Pay it Forward: Coupons

Ever have a great coupon for an item on sale but as you look at it on the shelf realize you do not really need it? If so, put the coupon on that item for the next person to find. I heard of someone doing this years ago and I've tried to pay it forward with my coupons every since. It can really bless someone else without costing you any money or time.

Body After Baby: Week 6

Today starts week 6 of Mama Notes Body After Baby Challenge. I forgot to weigh this morning so I'm not sure how I did weight wise but my clothes are starting to fit a bit better so I'm thinking all the Halloween candy didn't cause too much damage.

I had to laugh at this week's challenge - get 8 hours of sleep. She says it is ok to get up to take care of the baby. Apparently she hasn't met my baby. For about 3 weeks now, our little guy has been up about 6 times a night and 4 of them are to feed. He was only up 1-2 times a night before he hit a growth spurt, then entered the 4 month wakeful period, then learned to roll over and practiced it all night, etc. I'm starting to feel like the zombie I was with our oldest. He was up 7 times a night for the first year of his life. So, I will do my best to get sleep this week by going to bed a bit earlier but I can't guarantee it will be quality sleep.

Good luck to everyone else in the challenge. It is hard to believe we are on the downhill stretch already.

Direct Selling: Getting Started

In case you missed part 1, choosing a company, click here.

Once you pick a company to sell for, you may be a bit overwhelmed. My best advice is to jump in and get your feet wet. The more you sell, the more you will find your style and what works best for you.

I suggest you tell anyone and everyone you know about your new adventure and ask them if they would like to host a party. I sent out one email to my entire address book and booked a few parties off that email fairly quickly. Months later, I booked a few more from that first email. Friends and family knew they wanted to have a party some time but timing was not right when I first told them I was selling Tupperware. You never know when a contact now might turn into an opportunity later.

Another great way to get your feet wet is to host your first party. Invite over a good mix of family and friends and introduce them to your company. You will probably have several book parties from you after seeing the product in action. Also, family and friends are much more forgiving so it is a great way to get practice in. I suggest scheduling this open house soon after you order your kit so that you have a good start on your first month in business.

Make sure not everyone is from the same social circle though when inviting friends. You want to be able to eventually branch out to other people outside of your circle and it will be hard if everyone already knows each other.

Also, once you decide to take the leap of faith, ask another consultant in the area if you can attend one of their parties for training. It helps to see what others are doing. My first party was very similar to the training party I went to but shortly afterward I started finding other ways to make my parties my own. It really helped my nerves though to have an example to follow.

Food Friday: Pumpkin Apple Butter

This recipe came from my son's preschool newsletter. It is easy to make and delicious on a fall day. I'm sure you could can this, but I chose not to as I'm not as much of a pumpkin fan after the new year and this is good for up to 2 months. My tastes seem to change with the weather.

Pumpkin Apple Butter

1 can 15 oz pumpkin
1 cup apple, peeled and grated
1 cup apple juice
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
3/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice

Combine pumpkin, apple, apple juice, sugar, and pumpkin pie spice in medium, heavy-duty saucepan. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to low. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 1 1/2 hours. Serve with biscuits, breads, corn muffins or hot cereal. Store in airtight container in refrigerator for up to 2 months. Makes 3 cups.

Direct Selling to Post Later

Just an FYI to those looking for the next post in the direct selling series - it will be posted this weekend or early next week. I've been dealing with a sick child and have not had time to edit the post.

Body After Baby: Week 5

Last week was a pretty good week for me on the Body After Baby Challenge over at Mama Notes. I did all 50 of my sit ups everyday except one and on that day I only managed 25. I'm happy to say, I also lost another pound. That makes three pounds since the challenge started. We are half way through and I would like to lose a few more pounds so I need to keep it up this week. There is no specific challenge this week but my goal is to keep up with the eating and exercise. Does chasing a preschooler count for exercise? Actually, we've had several rainy days lately and have been stuck inside so I've been challenging him to races around the couch and down the hall. It gives us both much needed exercise and quality time together.

Tightwad Tuesday: Gift Baskets

With the holidays just around the corner, I thought I would bring back this post regarding gift baskets. They are a frugal way to provide a great gift for someone. Here are a few more ideas:

For her. Gather all of the random lotion, perfume, shampoo, coffee, tea etc samples that are hanging out around your house. Add in an inexpensive bottle of nail polish and treat someone to a great girls night in.

For him. Back to the samples - gather some of the food samples add in a gift card for a movie rental and you have a great guys night in.

New business: If you have a friend who is hanging out their shingle, give them a starter basket full of office supplies. By watching deals at Staples, Office Max, and other office supply stores you can pick up inexpensive office supplies for next to nothing. Feel free to add in some of your coupons to those stores too. I like to house all of this in a nice trash can or desk organizer.