Thanks Diana for your words of advice

Sometimes all you need in life is the wisdom of a good dog.

Thanks Diana (another mom entrepreneur) for your words of wisdom! Safe travels to you and Pug as you start your next adventure in life.

"Good luck to you with your new endeavor The Mom Entrepreneur. The blog looks great! After spending a little time on it, I'd like to offer something for your consideration. In the title you say you are "trying" to balance... The word trying suggests that you have not accomplished this balance. I beg to differ. From the outside looking in, you have indeed found some sort of balance (or harmony, my preferred word) between these two lives. Your biz is thriving as are your kids (nobody has starved to death, have they?:-) Granted, it's all a matter of perspective but I don't believe you have to try, I believe you are in fact doing. And bravo to you for that!"

-Diana Taylor, Top Dog, Pug At The Beach

Be present with your kids

I attended a teleseminar today hosted by Lisa Druxman of Stroller Strides. She conducts monthly forums called the Mommy Owned Business Open Forum where she speaks to mom entrepreneurs and answers questions.

The topic of this teleseminar was Choosing the Right Business. This was the first forum that I had attended. It was upbeat, friendly and Lisa offered great advice about balancing motherhood and a career. We got a bit off topic from choosing the right business since most attendees on the call already had a business.

The two most important tips I took away from the call are as follows:

1. Be present with your kids. This is an ongoing challenge that I often struggle with. My office at home is off of the kids playroom so it is very easy to sneak over to my desk and check email. Then I find a "fire that needs fighting" so I am tied up in an email conversation longer then I expected.

Currently, I spend Tuesday and Thursday mornings with my three year old. He starts preschool in the fall, and I wanted to be able to spend additional quality time with him over the summer. He is growing up so fast and since we are done having children, I want to take advantage of this opportunity while I still can. I enjoy our quality time together and hate myself when I let work interfere. I have made a promise to myself to respect this time and not get distracted by work. Thanks Lisa for reminding me of this important tip.

2. Only get involved with activities that are important to your children. As mom entrepreneurs, we try to be as involved as we can in our children's lives. Lisa mentioned that you should get involved with the activities that truly matter to your children. She gave the example of becoming a "baseball team mom" for her son. From the way she described the position, it sounded like she did not even directly interface with her son at all. After volunteering for this position, she later discovered her son did not care; it was not important to him that she had become involved in that way. What is important to your kids? Your monthly attendance at PTA meetings or the fact that you were able to attend each of their baseball games or ballet recitals. You can't do everything so get involved with activities that are important to your kids. If you do not know what is important, ask them. They will tell you!

Lisa does not heavily advertise her free monthly forums, but if you are interested in networking with other mom entrepreneurs and receiving advice from an established mom entrepreneur then email Lisa at lisa@strollerstrides.net for details and tell her I sent you. You will not be disappointed.

My husband won't let me take my laptop...

The holiday weekend is almost here and we are going camping near Squam Lake in NH. As much as I love camping with my family, I have a hard time being away from an Internet connection for that long. It is my IV therapy I guess. Is that sad or what? I have not yet purchased a BlackBerry (which is the device I am leaning towards) so I will be without email or an Internet connection for almost 72 hours.

As I continue to read through the 1,000+ tips from over 400 mom entrepreneurs who responded to my query on how to find some balance between work and life, I am finding a common theme. Many women have suggested creating quality time with the family that is free from all of the noise of our entrepreneur lives. This is such great advice. I was glad to see this as one of the most popular tips suggested by mom entrepreneurs. I agree that this is so important to do. My children are the most precious gift I have ever been given and I will never take this for granted.

Everyone is very excited for the weekend. My 3 1/2 year old can't wait to climb a mountain...even though he has never climbed one before. We will be with our extended family and the weather in that area is supposed to be beautiful everyday.

I wish you a happy holiday weekend and encourage you to spend quality time with your family. Get away from the hustle and bustle of your busy life and breathe. Enjoy!