Pink Press or Information?

On the whole I read a lot. I spend a lot of time on the Internet reading newspapers all over the world. What amazes me the most is the comments people leave to articles. Gossip articles about famous people get lots of comments like, "Why is this news?" or "Stop giving these nobodies news space!" But guess what? If you comment on it, it's because you read it. If you didn't read it and didn't leave a comment newspapers and magazines would be forced to review their content. But, gossip sells. We are all curious to know how famous people live, and we are just as curious to know how our neighbors live, but guess what? Their lives aren't spread all over newspapers and magazines, so we end up eating up the gossip about famous people because it is in the "news". Then, lots of people who avidly read the "pink" press, complain constantly about what they are "subjected to". No one has put a gun to our heads, what we read is our own choice, we are not forced into it - so stop complaining. If you don't like it, don't read it - it's that simple. And if you do enjoy reading it, then good for you - but no complaining!

There is so much information available to us on the Internet, and no one can be sure how true it is, so my suggestion is to read for you own enjoyment, enlightenment and fulfillment - forget the gossip... who cares what Katy Perry and Russell Brand are up to, or if Jessica Simpson has put on weight or not, or if Julia Roberts took her kids to the set of her latest movie... There is much more out there, so much more important than this. The important thing is to be true to oneself and try to grow intellectually a little bit each day. And, when your child asks you a question you don't know the answer to, instead of saying, "Sorry honey I don't know!" say, "I don't know honey, let's see if we can find out." This will also teach your children the correct use of the Internet and how to find information they need on it with as little problem as possible.

Obsessed

Well I know this is something most of my friends and certainly my husband would agree with... I am obsessed with my weight. I would though, first like to point out that according to my doctor I am perfectly within my weight limits - right smack bang in between my lowest advisable weight and my maximum advisable weight.

Right, now having stated that, here comes the rest! I would actually tend to agree with them that I am obsessed about MY weight. No one else's, just mine. I cook properly balanced, nutritious food for my family and then nibble on a piece of turkey. I have always had weight issues. I was a tubby child, but not overweight, I was never ridiculed or bullied about my weight at school but things got out of hand as I got older.

My weight has gone up and down all my life. Obviously when we are younger, we put on a bit of weight, watch what we eat for a couple of days and hey presto it's gone! Now, as we get older, shedding weight becomes more and more difficult - but not impossible. There have been periods in my life when I have been positively FAT, but now I am (according to the doc) at my perfect weight. So why am I obsessed?

Well, once you reach your perfect weight, you have to maintain it -

and that is the difficult part. There is no end to the food sacrifice, the cravings and the guilt trips when I do go off the rails. Obviously, when I do give in and have a splurge, no weight is gained because I limit it to one mealtime or, at worst, one day. So the "damage" can not be described as damage and is easily rectified.

My major problem is that I think my body has become so accustomed to fairly uneventful food such as chicken, turkey, fruit, etc that when I do go over the top I suffer terribly.

However, one of the good points is that my life has become pain free. I used to suffer from unidentifiable pains in my abdomen, also lots of gas, headaches and joint pains. Since changing my diet they have all gone away, and curiously only co

me back when I go off the diet.

Down points? I spend my days wondering when I will allow myself a treat of some chocolate. Or yearning for carb day when I can eat some carbs (only allowed twice a week), and trying to ignore the little voice in my head saying, "Go on! You deserve it!" and its probably right, but it's there EVERY day not just every now and again.

Am I happy? Well happier than when I was fatter, but my worry is such that I don't enjoy it as much as I should. I am constantly wondering if my clothes are feeling tighter today, or if I ate too much the day before. BUT, breaking the diet definitely makes me feel loads worse.

A boost!

Thank you so much to Magnolia for the first comment on my blog. You have no idea how much it means to me to know that someone, somewhere out there has read my thoughts and actually had something to say about them. Thank you, it was a real boost :)

What is the point?

I find myself, as you will know from this blog, at a problematic time in my life. My inability to actually pull myself together is really beginning to bug me. I feel excluded, as I am sure many people do. I am stuck at home with the kids while my husband is off having loads of fun with his job. And yes, I do know he works very hard, but he loves his job and has a great time while he does it. And yes, he's very considerate and loves me very much. But all I get is the exhausted husband who's too tired to get out of bed when he's home, and too exhausted to be any fun in bed either! There's a shocker for you!

So when I hear about him organizing parties (all in the name of work) and having a great time meeting very interesting people I cannot help myself and feel jealous. We never go to parties when he's home, and wouldn't dream of going out to a club, he's always too tired. So I think, right there is nothing stopping me having a good time while he's away and he certainly wouldn't dream of stopping me having fun, but who with? All my friends are married with kids and work full time, none of them would want to go out and have fun as they are all happy at home with their spouses and offspring. I just don't know anyone who's single and would go out. There is no way I would ever consider going out on my own, I am certainly not looking to meet anyone who might get the wrong idea, and let's face it, it is neither fun or understood to go out on my own.

So what should I do? How can I change my life in order to find the right kind of people to widen my circle of friends with other women who's husbands also travel a lot and they too are bored at home with the kids? I don't necessarily want to go out to clubs and dance the night away, but a nice friendly dinner with intelligent conversation or a trip to the movies or a show would be nice every now and again.

It seems to me that in this age of social networking sites and all the other stuff there is out there, even this blog, gets me absolutely nowhere. No one ever comments on my posts to let me know they agree or disagree with me. My twitter is a total flop. Yes I have fun on Facebook, but all my friends on it live in different countries not just different cities! So as you can see, things are pretty difficult when it comes to socializing. I also live in a residential area where everyone hides behind their fences and no one speaks to anyone else. The only person I have regular contact with who is a neighbor is a woman who used to work for my Dad and lives just up the road! But even she is busy with her elderly mother in a nursing home nearby and her husband in the evenings.

Just to see what would happen, I posted on twitter that I was going off-line for good and thanked all my followers for putting up with my boring posts. The only response I got was from my husband asking me what had happened.

Well what has happened is, I can't really see the point in it. No one answers my posts anyway. And I just feel like I'm having my nose rubbed in it when I get to read all my husband's numerous posts about all the fun he's planning for his next event in Colombia or Mexico.

On top of it all, we will be launching Phase IV of the building work to be done on our house. So not only do I get to be here alone with the kids but I get a house full of Rumanian builders and more dust then anyone can humanly cope with - especially with my allergies.

So yes, I am complaining, I feel as if I don't exist. I feel lonely.

How's your relationship?

Being in a relationship is never easy and has to be worked at by both parties involved. With todays pressures of mortgage payments, careers, kids, schools, etc lots of us take our partner for granted. Maybe we should stop for a while and analyze our relationships and try and put ourselves in our partner's shoes for a few moments. Maybe a disaster can be avoided.

I have just been reading an article in the British Press about how 6 out of 10 couples are unhappy with their relationship. They say that there is no time for each other, sex life is terrible, they don't talk and spontaneity has completely disappeared. I would be interested to know, how many of you out there feel the same - or not, what you do to keep the flame alive, and your points of view on relationships.

Bikini Diet

Well it seems to be working :) Having lost 10 kilos last year, 3 have crept back on so it was time for some radical action. A 1 month very strict high protein diet - yes I am starving, but after 7 full days of the diet I have lost 1 kilo 800 grs so I have to say that it is working! I have to say it is very limited and extremely boring but the result is what is worth it and it's only for 1 month.

At this time of year I get literally scared about trying on last year's summer clothes, and I know that many women have the same fear. It is thoroughly depressing to find that over the cold winter months we have put on weight - however little it may be, but our clothes no longer look or feel the same. Action must be taken! Putting the tighter fitting clothes down to them shrinking in the wash is not a valid excuse to go out and buy a bigger size!

So if anyone out there is interested in my diet, just leave me a message and I will pass it on willingly - always glad to help anyone in need!

Boredom

I am so fecking bored with myself it is untrue! What to do? I have no idea at all - any suggestions out there? Anyone else feeling this way?

I even look like this, beard and all - considering I am a blonde woman of 41 means that BOREDOM has really taken over!

Infidelity

Hmmmmm, the press seems full of men confessing their infidelities. Recently we have had Tigger Woods, John Terry, Ashley Cole, Mark Owen, Jesse James and now David Boreanaz all confessing their sins. Now should we be asking ourselves if this is normal? I have always believed that men are not monogamous, in fact a woman I worked with for a long time believes they are not. Obviously there are men that are. But as someone else pointed out if you are good looking and famous you have women throwing themselves at you all the time, and it's pretty much par for the course that "the flesh is weak" and at some moment something is going to give.

Let's face it, infidelity is nothing new!

I know a doctor specialized in nutrition and anti aging, and when I explained how difficult it was to resist a plate of chocolates stuck under my nose by my husband, he said that was normal. There is a part of our brain that has not evolved along with the rest. That part is still back in the dark ages and that bit deals with escape, survival and reproduction. So if someone sticks something deliciously tasty under your nose your survival instinct says "EAT".

He also explained how many years ago he had a Danish girlfriend who was very jealous and once said to him, "What would you do if when away at a conference a beautiful female doctor knocked on your hotel room door late one evening wearing nothing but a sexy negligee?" He answered, "Well sleep with her of course!" this is the reproduction side of the brain screaming to be taken into consideration.

This does not mean I am condoning any of the aforementioned males' behavior, I also believe in the sanctity of marriage and if you get married for all the right reasons then your vows should be upheld. But maybe we should ask ourselves if it is realistic?

I was talking to another female friend over dinner one night. She is a very jealous person by nature and her husband travels a lot for his work and she often wonders what he gets up to while away. She asked me if I would want to know if my husband had been unfaithful to me if she found out about it (her husband and mine are very close friends). This is a question I have no answer for. I guess the first instinct is to say well yes of course! But, and this is a mighty big BUT, what would come of it.

In my opinion I GUESS if it was a one night fling never to be seen again I could live without knowing, but I also GUESS, that if my husband was actually having a relationship with another woman he had strong feelings for, then that would change my answer.

To this day I am happily married, my husband also travels a lot for his work, and due to the nature of his work and in some countries he is a "prize catch" and I have often seen women throwing themselves at him. To this day I have no reason to believe or suspect he has ever been unfaithful to me, however, I am no innocent enough to think it hasn't or couldn't happen.

How much of those infidelities are the women involved to blame for. We always hear about the cheating husbands, but what of the women gleefully going for a married man. In the case of the famous unfaithful, all the women would have known in advance that the man they were being seduced by or trying to seduce was married. Whoever initiated the seduction is irrelevant, the "mistress" could have said, "bog off your married and I'm not doing that to a fellow female - find someone else!"

I think the women involved are as much to blame as the men.

When I got was a single mother, divorced from my first husband I met lots of different men. Some were married, it was not something I wanted to get involved with. Where as I could have said, "Well hey, I'm not looking for a partner I just want to have great sex, and a married man is perfect for that - there's no chance of settling down!" But as I said before, I believe in the sanctity of marriage and sleeping with a married man was not something I was willing to do, however attractive!

But women are not always innocent bystanders, or wall flowers waiting to be seduced by the big bad wolf. Lots of them are just as willing to get involved with a married man as he is. So I ask you to consider who really is to blame? My opinion is they both are.

There are always exceptions of course. Men who aren't famous and can easily pull the wool over a woman's eyes do lie and aren't honest about themselves. Many women have been fooled into believing the handsome man they have just met is free and single and is really telling the truth about his feelings.

I think that honesty goes a long way and whereas "the truth hurts" it hurts a lot less than all the lies when you find out about them. So, everyone out there, be true - to yourselves and your loved ones, be honest.

Bread

I have always loved to cook. I spent a lot of my childhood in the kitchen with my mom. She was my best friend and we used to laugh a lot while we cooked - we even used to dance! My mother always said, "If you help make dinner, you don't have to do the washing up afterwards!" Me who hates washing up took that to heart and I learnt to cook with my mother. Even before I was of an age to learn, I have memories of coming home from school to a house that smelt of fresh baked bread, mom would cut us a slice - still warm, and spread it with butter and jam - delicious!

Since stopping working all day in an office I have been daring to try things in the kitchen my mother did constantly like making my own chicken stock and now bread. I have recently started making bread. I have to admit it is a lot easier than I expected - all you need is patience, something I lack entirely.

There are fantastic bread makers on the market (which I don't have), and ready mixed flours to make your life a lot easier - and they are fantastic. I am really enjoying the experimenting even if my waste line doesn't like it!

To Facebook or not to Facebook? That is the question.

Since I discovered Facebook I have reconnected with lots of old friends from school and several of my extended family. I find it lots of light-hearted fun and am really enjoying it. It is a quick and easy way to stay in touch. I do not accept friend requests from anyone I don't know and use it exclusively for my own enjoyment.

However, as you are all aware, there is a lot of hoo-ha in the press about social networking sites and I have to say that, where young people are concerned, it can be a very dangerous thing. Children and adolescents are curious and have no sense of danger. The pedophiles are deliberately deceiving them into believing they are friends of the same age and we all know what outcome that has had. Unfortunately for sites like Facebook, these criminals are giving them a bad name.

All parents are worried for their children and try to protect them, and try to make them understand the dangers out there, and how easy it is for them to be tricked into believing something which is a lie. It is not easy to get the message across. Children tend to think their parents don't understand and are talking rubbish or are being prying or over protective. How do you make your child understand the dangers out there.

When we were their age, social networking sites, mobile phones and email didn't exist. The dangers were others. It wasn't as "easy" for criminals to get to us, but it did happen. Now it is so easy for them.

However, I do believe that children should be allowed to use new technology, after all their entire future will be based on the use of technology. They need to learn how to use it to their advantage, but the dangers also have to be emphasized. They have to be emphasized in school and at home.

I have just installed a computer in my 10 year old's bedroom. But before switching it on I had a long conversation with her about Facebook (she's not allowed), Messenger and Skype. For the moment we have agreed that I will be allowed access just to make sure that nothing funny is going on. She says she understands but only time will tell.

Parents should try to have open and understanding relationships with their children. If you are seen by them to be secretive or to keep things from them then they will act in the same way. We should not be judgmental and try to be understanding of them. Getting them to understand that we were young once too, and that our problems were different back then but they were still problems that had to be dealt with.

I had a great relationship with my parents and I could literally talk to them about anything. Open communication is the best thing. I hope that I will be able to cultivate that trust with my own children.

Should one just sit around?

Ok, I probably shouldn't be writing this - not now anyway. It's almost 2am and I am alone. Married with 2 kids and feeling lonely. Life has a funny way of changing. Things hardly ever work out the way you think they are going to. There are times in your life when you have a great friendship and you can never imagine that friendship ever ending or simply changing. But life changes all the time and quite often so do friendships.

So many people I knew and believed were my closest friends and really helped me when I was a single mother and battling my ex-husband in court. Suddenly when life got better, I met my current husband, fell madly in-love and got married, lots of them disappeared. People who knew every aspect of my life and that I cherished suddenly didn't return my calls. Does that classify me as a charity case? Someone they felt sorry for and thought they had to help and then when things got better for me and I was happy, they no longer felt they could include me in their circle of friends? Why does this happen?

Having said that, the ones that have stayed around and continue to be friends, I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that they are true friends, even if I can count them all on one hand and still not use all my fingers! To them, I send my most sincere and heartfelt thanks. Thanks for being there in the bad times and the good times.

Giving up my job has cut me off from a lot of opportunities to maintain friendships and make new ones. My husband's job means he is away a lot and I am therefore, on my own. Most of my friends are married with children, and the possibility of a girls night out for dinner and a good conversation, just isn't on the cards.

Now, my dilemma is, should I just sit around waiting for my husband to come home? Should I just do what is expected of me, stay home, look after the children and be bored brainless? My husband has a wonderful social job in which he gets to meet loads of interesting and fun people, I have come to envy him. I would love to be able to enjoy myself too when he is away and not just have to cope with reading of his activities on twitter or from telephone conversations with him? I try hard to smile down the phone and feel happy for that even though he is far from home, and I know he misses us, but he cannot deny he has lots of fun. I do find it hard as I would love to be there by his side enjoying it all with him.

I feel left out.

I always said I did not want to be stuck at home, and here I am. Stuck.

I am not talking about going out to clubs and dancing until dawn. Just some fun and witty conversation over a decent meal every now and again would be just fine. I have done things such as joined a Pilates group where all the other women in the class were housewives with husbands and kids too, no one socialized outside of the class beyond a coffee afterwards. I joined a gym before the Pilates class where no one talked to anyone unless they were friends and had signed up together. What is it with people? Why are people becoming so anti social? If you try striking up a conversation with someone on the treadmill next to you they look at you as if you've gone crazy and plug their headphones in!

Inspiration PLEASE! I need to make minor changes in my life!

Being 40 Something

I have a life I can not complain about. I have a wonderful and loving husband, two beautiful kids and a very comfortable life. It hasn't always been that way. In fact, it used to be a totally different story.

My first husband... let's not talk about him :)

By the time I met my second and truly wonderful husband, I was in my mid thirties. Having worked all my life and spent most of it as a single mother too, I was suddenly presented with the opportunity to take my foot off the accelerator for a while. I used to be a secretary, so definitely not a high-flying ambitious business woman juggling meetings, trips and children, just little me earning a decent wage and making ends meet. My husband and I agreed that I needed some time off and my company was reducing its employees so I decided to volunteer to leave. They were very good to me and I got a really good settlement. I decided to take several months off before hunting for another job.

I was quite stressed out and decided to focus on my daughter and my new husband and myself for a while. However, during my time off I became pregnant with my son, so I decided to enjoy my pregnancy without the pressure of work, then my son was born and how could I possibly go back to work with a tiny baby at home? So, there you have it, 3 and a half years later I work part time from home and find myself basically - well, lost.

Are our lives really so defined by our jobs? My husband's is - but then it's his company, if he doesn't work it no one else will!

When I stopped working I thought, wow, life's great no pressure to get to work by a certain time, no boss standing over me, no rush hour traffic. And it is great for a while and then the grey matter kicks in from lack of stimuli and I find myself wondering if I should at least try and go back to work on a full-time basis? There are over 400,000 unemployed in this country so there must be secretaries by the dozen looking for jobs, and then there are the kids, and my husband who would love me to travel with him as often as possible.

I admit that it isn't out of monetary need. It is a case of having a purpose and direction in life, something that is mine, where I am me and not belonging to the kids! Yes children often feel their parents belong to them and are there to do everything for them and when they want it. But to be honest, I need something for me.

I recently turned 40 and suddenly started questioning lots of things in my life. One of them is the direction I am going in. I would love to have something to do that is mine, that enthuses me and gives me satisfaction. With all the opportunities for communication that we have nowadays at our fingertips, I would love to be able to put those opportunities to good use.

I started this blog as an experiment and so far I feel it is a total flop. I don't know if anyone has even read it and no one has ever left a comment. It would be nice to know, so if there is anyone out there reading this and find something akin in it to their own feelings, then please, let me know - it would be lovely.

Spring

Spring has finally arrived. For me, this tends to bring about new beginnings and new mindset. I tend to think of this as the beginning of a new year not January. When flowers begin to blossom and the trees have new bright green shoots on them, I feel renewed! Even if it does mean coping with my allergies.

It also means thinking about the summer and clothes that reveal all the excesses of the winter. Yes it is that time of year again - OPERATION BIKINI! Time to lose those extra pounds and tone up for the summer. So, it's time to think hard about an easy diet - easy to follow and easy to stick to but with good results. As I have written before, food combining is an easy option, it gets the job done but you can EAT. Enjoy your food, it will be better for you.

Coping with the past.

Does anyone out there have any advice for coping with the past. I shall explain. As I said in a previous post, when you meet someone in your mid thirties, both of you have "baggage" that baggage being all you have lived previously to meeting that wonderful person you me at thirty-something. Your pasts make you both what you are today. It all adds up and contributes to making you that wonderful person he/she fell in love with. But, as in my case, sometimes that other person's past is still very present.

My husband had three very important relationships before meeting me. One when he was very young and produced his eldest daughter Jenny, another one which lasted for 10 years - no children but they did bring a company into this world and they are still partners in that company and work together on a daily basis. His third relationship produced John, and John's mother also works for him at the company he created. So as you can see, his past is still very present. In fact, his partner (ex girlfriend number 2) is his best friend and also godmother to our son (this was decided unanimously by him). Every time number 2 asks him for a favor he doesn't think twice before saying yes.

Her favors are also extremely expensive. When she moved into her new apartment with her current boyfriend she commented on how much she liked one of our sofas (paid for by me and cost $4000), he GAVE it to her. Didn't even ask me if I agreed. The last favor was to borrow MY car for the weekend to go house hunting! They brought it back with no gas in it.

How do I cope with this? I do agree with helping people, especially when they need it, but she doesn't. Both she and her boyfriend earn vast fortunes and are not in need in the slightest. Also, no favors are ever returned. It is completely one sided.

What do I do? How do I cope with this?

Easter holidays with the kids

Don't know what to do with the kids over the holidays? One thing that children love is cooking, it can also work to your advantage. Get the kids into the kitchen with you, it keeps them entertained and they can give you a hand at the same time. It is also a great way to teach children about food and healthy eating. If they get to know the different ingredients and learn how to use them and create a meal you can all sit down and eat together, gives them a great sense of achievement and is also very educational.

Depending on their ages you can do anything from cookies and cakes to a whole lunch or dinner!

Cookies are great for getting the feel of the dough. You can do fairy cakes and get them to decorate them with different colored icing. Easy savory food goes from cheese straws to Shepherd's Pie. Get them making their own pizzas or fancy sandwiches.

It's also a good idea to get them to clean up too! That way they can learn to do the washing up and put things away as they go, always a good help for you too!

Oh no! What do I feed the kids for dinner tonight?

We've all had this screaming in our heads on many an occasion. Those hungry, tired and irritable children at the end of the school day, not to mention the hungry, tired and irritable mother trying to tidy the house or rush in from after school activities and have to conjure up an nutritious meal in minutes.

Well with the risk of sounding... well annoying, here is a piece of advice that, however annoying, actually works.

MAKE EXTRA AND FREEZE IT!

Yes those are words of wisdom. Become the Tupperware queen. When you do have a day where you are more

relaxed, or if you are making lunch on a saturday, make extra and freeze it. That way you can have nutritious, homemade food to fall back on on those days when you're behind or have forgotten to do something about dinner. Yes, pizza is a quick and easy substitute, but a good mince dish freezes well and all you have to do is add a bit of mashed potato and hey

presto there you go! Dinner on the table. You can even defrost it in the microwave or directly over a low heat while the potatoes are cooking.

Fish pie is another good one for freezing. However, I tend to freeze the main part of these dishes without the mashed potato as, personally, I don't like reheated mashed potato! Also, to both these dishes you can add all the veg you like, either included during cooking or added as a side dish at the time of serving.

Other good recipes for freezing are:

Meatballs

Meatloaf

Homemade potato fish cakes

Croquets

Spaghetti sauce

chicken casserole

Beef Stew

Life's little problems

Ok, life has been pretty tough for the past year, lots of things going on and I have been affected by them all from the fallout. I have an incredibly intelligent husband and he has his own company and even in this time of crisis, his company is in expansion and doing really well. This is great! However it generally means he's traveling all the time and that means I get stuck at home with the kids - not fun. Living with "god" is not an easy thing to do - it is all about him. So how many other women out there have the same problem?

Woman are extremely resilient and resourceful. Men have been allowed, for as long as most of us can remember, to just get on with bringing the money in. Woman, as we all know, in the majority of cases have to hold down a full-time job, run the house, look after the children and be a loving and supportive wife.

When I met my husband I was lucky enough to be able to stop working. However, in his absences due to his hectic schedule, I have started working again. I am luckier than most though, my husband's salary pays for everything and I can work just to keep my brain in tip top condition and earn a bit of extra money for anything that's needed.

Women who are married to self-employed men know that it is an extremely stressful life. The main problem with this kind of job is cash-flow. He knows the money is coming in, what no one knows is when. Being dependent on other bigger corporations to pay up is not a great place to be for peace of mind. They quite often delay in paying the "little guy". I have often been to the supermarket to do the weekly shop and ended up with the cashier telling me my credit card is over the limit - I learnt the hard way to always carry enough cash just in case. As I have pointed out to him on many an occasion, the people we have to pay at the end of the month: credit card companies, house security company, schools, etc do not call him - they call me.

Before meeting my husband, I lived alone with my young daughter, held down a full-time job and paid all the bills - even if that meant I had nothing left over at the end, and now to have to explain to people that we will pay them as soon as possible, just pushes me closer and closer to the edge.

So me being me, meant that I got active. I found "slavery on-line", yes it does exist! Web sites where you can join up (you have to pay a fee to do this) and you can access a list of job offers for sepecific things that need doing. For example, secretarial work, computer programming, PAs, writing and translating, etc all from the comfort of your own home. Why is it slavery? Well you have to bid for the job you want and this means competing against other people all over the world, so the lower your bid the more likely you are to get the job assigned to you. Most of the people on there end up working for a very low wage.

As I pointed out before, I am one of the lucky ones, I do this just to have a little extra when my husband's cash-flow hits a tough patch. Have I thought about going back to full-time employment? All the time, but I really do want to be here for my kids. Before I married, my daughter had to go to early birds school club and after school club so that I could get to work on time. We both got out at the same time, but I had a 40 minute drive back to pick her up. Now, thanks to my hard-working husband I can take my kids to school and be there to pick them up, and funnily enough, that is all they ask for.

Now, if I did choose to go back to work, it would have to be for a really good reason or to a job I loved and that gave added value to my life.