Word out on the street is that there is a possibility the actors may strike soon. After missing several episodes of many of my favorite shows this past season due to the writers strike, I am hoping this isn’t true.

It was announced that the Screen Actors Guild is still negotiating and have not yet planned a walk out.

The contract runs out at midnight tonight.  But negotiations are supposed to run through July 8th.

Maybe it’s a little selfish, but I’m hoping an agreement is reached.  I need my Fall TV! 

What are you watching this fall?   

Awhile back, I wrote about letting my son decorate a canvas that hangs in our living room.  Here’s a similar idea from Design Mom and Cookie Magazine’s Nesting Blog

How cute would this be for a baby’s nursery?  Or just a super fun family activity that would create some artwork sure to spark some conversation.

Featured Author

by Kelly Curtis, M.S. from Pass the Torch

As parents, we spend a lot of time loving, guiding, redirecting and reinforcing.  But we don’t always recognize the importance of empowering.  Small acts of empowerment can easily become a part of our parenting routine. Asking a child to choose his or her own outfit, chore, or restaurant meal, can take more time, with unknown results, but each experience gives children just a little more confidence about making their own choices in the future.

I’ve journaled my eleven-year-old daughter’s social entrepreneur project over the past year.  She’s organized a book club for the neighborhood children, and I think her strength in initiating it is partly the result of the seemingly insignificant acts of empowerment she’s experienced along the way.

So although it may not feel comfortable to allow a two-year-old birthday girl to choose her own color frosting, or a four-year-old to pick out his own outfit for preschool, consider what’s the worst that could happen?

Letting go of the reins - give it a try!

Kelly Curtis is a Wisconsin school counselor and author of Empowering Youth:  How to Encourage Young Leaders to Do Great Things.  To read more about Kelly, please visit her Weblog, Pass the Torch.

The 4th of July is just around the corner, do you know where your sparklers are?!!

Maybe they’re at your beach house decked out in red, white & blue swags…

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…or maybe they’re at your country getaway that adorns the beautiful American flag….

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Well, wherever those sparklers are, I’m sure you can easily enjoy them sitting on this festive porch!

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And remember the finishing touches, you’ll be glad you did!

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Wishing you a safe & sparkly holiday!

Darla blogs at UltraBeautyBoutique

Last week I got together with one of my best friends from college. Although I hadn’t seen him in three years it literally took just a few seconds for us to jump into a friendly conversation and feel as if we’d only gone three days, and not three years, without seeing one another. My friend is a national sales account manager and next year he’s planning to move to Cincinnati to change career paths once again. But he’s a 40-year-old bachelor and he’s been able to easily pick up and move as his career has shifted throughout the years.

On the other end of the spectrum, I’ve been with the same company now seven years and I’ve worked in Nashville since I graduated in December 1991 with a degree in print journalism and sociology. I’ve had more exciting and visible PR type jobs in the past. At my previous job I edited the employee magazine for a national sales force. I flew on a company chartered jet with our CEO and other company executives several times and my husband and I had the opportunity to travel to San Diego and Puerto Rico as part of the company’s sales leaders conference.

Eight years ago I went to Houston to apply for a management type position in marketing communications at that same company. I didn’t get the job and I ended up leaving the company a few months later and getting hired at my current workplace. I got pregnant with my first daughter just four months after that. I now know that it was a blessing in disguise that I didn’t get the management job. Yes it would have meant more money, but it would have meant more responsibility, more stress, and more travel.

Now that I’m a mom to two little ones, I just want a flexible schedule and I am grateful I have an employer who understands that I want to work just 30 hours a week so I can have afternoons open for school activities. I have no desire to manage a group of employees or travel extensively for work or land that big corporate job that translates into working long, crazy hours, even if it would mean a higher salary.

What about you? Did your career goals change once you started a family? Did your perception of career success change?