At about lunch time today, I signed up with Inbox Dollars. I saw a banner similar to the one you see to your right and clicked on it.

A few hours later, here is my earnings report:















Mind you, this is not doing a whole bunch. I was just doing my thing and checking my email as per my usual routine.

Now, I know that $8 doesn't seem like much but when you think about how much time and effort I actually invested (not much), it does perk a gal up.

Seeing as how most of that was the sign up bonus, we'll have to see how it goes but for now, I'm happy.

Wishing you much peace, happiness and success,

Penny (CJsMonnie)

FaveCrafts.com has several *free* craft e-books covering everything from beginning sewing (yay me!) to knitting, making your own jewelry, holiday crafts and even home decor.


Zip on over and grab the ebooks that interest you.

Wishing you much peace, happiness and success,

Penny (CJsMonnie)

When my cushy upper-level exec job vanished due to the economy, so did a lot of the little perks my son and I took for granted. Daily Dunkin' Donuts stops after school to discuss our day, weekend trips to the beach, bi-monthly trips to Toys R Us and our weekly pizza night among them.

Owing to our new, reduced income lifestyle, everything from our home to the food on our table was affected. Panic was starting to set in as I wondered how on God's green Earth I would give my son a quality, home education without my previous budget and resources.

Shelling out a few thousand dollars on curriculum alone wasn't a problem before. In fact, I was proud of my ability to do so. This didn't even begin to include the museum memberships, field trips, "extra" activities, et al.

One night, after CJ went to bed, I was up worrying and berating myself. What kind of mother was I if I couldn't provide for my little family?

That was my low point.

Round and round my thoughts went. What a terrible mother I am because I don't know what to do and don't know how I'll do it. Here I am, with all this business experience and I can't do a thing for my son! I could manage an online campus, translate documents and meetings, train others and provide instant data for ... wait!

It took me remembering me - who I am, what I have done, what I can do - to snap me out of my funk.

Why not use some of my corporate skills to find a solution to our financial dilemma? A quick search for "make money online" and every variation thereof ensued. The results were truly startling. There are so many results but not enough real ones out there!

In the coming days, I will be posting the resources I found, use and personally recommend. You'll find them filed under Penny's Money Challenge.

Wishing you much peace, happiness and success,

Penny (CJsMonnie)

In case you hadn't noticed, I've been MIA for a while. My blog is -gasp- almost empty. So not like me. As someone recently asked me, wth (what the hey) is up with that?

Honestly? I've bitten off more than I can chew. Too many projects added to the single parent thing is just killing me. Real estate, virtual assisting, pet resources/advocacy, kids resources and online arcade, PLUS volunteering to help promote Texas "Heart Galleries". All fantastic in and of themselves but altogether, overwhelming.

My tech projects have also taken up time. I reworked my server, am replacing the power supply in my favorite laptop, need to order a motherboard for one of my desktops, and have to send two hard drives to be rescued. Both were damaged in acts of sheer stupidity on my part. [#1 was a carpet and #2 a frustrated bonk!]

Oh yeah, I also took in another rescue. A sad-looking black Lab named Blackie. His "mom" was an older lady who finally gave in to living at an assisted living facility but wasn't allowed to take her beloved dog. Depression doesn't just affect people. This poor guy was actually starving himself to death.

My son and I started taking our mile-long walks in the morning and at night again. Such a stress reliever. The outdoors, wind and running from the javelinas. Whee! I'll be starting the daily workout again in the next few days. I hate feeling unfit. It's not just the way my clothes fit. Those still get looser every day. It's the way I breathe, move, and generally feel. Sluggish. Ick!

Anyway, hope you all had a great Thanksgiving. Belated Happy Chanukah to my Jewish friends, Merry Christmas to my Christian friends, Happy Holidays and Happy New Year to everyone and, if I missed your holiday, drop me a line. I certainly don't mean to offend anyone.

Wishing you much peace, happiness and success,

Penny (CJsMonnie)

 

 

May you and yours have a New Year filled with peace, happiness, success and good health!

 

 

 

 

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According to their website, Smashing Magazine is regularly looking for creative designers and artists to feature in their upcoming posts.

[su_quote cite="Smashing Magazine" url="http://www.smashingmagazine.com/"]If you would like to release a high-quality free font, a Wordpress-theme, some wallpapers or an icon-set please contact us — we would like to support you (both financially and with the broad coverage on Smashing Magazine).[/su_quote]

Although we are not personally acquainted with anyone who works there, we do check their site often and have used several of their tips and themes for our own work.

If you have the talent and desire to promote your work, we highly recommend contacting this organization for more information.

[signoff]

Unknown

Over the past four months, my son and I have settled back in at my Mom's homestead almost completely.

Other than a few differences between the pre-computer and computer-dependent generations and the usual gender differences, the one glaring canyon between my Mother and my Son has been her lack of knowledge of his favorite cartoons, games and movies.


Whereas my son and I can riff off of each other for hours, doubling over at little nuances in voice or action, my Mom looks on as if we'd grown a few extra heads.


Today, we all decided to take a real day off. Leave the laundry, the dishes, the homestead chores. Well, except for the care of our animals. That cannot be ignored. Otherwise, we all went in search of our respective bliss.


My son was playing with the dogs outside. My Mom was watching a National Geographic special I'd already seen before. I was at my SOHO (small office, home office), looking out the window and trying to concentrate on my daily writing quota [NaNoWriMo].


Perhaps I dazed off because I was definitely startled by the loud laughter coming from my Mom's room. Whatever it was, my Mom and my "Baby" were cracking up. Big time.


Imagine my surprise to see them both watching Barbie and the Three Musketeers!


As soon as they saw me enter the room, they both began raving about a doggie-behind kicking cat, an old lady who "so rocks" [CJ's words] and emphatically stating we "so need to get this movie".


Um. Oh-kay.


Guess my Mom understands how/why I know so much about CJ's interests. They suck you in, man, they suck you in!

Wishing you much peace, happiness and success,

Penny (CJsMonnie)