Experiments....

Well.. I need to follow up on how the 2 experiments have been going for me. First, the more successful one...

I found that using the index cards to keep myself on task worked well, for the most part. But as any WAHM knows, life can't always be planned out. I had some distractions and some additional tasks thrown in there, but for the most part my day went smoothly and by the end of the week most of the cards were ending up in the "completed" pile. Of course some of the "One time only" jobs (like sorting through all the school clothes to see what fits and who gets what) didn't get done, but I DID get ALL of my laundry done, a monumental task with 7 kids. All in all, I consider it a success... and when my older 3 kids come home from their dad's on Sunday and I have some help, things should go even better.

Now for the experiment that was not so successful. Or maybe it was, depending on how you look at it. Avoiding negativity is NOT easy. There were so many things that tripped me up, not much on gossip, but the overall negative emotions and thoughts. I have noticed that when I first started, I felt more bliss, and after a day where I felt bad and complained a lot I had a less positive outlook. So starting over and trying again. I do know that when I focus on the good things I have, I feel great... so back to that.

Oooh... Check this out!

One of the Ning groups I am in, Mompreneur Cafe, is hosting a great giveaway...

Slimpressions are body sculpers that help contain the bulge. Helps you LOOK thinner while you are trying to BECOME thinner - or even just to look amazing in that special outfit.

Slimpressions is giving away the product of YOUR choice to one lucky winner! Check it out at
http://www.mompreneurcafe.com/profiles/blogs/slimpressions-review-discount .

Slimpressions have even been on What Not to Wear! Such an exciting giveaway - can't keep it to yourself!

Experiment (or 2)

Trying a couple of new things this week. Both stared today.

First is my new "organizational system". I took 2 small envelopes, tucked the seal inside and then several 3x5 cards. I have a few that are set up Morning, Mid Day, Afternoon, Evening that have the things I do multiple times a day (like check e-mail and do loads of laundry) and others with basic things I should do every day. I made a card for each of my sites, with a list of the specific pages that need work as well. The first envelope, that they start the day in, is "To Do" and the other, of course, is completed. It is keeping me on track, but by being individual cards I can re-prioritize and put things at the end of the day, etc if it is low priority. So far its working. I am staying on task and getting cards moved to the "Done" envelope. Will keep updating how it is in a few days.

Second thing came from an e-mail from Shelby Collinge. It was a challenge/experiment for 21 days, to avoid gossip (including reading it or watching it on tv) complaining and anything negative. She said the first few days it would seem impossible, but after you get working with it more it becomes easier AND it opens your mind for more positive thoughts and therefore more positive responses from the world around you. Can't hurt, so I'm gonna give it a try. I know that I am the one standing in my way most of the time, hoping this helps me get out of that type of mindset.

The Mall rework is coming along great! I am so excited to see how it looks. Just need a few more pages done, and (of course) a response on exclusivity of a graphic I want to buy and it will be up! Going to start the re-work on the network next. Since I really didn't use any front page fancies on there, it should be much easier to work with... we'll see.

Have a fantastic weekend!

Wacky Wednesday

Just a few of the hysterical pics I got in e-mail the other day. Saving some for next week. :)

Wow... Really? A gun shop has weapons? What a weird thing to find there.

I think if the human skull had been used more than once I would be more scared.

And this sale... I gotta go. 50% off is great - but HALF PRICE?! What a bargain!

Hope you smiled ~ enjoy your day.

New Week, New Breakthru

I think I have the mall ready for content to be added. I like the way it looks and aside from playing with a new header, etc I should be ready to go. I am amazed at what a little bit of looking around at templates for sale can do for inspiration. Now just to buy the graphic I want and I'm ready to go. Very exciting. I love the new look and I hope everyone else does too.

Slowly but surely

Re-doing the websites from almost scratch isn't easy, and it is pretty time consuming. But at the same time it is giving me the opportunity to re-think things I did a year ago and change some things around. Plus I am learning new things and developing my own solutions. It really has been fun so far, I can't wait to share it with everyone.

I am so excited that people seem to be taking notice of my work. On twitter I had been posting questions, etc and not getting any answers. But all of a sudden I am seeing more mentions, more re-tweets, and more responses.

See what a little "hardship" can do for you?

I wouldn't wish this rollercoaster of a week on anyone, but since I get to ride I might as well enjoy it.

OK.. Here's todays REAL post

What a rollercoaster week we've had this week.

Sunday we downloaded Windows 7 Beta during some routine maintenance with the system. Monday, some of the old XP files went on strike against Win7 and rendered the computer virtually useless. By evening we had it back up and running again, so I prepared to "teach" Win7 where all my files were on Tues. Well, Tuesday comes, and I'm working on some of my files, managed to get a Office 2007 and Expression Web up and running. I still couldn't get it to access my webdisk like XP did, but I can use ftp too, so no big deal... (or so I thought)

So today I download the pages from my sites so I had the most up to date things on the computer. FTP worked perfectly and I got all the pages from all my sites without a hassle. Awesome! I realize that the sites I made before I really knew what I was doing didn't have the images in an image folder so I set out to get more organized. I take the first page and hit "edit" ... simple enough. Who ever said that Expression Web is simply an upgrade to Front Page was an idiot. There are so many changes and useful functions now gone that it is worthless. Themes are totally gone, so is their instant Navigation. I can't edit the pages the way they were and actually fix them in Expression Web.

Now I am faced with a forced re-design. It is going to be a great thing, just going to take a lot of work. At least the sites that are on the servers are ok and working, so I won't have the downtime. It looks like it is going to be better to start from scratch rather than try to "fix" what I had... and that is where I need help. Please, take a look at my sites... Mom's Online Mall, M.O.M. Network, Beyond Pregnancy, TeamMOM ... and tell me what you think. What should I do differently, what do YOU want to see?

Please, feel free to e-mail me at mary@momnetworksite.com and let me know what you think.

Change is a little scary at first, but its going to be an amazing opportunity, I'm sure!

Wacky Wednesday

Gonna start off today with my Wacky Wednesday pic. A friend sent it to me and everyone I have shown it to has laughed hysterically! I just have to share it here!

Warning... the picture is a little graphic.

It involves a boating "accident" and shows a man on the brink of death.

Only one last warning...

Oh the Joys!

I am so thankful that we have multiple computers here. Hubby installed Windows 7 (beta) on the desktop I usually use, and now I have to show it where all of my files are. That means no Office, no Front Page. I can't even get it to access the my websites through "my network files" like I could before. And to top it off... Windows 7 is saying it isn't compatible with Office 2003, so I am not sure what I am doing.

So, "work" is put off for some time. Which is most annoying because I made a huge list of errors and changes that I need to get fixed on pretty much all of the sites. I had some re-write ideas for articles and a few other tweaks too, and now they have to wait.

There ARE some more great things coming, its just gonna take me a bit.

In the mean time, have you taken the surveys from my last post??

Wacky Wednesday

Well, since I posted that it was Tuesday today, I decided I needed a fail pic for Wacky Wednesday today. Then I got lost on Failblog.com and well... spent some good time giggling.

Here is just one of the things that made me laugh today! Enjoy!



But.. but... but I WANT to fold my coins!!!

Terriffic Tuesday!!

Its a great day today! I have a renewed energy and spirit. It really is amazing what changing some colors on the screen has done today. Instead of using a maroon or black font while doing some writing on MS Word, I tried a black background with yellow words. I still feel tired, physically, but mentally I'm alert and excited for the day. Its a great feeling and I'll have to play with colors more often.

I have also come up with a new survey to help me with the network site. I was so excited to see the responses on my other survey, I knew this was a great way to get some feedback. You can check out my Network Survey here, or visit the Traffic Exchange survey here. Feel free to answer one or both of the surveys.

Wow... where has the week gone... I just realized it is Wednesday, not Tuesday! LOL... Guess this makes it a Wacky Wednesday after all!!

KITTENS!

We have a cat who decided she wanted to be an outside cat. When she came to us a little more than a year ago she was a tiny, sickly kitten who didn't seem like she was even old enough to be away from her mother. But we took care of her, got rid of the flea infestation that threatened her life, and nursed her back to health. She stayed in for a while, but the "call of the wild" got the best of her. She still comes in every day to eat, but she spends most of her time outside. She had been getting fatter, so we knew she was pregnant, but then one day about 2 weeks ago she came up to eat and she was MUCH skinnier. She was obviously hungry because she ate a full can of cat food PLUS some of her dry. Childbirth can wear you out, yanno.

This morning we got a special treat. She brought her kittens up to live on the porch.

Three little kittens have joined our family. The kids are ecstatic.

Friday

Well, another Friday has arrived. Been playing with the new site all week. So many issues to correct. But basically its back up. Check out WAHM Coffee Club and tell me what you think. *I* think it still needs a lot of work, but I am never satisfied with my own work.

M.O.M. Network is coming along nicely. Working on a page of resources that all businesses need with low-cost and free options. I am including links to WAHM owned options whenever I can.

I do really want to make the M.O.M. Network the "One Stop WAHM resource" so if my readers have any suggestions of resources or WAHM businesses that should be included, please let me know.

Also, as I am getting ready to launch the sites and really get them out there, I am looking for nominees for our very first "WAHM of the Week." The M.O.M. Network has spots for Site, Shop, Blog and WAHM of the week. So send me your nominations!

Have a great holiday weekend and be careful out there. (Especially if you live in or around Dupage county IL... some idiot stole 5000 pounds of commercial fireworks and will probably kill all his friends and family putting on a show in his backyard.)