A Bikini Wax For Prom? Am I missing something?

As I was talking to my sister today who was a bit worried because her one year old had just eaten crayon and she wondered would get stuck in his digestive track?

I was trying to tell her that’s nothing my 18 year old daughter is getting a bikini wax for Prom Tonight? A bikini wax for Prom?

Prom is one of those events in a child’s life that brings countless inner feelings to the surface. It’s such an emotional roller coaster, you have excitement for this milestone, just a few weeks away from high school graduation, and she will soon be off to college. The happiness you feel for your child, the friendships made, the goals accomplished, and the hurdles she has crossed and been able to grow from. Then you feel a wave of panic, sadness, uncertainness. You want to wrap her back in your arms where you know she will be safe; you want to warn her without limiting her, to caution her with out taking away her curiosity

When I became pregnant with my first child 20 years ago I needed to read every parenting book, magazine, and pamphlet that I could wrangle my nervous hands around. Maybe our parents had Dr. Spock but our generation we needed more, we brought our babies home from the hospital with such anxiety, worry, and self-doubt. My parents seemed to just parent, no books, just naturally, easy, successfully, and now I have found nothing teaches like your own life of parenting. You can only know and learn from being down in the trenches and dealing with it each day.

So as I sit here today and ponder where did the time go, how could it be that I was just teaching my daughter to look both ways as she crossed the street, and today I’m talking to her about don’t let anyone spike your drink..UGH!…Sex, Drugs, Abuse, Dumb Mistakes…and yes she is rolling her eyes, but I know she is listening…

Fred G. Gosman put it so well in his book, “How to be a happy parent ..in spite of your children!

“Finding the perfect balance is getting harder and harder. We need to teach our children to be cautious with out imparting fear, to lean right from wrong with out being judgmental, to be assertive but not pushy, to stick to routines with out sacrificing spontaneity, and to be determined but not stubborn.”

So as my daughter rushes off to get her bikini wax for prom, I feel secure in the person she has grown into. I have set down some rules because I love her enough to do so. Parenting is not an art or science, I have sweated through 18 years of love, tears, worry, and joy. She has eared the freedom of responsibility. Tonight I will try to worry less and trust her to use her own instincts. UGH!! I wonder if I should right that ten more times…..

Happy “I’m a Bad Mother” Mothers Day

Having four kids, I have tried to model good behavior these past 20-18-15-15 years. My kids know that I love teachable moments, and as a mother, I too have hit some potholes along the way but I don’t apologize. Hey that’s life, and from my faults I hope my kids have grown stronger, wiser, more independent, and have learned to take responsibility for their own actions. So for all those mothers that feel at times you have been in the bad mother boat, it’s life lesson for the kids, and they should thank us. But won’t…

Here are my confessions.

1.    I don’t make dinners. What have my kids eaten over the past year? I don’t know. I used to make wonderful family meals. Meatloaf, Crock-pot stew, Chicken Bakes, veggies, potatoes, warm bread, and a salad. No one ever ate any of it. So I switched to do it on your own dinners. Cereal, pre made frozen meals, PB&Js. From that the kids have learned to cook and prepare meals.
2.    I lost the permission slips. Hey with four teens and lots of school mail coming in and out, I don’t have a clue where I placed it. The kids have to put it in front of me first thing in the morning have me sign it, write a check, and leave with it. From that they have learned to be organized, get forms in on time., and take responsibility.
3.    I forget to take them to the dentist when they had a cavity, missed orthodontist appointments when they needed ruberbands, and zoned out of a few physical therapy sessions to heal a track injury, but no harm no foul. All teeth, bones, and bodies are fine now, and they are more aware of their own symptoms, and know when to seek out care.
4.    I didn’t wake my son in time to catch the bus to his tennis match, the coach couldn’t play him. I didn’t do that on purpose but my son will never forget to set his alarm and I hope never miss a bus, plan, train ever again. Lesson learned
5.    I made them get jobs at 15. They need to work to pay for their movies, CDs, and yes even the homecoming dress. They need to pay for gas even if dad and I use the car too. Now they know how many hours needed to work to pay for a pair of jeans, a movie with your friends, and that new video game. This is how they will learn to make good money choices.
6.    I was late picking them up after school. Sometimes real late, they had to learn patience, how to ask others for a favor, and how to make good use of down time.
7.    I made them clean the garage with me even when friends were going to the water park. They learned about family responsibility. We found and discover things from the past, and shared lots of stories and laughs. Created memories in an unexpected situation.
8.    I lost the report cards the day they came home in the mail. I didn’t mean to loose them, but it’s not about the grade, it’s about the learning. I don’t need to know what they got in a class, I want to know they tried their best and learned along the way.
9.    I spend way too much time on twitter and blogging. I know they get tired of seeing the top of my head, but I work from home, I’m doing something I love and it keeps me engaged, entertained, and motivated to learn more and I work hard. I want them to find jobs that invigorate, engage, and motivate them to work hard too
10.    Here are a few other things that horrified my kids, I’m on the board of the PTO and volunteer at the school, I check when they are going to a party that a parent will be there, I make sure they only drive with one friend in the car, I make them volunteer, I’m friends with the police, I read the blotter, and I have a Facebook page but I’m not friends with my kids, until I’m asked to be.

I love being a Bad Mother and you should too…what have you done to “ruin your kids social life?

Why Chris Brogan gets it and why companies need to know!

Why Chris Brogan gets it right, and why companies need to know!

Last weekend I attended SOBcon in Chicago—a conference that includes many of the best brains, brands, and bloggers in Social Media. And then there was @momofteentwit2, I mean, @Beth Rosen. I know what you’re thinking. Like the song: “One of these things is not like the other.” Yes, that would be me, a midlife mom of teens with a blog (thanks for reading this). But why would I take so much time away from my friends and family to be with people that might follow, friend, link, or read me?

I attended because having kids exposed me to social media, and I wanted to learn even more. Did you know that just one unhappy influencer, blogger, twitterer, or vlogger could bring down an entire brand with just #140 characters? A serious PR nightmare.

Well, welcome to the transparent world of social media! There’s something in it for everyone, but who really gets it?

Knowing that social media “rock stars” like Chris Brogan, Brian Clark, Liz Strauss and other social media masterminds were attending SOBcon, I was just looking to shake hands, take a photo, or even pipe in a question.

Let me just emphasize that all of us who believe that social media is not just the next phase of media, but a must phase, read on. I’ve got to tell you about something remarkable. The most amazing thing happened.

Chris Brogan came over and spoke to me.

Chris Brogan, the guru of social media, took time to talk with me. Why? I may never know, but maybe it’s because he is really good at what he does, and that’s connecting with people in a personal way while being genuinely interested in what were doing/looking for online.

As he writes so persuasively in his post “Shortening The Distance Between Us”, ‘we were already confidants through the power of social media—the technology had broken the ice and showed how aligned we were about the potential and power of networking.”

But—and this may even be more important—he saw me as “Everyman.” (Or should I say “EveryMOM?”) As a blogging, tweeting mother-of-four teens—a buyer, a recommender, a shopper, and critic—Chris knew I embodied the all the angles of an audience that social media seeks to address. I am the real deal of the linked-up world. And the best part is it makes sense! The power of this new force is that it’s all about people, wherever and however they want to connect.

Chris put it this way, “[It’s] because knowing more about someone by following their online presence stream is actually valuable.” I’ll put it more personally: by tapping into each other’s opinions and living a truly connected existence, we become more of ourselves, and make more of our lives, our relationships, our communities, and our decisions.

That’s why Chris is Chris Brogan “he gets us we get him and together we get the future”

Parents of Teens, Time to Jump Into The Social Media Pool!!

The pressure to come up with a post…

I have to admit it: I’m having a bit of writer’s block! It’s not because I don’t have anything to say… People who know me know I always have something to say.

Today, I’m really struggling to come up with a brilliant post.  You know, words that will move you, motivate you, educate or at least entertain you. Why is this post different then my previous posts, because this post a few people beside my mom might actually read it? (Thanks Mom!)

Why might this post get a few more hits?

Chris Brogan, Liz Strauss, Walmart, Sobcon. If you’re confused by now, let me explain. This weekend, I attended an amazing social media conference called Sobcon in Chicago. I must admit, I may be a little more obsessed with social media then your average 40 something mom of teens, but I think we as parent need to wake up! We have to dip our toes into the social media pool too!

As a mom with four teens, I fell into social media because I wanted to know more about the places our kids hang out online, just like when you taught your toddler to look both ways as they cross the street. I feel we have to know something about the world of social media, to be able to advise our kids, guide them, and continually remind them to “look both ways” when surfing the Internet.  And now that you can interact in real time with people on the Internet, it’s even more of a necessity.

Parents it’s o.k to start to wade into the social media water, you don’t have to become the Michael Phelps of Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, or Myspace, but you do need to know a few simple things. Stop holding your breath it’s time to jump….

1. Facebook-Parents, get a Facebook page. You don’t have to friend people, but you do need to learn about the space. Get a feel how it works, what information is posted, what all the “lingo” means, etc.  Just get a little more comfortable, I will have an e-book out soon, but for now, even if your kids don’t have a Facebook page, you should.

2. Twitter-Twitter.com. Try to use your real name when you sign up. Go to search.twitter.com and look for people you’re interested in and click follow them.  Most everyone in media, from celebrities to authors, can be found. Or better yet, follow and learn from the Realebrities of Twitter, “The real people with influence” Chris Brogan and Liz Strauss are a couple you can check out. Twitter is easy, but you need to be in the space to learn about it.

It’s important to let your tweens and teens start to navigate the waters of social media. They are growing up in an ocean of digital media, and the waters are only going to spread.  If they are going to be aware of it right out of the cradle, shouldn’t you as a parent be aware too?  Think about it for me…

Let me know your thoughts on social media and teens.

Celebrity Twitters We Know, But Who Are The Realebrities of Twitter?

THE WEB’S MOST POWERFUL BLOGGERS TEACH THE ROI ON

SOCIAL MEDIA RELATIONSHIPS AT CHICAGO CONFERENCE MAY 1-3

SOBcon ’09 presenters are social media stars, reaching a total of 8 million people weekly

Chicago, IL – April 27, 2009 – The buzz on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and other social media is getting louder every day, with Oprah Winfrey’s debut on Twitter last week the latest hit in the extraordinarily active online world.  More than 112 million blogs are active now, spurring small and medium-size businesses as well as non-profit organizations to explore how to grab the eyes and ears of their publics on this powerful new medium.  At Chicago’s SOBcon’09 May 1-3, an elite event for business bloggers and social media practitioners, there are valuable lessons to be learned from the Web’s most influential experts.  The presenters are established social media stars, reaching a combined total of 8 million people weekly.  They include:

A “Realebrity”: Liz Strauss is perhaps the most influential non-celebrity blogger on the Internet, reaching more than a million business people on her blog, www.successful-blog.com. Strauss has worked with small companies and corporate giants, and conceived and drove a reader-centered strategy that turned around a sharply declining company, taking it from $9M to sell for $35M in three years.

A voice for the disabled: Glenda Watson Hyatt shares her expertise on breaking down barriers to full participation for the disabled, and building an inclusive and accessible blogosphere. Liz Strauss says, “It’s hard to imagine just how much blogging can open the world to the disabled. To me, the keyboard is just another way to communicate.  To Glenda, it’s so much more.” Labeled at a young age as non-verbal because of incomprehensible speech caused by her cerebral palsy, Watson Hyatt found her voice four years ago through blogging. Known as the Left Thumb Blogger, her warm and welcoming blog, www.doitmyselfblog.com increases awareness and understanding for improving accessibility for people with disabilities. At SOBCon ’09, she will use Microsoft PowerPoint and the text-to-speech software TextAloud on her laptop to present on ways to increase web accessibility.

Trust agents: Chris Brogan and Julien Smith preview their book, Trust Agents, which explores why people succeed online, and why others fail.  Brogan’s blog, www.chrisbrogan.com, a blog in the top 10 of the Advertising Age Power150, and in the top 100 on Technorati.

Business bloggers: Denise Wakeman and Chris Cree discuss how to set up and optimize great blogs as well as strategically use social media tools to gain visibility, build credibility and manage online reputation. www.buildabetterblog.com

E-tailing expert: Lauren Freedman, president of Chicago consulting firm the e-tailing group, explores the evolution of multi-channel selling. Her firm delivers best-in-class online merchandising and customer service and developed proprietary mystery shopping, merchandising and merchant survey research. www.e-tailing.com

Queen of measurement: KD Paine, author of Measuring Public Relationships, the data-driven communicators guide to measuring success, writes the first blog and newsletters dedicated entirely to measurement and accountability. In the last two decades, she and her firm have listened to millions of conversations, analyzed thousands of articles, and asked hundreds of question in order to help her clients better understand their relationships with their constituencies. www.kdpaine.blogs.com

Blog “evangelist:” Lorelle VanFossen, a “blog evangelist,” writes about blogging and social media on WordPress, the largest self-hosted blogging tool in the world, and authored “Blogging Tips: What Bloggers Won’t Tell You About Blogging,” with hundreds of tips to start and maintain a successful blog. www.lorelle.wordpress.com

SOBcon ’09 will be held May 1-3 at Summit Executive Center, 205 N Michigan Avenue, 20^th floor, Chicago. For more information, www.sobevent.com.

What Does ROI Mean To You?

What does ROI mean to you?

If you’re a doctor maybe you think of Rick of Infection. If you’re a health care worker it could mean Release of Information. In publishing maybe it is Run of Issue. As a busy mom of four teens, I never thought much about ROI, but something strange has happened lately: ROI keeps appearing in my life!

Since becoming involved with social media (twitter, facebook, linkedin, blogging, etc.), I just figured that ROI referred to a person’s Rate Of Influence, right? You know, how many people read their blogs, follow them on twitter, retweet their tweets, and who speaks at what conference, yadda yadda yadda…

How is true ROI measured? One definition I found: http://www.rms.net/lc_faq_other_roi.htm

“A measure of the net income a firm is able to earn with the its total assets. Return on investment is calculated by dividing net profits after taxes by total assets. When someone asks about ROI, they are really asking: What do I get back (’return’) for the money I’m being asked to spend (’investment’)?”

I’m sure there is a lot of business jargon used to measure and equate what this means, and with the specialization of our economy, each business, service, product, and company surely has its ways to measure its success or failure.

Until now, I never thought about what would my Return on Investment be on anything. Hey, I’m raising four children. Is my ROI going to be grandkids, successful kids? I couldn’t even start to add up the hours spent worrying, or measure how many hours I have worked at my children’s schools, from lunchroom to the library. Oh, and there’s more: time spent in PTO meetings, girl scouts, boy scouts, little league to high school concession stands. Think about all the things you do each day. Do you ask yourself, what’s my ROI on this?

Here is how I have decided to measure my ROI, by asking these questions on a daily basis.  Have I been able to help you? Have I made a positive difference? Have I done the task I have taken on? Do you feel you could trust me to help you again?

A few months ago I met a woman who’s had big impact on my life. I never saw it coming and I almost missed the opportunity to be changed by her. My only regret is that I didn’t meet her earlier in my life. It may’ve changed the type of mother I am, how my business could’ve grown, saved me from some of the many mistakes I’ve made…All I know is that I feel lucky to have been able to meet her at all.

Liz Strauss has made such a big impact on me, and it’s startling to think that if I’d just turned right instead of left one time I’d never have connected with her.

She’s soft spoken; I’m a bit loud. Liz thinks about what she is going to say; I blurt things out.

Who is this Liz Strauss and why should you know her? Liz is a writer, a thinker, a blogger, a businesswoman, a connector, a mother, an advisor and a friend.

What does this have to do with ROI?  Rosen’s Opportunity Invitation

Let me introduce you to her blog. Please, take time to read past entries. I don’t know how she does it, but every post I read I feel that she has me in mind. I wonder if you will too.  http://www.successful-blog.com/

Oh! I almost forgot! If you get a chance also check out the incredible event that Liz puts together in Chicago.

http://www.sobevent.com/

Many of the presenters at SOBCon09 have in my opinion a positive and inspiring Rate Of Influence and I’m excited to be going to SOBcon09 to hear them.

Let’s meet the lineup of presenters and performers scheduled to be at SOBCon09!

How I didn’t break the spring break bank!!

How I saved money, bonded with my teens, and

didn’t break the spring break bank.

1 Van
4 Teenagers
800 Miles
14 Hours
5 Movies

One of the best vacations ever!

This spring break with money being a little tight, but the price of gas being right, I decided to take a road trip with my teens. My husband couldn’t (wouldn’t) join us but I decided to go for it.

THE CHALLENGE…HOW TO ENTERTAIN, ENGAGE, EDUCATE, AND ENJOY SPRING BREAK WITH 4 TEENS?

OH ALMOST FORGOT…ON A BUDGET…..DID I MENTION A SMALL BUDGET…

Traveling with teens and taking them anywhere can be treacherous; they grunt and groan mumble and moan.

As they arrived home from school on Friday I decided to surprise them, I told them to pack a bag and grab a pillow because we are going on a road trip. We had never been on a road trip before, it was a surprise for them, so I knew not to tell them before hand because then they would of given me grief. Of course they also realized they didn’t have a choice, and I knew they would have the time of their life. Where was I going to take four teenagers for fun? The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. On a free day…only 500 miles away….

Here is how we had a Spring Break that didn’t break the bank and created memories we will all treasure forever.

1.    With gas prices in our favor I decided to do a road trip. I check within a two state area of events on state calendars to see where and what was going on, things that teens would like. When I found out the Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony was going to be that weekend, and that the museum was going to be free on Saturday, I decided we would drive to Cleveland, a 7 hour drive. ( General Public admission is  usually $22)  They do have some free days during the year, you can find them at http://www.rockhall.com/visit/hours-admission

Knowing that we were going to be in the Van for at least 7 hours I came prepared.

A. I checked out 10 Rock and Roll movies from the library, to get us in the mood and educate
B. Purchased a case of bottled water, a few bags of pretzels, apples, dry cereal,  and oyster crackers for the road. http://www.walmart.com/
C. Charged their hand held electric gadgets, brought an extra car charger, and each teen brought a pillow.
2.    I called the Museum and asked them advice about other things to do with teens in the area, they told me that the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame was hosting a simulcast the night of the induction and I could purchased tickets from Ticketmaster.com  5.00 each. I was happy I did that because they did sell out. http://www.rockhall.com/pressroom/
3.    I went to priceline,com and found a great price on a hotel, 2 blocks from the Rock and Roll hall of fame. We loved the Doubletree it was clean and lot’s of hip people were also checked into this hotel by the lake.  http://doubletree1.hilton.com/en_US/dt/hotel/CLELSDT-Doubletree-Hotel-Cleveland-Downtown-Lakeside-Ohio/index.do
4.    I gathered a list of thrift stores Flower Child on Clifton Blvd,, record shops, small café’s and coffee shops that places I knew the teens would enjoy, didn’t cost much and we could spend hours browsing
5.    For the best Chocolates ever  Homemade Chocolates so good  http://www.lillytremont.com/
6.    We found a cool bowling ally that we could eat and bowl http://www.east4thstreet.com/entTCA.php
7.    Cleveland has a great market, The West Side Market, where we were able to get fruit, cream puffs, and breakfast for a very reasonable price http://www.westsidemarket.org/
8.    Only made one stop on the road and that was a rest area.It is very fun to watch strangers, get a cheap meal, and stretch your legs.

I have to be honest this was one of the best spring breaks I have ever had, and it might be the last time all my kids get that same week off. Also open for more ideas..just let me know!! It was a great road trip….thanks kids

Next Page »

• Follow Us Online:

  
  
  
• Search for:
• 

• Categories

  • advertising
  • Blissdom09
  • blogging
  • content
  • embarrassed
  • Ketchum PR
  • mommy bloggers
  • One2one Network
  • Stress
  • Teen Safety
  • Uncategorized
•