Swagbucks- my latest and greatest addiction.

If you're looking to save money and get free stuff, and you are skipping out on the swagbucks, you are truly missing out.

Look to the right of you- see the swidget? Click sign up. Complete the registration.
Begin the madness.

I've been "swaggering" for a little over a week, and have already earned enough for two father's day cards, a coupon book, and a five dollar amazon gift card.

An amazon gift card...hmmmmmm, that gives me an idea. A new and secondary challenge for your humble blogger. What if I could pay for Christmas with Swagbucks? Can it be done? My Christmas budget eeks over $700 every year. To be fair, I have purchased several gifts already...(does seven hundred dollars crawl out of YOUR budget in one month? I don't think so.)

I have to admit, the searches are a gateway drug. I've taken surveys, I've completed offers, and I've searched for codes. It's all found money.

Think I can do it? I do! 4 dollars down, 696 to go.

Coping with Picky Eaters and Food Jags.

If you've spent any time at all around a group of mommies, you've heard of a picky eater. The child who will eat NOTHING but grilled cheese. You see the smiles pass through the group, as each mom recalls at least two seemingly unending months when each child consecutively would eat nothing, nothing at all, but one or two things. The battles, the endless frustration, the fear that said son or daughter would stop growing completely if not fed meal after meal of the same. exact. dish. Prepared the same. exact. way. (No switching out elbow noodles for penne, Mom!)

Personally, I don't buy into it. My little monsters, ahem, ANGELS go through, and get over, their food issues in a relatively short amount of time. I put what I make in front of them, and move on with my life. I like my food hot, and I'm not going to waste time with someone who's not even hungry when I am.

That's right, I said, NOT HUNGRY.

But, it's dinner time!!! (or lunch, or breakfast!)

Children don't have a disfunctional relationship with food. They are born with a clean slate. We teach them to be crazy about food. It's the one surefire way a twenty eight pound toddler can best a two hundred pound daddy. We beg, we plead, we cajole, we make giant asses out of ourselves trying to get the little monsters (ahem, angels) to eat whatever we've prepared for them. And they love it. They love the attention, the show, the way the world stops for them.

Enough, already.

The next time your child refuses a meal, remember a couple of things.

His or her stomach is the size of his or her little fist. Chances are that stomach has crackers, juice, milk, banana, grapes or cookies in it. If you are that concerned that he/she isn't eating at meals, cut off the all day buffet table.

He or she will be LESS HUNGRY as the day goes on. Grown ups have a strange relationship with food. For some reason, we eat our biggest meal at dinner, when we are winding down for the day. Kids, who haven't been psycologically reset yet, eat when they need to eat.

They only need about 40 calories per inch of height per day. Ok, so lets say that's 1000 calories, which is a good average. So in the morning, the little one eats a half of a bagel, (100 calories) a glass of juice (100 calories) and maybe some cream cheese (50 calories). Then at snack she has a banana and a glass of milk (230 calories). At lunch she eats the better part of a grilled cheese, milk, and some apple slices (approx 400 calories). Then, after nap, you offer her some whole grain cookies, and a glass of water. (100) cals.

By dinner, you're having a panic attack because she won't eat. Guess what? She doesn't need to!

At this point, you can enter a power struggle, and reteach her to keep eating when she's not hungry (obesity epidemic, anyone??) or you can smile, and give her veggies with her breakfast from now on so she'll eat them.

At the risk of sounding Grandma, no kid ever starved themselves to death. They are learning their cues from you, so teach them well!

Day 2: One box and one bag from each room per day.

Let me tell you, I have been a ball of fire today! I'm not even through my second cup of coffee, and I've gotten a whole SLEW of moving goodness accomplished. Yippee for me! My goal is to pack up one box for a yard sale, and one bag for either trash, freecycle, or donation per room per day. I've completed the goal for two rooms already! Of course, my goal to make money is being severely compromised by the fact that my moving budget is currently -$150. I'm hoping to change that by adding some goodies to craigslist later today. We have a nice brass coat rack I can't see moving, a baby carrier Miss AngelBaby outgrew three minutes after she was born, and an excersaucer that can go on. I'm betting these will fetch far more dough on Craigslist than at the yard sale, so I've got a busy day ahead of me! Wish me money!

Day 1: The Great Adventure Begins

Over the weekend, we made a momentous decision. We are moving! Into our first HOUSE!!!!! I have three months with which to clean up, consolidate, and otherwise compress our lives. We have a lot of crap. Ridiculous amounts. My affinity for the end caps at Target coupled with an inability to resist a great deal has lead to my house turning into the Land That Time Forgot. I also HATE to put things in a landfill that can otherwise be used. Freecycle is my friend, of course, but I also HATE to get rid of something, only to have to reacquire it late.

The result? You can't get into the attic of the tiny "3" bedroom apartment, without climbing a stack of perilously placed Christmas gift, boxes of toys, and bags of clothing I haven't worn since 1998. HMMMM.

So, this begins my adventure. I will chronicle the event of my perilous struggle to remove the crap from this home before it sidles it's way into the next home. While being as ecofriendly (read: frugal) as possible.

I have a list. I have a plan. I hope, at the end of this, I will have managed to make money off this move. Is it impossible? No, I think not.

Do you have any advice for me?