The Quest for the Perfect Blog

Administrative Professionals Day is April 22, 2009. It used to be known as Secretary's Day. According to Wikipedia, it is observed on the Wednesday of the last full week of April. This "holiday' was created to honor secretaries and encourage individuals to consider working in this field. The first holiday recognizing the importance of Administrative Assistants goes back to the year 1952.

I decided to sift through my unorganized "saved blogs' on my favorites page. Not an easy task! My goal, find a fun blog that is created by an Administrative Assistant. After scrolling up and down on my favorites, I came across a blog that is both humorous and rich in content.

"Laughing All the Way to Work: A Survival Blog for Today's Administrative Assistant" is written by Patricia Robb. She has been an Administrative Assistant for approximately 30 years and recently was promoted to an Executive Assistant position.(She's also a grandmother!)

Patricia's blog gives useful suggestions that administrative assistants can use throughout their work day. Her articles also apply to everyday work experiences and employees working in different job capacities will also be able relate to this blog.

In her article,"Keep your Inbox running on Empty", she discusses ways to create folders and a few sub folders of incoming e-mails in order to organize incoming e-mail. For instance, she has a folder designated for her bosses e-mails so she can keep them all together.

The articles have amusing titles such as, When working isn't fun" Ho hum, ho hum, it's off to work I go and How to get Office Fat fast. They are easy to read and offer lots of great advice.

Please acknowledge your administrative professionals with a gift or card. Feel free to e-mail grandma@grandmasshoppe.com and we'll help you put together a special gift or gift basket.

Robin

The Quest for the Perfect Blog

I have extensive files of saved, unread blogs that I can't wait to look at. Yes, I'm a fan of Twitter and at times find myself lost in Twitterland. I enjoy reading conversations and continue to click on each person to check out their blog or website before I decide if I want to follow them. (Feel free to follow me at Grandma's Shoppe). Since I'm not able to read all of the saved blogs immediately, I start "collecting" them! That of course has led to my huge assortment of blogs waiting to be read.

Not only am I a fan of twitter but I also read HARO reports, religiously, three times a day. I recently responded to a query sent from Rena at the Soul Salon. She is starting a blog called "What's Right With Kids Today". She asked individuals to write her and give examples of how our children are helping out others and making a difference in the world.

Rena explained that there are too many negative stories circulating in the press about children and not enough positive articles. When she googled What's Right with Kids Today, she found only a handful of uplifting stories relating to the accomplishments of children. This became a turning point for Rena and she at that moment decided that she would become a child advocate, supporting children and inspiring them to do positive acts of kindness. This blog will spotlight kids 0-21 years of age who have great stories to share.

"Kids are awesome. They are full of surprises, great ideas, amazing energy, big hearts

and the best thing---The desire to have fun. We could all take a lesson from kids on how

not to take ourselves so seriously much of the time and have more fun"

I submitted two stories for her inspirational blog. She loved my submissions and will be posting our personal stories shortly. I'll keep you posted and tell you when they are running. E-mail Rena with your stories at rena@mysoulsalon.com.

Another exciting find this week was Grammy Janet's Place, a blog, written by a grandmother, filled with articles, product reviews, give-a-ways, coupon specials, and inspiring stories. As the owner of an online boutique called Grandma's Shoppe we always love connecting with Grandmothers!

Obviously an animal lover, Janet's most recent article is about Going Orange for Animals.

"This year, the ASPCA’s inviting animal lovers across the country to spend the month of April ‘Going Orange for Animals’ to raise awareness for ‘Prevention of Cruelty to Animals’ month. From creating grassroots fundraising events to getting the buildings in your

town to light up orange, the possibilities are endless!"

Please visit Grammy Janet's Place. Janet is going to run a review and give-a-way of our "Grandma Rocks CD".(make sure your volume on the computer is up!) We'll keep you posted with the details.

The question remains, is there a perfect blog? In order to have a "perfect" blog one needs to know exactly what a blog is. I decided to consult with one of the most trusted sources I know, the Webster Dictionary I looked up the definition of blog:

blog
Pronunciation:
\ˈblȯg, ˈbläg\
Function:
noun
Etymology:
short for Weblog
Date:
1999
: a Web site that contains an online personal journal with reflections, comments, and often hyperlinks provided by the writer ; also : the contents of such a site
— blog·ger noun
— blog·ging noun

With that infomation in hand, I decided to research, "What makes a good blog post"? I traveled over to 43 folders for some answers. An article written by Merlin Mann describes in a list form all of the qualities needed for a "good blog".

"Good blogs have a voice, Good blogs reflect focused obsessions, Good blog posts are made of paragraphs, Good “non-post” blogs have style and curation, Good blogs are weird,

Good blogs make you want to start your own blog".

Click on the above link for complete descriptions and additonal information. It's a very detailed and an informative article.

Lots to think about. My journey for the perfect blog continues...I look forward to hearing what your favorite blogs are. Have you found the Perfect Blog?

Happy blogging, Happy Passover and Happy Easter,

Robin

Grandma's Weekly Specials

10% off all purchases for the Month of April!

Grandmas' Shoppe supports the Parkinson's Unity Walk. We would like to offer a special 10% discount on all purchases from now through - April 30th. We will reimburse the amount after the purchase has been made(not including shipping). We will then donate that amount to The Parkinson's Unity Walk.

Happy Passover and Happy Easter

Robin

The Quest for the Perfect Blog

The quest for the perfect blog. Is there such a thing? Originally when I started searching for the "perfect" blog I was hoping to find a blog filled with everything that interests me. I had no idea how many blogs were out there in cyberspace.

Some blogs have wonderful articles that are business related,others teach how to blog, many talk about the advantages of using twitter,twitter etiquette, some mention colleges, others keep us up to date on the latest fashions and make-up.

How would I find the right blog/s for me. I began my journey by looking at each person's blog on twitter before I would decide to click on the follow button. I then realized that the person I was following was hard to find so I began saving lots of blogs onto my favorites in hopes of reading each blog when I had time.

At the same time I began checking out blogs that were attached to retail websites. Again,clicking and saving. Because many blogger's list their favorite blogs on their blog I began clicking on their button and traveling over to another blog. Again saving these blogs onto my favorites.

With mouse in hand, I've begun clicking onto all of my saved blogs. The mouse acts as my GPS and directs me to information about the writer,their passions, the focus of the blog, photographs,and personal stories. Each week I hope to organize my saved treasures and will share the results on Grandma's Blog.

I mentioned that blogs often talk about twitter and how effective twitter can be in meeting interesting people, possibly connecting for business purposes, or supporting someone in need. If you're unfamiliar with Twitter. It's a service that allows friends, co-workers,and businesses to communicate with each other through quick one line responses. IE. What should I make for dinner tonight?

I enjoy going on to Twitter to tell about Grandma's Shoppes latest updates and to tweet about our specials and new products. I also enjoy keeping up with all of the conversations that are going on at the same time.

Yesterday "The Adventures of Kitchen Girl" sent out a tweet requesting donations for a Mother's Day gift basket.She wanted to put together a fun basket filled with gifts for mom and offer it as a give-a-way around Mother's Day.

I contacted Jo and told her about Grandma's Shoppe. We decided that a fun give-a-way for her gift basket would be our I Love Grandma Bear.

I'd been on the lookout for a blog filled with great recipes, simple instructions and beautiful photos"The Adventures of Kitchen Girl"was exactly that.

Jo is a featured publisher with foodbuzz.com and has had many recipes published in several newspapers in conjunction with blogburst.com.

On the right side of the blog is a listing of Jo's favorite food blogs. By looking at the length of the list I will no longer have the excuse that I don't know what to make for dinner!

By scrolling down and looking on the right side of the blog, all of the recipes are listed so that you can easily find a recipe for sandwiches, seafood, soup, beverages, etc. Along with the recipes are a listing of all of the give-a-ways.

Take a look at The Adventures of kitchen World and tell us what you think.


I'll tell you when our give-a-way is up and running.

Happy blogging!
Robin

Grandma's Weekly Specials

THE 15th PARKINSON'S UNITY WALK WILL TAKE PLACE IN
CENTRAL PARK, NY on SATURDAY, APRIL 25, 2009


The Parkinson's Unity Walk is the largest grass roots event raising Parkinson's awareness and funds to find a cure for Parkinson's Disease. 100% of all donations raised goes directly to Parkinson's Research.

Our family attends the Parkinson's Unity Walk each year in Central Park New York City.Our team is The Turtle Gang. We wear a yellow t-shirt that has a picture of a turtle crossing the finish line of a race leaving the hare behind. Our slogan is Hare Today, Cure Tomorrow.

If you live in the New York area we would love you to join our team and help us find a cure for Parkinson's Disease. You can find us at:The Turtle Gang

This week Grandmas' Shoppe would like to offer a special 10% discount on any purchase made on our website from March 31st-April 26th. We will reimburse the amount after the purchase has been made (not including shipping). We will then donate that amount to The Parkinson's Unity Walk.

Hope you can join us!
Robin

Wednesday Blog Recommendation

Vanessa lives in New Jersey with her husband and three children. She maintains three different blogs, Chefdruck Writes, Chefdruck Reviews, and Chefdruck Musings and freelances for a variety of blogs including Traveling Mom, Savvy Source, and Jersey Bites.

Chefdruck Musings keeps readers up to date on her latest outting with her 3 children, movie and television show reviews, and every Tuesday she offers a delicious recipe in her "Chefdruck's Tasty Tuesday" column. Each recipe includes simple instructions and photographs. I appreciate the photographs as I'm not a great cook and I like to see that my recipe is progressing the way it should!!

This week Vanessa visited the new Fairway Market that just opened in Paramus, New Jersey. This is the first Fairway to open in our area and being a fellow New Jersyean, I can't wait to visit. Like Vanessa I often shop at the Fairway in New York City.

Being a book lover.Vanessa has created Chefdruck Writes. A blog dedicated to indepth book reviews. At times I'm not sure what my next read should be and I've found this a perfect blog to search out my next book.

Vanessa contacted Grandma's Shoppe and asked if she could review one of our products. After looking at her blog it was an easy decision. Of course we would love to be included on such a fun, warm, and informative blog. Chefdruck Reviews, "Saturday Giveaway", featured a review of our Grandma Rocks CD in February. Check out her current review and giveaway.

Take a look at Chefdruck's blogs and tell me what you think!

Robin

Grandma's Weekly Specials

Sweet Treats for Spring!

We can't think of a better way to celebrate Spring than with custom decorated sugar cookies. Grandma's Shoppe is now carrying beautifully decorated sugar cookies. We're offering an Easter Gift Box and Delux Spring Favors. These cookies are so beautiful that they can be used as a table decoration and make perfect party favors.

W'ere offering a spring special!!

10% off of our scrumptious sugar cookies from March 22- March 29.

The discount will be refunded back after the purchase has been made.

(off of retail price not including shipping).

HAPPY SPRING!

Robin

Wednesday Blog Recommendation

Last week I started sharing and writing about some of my favorite blogs. I enjoy searching out blogs that I find interesting and only subscribe to those that I feel will be fun to read and offer pertinate information and advice. I talked about the blog entitled, Thrifty & Chic Mom. I decided to try the endhilada recipe on the blog and loved the way they came out. My teenage kids loved them too! (This is unusual for my two teenage daughters to both like the same recipe!)

Another blog that I have come to love is Retail Minded. The philosophy behind Retail Minded is to support the small business owners. Whether you are a wholesaler or retailer, there is information on this blog that is very up to date and informative. Nicole Leinbach Reyhle founded Retail Minded in 2007. She has a strong background in both retail and wholesale.


She features articles about wholesalers, online retail stores, along with information on pricing, inventory, merchandising, and this week she has an article entitled: Going "Green" In Your Store Space & Initiatives.

As a retailer I find her articles timely, informative and quick to read; which is important to me due to my crazy schedule.

Leave a comment and tell me what you think!

Wednesday Blog Recommendations

Reading Blogs has opened up a whole new world for me. When Meg, our web designer, asked if we'd like to have a blog as a part of our website we said sure. Not really knowing what a blog really was.

I started asking our vendors to share their favorite blogs with me. I began reading the blogs and found out that each had it's own special niche. Whether it offered special coupons, free merchandise, insight into family events, and other fascinating information. There was a blog for everyone.

Which blogs would be right for me? My children are teenagers now so the blogs offering baby advice might not be a good fit. I started surfing the Internet determined to find blogs that offered something that would spark my interest. Perhaps recipes, coupons, or business advice. One that I could relate to and enjoy reading.

To date I have found many that I'm enjoying and I've started to subscribe to my favorite blogs. I find myself looking forward to the updates that arrive in my e-mail.

Every Wednesday I will share a blog with you that I'm enjoying. Please feel free to submit your favorites.

Today's Blog Recommendation is Thrifty & Chic Mom Living Life Spending Less. This blog is written by Ellen, a young stay at home mom with two children. Her philosophy is to live life to its fullest while staying on a budget. It contains, weekly deals at stores, coupons, yummy recipes, lots of fun give-a-ways and family updates. I find it well organized and easy to navigate.

Tonight I'm going to try the Chicken Enchilada recipe. (scroll to bottom of page)
I'll tell you how it comes out!!

Robin

Opportunities for Stay At Home Moms!

When my children were little I started a craft business called Creative Crafts. I taught arts and crafts classes to children ages 4-11. Each 6 week session we explored many craft techniques including: making collages, black and white, color studies, faux painting,book making, we even baked and created"food art". I then hired other moms to teach sewing classes and sketching classes for the older children.

During the summer my mom and I held a music and art camp and incorporated reading, art and music into our daily activities. Of course birthday parties followed and I had a venue where I held parties.

This business was great because my children could take the classes and as they got older they became my "paid" helpers!

At Grandma's Shoppe we have many talented artists that are mom-preneurs. They juggle their daily schedule around to "make it work". They must create and market their products while raising a family...

One of our mom - preneurs, Kristie, created "Scribble Pad's" A perfect place for a child to write and illustrate their stories. Writing has become such an important part of our children's education. These pads are a perfect spot to write poems, stories, songs, or just draw a picture. Take them to a museum and copy a work of art!!

If you're interested in starting a craft business please feel free to contact me for more information!