Monthly Archives: June 2013

12 Blogging & Life Tips and Techniques I’ve Learned from 12 Years of Online Publishing

June 19, 2013Blogger Resources, Business, PersonalBlogging, business, summerAlicia

My kids have been out of school for a few weeks. Enough said, right?

While I LOVE having my kids home with me and wouldn’t change that for anything, I run my business, AtlantaMoms.com and this blog, from home, and have for 12 years. Summer break can be a bit stressful because I have to make sure the kids are entertained while I work.

Each year toward the end of the school year, I feel a sense of relief that summer break is approaching. After all, with summer break comes fun family travel, and less chaotic days, right? Wrong!! Well, I suppose the fun family travel is right, but the days are not less chaotic when the kids are out of school, that’s for sure.

In the 3 weeks that the kids have been out of school, we’ve been to Florida and Indiana, and home for 1 week. I worked about a total of two hours during each trip which odd as it sounds, stressed me out more than when I work a long work day.

Why is that, you ask?

When I’m working, I know that I am moving my business forward and being productive. When I’m not working, I think about the emails I should be answering, the ads I should be publishing, the newsletter I should be editing, and the blog posts I should be proofing.

I worked very hard to create and build my business, AtlantaMoms.com, 12 years ago and like many business owners I had a difficult time giving up control of any part of the business so that I didn’t have to do it all. The lack of desire to give up control of some aspects of the business didn’t last long though. Within 2 years of launching AtlantaMoms.com, I had a full-time advertising sales representative who made tons of money, more than me it seemed (you know.. businesses expenses.. and all that), and she stayed with Atlanta Moms® for 8 years. Giving up complete control was the best thing I could do for my business and I recommend that all business owners hire someone to take care of some tasks as soon as they can. I was less stressed almost immediately after hiring my first employee and I couldn’t do without help now. I thought surely no one would represent my business as well as I did, but I was wrong.

Having employees has given me the opportunity to spend more time with my kids. My son was a year old when I started AtlantaMoms.com and I am so glad I’ve been able to watch him grow up and be with him every day to be there for moments like these..

No matter what, I will always want to keep tabs on my business even when I’m on vacation, but I know now that I don’t have to answer every email within 15 minutes and that it’s not a big deal to have over 30k emails in my inbox. Speaking of email, I’ve known bloggers and other business colleagues to say a lot about having soo many emails in their inbox, but why is it a big deal? No matter what, the emails are going to be stored somewhere so why not just keep them in your inbox? Doesn’t everyone just use search to find an email? Who labels emails or puts them in folders anymore?

I expanded my business when I started this site, TheMommyInsider.com, in 2006. I am equally proud of both sites and can’t imagine not having either of them. It’s like having a second child. You don’t think you could love another website as much as the first, but you do.

On that note, here are a few photos of my daughter, starting in 2007 and ending with a photo of the two of us taken just about a week ago, in June 2013.

This summer, I accept that there will be times when I can not check email more than once a day and I am not going to stress about it. Please don’t quote me.

That is just one way I am going to make this summer less stressful than past summers.

Over the last 12 years I’ve learned some techniques that have helped me keep my stress levels down, in regards to business.

Here are a 12 blogging and business tips that I’ve learned in the last 12 years:

Don’t try to respond to every email you receive within 15 minutes, or even a few hours
The people who send you the email have a life too and are probably not expecting a response right away.
Don’t say yes to every blogging opportunity that arrives in your inbox
If I am not excited about the opportunity or don’t feel like it’s worth my time to travel or write about it, then I say no thanks. Your time is valuable. Make sure you are getting paid what you are worth!
Write a blog post and leave it in draft status for a day at least
Mom bloggers often are distracted while writing a blog post. Such is the case with me. I have found that when I check a blog post a day or so after writing it and when I am not going to be interrupted, I catch more errors than if I publish it right away.
Don’t hesitate to invest in products and services that will help you be more productive
I was stubborn for the first few years of AtlantaMoms.com being online. Paying for an ad server and an email newsletter service like Mailchimp were 2 of the best things I have done for my business and myself. Paying for a good hosting service that will provide 24/7 support is a good idea too.
Have a separate phone number for business calls
Use a Google number or get a second cell phone or landline that is 100% dedicated to business calls. Enough said.
Use a Social Media Service like Hootsuite to monitor your social media accounts
If you use social media for your business, invest in a service like Hootsuite to manage your Twitter and Facebook accounts. Hootsuite makes viewing messages that you have sent and received as well as all messages with a specific hashtag or user you’d like to follow, a breeze.
Schedule blog posts and social media posts
Write blog posts and social media posts ahead of time when you have extra time and schedule them to publish later.
Limit how many browser tabs you have open
I have been guilty of having 15-20 tabs open in my browser at a time. That just sucks productivity like almost nothing else. If a page was taking a few seconds to load, I would switch to another tab to read something else and forget what I was doing.
Get small tasks done before tackling large tasks
Getting small tasks done before starting on larger tasks allows you to feel like you’ve accomplished something. That’s always nice.
Use an app/service like Feedly to keep up with your blogging buddie’s blogs
Having all the latest posts from your favorite blogs presented to you on a single site/page means you don’t have to visit 20 different blogs every day!
DO NOT compare yourself to other bloggers!
Just don’t do it..unless you’re into self-torture.
Enjoy your kids
I can’t believe my kids are 13 and 7 and I started when my son was 1! They have grown up so fast but I’m happy to be able to say that I haven’t missed any of it.

If you are a blogger or a work from home parent, please share your productivity and blogging tips with me below!

Meet My New Kitchen Assistant, Cascade Platinum

June 16, 2013Cleaning & CleanersCascade Platinum Pacs review, cleaning, dishwasher detergent reviewAlicia

I participated in a campaign on behalf of Mom Central Consulting for Cascade. I received a product sample to facilitate my review and a promotional item as a thank you for participating.

My son is 13 and one of his household responsibilities is to do the dishes. Believe you me, it has been difficult to pass that chore on to him. About 80% of the time I have to go back and rinse the dishes that he’s already put in the dishwasher off, again, before the dishwasher can be run. You may ask why I don’t catch the fact that he’s leaving food on the dishes in the first place. Well, that is because I am a firm believer in letting him try then my plan is to go back and correct any errors. I don’t police the kids while they are cleaning.

My intention is to will check the dishes that he put in the dishwasher as soon as he is finished loading it, but 99% of the time when he is ready for me to check it, I am putting my daughter to bed or in the middle of something else, so I don’t check. I say “I trust that you did a good job” and leave it at that. Needless to say, it’s about time to have a real lesson in how to rinse dishes and place them in the dishwasher properly.

I was thrilled when I learned about Cascade Platinum Pacs because they claim to “Power away tough, 24 hour stuck-on food”. It’s a miracle, right?

My Experience with Cascade Platinum Pacs

The bag that the pacs are stored in is easy to open and shuts securely with a durable zip/lock type of closure. When I opened the package, the first thing I noticed was the scent which is pleasing and mild. The pacs are colorful and seem to be zoned off into different sections which is the triple action recipe (see ‘how it works’ below). I have handled other detergent packs and I was worried that they were going to crumble in my hand, they felt flimsy. These pacs though, did not feel like that. They actually feel like plastic and I was not worried about it crumbling.

Placing the pac in the dispenser is obviously a cinch. I was a tad concerned that the strong outer shell might not dissolve completely during the wash cycle, but it did. During the cycle, the pleasant scent was released into our kitchen, which I appreciate. I’m always looking for ways to mask the odor of dirty shoes, pets, etc.. This is easy!

Once the wash cycle was complete, the pac was gone and our dishes were shiny, streak-free, and grime-free. I made a point to not scrub everything off of the dishes for this load so I could see the cleaning power of the pacs for myself.

Another thing that I noticed is that my dishwasher was less grimy and cleaner after using a Cascade Platinum Pac. Before using the pac, our dishwasher had dull white streaks going down the inside of the door, where the dispenser is, and the sides of the dishwasher had the same streaks. After using a Cascade Platinum Pac, the streaks were gone. I haven’t really taken the cleanliness of our dishwasher into consideration in the past but now that it’s clean again, I know that I like it better when it’s clean.

* The story ends with me having a fabulous new kitchen assistant, one that I don’t have to feed, bathe, or pay allowance to, and I have given my son a different responsibility. His newest responsibility is to deliver everyone’s laundry to and from the laundry room. Fair trade, I think.

About Cascade Platinum Pacs

How it works:
Cascade© Platinum pacs feature an advanced triple action recipe that is specially designed to leave dishware virtually spot-free and help prevent the build-up of hard-water film on dishwasher walls.* *Use a dishwasher cleaner to remove existing build-up on wall interiors.

Why you need it:
Cascade© Platinum pacs achieve a top-tier clean so powerful that they even help keep your dishwasher machine sparkling and deliver a variety of dish care benefits:

Powers away tough, 24 hour stuck-on food
Eliminates the need to pre-wash dishes
Helps maintain the look of new machines and helps prevent additional hard-water build-up
Delivers exceptional dishware shine

As with any household cleaner, it is extremely important to keep this product out of reach of children!

Cascade Partners with Gail Simmons!

Now, more than ever, people eat with their eyes, and the evidence is all over sites like Facebook and Instagram. With that in mind, Top Chef judge and editor of Food+Wine magazine, Gail Simmons, has partnered with Cascade to discuss why presentation is just as important as preparation.

What Gail Simmon’s Says:

It’s more than just a great-‐tasting recipe, but also perfect presentation. Sparkling dishes, shining flat ware and spot-‐free glasses truly let you put your best food forward with culinary creations that pop!Learn more about Cascade’s partnership with Gail Simmons by viewing videos available on the Link to the Cascade Facebook page and Cascade YouTube page.

Cascade is hosting “My Platinum” Contest- a four week Instagram contest encouraging fans to upload photos related to the weekly contest themes. Show off how sparkly Cascade makes all your pots, pan and plates!

Visit the contest landing page for information on how to enter and submit images.
Each week, two contestants will be selected to receive a brand new Whirlpool dishwasher. Additionally, one lucky grand prize winner will receive a Platinum kitchen makeover!

To win, users have to both register and upload a photo with the #MyPlatinum hashtag and tag @MyCascade.

You must first register here to win!

Each week will have a 6-day entry period where Instagram users can enter the contest with their #MyPlatinum Photo. Cascade will choose two weekly winners and one final grand prize winner after the entry period has ended. Please be sure to include both the #MyPlatinum hashtag and tag @MyCascade in your entries to the contest!

Week 1: My Platinum Plate (Entry Period: 6/3-6/9)
Show us your best dish styled from the sparkling plate up!
Week 2: My Platinum Bite (Entry Period: 6/10-6/16)
Show us your best bite and most creative use of sparkling silverware!
Week 3: My Platinum Clink (Entry: 6/17-6/23)
Show us how you serve up creative concoctions in sparkling glasses. Cheers!
Week 4: My Platinum Table (Entry Period: 6/24-6/30)
Show us your sparkling tablescape for your most special celebrations!
Grand Prize Winner (Entry: 6/3-6/30)

Cascade Platinum Online

I participated in a campaign on behalf of Mom Central Consulting for Cascade. I received a product sample to facilitate my review and a promotional item as a thank you for participating.

Chili Vinaigrette Recipe – Use Colman’s Dry Mustard To Add Spice To Your Salad

June 14, 2013Food and Drinkcolmans, dry mustard, food, recipe, reviewKim

Summer is here!
Summer made a swift entrance into town a couple of days ago already hitting 90+ degrees outside. It’s hot and I don’t feel like eating when it is hot out. I know, I know, I have to eat. I just don’t feel like it. I usually eat lots and lots of salad in summer. But salad gets boring. A couple of months ago I started making my own salad dressing. I have come across some great recipes for salad dressing. It has been fun experimenting with different kinds of dressings. Then I came across a recipe using Colman’s dry mustard powder. I never would have thought of using dry mustard as an ingredient!

Colman’s dry mustard powder has less than 15 calories and only 0.8 grams of fat per teaspoon. They have some great recipes on their website. Here’s one that I tried out and I absolutely love!

Colman’s Chili Vinaigrette Recipe

Ingredients:

4 tbs. olive oil
1 tbs. white wine vinegar
1 tsp. Colman’s Original Powdered Mustard
4 “splashes” mild green Tabasco sauce
½ cup lemon juice
2 tsp. honey

Instructions:

Mix all ingredients together. That’s it!

I had all the ingredients on hand so it was easy to whip it together fast. I put just enough on my salad to barely coat the lettuce and it was great!

The Chili Vinaigrette had just the right amount of sweet and spicy for me.

Now that I know about Colman’s Dry Mustard I am going to check out their website more often and find even more recipes to try.

You can find more information about Colman’s on their website, facebook page and on twitter.

About Colman’s

Established in 1814, Colman’s of Norwich has been recognized widely as the English mustard in the world. Using a unique and zesty blend of brown mustard seeds (Brassica Juncea) and white mustard seeds (Sinapis Alba), Jeremiah Colman created a mustard with a flavorful heat sensation that has become an essential condiment and paramount ingredient in Britain’s favorite recipes, even to the highest royal order. In 1866 Queen Victoria bestowed the ultimate seal of approval – the Royal Warrant – galvanizing Colman’s as the crown jewel of mustards, securing its place in the most discerning kitchens around the world. Sold as prepared mustard and mustard powder, Colman’s provides a pure, fiery and complex condiment for all your recipes and dishes. Complete Your Cooking With Colman’s. Visit Colman’s of Norwich on the web at www.colmansusa.com. For recipes, extended history and information visit www.colmansusa.com.

Protect Your and Your Kid’s Identities With LifeLock® Identity Theft Protection

June 13, 2013Safetyidentity theft, LifeLockAlicia

FTC Disclosure Requirement: The Mommy Insider aims to provide unbiased editorials. However, I wish to disclose that from time to time I may receive free products or other compensation from companies for blogger reviews.

When my son started crawling about 13 years ago, my immediate thoughts besides how exciting it was, were about his safety. How can I keep him from crawling up the stairs, or under the dining room table where he could bump his head, or from sticking a finger in an outlet? I baby proofed our home to the max. There were baby gates around every turn, ever outlet was protected, cabinet doors had safety locks on them.. you get the picture. I did the same with my daughter. Baby gates everywhere, covered outlets, etc..

Then, as he grew up, we had to consider and education him about other safety issues such as riding a bike safely, ‘stranger danger’, and teaching him to never run behind a car pulling out of a driveway. Those are all real dangers and something else that I have learned about since having my son, is the danger of identity theft. Your child’s clean and unmonitored credit file is a gold mine for identity thieves. Can you imagine if your child’s credit was ruined before he was even old enough to use and appreciate the meaning of credit?

Now there is a service called LifeLock that will give parents peace of mind by protecting their own and their child’s identity protected in various ways.

What Does LifeLock® Do?

LifeLock gives members the opportunity to use a suite of services (including credit monitoring) that work together to protect their identity from various risks including, but not limited, to credit fraud. LifeLock actively monitors applications including credit, mortgage, retail credit, and wireless credit applications to name a few, within an extensive network for attempts to use your child’s personal data, and alerts members if suspicious activity is detected.

As I parent, I appreciate the LifeLock Junior service which monitors your child’s personal information with proactive protection features designed specifically for children.

For more information on LifeLock® services visit their website: http://www.lifelock.com/services

FTC Disclosure Requirement: The Mommy Insider aims to provide unbiased editorials. However, I wish to disclose that from time to time I may receive free products or other compensation from companies for blogger reviews.

I Found an Amazing Beauty Cream! L’Occitane Pivoine Flora Beauty Cream

June 13, 2013Beauty & Skin Carebeauty, beauty cream, L'Occitane, L'Occitane Pivoine FloraAlicia

Oh my goodness! I recently received a jar of L’Occitane Pivoine Flora beauty cream, a beautifully fragrant cream that is formulated to make skin satiny smooth, and I love it! This cream is a popular product offered by L’Occitane, and it is perfect for the spring and summer.

Ingredients are important when it comes to beauty creams. You want them to be rich and hydrating without feeling greasy and heavy. This cream is easily absorbed thanks to its high-quality ingredients. Rich butters and oils absorb into the skin and Peony extract from France is used to make this product smell incredible!

A busy mom will appreciate how easy this product is to use and carry with her. It’s the perfect size for a diaper bag or purse. You simply unscrew the jar and apply liberally to dry skin. Massage the cream into your skin until it is fully absorbed. Your skin will feel brighter and softer instantly!

The elegant packaging makes this product feel like real luxury. The glass jar is even reusable. The pink colors are a nice feminine touch, and the label is definitely eye-catching. L’Occitane doesn’t skimp on packaging. When you hold this product, it feels substantial. It doesn’t feel cheap or look cheap like some lotions can.

This luxury cream is seven ounces for $36. Some might say it’s pricey, but the quality more than makes up for the cost.

L'Occitane Pivoine Flora Beauty Cream review

The L’Occitane Pivoine Flora beauty cream is a rich product with luxurious ingredients that will transport you to the south of France where it was inspired from.

L’Occitane is a company that began in 1976. It is a company inspired by Mediterranean ingredients, traditions and fragrances. Every product is made by drawing inspiration from the province where the company began. L’Occitane is sold around the world as a luxury brand.

I was sent a sample of this product for review purposes. All opinions are my own. You will find more about my editorial policy and how I accept products to review here.

Links in review posts are occasionally linked to a site we are affiliated with. When a reader clicks and buys from a link on our site, we may make a small commission from the purchase.