At last it is Friday. This has been a long week. I think it is time to cap it off with a little after week drink. How about a cocktail, or even a mocktail? Sound nice?
If you need a little inspiration then Tonic Gifts has a great book for you. “Award-winning bartender and bestselling author Ben Reed brings you an indispensable collection of recipes, from the delectable Vodkatini to a mouthwatering Bellini. Impress your guests with a tray of ice-cold Margaritas or beat that hangover with a spicy Bloody Mary.”
If you prefer the non-alcoholic drinks then here are some great ideas for mocktails. Present them as you would a cocktail and they will fit the occasion beautifully.
Pink Lady.
1 1/2 c Milk
2 tb Lemon juice
1 tb Grenadine
1 tb Sugar, granulated
6 Ice cubes
Combine all the ingredients, blend well, and serve over ice.
Peach Mocktail
Crushed ice
60ml Peach nectar
80ml soda water
Place a scoop of ice in the glass then top with the other ingredients. (from Taste magazine)
When your night has ended it will be time for a soothing Bath Cocktail. What a great thought. These are available from Beauty Banquet as a limited edition and they look really cute.
They are full of Midori scented bath salts and they come complete with cocktail shaker and a cocktail recipe for you to try.
So off you go. Grab your drink and end the week well. Have a great weekend!
There is nothing better than being curled up on your sofa with a nice warm drink and your favourite magazine. A little light reading can be relaxing and educational all at the same time.
Sometimes it would be nice to be able to read a magazine that was different but the problem with that is that they are hard to find. Most newsagents and supermarkets stock the same brand of magazine.
Now you can order your own imported magazines to be sent directly to your home with Selectair. Magazines imported from all over the world are available by subscription and titles include the international Vogue magazines, Computer Arts, the Martha Stewart range and Real Simple. The topic area is extensive, from sports through the arts to science and fashion.
Perhaps, instead of giving chocolates for Easter you could give the gift of a subscription to a new magazine. Then all we need to do is find someone to make the hot drink for us and we are set!
Click here to see the range of magazines available..
Ingrid at Small Business Ideas tells the story of what can happen when you handle a customer complaint badly. After experiencing less than average service at a restaurant a customer wrote a very reasonable letter of what I would call ‘feedback’ rather than complaint. The response from the restaurant?
Dear Lorraine, you are an idiot we dont need your feedback.
To find out which restaurant it was and to read the customers letter of feedback visit Ingrids blog. Oh, by the way, this response was spread around the entire area in which the restaurant works. What effect do you think it will have on the business?
I was wondering what your worst experience has been with customer service. There is a little poll here. Why not fill it out and let me know? If nothing fits the experience then leave me a comment with details of your experience.
Some nights are worth a little shimmer and these pots of Diamond Dust by Masquerade are the sparkliest shimmer around. The powder is fine and sleek and it dusts on beautifully. The mica particles shimmer on the skin, and the silver is especially sparkly. Available in three shades - Pink, Gold and Silver, and Silver.
While you are sparkling, why not add some glitz and glamour with a sparkling piece of jewellery? Why not try this sterling silver, sapphire and pearl set from Beauty Banquet? The pendant is set with 4 sapphires and a freshwater pearl and it comes with matching freshwater pearl stud earrings.
I have been thinking lately about how quickly time passes. The day is finished before I have done all that I set out to do. Funnily enough I came across this quote at the Small Business Diva blog:
“The bad news is time flies. The good news is you’re the pilot.” Michael Althsuler.
Well if I am piloting my day, why am I doing such a bad job of it? I am organised. I have lists. I have tools. I have targets. What goes wrong?
After a little thought I may have identified the top time wasters of my day. See how many you identify with. Perhaps it might help you to change the way we work.
1. Forums / instant messengers. Why do I leave myself ‘available’ all the time when I know it will only encourage chat?
2. Stray interruptions - visitors, telephone calls etc. How rude is it to put up a sign with my ‘visiting hours between….’ information on it, seeing as I work from home?
3. Daily life - supermarket shopping, school drop offs/pickups and so on. I know it has to be done but why during the only 24 hours of the day that I have?
4. Shared computer. “No, I will not let you use it! Oh, OK just for a minute. ” Tap, tap, tap, sigh…..
5. Paperwork. I am so slow at accounting! If I didn’t love the taxman so much (cough splutter) I wouldn’t do it.
6. Messy desk. Where is that note? I know it was here yesterday.
7. Too much time at the computer. Doesn’t looking at the screen all day make you tired? You are getting very sleeeeppppyyyy….
8. Reading. Well, there are a lot of interesting blogs out there. They are educational. (What a good excuse that is!)
9. Online shopping. I had a brilliant idea for a gadget that might solve all these problems. Perhaps I should hunt one down? While I am at it, why not just check out the online mags too…….
10. Games. There is a whole world out there on the internet that involves playing seriously addictive games. For some unidentifiable reason they are usually listed as time wasters. Go on. Do a search for Time Wasters and see what you find!
Image: Readers Digest
The hard part now is making some changes to gradually eliminate all those distractions and regain some time in my day. If you are making changes too then I wish us both luck.
Let me know how you get on.
There is nothing like a soothing herbal bath to make you relaxed, soothed and refreshed all at the same time. Why not make it a spa experience?
1 Turn off the lights, or close the curtains for subdued lighting
2. Light some scented candles.
3. Play soft, serene music.
4. Make sure that the bath water is not overly hot.
5. Add your favourite oils, herbs, bubbles, bath milk or scent to the water.
6. Make sure that the phone is switched off!
Now all you need to do is to lower yourself into the water, close your eyes and let your senses soak it all up.
Enjoy your day off.
Romantic and refreshing. An eau-de-cologne style fragrance with notes of wild strawberry, violet leaves, red grapefruit, gardenia, violet, jasmine, musk, vanilla and white woods. From Perfume Empire.
Stunning colour and glittering red crystals make this set an absolute beauty. It is elegant and pretty. Available from Beauty Banquet.
Welcome to the February 16, 2008 edition of mothers in business carnival.
Thank you all for the many submissions for this edition. I have selected those that are most suited to the topic, and offer my apologies to those writers whose work was omitted for space reasons. There are many excellent articles here, covering all aspects of building your business. Go and enjoy the reading……..
Emma Rhoades presents How do we manage? posted at Diva Promotions.
Joshua C. Karlin presents The Single Most Important Thing Your Business (or Charity) Needs posted at Marketing & Fundraising Ideas.
Kenton Newby presents 10 Ways Article Writing Can Stack the Deck in Your Favor posted at KentonNewby.com.
Kingsley Tagbo presents How to Overcome Procrastination in 8 Easy Steps posted at How To Learn Computer Programming Fast or Get a Job Easily.
Ed Rivis presents Powerful Marketing Tactic. posted at Ed Rivis.
Hill Robertson presents Work Your Internet Business in Peace and Quiet posted at Hill Robertson, saying, “Avoid distractions by working on your business when you can really focus and be more productive.”
WebSiteWerx presents Email Marketing for Ecommerce - Part I: What Is It? Why Do It? posted at WebSite Werx, saying, “Email marketing for ecommerce. What it is and why you should be doing it.”
Ask Matt presents Using Stumbleupon To Bring Visitors to Your Blog posted at BlogTactics.com, saying, “Using Stumbleupon to bring visitors to your blog.”
Carol Bentley presents Reasons to unsubscribe. . . posted at Carol Bentley, saying, “Reasons to unsubscribe. . . Sometimes stopping a subscription is the right thing to do.”
Andrew Erickson presents Email Marketing for Ecommerce - Part I: What Is It? Why Do It? posted at WebSite Werx.
Simonne presents AdSense Channels Tracking And Reporting: Case Study posted at EzMoneyOn.Net, saying, “In online businesses, optimization is very important for maximising your investments of time and money.”
FruitfulTime presents What feelings do you instil in your audience? posted at FruitfulTime Blog.
Hill Robertson presents Reasons to Build a Customer List posted at Hill Robertson, saying, “One of the most important things to be successful in any business is to have a customer list.”
Meggie Pace presents Craft Research: Craft 2.0 posted at Earthly Paradise, saying, “Handcrafts represent a major portion of women’s business and now is the best time in history for the rise of a new handcraft movement. This article discusses why the handcraft movement is growing and what its origins are.”
Fiona Lohrenz presents Financing Your Day Care Business posted at Child Care Only.
Brent Diggs presents Writing Prompts for the Not-So-Prompt posted at The Ominous Comma.
Stephen Dean presents Deciphering Cosmopolitan Magazines posted at Stephen Dean’s Copywriting And Internet Advertising Blog - Copywriter.
Sarah presents The Girl’s Guide to Kicking Your Career into Gear posted at SARAHSPY.
Carol Bentley presents Saying thanks. . . posted at Carol Bentley.
Vahid Chaychi presents Staying at Home Can Work for Moms posted at Weboma.com, saying, “Have you ever asked yourself the does it really worth to leave the kids with someone else and go to work? Did you know that you will have to pay for the problems that it makes more than what you earn through your career?”
Carol Bentley presents Outsourcing or when DIY writing is best posted at Carol Bentley.
Rebecca Suzanne Dean presents ?What Is It Makes Some Letters Pay?? posted at Rebecca Dean.
Charles Eglinton presents eBay Seller Customer Service posted at AuctionIncome.com - eBay Bidding Tips & Selling Tips.
Tim Gary presents Drama = Rocket Fuel For Success posted at Internet Success Bites.
Marcus Hochstadt presents 5 Key Steps To Internet Business Success posted at Marcus Hochstadt, saying, “So you want to be a successful Internet business entrepreneur? Do you know the steps to take in order to achieve your goals and success? Marcus Hochstadt has listed 5 key steps everyone should take when wanting to achieve Internet business success.”
Simonne presents Get Free Banner Ads For Your Blog posted at EzMoneyOn.Net, saying, “What’s a mom in an online business without an outstanding avatar? We are giving away free banners for your website or for your avatar.”
Sophia Levis presents How I made $45,624.08 Last Year Writing on the Internet posted at Sophia’s Blog, saying, “Sophia Levis shares from the heart about her struggle to make a living as a work-at-home mom. She shares the reasons for her success, and encourages others to experience the same success she has experienced.”
Laura Spencer presents Does Stress Cause Brain Damage? The Health Secret You MUST Learn Today posted at WorkFromHomeMomma, saying, “Is your stress making you sick?”
Jeremy Zongker presents 101 Ways to Make Money Online posted at Destroy Debt.
Raymond presents Cheap and Affordable Ways To Create A Virtual Office For Your Small Home Business posted at Money Blue Book.
Tiffany Colter presents Lesson Learned and How I got here posted at Writing Career Coach, saying, “This blog discusses how to have success beginning from the first day of this New Year!”
That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of mothers in business carnival using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
Technorati tags: mothers in business carnival, blog carnival.
Spotted at Jenni’s Papercraft Designs:
The key to realizing a dream is to focus not on success but significance - and then even the small steps and little victories along your path will take on greater meaning.
Oprah Winfrey, O Magazine, September 2002
US actress & television talk show host (1954 - )
