Today, I’m featuring a guest post from Staples. I didn’t start blogging with the intent of becoming a small business, but that is what I am now. I’ve had to learn a lot about running a small business (and am still learning) by trial and error. I’m going to start sharing some of what I’ve learned and bring you guest posts from experts in the small business arena.

My first small business guest post is from Staples and focuses on why it’s important to keep both you and your employees healthy especially when you have a sedentary desk job like most of us bloggers.

Staying Fit in a Sedentary Desk Job

Staying physically fit can be hard for the millions of American workers who sit in front of computers all day. Employees with sedentary desk jobs can have a hard time staying motivated to eat healthy and be active. And this can be more than an issue of physical fitness — it can deeply impact employee productivity.

Employers can make some basic changes to employees’ work settings to help them stay healthy, happy and productive. Here are a few tips to promote a healthy lifestyle in the workplace.

Movement Is Key

• Encourage employees to take 15-minute breaks during the workday to walk around the block. Fresh air helps employees stay aware and awake through the afternoon.
• Suggest that your employees skip the elevator and take the stairs to get their blood pumping.
• You can also schedule strolling brainstorms instead of sitting in a conference room. This change of scenery can often spark creativity.

Work Out During Lunch

• If your office has a gym or if there is one nearby, make sure employees feel comfortable using their lunch hour to work out. This breaks up the day, prepares them for a productive afternoon and helps combat post-lunch drowsiness.
• Employees who work from home can use a treadmill desk to stay active and productive if a gym is not nearby.

Optimize Workstations

• 86% of office workers report discomfort from their office furniture. Look into purchasing an ergonomic desk chair to encourage better posture and decrease strain on your back.
• 15% of workplace injuries are due to carpal tunnel syndrome. Help your employees decrease their risk with appropriate computer mice and keyboards.
• Educate your employees on the importance of workstation ergonomics. If they are tilting or turning their heads to view documents or their computer, give them proper equipment to give their neck muscles a rest. Provide copy holders for positioning documents at eye level, and show them the proper angle for their computer screens so they can maintain good posture.

For more tips on office fitness or the benefits of ergonomic solutions, check out Office Fitness: How to Stay Fit in the Wide World of Business and the Staples Ergonomic Center.

Disclosure: This was not a sponsored post. I received no compensation in exchange for hosting this guest post.

Planning a trip is always a huge deal especially for a family of six. There are so many details and lists that need to be made. In this sponsored post, I will show you how using Microsoft OneNote to plan my family’s dream vacation to Aruba made my life easier. We love to go to the beach, so someday soon, I plan to take my family to Aruba. It was a lot of fun planning it.

Microsoft OneNote is part of the Microsoft Office 365 suite. I received a one year subscription to Office 365 and Microsoft is providing a one year subscription to one of my readers (giveaway at end of this post).

Travel Planning With Microsoft OneNote

I’m a very visual person so I want to see pictures of hotels and activities before I decide which is best for my family. With Microsoft OneNote, it was so easy to take a screen clip from a web page and send it to OneNote.

OneNote Travel Template

Using the Microsoft OneNote Travel Planner template (download the template), I took clippings of the different hotels that were family friendly so I could compare them side by side. Each clipping included a link directly to the page where the screen clip came from if I needed more information.

OneNote Screen Clips

I found that there were many activities we could do in Aruba, so I took screen clips of the activities. Next, I shared the OneNote travel notebook with everyone in my family. Each person could see the activities and put their name next to the activities they wanted to do. It was easy for me to see who wanted to do what so we could plan our days.

I included a map of where Aruba is and of the island, so that my kids would know exactly where we are going. We can familiarize ourselves with the island before we go.

Access On-The-Go

I discovered there is a lot of important information about travel documents and things we would need to know once we are on the island. Having access to my information on my phone and tablet through the mobile versions of Microsoft OneNote means I will never be without the information. I use SkyDrive to keep all my devices synced with the latest information.

Sharing OneNote Notebooks

I created packing checklists so no one in my family could say they didn’t know what they needed to bring. It was right in the shared OneNote Travel Notebook. I created a tab for each family member with information that was specific to them such as meds they needed to bring, etc. Each person could also add notes to their section that they wanted to remember.

Since this isn’t a trip we will be taking in the next few months, I can continue to add notes, pictures and links when I come across the information and I always have it with me in a very organized way. Much better than my “print and hope I can find it” method I was using before. If I find something offline, I can take a picture of it and add it to the OneNote Travel Notebook.

Password Protected Information

It’s always important to have copies of your important travel documents. I plan to take photos of our passports, tickets and any other important confirmation numbers. If something happens and we lose the documents, I will have easy access to the copies in my OneNote Travel Notebook. I do not want those copies to fall into the wrong hands, so I will password protect that section of the Notebook, so it can only be accessed with the password.

Disclosure: This is a sponsored post from One2One Network and Microsoft Office 365. All opinions stated are my own.

One Year Office 365 Subscription Giveaway

Microsoft is providing one(1) reader with a one(1) year subscription to Microsoft Office 365.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Microsoft Office 365 Features

• The latest and most complete set of Office applications: Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Outlook, Publisher and Access.
• One license for the entire household to use Office on up to five devices, including Windows tablets, PCs or Macs, and get Office on Demand from any Internet-connected PC.
• An additional 20 GB of SkyDrive cloud storage, nearly three times the amount available with a free SkyDrive account.
• 60 free Skype world calling minutes per month to call mobile phones, landlines or PCs around the world.
• Future upgrades, so you always use the latest time-saving technology.
• Automatic save to SkyDrive, so your documents — and even your personal settings — are always available from virtually anywhere and on your favorite devices

Disclosure: This is a sponsored post from One2One Network and Microsoft Office 365. All opinions stated are my own.

 

As we head into summer, we are always looking for ways to entertain the kids. We know we are “supposed” to keep them up to speed with their learning so they don’t forget everything, but we really just want to relax and take it easy. I like to find ways to get my kids to learn while they are playing. They don’t know they are learning because they are just having fun.

Play and Learn with Wallace is one a preschool app that is both educational and fun. It is for preschoolers through first graders. Here is a quick trailer.

 

About the Play & Learn with Wallace App

Tomorrow morning my kids and I are heading to Orlando for a Despicable Me 2 press trip (Disclosure: Universal is paying for our expenses for the trip, but the opinions and excitement are all my own.) We are so excited to see the movie tomorrow night. Despicable Me and I have a bit of a history. The minions keep appearing in my life.

Despicable Me at Mom 2.0

A few years ago when I attended the first Mom 2.0, I got to see the first Despicable Me movie before it was completely finished. That was so exciting to see some of the raw clips and we got to hang out with a Minion.

Despicable Me 2 Blimp

About 3 weeks ago as we drove through Richmond, we saw a huge Minion blimp up in the sky. I had no idea it was going to be there and our trip was a last-minute trip to pick up our new kitten. You can follow the blimp along on their journey. (#DESPICABLIMP)

So, the Minions and I go way back.

Over the next few days we will be seeing Despicable Me 2, hanging out with Minions, going to Universal Studios Theme Park, seeing Big Time Rush in concert (and meeting in person.) Since today was the last day of school, this is the best way to kick off our summer!!

Despicable Me 2 Trailer

Follow along with the #DM2Orlando hashtag as we share all that we are doing over the weekend.  Here are all the places to follow and find out more about Despicable Me 2:

• Like Despicable Me on Facebook
• Follow @DespicableMe on Twitter #DespicableMe2 #DM2Orlando
• Watch the trailer on YouTube
• Follow Despicable Me on Google+
• Pin on Pinterest
• Follow on Instagram

Disclosure: Universal is paying for our expenses for the trip, but the opinions and excitement are all my own. No other compensation was received and this post was not required. 

Today is National Running Day (NRD) and I’m celebrating with the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathons for a reason. When Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathons asked me to share their NRD information with you, I jumped at it. I’m not getting paid or receiving anything in exchange.

Almost 2 years ago I ran my first half marathon and it was the Rock ‘n’ Roll Half Marathon in Virginia Beach. That accomplishment was huge for me. It showed me that I can do something when I put my mind to it.

I’m now signed up to run the same marathon again over Labor Day weekend and this week kicks of my serious training. So, it’s fitting for me to celebrate on National Running Day.

$20 Coupon for Any Domestic Rock ‘n’ Roll Race

Head over to the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon National Running Day post and find a race you’d like to run and it’s $20 off. This is for National Running Day ONLY. After June 5, 2013, it’s back to the regular prices.

The Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Series is hosting National Running Day events in several cities. Download the list of local events (PDF) and join in a celebration near you.

Olympian Running Playlists

Olympian runners Kara Goucher and Meb Keflezighis teamed up with Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Series to create their own running playlist and I”m sharing them with you.

Kara Goucher’s Running Playlist

• Vicci Martinez and Cee Lo Green- Come Along
• Pitbull- Back in Time
• La Roux- Bulletproof
• Ke$ha- C’Mon
• Pitbull- Feel this Moment
• Icona Pop- I love it
• Cee Lo Green- F**k You
• Anna Kendrick- Cups
• M.I.A. – Paper Planes
• Fun.- Some Nights

Meb Keflezighis Running Playlist

• Survivor- Eye of the Tiger
• Run D.M.C. – Walk this Way
• James Brown – Living in America
• C&C Music Factory- Gonna to Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now)
• Alicia Keys feat. Jay-Z – Empire State of Mind
• Destiny’s Child- Survivor
• Beyoncé feat. Jay-Z – Crazy in Love
• Michael Jackson – Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough
• Michael Jackson – Thriller
• Michael Jackson -Beat It
• Eritrea Wedi -Tikabo Me’raj

The moment I crossed that finish line was an awesome moment for me. This medal is a reminder that I can and I will. My goal for my next half marathon is to finish in 2 hours and 45 minutes. I can and I will….

This year I’ve worked hard on losing the 40 pounds that I gained since my total hysterectomy. I had hit a plateau and I was also sick of dieting and being hungry. Then I got The Fast Metabolism Diet book by Haylie Pomroy (affiliate link) in the mail from SheSpeaks to review (disclosure: free book received).

Fast Metabolism Diet Book Review

Since I was thrown into menopause at age 40 after my total hysterectomy, my metabolism has slowed tremendously. I knew it was going to happen, but until it does, you just don’t understand how it’s going to affect your life. Suddenly I couldn’t eat the same foods and maintain my weight. This book was the kick in the pants I needed.

About 3 weeks ago, I started the Fast Metabolism Diet and as of today I have lost 8 pounds. The book claims you will lose up to 20 pounds. I think if I had been better about the exercise part, I probably could get closer to 20 pounds.

What is the Fast Metabolism Diet

Basically it is a 4-week diet plan where you rotate the types of foods you eat. Each week you go through 3 phases:

1. Phase 1 is 2 days and you eat protein, fruits, veggies and carbs + cardio exercise.
2. Phase 2 is 2 days and you eat protein and veggies + strength training (weights).
3. Phase 3 is 3 days &  you eat fruits &  veggies, protein, some carbs and add healthy fats/oils + yoga/Pilates.

Then you repeat those phases for 4 weeks in a row.

Fast Metabolism Diet Don’ts

You can not eat just any protein, fruits, veggies or fats, but rather choose from a very specific list of foods. There are also a lot of don’ts you must follow such as

• NO wheat
• NO soda
• NO dairy
• NO alcohol
• and a few more restrictions….

This plan is definitely restrictive if you normally eat a lot of dairy, soda, wheat and other processed foods. I had to get used to eating foods that are different from my norm, but I was not hungry at all. Much of the time I was eating more than I felt I needed to eat.

Problems I Had

During my first week, I went to a dance competition out-of-town with my girls and that was hard. We were at a college and there was no place near to easily get food and because of the way the dances were space, I was there sometimes 10 hours straight and we weren’t getting back to our hotel until after Midnight. I did the best I could and I didn’t eat anything I shouldn’t, but I also didn’t eat as much as I should or get as many veggies in as I should.

I did great until after 3 weeks and by then I was sick of eating the foods. I wanted a piece of cheese or a yogurt. I was feeling confined by my choices and I also really wanted to run more than 2 days each week. I missed running a LOT! That surprised me more than anything.

Bottom Line!

I will probably do the plan again after I’ve completed my half marathon. I have to start the major training now, so I can’t do the plan again. I do like the lower carbs and eating every 3 hours. This diet was easier than I thought I anticipated (I was worried). The food was more expensive than what I usually buy, but well worth it.

I have had a lot of stomach issues in the past and still have pains almost weekly. After I got over the caffeine withdrawal headaches, I felt fantastic. And of course now my shorts that haven’t fit in 2 years are getting loose on my, so bottom line…the diet helped me get past that plateau and showed me that eating healthier foods makes a big difference in how I feel.

Fast Metabolism Diet App

There is also an app for the iPhone which I found really helpful when I was eating out or at the grocery store. You can create a shopping list, plan your food and exercise and check things off as you complete them.

What’s Next?

You’ve read my Fast Metabolism Diet Book Review, so now what? Follow the author, Haley Pomroy on Facebook & Twitter and check out the Fast Metabolism Diet website for more information and answers to questions.

Let me know if you buy the book and decide to give the plan a try. I’d love to hear how it worked out for you.

Disclosure: I received a free copy of the book from SheSpeaks for this book review. No other compensation was received. All Fast Metabolism Diet Book Review opinions are my own.

Here is an piece I saw on Access Hollywood:

 

You’ve wanted to try Yoga, but the thought of putting on your Yoga pants and doing  the Downward Dog in front of others is frightening! I’m there with you. Imagine my surprise when I discovered that you can do yoga in your home with professional yoga instructors on My Yoga Online.

My Yoga Online Features

This past month, I had a complimentary month to My Yoga Online and I did a lot of the Yoga for Busy Moms classes.

First, let me tell you a bit about My Yoga Online.

• Offers 1000s of Yoga, Pilates and wellness videos.
• Available to watch on your computer, iPad, iPhone, Android and even stream the classes to your Roku, PS3, Samsung TV and Apple TV
• Classes available for all levels
• You can purchase videos to download and watch even when you do not have internet access
• Monthly, yearly & free membership options

I started my month by taking a few of the beginner yoga classes. I have done yoga in the past, but it’s been a long time. It was so nice to be able to do the yoga classes in the privacy of my own home. I didn’t have to get all dressed up in my good yoga pants, get in the car, drive to a yoga studio, park, walk in the studio and figure out how I’m going to fit into a class.

I just opened up my Yoga computer (seriously…I used my Lenovo Yoga to stream my yoga classes!), found the class I wanted to take, hit play and voila…. Yoga class!

Disclosure: This is a #sponsored post. I received 1 month free in order to facilitate this review. No other compensation was received. All opinions are my own.
What’s Next?
You can go over to My Yoga Online and sign up for a free membership and see what types of classes are offered. If you are curious, go ahead and purchase a class or try a month. Let me know what you think if you give it a try.

This post was created in partnership with MSN. Find out more about the all new MSN experience at allnew.msn.com or see it in action on Windows 8, Android, or on iOS at msn.com

Why Lightening Fast?

So, you may be thinking, why do I need to know something lightning fast? Let me give you an example. This past weekend, I took my daughters to a dance competition. The competitions tend to end real late and we are usually in an unfamiliar town.

After a full day, I was beat and just wanted to get back to the hotel. We took a wrong turn somewhere and ended up in the middle of nowhere and there weren’t many street lights. We were lost. I needed the address to the hotel NOW, so I could get it into the GPS so we could get to sleep before dawn.

 

 

Check Out MSN

Now, I want you to go to MSN and check out the new, faster MSN experience. Leave me a comment below telling me when you need to be “in the know.”

 Disclosure: This post was created in partnership with MSN. Find out more about the all new MSN experience at allnew.msn.com or see it in action on Windows 8, Android, or on iOS at msn.com.

Related articles

• When You Need to Know Now (digitalmomblog.com)
• Get in the Know With MSN #MSNKnowNow (ourordinarylife.com)
• MSN.com: My News, Lighting Fast #MSNKnowNow (miscfinds4u.com)

This morning I discovered @ScoutieGirl’s Inspiration Chest blog post and fell in love with the idea. I thought it would make an awesome addition to our #RechargeME projects. I decided to create an Inspiration Chest private board on Pinterest, Dropbox and OneNote.

I went back and forth on whether to make the board on Pinterest private or not and finally decided on private. I wanted to put things in there and not be questioned. I also want to put pins in there that I’ve already pinned and not have them show up as duplicates all over.

I’m using Dropbox because I can use the folder from my phone, tablet or any computer and add things to the folder no matter where I am.

I’m not sure what will end up in my Inspiration Chest, but my hope is that when I have these moments in the future where I need a recharge, I can go to the Inspiration Chest and find things to inspire me.

This Inspiration Chest will be for personal, fitness, blog and family inspiration. Anything that inspires me or ideas for future blog posts or quotes or photos or anything else.

What will you put in your Inspiration Chest and where will you put it?

Using a gratitude journal app shows you all the things in your life to be happy about. Even when you are having a bad day, if you stop for 5 minutes and come up with 5 things to be grateful for that day, you can change your outlook.

It may be as simple as, “today no one cried” or as joyous as, “today, we saw a rainbow after a warm summer rain.” No matter how small or big, seeing your life in a new positive way will change the way you look at your life.

Gratitude Journal App

I use the Gratitude Journal App by Happy Tapper on my iPad. 

Since I’ve starting using the Gratitude Journal App, I’ve started to look at my day differently. I look for things that I can put into my Gratitude Journal…..positive things.

The Gratitude Journal app is a very simple to use. You add text and photos (1 on iPhone & 4 on iPad.) Each day you get a new positive quote (love that feature) and you can rate you day from 1 to 5 stars. Such a simple way to look at the positives in your life.

iPhone Gratitude Journal App

The iPhone version of the Gratitude Journal App looks like a page out of a yellow lined note pad. You can change the design behind the note pad.

iPad Gratitude Journal App

And the iPad version of the Gratitude Journal app looks more like a regular journal. You can choose from several different designs for the journal section on the right. This is the version that I like to use because it looks so much like a regular journal and I can add more photos.

Your assignment today for #RechargeME is to start a gratitude journal. If you don’t have access to these apps, then get out the old fashion pen and paper and jot down 5 things. Give it a few weeks and see how it changes your outlook on your whole life.

This is a positive way to use technology to enhance your life.

Do you use a gratitude journal? Do you or would you use a hi-tech Gratitude Journal App or pen and paper?