Two Neat Things I've Found

Okay, there are two really cool things that I've found that I want to share. The first is an answer to the age old question: "What's For Breakfast?" My family is always rushing around in the mornings and I'm not sure that a piece of toast or a yogurt is enough to get them through until lunch. I found this recipe for Egg Muffins on a blog that I like to visit and thought I'd give them a try. They are BIG hit at my house. They are like little "cupcake quiches." I made mine with ham, cheese, and onion powder. Each muffin has the equivalent of one egg. So, two muffins will provide a lot of protein and fill them up. They store in the fridge; and the fam just heats them in the microwave and off they go. FANTASTIC! Try them out and see what you think.

The second thing is a solution for water storage. You can NEVER have enough water stored. I was so excited by this find that I updated the

Family Preparedness blog that I used to keep when I was in charge of that at church. It's called Surewater Tanks and I think it is an ingenious idea. I think we are going to buy one VERY soon.

The Great Piggy Bank Race

There is a new website and online game sponsored by T. Rowe Price and Disney to help kids learn about saving and investing money. It's called The Great Piggy Bank Adventure. According to the website, "The Great Piggy Bank Adventure online is a virtual board game that educates kids and adults on the importance of wise financial planning. Kids will learn about important financial concepts and use these lessons to complete the game and achieve their dream goals. While The Great Piggy Bank Adventure is designed for kids from ages 8 to 14, fun-loving adults are encouraged to play with their kids and get involved in their financial education."

My 11 year old and my 15 year old played this game down in EPCOT this summer and had a blast. I've played the online version a couple of times myself. It is a lot of fun and is educational at the same time. Play the game and see what your kids learn.

Kidzeyes Surveys

I thought I'd share this little money making tip that my kids have been doing for almost 7 years now. It's called Kidzeyes Surveys (for kids ages 6-12) and Teenseyes Surveys (for teens ages 13-18). This company is hired by major corporations to survey kids (and sometimes parents) and test products to get an idea of what the market is looking for. It is VERY safe and VERY kid friendly. Your kids take the surveys sent to them based on their age, etc... and Kidzeyes/Teenseyes gives the kids points. If a survey is sent for a parent to take, all of your kids each get the points. These points can be redeemed for cash after you have 1000 points accumulated. Every 100 points is a dollar. It isn't hard to accumulate this many points, either.

The kids have done some really fun surveys over the years, too. Harrison was in the test group for the "That's So Raven" show on the Disney Channel. And he was also in the test group for Quaker Oats Oatmeal Breakfast Squares. Hannah did a survey on oatmeal; and we had free oatmeal in the house for over a month. The kids feel like they are contributing to society and they get paid for doing it. Like I said, my kids have been doing it for about 7 years and they've each made well over $200 in that time period. We take that money and stick it in a high interest savings account, and voila, your kid has long-term savings.

Have fun testing and saving

Jen ºOº

Sites

I mention this site in more detail on my blog, but my new love is emealz.com. It plans your weekly meals based around the weekly deals of the store that you shop at. We have been doing it for a week or so and I LOVE it.

Another site that I have just become a little fascinated with is dealseekingmom.com. Lots of deals and tips.

Slick Deals at Justice For Girls Online

I thought I'd mention that Justice just for girls has their clearance/sale items REALLY cheap online at ShopJustice.com. Plus, if you use coupon code 649 at checkout, you'l get an additional 50% off. I'm not sure how long it will last...so go online today and check it out! We found this (and you can find many more) on http://forums.slickdeals.net/showthread.php?t=1138071. Also, the Limited, Too! shop at the Avenues has some great deals on the Limited, Too! brand right now. As of Feb. 1st, they will officially become Justice just for girls. So shop now to get the best deals. Happy Shopping! ~~Jen

Cool Deals

Okay, so I had to go ahead and blog about a really cool site. http://stealsdeals.blogspot.com/ This lady will blog about cool deals all over the internet. She has done the work for us. Check it out!! Shay