First Post

My very first post. A blank slate. What to say...well, I am sure this blog will evolve over time, but I thought it would be nice to journal my adventure in starting my own web-based business and then later be a supplement to the business. It's my foray into becoming a dot com mogul. Today I have purchased www.e-mealplanning.com and I will soon move ahead to become my own brand. Rachel Ray look out! Notice I didn't choose Martha. As much as I admire Martha Stewart for the empire she has created, I'm not really cut from the same cloth as her. I am not a big Rachel Ray fan, but I get why people love her and I see myself as a regular gal, like many others who has some ideas to share and along the way...take over the world. :-)

So who am I? I'm Erika, mother of 2, a stay at home mom made possible by the downturn in the economy. It's fitting that I begin blogging now as this week marks one year since my last day of employment. To be quite honest, I have thought about my old job every day since then. I mourned it's loss for quite awhile. Sure, I searched for a new one and I had some interviews for positions that seemed interesting. It's a big blow to the ego when you are not hired. Especially if you get the second interview. I always found myself wondering, "why would you not want ME?" To go from feeling very valued, a person of credibility, a rock star (if I say so myself) within you field, to being no longer needed is HARD. I do give myself props for not shedding too many actual tears and getting up and out of bed each day. I guess I mourned the loss in a wistful way. As the saying goes, "all good things must come to an end."

So after a year of sporatic job hunting, settling into a stay-at-home routine and soul searching, I was struck by an idea. An idea that came from a friend's Facebook status update. She was complaining about what to fix for dinner and wished someone would do it for her. Many people hate to figure out what to fix for dinner. They hate the grocery store, they're always short on time and they can't seem to ever figure out what to make. Well, I love all that! I always did it when I worked and I do it now. So I'm taking what I know and what I do for my family, plus my experience as a web marketer and content manager, to create a website and a service for weekly meal planning-- e-mealplanning.com.

Stay tuned...