Enterprising Moms Network Inc

Guest post by Nancy Milton - www.lifedots.ca

Should sucks.  Really, it totally does.  I have been “shoulding” my whole life.  “You should call your grandma (daily), you should make a proper dinner (vs. serving myself a great plate of nachos with cheese and salsa), you should clean the garage, you should get up/ showered & dressed before the kids interrupt the process.”  See what I mean?  There’s a whole “here’s how it’s supposed to be done” guilt part of life that, to put it bluntly, I’m tired of.  So, I’m letting go of ‘should’, and have reintroduced  ‘would’. And today, I will make the introductions to you.

I’m a morning person.  Pre-kids, I would set the alarm in the morning (it’s amazing I still remember this, it seems so long ago).  When the alarm would go off (music, no shrilling “GET UP” ringing for me), I’d simply lie there for a couple minutes.  Listen to the news from the radio, open my eyes, do the mental check list on the body parts (and ailments), LOVE the feeling of the comforter cocooning me and the moments of pleasure without a to-do list running through my head like nails on a chalk board.

I gave this up 5+ plus years ago.  This 5 minutes of bliss. This ‘connect with my mind/ body/ spirit regime and all it’s benefits’ to instead thrust myself out of bed – to the point of sometimes dizzy – to begin the marching orders of my routine for that day. 

Then, one morning it all changed.  The kids “slept in” (for clarity, this is anytime after 7:00am) and I woke up independently.  I listened to the birds chirping. I stretched. I thought about the dream I woke from. I enjoyed a couple moments of “ahhh’.  Then it hit me.  I’VE MISSED THIS.  I NEED this back in my life.  Then my inner voice started with the ‘shoulds’.  “You’re now behind schedule. You should get dress FAST, make the bed, put on your make up, wake the kids and do it without seeming frantic because you’re late.”  Let me ask you this, does your inner voice know my inner voice?  This particular morning, I put a stop to it.

 Simply. I didn’t should.

Instead I “would”.

So, the kids come in within minutes of this blissful experience and the 5 year old literally asks me “Mommy what are you doing in bed?!?”.  I laugh out loud. Then asked them to both climb in (bed) with me so I could teach them to “would”.  So they climb in and I prep them for the “experience” (worded more kid friendly then I have for you). “Would it be nice to start every morning with a couple minutes giggling in bed? Would it be joyous to gaze out the bedroom window & enjoy the beauty of the start of the day? Would it be a better day to feel a connection (to self or each other) before throwing back the covers to rush to get to school?” 

It’s no shock to you I am sure, the answers to each would were yes.  So, every morning they climb in to wake me up.  We come up with shapes within the clouds & tree branches out my window, we talk about our dreams, we talk about our day.  We connect.  And the alarm is set for a specific time to allow us to wake each other up and have this “would” time in case anyone ever oversleeps again (ha...have only needed that alarm once).

Everyday my live was full of ‘shoulds’.  I ‘should’ empty the dishwasher. I ‘should’ get this stuff to the drycleaners.  I’ve got lots of ‘shoulds’ in my life that I’ve relabelled with ‘must’.  For the rest of them, I do my ‘would’ test to help me better access if the ‘should’ is a ‘must’.  If it’s not a must I then ask myself, what would be best in the situation? Or what would the benefit be for me to do that in the short and long term?  What would this do to make my (or others ) day better/ brighter/ easier? Then I let my gut answer.  My gut is always right, it’s the interpretation I’ve been screwing up on. What ‘shoulds’ are ‘musts’ in your life? And what ‘should’ needs to experience the ‘would filter’ to give your life connection back?

Nancy Milton is “the First Dot” of Life Dots; a Facilitation and Coaching organization that strives to assist all clients in making the change in their lives to give them the life they want to have. Life Dots is about connecting your Life Dots.  For more information on one or one coaching, corporate coaching or retreats check out www.lifedots.ca or contact nancy@lifedots.ca

On May 2, 2010 a very special event is taking place at locations across Canada.  The Walk For Kids Help Phone takes place annually in more than 50 communities across Canada.  In 2009, more than 20,000 people participated and raised a total of over three million dollars for this cause.

Kids Help Phone hears from young people today dealing with challenges and experiences that previous generations could not imagine. And when issues are too difficult for kids to discuss with parents, teachers or peers, they may turn to Kids Help Phone. The range of issues kids talk about - from sexual and physical abuse, to suicide, mental health and anxiety, family issues, peer pressure, bullying and internet safety, is extensive. The need for Kids Help Phone counselors to continually deepen their understanding of critical issues facing young people is more important today than ever. And they do that.

Whether you are raising pledges, pledging walkers, volunteering or walking on May 2nd, by taking part in the Walk For Kids Help Phone, you are helping to ensure that for young people with worries like this, help we will be there for them - 24 hours a day - providing a safe, supportive and confidential place for them to share their concerns.

"On May 2nd, Walk So Kids Can Talk"

Today is "Pink Shirt Day" in support of taking a stand against bullying. Today is the day that everyone is encouraged to wear something pink to symbolize that we as a society will not tolerate bullying anywhere. Pink Shirt Day originated from two incredible Nova Scotia high school students, David Shepherd and Travis Price. Below is an article written by CBC News in 2007, about how these fantastic kids started Pink Shirt Day.

Two Nova Scotia students are being praised across North America for the way they turned the tide against the bullies who picked on a fellow student for wearing pink. The victim-a Grade 9 boy at Central Kings Rural High School in the small community of Cambridge — wore a pink polo shirt on his first day of school. Bullies harassed the boy, called him a homosexual for wearing pink and threatened to beat him up, students said.

Two Grade 12 students — David Shepherd and Travis Price — heard the news and decided to take action. "I just figured enough was enough," said Shepherd. They went to a nearby discount store and bought 50 pink shirts, including tank tops, to wear to school the next day. Then the two went online to e-mail classmates to get them on board with their anti-bullying cause that they dubbed a "sea of pink." But a tsunami of support poured in the next day. Not only were dozens of students outfitted with the discount tees, but hundreds of students showed up wearing their own pink clothes, some head-to-toe.

When the bullied student, who has never been identified, walked into school to see his fellow students decked out in pink, some of his classmates said it was a powerful moment. He may have even blushed a little. "Definitely it looked like there was a big weight lifted off his shoulders. He went from looking right depressed to being as happy as can be," said Shepherd. And there's been nary a peep from the bullies since, which Shepherd says just goes to show what a little activism will do. "If you can get more people against them … to show that we're not going to put up with it and support each other, then they're not as big as a group as they think are," he says.

The students' "sea of pink" campaign did not go unnoticed outside the province. U.S. talk show host Ellen DeGeneres expressed interest in their story, and other schools are talking about holding their own "pink day." "It's been totally overwhelming for us. I mean we're just two local boys and I mean we're getting calls from like Alaska and e-mails. It's just phenomenal the support that we've gotten from across the globe," said Price. The school principal, understandably, was flush with pride. "You're always hearing about the youth of the world and how bad things are. Well, they're not that bad," said Stephen Pearl.

It's April 14th, wear pink and show your support in taking a stand against bullying! For more information, visit www.pinkshirtday.ca

I first became aware of a film called "The Glow Project" in February of 2009.  As a consultant with a Canadian direct-sales company, there were many consultants who had seen the movie and were sharing their thoughts and feelings about it.  The consensus seemed to be that this was a phenomenal movie that affected women from all walks of life greatly.

I soon saw the trailer for the movie, and eventually saw the movie a few months later.  The Glow Project had a huge impact on me as a person, as a mom, and as a woman in business.  The Glow Project showcases a full-length feature movie that spotlights 14 incredible women—seven of them corporate achievers and seven successful entrepreneurs. The Glow Project is the result of a dynamic grassroots movement fueled by the authenticity, stories and life lessons of the incredibly gifted women selected for The GLOW Project. Without question, The Glow Project has redefined the personal development paradigm for women and represents a breakthrough in helping women achieve like never before.

To find out more about The Glow Project and the impact it's had on women's lives, check out The Glow Project website here.  To see more on how women have reacted to the Glow Project, check out the video below... and spread the Glow....

Have you had that "ONE" bright business idea and let it go because you had no idea what to do with it? Or how about already owning your own business and being scared to take it to the "NEXT LEVEL"?       

Many of us have been there and know what its like. It's scary and exciting all at the same time. The risk of failure, the possibility of it not working - yep, that does exist.

However, what also exits is the possibility of its success and creating the life you always dreamed of.

If entrepreneurship was easy, everyone would be doing it. What separates those who succeed, and those who don't is simple: tenacity.

Have you ever read a bio about someone and thought to yourself "I thought of that!" or "I could have done that".  The only difference between that person and you is that YOU didn't try.

Entrepreneurship has its ups and downs. You will find that every successful business owner will have a story about failure(s) - of when the business really wasn't working very well. But they stuck with it - saw it through, and eventually it succeeded. 

These struggles build character, they define how you will handle business in the future. In essence, they make you a better entrepreneur because you  lived through the hard times - and so did your business.

So if you have always wanted to try your hand at entrepreneurship because you have that ONE great idea - or really want to grow your business and take it to the NEXT LEVEL; make 2010 the year you simply go for it.

Never live your life with regret - you'll never know if it could work, unless you work to make it happen.

Happy 2010!

Last week we asked people to tell us what ONE word summed up Christmas for them.  We had a great response & are very happy to now "show off" our EMN Christmas WordCloud! 

Thank you to everyone who submitted their Christmas Words to us...

Enjoy!

Christmas means so many different things to so many different people. It's a season, it's a feeling, it's a tradition, it's..... 

What is it?

EMN is looking to make a huge Christmas Wordcloud. We are going to be collecting single words from everyone - words that sum up the feeling of Christmas. Nouns, adjectives, colours, scents, foods, places, gifts, people, you name it, BUT it has to be just one word. 

 One. 

 Are you up for the challenge? Tweet your word to @EMN_Canada – retweet it to your Twitter followers & put them to the “EMN one-word-Christmas challenge”. We’ll put the Wordcloud up Friday December 18th.  Be creative and have fun! 

Joy!

'Tis the season… to think about winter driving. If you’re one of the lucky ones, then driving in the winter isn’t something you need to worry too much about. But if you’re not one of those three people, then the advent of December means much more than just eating a daily chocolate as you count down to Christmas. It also means winterizing “mom’s taxi”. Mom’s taxi: you know, the family vehicle that picks up and drops off kids at school, soccer, swimming, hockey and birthday parties. The vehicle that can take a load 100 pounds of groceries without emitting a groan. The vehicle that has enough cracker crumbs and half-empty water bottles to provide a full family snack should you ever get stranded in the snow.

But unless you truly want to be stranded in the snow, get Mom’s Taxi winterized. Get to your local garage for a winter tune up and most importantly, look into getting some snow tires. Reality is harsh, but getting stuck in a one inch snowdrift is more than embarrassing. It’s frustrating and it’s pointless. If you’ve ever been on a “freestyle slide” as you braked for a red light, it’s probably time to think about some winter tires. If you already have some, that’s fabulous & you should get them put on pronto, but if you’ve never bought them before, there are a few things to think about. Before you head off to the first tire store that you see, do some research.

- Get the tire size for your vehicle. This can be found on the edge of the tire wall, and is a long number looking something like P205/55R16 
- When you’re making calls to the local tire stores, let them know the make/model & year of your vehicle as well as the tire size. Be specific with letting them know what you want. If you’re driving a 10 year old mini-van back and forth to the grocery store and the school, you do not need performance tires. If your aim is to fly on the freeway in the middle of a blizzard (which you shouldn’t do anyway) then maybe get the quote on the performance tire. 
- When Mr. Tire is giving you the price quote, make sure you ask for the “all-in” price. As in, what is the total price including taxes, levies, installation, balancing etc. All of those little things add up & if you just get the “per-tire” price, you may be in for a bit of sticker shock when you pick up Mom’s Taxi at the end of the day.  
- This is an important one: Once you have got the quote for the right tire for you, make sure to ask them if the tire is in stock. Many times the tires can be ordered in, but if you’re a typical Mom, once you’ve made the decision that you need the winter tires, you want them on Mom’s Taxi by the time you have to get the kids home from school.  
- Ask Mr. Tire if they offer tire storage. Some companies will do this for a fee, or sometimes even at no charge with the purchase. Let’s face it, come the spring, you are going to have to put the old tires back on and in the meantime, do you have the storage space at your home to put 4 full sized tires? If you are in a house with a garage this may not be an issue, but if you have an apartment it’s something you’ll have to think about. You could consider putting slipcovers over them and using them as special “holiday seating” but chances are your secret will get out.  
- Don’t wait until the first snowflake falls to get your winter tires!!! It’s like Boxing Day for tire stores – shopping insanity. You know it’s the winter, you know if you need winter tires, do not procrastinate! A good lesson learned here is that you never know when the snow is going to start. And let’s face it, we’re in Canada and the snow WILL be here. If you’re 30 miles from home, and it’s nighttime and all of a sudden a heavy snowfall starts at the beginning of your drive, chances are your knuckles will be melded to the steering wheel by the time you get home.

Winter driving is a given. Accidents in winter are a given. The roads may look pretty with the snowy trees framing them and little snowdrifts lining your route from A-B, but don’t be fooled. It’s a slippery road out there.

Guest blog post courtesty of Loretta Oliver

Are you planning to organize a Halloween costume party this year and you do not know what food to prepare? Why not make your party more fun by preparing fun Halloween recipes. Aside from the interesting costumes worn by your guests and the spooky Halloween decorations that you have prepared, your party will be doubly fun if you also prepared Halloween-themed foods. Here are some fun Halloween recipes that you should include in your party’s menu. 

 You can prepare the very traditional spaghetti with meatballs for your Halloween party. You might wonder if it is appropriate for Halloween. Yes, of course, if you add a little twist to it. Why not make the spaghetti meatballs look like eyeballs? It is very easy. Cook the spaghetti and meatballs the way you always cook them. Once the meatballs have been cooked and molded into balls, you can add a small portion of cheese at the center of the meatball to make it look like an eyeball. Simple yet very Halloween-ish. 

 You can also bake a pumpkin pie that looks like a spider web. Get a recipe for making pumpkin pies. Bake the pumpkin crust. Once the crust is baked and cooled, spread cream over the surface of the pie. This will be the background of the web. To create the web, you can sue a mixture of chocolate and butter heated inside the microwave. Draw a spiral from the center of the crust to the edges. Using a toothpick, draw lines from the center to the edge of the crust for it to resemble a spider web. 

 Are you ready to learn fun Halloween recipes that you and your family can enjoy? Visit http://halloween-recipes.justnotmartha.com/ today!

A little look at what Enterprising Moms have been talking about over the past week: