide a tailored approach to what you need.

She is a valuable trusted partner, not just a bookkeeper." - Connor M.

06/30/2026

Quick question for my small business owner friends:

If I asked you, “How much profit did you make last month?”—could you answer without guessing?

Not a ballpark. Not “I think it was good.” An actual number.

Because here’s what I see all the time:
You’re working hard, bringing in money, staying busy… but not totally sure what you’re actually *keeping* at the end of the month.

And that makes things harder than they need to be.

It’s tough to:
• Decide when to hire help
• Set realistic goals
• Know if your pricing is working
• Feel confident about your finances

Revenue is exciting—but profit is what actually supports your life.

If your answer to that question feels a little fuzzy, it might be time to take a closer look at your numbers. Not just for taxes—but so you can make clearer, more confident decisions.

Clear numbers really do change everything.

06/21/2026

Happy Father’s Day to my amazing husband ❤️

He’s camera shy, so you won’t see him here—but I couldn’t let today pass without saying thank you.

From juggling daycare pick-ups to celebrating business wins (and consoling me through the hard moments), he’s been my rock every step of the way.

Running a business isn’t easy, and having someone in your corner who believes in you, supports you, and shares the load… well, that makes all the difference.

Thank you for being the best partner in life, in parenthood, and in business. The kids and I couldn't do it without you. I love you.

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Iowa City, IA

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 3pm
Tuesday 9am - 3pm
Wednesday 9am - 3pm
Thursday 9am - 3pm
Friday 9am - 3pm

Telephone

(319)3182321

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