Product Description

Get more time, get more organized, get more money, get more energy, and get more joy out of your life.

Being a mother is amazing, although motherhood is not always easy. Getting the kids off to day care and school every weekday morning, juggling all of your to-dos while trying to fit in time for the gym, and always wondering what you'll make for dinner can be overwhelming, stressful, and exhausting. And these are just some of the daily challenges moms everywhere face. Wouldn't it be great to have a more peaceful and streamlined home life? Wouldn't it be great if all of these things that you love doing could be made more enjoyable? Wouldn't it be nice to have a life and be the loving Mom that you always wanted to be? It's All About You is a book that looks to do just that -- provide moms with real advice on how to balance love, family, work, money, health, and every other issue that life brings. And to bring back passion to the life that you crave.

Mary Goulet and Heather Reider are the founders of MomsTown, Inc., and the online radio hosts of The Mary & Heather Show. Now, in response to the hundreds of thousands of moms who ask for a plan on how to get their lives back -- from having a healthy sex life to finding more time and earning more money -- Mary and Heather have assembled all the real advice from their personal experiences as mothers as well as from other moms and specialists. Their message is simple: Moms shouldn't hide behind motherhood and wifedom. Instead, they should get out there and live the lives they crave!

It's All About You is filled with caring, helpful support for the overextended mom, with insightful suggestions on how to find the perfect balance between living a richer, fuller life and being the best mother you can possibly be. Mary and Heather -- witty, fun, and honest -- know what it's like trying to have it all. And they've found the way to be successful at it! Not only do they share their experiences of their busy lives as mothers and wives, but also of starting their business together and sharing secrets from the MomsTown Big Break, an opportunity that any entrepreneurial-minded mom can¹t miss.

It's All About You covers time management, organization, money, sex, meals, and business -- issues that busy mothers struggle with, often alone or with little help or support. With inspiring examples, true stories, and sound advice and plans, Mary and Heather make all moms feel empowered about themselves and their opportunities.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #427802 in Books
• Published on: 2007-10-09
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 288 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Goulet and Reider, radio talk-show hosts (The Mary & Heather Show) and founders of the Web site MomsTown.com, put their enterprising and inspiring ideas together in this chatty text that will appeal to busy moms who want to do it all. Goulet and Reider focus on positive steps women can take, helping them organize and streamline their days so they can focus on their dreams as well as their families. The authors discuss a number of topics culled from their radio show, e-mails and message boards ranging from how to start a home business to that nagging daily question of what to make for dinner. Financial issues, sex after children and clearing clutter are also included, with plenty of practical and sometimes unusual tips (i.e., flossing is good for your sex life). The authors claim that many moms suffer from OCI (overwhelmed, confused and irritated), with their lives spinning out of control in their attempts to please everyone. Goulet and Reider encourage moms to follow their motto, Better Done Than Perfect, learning to manage time and use motherhood to empower and strengthen their lives. Their text addresses the busy and multidimensional lives of mothers, offering readers support and advice as they pursue their aspirations within and outside the home. (Oct.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review
"Smart, spicy, and simple, this book is a must-read for women looking to be productive moms and wives while leading creative and purposeful lives - which is to say, pretty much all mothers. If the goal seems unattainable, it won't after you've read the many pearls of wisdom and motivational tips on how to catch your breath, make a change, and get you want." -- Scholastic

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
Chapter 1

In Search of the Unique You

It's a wonderful feeling to know you're unique, that you have unique ideas, a unique look, a unique family, and a unique perspective on the world. It's an amazing gift that we give when we add our unique twist to any situation. On a grand scale, it's knowing that you make a difference, that who you are is important to your kids, family, friends, community, and the world at large.

Let's start with the title of this book, It's All About You. We gave the book this title because taking care of you is important, because you take care of everyone else. We struggled with this title because we know women often feel guilty focusing time and attention on themselves. We know this because we struggle with the feeling as well. We think when we take time for ourselves, we're taking time away from our families. And no one wants to do that. In truth, when we take time to do something good for ourselves, everyone around us benefits. It all starts with you.

Think about what's going on in the world today -- famine, war, single moms living in poverty, and a divorce rate that is through the roof. All of those things tear at your soul. In order for you to make a difference, you have to feel good about your life. It might seem like a stretch that getting organized might help the famine in Africa, but getting organized with your finances might free up $20 to write a check, and getting your schedule organized might free up time to volunteer. Along the same line, when you organize your closet, you may find a warm coat to donate. It's the little gestures in life that have a big impact. You must believe you make a difference.

Be the change you want to see in the world.

-- Mahatma Gandhi

We are Mary and Heather, hosts of our own talk radio show, founders of MomsTown.com, and publishers of MomsTown Magazine. We are both wives and mothers. Mary stays busy with two girls, and Heather keeps on the move with three boys. Three years ago we met online and discovered we lived in the same zip code. Fate? We think so. At the time, each of us had a struggling home-based business and we were going into debt faster than we were making a profit. After a brief phone call, we decided to meet for coffee, and before we'd finished sipping the steamed milk off our lattes, we knew -- the connection between us was unique. We were both moms who wanted to lead vibrant, purposeful lives. We wanted to be good moms and wives and to build fantastic careers. And we knew we weren't alone. We had sisters and loads of girlfriends with the same craving -- women who wanted to do exciting things and create possibilities. You will find in these pages the inspiration, motivation, and practical tips and resources to help you discover -- or, in many cases, rediscover -- the creative, indepen-dent, vibrant, and confident you.

We are in the fortunate position of communicating with lots of women every day. In fact, the theme that we have the power to create opportunity came from one of our radio listeners. She sent us an e-mail asking us, "How did you get the fantastic job of hosting MomsTown Radio?"

We responded, "We made it up." At first the question struck us as funny, because apparently our listener thought MomsTown was some big conglomerate and we were hired by some suit and received a weekly paycheck. Truth is, Mary hired Heather and Heather hired Mary.We created our own opportunity -- and you can too.

Are we geniuses? Not really. (But don't tell our kids!) We're two women talking about the big issues that most women -- and moms in particular -- deal with every day. Like most women (and unlike most men), we've had to reinvent ourselves to be able to juggle marriage, motherhood, and moneymaking. In our past lives, Heather had a decade-long career as an on-air television reporter, and Mary was a Wall Street bond salesperson, a professional singer, and a licensed holistic health practitioner. Our own ideas and experiences were just a springboard for MomsTown.

Nobody is as smart as everybody.

-- William Taylor and Polly LaBarre in Mavericks at Work

Bright women are out there at the other end of the Internet, women like you. These are the women we hear from every day who are transforming themselves as businesswomen, artists, students, entrepreneurs. They are getting their lives back into balance, creating fulfilling lives, and offering their suggestions for helping others. And that's exactly what we were hoping might happen in our forum for women.

When we started MomsTown, our offices were in one of our guest rooms, and our husbands thought we were just dabbling in a hobby. Our computers were stationed on the bed and a phone cord stretched across the floor. We had to keep the window open (even when it was raining), because we were bootlegging the Internet connection from the downstairs home computer.

Now, thanks to a business that includes a radio show, website, and magazine, we've gone legit. You might even say we've arrived. We'd say we have a lot more possibility.

We decided to join forces, and we have ended up with more than double the creativity, energy, and success either of us had alone. Too often, women are afraid to ask for help, afraid to admit that they can't do it all by themselves. We overcame that fear, and so can you. In many of the upcoming chapters you'll find a recurring theme: decide what you want and be bold about asking for it. By believing in possibilities, you create opportunities.

For example, when we decided to merge our two businesses, we knew if we were going to crash and burn, we might as well do it together, Thelma & Louise style.

Three years later, we haven't crashed. We haven't burned. (Okay, maybe there was a time or two when we got a little scorched.) We're still working to help moms carve out a little extra income, a little extra time, a little extra energy, a little extra joy. It's rewarding work, and we're having a great time doing it.

None of this exempts us from the Monday-through-Friday morning looniness that is getting children out the door for school. We still spend our first waking hours wrestling children out of their beds and into their school clothes, making PB&Js, and carpooling. After that it's running errands, prepping dinner, and, oh yeah, working while the kids are busy at school learning and having fun. Then we pick them up, chauffeur them where they need to go, and never stop moving until our heads hit the pillows.

* * *

This book is full of the issues we busy moms face every day that either create or stand in the way of our potential. We've taken topics from our show and from e-mails we've received from women around the world. We've put in our two cents, and we've included interviews with experts we consider the best in their fields.

I'm a woman. I'm a mom. I want my own identity. I want to spend time with my friends. I want to feel in love. I'm worried about getting older. I could use more sleep. I would love to work out more. Perhaps I could take up a sport or a hobby, but when? I'm always short on time, short on energy, and I wonder every day what I will make for dinner. -- Everymom

We're all trying to keep up, and too often we feel as though we're the only ones being left behind while everyone else is getting it all. Each of us is searching for the secret of how to achieve balance between work and home and how to find something that defines us.Life is like a conveyor belt of chocolates.

Remember the I Love Lucy episode in which Lucy and Ethel were working in a chocolate factory? Apparently, even back in 1952, these two moms decided they needed to do more than just keep house. Their job was to pack chocolates in boxes, but the conveyor belt was moving so fast that they couldn't keep up. The result is something everyone should see. We'll never forget the image of them stuffing chocolates into their mouths, down their shirts, and in their apron pockets, all the while chocolates flying everywhere.

Moms often feel overwhelmed by the speed of their own conveyor belts. To avoid a meltdown, sometimes they have to slow the belt down, and sometimes they have to let a few chocolates get past them and fall to the ground. That's okay. We stress out when we think that we have to grab every morsel in life. But the truth is that life will keep delivering the sweet stuff to us. There also will be bittersweets along the way, but this book gives you strategies to maximize the happy moments. We're here to help you catch your breath and start living a life that's rich to you.

Because I am a woman, I must make unusual efforts to succeed. If I fail, no one will say, "She doesn't have what it takes." They will say, "Women don't have what it takes."

-- Clare Boothe Luce

Tips and Takes from MomsTown

Every day our inboxes are filled with e-mails from women around the world. They are active in our online community and anxious to share with one another. Women from all over America are quoted in this book. We will share with you their Tips and Takes. Regularly, we receive fresh and practical Tips about overcoming fears, making money from home, losing the last ten pounds, looking and feeling younger, getting organized, and making dinner.

We'll also share with you their Takes on issues we all face -- how to handle a lagging libido (it's amazing how many of us would rather sleep than have sex), how to stand up to an educational system that seems to be sapping our kids of their creativity, and how to find more time in the day to do the things we love to do.

The outpouring from our community has been overwhelming. The women at MomsTown are working moms and stay-at-home moms. They are happily married moms and single moms, and moms in troubled marriages. They are articulate, funny, and ambitious. Each woman is unique and has her own Take on the twenty-first-century issues with which we're dealing. Our community is open to all; the only thing we ask is that women check the Chic...

Customer Reviews

Elisa Zied, registered dietitian, author, and mother of two
It's All About You is a terrific book. I received it in the mail about a week ago and have enjoyed it immensely. I loved Chapter 3, "Resetting Your Clock," and found the lessons and advice about how to save time, find time, and not waste time particularly helpful. I also enjoyed Chapter 12, "Mom and Ms. Success" and the discussion of the career/family conflict, as this is something I have been struggling with for quite some time. The authors provide great assistance, support, and resources to help with every aspect of a woman's life and I have no doubt I will constantly refer to this book for it's practical words and wisdom as I raise and enjoy my children, spend time with family and friends (and my wonderful husband of course), do work I enjoy, and look to live each and every day to the fullest.

Not Just a Pretty Book
Mary Goulet and Heather Reider, the dynamic duo behind It's All About You and the MomsTown online community, are walking the walk and talking the talk in their latest volume just for moms. But don't let the pep talk fool you; It's All About You isn't afraid to tackle the tough stuff.

It's real-life, practical information and advice that covers it all. From money to sex, and from cooking tips and tricks to strategies for organizing a life of chaos, Mary and Heather are a mom's best friends. In their funny and warm way, the MomsTown moms tell you how they've been there, done that, and when they haven't, they turn to real-life moms who have.

But my favorite thing about It's All About You is that it was written out of a genuine, and gracious concern for the whole well-being of mothers from all walks of life. If you want to feel good about being a woman, a mother, and an adult with goals, dreams and aspirations, you'll love It's All About You.

I Am Woman Hear Me Roar!
I've been involved with MomsTown since day one. Being so close to them
you'd think I would be overly biased and say that anything they produced
was excellent. It's actually quite the contrary. I want to make sure
they produce excellent product and can often be more critical than the
average Josephine. It's All About You is an excellent book! It's witty,
fun, educational, grass roots, and realistic. Mary and Heather offer a
lot of great advice on ways to manage your life, your family, and you as
both woman and mom. Sure there's a lot of common sense, I think I've
heard it before somewhere advice, but there's also a great mix of
original-make-you-think-get-it-in-gear really good advice in this book.
My favorite chapter is the one on family. It brings back traditional
values with newer generation advice while taking the pressure off to be
so perfect. The quotes are excellent and very well selected. So many
times I thought they were in my head putting in print so many things
I've thought about in my daily life. It made me laugh out loud, it made
me think, it made me want to take immediate action, and it also assured
me that I wasn't alone with my thoughts as a woman and a mom. It brings
new meaning to "I Am Woman Hear Me Roar"--thanks Mary and Heather!