I want something that’s “set in stone” - something like a chore chart.  We’re not sure if we want to give each individual chore a value.  If it’s done, they get paid for it, if it isn’t they don’t.  OR  Should we just make a list of chores.  If they’re all done, they get paid, if they’re not - they don’t.  I’m not sure if the latter is quite fair to the children however, it does give them more of an incentive of getting them done.

Mom is tired of constantly telling each child what to do, reminding them over and over again to get it done and all that good stuff!  Mom wants something a bit more organized!  (Yes, I’m yelling and venting, rofl!)

 My daughter is 11 and my son is 7. 

How do you handle it?  I’m assuming most combine allowances and chores?  Do you do this?  What do you pay?  What chores are your children responsible for and how old are they?

Yeah, I have a ton of questions … I would just love to hear how other handle the “Chores & Allowances” issue.

 So, spill the beans … what do you do?

You Are a Crossword Puzzle

You are well read, and you have a good head for remembering facts. You are a wordsmith. You have a way with words, and you’re very literate. You are a mysterious person who enjoys dropping little clues every now and then.

My Comments: Well, it’s right. Never really thought about it this way but I can’t deny it … it’s right, lol! So, how about you?

I’ve had similar feedback from websites from people who think there should be absolutely NO ads of any kind (and trust me, I use advertisements sparingly).

What I think people fail to realize is how much work goes into sites and newsletters. Do they really have the right to get huffy when an ad gets snuck in content or sits at the top of a page? I tend to think both Anita and myself do a pretty good job of giving away a whole lot of free content, but for some it doesn’t seem to be enough. Any hint of an ad and it’s “how dare you make me buy something!”.

So should the internet be completely free? Do website owners and newsletter publishers have no right to attempt to sell something along with their free content? Should we just be doing all this without any compensation?

I’m sure I’m not alone here, and my tips will only get me so far.  So I’m interested in hearing YOUR ideas for how you balance work and home, specifically during the summer months. Homeschooling and business tips would also be helpful, since we may be homeschooling my oldest next year (I’ve had enough battles with the school, I really am at my breaking point!).

All the tips will be put together in an article, or possibly a free ebook if we get enough. So be sure to send them in either in comments here, or to contact <at> directsaleshelpers.com .

Looking forward to seeing your tips!

Your Emoticon is Cool

You’re not feeling particularly up or down, just relaxed and calm. You’re ready for whatever is going to happen next!

My Comments: Hmm … can’t say I really have anything to add this week. This pretty much says it all (right now anyway, lol!) I must have picked a good day for this one!

Yes it’s true a newsletter is vital to your business. However, if you just start adding email addresses here and there, you are going to DESTROY your business before you even get it off the ground.

Really it doesn’t matter WHERE these email addresses come from, you do NOT have the right to just add them to your list without permission. To run a legit newsletter and legally send people advertisements, the following needs to happen:

1. A person sees your newsletter subscription box or way to sign up to your list.

2. THEY enter their email address SPECIFICALLY for your newsletter (NOTHING else!!).

3. That same person then CONFIRMS they want to receive your newsletter by clicking a link in an email. (This is called “double opt-in”).

That’s it. You don’t EVER add them yourself for ANY reason. In fact, even if you move your newsletter to a new mailing list provider, you really should just have all your subscribers sign up again. This makes your list completely clean and free of spam complaints.

Just because someone asks for information at some point in time does not give you the right to spam them. Even if they’ve ordered from you before that STILL does not give you the right to spam them. And if you own a message board, you DO NOT have the right to use the “mass email” function to spam them about things unrelated to the boards.

Let me stress this again. If you want someone on your list, THEY need to enter it. THEY need to confirm they want information from you. Even if they order from you, that email address is to be used to contact them about their order and NOT to be added to a spamming list.

Just to let all spammers know I’m done being nice. If you aren’t following the guidelines above and you spam me, I WILL turn it in. Simple as that!

A good friend of mine, Jackie is holding a month long birthday celebration BUT her readers get the prizes - how nice of her was that? She’ll be giving away a different prize every day of the month. (And you’ll even find a couple of prizes sponsored by yours truely!)

So, head on over to Jackie’s Birthday Bonanza and enter for your chance to win!
Jackie’s Birthday Bonanza

Good luck!

What Your Little Black Dress Says About You

You are sexy, outrageous, and daring. You love to push people’s buttons.You are fearless and free spirited. You get people talking… and you don’t care what they say about you. Your style is revealing, trendy, and flirty. You love to look good. If you were a shoe, you would be: Strappy sandals

The Little Black Dress Test

My Comments: Boy this was really a tough one … I was really torn between the one I chose, the middle one on the left and the middle one on the right. I really liked all three. However, by the description, I think I made the right choice. Just not so sure about the sexy thing, rofl! And I’m sure if you asked my husband, he’d whole-heartedly agree on the button pushing fact! Hmm … so now I’m curious … what does your little black dress say about you?

Let me explain where I’m coming from here.

I hadn’t ordered from this site, but got these items directly from the owner.  (Not naming names here, nor am I even going to say WHAT it was because I don’t want to embarrass this person). I went to the site basically to see other items and prices. Knowing it was a Freewebs site, I went there already mentally blocking out ads. Usually I can somewhat navigate those sites without problems, but I did have my doubts.

When I got there it wasn’t so bad. As mentioned, I was blocking out ads and trying to focus on the items for sale. That is until I got to the ordering page. Right there smack in the middle of all her prices and PayPal buttons was a big fat “Sponsor Ad” from Google. Not just on the side, but IN with her prices.  Bleh. I scrolled down a little more still looking at prices, and there was another ad, this time for cell phones. Double bleh!

I scrolled back up and could no longer block them out. I had seen too much, now they were jumping out at me. At the top of the page,  there was another ad that was designed to really jump out at you. It was one of those “You have 2  new crushes!” ads. Um yeah, I’m here to shop not find high school love, thanks.

This turned me off. A lot.  What kills me is the product and packaging was really fantastic. The site just really did not match the professionalism of the products. If I had been a new customer not having the chance to see the products first, I would have immediately went somewhere else. Trust went right out the window when I saw all those tacky ads.

People, PLEASE get rid of those free sites! Do you honestly think $10 a month (or less) isn’t going to bring you more sales? Your time put into creating the site is worth something too, and when you slap it up on a free site you are wasting that time. Seriously, just pay the money for the hosting. You’ll make enough to cover the cost of it and then some simply by having a nicer site that’s ad free.

Please look into hosting. It’s really not that expensive. I mean look, Anita has some pretty cheap hosting here. If you are serious about your business, you really do need a real host.

I think women have a gene that causes an adverse reaction to clothing
when hormones go haywire once or twice a month.

I hate the color red.  Why I even own a red blouse is a mystery to me.
  It must have looked good under those trick lights in the dressing
room that can make even a cadaver look sexy.

But it’s not like I went home, tried it on and decided it wasn’t
very flattering and took it back.  Oh, no.  It looked good then,
too…until I had to wear it for something important.  And it was the only
clean blouse in the closet that fit that day because I was retaining water.
  Great!  Now I look like a big balloon.  Just call me Bubbles the
Clown!

But if it isn’t the color screaming at you, “Hey, Bubble Butt!”
then it’s a blouse you bought that fit really well.  You took it home,
wore it once and now your kids can use it to dress Barbie.  After one
wash it’s shrunk for life.

I bought two pairs of shoes two months ago.  Great buy.  One was even
marked down to six dollars.  I haven’t worn them yet.  One pair is now
too big and the other is too small.

This is God’s little joke on women: PMS – Perplexed Mood
Surfing…all achieved by messing with our hormones

I love the contemporary commercials for Midol.   Finally, they’re
telling it like it really is:  poor women, rolling around doubled-over,
gripped in pain, battling fatigue, dizziness and everything else.  And
you know that water retention is part of that, too.

That’s why women have so many clothes and shoes.  We can’t help it!
  You never know when you roll out of bed what type of body you are
going to wake up to.  Every day there’s a new size and shape.

That’s why we all have a favorite pair of sweats or pajama pants and
a big loose cotton shirt.   The usual accessories are a pint of ice
cream and a spoon.  It’s our ‘Don’t bug me’ outfit.

Of course, God thought it would be funnier if he added pimples, hot
flashes and cravings—whether you’re pregnant or not.  At least ‘the
curse’ doesn’t curse just women.  Men have to live on this planet,
too, and they can’t escape PMS either. 

I’m very happy about that.

To love, honor and suffer were the real vows taken when my dear husband
and I married.  My job is to be pitiful.  His job is to wait on me
like a man whose life depends on it.  Oh, wait.  It really does.

So keep that Dove Unconditional Chocolate ice cream flowing and I
won’t take any hostages.  Maybe.

—————————————————————————–
LISA BARKER of Greenfield is a syndicated humor columnist and mom of
five. Her latest book is “Just Because Your Kids Drive You Insane …
Doesn’t Mean You Are A Bad Parent!” See www.JellyMom.com for more
information.