Lemondrop

A while back, the magazine she edited told Elina from New York she'd have to take a major pay cut. With a working husband and a newborn son, she decided instead to take her talents elsewhere.

"I couldn't afford to do that. I realized I had this whole range of writing and Web experience," she said. So she decided to go into business for herself, working with her sister to launch a new Web start-up.

Elina is just one of a slew of moms who, for whatever reason -- they've been laid off from their job, want to pursue a lifelong dream, crave more time with their children -- are starting their own Web companies. And they're actually meeting success.

While it's difficult to tally how many Internet mompreneurs exist, recent estimates by the Center for Women's Business Research indicate that the nation's more than 10 million women-owned businesses employed 13 million workers, generated $1.9 trillion in sales and represented more than 40 percent of all privately held firms in 2008. The same organization reports that women-run businesses are thriving despite the downturn.

For Elina, launching Mamaista.com, a free daily e-mail listing products and services for moms was a huge win for both her family and her career. The three-month-old business now has more than 1,000 subscribers. More importantly, it's allowed Elina to stay home with her now 13-month-old son.

"I really did not want him to grow up raised by someone other than myself," she told Lemondrop. "Now I do interviews [for work] on the phone while I'm feeding him."

Starting a net business isn't easy. Karina from Washington had already begun scheming about a more flexible career when she got pregnant in 2007. In January, about six months after her daughter arrived, she started a social media marketing company that helps clients use existing Web 2.0 tools to grow their businesses.

Labor Pains

Karina immediately began self-promoting her business to all her networks, which landed her several clients right away. She also let her business model evolve as the industry changed. But some parts of the launch did trip her up, especially time management.

"I had a tough time bossing myself around and doing the tasks necessary to make my business efficient," she admitted. "I had to approach my day like I was an employee and like I owed a certain level of productivity to my 'employer'."

Jeanette, a mother of four sons aged 7 to 17 in the U.K., sought help right away when she launched her site for multimedia children's picture-book publishers, Wizz-e.com.

"None of us are subject-matter experts in everything. When it came to the technical part, I had to outsource it! Anyone looking at starting a business should consider who they can outsource to or rely on to help."

First Steps

Despite all the hard work, there are perks-a-plenty to working from home, like being there for your child's milestones.

"There have been several changes in the last five months, but most of all I am thrilled that I get to be there for my daughter's first steps, first words, first skinned knee and first swing-set fun while generating enough income to support my end of the household budget," Karina said.

Jeanette, a former part-time project manager, said she's spent much more time on her own business than she did at work. But laboring over something she's passionate about has made it worthwhile.

"There isn't the same feeling of stress, however, when you are doing something you love and doing it for yourself."

Click here for tips on why you should consider starting your own Web business.