I see it all too often (and have done it myself!)
Business mum’s on facebook apologising for taking longer to reply to e-mails because they are busy with their kids. Apologising for taking longer to complete an order due to their children being sick. Apologising for taking a “break” from their business or blogging etc to have some family time.
I’ve recently been thinking a lot about this as I work on sorting out the balance between business & mothering and thought – It is time we stop apologising and give ourselves permission to be mothers.
In the end – our family and our kids come first. I think most of our fans on facebook and customers understand that because they are mum’s themselves. We all want more time with our children.
Sometimes as a small business owner you can feel that if you don’t post a facebook status update…or don’t write a blog post…or don’t showcase a new product photo etc…that you will start losing business or people will ‘unlike’ our facebook page. So we stay on the never ending merry-go-round that never seems to stop.
However everyday in my newsfeed I see many (too many to keep up with!) inspiring posts and products and status updates. It doesn’t bother me if some of my favourite pages/businesses don’t post anything!
Life goes on with and without our blog posts and facebook photos and e-mail replies.
Don’t get me wrong. I do think customer service is so important to good business practice and if there is a reason why you will be having delays in e-mail replies then by all means it makes sense to say so. Or perhaps if you are a store that offers next day shipping etc then again I understand why immediate response is expected.
However I’m talking about the expectations of small business mum’s replying to all e-mails within a 24hour period (or less!).
Sometimes as much as you want to…and as much as you plan to….your little people just take EVERYTHING out of you. At the end of the day you sometimes don’t have the time….nor energy…nor motivation to then go and sit at the computer and reply e-mails.
This is ok. Motherhood comes first. Our sanity and health comes first.
I’m not sure if this is the best “business” advice….but I love this quote from Loralee Lewis:
“No other success can compensate for failure in the home”
I am telling myself this as much as I am sharing these thoughts with you.
There will always be clients, and facebook fans. However I only have this time now with my children at this age to be there with them.
And although everyone on facebook or e-mail may not notice me being absent….my children WILL notice my absence.
So women – let’s give ourselves permission to be mothers!
Do you struggle with the balance between motherhood & business/working?
How do you manage your competing priorities?
With 200,000 monthly views, I was excited to be able to contribute an article to the latest issue of Kid Magazine. See page 30 for my article focusing on what to consider when choosing suppliers for your next child’s birthday or other celebration.
View it here:
My article explains some of the things to consider when choosing suppliers in various categories when planning a party. Cost isn’t the only factor of course – my article explains more & I hope you enjoy it.
The article also highlights some things which are important to keep in mind as a business provider (eg: customer service, having customer photos and testimonials on your page etc)
To view the best selection of party suppliers in Australia, visit the children’s party directory!
It seems the busy time leading up to one of my children’s birthday parties always gets me in a reflective mood! I wrote a post back in 2011 in the lead up to my other daughters’ first birthday party reminding myself on what the essence of her birthday party was all about!
I am finally feeling organised for Naomi’s 1st birthday party…. decorations are ready, treats have been collected, favours are packaged up and I feel on top of things.
Of course there is the minor detail (hurricane….tornado) of the actual set up and hosting of the party, ensuring guests are fed and enjoying themselves and my little girl is happy!
However this morning amidst me thinking of all the things I need to do the morning of the party (we aren’t having it at home – so whole setup at another venue) I decided to now….just enjoy it.
With the effort and time which goes into putting together a birthday party – it all goes to waste if I don’t enjoy the occasion and actually joyfully celebrate my child. It can be too easy to actually forget to do this !
So I am going to enjoy chatting to the guests, enjoy eating the treats, enjoy watching the kids be entertained and enjoy seeing my daughter’s face light up when everyone sings her happy birthday and even try and enjoy the hurried setup in the morning.
Since the party is at another venue (with limited time) I actually decided to have our photographer come and do an early birthday photoshoot of my little girl to make sure we get some nice photos of her when she is calm and not too tired or overwhelmed at her party. It also takes a bit of the stress out from the actual day of the party without trying to squeeze in some special pictures of just her:
I know on the day of her party I will still need to run around and will still collapse in a heap at the end of the day…BUT I am going to enjoy myself while doing it and remember to celebrate this first year of my daughter’s life at her party.
It is finally here….the new site for the Life’s Little Celebrations party directory and blog!
I hope it saves you time in your party planning AND helps to promote your business (if you are advertising on here).
I want to say thank you, thank you, thank you – to the businesses who have sponsored the blog and also advertised on the Directory. You trusted me even before I had a website to show you – you still trusted me enough to book a listing and for that I am truly honoured! Truly honoured to be connected to so many wonderful, talented, passionate business owners who I am genuinely excited to help promote!
I never started the Life’s Little Celebrations blog with any intentions of it becoming a small business or evolving into a party directory. However I am truly happy this is the path it has taken and I cannot thank my husband enough for supporting me and believing in me as well as my 2 little girls who inspire me and remind me each day of why little ones like them are worth celebrating!
Thank you to all of you who have read my blog and joined my Facebook page and been a part of the journey and Life’s Little Celebrations community in many various ways!!
Please make sure you sign up for updates/e-mails so you stay informed with all the exciting things which will be happening on this new site, inspiring blog posts and more!
Also you will notice on the right hand side of my blog all my previous blog posts can be viewed by categories and also party themes (obviously my most earliest blog posts do need some tidying up/updating of links so please be aware of that when viewing them) for easy searching when you are party planning =)
If you wish to find out more about advertising opportunities, either e-mail me at lifeslittlec@gmail.com or complete the form on the Advertise page.
Thank you,
Heading to Confetti Fair I felt like the “online party world” I see everyday via FB, blogs etc was about to come to life.
So many businesses/business owners I follow online, comment on their pictures and truly admire – I was able to finally meet and see their work or products in real life.
This was at the entrance to the venue – love the colour combo!:
Entrance to Confetti Fair
It was amazing to be surrounded by so many different stalls – each styled so uniquely. It truly felt like you were at a different party at each table you went to.
Confetti fair - Photo taken by Milk & Honey Photography and featured on the Hello May site
However looking back at the pictures I realise I didn’t get to take in all the details of everyone’s stalls and displays – probably because I was too busy talking to all the lovely ladies behind the stalls!
I truly enjoyed meeting everyone at Confetti Fair – most of whom I had dealt with online. It was so lovely to finally get to meet in person these wonderful women who inspire me (& many others) online and see their work in person rather than just onscreen!
I don’t want to mention particular names/businesses because to be honest we could be here all day and I’m bound to miss somebody! I’ve just picked different pictures to show you from various business to give you an idea of what was on display- please click on the image to be taken to the business/image source.
Sweet Celebrations stall - photo by Nikki Fitt photography
everyone I met….yes everyone, was friendly, down to earth and welcoming!
You know how you see these AMAZING parties styled by people online, or brilliant cakes, or such unique printables…and you realise just how talented these people must be – and wander how they will be if you meet them ? Well each and every single business owner who was exhibiting was so genuine, lovely and humble!
Ruffles & Bells stall
Cupcakes by Theme my Party - photograph by Milk & Honey photography
Bon Bon Boutique's stall
Tiny Tots Toy Hire stall
Sweet Bambini Event Styling Hot Air Balloon table
Besides specific stalls, there were all sorts of collaboration tables set up all around the hall – lovely kids tables & dessert tables with styling, decor, treats etc all by various businesses combined!
Collaboration table. Cake by Minnie's Sweet Creations. Photo by Milk & Honey Photography
I wish I could put up a lot more images to showcase everyone’s displays however you can see more on the Confetti Fair facebook page.
There were party boutiques, handmade decor suppliers, party hire businesses, cake makers, printable designers, event stylists and more all exhibiting – everything you need when organising a party!
If Confetti Fair is coming to a city near you, you HAVE to go….!
Whether it be to find some party ideas or products or to meet in person the people behind the amazing party businesses in these states – I assure you, it is worth it.
Here are the upcoming dates, more details and tickets via the Confetti Fair website:
Brisbane: 14th July
Melbourne: 4th August
Perth: 23rd November
Congratulations & thank you to Claire for organising Confetti Fair and to all the businesses who exhibited and put together such inspiring displays of their work/products/services for all of us visitors to enjoy!
