BAG Money

In the basement, attic, and garage (BAG) are hidden treasures of prosperity. These areas of our homes are where we diminish our prosperity by storing items that people demand and are willing to purchase. In every nook and cranny there is a precious jewel that is in demand and waiting to be discovered to benefit others while increasing your revenue. Why not use your supply to meet the people's demand? There are several avenues in which the demand can be met and revenues increased. Let's start with the first area of your BAG which is the basement. Organize your treasures into small, medium and large. Take an inventory of your items to keep track of them and to establish a selling price. Sell your small items on eBay because small items are less expensive to ship. In addition, eBay is well established and has exponential buyers and sellers daily. Of course, where your sell is up to you, but be sure that you deal with someone who has integrity. Research prices so that you are competitive.

The attic is the second area of your BAG. Sell those mirrors, bed frames, suitcases, clothing, toys, and antiques that have been stored away for months. Have a yard sale, take them to thrift store, or sell them on Craigslist. Some stores ask for more than half of the selling price to sell your items. Be sure to be aware of wherever you sell and consider your safety when dealing in person with a buyer. Believe it or not, toys bring in great profits. As I researched, one mom commented that she had taken toys to a consignment but they charged more than half of the profits. She then sold her items on eBay and most of the profit came to her. During her first year she stated that she earned $20,000! Clean out that attic today and increase your revenue!

Lastly, the third area of your BAG is the garage. How many bicycles, tricycles, flower pots, shoes, vases and pictures do we store in our garage? Line them up, list them and sell them if you have no further use for them. Remember, there is a demand for the treasures you no longer need. Meet the demand by supplying these treasures. Good profit! For more tips, visit http://www.businessqa-ernestine.blogspot.com.

Until next time...
Ernestine Dail
Business Queries and Ideas
http://www.businessqa-ernestine.blogspot.com

Free Gift Cards Codes Are the Real Deal

Have you been looking at the prices of toys, watches, clothing and just about everything, while thinking of Christmas? Where are you going to get the cash to pay for these things? Don't worry, there is a great way to come up with those great gifts, and a way that will either cost you very little or nothing at all. You can find free gift cards codes online that will help you save money while doing your shopping.

These free certificates are given to you by stores like JCpenny, Walmart, The Olive Garden, etc. Yes, they can be for restaurants too! Now, you are either thinking that this is a scam, a money making deal or something illicit. But it is not. You see companies need the consumers opinion and they have gotten tired of hiring temporary workers to stand in the store all day with their clip board waiting for disgruntled shoppers to come in, who don't want to answer any surveys because they are tired, in a hurry, or just don't feel like it.

So they have put those surveys and questionnaires online. You just have to sit, use a few clicks of the mouse, and answer as truthfully as you can, and presto you will have the great free gift cards to stores like Best Buy, or Kmart.

What happens when you get a gift code that you can't use? There is a simple solution to that. Often, you may get a code for something like - baby products - but don't have a baby. In this case you list the coupons you have that you don't want on the exchange forum, and trade with someone else who has what you want. It is a very simple process.

These free codes can be for as much as $500 to $1000 so you know they are well worth the small amount of time you put into filling out the form.

Final Tip: By researching and comparing you will find the best free gift card online offers, however you are welcome to take advantage of the offers already listed in our website, we have done all the hard work for you.

H. Milla runs the Free Gift Cards Online website - where you can get different gift cards for free. Also, you can trade, sell or buy gift card at 40-50% discounted prices. Visit for further information and take advantage of our current promotions of well known brands like WalMart, JCPenney, PlasticJungle and several others.

Saving Tips For Shopping Holiday Gifts and Toys

As holidays are quickly approaching, many people have already turned to Internet for their Christmas Holiday Shopping to save time, money, gas, and avoid crowds. Online shopping is not only convenient, it's safe too. If you are planning to undertake a frugal holiday shopping without a big hole into your pockets, then take advantage of these tips that will enable you to shop economically for Christmas gifts and toys. Here are some tips to make your online holiday shopping a little easier and more frugal.

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  Set up a budget: The first step to be considered before you start shopping is setting a budget, and sticking to it; no matter how many great deals or bargains you find!


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  Search for coupons: Start searching for best coupons as soon as possible. Because coupons and deals with huge savings come a month or weeks before Christmas and they will not last for a longer period.


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  Price comparison: Compare the price of the same product at different stores. Some of the best prices comparing sites are Bizrate, PriceGrabber.com, NexTag, and Shopzilla, where you can easily see the rebated prices of a product available across various stores.


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  Make use of credit card: It's best to make your online purchases via credit card. A credit card offers an extra level of protection in case something goes wrong and the online store is not handling the situation to your satisfaction. Most credit card companies will reverse a charge if you dispute it for good reason and have tried your level best to resolve the problem to no avail.


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  Shipping details: Be sure to check the shipping details and handling charges before you make a purchase. Many stores offer Free Shipping coupon separately while others may have discount coupons including Free Shipping.


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  Check for secure e-commerce: Be sure, that the store from where you are making online purchases is offering secure purchases. If the site is offering secure purchases then it will display it. For those that does not, look for the http: in address bar to change to https: on store's shopping cart or page where you put in your credit card number.


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  Look for electronic deals on Black Friday and Cyber Monday: If you're planning to gift a gaming console like Xbox, Wii, Playstation or a tech gadget to your kid this year, then it would be a better option for you to shop for Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals. Many stores offer huge discounts for a short span of time on these particular days.


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  Deal Alerts: You may also subscribe for e-mails from retailers as they include coupon codes and alerts to discounted "online-only" deals.

Last but not the least, if you have the storage place and saved enough money via online shopping, then you can stock up and get a head start for next year, by taking advantage of After Season Sale. Many stores provide huge discounts on decorative pieces and toy sets after Christmas. So, this can be one of the best times to buy gifts for New Year or Birthdays.

Go ahead, and do your Holiday shopping online. You would be pleasantly surprised at how stress-free your holiday shopping can be by following these simpler ways.

Happy Shopping!!

Tony, is an associated author with the website CouponAlbum, and assist his team in writing some good articles for tips and guides on online shopping (http://www.couponalbum.com/articles/).

Tony did his Ph.D. from the Honolulu University, Hawaii. After completing the doctoral degree, Tony joined Hewlett Packard as an Design Engineer. He left HP in 2004 to do independent consulting and then in 2006 joined CouponAlbum to help people save money.

How to Drive an Excavator

If you are a person who loves driving heavy equipment, then you are going to be one who loves to drive an excavators. To many of the heavy equipment drivers, excavators are considered to be toys and one of the funnest things in the world to drive. That has only come about in the last few years. Excavators have recently earned the respect of construction and utility workers everywhere.

Excavators are great for just about any kind of business since they are very easy to operate, have a small foot print, are very low in cost, and offer a precise operation. Excavators are available for rent by home owners and can do some of the yard and landscaping in the world, especially when using the mini model of the excavator. If you are in need of some tips on how to operate an excavator, then you have come to the right place. Keep reading to learn how to get a general understanding of how to operate an excavator.

The first thing that you need to do is choose the correct size of the machine that you are going to be needing for your project. Minis can come in a variety of sizes, from super compact. Excavators can weight anywhere from 4000 and up. You can use the excavator for digging ditches, irrigation, and so many other things.

The next thing that you should do is compare the costs of renting an excavator to buying an excavator. Typically the mini excavator can go for around 150 per day to rent. That does not include the cost of delivery, pick up, fuel charges and any insurance needed. With the price starting at 150 per day and going up from there, depending on the project or if your are trying to start up a business, you need to weigh the options as well as the pros and cons of buying a new or used excavator.

You should then check out the range of machines that are offered and if the company offers demonstrations. You should become very familiar with operating a excavator. Getting the feel of the machine will allow you to be able to successfully operate the machine on your own.

Take the time to look over the operators manual and be sure to become familiar with everything there is on the excavator. Knowing everything there is possible when it comes to driving an excavator, is the best thing that you can do. There are so many different control, knobs and buttons that one can come equipped with, it can be hard to tell what is what.

Be sure to look over all the warning labels that can come stuck onto many pieces of the excavator. They will be giving you many different charts and instructions on how to operate the machinery as well as how to perform maintenance on the machine. It will also be listing the machine's information and the serial numbers.

Operating an excavator can be one of the hardest things to do, especially if you are not familiar with heavy equipment. Take your time to get as much training and information about running and operating the excavator before taking it home to do your project.

Robert Tate - Region Sales Manager of Mascus UK. Mascus is an electronic marketplace for excavators, tractors, trailers and trucks. Mascus makes trading in excavators for sale more efficiently by collecting all information about supply and demand in one place. All dealers, producers and end users are welcome to offer their used machines and trucks for sale via the marketplace.
Contacts:
Robert Tate
Regional Sales Manager - UK
Mob:+ 44 (0) 7970 230055
E mail: robert.tate@mascus.com

Fun Winter Toys

When I was young, I couldn't wait for winter! It never really mattered how cold it was outside, I just wanted to play in the snow. Whether it was sledding, tobogganing, building a snowman or having a snowball fight with the other kids, I just wanted to be outside!

If you have fond memories like I do of playing in the snow when you were younger, you want your children to experience this same fun. You also want to be sure your child is playing with a fun, but safe winter toy. Since winter is only a few months long, let's take a look at a few inexpensive but fun toy options available today.

Snow Tubes are an awesome winter snow toy and they cost less than $8! Light enough for kids to carry, but durable enough to hold up to plenty of down hill slides, snow tubes are definitely a toy to take a look at for winter fun.

Love to toboggan? Do you remember trying to drag that heavy toboggan up the hill? Boy I do! It was almost too much work to try to get up that hill for a 30 second ride - but what a ride it was. Today, there is a lightweight toboggan that your kids (and you) are sure to love. The lightweight Blizzard inflatable toboggan is easy for kids to carry, but manufactured of thick, heavy vinyl for durability. Winter fun for 1 or 2 people or kids with a price less than $20.

Snow sleds are another fun winter toy - but they can also be costly. If you're not looking to spend $100 or more on a snow sled, the Summit snow sled may be just what you're looking for. Heavy duty with hand grips, this inflatable snow sled will have you and your children flying down the hills. Cost is less than $20.

How about a winter toy that does double duty as a summer toy also? Almost two toys for the price of one - now that's smart shopping. The Ski Storm inflatable Jet Ski is a great ride-on sled for a kid that does double duty as a pool toy in the summer. This toy is made quite well of durable vinyl and patented Weathertek for year-round fun and priced less than $25.

Are your kids ready to try a snow board, but you're not ready for them to do so? The inflatable rocket ranger snow board is a great way for them to learn how to snow board. This snow board is made of sturdy vinyl with 2 built on boot straps, can hold up to 120 pounds and is recommended for kids 6 - 12 years old. With a price tag less than $10, this is a great way to determine if snow boarding is really what your children want to do.

Don't forget the accessories that make your life easier - and safer. Snowboarders should wear protective gear such as helmets and today's air pumps are affordable and won't leave you gasping for air. Outdoor toys that are affordable but fun are the way to go this winter season.

Denise Sanger owns and operates NewCoolToysOnline.com which carries a diverse catalog of toys to play outdoors. Our winter toys like snow tubes, snowboards, and snow sleds are inexpensive as well as fun.

Buying Handmade Toys

Toys are adored both by children and by adults. Children play with toys to enhance their physical and mental skills while adults buy them to add to their collections. In the past, handmade toys are very popular. Every little girl has her own stitched doll while every young boy plays with wooden horses and boats. But as time passed, handmade toys slowly lose their popularity; and ever since the introduction of Barbie in the 1950s, these toys have disappeared from the limelight.

Fortunately, there are still several artisans who continue to produce handmade toy cars for boys and handmade dolls for girls. The industry of handmade products has thrived once more when people realized the harmful effects of commercial products to the environment. However, in 2007, many toys were proven to contain hazardous substances. That is why the CPSIA or the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 created a rigorous set of documentation and testing requirements for the manufacturers of children's products. This means that sellers of handmade toys are supposed to pay $300 to $4,000 for the testing process of each toy. Of course, such price is too much for a small-time toymaker to handle. So as a result, most stores selling handmade toy cars and dolls were forced to close down.

Then again, the industry of handmade products did not die. Well, it will not die if we continue supporting it. Handmade toy cars can still be bought, but there are certain considerations that you have to make when buying these items. For instance, you need to have a good look at the toy that you want to buy. Pick it up from the shelf and scrutinize it. Make sure that it does not have any sharp edges or sharp things that stick out of it. If you are buying handmade toy cars made of wood, see to it that there are no wood splinters. You must also ensure that the toy does not contain small or detachable parts that children might swallow. Furthermore, ask the seller if they comply with the law and if the toys they sell are non-toxic.

Buying handmade toys is really great. If you buy one, you get to help save the environment. These toys are made using natural materials, and they did not come from factories that emit toxic substances. You also get to support the livelihood of artisans and simple people who sell these products. In addition, you get to avoid crowds and long queues in department stores and expensive toy stores. Handcrafted toys are also long-lasting, durable, and more honestly made. They are also safer and more original. If you buy toy cars, you get the feeling that they are made with utmost care especially for you.

MadeItMyself is a rapidly growing, unique and fun artisan online marketplace that lets you post your handmade creations and share them with the rest of the world.

MadeItMyself provides endless possibilities for the people who love art and originality and want to make a good living from their respective trades.
http://www.madeitmyself.com

(c) Article Copyright - MadeitMyself.com.

Do War Toys for Children Cause Future Wars?

If you go to any toy store or even look at the shelves at Wal-Mart in the toy section you will see various war toys. Things like plastic machine guns, plastic army hats, jet fighter planes and army tanks. When we were growing up there were G.I. Joe's and other such war toys.

I can remember as a team building nearly every 1:72 scale plastic model airplane and World War II Army tank and yet I do not believe that this caused me to love war. Nevertheless the question has been brought up by some folks that say these toys do indeed glorify war; indeed and maybe they do, I am not a psychologist.

But do war toys of today's children cause wars? I doubt that, as we are not necessarily a nation which runs around causing wars, but rather has been put into a position of being the head police dog to prevent catastrophic leadership failure resulting in human rights abuses, losses of freedom and tyrannical dictators run a muck.

One thing is for sure however and that is that these toys are much more real life and detailed than anything our parents had. Should our children be subjected to war toys, so they can understand that sometimes the price of freedom costs a lot more than we think? Consider this and debate it amongst yourselves if you like.

"Lance Winslow" - Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.WorldThinkTank.net/. Lance is an online writer in retirement.

Print Grocery Coupons & Free Printable Manufacturer Coupons Online

If you are looking for a way to save money on your monthly grocery budget, then you need to learn how to print grocery coupons. These online coupons can really add up fast if you use them on a regular basis.

Free printable manufacturer coupons can be found online, you can locate them at a variety of websites. If you know a specific product that you would like to buy, you start out by looking at the manufacturer's website. Sometimes there will be coupons located on the website, all you need to do is print them out so that you can use them.

Another good way to locate free printable manufacturer coupons is by doing an internet search. Simply search for the name of the product along with the word "coupon" and your search results should bring up some websites with applicable coupons if they are available.

A great place to locate a variety of online coupons is to locate a coupon website. These websites have a huge collection of different coupons, and you are able to print grocery coupons at one location. This is a very useful way to collect internet coupons, because it allows you to access multiple product coupons at one website.

Once you have located the printable grocery coupons that you are interested in, you can really stretch your dollar by combining those coupons with sale prices for the item. Hold on to the coupon until that particular item goes on sale, and then pair the coupon with the sale price for maximum savings.

There are many ways to save money on your monthly food budget, and using printable manufacturer coupons are easy and the savings can quickly add up. Visit our website for more detailed information on how you can save money with grocery coupons: http://GroceryCouponsSaveMoney.com.

Children's Musical Instruments and Baby Musical Toys

While it is now generally accepted that music is important for the development of babies and young children, many parents are confused by the array of musical toys, instruments and recordings that are available in the market place. Musical instruments shall be discussed here.

The percussion family
There are a number of musical instruments generally from the percussion family that are suitable for little ones. Percussion instruments are defined as those instruments that are shaken, scraped or struck with a beater or mallet. There are two kinds of percussion instruments: tuned and un-tuned. Tuned percussion instruments are correctly pitched enabling the playing of melodies. The piano is a tuned percussion instrument as are electronic keyboards and instruments with bars such as xylophones and glockenspiels and individual tone or resonator bars. By far the majority of percussion instruments are un-tuned and some examples include maracas or shakers, triangles, jingle bells and tambourines and drums.

What is best for baby?
It is important that babies are provided with musical toys and instruments that are age appropriate. Adult musical instruments can often be unsuitable. Size really does matter. For example a large pair of Latin wooden maracas would not be suitable for a young baby as they are too heavy and cannot be easily manipulated. Strong sounds may also startle babies. There are however many types of mini maracas or baby maracas that are lightweight with a delicate sound, have easy grasp handles and are safe and washable. They provide visual stimulation as well with lots of bright, colourful beads that are safely enclosed. This is an important consideration as all children under one year will put everything in the mouth. Halilit produce some beautiful mini maracas for babies as well as lovely rainbow rain shakers in small sizes. They also have a mini sea drum with beads and a lovely sea pattern.

Care needs to be taken when selecting bells. All bells have jingles and small parts that can be a choking hazard. Bells should only be used under supervision with little ones. There is however a completely safe bell for babies produced by Kindermusik where the jingles are enclosed in cloth. These bells are attached to Velcro and can be wrapped around wrists and ankles.

Appealing to young children
Babies and young children learn through all the senses. Musical toys and musical instruments should be appealing in many ways. They should not only sound great but should be visually attractive with good design and bright colours. They should also feel good to play and encourage active playing. They are not just for looking at. Good quality musical instruments can withstand vigorous use. Many toy drums for example can be five minute wonders but a sturdy drum with a natural skin head or quality synthetic head can give years of enjoyment. Remo produce some beautiful children's drums from the delicious looking lollipop to jungle patterned toms, djembes, and bongos.

Quality and price
Good quality can often mean paying considerably more. This is the case not only with drums but certainly with xylophones and glockenspiels. Sonor produce a glockenspiel with precision tuning and an incredibly beautiful sound that is built to last for years. In comparison many cheap barred instruments have a tinny, dull, highly inaccurate pitch. But quality can also come at bargain basement prices if you know what to look for and where to look. Many examples can be found with wooden toys and wooden musical instruments such as castanets, tone blocks, spinning crackers and recorders.

Christine Gora

Christine Gora has a Masters Degree in education and over 35 years experience as a teacher. At her online music store http://www.kidsmusictoys.com.au you can see a range of musical instruments to encourage music making in young children. Join the mailing list and you will receive a free gift (value $19.95) with your first order.

Negotiating The Price on a New Mattress

In many cases, people don't buy mattresses when they need them because the prices are too high. Even if you're waiting for a clearance sale or some other discount event, you may still find a new mattress to be cost-prohibitive. But what you don't know is that the price listed for a mattress is often negotiable. Depending on how you handle these types of communicating, you may be able to save a significant amount of money and get a good quality mattress at the same time.

Compare stores before you try to negotiate

Before you begin the process of asking a store clerk to accept less for a mattress, it's important to know how much other store owners are charging. As you might expect, many people will purchase from a store that charges less, leaving a more expensive store looking for business. Depending on the situation, you may be able to walk into a more expensive store and successfully negotiate a discount if you can prove that their competitors are offering lower rates.

Set a firm price in your mind

Before you go into the store, set in your head the most you're willing to pay for your mattress. The sales situation is designed to get you to spend more than you've planned - every detail, from the lighting to the actions of the salesperson, is working against you. The salesperson will likely show you a few higher end models that may interest you, but don't be seduced that easily. Let the salesperson know how much you're willing to spend and see if there's any way to get to your price.

Be a community patron

Mom and pop furniture stores may have more room to negotiate than large chain mattress stores. The chain stores have to report to a management chain of command that gives them less flexibility in the sales process. However, if you know the owners of a smaller store - or if you can establish some sort of connection with them - they may be willing to work with you on a better price. If you want to be really sneaky, find out what community organizations or charities they're involved with and join yourself!

Don't lie!

It can be tempting to come up with a little fib - okay, a flat out lie - about your financial situation. It might start something like, "Well, with the chemotherapy treatments, I just couldn't afford..." or "It's not for me - it's for my 87 year old grandmother..." However, don't fall into this trap. You'll spend the whole time trying not to get caught that you'll lose focus on the actual negotiating - and you'll feel even worse if you're caught. Treat the salesperson with respect by articulating your needs and your budget limitations clearly.

Negotiating a better price on a mattress will take some skill and determination. If you've never haggled on a price before, you may find this type of communication difficult to grasp. So take it slowly. If you have five mattress stores on your list, save the cheapest one for last. If you aren't successful in negotiating with other store owners, you'll still be able to purchase your new mattress without going through the negotiation process.

For complete bed mattresses info including tips on testing mattresses, visit http://BedMattresses.info