Friday, November 28, 2008

Discount Code/ Black Friday

I am putting together discount codes for those of us who prefer to shop online instead of fighting the lines and crabby shoppers at 4 am on Friday. Or those like myself who's husband has to work on Friday and there ain't no way he can watch the boys.

Let's get this party stated
Dine Without Whine - get your kids to the table and Eating, Meal planning

Send gift baskets from 1-800-Flowers today!
Save 15% on your order, enter code MARTHA59

Great Gifts for everyone on your list at CurrentCatalog.com -PERSONALIZED FREE
15% off orders of $60+ PLUS FREE shipping on $45+
10% off ANY ORDER at CurrentLabels.com when you enter promo code RWLS10 at checkout

Gourmet Gifts Baskets
One day only! Coupon good for $15 off a $100 purchase! Use code CYBER15 at check out.

Lego Deals
Feast Your Eyes on These Savings with the LEGO 'Black Friday' Offer! Save $10 on your order over $100, Save $20 on your order over $200, or save $30 on your order over $300! This promotion is valid 11-28-08 through 12-01-08.

Thursday, November 27, 2008

Always Give Thanks Today and Everyday


Thanksgiving In America - Today we see the history

When people think of Thanksgiving, most remember the story of the Pilgrims and the Indians at Plymouth Rock. The Pilgrims first arrived in America on December 11, 1620, not prepared for the winter they were about to face. Out of the 102 who arrived on the Mayflower, forty-six of the people died during the first few months. Despite the devastation, they had a good harvest, partly in thanks to the Indians who lived nearby.

They had a traditional British Harvest Feast in thanks to God for surviving and the blessings of provisions that would see them through the winter. In contrast to our modern Thanksgiving menu, they actually had more meat than vegetables, including venison, fish and wild foul, which may or may not have actually been turkey. They probably didn't have much in the way of desserts, as they didn't have a lot of flour or sugar on hand. They probably had some fruits and corn. Instead of pumpkin pie, they probably had boiled pumpkin. The first Thanksgiving feast lasted for three days.

Thanksgiving was not an annual event in the U.S. for many years. In 1623, there was a drought and instead of having a celebration, the Pilgrims held a prayer service. When their prayers were answered the next day, they invited their Indian friends to join them in another Thanksgiving observance.

June 20, 1676 was celebrated as a day of Thanksgiving in Charlestown, Massachusetts. However this was very different than the first Thanksgiving. This was to celebrate a victory over the Indians. Another victory, this time over the British, was celebrated in October of 1677 by all of the thirteen colonies. George Washington established the first national Thanksgiving day in 1789, however not everyone thought it was a good idea, including Thomas Jefferson.

It wasn't until 1863 that what we know as our modern Thanksgiving came into being. Sarah Josepha Hale decided to promote Thanksgiving in her magazine, Boston Ladies' Magazine and in Godey's Lady's Book. She also wrote letters to different governors and presidents. Abraham Lincoln finally established Thanksgiving as the last Thursday in November. The date was changed a few times (to the third Thursday), but in 1941 was finally established on its current date, the fourth Thursday in November.

Over the years, it has drifted away from its original focus on being thankful. It has become a day to eat and watch football. While those aren't bad things, it is good for people to take the time to actually be thankful for their blessings.

I am Thankful for my readers and passerby's to this blog. Thank you.
I am Thankful for my family and friends and their support.
I am Thankful to all those that have given me free or paid information that has helped me in my online journey.
I am Thankful for my struggles, without them I forget to appreciate what we do have

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Family Thanksgiving Ideas - At the last minute

Are you a last minute person? Here are some last minute ideas for Thanksgiving Fun.

Fun Family Thanksgiving Ideas

Thanksgiving is always a fun time of celebration and eating with your family. Here are some ways to make Thanksgiving even more fun for your family this year.

Thankful cards – Make a card for each family member that will be your guest for Thanksgiving this year. On each card, tell that person what you love most about them, and why you are thankful for them.

Recipe books – Call each member attending your feast and ask for a copy their favorite recipe. When you have all the recipes ready, compile them into a booklet and print them, using your computer and printer. (You can also use professional services, if you wish, to make a longer-lasting recipe book.) You then hand them out at the next family gathering.

Mini family scrapbooks – Gather family pictures, if you don’t have many pictures, take them to a local copier and have extra prints made. Purchase mini scrapbooks at a scrapbook supply store, along with stickers, markers and various scrapbook supplies. Create miniature family scrapbooks, using one picture per page. Write what you are thankful for, in relation to each family member, on their designated pages. On Thanksgiving Day, give a copy of your mini family scrapbooks to each family member as a memento.

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Thanksgiving Dinner - Now what

Seven Things You Can Do After Thanksgiving Dinner (Besides Nap)

Every year, families all across the country have their Thanksgiving traditions, one of which is taking a nap after a huge meal. So, instead of doing nothing all afternoon, Here are a few actives to keep your bodies moving and burn off some of those extra calories.

1. Take a walk - while it may seem simple, just the act of taking a walk will wake you up after the feast, as well as being very healthy for you. Go enjoy the fall leaves, see who can collect the prettiest ones along the way.

2. Touch football - instead of watching the bowl games, organize your own backyard bowl game. Call it the Potatoes and Gravy Bowl if you want.

3. Volunteer - take some time out of your Thanksgiving to give back to those who don't have as much. There is probably a shelter or soup kitchen that is looking for people to help serve meals to the homeless. Consider making it a regular family activity, even year round.

4. Put on a play - have the children reenact the first Thanksgiving. A few simple costumes made out of paper bags, and they can put on a delightful show for the family. Don't leave the grownups out of the action; have them improvise some scenes with the children as well.

5. Winter sports - if it's cold enough to have recently snowed, have a sled riding party. If you don't have a large enough hill, try a nearby park instead. Have a snowball fight or build a snowman. Ice-skating is another fun activity, and there may even be an indoor rink (but they might not be open due to the holiday, so it's a good idea to call first.)

6. Turkey Hunt - take a stuffed turkey, or paper turkey, and hide it in the house or yard, weather permitting. The first person to find the turkey gets to hide it the next time. Keep playing till everyone's had a turn to hide the turkey.

7. Turkey Bowling - make turkey bowling pins out of two-liter bottles. Fill them with a little sand to weight them down and spray paint them brown. Let the kids decorate them with paint or feathers. Set them up and then try to roll a turkey (three strikes in a row). If you have a lot of people, you can make more than one set to keep the action going.

It's easy to just curl up and let the turkey take over after a large meal, but it is a good idea to get up and get moving and make memories that last a lifetime. The fact that it also happens to be good for you is an added bonus.

Tuesday Toot - 11/25/08



I happy to announce that I obtained my first client for my Social Media Virtual Assistant business (BeSocialWorldwide.com) and have her profiles set up and working.

My sons first ever parent/teacher conference went great.

Toot Toot to me this week.

Thursday, November 20, 2008

Take a Break


Today we are going to take a break from being a WAHM and talk about Thanksgiving. People who work outside the home get a break from there work, so why shouldn't you.

Here are some tips to keep the stress out of Thanksgiving:

So how do we have a stress free Thanksgiving dinner? Here are a few simple tips to have a more enjoyable Thanksgiving dinner.

1. Plan ahead - While planning the Thanksgiving meal, do you plan who is going to help? Instead of doing it all yourself, recruit your family to help. Not only will the work go faster, it's more fun working together. Make a list of what needs to be done before everyone arrives. Give everyone something to do and assign things that are age appropriate to the children. Before you know it, the leftovers will be wrapped in foil and everyone will have had a great time.

2. Covered dish meal - If you are having a large group for Thanksgiving, divide the menu amongst all those attending. The host family can provide the main dish (turkey or ham) and the drinks. Each family brings a favorite side dish and dessert. If you want to make sure there is a variety, provide a menu and mark things off as people chose what they want to fix.

3. Simplify - Instead of having a huge feast, prepare a smaller meal. We all tend to overeat at Thanksgiving, so make an effort to make fewer dishes. Not only will the preparation be smaller, so will our waistlines. Another option is to prepare as much ahead of time as you can. Slow cookers can be used to make all kinds of foods, even desserts. Many things can also be made as "freezer meals" and stored for weeks before re-heating them. The less actual cooking you need to do on Thanksgiving, the lower your stress levels will be.

4. Family harmony - While you can't make everyone happy, there are ways to promote a peaceful, relaxing dinner. Use place cards to put the people who tend to bicker further away from each other during dinner. This will help alleviate some of the tensions.

5. Be thankful - Simply taking the time to be thankful for all your blessings can reduce your stress level. Before everyone arrives, take the time to list all that you're thankful for over the last year. Have everyone share their blessings before dinner. Having a better attitude will help everyone enjoy the day more.

Stress doesn't have to ruin the holidays. If you stop to smell the turkey, and plan ahead, you can have a wonderful Thanksgiving. Planning and organization, while not great fun, can help you enjoy things later once all the guests arrive.

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Steppin Out to Grow


Stepping out of the WAHM comfort zone

As a WAHM, you probably have your circle of WAHM friends that have locally or online. They share in your successes, offer advice when you get stuck and listen when you have a bad day. They understand your life as a work at home mom.

However, to grow as a person and a business professional, you may want to step outside of the WAHM comfort zone once in a while. You may be asking “Why on Earth would I want to do that?” Well, there are lots of reasons.

Even if you have been able to conduct all of your business online so far within the WAH world, why should you ignore the business in your own ‘backyard’? Check your local paper for the times and locations for meetings of business networking groups or call your local Chamber of Commerce and find out when they hold their meetings. Let’s say you go to the next meeting and there are 30 people there; statistics show that the average person knows 250 people…. Well, if each of those 30 people in your networking group knows 250 people, who knows how many of them may need your product or service?

By showing up regularly for meetings and events, you will get to know the other members. The conversation will eventually lead to the subject of what each of you does for a living. When they, or someone they know, are in need of your services, you will be the first person they think of to ask for help. Likewise, when you are in need of something, you will have an established list of contacts that will be more than willing to help you out!

Plus, these networking groups often have guest speakers and business seminars. Who knows? You may end up picking up some tax tips or learn some community news you wouldn’t have heard about while surfing an online WAHM forum.

In addition, these events give you a reason to get dressed up and get out of the house, and sometimes that is the only reason you need to go to them!

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Blog Energizer is finally here!

Today is a very good day for blogs and bloggers everywhere. Lynette Chandler has finally opened up Blog Energizer to the public and you can sign up for your free account right now.

Lynette has been giving away great resources leading up to this highly anticipated launch. I can't wait to take advantage of the great ideas and information to improve my blogs.

Blog Energizer is a unique resource that gives members valuable opportunities to fill their blogs with content, drive traffic and more.

With a basic account (it doesn't cost a thing) at Blog Energizer, you get access to:

- Freebies you can give away on your blog
- Blogs that are looking for guest bloggers.
- Bloggers who might just want to write for your blog.
- Podcasts that are actively looking for people to interview.
- Traffic boosting ideas for your blog - and more.

In minutes you'll be ready to fill your blog with all kinds of great stuff.

Don't wait go now to Blog Energizer and sign up.

Monday, November 17, 2008

Blogging Idol

One of my twitter friends wahmsuzanne is participating in Blogging Idol 2.

Suzanne is very creative in her attempt to win this contest, she is giving away seats to her Blogging for Bucks Bootcamp (which will launch in Dec) just for subscribing to her blog reader here. She has sent out video requests from some of the top "Guru's" looking for comments and support for her in the Blogging Idol 2 contest. Suzanne is always up for new and ingenious ideas to promote her blog and journey to win Blogging Idol 2.
Those of us who are supporting Suzanne will be notified of when and where to vote. That part hasn't started yet.
While you are there you might want to check out her great articles about working at home.

So let's get out there and vote for Suzanne Franco ~ the Next Blogging Idol.

WAHM - Do you have what it takes?

What it Takes to be a Successful WAHM

Being a work at home mom can be one of the most satisfying things you can do with your life. You will be able to spend time with your family and have the opportunity to create a successful business. It takes a lot of work, maybe more than you realized when you first started out. Here are some tips on how to keep going when things get tough.

There will be days when you feel like giving up. Don’t give in to those feelings. Success is not found overnight. You are going to have to put in a lot of time and effort when it comes to building your business, but you can do it. It is ok to take a “mental health day” once in a while, but when that day is over, you need to get up and start working again.

Stay motivated by hanging up pictures of your kids near your computer or phone and writing down what you want to accomplish by working at home. Maybe you want to pay off credit card debt or save for retirement or buy the kids a pool. Whenever you feel discouraged – read what you wrote down or look at the pictures of your kids. It will inspire you to keep working!

Try to find a mentor – someone who has already found success in the work at home field you have chosen. They know exactly what you are going through and can offer advice when you ‘get stuck’ on something. They can also help keep you accountable when it comes to your goals.

If you haven’t taken the time to write down your goals, take the time now. By having your goals written down on paper you will have a clear definition of what you want. Once you have them on paper, take a closer look at each one and write down specific action steps you can take now to achieve them. For instance, if your goal is to build a website, what are three things you can do today to accomplish that? Keep looking forward toward your goals and you will find yourself achieving success!

For more help check out WAHM Success Blueprint

Saturday, November 15, 2008

Finding that balance


Simple ways for WAHM's to balance work and relationships

No one has ever said that marriage is easy. Balancing your business, kids and marriage can be even more difficult. When you are feeling stressed, it is easy to put your relationship on the back burner. Which in turn causes more undue stress on you and your family.

Here are some ways to keep it front and center.

Just as you schedule time for your children and time to work, schedule time for your spouse. Set aside a weekly “date night”. Your dates don’t have to be expensive – it can simply be going out to lunch at the local diner, going for a stroll together around the neighborhood or playing cards after the kids go to bed. The point is just to set aside some distraction-free time for you and your spouse to talk and connect.

If you think you are too busy for a date night, ask your spouse to help you with some of the household chores. Just because you work from home, doesn’t mean you should be responsible for all the cooking, cleaning and laundry. You are working, and it doesn’t matter if you work across town or in a make-shift office in the corner of the dining room.

By sharing the chores, you are freeing up time to spend together. You can make it a family affair by getting the kids involved. For instance, designate every Saturday from 10 am till noon as “cleaning time”. Divide the chores among the family, turn on the stereo and have a “cleaning party”. You’ll be having fun together and getting the chores done.

It may not sound fun initially, but why not run your weekly errands together? You have to go to the grocery store anyway, so why not go as a couple? Having someone to talk to while you wait in line at the check-out stand could be a nice change!

You can also find time to spend together by asking your spouse to help you with your business. Your spouse will learn more about what you do and see you in a different light. Who knows? Your spouse may enjoy helping you and with their help, you will be able to achieve your goals twice as fast.

Friday, November 14, 2008

It's not just about "them"


Remember to take care of yourself too!

By nature, women are nurturers and care-takers. If someone within a 50 mile radius has a problem, a woman will try to help them! WAHMs are no exception. They spend their days caught up in a whirlwind of taking care of their families, housework and working their businesses.

However, a WAHM can easily become to busy to take care of herself!
Yes, you work from home, and you may be able to conduct your business wearing sweat pants and bunny slippers, but that doesn’t mean you should. Remember that every time you go out in public you are surrounded by potential business clients. You should look professional and well-groomed – you never know who you are going to run into!

Even if you stay locked-up in the house all day, it is important that you feel pretty.
When you look in the mirror and see a well-groomed, professional woman looking back at you, you will feel more confident and more competent in all areas of your life, including your business!

When you wake up in the morning, don’t just throw on your old sweats. You don’t have to wear a business suit either, but try to aim for something in the middle of those two choices. A simple shirt under a cardigan sweater and some nice jeans or slacks will do the trick.
If you simply do not have the time to wash and blow-dry your hair, put your hair in some Velcro rollers while you get breakfast ready. They will add body and style to your hair. Take five minutes to put on some mascara and lip gloss; and don’t forget to add a spritz of perfume.

If the last time you bought yourself a new outfit has been so long the clothes you are wearing are coming back in style for the second time around, that is a clue you need to update your wardrobe!

When you accomplish a goal, celebrate by getting a manicure or pedicure. Keep your hairstyle fresh by getting a trim every few months. You may be a WAHM but you are still a woman!

You deserve to feel special!

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Create Your Own Money


Creating your own income opportunities, you can do it!

Have you been looking for a way to earn money from home? Why not take the skills you currently have and build a business around them? You will be able to create your own work schedule and can choose to work with local businesses or with people you meet online.

People that are proficient in web design can easily find work. Many people want to start an online business but don’t know the first thing about building a website – just visit any work at home message board and you will see many posts asking for help!

Are you creative? If so, you can find work as a graphic designer. Many people need help designing logos and advertising for their businesses. If you enjoy writing, you can find work as a copywriter – the person who writes the information you read on websites. Do you enjoy social media, find a way to market your skill.

If you would rather work offline, there are still plenty of opportunities for you. Just market your services creatively – let businesses know how you can help them. For instance, if you were a teacher, now you can be an “Educational Consultant” and coordinate lesson plans for local daycares or homeschooling parents! If you were the manager at a restaurant, you can turn that into a “Catering Consultant” and help caterers and restaurants come up with new recipes or help brides plan their wedding menus.

Moms are expert organizers – offer up your skills as a “professional organizer” and get paid to clean out closets, attics and garages. Are you an expert at throwing birthday parties? Many busy parents would hire you to take care of planning their children’s parties.

Are you good at sewing, knitting or scrapbooking or some other craft? Hold classes to teach others. If you do not have room at your home, ask your local hobby shop if you can hold classes there or in our area you can use the Panera "room" for free.

As you can see, there are many ways to turn your skills into ways to work from home. Once you decide on something to do, get out there and let everyone know you are available for hire! If you do not ask for work, you won’t find any!

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

Tuesday Toot

I almost forgot about Tuesday Toot



Wow, it's Tuesday Toot time. I took last week off as I really didn't have anything to Toot about, and then I almost forgot this week.

Personal Toot: We had a fabulous birthday party for my 4 yr old on Sunday at their gymnastics center. The kids has a blast!

Starting to get caught back up on work!

Monday, November 10, 2008

The dishes can wait? Stay Focused

If you are like me and get easily distracted, staying focused on your business can be harder than doing the actual work of your business! It is very easy to procrastinate, especially when you are a WAHM. There are always ‘so many other things to do’ and so many social networks to visit.

Here is a secret that you may not have heard yet: The dishes can wait! The laundry can wait! So feel free to make those phone calls or answer those emails. The laundry and dishes will still be there, waiting for you! However, if you wait too long to call a client back, they may move on to someone who gets back to them faster than you do.

Why did you become a WAHM in the first place? Did you need to bring in an extra $500 a month to pay off credit cards? Was it to put money away for your children’s college fund? Or was it to save for retirement? Whatever the reason, write it down and put it where you will see it on a daily basis. When you are feeling distracted, look at what you wrote down. It will be easier to work when you remember why you are working in the first place.

You may want to team up with another WAHM. Send each other your goals and keep one another accountable. Call each other at the end of the day and discuss what you accomplished; you can share your successes or lend each other a sympathetic ear over things that didn’t go as you planned.

Stay motivated by setting daily, weekly and monthly goals. If you “work backwards” you will create a road map to your success. For instance, if you are in direct sales and your financial goal is to sell $1500 in product that month. Do the math and you’ll see that you need to sell $375 of product each week. Now, how many home parties do you need to hold each week to accomplish that? How many phone calls do you need to make each day in order to schedule those parties?

When you accomplish your goals, give yourself a little treat to remind yourself that you worked hard and achieved success!

Saturday, November 8, 2008

Enter the Holiday Giveaway Extravaganza

Enter the Holiday Giveaway Extravaganza, sponsored by Moms United in Business LLC, http://www.momsunitedinbusiness.com celebrating the launch of Resources for Work at Home Moms, http://resourcesforworkathomemoms.com! Come celebrate with us, and enter for your chance to win an awesome prize package, just in time for the holidays! Over $850.00 in prizes! You will NOT want to miss this! Enter at http://tinyurl.com/5b7hvm

Monday, November 3, 2008

Recession - Teach your kids to save


Economic recession is taking its toll on the country. Many Americans right now are feeling the heat of these tight times as more and more people are losing their jobs and losing their homes. High prices on basic commodities is also making it harder for American families to survive without additional income.

During these times, people are thinking of ways on how to save. This is especially true with families that support one, two or more children. Between feeding them and sending them all to school, these families will surely have to scrimp on some areas in order to survive.

But parents should not be the only ones who should be scrimping. When it comes to saving money during economic recession, your children should also play important roles. In fact, you can use these tight times to teach your children about saving for the future and saving money. This will help them deal with tighter times in the future should they experience it when they have families of their own. Below are some of the ways that you can teach your children about saving up.

1. Explain to them
You may not realize it but kids do know what is going on and when you explain the situation to them clearly with examples that they can relate to, they will be able to understand the situation. Some will even help out of their own volition without you telling them to do so.

Telling them why they should do something is more effective than telling them outright what they should do. The latter will sometimes antagonize them or will cause them to rebel because they feel that you are ordering them. Kids, as you well know, do not want to be "told" what to do.

2. Give them piggy banks.
Having coin banks may seem outdated in this digital age but it is nevertheless still effective in teaching kids how to save. Tell them that saving will allow them to have some money should they need to buy something that they really want. A portion of their "chore" money, for instance a quarter or two, is a good way to start.

3. Get what they need
Controlling what they put on their plates during dinner will help control the urge to get more than they eat. Ask them to clean their plates every time. This will teach them about saving and buying only the things that they need. This is a great training in the future so that they will not grow up with maxed out credit cards, buying things that they do not really need in the first place.

4. Being a role model
Face it. Whatever your child does is only a reflection of what you yourself are doing at home. So if you want the kids to start saving up, make sure that you are also doing your part in saving in this times of economic recession.

Although when it comes to your kids, in bad times or good, they should learn how to save.

Saturday, November 1, 2008

A few toys works for us.

I guess it's never to early to start the Holiday Spirit. It seems to be that time of year again. Halloween is over and we need to start focusing on the Holidays.
While we try to keep the presents to a minimum with our 2 boys. With my older one's birthday being in November and then Christmas we end up with an overload of toys at year end. So we put some away for later, go through old, undamaged toys and donate them and of course play, play, play.
I have always been a big proponent of toys that teach something or improve some sort of motor skill - now not all our toys fit the bill - but most of them are "good" toys.
Through the last four years, we have always thought highly of all the Leapfrog toys that we have received, purchased or played with. They are great learning toys that are made with quality materials. Check them out.


Thursday, October 30, 2008

You are a great WAHM, Remain Confident

If you are a WAHM, there will probably be some or many point(s) where a relative, friend, or even a stranger will ask you “so, when are you going to get a real job?” Those kinds of questions can hurt, especially when, in reality, you are working very hard. Here are some suggestions on how to deal with those insensitive comments.

The important thing to remember is that most people have no clue as to how many ways there are to make money from home. If they have never researched the subject, the only time they probably heard about someone working from home is from a report on the television about someone who, unfortunately, got scammed. However mean their words may sound, the person is probably just trying to protect you from getting hurt.

If the person asking you this question is someone that you do not see on a regular basis, you can just try to laugh off the question and change the subject. However, if the person is someone you are close to and have quite a bit of contact with, try to educate them about your business. Explain to them what it is that you do, how much you enjoy it, and why you chose to work at home versus working in a traditional job.

Once your critic understands that working at home is a real option and that you are not involved in a scam, they will most likely be supportive of your decision. They may end up being a little jealous of you and wish they had the courage to leave their job and work from home, too!

Most importantly, never let anyone make you feel “less worthy” because you work from home. It doesn’t matter if you work on the highest level of the tallest building or if you work on card table in your living room – you are still a working mom, you are contributing to your family, and you are a wonderful role model to your children. By keeping your confidence high, you will be more successful in all aspects of your life.

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Free Halloween Fun

Halloween is just a few days away, so just for joining my Secrets Recipes and Tips email you will receive a wonderful Halloween Fun E-book with lots of fun recipes, fun activities and fun games.
FUN FUN FUN













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We will never share or sell your contact information and will only use it to communicate with you about secret recipes and tips.








Tuesday Toot 10/28/2008



It has been a crazy couple weeks, dog problems - then we were both sick. Busy with kids, working on potty training. Whew

My Toots for this week.
1. I was a blog posting maniac and pre-posted to my blogs so I didn't have to worry about it this week.
2. My son is going pee on the potty - we were having a hard time even getting him to sit on the potty. We aren't out of diapers yet, but we are on our way. I can't wait to have no more diapers in the house.

Monday, October 27, 2008

WAH - Letters to Santa



Just Add Sweat Guide to Start a Santa Letter Business

If every kid loves sending letters to Santa, imagine how delighted they’d be to actually RECEIVE a letter from Santa. Of course, Santa is a very busy guy, so he needs helpers to get his letters out and thus, the growing opportunity for starting a Santa Letter Business from home.

The “Just Add Sweat Guide to Start a Santa Letter Business” offers a very good overview with handy tools to break into the business.

The package includes:

- An instantly downloadable and printable e-guide.
- 10 sample letters that you can use for your business.
- Spreadsheets to help you track sales, costs and profits.
- Free printable sheets that you can add to the letters you sell.

Format:

Instant download with PDF (Adobe Acrobat Reader), .doc (Microsoft Word), .xls (Microsoft Excel). If you don’t have Microsoft Office, you can easily use Google Docs to open the files and it’s free.

Content:

The guide includes a bunch of topics including -

  • How a Santa Letter Business works and what’s involved.
  • Who business is suitable for and skills that will come in handy.
  • Required and optional equipment and supplies.
  • How to get special North Pole postmarks for your letter for added authenticity.
  • Understanding and setting yourself apart from the competition
  • Pricing your product.
  • Putting together letters that parents and kids will be glad to receive.
  • Theme letter ideas (ex. baby’s first birthday, new home, etc.) – plus templates are included with your purchase.
  • Business startup checklist.

Extra Stuff:

The guide and all the goodies actually come with lifetime updates, so anytime they update anything, you automatically get the updates without any extra charge.

Thoughts:

The guide itself already covers a decent amount of detail in getting started with the business, but the extra tools like the sample letters and spreadsheets should make it easy for anyone to get started.

Where to Buy:
Click here to visit the Just Add Sweat website and learn more

Share Don't Compare - Joint Ventures


Have you ever heard of a term called “healthy competition”? Competition can be a driving force when used properly. For instance, when two or more WAHMs get together and see who can sell the most product in a month or who can make the most customer follow-up calls in an hour can be fun. Having that competition going can give you something to work for and you may end up accomplishing more than you would have otherwise.

However, things can turn unhealthy when you start comparing yourself to your WAHM friends. If you have you ever found yourself thinking “Gee, Sally is so successful. I wish I was more like Sally. My life would be perfect if I could be like Sally.” You are comparing yourself to others. It may seem like human instinct – but do not fall into the trap!

You need to be proud of who you are and what you've accomplished. You do not have Sally’s life – she may have older children and eight hours a day to work on her business whereas you have a newborn and a toddler and only a few hours a day to work. It is important to set realistic goals. Remember the old saying “Rome wasn’t built in a day?” It applies to your business as well! And who knows if Sally is really as successful as she "seems"? Maybe she is saying she is more successful than she actually is. Sally may actually be comparing herself to you!

It is normal to wonder if your business is going as it should be, or if you are making as much as you could be. Seek out advice from someone who has been where you are now. They can offer an honest opinion and can tell you what they did to achieve their success. Remember to use their advice as a guideline. You need to set your own deadline. It doesn’t matter if it takes you a bit longer to achieve your goals. Building a successful business is not a race – it is a marathon! By working consistently on your business, you will achieve your goals.

So instead of comparing yourself to Sally you could form a “joint venture” with her and create a way for you to promote your services together. You will both share in the work and the profits. For instance, maybe you are an expert in affiliate marketing and you have a WAHM friend who loves to write. You two can team up on an e-book about affiliate marketing! Or perhaps you have a friend who is awesome at creating podcasts, have her interview you about affiliate marketing and the two of you can sell the mp3. The choices are limitless!

If you have an idea about something you would like to create but do not know anyone to team up with, start researching people that have the skills you need. Send them an email and let them know you like their work and might like to team up. You can also ask for recommendations from WAHMs you already know or put up a post on a message board about what you would like to accomplish.

Whatever method you choose to find potential co-workers, interview several people before you make any decisions; you want the project to be a success. Look at samples of the work each person has done in the past. You will also want to make sure your personalities do not clash, as you will be spending a lot of time working together. Do not choose someone just because they are your "friend", this is your business.

When you find someone you are interested in working with, make sure you both understand how the work will be divided, when the deadlines will be for each step of the project, how you are going to sell your product and how the profits will be divided.

Keep looking for other joint venture opportunities as they are win-win situations – you can offer a new product or service to your current customers and the new product can also bring you a whole slew of new customers!

Saturday, October 25, 2008

Could Use Some Time Management, WAHM Please


Many people assume that work at home moms have it easy; however, if any of those people have ever lived a day as a WAHM they would know it isn’t so easy. There are children to take care of, a house to clean, a dog to walk, groceries to buy, dinner to cook, laundry and dishes to wash the list could go on and on. Oh, and then there’s that business to work!

It may not be easy, but it isn’t impossible, either. By using some simple time management tricks, a WAHM can find time to “get it all done!” One thing every WAHM should have is a planner/date book. Schedule your family time first! Then schedule in the time you are going to work your business. Once you have your “work time” scheduled, make it a priority to stay focused on your business during those hours. It is very easy to procrastinate when you are a WAHM.

If your work requires you to do lots of different tasks, try to group similar tasks together. For instance, if you are in a direct sales business and you have a team under you or a coach, mentor, ect..., designate one day to be your “training day”. Instead of helping various team members throughout the week, schedule all of your mentoring sessions for one day. Set aside an hour in the morning and an hour in the late afternoon to respond to email and/or return phone calls. By scheduling that time in, you will find that you are able to get more work done and feel less scattered. The same thing is you need to have contact with clients, schedule it all for one day, keep in touch, but schedule those "social" calls.

You might also consider outsourcing some of your activities. If you find that you are spending too much time responding to emails, returning phone calls, or updating your website, hire a virtual assistant to do those tasks for you. This will free your time up to work on your business, and by spending more time on the parts of your business that actually bring in money, you will be able to increase your profits.

You can also save time by setting aside a block of time each week to do your “regular” errands, such as grocery shopping. If you plan your meals for the week and go to the grocery store once, you will save lots of time (and money for that matter) during the week by not taking those daily “quick trips to the market”. And while you are planning your meals, try to schedule a few “cook once, eat twice” days. For instance, you can plan on having spaghetti on Monday and tacos on Tuesday. So, on Monday, brown the hamburger you will need for both days. On Tuesday, half of your work will already be done. And if you are making a meatloaf or lasagna, make a double batch and freeze one for later.

Most importantly, do not feel as if you have to do it all by yourself. You are not a super hero. If you have a spouse or significant other, ask them to chip in on household chores. Children love to help out, and depending on their ages, there are multiple things they can do. And when it is all said and done, don’t forget to take out some time for yourself. Everyone needs a break– WAHMs included!

Friday, October 17, 2008

WAHM and childcare: Solutions that work


I started out as a SAHM who became a WAHM in order to help with the family budget. I enjoy the time spent with my children. However, there are now times due to business that I need to arrange for childcare. The following are some creative solutions to mine and your childcare dilemmas.

WAHMs in direct sales are very often faced with childcare predicaments. A main portion of their business is conducting sales presentations, usually held at someone else’s home. If you are a party plan WAHM, the most obvious choice would be to schedule these presentations when your partner can watch the children, but what if your partner has an odd work schedule or you are a single parent? You can hire a local high school student to come to the party and be the “party nanny”. Check with the hostess first, but she will probably love the idea (and so will the other guests – since they won’t have to worry about getting a sitter for their children, they will be more likely to come to the party and the more guests you have, the bigger your profits!). This is something you could actually use to promote attendance at your shows. I always end up having to bring my boys to parties and I always feel bad about it.

If you just need an occasional sitter, try setting up a “child care group” with your friends and neighbors. Each woman can designate a time frame on a certain day of the week or month to be “the sitter”. Any of the Moms in your “child care group” who need a sitter that day can drop their kids of at the “designated sitter’s” house. The children will get to play and interact with one another and each Mom can get free childcare on an “as needed basis”.

Check with your place of worship as they may offer a “Mom’s Day Out” type of program where you can drop your children off for a few hours per day, a couple times per week. This may be a free or low-cost service. Also, check with local library as they may have “story hours” where you can drop your children off and the librarians will read the children a book and after the book is read, the children can participate in a craft, game or activity.

If you just need some “quiet time” to do some work, you can hire a neighborhood teenager to come over and play with the kids while you are tucked away in your office. You will have some uninterrupted “work time”, but will still be there in case ‘something comes up’. This should cost less because you can use someone younger with less experience. If you have regular meetings that take you away from the house, check with friends and family to see if they can help out by watching the kids. Offer your product or service in exchange for their time. They may jump on the offer!

The one big thing I use is Grandma, she generally give me 1 Saturday per month where so comes and plays with the boys all day and I do whatever it is that I need to do that day.

And don’t feel guilty if you need to put your children in daycare part-time. Yes, you may have had every intention of working at home in order to spend time with your children, but, there may be times when your business will need your total focus. By taking that time and completing your business tasks, you will be able to focus 100% on your children during family time.

Monday, October 13, 2008

A new week, a new outlook

A new week has begun, the stock market is up and I'm sick, tired and busy. Yes the fun of being a WAHM. Trying to start a new Social Media - Virtual Assistant Business has been stressful in this crumbling economy of the past few weeks.

I hired a web designer to build my new website at OperateItRight.com and she did a great job and is wonderful to work with. I had the pleasure of working with Beryl directly and she is very knowledgeable in the best way to run a business and the design/setup of a user friendly, customer friendly, future growth capable website. Not to mention the other necessary items like logo, banners, and more. I can't wait to see where the future leads. Beryl offers coaching, web design, business guides and more.

I look forward to a strong and prosperous future thanks to Beryl and OperateItRight.com

Tuesday, October 7, 2008

Tuesday Toot 10/07/2008



I am back to let you know ... Sorry thinking about Dirty Dancing today, while updating my profiles on social media.

Back to my toot
I managed to find a specific toy my son had been asking for, put it in the cart and purchase it without my son seeing it while he was shopping with me. - Mind you he's 3 almost 4. I thought I was going to mess it up at the check out, but I stuck it under my jacket and the cashier took it, scanned it, threw it in a bag for me very quickly and nicely.
On a business note:
My new Social Media VA site (besocialworldwide.com) is just about done. Yayyy

Sunday, October 5, 2008

Schedule

Wow, another week has gone by without me blogging very much. While in the process of preparing for the launch of my Social Media Virtual Assistant Site. I am learning the meaning of setting up schedules, planning and finding ways to make life easier.
Somehow I keep getting away from what makes the days go best. Schedules - knowing what to expect. It works great for the boys and it can work great for businesses.
I am working on a weekly schedule and trying to progress from there.
Unfortunately my husband will still have to eat mostly frozen meals for a little while longer.
But when I am ready I will be trying out Menu Planning Central's Learn How to Plan Meals.

Monday, September 29, 2008

Working Hard

Sometime it is quite ironic how hard you have to work, so that you won't have to work so hard. I am in the process of opening a Virtual Assistance business that will specialize in Social Networking. I am putting in many long hours to get it right, I know in the long run this will make my business run smoothly and make for happy clients.
My scheduled launch date is 10/06/2008, so I will keep you updated. The site is going up soon and then the tweaking begins.
Thanks to anyone who is patiently waiting for me to get back to blogging.

Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Twitter Moms Rock


View my page on twitter moms

Wednesday, September 17, 2008

Saga of the Big Boy Bed


So my husband and I decided that our eldest son (31/2) was ready for a Big Boy Bed. His toddler bed (once crib) converts to a regular bed. So we had been pumping up our little man about this for quite some time. Now that he doesn't wet the bed at night, he's ready.
First we find out we have to order the side rails to convert, those finally come in the mail - we're ready.
Saturday night we decide we should start the search for the mattress and box spring - in the pouring rain. Went to two stores and then home.
Sunday we start out trying to get sheets and stuff. Meijer's only has twin bed size in characters, but we get a nice set for our younger son (2) for his toddler bed, just so he doesn't feel left out.
We tried JCPenney no luck, we then went to Target - they had what we wanted and he went with Speed Racer.
Now, its really lunch time but we tried to go to one of our favorite sandwich shops, but sign on the door said closed due to economy. Sad.
On to the mattress store. Pick out the mattress, pay and decide it's going to take two trips to bring home.
Get home I start getting ready to wash all the new stuff, my younger guys set from Meijer's is missing the sheets. So now my husband has to stop and get something from another store for him - he ends up with Cars.
Get everything washed and bed put together (which was another challange, you have to take the end pieces off the side and switch them out with the end pieces of the "foot board" - not in the directions.
Start putting the clean sheets on bed and one of the pillow cases is ripped, luckily he only has one pillow.
But we are all together now and loving our new bed.
My question is - Is the quality of workmanship really getting that bad. I realize that I didn't go shopping at Macy's, but Target should have better quality.
And my son's set, I believe someone kept the sheets and returned the package with just the comforter, that is so dishonest. We did get our money back, no problems - BUT REALLY!

Saturday, September 13, 2008

Kick in the be thankful

Last night while I was starting to prepare to make dinner for my husband and myself - I opened up a cabinet and got a little kick in the be thankful for what you have.
The Reason:
This cabinet that I opened was our "snack" food cabinet, because I don't have enough room in the pantry, and it is loaded with food to eat. We have animal crackers, granola bars, fruit snacks, chips, popcorn ....

Most days lately I walk around in a daze of stress and confusion. Why we can't seem to get things right lately. My husband and I are both working our rears off to keep on keeping on and yet we are not making ends meet. I feel the pressure on me to get this Internet Marketing up and running, plus keep up the household, animals and foremost my children.
We have invested too much money into training in the Internet Marketing arena and still not seeing the spoils. Although it makes me press on, I need to start earning some money, we are much to invested in this now to just walk away. I often ask if this is really what I should be doing? I always praise God when I do make a sale, but at the same time blame him when I don't. In the end though I blame myself and struggle to keep my confidence up.

So back to the snacks, how can I complain when I have a cabinet full of "snacks" for myself and my children. A beautiful house to live in, a vehicle to drive and a family worth risking it all for.
"I know I should praise God everyday for what I do have and stress less about what we don't." I must repeat this to myself every minute, hour, day.

Tuesday, September 9, 2008

Tuesday Toot



It's Tuesday Toot time. Were I will only share the positive stuff. Today was my eldest son's first day of preschool - he was great neither of us shed a tear and we all got through it without a scrape. I was so pleased when he ran and gave me a big hug and told me he loved me when I came to pick him up.

Thats it for today the rest of the day was not so good. Next will be better.


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Blog Trip Winner

I have all the names in a buck, those who commented and those who set up a link to my blog. Thank you to everyone who participated in the Blog Trip, it sure was fun. Please come visit again and lets get to become friends.

And the WINNER is Bunny B for he comment on Day 3 of the Blog trip.

Monday, September 8, 2008

Weekend Recap

Weekend Recap Meme

This week went by like a whirl wind.
Spent last Saturday and Sunday preparing for the blog trip that was hosted by Mommy Community. Did some blog hopping during the trip and made some new friends, hopefully. I hosted a contest for this blog trip.

Worked on my 2 squeeze pages ourasthma.info and secret recipes. I have been selling some secret recipes, it seems to be a popular item. I really want to get the word out about drug free asthma relief more.

My son starts preschool this week, so last week we had supply drop off and meet the teacher day.

I still spend alot of time learning and trying to figure out the best way down the internet path for me, which includes many prayers and bouts of low self confidence, I have struggled with this for many years now, but working on the net can be very hard on self confidence. I am working hard on this, any suggestions?

I guess thats it for this week. Sorry this is late.

Friday, September 5, 2008

Blog Trip - Day 5



We are not much of tourist attraction here in Gilberts, IL.

But next door in West Dundee we have a great park with petting zoo, Randall Oaks.

Last weekend we went to the Union, IL Railway Museum for Day out with Thomas, but its great to go anytime.

Elgin Library has a great play area for the kids if it's not so nice out and your in the area. They also have a great park - Festival Park.

Cantigny Park and Cosley Zoo in Wheaton, IL we went there many times growing up.

Navy Pier is a good place to go with much to do and many attractions - warning costly and generally crowded.

Just a few things today around the area.

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Thursday, September 4, 2008

Win a Year's worth of PLR

You read that right. Can you believe it? The bigger and better special report club is here and they are having a contest.
As a newbie to this business I keep reading how PLR can really help you along the way to writing some great articles, possible content for you website and much more.

So now you want to know what you can win?
The prizes you can win:

1st prize: 1 year’s subscription to the special
report club.

2nd prize: 3 month subscription to the
special report club.

3rd prize: Choice of 2 individual PLR reports.
Which can be seen here: http://www.specialreportclub.com/individual-reports.html.

Sounds good right?
So hop on over and check it out.

Secrets to the preperation of working at home


How do you prepare to work from home or telecommuting jobs? We've put together a list that can help in preparing to work from home.

Basic Needs to work from home:

Strong work ethic is the most important tool to working at home, if you can't push yourself to work, who will?

Your own computer with standard office and fax software in addition to a respectable quality scanner and printer.

High speed Internet connection. The technological advances in software and hardware are rendered useless in most cases if you have a slow Internet connection.

Phone service in your home for the reliability and voice clarity, most companies offering telecommuting positions will require that you have a land line phone installed in your home. This is the case definitely if you are seeking a position that will require you to communicate by telephone as a part of your job, which then might want a dedicated business line.

Quiet and separate working environments in the home dedicated for work. Keeping work separate in a dedicated office or other room of your house will also be a requirement in most positions. It will give you the motivation to treat your work-at-home job like the real job that it is.

So you have the basics, no how do you start to prepare to work from home?

First and foremost, unless you are just moving your office job into your home, there will be some "down time" in the finances. So the first thing that needs to be done is sit down and set up a budget and how to cut costs until you are up and earning a regular income. Even if you are keeping your full-time job and working part-time there will be expenses and costs somewhere on your road to your working at home, you need to budget for these purchases/costs.

Second is time budgeting. It can become time consuming and addicting to work from home, you can't leave it at the office, you have access to it anytime, just one more minute, I'm just gonna check/do one more thing. You will need to set up a budget for your time budget time for work, family, chores. You life still needs to include those things you did when you got home from the office. You need to set aside improvement time, you need to read books and study the online world to grow and improve.

Quick time budget:

1. Evaluate your daily routine schedule. Think about everything you do during your day and the length of time it takes you to do those tasks. Are there any tasks that can be shared or adjusted to use time more effectively.

2. Create a weekly schedule of all activities and going on that week, including work. Schedule work time during times that young children are taking naps or are in school.
Make sure to include periodic breaks for quality time and activities with the children. This will help lessen behavior problems that may pop up because the children are seeking out attention. Then post schedule where the whole family can view.

3. Go over the weekly schedule with the family. It gives the family time to voice any changes or upcoming events that may need to be penciled in and allows everyone the chance to work out problems that may come up with the schedule.

Third is to keep your work and home organized. A organized work space will be a productive work place. This would take a whole other article to cover.

Blog Trip - Day 4 Shopping




Shopping: Where do I begin, we are very lucky in this area.

Outlet Malls: Huntley Outlet Mall - while it might not be the biggest or the best - its great for clothes and shoes and it's only 5-8 minutes from our house.

We have 3 Target's, Walmart's and Kohl's, 2 Meijers, Best Buys and JCPenney's within 10 minutes of our house.

We also have an indoor and outdoor mall within 10 minutes, I really like the outdoor mall, just hard to shop in the winter. But they also have some uncommon stores that you wouldn't probably find in a normal mall. Office Max, Best Buy, Trader Joes.

Woodman's is a great grocery store around here, if you don't like the chain stuff. Sometimes it's too big for me.

The only thing we are missing close to home is the small down town shops like downtown Glen Ellyn, Wheaton or Bloomingdale. Although it's not too far of a drive to visit these shops.

We are also close enough to the mag mile of Chicago and Long Grove to visit when the desire arises.

I'm sure I have missed a few along the way but these are places that I shop at.

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Wednesday, September 3, 2008

Blog Trip - Day 3 FOOD



We don't go out to eat very much (I like to make restaurant recipes at home). But we do have a few good places to eat when we do, we will skip right over the chain stuff - what fun would that be.

For Pizza - We love Randall Road House - we have never actually gone into the restaurant to eat - we order pizza, sandwiches and calzones for delivery. They are pricey compared to some of the others, but they really are the best.

For Italian - Biaggi's (this is a chain, but we really like it)- we go there sometimes for special occasions. Great food, great atmosphere. My husband loves the steaks and I got pasta the last time we were there.

For Mexican - Our favorite is La Campana (but they are back in the old neighborhood, don't get there very often) we do like our little hole in the wall El Faro though. We usually get steak tacos and sometimes my husband gets a burrito.

For breakfast - We eat at Burnt Toast very often. We love the name and the food. My boys always have to order burnt toast to eat, yes they really order toast and only toast to eat - it is too cute. We love everything about this place, the food, the staff, the location.

Don't forget to leave a comment and/or a link to enter my contest for a $25 GC.

Tuesday, September 2, 2008

Tuesday Toot



Very short and sweet this week. I sold some affiliate products this week. Woo Hoo, now to just keep it comming.

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Blog Trip - Day 2 GAS



Gas here in Gilberts, IL has been around $3.95 to $4.05.
Although I have a Meijer CC and if I fill up at Meijer I get $.10 off every gallon and even if I don't fill up at Meijer I still get $.05 off.

Much to others dismay we own a large SUV, it makes life easier traveling with the two boys, stroller and whatever else. But, when we go out with other we try and take as many as we can fit to reduce other cars on the road. So gas prices has a huge impact on our family budget.

We have cut back tons on driving, of course that means not seeing friends and family as much as I would like too. I try and combine my trips and just go out less (which is actually a good thing for the wallet also).

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Monday, September 1, 2008

Labor on Labor Day

Shannon over at Rocks in My Dryer, has decided to talk about labor on Labor Day – so I thought I’d join in.


How long were your labors?

Kid #1 – 8 hours, but had the epidural whole time
Kid #2 – 4 hours


How did you know you were in labor?

Kid #1 - water broke
Kid #2 – thought water broke, but just leaking - major labor pains with 1 hour of this.


Where did you deliver?

At the hospital


Drugs?

Epidural with the first, absolutely nothing with the second, by the time they actually decided I was having the baby it was too late for anything.


C-section?

No


Who delivered?

Our family doctor of 12 years for both.



If you want to play along with this meme, just cut and paste the questions into your own blog, and leave your link at Shannon’s site.

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Fear Doesn't Help - Teach your child these breathing techniques

Having had asthma my entire life, I tend to take for granted the things my parents did for me as a child to assist me with asthma. They never let it get in the way of "our life". I still participated in sports, we still went camping, and had/have pets.

The one thing that stuck out in mind were the classes that I took at a local YMCA that taught me to take control of my asthma and not let it control me. I am not afraid, nor do I get stressed out when I have trouble breathing. To people with Asthma you should understand what I mean.

The main way to deal with an asthma attack and not let it take control over you is the breathing exercises that I was taught. (Asthmatics who undertook regular breathing exercises reduced their preventer medication levels by up to half and reliever use by up to 86%.) These breathing exercises were drilled into my head over and over again from the classes, from my doctors, from my family.

The aims of breathing exercises are:

* to get back the natural and automatic diaphragmatic breathing, and not the thoracic type of breathing
* to concentrate on exhalation especially at the commencement of an attack.
* increasing the flexibility of the chest wall and to relax the accompanying muscles of the respiratory system and
* to correct other problems commonly associated with chronic asthma.


There are now many different forms and versions of breathing exercises for asthma.

Basic breathing exercise for Asthma:
1. Breath in for 10 seconds
2. Hold breath for 10 seconds
3. Breath out for 10 seconds

There are many variations of breathing exercies out there in the world today.

Hum breathing exercises for asthma:
1. Hum as you exhale slowly, trying to prolong the breath without straining.
2. Then repeat, but this time make a buzzing sound. Notice when the sound changes and when you become breathless.
3. Stop breathing for a moment then breathe in gently. If you need to gasp for breath you are trying too hard.
4. Breathe in, purse your lips then breathe out in a series of little puffs. Work against the pressure of your lips and cheeks, contracting the abdomen not the chest as you blow.
Blow out an imaginary candle. Again your abdomen not your chest should contract as you blow. Your attempts to blow out the candle should be fairly quiet. You should be breathing in naturally at the end of the blow.
5. Repeat as many times as is comfortable but stop if you begin to feel breathless.

Baby Breaths
1. Sit on the edge of a chair. Feet flat on the floor. Back straight. Rest your hands on your thighs.
2. Take some "cleansing breaths" first. Close your mouth and breathe in through your nose. Gently. Follow the breath all the way down to your belly. Slightly part your lips and allow the breath to exhale. Gently. Do this 3 times.
3.Adjust your posture. It is important that you are sitting up straight so that your lungs are fully open. Continue breathing as in the "cleansing breaths". But, this time, stay conscious of the breath. Follow it to the belly, watching it rise, then draw it up and out through your nose. Keep your mouth closed.
4.Do at least 10 of these. Less if you get dizzy. Stop if it is making you sick or causing any asthmatic symptoms. Work your way up to 10 during the following days.

Lung Lights
1.Start with the same posture as before.
2.Again, begin with cleansing breaths.
3.This time, close your eyes, draw the breath in through your nose. Follow it into your lungs and down to your belly.

There is no evidence to favor one breathing technique over the other. Instead any form of breathing exercises were associated with a dramatic reduction in reliever use. Using any form of breathing exercises for asthma was effective in markedly reducing the use of reliever medication.

For more on Asthma without Drugs check out OurAsthma.info

Blog Trip - Day 1 My house




I am going on a blog trip and today we start out at home.
This picture is of the boys playing in the back yard. I didn't have any pictures on my computer of the front.
We live in Gilberts, IL. Its a small town nestled among many bigger towns. My husband found it by accident, trying to find a different builder. We have been here over 4 years now, and plan to stay here till we are too old to care for it. We have great location, scenery, schools, and neighbors who could ask for more.
We have tons of parks in the subdivision and in the area. We have 3 library's to visit (all other towns though), and access to almost any store you might need.
We are close enough to the city to do museums and sporting events, and the Brookfield zoo.

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Sunday, August 31, 2008

Who am I? Who are you?

This is the introduction of me for the Blog Trip hosted by Mommy Community.
Let's see, last night I was thinking about what I should say, I should have written it down.
I am a wife, SAHM (2 very active boys), daughter, sister (to 3), friend (to a few) and then WAHM. I know it reads weird to have SAHM and WAHM in the same sentence. I am fairly new to the internet working world and learning the ropes. So I still consider myself a SAHM since I am not yet contributing to the household finances. On the other hand I am spending many hours trying to be successful in this WAH world.
I have been married for 15 years, we were married for 10 years before we had kids. Sometimes I think it's harder because we waited to long and got so set in our routines and now it's all changed.
My boys are 31/2 almost 4 and 21/2 (16 months apart). They love to play and fight and I love them with all that I am. My 21/2 yr old just got diagnosed with Asthma, I have saying it since he was born. I have asthma also and just knew it.
My husband is in sales, and works alot of long hours, sometimes I feel like a single parent. He is a good father and loves the boys with all that he is.
Our lives have been turned upside down the past few years with starting a family, loss of some very important family members and this darn economy. Hence why I am trying to start an internet business, so I can still be home with my boys.
So what do I do, I am taking a stab at affiliate marketing. I would love to someday be able to show someone what I did that worked, and encourge someone to make it. I enjoy helping people and always cheer for the underdog.
Thats me in a quick nutshell. If you like what you read stick around, sometimes I actually have something interesting to say.

Oh yeah during the blog trip don't forget to leave a comment for an entry into my contest to win a $25.00 Gift Card. One entry per blog post and 1 extra entry for a link back to my blog (1 per day) let me know if you make a link so I can verify. Don't forget to leave contact information in your post so I can contact you if you are the winner.

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Saturday, August 30, 2008

Weekend Recap

Weekend Recap Meme

This being a holiday weekend, hopefully everyone worked hard and is able to take a little fun time.

Me on the other hand, I'm spending the weekend trying to catch up with my blog. I am participating in the a blog trip and don't want to be lacking in the content category.

I have been very busy this week learning and working. I updated my Secret Restaurant Recipes and OurAsthma.info if anyone has an opinion, please share your thoughts.

I have started trying to design my own websites with Kompozer. I used to think I knew what I was doing.

This was my week of dealing with problems
1. Problems with my mentor program not answering questions.
2. Problems with an upgrade not fulfilling it's promise (shouldn't I get my money back?)
3. Problems not getting some ebooks I ordered - actually got this one resolved. Thanks bestchoiceforebooks.com

Maybe next week I can get the other two resolved.
Enjoy the rest of the weekend? Maybe.

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Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Tuesday Toot



I have finally found the only 2 things that bring a calm to my world. Our lives right now are really upside down and not going very great. Most days I feel like I can't handle another thing. With deaths, finances, problems, failures and such the small world I live in has become more than I can handle. But over the last two days I have realized that I haven't been better, more positive.
Why
1. I have gotten back into my devotional book and back into reading the Purpose Drive Life - both are causing me to stop and realize that I need God to handle what life has to offer and he will guide me and show me the way. I haven't found my purpose yet, but I'm on my way
2. I am putting more effort in taking this time I have with my boys and enjoying it. We have been enjoying the gifts God has given to us, the nice weather, open windows ( I really don't care for air conditioning), our swing set, our new puppy and many more.
So for today, I have lots to stress over and yet have somewhat of a calm to how I spent my day.

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I'm going to join the blog trip



Come join the fun and go on a Blog Trip - no packing, or long drive necessary.

Friday, August 22, 2008

Organizing Relieves Stress in Your Business

A little less stress is a good thing.

One of the great things about being an employee and working for someone else is that when the clock hits five you are basically done for the day and you jump in your car and you are gone. You do not have to worry about anything until the next day when work starts again. Your mind is free and you own it.

When you own a small business it really owns you and there is always some aspect of your business on your mind. But sometimes this can cause stress.

Organizing has a huge impact on your home and your home business and the stress of it all. Being organized reduces stress. When someone is disorganized, they often feel a lot of stress, anxiety, and generally overwhelmed. They may not be able to locate missing items, they may find their selves constantly running late or forgetting things, and they may be prone to missing work deadlines.

When someone is organized they will be able to find what they are looking for, will be less likely to forget things, and will find that will be more likely to arrive for meetings on time and turn work in before the due date. An organized person will feel more confident because of those things and their stress levels will go down.

Another great reason to get organized is that being organized increases your productivity, and therefore, can increase your bank account. When you are organized, you will be able to get more work done. Depending on the type of job you have, the more work that gets done can generally lead to bigger paychecks and a bigger bank account.

Being organized can help you create a sense of calm and peace in all aspects of your life. Once you have organized one area of your life, you will start to notice that things seem to run more smoothly in all areas of your life.

From my own experience the more I let my work space become disorganized the more stressed and unproductive I begin to feel. I have learned very quickly when this begins to happen, take a few minutes clean up/organize the work space and once again I will be ready to go. It is worth those few minutes of organizing.


For Step by Step directions on getting your home organized, check out Organization for busy moms.

Sunday, August 17, 2008

Weekend Recap

Weekend Recap Meme

I have not been keeping my goal of 2000 words for my blog this week. As a matter of fact I believe for the last two week, I have not been a good blogger.

I have been working hard to get a new program up and running. Those who have read the blogs I have posted know that my son has been diagnosed with Asthma, which I also have myself. The doctor has put him on Singulair, again is what I have been taking for sometime now. It was pointed out to me that this drug can cause mental issues, so I will be looking into this because we do have some mental health related problems in the family. I have also been looking into more natural - drug free solutions for asthma.
So along with this, I am working on a site to help others who have small children or they themselves have asthma. This should be a venture that I can truly get into. My parents were very good about teaching me about and getting me into classes that taught me how to live with my Asthma. I hope to do the same for my child and others out there. For now you can go here to check out the book about drug free asthma treatments.

I have been revamping my first website - trying to find its focus. I like the site, but some experts say "needs focus" and "not ready".

I did spend some of my "free" time this weekend doing surveys and little junk like that. At the end of the day I enjoy it and although it's not going to pay my bill - I do make a little money and I just enjoy it.

Next week I will hopefully get back on track. The boys have a week off from gymnastics and music class is over, so I will have more time to work.

Tuesday, August 12, 2008

Tuesday Toot Meme



I am finally back and working hard, after having to take some time off to avoid a mental break down. I was getting so frustrated and unfocused just trying anything and everything to make some cash.

I now know where I want to spend my time, and although it is a new venture, it is something that means alot to me and I will be able to help my family, myself and many others at the same time.

I hope to continue my current website, but will be focusing on my new venture for the time being.

Wish me luck and patience.

Diagnosis - Asthma

Well many of you may have read about my really bad Thursday a few weeks back. If not you can read about it here.
What a morning

So last Tuesday we had our follow-up visit with our family doctor. I was a little nervous about the appointment. I knew something needed to be done for my son, but most doctors nowadays don't want to "label" children at this age (21/2). I also had my checkup scheduled at the same time, so over all it wasn't going to be a good visit.

Well for all my worrying and trouble, the appointment for my son went better than planned. My doctor agreed with my personal diagnosis and agreed to putting my son on medication. We are trying out singulair - which is what I am on. The doctor said just like heredity of diseases, heredity can hold true for treatment also. Plus I really didn't like the idea of using a steroid for daily use, although growing up that was all that was used on me.

Along with that she gave me a nasal spray for those times we know we are going to be spending more time outside.

So there we have it. I have been doing some research online, asthma treatments have change alot since I was a kid. I do miss the days of just getting a shot of adrenaline (haha). We will see what I come up with.

I am looking into a no drug theory current, it would be great for myself and my son if we didn't have to take drugs - oh and save some money too. We will see.


Tuesday, August 5, 2008

Tuesday Toot



Today I was able to focus on my work and get more than normal done during my "work time". I added some copy to my website and worked on some research and a couple other things. It felt good to get alot of work done.
We have also took care of some doctors appointments today and still managed to walk the dog and play at the park and take baths.
So now this will be the last of my work for the evening, to toot myself for such a great day. There is still more than can be done, but today is enough - time to visit with my hubby.

Monday, August 4, 2008

Budgeting secrets for this new frugal world


Want to save money and willing to learn? Let's review the secrets to budgeting with frugal finances.

The budget will tell you the truths of your financial story: how much money you have available, where your money is going and where it SHOULD be going. If your budget isn't telling you these things you might want to reconsider its layout.

1. Assess your monthly expenses: Make a list of all of your regular monthly expenses, including any money that you spend on fun things like eating out, entertainment and hobbies; and any minimum payments that you have to make towards your debts. Using a budget form makes this easier.
Teamwork is extremely important - spouse, children should be on board with the budget. The family needs to have a clear understanding of what the monthly expenses are and where the money flow is headed

1a. Clarify Your Income and Expenses: First, list all sources of gross income. Second, list all of your fixed expenses and subtract them from your gross income. Fixed expenses include savings, credit and loan payments, insurance payments, mortgage or rent, and taxes. The amount left is what you have for variable expenses. Variable expenses, being the easiest to reduce, include groceries, clothing, auto expenses, eating out, and entertainment.

2. Prioritize: This is a serious Must-Do. Once you have written down all of your expenses on paper: get a clean sheet of paper and rewrite them in order of Priority. If your house is your biggest priority, put your mortgage at the top.

3. List your Goals: Most budgets don't plan to fail, but many fail to plan. If you haven't discussed with your family what your goals are, you will not reach them. On the bottom of your Budget, Write your Goals down. If your goal is to have your house paid off and be entirely debt free, write it on there. If your goal is to Retire at age 55, put it down on paper.

4. Track Your Spending: Use a small notebook, your checkbook register or financial software to track all of your expenditures. I find it easier to use a small notebook and the check register, because I can carry it with me and stay current. Financial software, like Quicken or Money 99, does an excellent job and will even show your spending graphically.

5. Analyze Your Spending: After tracking all of your spending for at least a month, look to see where you can reduce your spending. Is your long distance phone bill too high? Do you spend too much on lunches out?

6. Put your budget to work: Once you've created a budget that covers all of your monthly expenses and financial goals, it s time to put your budget to the test. Try to live within your budget, and see how it feels.

7. Rework your budget: If your budget comes out on the negative side, rework it until your numbers crunch. To do this, go back over each expense, and look for places to make cuts.

8. Reward Yourself: Frugality takes time and effort. Reward yourself for your progress, but not with financial rewards. For example, play soft music and spend the evening lying in bed reading a good book - borrowed from the library, of course!

Solid budgets are realistic, flexible and are not made in one sitting. This will be a process that will continually change as your needs, income and desired output change.

Don't Forget: Build in money for debt reduction. Build in your savings and investments.

 

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