Starting my Spray Tan Business

Starting my Spray Tan Business. . .

I was very hesitant to get into this business, or really any business. I had owned a small business in the past and knew the tole it takes on you to be the one carrying the responsibility of success on your shoulders. I have three children now and did not think that any job would be possible much less one that would require me to keep such a loose schedule. Also, I don't consider myself a true "girly-girl" and was not sure that the health and beauty industry was really the right place for me.

With my pros and cons list weighing heavily to one side I stayed on the side lines. I hunted for a "real" job occasionaly and did some contract work for marketing but in truth these were not great fits. I did not want to drive into Atlanta everyday or even really work 40 hours a week. Who would pick up my kids from school? How could I possibly get homework done? And though I am sorry to say this about myself I needed a little more pressure on me than loose hours of contract work to keep me happy. I need a little stress to keep me focused. If I dont have a little something going on I tend to drift towards lazy. One day at home to catch up on laundry and do the floors is a dream, two days and I am dying for a new to do list.

So that is how it came to be. . . My friend Natasha, part owner of Golden Sol, pushed me out of the nest so to speak. At the time it felt like cliff diving but I could not be happier. She knew that this business is fantastic and just takes a little ground work to get going. She knows me and understands the need of a clear cut goals for each day.

So I started. Goal One: get clients. This is the part that is scary. I have a machine, solution, and top notch training. Who cares? No one knows I exist. So I started making the rounds. I decided that I wanted to work during school hours mostly and the area I live so I found three locations that I thought would be good, made a deal with them on payment, set my hours at each place, and . . . waited for the phone to ring. . . Nothing. Uh-oh! So then I thought about how many things these business owners are doing each day and how they did not have time to do my job for me. So I made three appointment books, flyers, and signs advertising myself and put them at each location so that all they have to do was point at the sign and give the client a pen and . . . one appointment each. Not bad. So then I tanned each owner for free and gave them a gorgeous tan. . . this week I had 19 appointments. WOO HOO!

People are genuinely excited about this product and I am genuinely excited about the fact that I get to make people happy all day and still spend my evenings and weekends with my family.

This week is Prom so my goal is to beat 19 appointments! I will let you know!

WE LOVE OUR CLIENTS!

We got this incredible testimonial a few days ago and I just had to share! I love our clients! Thanks Toni!

I am an Esthetician and my sister Wendy is a Massage Therapist. We are in the business of making people look and feel their best. Golden Sol was a perfect addition to our menu. I researched spray tan systems for two years trying to find the best one at a great price. Golden Sol is that and more. Krista and Natasha's desire for us to be successful and the support they offer to make that happen, are non existent elsewhere in the industry. My clients LOVE the results they get and I love that I'm not doing anything harmful to their skin! We not only spray at our main location, Alli Roberts Salon in Conyers, but we do mobile parties which have been a big part of our success. I would recommend this company to anyone serious about giving their clients a healthy alternative to tanning beds and sun exposure.



Toni Kelecheck www.two-sisters.biz

Thank you for my thankless job

They say being a Mother is a thankless job. When all those well-meaning Mothers and Grandmothers are giving this unsolicited advice as you glow with the joy of expectation and pregnancy you only half listen. Sure, you hear them, but dont really believe it. It is when you are being hit in the face with strings of spaghetti from an angry, and apparently not hungry toddler, that the words come back and the "a-ha" moment takes place. Even then though that sleepy toddler half closes his eyes and smiles and sleepy smile and you are back. Thankless? I don't think so. That little "I wuv you, momma" is all I need. It is true. We may not get "Thank you's" for being Mommy but we know we are appreciated and loved.

However, I have the true thankless job: being a working Mother. I can truly say that my children and husband are thankful for my homemade cakes, hair brushing skills, and wonderful tickle monster performances. The thing is the moment I get a phone call or have to turn on my computer they all act like I have not spoken to them in days!

Maybe it is because I work from home or part time. If I had a full time job I drove too there would be less expected of me at home I am sure. I would also have the luxery of leaving the office at the office. That, however, is not the case. I work 20-30 hours a week, from home, on my own business. I also pick up the girls from school, handle any and all doctors appts (and with three kids there are plenty), and run the house. This means I am mentaling working a to do list from the moment I wake up to the moment I go to sleep. It is also means that no matter how hard I try to make school hours my main working hours that that is not always possible. I have to answer calls occasionaly and checking my email twice a day really helps me not miss a beat with clients. I cook dinner, sit down with the family, watch everyone play Wii for half an hour and then the moment I step away and open the laptop. . . KABOOM! The world is ending, my husband is giving that look, the kids immediately start mis-behaving. What in the world!!!!

I would like my family to recognize and be thankful for the fact that they did not have to go to daycare today afterschool, that the laundry is done, and those darn chicken fingers were made from scratch! I would like for my husband to be thankful that I am trying so hard to be the perfect Mom and make a significant contribution to the household. That, yes, it would be great if I could be completely tuned in ALL the time but to do that means I would need to give up working. Why cant these people see the big picture?

So Motherhood IS truly it's own reward but there is no appreciation, at least in my house, for being a working Mom. I am looking forward to the day my kids have kids, and they are working their tales off to be fantastic parents, and provide for them at the same time and they get their "a-ha" moment. I know my Mom sure gets a peaceful look on her face everytime I thank her, once again, for putting up with me when I was this age. Maybe by the time I am that old even my husband (of whom I am only mildy complaing because for the most part he is just about as perfect as he can get) will get some perspective. Only time will tell. Until then I guess I will continue to do things like write my blog at 9pm on Sunday Night when a basketball game is on and I cant possibly being doing something for anybody else. Me time. . . work time.

Speed Bumps for Bicycles

Road Blocks for Bicycles?
Winter may have Christmas and Summer may have beach vacations but Spring and Fall, they are the real winners in my book. These seasons are not known for extremes like freezing cold or blazing heat but rather great weather for being and playing outside. They are perfection. Cool breezes, warm sunshine, and endless amounts of daylight.
My family and I have been holed up playing Wii for three and a half long months, pretending to be playing tennis and volleyball for hours on end. That, thankfully, is now over.
It was officially warm this weekend. All week long we talked about our Saturday outing. We were loading up the bikes and picnic basket and spending a long day on the trails.
My eight year old got a big girl bike for Christmas and has been practicing hand braking, gears, and hills relentlessly in between snow storms. My husband also got a new bike for Christmas which meant that I no longer had to haul the bike trailer with our 6 and 2 year olds. WOO HOO! I was dreaming of how much more fun I was going to have without an extra 105 pounds connected to my rear wheel.
Spring is like a re-birth for us each year. We try to think of ways to beat the Winter doldrums and stay active in the cold, but ultimately get bored and lazy. Then the temp hits 65 and you cannot drag us back inside. Catch, soccer, bikes, grilling, or just reading a book on front porch. We become those active people you see in commercials selling McDonalds and Sun Block.
So like I said, we were excited. We talked about our little trip, bought snacks, went to bed early: the works. Saturday morning the girls and I get everything ready inside while my loving and patient husband spends over an hour trying to get the new bikes to fit properly on our old bike rack. Then we were off.
We have now spent approximately 3 hours talking about our trip and two hours loading up for it at this point in time.
We drove 30 minutes and spill out of the car in an excited burst. Walter unloads while I haul every one into the bathrooms to the chorus of , “ but I DON’T have to pee”. And yes, every single one of them peed. I get back and there are bikes laying everywhere (why don’t nice bikes come with kickstands but cheap bikes do? I don’t understand) and Walter is growling at the bike rack. The kids are bouncing around like automated pogo sticks making the situation more tense and then it happened. . . I tried to help.
Yup. Instead of following our tried and true routine of taking the kids down to the lake while Daddy wrestled with the technical stuff, I started to assemble the bike trailer. Guess how long it takes me to break a bike trailer? That is right, after 5 and half hours of bike ride preparation I broke the trailer in less than 45 seconds.
Walter then spent another thirty minutes trying to re-assembled the spring thingy that busted everywhere when I touched it, excersizing his right to free speech before spending another 20 minutes re-loading the bikes back onto the rack. So now we have worked 6 and a half hours and ridden 0 minutes.
We then took a very quiet (Walter’s right to free speech was overridden by Golden Rule #2, if you don’t have anything nice to say then say nothing at all)walk around the lake (which was lovely) and headed home.
All in all I have to say that although our day did not turn out anything like I had planned, I was very proud of our kids for bouncing back so easily and maintaining a good attitude through-out the whole ordeal and that was worth a lot in my book.
Next week is another Spring rite, The Cherry Blossom Festival, wish us luck.

The Forcast is SUNNY with a Chance of SHORTS! Get ready for them now!
Check out www.goldensolonline.com to find a Spray Tan Technician near you.

Also. . .

SALE WORTH MENTIONING!

Golden Sol is having their Spring Clearance with All Natural Suntan Lotion as low as $3.99 and More! Check out www.GoldenSolTan.com and visit the StoreFront to see more!

Volunteers Needed

Parent Volunteers Needed:
As a Working Mother I tend to dread these notes; Parent Volunteers needed to assemble Easter Egg Baskets, Parents needed for only two hours on Wednesday at 10:00am to read with the kids, Parents needed to teach Vacation Bible School, Parents – Don’t forget your contracted 10 hours of school service are due at the end of the month. Parents, Parents, Parents. Yes, I own my own business and create my own hours. Yes, I have it better than most Working Moms. Yes, I love being a part of my kids daily lives. But NO! I cannot interrupt every single week to be in the classroom. I cannot be all things to all people and have to draw the line from time to time. Do you sense my frustration? Do you ever feel guilty when you just have to say no? or when you say yes too much and never have a moment to lay around the house and just . . . enjoy your family.
As I was sitting in a monthly parent meeting at my kids school last week something dawned on me. I spend somewhere between 5-10 hours a month (don’t judge, I know many of you do triple that) in my kids schools and church. I dedicate myself to these activities because I know they need support, because I am very grateful the role they play in my kids lives and want to support them, and because I feel that if I use a service that I should contribute to it. I don’t do the most or least but I do all that I can within the limits of what works for my family.
But then there was a big question. . .
Sure I know why I am doing this, sitting in a school room on a Tuesday night instead of being at home tucking in my kids, but do my kids? Sure, I know why I stress over selling candles and stuffing Easter Eggs, but do my children?
In fact, my kids know why they have to clean out the dishwasher and pick up their own clothes. They know why they have to pack their own lunches and remember their own book bags (and yes, no matter what is inside the book bag or they are serving for lunch I simply will not go back for it- this is one of those lines that must be drawn). They hear constantly how they have to be responsible for themselves and how they have to help out the family and be a part of running our house.
My question is do they know how to apply this lesson past our driveway? They hear about charity work. They sing songs at the Retirement Home once a year and bring a shoebox full of toys at Christmas. But what about responsibility at school?; at Church? At the park they love or Gymnastics class?
What if instead of PARENT VOLUNTEERS NEEDED on every heading, we saw some PARENTS AND KIDS NEEDED: to clean the school yard, cut out crafts for VBS, and to make cookies for the Bake Sale. What if we let some kids sit in on these Parent Volunteer Committees and ask them to make copies for Teachers or even come in to their Siblings classes and read?
Letting the kids volunteer for the very places that serve their needs can really bring home the idea of community service. And, letting the kids serve alongside us make each task so much more fun!
So this Easter my eight year old help me stuff 100 Easter Eggs for church (at first she loved it, then she got bored, then she felt accomplishment at a task completed) and my 6 year is helping me prepare craft bags for VBS. I now look for ways to include my kids in my volunteering and am no longer dreading the next Parent Committee Meeting.
Somehow doing these things with the kids serves my motherly need to multi-task and really makes me feel they are learning a lesson that can take them somewhere in life and that serves my need to be the best parent I can be. So. . . PARENTS AND KIDS NEEDED to run your school, church, and park. They may be short but their hearts are mighty, you may be surprised by what they can do.