Mom Blogs

I’m a regular reader of The Mogul Mom – check it out at www.themogulmom.com run by Heather Allard.  Heather has a wonderful site with great advice/tips for mothers who are starting out in business.

I love finding sites like these – they make you feel like you are not alone and, more importantly, that there are others who have been through what you are currently going through and then some!

Interestingly, I am finding that I am able to better relate to blogs/sites run by women then some of the more prominent sites operated by men. Maybe it’s the unspoken kinship between us females or the ability to relate to the issues discussed in these sites – but I’m finding that I am more inclined to read posts by women then the posts by some of the male “gurus”.

My goal is one day being able to inspire others as others have inspired me in my journey, but it’s baby steps for now!

Internet Marketing: First Steps

So I have decided to take the plunge and look into internet marketing.  And I think I have opened up a can of worms…

Type “internet marketing” into Google and you get 47 million hits!  And every page seems to be a new revolutionary internet marketing course/software/coaching program and they all claim to be better than the other. Plus, the number of “gurus” that claim they can turn you into internet millionaires is phenomenal!

In the short amount of time that I have started exploring internet marketing, I have learnt that each of these gurus promise the same things:

• They all claim to have the “product” that will make you tonnes of money on the net
• They have all spent mountains of money on internet products in the past that have been useless
• Many of them were broke, destitute, had only $2.50 left in their bank account (if they even had a bank account – I think one of them apparently had his identity stolen so couldn’t open a bank account)
• Their product is a “must have” product that has made a heap of people rich or even millionaires
• There is only a limited number of these products available
• They seem to promote each other’s products
• They have loooonng sales letters

And I have to say, I have been sooooo tempted to buy some of their products. Their sales letters are extremely well written and you feel like you NEED to buy it otherwise you’ll be behind the eight ball. 

I do need help as I am not technologically literate and definitely not internet savy. So its a matter of trying to work out which product/guru suits and which I trust.  I can’t afford to buy all the products, so I need to be discerning in which ones I try (though most of them have a money back guarantee).

I did try to do a search of the net for reviews of products, but most of the reviews turn out to be people flogging the product as affiliates, but under the guise of a “review” of that product.

So its back to doing more research and making up my own mind as to which product(s) to trial – stay tuned!

First Steps in Entrepreneurship …

So, I am staring down the barrel of potentially going back to work at the end of the year unless I can somehow generate sufficient regular income from other efforts/pursuits.

Historically, I don’t have a good track record in getting things off the ground.  Myself and my business partner (I’m going to refer to her as “BP”) have been brainstorming business ideas for nearly 2 years. We are have looked at everything from:

• multi-level marketing; to
• gumball machines; to
• chocolate floral arrangements; to
• coffee carts; to
• pet accessories.

But through a discussion my BP had with a colleague, we have identified a need for an educational product that teaches people (generally teenagers and young adults) how to manage money in a simple but hands-on way. 

Finally – we have found something that we believe has legs and are pursuing this full steam ahead.

Stay tuned as I blog our progress – every step of the way! Cross your toes and fingers for us in the hope that this will get off the ground and help people manage their finances.

It’s exciting to finally decide on an idea and start trying to commercialise it… and my dream of throwing in my job gets just that little bit closer!

Teaching a Baby New Tricks

Okay, I admit it – I have taught Baby K how to spit!

Well, not intentionally.  I was trying to teach Baby K how to make rasberries by pursing her lips together and blowing hard until they made a noise.  I thought I was being smart – every day for the last week I have been pursing my lips and making the “blowy” noise in the hope that Baby K would imitate me.

So she has – but only to a degree. The poor thing, she tries so hard to make rasberries but all she ends up doing is spitting EVERYWHERE.  And she is still trying.  For the last 2 days I have been covered in spit. So has my husband. And so has my mother.

And when we go out - I can hear her spitting in her pram.

Ooohhh… here she goes again…

Returning to Work & Leaving Baby K in Childcare?

A Mother’s Dilemma: Childcare or Being a Stay-At-Home Mom? 

 A beancounter in my former life, I had originally planned to take 7 months off after the birth of Baby K before going back to work. But, as with many things, I have found that what I plan to do is often different to what actually happens.

Now having Baby K in my life, it seems unimaginable to go back to work and leave Baby K in childcare.  I had assumed that I would slip back into work life without any regrets, but now, thinking about going back to work is a gut-wrenching feeling.

So I’m conflicted – I know I need to go back if I can’t generate sufficient income before the end of the year but I can’t bear the thought of leaving Baby K in childcare.

Part of me, though, is thinking that the childcare centre can provide Baby K with more experiences and are better able to structure her day than I could.  The centre I have picked has a studio where the kids experiment with textiles, paints, clay etc. All food is cooked from scratch, even the chicken stock is made from REAL chicken bones and not the packet/powder stuff.  Chicken served is free range chicken and when I was visiting, they were showing the children how piklets were made – it made me want to be in childcare myself!

*sigh* But I’m not sure if this is just me justifying sending her to childcare…

… so I’m focusing all my energies on trying to start two businesses to hopefully generate a good income by the end of the year to give me confidence to quit work permanently.  Follow my progress through this blog and see whether I manage to juggle this with motherhood. 

Wish me luck!

Baby Talk and Lots of Poo

They say that you need to talk to your new baby all the time – apparently it facilitates their vocab learning.  It is actually quite liberating to be talking gibberish all day and with no one questioning your sanity. Though it may be that because I am talking gibberish all day that my sanity is going… hmmm…

Anyway, I’m finding that I’m using the word “poo” in almost every sentence, every single day.  I don’t know if anyone has had the same experience. But it is a little disturbing…

If Baby K has a done a number two, she has a “pooey bum bum” or a “smelly poo”.  If she farts, she is a “farty poo”.  She is surrounded by Winnie-the-pooh and I’m constantly telling her her room smells of poo.

I am almost willing to bet that her first words will not be “mummy” or “daddy” but something to do with poo.  So much for educating her about the English language!

Welcome Baby K: The Birth Experience

This saying is courtesy of my new baby girl – Baby K. Poor thing, she has to listen to the ravings of a first time mother who feels like she is juggling TOO many balls at the same time. A little more about Baby K: She came into the world about 3 months ago after much pushing, prodding and (thankfully) not much screaming  (thanks to the drugs).  

Welcome Baby K!

 

 A life changing experience, in more ways than one. You know that you and your husband/partner have reached another level in your relationship when you don’t bother leaving the room to change your dressings “down there” but rather, reach down into your pants and hand him the bloodied dressings right in front of him. Not my finest moment, but after having nurses, OTs and doctors that you haven’t met before poke and prode parts of your body that haven’t seen the sun every few hours, you really don’t care anymore.

It’s true when they say you leave your dignity at the hospital door…