Kids Can Barter Too

“You mean I can trade chocolate cake for Lego Friends?” my daughter asked following our conversation about the benefits of bartering. “If you can find a Lego-loving chocoholic who’s willing to part with some of her sets, then you’re in business.” Little did I know that my response would turn my 8-year-old into the next Kyle MacDonald. Cash is tight for my third grader, but the kid makes up for her empty wallet by coming up with some solid bartering bargain chips. Or, in her case, cake. Bartering is not just for adults; rather, kids can get in on the … Continue reading

Analyze This

You know that dream where everyone in the world hates you, but somehow you gain an invitation to compete on Iron Chef America where the secret ingredient is barley and one of the guest judges is Anderson “I love me some Crack Pie” Cooper, and you burn fish so badly that it looks like chicken until you pull back the skin and a sea of pin bones are revealed, and suddenly the entire kitchen goes up in flames… What do you mean you don’t remember that one? I get that one all the time, which probably explains why my 8-year-old … Continue reading

Save Me From Myself

Don’t bother looking for fun-sized 100 Grand bars. I’ve eaten them all. Every.Single.One.In.The.Entire.Universe. Ditto for those tiny Twix bars, little Snickers, and mini Kit Kats. By the way, how is it that Kit Kat bars can get so stale sitting in a hermetically sealed wrapper? Not that it matters now. Stale or not, they’re gone. And by gone, I don’t mean you’ll find them in the trash barrels sitting at the end of our driveway. Rather, you’ll likely locate bits and pieces of chocolate, caramel, and cookie crunch clogging my arteries, enlarging my hips and padding my bottom. In a … Continue reading

Not Buying It

After nearly two decades working in television news, I’ve learned to be a bit more judicious when perusing headlines. In other words, I don’t believe half of what I see published these days, especially viral items that sweep the globe and become water cooler fodder, despite there being very little fact checking prior to their circulation. But, hey, sensationalism sells, so why mess up the money-making process by letting a little thing like the truth get in the way? It’s a question single moms around the world are left to ponder yet again thanks to an anonymous server who claims … Continue reading

Can You Really Afford Cable?

Forget about alcohol, tobacco, Facebook or chocolate; cable TV is one of the most addicting entities around. Just ask the kids who spend hours upon hours watching it. Then, ask the parents who use it as a babysitter. These days it doesn’t take much to get moms and dads to admit that they’ve used cable to keep their kids occupied. Got an important phone call to make, turn on Nick Jr. Want to use the bathroom in peace, switch it to Cartoon Network. Desperate for a few minutes of uninterrupted me time, Disney Channel to the rescue. Cable is undoubtedly … Continue reading

Let Them Eat Chocolate

I’ve confessed to my “Mommy addiction” in previous posts. It’s not Downton Abbey, Facebook or expensive leather handbags (though, I wouldn’t balk if Santa happened to leave a Hermes Birkin bag under the tree this Christmas). Rather, my obsession is much higher in calories: Nature Valley Dark Chocolate Granola Thins. A.K.A. Crunchy crack. Crispy, chocolatey, OOOOHHH-EMMM-GEEE! drool-on-your-keyboard crack. Don’t let the name fool you; the granola part is just a guise. The fact is; I’m all about the chocolate. I love me some chocolate… and so does my 8-year-old. Unfortunately, as parents we’re supposed to set good examples, so eating … Continue reading

Are You Spending More to Save?

I am THAT mom. The one that’ll drive an extra five miles out of her way to save five bucks on her daughter’s Halloween costume, even though gas is just shy of $4 per gallon. Though, if I drive an extra 10 miles I can save six cents per gallon. I am THAT mom. The one that’ll spend five hours trying to calculate how much she really saved by utilizing the $5 off costume coupon. Even though the trip included sitting in a gnarly traffic jam which robbed her of 20 minutes of precious time. Make that priceless time. Walking … Continue reading

Hugging Gets the Cold Shoulder at School

(Old school hugging outside of class) Damn you, hugs. Evil, awful, good-for-nothing hugs are being banned from a North Carolina middle school–maybe–and it’s got the Internet buzzing. Alcohol, drugs, and baggy pants, those are reasonable items to banish from school property, according to students at Chase Middle School, but putting the kibosh on an innocent little snuggle? The nerve. To say students are not embracing the school’s alleged hugging ban is an understatement. To show the world how much they detest the rumored new rule, a group of Chase students created a Facebook page dedicated to promoting hugs on campus. … Continue reading

How to Spare Your Child the Pain of Divorce

Norwegian researchers believe they know how to prevent the pains of divorce from being inflicted on innocent children. According to a new study entitled “Equality in the Home,” parents who share housework duties are 50 percent more likely to get divorced than couples where the woman does most of the chores. In other words, the more housework the man does, the higher the divorce rate. A part of me died typing that sentence. The rest of me is trying to swallow the vomit that’s pooled in my mouth. Basically, the study is saying that if you are a stressed out … Continue reading

Pretty Baby

What parent out there doesn’t think her baby is the cutest thing gracing the face of the planet? What’s more, even if your infant is not-so pretty, you’re probably not going to hear it from friends or family members. Remember the Seinfeld episode where Jerry and Elaine try to keep the vomit in their mouths after catching sight of their friend Carol’s hideous-looking baby? No one tells a parent her child is ugly. Of course, the enabling has its limits. For example, if you think your baby is all that and decide to enter him or her into the cut-throat … Continue reading