Healthy Spaghetti Bolognaise

If you are looking for a healthy Spaghetti Bolognaise that tastes good then this recipe is you!
Tastes fantastic! The whole family will enjoy it.  This is now a regular family recipe for us replacing a $4.00 preservative and calorie filled jar.

I originally got this recipe form Weight Watchers and their website states this recipe is equivalent to 11 pro points. 

Serves 6 
Costs: Under $10.00 to make!  Save money by buying premium mince in bulk from the butcher and dry ingredients from Aldi. Save even more money by starting your own herb garden.

Ingredients

1 x 3 second spray(s) oil spray

1 medium onion, finely chopped

1 medium carrot, peeled, finely chopped

3 clove(s) fresh garlic, crushed

600 g lean beef mince

800 g whole tomato canned in tomato juice

1 individual beef stock cube, dissolved in 1 cup (250ml) hot water

1/4 tsp chilli powder, (or to taste)

1 tbs fresh basil, finely chopped

500 g wholemeal pasta, dry Instructions Spray a large non-stick frying pan with oil and place over medium heat. Add onion, carrot and garlic and cook, stirring, for 5 minutes or until onion is soft. Add mince to pan and cook for 5 minutes or until browned, breaking up clumps with a wooden spoon. Stir in tomatoes and stock and season with salt and pepper. Add chilli powder and basil and bring to the boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes to allow flavours to blend and sauce to thicken. Spoon sauce over hot spaghetti and serve.                                                                                                                                                                          Notes  I didn't use the Beef Stock. I didn't have any when I first made this recipe and honestly I don't think it needs it.  Any left over sauce can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days and actually improves the flavour with time. Also suitable to be freeze for up to 3 months.  Bec x

Contra Deals

Contra Deals - How they can benefit your business and how you can keep things on an even keel.

Quite often I see new entrepreneurs starting out in business who find it difficult to decide where to spend their limited amount of start up funds (if any). A great way to get everything done that you need, such as a website, is via ‘contra deals.’  Quite often these can be overlooked and a valuable opportunity missed. Below are my tried-and-tested tips from experience so that you engage in a win-win situation.

So what is a ‘contra deal’ exactly? Contra deals are certainly not about working for FREE. It involves two businesses collaborating and joining together to swap goods or services required to achieve and business outcome and goal without exchanging cash. Not only is it a good way for startup businesses to get started at minimal cost, it is also useful for product or service testing in exchange for advertising.  For example, if you are new within the service industry or have a new product that needs testing, contra deals are great marketing strategies to swap testing to:

·         Gain recommendations

·         Gain referrals and new customers or clients and

·         Obtain free advertising and promotion through the testers network.

I have trialed several methods of swapping services and products from hour-for-hour, dollar value for dollar value and project for project. Each of these methods were used in different circumstances and to achieve different outcomes.  It is important that you weigh up your options that will gain the best value for you and your business.

For example, you may be a personal trainer who needs assistance to build and online presence such as a website and you’ve heard of a website developer who’d like to lose the flab of 2012 and get fit in 2013. If the website developer charges a set project rate of $1,500, then you as the personal trainer can evaluate your options as to the best swap that will benefit you and then make an enticing offer to the website developer. The personal trainer who charges $80 per hour might offer 19 hours of personal training or 6 months of free weekly one-on-one training.

The important thing with contra deals with whatever your deal is to ensure:

1.      You are both clear on the deal, expectations and outcomes;

2.      You have a set time frame to complete it in; and

3.      Have a written agreement in one form or another. I recommend a set out service agreement or clear email outlining the swap specifics and project details. This way it is clear that anything over and above can be charged for.

Speaking of contra deals, I am currently looking to have some professional profile images taken for my Linked In account and website on the north side of Brisbane. If you know a photographer who is looking for a website or some help with branding be sure to pass on the details!

Note - As I am not a bookkeeper nor accountant you should always check with your accountant in regards to taxation etc. when engaging in contra deals.

Thanks Katie from Absolute Assistance - Virtual Assistant

Edgerank for Facebook

You can check your Facebook Edgerank Score!

I've had this post all written out for a few days but didn't want to publish it until I had followed my own pages Edgerank to see how they had changed from day to day and whether it made a huge difference to Post visibility.

Now between my two Facebook Pages Aussie Mums Unite and Rosey Kids my edgeranks change daily. There doesn't seem to be any consistency and I feel that it's a little contradictory on Facebooks behalf. Edgerank on Aussie Mums Unite averages around the 25-28 mark. Rosey Kids is around 10-15 but as far as I can see via Facebook Insights both pages are still reaching the same number of people per post. Facebook is moving Fan Pages to their own news feed and according to their own information by encouraging high interaction on your page you will receive a better edgerank meaning your posts will be seen by more people. I am struggling to make sense of it and sadly as I mention when I started the Aussie Mums Unite 3mth Facebook SEO Challenge. I really do think the Free Ride is over.

This was my original post:
Have you heard about Facebook Edgerank? I see a lot of posts everyday from Fan pages about their posts not reaching their fans. Edgerank is the reason. Facebook has an algorithm which calculates a pages Edgerank. This decides how many people see your posts and how they will appear on a news feed. I can hear you all say "well if they like my page they obviously want to see my posts"
Yes and No. It's Facebook's job to make sure that fan pages aren't spamming everyone's news feed.

Without going into the mathematics of it all here's a link that will explain What Is Edgerank

It all comes back to interaction. The more interaction a post receives the higher it ranks, the more people see your posts.
 

Here's an Edgerank Score Breakdown

0-10 = Below Average
11-19 = Average
20-29 = Above Average
30+ = Excellant

Check Your Facebook Edgerank Here 

I think that it's still good to have a high edgerank. It can't hurt. At the end of the day it's that little button called 'Promote' that will either make or break Facebook Pages. So as the saying goes never put your eggs in the one basket and get to work on SEO.  Next Blog Post will be about the Promote Button. Love it or Hate it, we should at least learn to use it right. 



Bec x
Join us on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/aussiemumsunite

How Do I Find A Business On Facebook

Have You Ever Wondered How Do I Find a Business on Facebook?

 It's not that easy. There are many thousands of people searching this very question. To use the Facebook Search Bar you need to know the business name, you can google what you are looking for but you can't guarantee multiple facebook page results, if any at all. The other way is to look at what pages your friends have liked. There are thousands of people who are searching for Facebook Shops every month. Many consumers are looking to support Work at Home Mums who run their businesses solely through Facebook or wanting to ensure they are keeping their money within Australia by shopping from Small Aussie Businesses. It's just not so easy to find them.

There is now another way. 

The Best Shopping Online Australia Directory.

Aussie Mums Unite wants to connect consumers with Small Aussie Online Business.

By searching our new directory, you will be able to find Shops on Facebook.

We now have an answer to that question "how do I find a business on Facebook?"

Our Directory isn't any old online directory. There are many people who are looking to shop on Facebook and even if you do find what you are looking for, it is often difficult to find whether these are trusted Facebook Shops and you feel confident shopping there. 

Our Directory aims to provide a transparent listing of the Facebook Business Page. To achieve this Facebook Businesses must undergo our Aussie Mums Unite Aussie Small Business Tick of Approval. This process includes being able to find business details, clear policies including shipping and returns, accepted payment methods, whether the business is registered and all important feedback from their customers. Excellent Customer Service before, during and after a purchase is key to our Best Shopping Online Australia Directory. Feel confident shopping from a Facebook business page via our Best shopping Online Australia Directory.=>Find Facebook Businesses Now<=

All Australian Facebook Businesses and Small Aussie Online Businesses need to be listed in our Directory. Contact Us for Details

Always keep up to date with Aussie Mums Unite. Join us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/aussiemumsunite    

Join our Mailing List =>Click Here<=

Bec xx

Buy Baby and Children's Jewelry

We'd like to introduce our First Guest Blogger Jen from Baby Jewels

 

Finding the Correct Baby and Children's Jewelry Sizings

Many people, when purchasing an item of baby or children's jewelry, sometimes under and over estimate the size of their little one's wrist, ankle or neck.

Children vary greatly in size, particularly their wrist and ankle size, you can use this guide which provides average sizes that allow some give and take, when you purchase a baby bracelet, children's bracelet, teenager's bracelet, necklace or anklet.

We'll begin with baby bracelets. If possible, purchase a baby bracelet which has an extension for growth because babies grow so quickly in that first year and you will want your gift to be worn for as long a time as possible.

A Guide to Purchasing Bracelets

Newborn bracelet: A bracelet for a newborn should be a minimum of 4.7" (12cm) plus extension. 

Toddler's bracelet: Around 5.1" (13cm) 

Pre-schooler's bracelet: Around 5.5" (14cm) 

Children's bracelet for ages 5 - 10: 5.9" (15cm) 

Tweenager's bracelet: 6.3" (16cm) 

Teenager's bracelet: 6.7" - 7.5" (17cm - 18cm)

Children's necklaces can also be purchased in different lengths with extensions, but here's a general guide:

Baby necklace: 12" (30.5cm) 

Toddler's necklace: 13" (33cm) 

Pre-schooler's necklace: 14" (35.6cm) 

Children's necklace for ages 5 - 10: 15-16" (38.1cm - 40.6cm) 

Tweenager's necklace: 16 - 17" (40.6cm - 43.2cm) 

Teenager's necklace: 18" (46cm)

Children's anklets sometimes have extensions for growth but being looser, having that extension is less important. Anklets draped slightly over the upper foot or linked neatly around the ankle look great.

Newborn anklet: Baby (to 12 months) anklet: 5.5" (14cm) 

Pre-schooler's anklet: 7.5" (18cm) 

Children's anklet for ages 5 - 10: 8" (20.3cm) 

Tweenager's anklet: 9" (23cm) 

Teenager's anklet: 10.2" (26cm)

If the child is big for her age, allow another inch. Also when buying baby or children's bracelets which are chunky, as in European style beads or pearls, allow another half inch in length.

 

Purchasing baby and children's earrings is simpler because they don't vary a lot in size, except that they are generally smaller than adult's earrings and the rods are slightly shorter than adult styles. The thickness of an ear lobe doesn't change much throughout childhood. Just check there are no sharp edges on the earrings themselves. Look for baby and children's earrings that are a size which won't overwhelm the ear lobe. Earrings purchased for school children should be small and unobtrusive, and preferably not hoops.

Sponsored By Baby Jewels 

January Prize Giveaway 2013

The Aussie Mum's Unite January Prize Giveaway is happening right now!

We say it over and over again but we LOVE Small Aussie Business and by offering some of their wonderful products to win, we can give them some well deserved exposure, even generate some new fans for their Social Media Pages and obviously some SALES! and why not? There's no better feeling than supporting a Small Aussie Business whether it be an online only business or a Bricks and Morter store in your local town. Your money gets to stay in Australia to support the Australian Economy, not somebody else's.

So I'd like to introduce to you Cyndi's Candles. Our January Giveaway Sponsor.

Cyndi's Candles is about providing great quality, simply beautiful Candles and Accessories to everyone that love's Candles.
Candle's are all Natural, 100% Fragranced oils and all cotton wicks. Attention to detail and friendly personal assistance.

Cyndi's Candles has generously donated a simply beautiful Symmetry Trio Glass Set (3 Tea Light Holder). Included in the prize is a half dozen Scented Tea Lights and Free Postage to your door anywhere within Australia. Total Prize Value is over $50.00. A beautiful and elegant feature to any home. Set the mood for Romance or Relaxation. Would make a lovely Centerpiece for the dinner table. What I love the most about this is you can incorporate the Glass Set into any theme and personalise it to suit. As shown in the image.

 To enter to win this amazing prize from this amazing small Aussie business. We simply ask that you visit Cyndi's Candles on Facebook and support this amazing business by liking their page. Simply fill out our entry form via the link below using Competition Code: CANDLEHOLICS

=> Enter Now <=

Prize will be drawn on the 1st February, 2013. 8pm Queensland Time. Winner will be notified via email. Once confirmed will be announced on our Facebook Page. Our Competition is not affiliated with the Facebook Company and is run solely by Aussie Mum's Unite.

Be sure to like us on Facebook and never miss one of our great giveaways! 

Visit Aussie Mums Unite Facebook Page

Visit Cyndi's Candles Facebook Page

Grow Your Own Herbs

I'm Planting a Herb Garden!

Fresh Herbs at your Finger Tips. Sounds Great to Me. I really dislike buying fresh herbs. I never use them all before they go bad and they aren't cheap either. So I'm growing my own. 

What are herbs?

Herbs are scented plants that are used in cooking and used for medicinal purposes.

What herbs should you grow?

Well that all depends on what you like and what you use in your cooking. Different herbs include Parsley, Basil, Marjoram, Oregano, Thyme, Lemongrass, Mint, Rosemary, Coriander, Tarragon, sage, Chives and Chilli. My first mistake at growing herbs was planting in a tub away from the house. You really want to plant your herbs in a sunny spot close to the house, ideally near the kitchen, where you are likely to use what you have grown.

Basil

Plant Spring and Summer
Basil and Tomato a match made in heaven. Grows well in summer and year round in warmer areas of australia. Basil can be grown in pots or the garden and loves the sun. Basil can be fried or frozen. Frost will kill basil so recommend to harvest by end of April. Tip: Coat leaves in Olive Oil to retain     colour and flavour.

                
Rosemary 

Rosemary plus Lamb plus a BBQ equals Aussie Summer Yum.
This evergreen, aromatic shrub herb is a tough shrub that can withstand droughts, is easy to grow, pest resistant and can be shaped and used as hedging.You don't even need to buy seeds, simply get a cutting, strip the lower leaves and put straight into the soil in a nice sunny spot.


 
Chives
 
A member of the Onion Family and looks a little like grass.
Chives need a sunny spot and will grow in pots or in the garden. Chives also produce pretty little pink edible flowers in the summer that are great for salads.​


Mint

Easy to grow in Shady, Moist areas including pots.
Mint infused tea is said to relieve anxiety and tension

3 Month Facebook SEO Challenge Cont'd

Part of the Aussie Mums Unite 3mth Facebook SEO Challenge

Content for Facebook Part C

Hopefully by now you've added a great 'About' section to your Facebook Page and a few informative articles to your 'Notes' section and have separated your albums into categories and written brilliant Album Descriptions.
The Next part of our Content we will cover is our images. For each album you have a keyword rich description, now it's time to do the same for each of our images. I am generally talking about images of items for sale but you can do the same for images that give a reader some great information ie maybe somebody posted an image of themselves wearing a product of yours and have written a raving review.
So now you'll be spending some time with our new friend Google Adwords and finding some great keywords that relate to your products.
Here's a link to an example of one of my products at Rosey Kids. 
=>Click Here for an Example<=

Things to include Brand Name, fabric content, sizing, colours, postage. I research a new keyword for each item. As in my example for the Bright Bots Fitted Nappy I have used the keywords reusable cloth nappies and fitted cloth nappies. You can see it is natural and not keyword stuffed. I've probably written about a 80-100 word description but a good descriptive paragraph is enough.

Link Building Part 2

Internal and External Links

As mentioned earlier in our challenge this is where Content and Link Building Unite. Try to add links where you can to your album descriptions. You can link to you size guide, shipping and returns policy, an accessory that would compliment the item. For example I have linked my Bright Bots Towels to the Bright Bots Face Washer. It's also a good time to start adding some external links to other websites like Facebook Pages, Pinterest, Twitter, general websites. Including links to a competition entry form, a review of the product on your blog or someone else's, link to Pinterest for more images or ask them to share on Pinterest, or share to a Facebook Page like Aussie Mums Unite or on their own pages. You can also link to a site that shows celebrities wearing similar/same items. Give you customers an informed experience. Not only does google like this but your customers will appreciate it too and are less likely to return items due to incorrect sizing etc. 

My SEO in a Nutshell

What is the one thing you notice about our SEO Challenge than other SEO Information out there?

Customer's are always put first. I am learning a lot about SEO. I've read and researched, researched and read. There's Panda's and Penguins, Algorithms and lot of big words that most of us don't understand. I tried and failed, tried again and my most success with SEO has been from the basics of providing a good customer focused platform. At the end of the day google is an information source and it likes it's readers to find good information and it likes to see good information linked to good information. Keep your customer/readers in mind at all times. I use the words natural and legit a lot and I believe this 100%. Give your customers/readers and informed and pleasant experience by providing good information and links to more good information. Provide clear policies, easy navigation, get good links from other websites. Google will do the rest.

Facebook is changing and whether we like it or not because it might make our tasks a little harder. It really is for the better. I think that it's time to accept that this is the world's biggest social media platform and like any other business they are out to make money and they also have a responsibility to every single person who uses Facebook. Whilst it's still murky waters about how Google will react to Facebook and other social media platforms in the future. It is already evident that Pages are being ranked and Google simply can't ignore Facebook. 

I think it's definitely time to start treating our Fan Pages as Websites and follow the same SEO practices that you would with a website. 

Hopefully now I have provided a good building block for creating a solid platform for your Facebook Fan Page. This is officially the end of the basics and from now on will be adding posts that will start to extend on that solid platform you have created. After all you've worked hard. I've worked hard. We now want to start getting some traffic, building our fan base and making some sales! Then in 3mths time assuming it will take about that, Google will crawl our pages and give us some amazing rankings not only that we'll have a high Edgerank on Facebook. Google will see us, our fans will see us. This is where we want to be!

Stay Tuned - There's heaps more to come. 

HAPPY FACEBOOKING!!

Bec xx

Missed any of our challenge or need a refresher? Here are the links...

Aussie Mums Unite 3mth Challenge

Keywords

Content Part A

Content Part B

Links Part 1

Want Free Stuff?? Need your work load made a little simpler? Join our Mailing List! 

=>CLICK HERE<=

Toilet Training Boys

The Joys of Toilet Training Boys

 

We are now a week into toilet training master 2. Oh the joys of it! He is doing really well. I didn't think we were going to succeed this time as he showed no interest at all but like my first son did after a two days of weeing on the floor, on my lounge, on the mat, on the carpet in his room, he finally took himself off to the potty. YAY!!!!!

We have one of those fisher price potty's that when they use it, it sings (I tell them it sings because it loves to eat wee's and poo's lol) But it had decided not to work and thought it was broken but today it miraculously started working again so I now have a two year old trying to wee every few minutes to make it sing and getting very upset that his "wee all gone" 

So far majority of wee's are making it into the potty. As with two year olds, he must do everything himself and that means he has to empty the potty into the toilet, then wash it and put it all back together. There is just wee everywhere! Boys I think are also genetically designed to be unable to aim, even sitting on the potty it will still shoot out the front. This is a skill that their father will not be able to teach either. A house with 4 males and one toilet (we go through a lot of toilet cleaner). I've learnt very quickly you never hold off going to the bathroom around here because you almost always need to clean it first. Nothing worse than waking up in the morning half asleep busting for the loo and in a half comatose state sitting on a wet seat!

Then there is Number 2's......

Number 2's are not making it into the potty.....at all. It's just gross!

I came to the realisation today that I have been changing nappies and cleaning poo non stop, everyday for 4 years!  AHH!!! With no end in sight for at least another 1-2 years! I need a holiday!

Bec x 

     

What To Do With Broken Chalk

Make Chalk Paint!

My kids got portable chalk boards for Xmas and already the two boxes of chalk are broken up into little pieces. So what to do with broken chalk pieces. We are going to make Chalk Paint.

What you'll Need to Make Chalk Paint

Broken pieces of coloured chalk

Zip Lock bags

A Hammer

Small Containers (enough for each colour)

Water

How to make Chalk Paint

Simply separate your chalk pieces into piles of the same colour. 

Place each pile into a zip lock bag and using a hammer gently crush the chalk into a fine powder.

Place each colour into a small container and add water until mixture becomes a smooth paint like consistency.

This is a great outdoors activity. Your chalk paint will work on concrete or a blackboard and the best thing is, it hoses straight off. 

Pics to come :)

Link Building for Facebook Pages Part 1

Link Building - What is it and Why do we need to do it? Link Building is simply having your link on other websites. Links are like votes the more links that point to your URL the more votes you get. Links of course can also generate traffic to Facebook Page. The internet/web is exactly that a web. Like a spiders web there are links from website to website, page to page. This spiders web allows the little spider (a google bot) crawl along the links from one page to the next and from website to website. These little Google Bots gather pieces of information along the way. This is how Google and other search engines give your page a rank. Not all Links are treated equal however. There a different types of links and links with different values. Of course we want lots of links to our pages but we also want some high quality links that will help achieve higher rankings and more targeted traffic. High Quality links are those that come from highly ranked websites that relate to your niche. For Example if you get a link from a Dog Grooming Site to your Jewellery Page, they are two separate niches so there is no real connection between the two (unless you sold jewellery for dogs). So whilst this is not a high quality link, if it promotes traffic to your page then I think it's more than okay. Google just might not give it a high vote.  

The different types of Links
Whilst different types of links hold different values, I believe they are all equally important. 

Internal Links
Internal links are those within your page that link from one page to another. As in websites it is important that every page links to each other. Your spider web needs to be continuous without any road blocks. If a google bot comes along a link that ends it turns around and leaves again. This can stop you from having content ranked. So with an album, you may want to place a link to your returns policy and shipping policy. Then all your articles you can link to your albums or other articles. Unfortunately we can't create pretty links on our Facebook pages so it is simply a matter or copy and pasting the url that you want to link to.  

External Links
This is creating links from your facebook page to other websites including other facebook pages, other social media and to websites relating to your niche. For example you might sell children's clothes and have a link on your page to a Parenting Page. You are giving your fans some free information also so not only are you building a link you are providing a service.

Do Follow / No Follow Links

Do follow links are those that are on other websites that points to your Facebook page and are visible on that website and can be clicked, sending traffic through to your Facebook page and Google can follow that link to your page also. 
No Follow links are links on another website that link to your page that google cannot follow. They can still see it but they won't travel the link.

The biggest thing I have learnt through SEO (like with any other busines) is to be legit and natural.
Have good content and good links and it pays off in the end. Be very careful if looking to buy links and/or traffic in bulk and to be honest I do not recommend it at all.
Being natural also means having all types of links. I have read many articles telling you to not bother with no follow links but I believe that being natural means having all types of links and I've even found high ranking websites selling no follow links (adverts) for hundreds of dollars per year.

HOMEWORK

Internal Links
Start linking your Facebook pages. ie. add a link to your images from your notes section, link your articles in your notes section to your albums or to another note.
Click on the image, album, article that you want to link to copy the URL then paste in the image description, album description or in the note you want to link from. REMEMBER to keep it natural and that your link is there to help your fans find the information they need. So if you are linking from an image that is of a for sale item you can provide a link to you shipping policy. This is a resource for you fan making their experience more pleasant and informed.

You will see on my blog that I on each blog post I will have links to another blog post (generally when I get the chance to add them). So you as readers can move to another relevant piece of information with ease and of course let that little google bot follow the link and hopefully give it a wonderful rank :)

Your next exercise is directory submission. Submitting your page to directories builds your reputation as a legitimate business and of course provides links to your page.
Sign up to our Mailing List and receive a list of Business Directories that you can submit your business to.

Follow Us on Facebook
http://www.facebook.com/aussiemumsunite - we will be holding some link building exercise's on our page.

Aussie Mums Unite 3mth SEO Challenge for Facebook Pages
Keywords
Content Part A
Content Part B

Content for Facebook - Part B

Content for Facebook Albums

 An online store/website is generally divided up into pages, categories and subcategories. For example my own website https://www.roseykids.com.au where I sell children's clothing has multiple categories and subcategories. Every category and subcategory has it's own set of keywords and optimised content. Why? We want our pages to rank on google for as many keywords or related searches as possible. When someone searches a keyword that relates to our niche we want that piece of content they are searching for to appear in the results page and this involves being ranked for pages other than our home page. Remember when we spoke about targeted keywords? This is how we encourage deep targeted keywords.
Here's an example of what I mean by having our album URL's ranked.
This is our facebook home page www.facebook.com/mypagename
When someone searches for something on the internet (say 'baby clothes') and our home page url appears in the results the person is taken to your home page.So you might get a new fan and hopefully using interaction and marketing techniques you can one day turn that fan into a customer.
Now when someone searches 'buy a baby boys romper' and your album URL appears in the results then they are taken directly to your album. This person is much more likely to become a customer right there and then because you have provided them with what they want and they have been taken straight to where they can get what they want.

Homework

So now it's time to update your albums and conduct some more of that crucial keyword research. I recommend adding Google Adwords to your bookmarks. You'll be using it a lot.

Separate your albums into categories. Use Keywords for your Album titles and add keyword rich descriptions. Generally aim for 100-200 words using 1-2 keywords per album description. Have Fun!

Quit Smoking Day 1

So Hubby and I decided to give up smoking.
2013 is going to be our year to get healthy, lose weight, tone up, eliminate debt and work on the reno's.

Day 1 was a great success. We didn't kill each other and the kids didn't end up in the microwave. (jokes)

The bonus that has come with quitting smoking is that we have instantly stopped drinking soft drink as well. It's like the two went hand in hand. Now that I don't smoke I feel no desire to drink any soft drink. That's a huge bonus, more money saved and drinking water is making me feel so much better. (and I'm drinking water by the litre)

The biggest thing I'm struggling with right now is that lost feeling. It's really weird to describe but I literally just don't know what to do. We have to change our whole life, our whole routine. Every aspect of our life is different now and there are now all these gaps to fill. Obviously the plan is to fill these gaps with positive and constructive activities like exercise, reno's etc. Right now though just dealing with the change is one baby step at a time.

We have downloaded the My quit Buddy App on our phones which is really helping. It tells us how much money we are saving and how much tar we have avoided etc and gives us some activities when the cravings get too much.

We did have a slip up last night after dinner. This is definitely going to be our danger zone, that and for me 'the after the kids are all asleep smoke'. It's my most fulfilling for the day. The kiddies are all in bed and I can sit down and really relax and have the most fulfilling cigarette ever! <= Just reading that makes me cringe with grossness. But it's very true so now I need to replace that moment with something else that can be just as fulfilling.

Well that's day 1 done and dusted. Am almost half way through day 2 and I feel good and strong. Hubby went back to work today and the two oldest boys are at daycare so just me and the bubba at home so it's a much calmer atmosphere. Think I might just spend it on the couch :)

Bec x