I would like to tell you a little bit about myself. My name is Bonnie Crawford, I am a mother to 3 great kids, a wife to an amazing man, and an Independent Beauty Consultant.

Before starting my Mary Kay business and becoming an Independent Beauty Consultant, I think I had done just about every J.O.B. you can think of! I have worked in fast food, done taxes, brazed, built cell phone microwave radios, done direct sales, was a cashier, worked in a sawmill, and even done rock stacking! It seems that no matter what J.O.B. I had, I wasn’t happy, wasn’t making any money, and just wasn’t getting anywhere!

I decided to become an Independent Beauty Consultant because I wanted to start my own business, be my own boss, I wanted freedom, financial success, flexibility, and independence! Of course I was really impressed at the fact I can get a career car! That pink Cadillac called my name! I knew that making the choice to become an Independent Beauty Consultant would be a life changing decision, but at the time I didn’t realize just how greatly my life really would change!

Since becoming an Independent Beauty Consultant I have had the pleasure of meeting some truly great people and making new friends! I am now excited to set goals, because I reach them! I have discovered so much about MYSELF, potential that I didn’t ever think of before! Starting my own business as an Independent Beauty Consultant has also helped me to have a better personal relationship with God! My relationship with my family, friends, and myself just keeps getting better! For the first time in my adult life I have pride in myself and actually have a sense of accomplishment and achievement!

I love owning my own business! I enjoy the flexibility of being able to have time with my family and if I need to take a day for my family I can and don’t have to worry if my boss received the time off request in time, or having to worry if someone is going to call in on my day off and I will have to fill in! I love making other’s feel great about themselves. For the first time in my life, I actually love receiving challenges, and meeting them! I also love the fact that I have such a great upline and when I call the Consultant Services number, I know I am talking to someone right down the road in Dallas, TX and they treat me like the person I am, not just a number! I truly love what I do and absolutely love that I have a chance to share this amazing opportunity with others!

My favorite products are definitely the TimeWise Miracle Set and the Satin Hands Pampering Set with the Satin Lips Set. My family and I enjoy spending time with each other watching movies, traveling, going to Holiday World in Santa Clause, IN, going out to eat together, camping. That is what's so great about being a Consultant I work my business around my family, not my family around my business.

My store is located online at www.marykay.com/bjcrawford I do offer free shipping and free gift wrap too! If you need anymore information please let me know, I would love to answer any questions you might have! Oh, I am now a Senior Independent Beauty Consultant, I have started to build my team, if anyone would like to join a winning team, please contact me!

As work at home moms, we've probably all said that when we're working, we feel like we should be with our kids, but when we're with our kids, we feel like we should be working. Guilt attacks all of us, whether we work inside the home or out.

Moms who work at home tend to have this deep sense of guilt because they feel obligated to succeed at at everything all the time. This includes housework, raising a family, keeping a spotless house, and so on.

Remember some of the reasons why you wanted to work from home:
1. You want to be able to spend more time with your kids;
2. You want to bring in an income to help provide the needs (or sometimes the wants) of your family;
3. You want to do something you can be proud of.

Now, here are the realities behind those three things:
1.Running a business is going to take time away from your family;
2. New businesses can take some time to "take off" and start generating substantial income;
3. Because running a business, a household, and a family can pull you in so many different directions, sometimes it's easier to feel like a failure than it is to feel proud of what you're doing.

You should never feel guilty about providing for your family. If you're always trying to defend what you are doing, the guilt is talking, and that guilt can quickly and easily turn into resentment. So, rather than feeling bad about all the things you aren't doing, take a few minutes and focus on the things you are doing - no matter how small they may seem.

Most importantly, don't be afraid to ask for help, or to take a break - from family or from work. If you try to do it all, and do it to perfection, you'll quickly burn out. If you burn out, neither your family nor your business will benefit.

So, let go of that guilt, and admit that there's no such thing as Super Mom - even if capes are cool.

*If you have a tip you’d like to submit for Free Tip Friday, contact us today. You will receive full credit for your tip, as well as a link to your website.

Polka Dot Ponies offers a variety of unique children's clothing and accessories that have been made with a creative flair. Many of their items can be customized or personalized with the child's name or initials as well.

The shop was started by two friends, Heather and Carrie, who wanted the ability to stay at home with their children, but also wanted to do something of their very own. They decided to go for their dream and design fun, creative outfits and accessories for children. Their daughters adore horses, and "Polka Dot Ponies " was born!

They're sure to have the perfect gift for your special little one.

Stop by Polka Dot Ponies today and check out all the fantastic items they offer!

This week's Featured Mom is Margaret of The Listening Program - or TLP. Margaret is extremely passionate about what she does, and she wanted to share more about it with you.

A Message from Margaret
My name is Margaret Fernandez. I am a mother of two and a special needs educator as well as masters student in speech pathology. I am passionate about helping children especially those with disabilities. It is well-known that children need a lot of practice at skills and I believe they need to learn from real life pictures.

Also, it can be overwhelming to sit with a real person and be told "no, do it again". Thus I have discovered a variety of software computers to be played at home. You can buy different types of software with real pictures from Communication Action. Please call me 1-800-842-6696 to discuss your child's learning needs to be sure you get what is best for your loved one.

I am also a certified provider for The Listening Program (TLP). This advanced sound therapy is done at home daily for 10 weeks and conditions your child's hearing processes in order to improve concentration, memory, and all aspects of learning. Many caregivers report that children are no longer toe walkers, many begin talking, and even more people are reporting being better at concentration tasks and following directions.

It's a priviledge to work with the families who reach out to me and I am a distance provider for the listening program so I work with families all over the United States. This therapy is also great because the parent becomes the provider ultimately and I follow up and adjust the schedules based on the progress of your individual child.

Don't hesitate to call me from my 800 line at 1-800-842-6696. Visit me on the web for more information at:
http://www.thelisteningprogram.com
http://www.communicationaction.com

I look forward to working with you to help your child at home. I know parents are busy running to appointments and work and with the convenience of in-home therapy we can make a difference and give your child plenty of practice at "LIFE!"

Thank you for your time, Margaret! You are truly inspiring!

If you have a special needs child in your life, or know someone who does, contact Margaret today and ask her for more information.

We've all heard you need to network, network, network. BUT, you don't need to network so much that you neglect what you are trying to spread the word about!

If you want people to know you have a blog and are constantly networking and trying to spread the word, don't forget to update that blog. If you are too busy networking and don't update your blog often, people are going to stop coming by. Give them new news to read. Don't have anything to blog about? Showcase a product, a new design, or a highlight from your day. Your readers want to learn more about you as a person as well as what you have to offer.

Don't be a spammer. There is nothing worse than someone who joins a group and only posts advertisements. Ads are great once in awhile, but if that's all you post, you'll quickly lose followers, and your networking won't be successful.

There are lots of great places to network. Myspace, Facebook, Linked In, MUIB, and Twitter are all really great places to start.

Another tip is to visit the blogs of those who take the time to comment on your blog and return the favor! It's a fun, easy way to develop friendships as well as business contacts.

Remember: Networking is great, but only if it's done right!

Our Featured Mom this week, Karin, actually runs 2 successful businesses. The first is www.idohairforweddings.webs.com and the other is Mary Kay: www.marykay.com/kcrimmins

"I Do" Hair For Weddings caters to New Jersey brides, bridal parties, family and friends. We strive to make everyone look beautiful and feel great!

Mary Kay - well, Mary Kay is something that every woman anywhere has probably heard of. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, you need to crawl out from under your rock and head to Karin's site. She'll fill you in on all the amazing details of what Mary Kay is all about.

More About Karen & Her Businesses

So, stop by "I Do" Hair For Weddings if you're in NJ and planning a wedding (or know someone who is!), or talk to Karin about Mary Kay. She has done incredible things with her Mary Kay business, and she'll be able to tell you how to start your own lucrative career with the company.

Thanks for your time, Karin! Continued success to you in all of your endeavors!

Laura is an amazing mother, wife, and entrepreneur. She started her business, Just At Home Working to fill a need that many moms have - how to find profitable income while working at home.

I wish that I had this information back when I was a single mom. It would have saved me so much time, energy, heartache, and money!

More About Just At Home Working
Just At Home Working Has Everything You Need For Finding Legitimate Work At Home Without Fees, Tips For Working At Home, Higher Education And Much Much More!!

Their mission is to find and bring to you the most legitimate opportunities available today. Whether you are looking for full time online jobs or just something to earn a few dollars while surfing the net, they are sure you will find exactly what you're looking for.

All you need to know is which companies are hiring people and what positions they are offering. They provide you with the information that will help you to find real work at home jobs.

About Laura

In order to be successful in everything you do, you must know how to manage your time wisely. Organization is of the utmost importance for your time management.

To be honest, I struggle daily with this. I used to be really bad. I had never learned how to organize my time, and I was oblivious to the importance of time management. Only recently, have I started to force myself to make a schedule and stick to that schedule as best I can. Why? Because if I go willy-nilly and just do things as I think of them, I never accomplish half of the items that I need to. By scheduling my time, I can keep track of what I've accomplished and also what I need to accomplish. I sit down on Sunday afternoons after church while the kids are napping, and type up my entire schedule for the week. This includes projects I need to finish as well as the kids' home school lessons for the week. I add the important things to the google calendar and then the schedule goes right up on the fridge so that everyone can see it.

I use Google calendars for keeping track of doctor appointments, church events, tests that Ashley has to take for school, and for business things as well: advertising deadlines, review deadlines, featured mom schedules. You get the drift. Google calendars has a nifty little feature that will send an alert to my cell phone. I have yet to forget a doctor's appointment since I set up those alerts.

Because I use 2 different Google calendars, one for my stuff and one for here at Buy By Mom, I found the neatest software to keep both calendars organized and right on my desktop. It's called Rainlender. You can set it to grab your Google calendars and you can also create a to-do list that will show up right on your desktop and an alert will pop up to notify you when something is due.

I had a friend recommend an ebook on time management, and I really enjoyed it. It's called the todoodlist. The author has some excellent tips on the importance of time management and how to accomplish it - all on paper. I've implemented quite a few of his suggestions already, and plan to incoporate more in the coming weeks.

Am I perfect when it comes to time management? Nope. I have 5 kids - one of whom is not even a year old. Things happen, and I get off schedule. But, when something happens, I do my best to get back on track and get back to the schedule. My businesses have really reaped the benefits of my desire to organize my time, and so has my family.

*If you have a tip you’d like to submit for Free Tip Friday, contact us today. You will receive full credit for your tip, as well as a link to your website.