I don't wanna grow up

Yesterday I had dropped my daughter off at a slumber party, my youngest son was at his cousin's house for the night, and my husband and the dog were visiting his parents. That left me and my oldest son at home. I was a little bit cranky as this week is finals and I am stressing to make sure I keep all of my A's in my classes. I had the door to my bedroom open and I heard him watching Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory in his room. Mr. "I am too good to be involved in childish things". It made me stop in my tracks. Instead of going on with my work I thought was important, I stopped everything I was doing and joined him to watch the movie. Then I wanted to get ice cream. We paused the movie and hit up the local Baskin Robbins. We also grabbed some Burger King and headed back home to enjoy our spoils. We finished watching the movie in the living room and were dancing around and singing all of the songs. It was so much fun and for that time I forgot about all of my worries and enjoyed what childhood time I have left with a 14 year old young man. When I was younger I couldn't wait to grow up, but once I had grown up I decided I wanted the freedom of childhood. It is great when your children can bring you back to the good old days.

What is love?

This is a little ditty my 13 year old daughter wrote and I thought that it sums up love pretty well.


Wait for the boy that makes you smile like no one has before
Love starts with a smile, grows with a kiss and ends with a tear drop...
Love never has a happy ending because true love never ends
A boy is never worth your tears and the one who is will never make you cry
And yes boys are secrets and lies so when you get screwed over don't be surprised!!!!!!!!
Never regret something you did in life that you didn't like because everything you did leads to something you have always wanted...
Don't fall in love with someone you can live with
You should fall in love with someone you can't live without...
The truth is that everyone is going to hurt you in someway, but you just have to decide who is worth the pain and if you can't get someone out of your head then maybe they are meant to be there...
The only thing that really matters though is just to follow your heart and eventually you will get it right
Once you promise not to forget the day you met or the day you kissed, then the sky might fall and the stars might too, but in the end he will always love you!!!!!!!!!!

Read the Fine Print

Yesterday I was at my son's flag football game cheering him on to victory. There was one play that his coach had them pull off for a touchdown. My son was the center and pretended like he was going to snap the ball to the quarterback. What really happened was that he handed the ball between his legs to the quarterback, the other team thought the ball had been handed off and had gone to one side, but the quarterback took the ball and ran all of the way to the goal line. None of the parents on our side even knew what had happened until everything had been said and done. When the game had ended and my son and I were walking back to the car we were talking about that surprise play and rehashing the whole thing. He was telling me, "Well, that is why it was called Hide and Seek. No one saw it coming. You have to read the fine print." I have to admit that I was laughing my behind off because it was so funny coming from the mouth of an 8 year old.

On the way home my mind start thinking about what he had said and how that applies to many things. Many people who need to sign a contract, regardless of whether they are purchasing something or wanting to download something on their computer or are signing up for a service, usually barely glance at the fine print. I admit that I don't always read the fine print. I assume that everything will be fine. But what about when something goes wrong and you have to go back to that fine print? Sometimes you find yourself screwed.

For example, with credit cards they will send you mailers that describe the terms and the changes for your account from time to time. If you were to look closely at those terms though, you would see that they have the right to change the APR at their discretion regardless of whether you are a good customer or not.

I found a great article that talks about how the buyer should beware by Jean Chatzky. It is located at: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15548380/. After reading some of the things in her article, it makes me want to read the fine print a little bit more as I feel a bit taken advantage of in a few things in my life. From time to time I want to give my husband back to his parents and they keep telling me I should have read the fine print. Darn it!

What about in your own business? Do you go over your contracts with your clients to make sure that they fully understand what you are going to stick to them if they don't follow your rules? If not, it could come back to bite you on the behind. Remember the scene in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory where Willa Wonka is going over the contract and the print keeps getting smaller and smaller and no one knows what it says? Grumpy customers, regardless of whether they should have read the fine print or not, will not use your service or products again no matter how great they are if they feel they were taken advantage of.

What's the worst they can say?

When I was at the ICEA Conference in Chicago Tracy Lyn Moland said in one of her speaking sessions that you should ask for what you want. The worst they can say is "No". If you don't ask, you never know what you are missing out on. I was talking to my husband about it and I told him we needed to start doing it more.

Although I have asked for things in the past, I thought I could brush up on my asking skills. When my husband and I were at Disneyland recently, we were just getting ready to get on Splash Mountain when the ride broke down. The guy next to us had stated that two of the rides he had tried to get on earlier in the day had broken down when he was just getting ready to get on the ride.

My husband and I went to City Hall and explained how dissatisfied we were with the way things were going. They not only apologized, but gave us Fastpasses for three rides. Then we happened to go to Pizza Port to grab some dinner before heading over to Space Mountain for use of our first Fastpass. Apparently there was a staff shortage and everyone had to wait in line just to pay for their food. People were really starting to get irritated.

I have never seen this bad of service in one day during my many years of visiting Disneyland. I was very surprised. My husband and I finally made it to the front of the line and my husband started to complain again, this time about the wait. The gentleman apologized and said that half of the cashiers did not show up for their shift. When my husband asked if speaking to the manger would help, the Cast Member said it wouldn't and then turned around and gave us a 15% discount on our bill.

One thing that didn't hold us back was the fact that if they had said "No", we would just move on to someone who could say "Yes". When you let that first "No" get to you, it is hard to move past that and continue to ask for what you want. If you look at the bigger picture, such as the person you are asking is not in a position to tell you "Yes" or you need to follow a certain procedure to get what you want, then you will realize that it is not your fault and you should keep moving ahead.

When my husband went to ask for what he wanted, he was honest about what he wanted from the situation and they were able to accommodate him. If you are asking for new business, be passionate about why you are asking for the person's business. Explain to them what you can give them in exchange for what they can give you, which is their business.

If you are looking for someone to write a guest article in your newsletter, just ask. As Chat Director of ICEA we would not have had some of the guest speakers we have had in the past if I did not take the initiative to take the first step, whether it was an email or phone call. I just keep pushing ahead to the next guest speaker.

You never know how many of your dreams and goals will come true until you ask. All I am asking of you right now is to take a few moments and think about what you really want, make a list, and start asking the people that can help you fulfill those dreams and goals.

The Entrepreneurial Spirit Starts Young

I was in the car with my youngest son today and as we were coming home from picking up some food he told me, "Every time you take a breath of air, you owe me a quarter." I asked him why I would owe him any money and he told me that he invented oxygen. When I told him that he didn't invent oxygen he said to me, "Well, I have to find a way to earn money and this is how I am doing it, so pay up." I could not help but give out a good hearty laugh. Every time I took a breath he would tally up the amount of quarters I owed him.

It made me think about when I was younger and what I would do to earn money. In the summers I would set up a snow cone stand. I had a table I would set up at the bottom of the driveway with a big sign attached to it announcing "Snow Cones For Sale" and the price. I had my Snoopy Snow Cone Machine, cups, and little spoons set up along with my cash box. When I would see people I would call out, "Come and get your snow cone." The lady across the street was having some work done on her house one summer and the workers were my biggest customers.

I also was the neighborhood pooper scooper. I always charged extra for bigger dogs that had bigger bathroom issues. It was a dirty job, but someone had to do it and I needed money to buy goodies. In addition I was the neighborhood bakery. My mom has passed along her favorite recipe for Pumpkin Cookies with brown sugar icing to me. We would, as a family, bake them during the fall months and then I would place the packages of cookies in our wagon, different amounts of cookies for different prices, and go up and down the blocks in my neighborhood selling the cookies. My other job I had was a paper route. A lot of work for a little bit of money, but it was still cold, hard cash.

In junior high I was looking for extra money so I could buy food at the snack shack. I would go to the local liquor store before school and take my change and buy those little packages of cinnamon sticks for $ .10 each. I would then take them to school and sell them for a quarter each. I made a profit to get my egg sandwich or candy bar and have enough left over to go buy more cinnamon sticks the next day.

My own kids have picked up the entrepreneurial spirit themselves from watching me run my own business. My oldest son set up his own mobile auto detailing business in my mother's neighborhood a couple of summers ago. When they first started selling the Mr. Clean car washing kit, he saved his chore money in order to purchase it, with a coupon of course. He started with my mom's car and then my two sisters' cars. He added a neighbor's car here and there and earned clothing money that summer.

All of my kids help me out on their spring and summer breaks. They perform the pet sits and dog walking and my daughter goes shopping with me. I didn't have money when I was younger so I had to be creative about earning it. Although I have the ability to hand money over to my kids when they need it, I want them to learn about earning money in order to get the things they want, not the things they need. I always tell them, "Your boss isn't going to just hand you a check because you need the money. You have to work for that money." They will do extra chores outside of their regular ones, help me with my business, or go around the neighborhood to find work or ways to earn extra money, including hunting down rats for the neighbor.

Regardless of what my children grow up to be in their adult professions, at least they have the entrepreneurial spirit and know what it is like to work hard for themselves for each dollar they earn. For those of you who have started your own business, regardless of what it is, I am sure your entrepreneurial spirit started young.

Life is short, but there is always time enough for courtesy.

The above quote is by Ralph Waldo Emerson. I thought it was very apropos considering some of the people I have run into this week. I have to be honest here. My mom ingrained manners into my head so much that I automatically say "Please" and "Thank you" without batting an eye, just as I easily take a breath without thinking about it. Even when I have fits of silent road rage or I am upset about something and tend to go off on little tirades, at the end of the day my manners are still there. If I am out in public and use my manners, people have looks of surprise in their eyes as if I had just uttered the magic words that no one else knows.

I have opened many a door to see the person glide through, not say a word, and act as if they are the King or Queen and as their lowly peasant it's my job. Sorry, but it's not my job. I am just trying to be courteous. Just this week I had a salesperson taking on the phone and look at me, as I came to the register, as if I was interrupting something important. I thought that as a paying customer that maybe I should come first, as I am paying for them to stand there and talk with their friends. Just a wild thought on my part I guess.

It reminds me of that Liberty Mutual commercial they currently have playing where the gentleman at the beginning picks up a doll that the little girl in the stroller drops and hands it to her. Someone sees him doing it, they in turn help someone out, someone sees them helping, and the cycle goes on and on until the end of the commercial where someone helps by picking up the stuffed toy the beginning guy's child drops and gives it to the child.

I know this is a dog eat dog world now and that manners, along with great customer service, have pretty much flown out the window, but if we could all take the time, about 5 seconds or less, to say "Please", "Thank you", "No thank you", "Excuse me", and so on, maybe the world will catch on to this wild haired idea and start to do the same thing.

Thank you for reading this.

Don't Do Today What You Can Put Off Until Tomorrow

Ok, ok. I know what you are going to say. It is supposed to be the other way around. Well, I have to admit that there are times when you do need to put things off. Trying to burn both ends of the candle will not only make you exhausted, but will make you begin to have feelings of resentment towards yourself and others.

I have those days where I have gone, gone, gone and just want to take a break. I am not talking about always taking a week vacation every time you need a break, but build in mini vacations. An hour here, a weekend there, a day here, or a couple of hours there. When you feel rejuvenated, you become more focused on the task at hand.

In America we run ourselves ragged and end up with physical as well as mental issues because we don't take care of ourselves like we should. I am jealous of France. They close up for 5-8 weeks per year, sometimes longer. I wouldn't take all of that time off at once, but just knowing it is there for the taking would help me feel more relaxed.

This morning I woke up feeling refreshed and focused after sleeping in a little. I started on a list of chores that needed to be done and am getting ready for my big business weekend. I have also played a little bit of hooky and watched some shows I had TiVo'd earlier in the week. Do I feel unproductive because I am watching TV and not working? To be honest, no. I put in many hours during the week between school, my business, my family, and my other volunteer work I take part in. I feel I deserve some "me" time.

Take a catnap, watch a show you didn't get to see earlier in the week, take the kids to McDonald's for some ice cream, or whatever would make you happy. Get some "you" time in. There is always another day.

It Goes On

My sister and I were talking and I had asked her if she had any words of wisdom. She said that one of her favorite quotes is "There are three words that sum up my life: It Goes On." I thought to myself how true that is. Regardless of whether you are happy, sad, in the slumps, stressed, a death has occurred, you have gotten married, had children, and the list could go on and on, life still goes on and time keeps ticking away.

When I am feeling stressed out trying to meet my many deadlines, both personal and business, I let things go and come back to them. There are many times when I am writing my newsletter and I draw a blank. I walk away from the computer knowing the issue will go out, just not at that moment. I focus on other things and come back to my computer when my mind is ready. At first I would stress out wanting everything to go out on time. Now, I just tell myself that life goes on and no one is going to black ball me because they didn't receive an issue at 7:00 a.m. on the dot.

Every year during the football season we host college football parties each weekend. I love to put together parties, so I would run myself ragged doing it. This year my oldest son is in his high school marching band and has many weekend events. My youngest son is playing flag football and his games are on Saturdays. I have relied on party trays, crockpot meals, and plenty of potluck help to put these parties together. Everyone has still enjoyed themselves regardless of what is put out for the spread.

My husband has a tendency to get sick when he is really stressed out. He always asks me how I can remain so calm. I tell him, "Does stressing out make the problem go away?" with which he replies, "No" so I tell him, "I am not going to make myself physically ill over a situation I cannot control at this moment."

As I have been in the car with my husband, there is always at least one jerk on the road. You know the person. They think the world revolves around them and they should be allowed to cut you off or speed because where they have to go is much more important than where you have to go. I get mad and will tell them off, obviously with the windows up and out loud to myself in the car. My husband will tell me that I will probably never see them again, so don't sweat it. I have learned to say, "Oh well." and keep driving. I keep the radio on to distract me from life's worries on the road.

When we have great things happen to us, we always remember them. When bad things happen, we sometimes tend to dwell on them. Instead of doing that, think of the quote and know that if you dwell on the bad things, life will still go on and it will pass you by.

Welcome!

Ok, I know that I have said that blogging is the way to go in my newsletter, but it has taken me a while to jump on the bandwagon. Not because I am behind the times, but because I have no time. Geesh...sounds like I need my own errand service! I am hoping to use this forum to give you an inside peek in my life as a mother, student, and owner of an errand service. My words of wisdom could be from the mouths of my husband, children, people I meet, or your truly. I hope you enjoy your journey through my life.