Life and GPTs

I like the extra money I am getting in from Cash Crate and Deal Barbie Pays. Free money is always fun, especially when it does not take a rocket scientist to earn it. LOL. Such simple, quick, and easy work is... well... simple, quick and easy to earn FREE money. Who wouldn't love that?

Anyways, the point of this post, is that I am needing to find a balance. Since finding Deal Barbie Pays on March 2nd and still wanting to stick with Cash Crate to boost my profits this month, I am really becoming more and more bogged down. Not with completing offers or anything, but just everything involved along with it (blogging, promoting, helping referrals, and of course my family and offline life).

So many commitments, and so little time in the day to get everything done.

Of course, my family and myself comes first. If my son needs me, I am here and I will be with him for as long as necessary or wanted. I play with him throughout the day (when he wants to, funny how independent 14 month olds get). I cook and eat meals... And if I need to run a few errands or have appointments on a day, well of course those cannot be neglected.

Next comes my emails and helping referrals (sometimes comes in emails). Even if I don't have time or energy to get offers done myself, helping my downline will still help me flourish. I also don't mind helping anyone that has a question (even if they are not my referral), because good karma and a good reputation are always great things to send out to the Universe. Good things will always come back.

When all that is said and done, then I can have time to complete offers for myself (usually during the baby's first nap or after he goes to bed until midnight or later). Completing offers for me is a task to be done with complete focus. I find that offers confirm better and faster that way. I clean my computer, history, recycle bin, run CCleaner, and everything. I close all programs, maybe even restart my computer to start from scratch. My disk defrag is run weekly at the same time to keep my computer running smoothly.

Anyways, then I open one browser (maybe IE) and open my GMail and any other email program I need to check during the process. Then I open an alternate browser (like Firefox) and will use that browser for the GPT site I will complete offers on (Cash Crate or Deal Barbie Pays currently). I only do one at a time, and I alternate which browser is for emails or the GPT site. (So, the next time around Firefox would be my emails, and IE would be the GPT sites.) I also alternate which site I start with as well, and if I find one to not be confirming currently, I will switch to the other until something starts happening.

Oh and of course, lastly after all that, if I have time, is my blogging, which kind of counts as my referral support, but is still entirely on its own. Then I have to also promote it all in some way to get any kind of feedback. Just having this blog means nothing. It's not going to drive its own traffic here. Just think... how did you get here? I posted something on Twitter about it, you viewed any number of my profiles with it linked there, a traffic referral site, a forum posting I made with a link here, or a message I sent you when you asked for my tips... etc. The rarest form lately is people coming from search engines. However I have noticed an increase in traffic from searches, but that always takes time and thought when writing my posts.

All of it takes time, energy and effort. And as much as I want to spend working on offers or working on blogging (because those are my two favorite things), I still have to focus some effort on the other things to make it all worth while. So, if you have an advice for me, please feel free to leave it in the comments below or email me.

I also love to hear if you found something very useful on here. Feel free to comment, email, or let me know if I was helpful. I also take testimonials for my websites. *grin* Hey karma can be advertised for. *wink*

Just a little rant for the week....

So, I am sure most of you have been wondering where I am. I know I have been tweeting and posting about random Cash Crate things. But I haven't been really talking about myself or my family lately.

Well, we have been hitting a lot of rough patches that I have been wanting to overlook and in turn burying myself in my "work" to avoid thinking about it all. I am still up in the air about how I feel about it all, but I think I should really get it off my chest before it eats me alive. So, here for my online community of friends, I need to just vent a little.

A few weeks ago, my step daughter really became worse with my son. She has always not really played well with him, simply because she is used to playing with her older cousins and they play rough. Well, my son is only 1 years old, and so we have always told her she needs to play nicer and gentler with him. But that wasn't really the issue lately.

Thankfully our living room is connected right next to their bedroom that they share. They were in their playing when I heard my son whimpering. It was a very strange sound to hear coming from my happy-go-lucky little boy, so I peeked my head around the corner. What I saw would have made any mother's skin crawl.

My SD had her large pink fleece blanket tossed over my son completely, and is holding it and him down. She is also leaned close to him whispering 'Shh it's ok.' Completely and utterly shocked, I stood up and walked into the room. I could barely react and the only thing I could say was 'What are you doing?' Normally I would have predicted that I would have flipped out and screamed at her, but I couldn't even bring myself to comprehend what I had seen.

She tried telling me she was trying to make the blanket look like his hair, but we all know that that was not the case. She also tried saying that she was whispering to him that it was ok if he wanted to take the blanket off, which again we all know is not true. I was scared out of my mind for my son. I took every blanket in the room away. I just was beside myself about how to handle this situation.

The next morning, there was another mishap where my son fell and was in a stuck position, and instead of helping him or coming to get one of us, she laughed at him until we came running into the room. Hubby and I were dumbfounded as to where this new behavior was coming from. It was obvious it was for some kind of attention. That afternoon we got her in to see a psychiatrist, and she started rambling off all kinds of things about voices in her head telling her to do these things.

Now, hubby and I know that her grandma often has friends over with mental illnesses and they openly discuss these types of issues around her. So, we questioned where she heard things like this, and she told us who told her about 'voices.' We then explained this to her counselor. Now we have a whole new issue of attention, lying, and acting-out behaviors.

Needless to say, this is all something an 8 month pregnant mother of almost 2 does not need to be dealing with her step daughter about. I feel unsafe to leave my son alone with her, and at the same time I hate feeling like I have to watch over her every move. It's not fair to any of us to have these types of feelings toward family members.

I'm not exactly sure where we stand now. As a family, we still have the same rules in our house just with one added (no blankets for play time). Also, my SD has begun calling me 'mommy' on a regular basis now and rarely refers to me by my first name anymore. Does this mean we are on the right track and soon will be one 'happy family'? Only time will tell... but I know one thing is for sure... I personally will never forget that moment. It has scarred me in quite a deep place. And although I hold no anonymosity towards my SD because of it, the action and the intent behind it burned me badly.

Wouldn't you feel the same way if this happened to one of your children regardless if it was another one of your own kids doing it?

What is Me2Everyone?

Have you heard of Me2Everyone lately? I hadn't either... I came across it randomly while surfing the web (my passion nowadays), and was intrigued at the concept. A virtual world, similar to Second Life, where members get real world shares for FREE....!! Huh?

Yeah, well skeptical, but none the less still interested I did a quick Google search for "Me2Everyone scam" and what did I come up with? Nothing! Well, nothing bad anyways. The only bad talk about it was things like 'Sounds like a scam' and 'They want your email to spam you.'

Oh boy, spam mail really kills you right? LOL. I already have a billion spam emails set up for my Cash Crate "work" anyways. So, what does it bother me any...

Alright, so why not? As long as I guard my information, don't give them any unnecessary and important info like my SS# or credit card # then I will be all set.

So, let's register... Name, Email, Choose a Password, Recommender ID (person that referred you), and verification word (to show I am a real person). Then I read through the paragraph at the bottom (not really fine print because it was normal sized)...

Thank you! We only need this basic information for now. When you complete registration and sign-in you will be able to read what's happening during pre-launch and also start to recommend your friends. Everyone who becomes a member of me2everyone.com will also become a shareholder. You will be entitled to dividends and also to sell your shares to anyone who wants to buy them. You give us your permission to email you and we confirm all your details will remain private. We hate spam as much as you. Please also remember that if you spam, place illegal advertisements, register anyone without their express permission, register under an alternate name or register yourself more than once in an attempt to gain multiple bonus shares we reserve the right to cancel your membership and your shares. me2everyone launches soon and you are about to become part of something that by December 2012 will have more than 100,000,000 members.

Pretty straight forward, and yes they mention... No spam. Click.

Here I was waiting for a page to enter bank information or another such page that you have been roped into a scam. But nope there was none. You had to click through many pages to confirm that your referrer was correct, which I was kind of annoyed by that. But I guess they just want to be sure you are a real person and that you are sure you want to give this person credit for you becoming part of the Me2Everyone community.

And that's it... the main site has not launched yet, so right now everyone is still getting in on the ground floor. Are they over reaching and hyping up the site's potential? Possibly, but it's FREE, so what do I care. I am in and I will be waiting to see what the site is like once it launches. I also ask that you join me by clicking here. This way when it does launch we can check it out together.... I heard that we can have board meetings, sell shares, buy shares, all sorts of real world things, and some that are not 100% business/finance related!

And there is much, much talk right now about how this site will be a big potential online money earner. So, why not get in now and earn as many shares as you can before the site even launches? Then if you don't want to stick with it, then you can simply sell your shares for real world $$. Sounds great to me.

Hello

Something incredible has arrived!

I just became a shareholder in me2everyone and I never had to pay a single penny for the shares! It can only be described as the gold-rush for 2009. This company is going to be huge and shares will soar in value over the coming months! You can register for free and it never has to cost you a single penny!

me2everyone is going to be a cool new virtual world where you can meet friends, chat, shop, play, watch videos, create an art gallery, open a virtual newspaper, play the free inworld lottery and make money from your own online store! You and everyone you know make the decisions, shape the world, create real incomes and share in the profits. It’s a new place where you meet new people or invite your friends. Learn new skills or expand your business. Find the love of your life or help the planet.

Membership is free and every member automatically becomes a shareholder in me2everyone Limited. Personally I have 250 shares just for joining in the venture and I am going to increase my shares very soon. This is an excellent chance for all of us to make some real progress in 2009 and beyond! Please do not miss it.

If you are looking for something really good in 2009: something that changes your view on the world, then you really have to spend just one minute and look at this website.

ME2EVERYONE

What are your feelings on this site?

Quick Update

Sorry everyone that I haven't been updating. As most of you may know, I have been ultra busy with my newest blog, I Want To Be Debt Free, and earning free money online. Check out my new blog for ways to earn free money online, and to see how much I am making right now.

But as for Mama Knows Best, I have been compiling a very long list of ways to advertise your home business offline (instead of online). My deadline has been to get this up last week, however that doesn't seem to have happened. So, my new deadline is by Monday night (2/23). So, if you are really interested in this list, then keep me focused and on track. *Wink* (Tweets, comments, or even emails)

I will be around today, but not sure how much tomorrow because it is my hubby's birthday (Yay for 27! Even though he's not too thrilled about the age. Hehe). We have lots of people coming over, and lots of food to cook. The menu will include: Chili, Cornbread, and Homemade Pizza. Then the night will probably commence with Poker, because that's how my hubby's family is.

So wish us luck in the gambling, and wish me luck in the typing.

Home Business Ideas

I have been thinking lately of more and more home business ideas. I am still on a roll with Cash Crate, and I have even made a new blog dedicated to becoming debt free using it. So, check me out there, and once I get my check in March (which I am already guaranteed to get) I will post a pic for you all to see the proof.

In the meantime, besides pouring myself into my kids and Cash Crate, I still need more. Don't we all need more money in this income? So, until my Cash Crate really begins to add up (mostly waiting on getting more referrals, come on all and join me *wink*), I need another form of passive or aggresive income to sustain us.

My newest idea is to teach kids (or adults) how to crochet. My mother taught me, and even though I have never finished a blanket, I know how to crochet and I have always been told that I am a great teacher. The only reason I have not finished a blanket is because of my Rheumatoid Arthritis. However I think that teaching someone for 30 min to an hour a night (or day) a couple of times a week wouldn't kill my arms.

If that idea is not a break out one, I have some others. Such as:

• Tutor
• Selling on Ebay
• Pet sitting
• Baby sitting
• Selling baked goods
• Selling crafty 'recipes in a jar'

Hmm... that's all I think I got for now. Do you have any other ideas or methods you use as supplemental income?

School Work Contract

Ever since we moved, SD has been bringing home work assignments that are not her best work. Even her coloring is worse than it was when she was 4! She really is seeming to be digressing in her efforts, and this is worrying us.

Her paternal Grandma has been planning a trip this summer for about a week and a half to Florida, and we were going to let her go with. However with her lack of effort at school, we decided that if she brought home 100 work assignments by the end of the school year that were not her best & proudest work then she was not going to go.

So, I made the following 'contract' to keep track of her progress (or whatever you would call it).

BTW, the random 1's below the chart were not there before.

She has already brought home 3 bad assignments, and I marked them off starting at 100 instead of 1. The reason behind this is so that she can easily see that she only has to bring home 97 more to lose the privilege. This teaches subtraction in a simple form.

You, too, can make one of these for your own child. Some things to consider when creating your own contract like this:

• What behavior are you trying to discourage? Some ideas are: poor school work, stealing money or items, and not completing chores. Make sure it is substantial and over a long period of time, because 100 things is a lot, but can add up quickly. You want your child to be able to see this. Do not make it something that can happen 100 times in one day, like not listening to you, backtalking, or hitting. These behaviors are better to be ignored rather than added up. Instead use things like an Accomplishment Chart to add up good things your child does.
  
• What will be the consequence of reaching 100? Make sure this is something meaningful to your child. Also, make sure it is reasonable and equal to the 100 things. I.E. no camping over the summer, no after-school activities, etc). It also has to be something that you have control over taking away, and that would not burden you terribly. Some that may not work in your favor are: no recess at school, no snacks at school, no play time with friends, or no TV time. Anything where you are not present to control or there are a few variables that would make the punishment be a burden on yourself is not a good idea. Also, if it is too simple or an everyday punishment, then the child is not learning, they will just adapt and become familiar with the punishment. So, you can see why a 'once in a lifetime' event for a child is the perfect tool to guide your child into good behavior.
  
• How long will the contract be for? If you are trying to discourage something like bad school work like me, then the deadline is pretty simple, the end of the school year. However for something like stealing or not completing chores, you have a more flexible deadline. Sometimes the event that they will not be allowed to participate in can be the deadline (camping trip, vacation, etc). Try to give your child ample opportunity to correct their mistake by making the deadline last for at least a couple of months. But always have a firm deadline date, so they don't consider it an option. This will undermine your efforts and allow room for the child to negotiate the contract.

Good luck, and if you try this method or have your own, please let us know in the comments below.