Reading other blogs can be addicting. It can also eat up way too much time. However, many times I find inspiration for things I want to blog about, topics I want to comment on, or just plain interesting reading. Done right, reading a range of blogs isn’t too bad a time waster (other times, though…).

1. The Dilbert Blog
   Way too much fun. The comments can take a lot of time to read, so I don’t always go through them, but surprisingly thought provoking at times.
2. ShoeMoney
   One of the big affiliate marketing blogs. Lots of great topics and food for thought.
3. ClickNewz
   Lynn Terry’s blog about internet marketing. Often interesting and some pretty good interaction.
4. SEOmoz
   I read this one kind of off and on. Lots of great information, though.
5. ProBlogger
   Lots of tips on earning money as a blogger and plenty of comments.
6. eMoms at Home
   Another of those blogs I can really get into as a fellow work at home mom.
7. Table for 5
   I grew up with my mom and 3 sisters, so I can really sympathize with such a crowd. Raising kids can be mighty hectic.
8. GeekySpeaky
   Just appeals to the geek in me. She also runs the SupahStar Saturday meme, which I was recently featured in.
9. SEO Book Blog
   Really interesting if you’re interesting in SEO and what’s going on with search.
10. Freakonomics Blog
    Not an everyday read, but the titles drag me in often enough.
11. Green Options Blog
    Lots of great posts on the environment and environmental products.
12. Chris Garrett on New Media
    SEO, blog critiques and so much more.
13. Self Made Minds
    Blog by a couple of internet entrepreneurs. Certainly something I can get into.

No, I don’t read every post every day; I’d lose way too much working time. But these all get scanned regularly, and interesting topics read more carefully.

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One of the hardest things about working at home is the tendency for it to take over a great deal of your day. This can be true of work at home jobs, but it is far more likely to be true when you run a home business. After all, you don’t want to just drop things when business picks up.

But this is hard when you’re trying to be there for your family. Working more hours means less time with your children. What can you do?

One of the things that can really help is knowing when you need to hire someone to help you with your business. Think about getting a virtual assistant for those routine matters that don’t need your personal attention, for example.

If you do a lot of article marketing, you should consider investing in an article submission program or membership. I use  Content Crooner (with a lifetime membership), and I love it. Write up my articles, then schedule their distribution through their system. They get the big article sites as well as tons of little ones and article mailing lists. That saves me hours and hours of work. Read the rest of this entry »

[tags]wordless wednesday[/tags]

I’ve read the usual theories on time outs. Most say a minute per year of age is generally about right. But it’s my experience that it isn’t always enough.

To me, the length can depend on what you need to accomplish with the time out. Sometimes a time out is just a cool off, in which case a few minutes may be all that is needed.

But I’ve found that with my daughter sometimes a short time out is just not sufficient to make her think about what she’s doing. 4-5 minutes sitting in time out is nothing to her if she’s just in that mood to refuse to do her chores. A longer one becomes necessary to get her attention.

So I’m curious about what methods other parents use to set the length of a time out. I use shorter times for minor issues or cool off time, but I’ve noticed a definite need for longer ones when I need my daughter to think a little harder.

How about in your family?

[tags]time out,children,kids,discipline[/tags]

I know my kids get frustrated sometimes hearing the word “no”. I’m also sure there are times they hear “yes” more often than they should. It’s tough being strict enough without overdoing it.

One of the things I’ve noticed is that no matter how hard you try to be fair, when you have more than one child each will be treated a little differently. I consider this quite reasonable, actually. What you allow each child to do and to have depends on their age and needs.

For me, saying no to my son can be harder. It’s not that I want to spoil him, it’s that he’s still only talking a little bit, so he has to put a lot more effort into asking for things (mostly by dragging me and pointing), so he asks for less. Read the rest of this entry »