This blog is about me and why I would LOVE to attend the connect2mums
2010 Mumpreneurs Conference.

I guess since becoming a mum 17 years ago, holding a baby for the very 1st time and realising just how helpless and reliant they are. I have naturally just put others before myself. My children have always come first and my husband ran a very close second. I think this is probably natural for most women?

Being selfless is wonderful in many ways and also very fulfilling, however, there is a moment when to me, it just seemed to be too much! I was in intensive care, with little hope of living through the night as all the potassium had drained from my body. I then realised that IF I was lucky enough to pull through this, that I needed to make some fairly drastic life changes....

That is when I became a single mum (leaving my husband of 16 years) and a mumpreneur (leaving my career path of 21 years).

I started my own business and have had many pitfalls and many more mountains to climb along the way, the path is bumpy, but with one foot in front of the other it is definitely possible and very rewarding.

Becoming a single mum and leaving a fantastic executive management role has definitely been a HUGE change for me and my children. But we have all managed to survive fairly well and have learnt a lot along the way.

Both my girls are teenagers now and so that means they have part time jobs, enabling them to buy things they want and also a more mature understanding of the fact that sometimes you have to wait and to save for what you need, let alone want... They also have an awesome appreciation for all the things that they have. They know that they sacrifice many things for the balinese children and have visited the orphanages with huge smiles, lots of cuddles and suitcases full of toys (and neccessities like bedding, hygiene products etc too)

Becoming a factory owner in a developing country was a MASSIVE eye-opener for me. Once again I saw helpless people who needed someone to do something and yet there didn't seem to be anyone close enough to them with the capacity to help(I mean REALLY Help!).

As a one-man-band I have provided mobile phones for safety of teenagers and communication with their parents, provided many meal replacement/ supplement drinks to school age children, who don't receive adequate nutrition at home and many other things.

I have also combined my efforts with Catherine Bolt to directly assist abandoned children in Indonesia.

Whilst I would LOVE to attend the connect2mums 2010 Mumpreneurs Conference as I know I would learn a lot, have incredible personal growth and also that it would help me grow my business, which in turn would enable me to assist many more people. I find it a little self indulgent as I know I would have a fantastic time. Overriding all of these mixed emotions is, once again, the need to put everyone else first and I couldn't imagine anything worse than potentially having to say, sorry I don't have the funds for your drinks today to a malnourished child. So consequently, I find it very hard to justify spending the money on myself, knowing the incredible pleasure I would receive from attending. I truly hope that makes sense to someone??

This blog is part of a competition to win a ticket to the 2010 Mumpreneurs Conference. The judging is based on the content of the blog, the originality and also the number of comments it receives. If you would like to help me and feel that you have a comment you'd like to make, please do! I may just HAVE to find a way to get on the plane to Brisbane yet!

Thank you for reading!
Bev xx

Owner of TrendyKidz