GoodyBlog

Pigging Out

It's time to retire that antiquated slot-in-the-back piggy bank—there's a new hog in town. And this one moves. And oinks too.

Check this out—when you place a coin in the Hungry Bank's mouth, it's detected by a built-in motion sensor. The precious piglet begins to chew and swallow your cash into it's savings belly. And of course, it oinks and snorts while munching away. Wanna see the pig in action? Click here. This would no doubt encourage your kids to save their coins away for a rainy day.

The Hungry Bank is available for sale here. Thanks to This Next for the link!

Take a Tax Break

If you're reading this, you're probably not standing in an endless line at the post office, trying to get your tax returns postmarked by midnight tonight. And even if you are, no worries- GoodyBlog doesn't judge. And neither does WeeAreRockStars.com, who wants to celebrate filing your taxes with all you procrastinators and non-procrastinators alike! When you shop by midnight, receive 15% off your entire order and free shipping on select items. Just enter tax15 at checkout.

Spankin' New Headlines

As the recession looms, families are relying more on food banks, which are struggling to keep up with the need. Washington Post

Mind your manners! Do your kids need etiquette lessons? Boston Globe

What it's like to be a successful mommy blogger. Wall Street Journal

How to get your infant started on good sleep habits. Time

One out of 15 hospitalized kids is affected by medication errors, new research finds. Yahoo! News

Original photo via

Spankin' New Headlines

Meet the (surrogate) parents: A look at the women who carry other womens' children. Newsweek

Only a third of eighth graders and a fourth of high school seniors are proficient writers, according to a national test. New York Times

When the circus comes to town parents fret—Is it a nice family activity or a display of animal mistreatment? Washington Post

Eight glasses of water a day? That might be bad advice, says a new scientific review. Reuters

The stigma attached to men receiving alimony checks from their ex-wives may be on its way out. Wall Street Journal

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How Much Will Your Rebate Be?

Tax season is winding down (only a few more weeks to get your return in!) but starting in May, we'll all be getting an extra rebate check. I just got a letter from the IRS last night—but it doesn't say how much I'll get. Whether you think it's a good idea for our country or not, that would be nice to know.

If you want to find out before money shows up in the mail, check out this post from Get Rich Slowly, which has a handy calculator: Just plug in a few numbers to find out how much your rebate will be.

What do you think your family will do with the extra cash? I'm planning on saving it—which is probably the opposite of what the government wants me to do.

Photo via. 

Spankin' New Headlines

A CDC panel voted yesterday to recommend the flu shot for all kids. San Francisco Chronicle

How a working mother of 5—including triplet toddlers—does it. Wall Street Journal

Baby care products go high tech. New York Times

Schools punish kids for parodying teachers online. Christian Science Monitor

The competition for celeb baby photos—how stars bring in the big bucks. USA Today

Original photo via

PSA: Ditch Your Junk Mail For Free

Here's another way to get rid of all that annoying (and paper-wasting) junk mail. The Direct Marketing Association used to charge a $1 fee to get on their opt-out list, but they just made the service free. (Which, let's face it, was probably worth a buck—but hey, free is always better.) To take advantage, visit their site.

Thanks Lifehacker! Photo via.

Allowance: Paper or Plastic?

Pretty soon your kids might be getting credit card solicitations in the mail too. That's right, there's a new MasterCard in town and it's called the Allow Card, named after a favorite childhood pastime of many -- allowance. Kids as young as 13 can swipe this prepaid card anywhere MasterCard debit cards are accepted, but parents have 35 parental controls, including the authority to block use at certain retail sites, receive email notifications when the card is used, and adjust spending limits. Another plus for parents is that this card is free of interest rates and late fees. Created to teach kids how to manage their money effectively at a young age, the program engages card holders in weekly online tutorials about subjects like understanding your pay stub, creating a budget and financial debt.

So I ask you, paper or plastic? Would you give your child a credit card if it could better their finance skills down the line or will you stick to good ol' George, Abe, Alex and Andy when it's time to dish out the dough?

Spankin' New Headlines

The teenage birthrate has ticked upward for the first time since 1991. CNN

And the childhood cancer rate has gone down by 20% since 1990. Yahoo!

The Christmas/Haunkkah battle in interfaith marriages. New York Times

When amusement parks aren't amusing—but deadly. Washington Post

Scary fact: Most parents are only preparing to pay for ¼ of their children’s college tuitions. Sun-Sentinel

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Stop the Credit Card Junk Mail Insanity!

Do you hate getting millions of pre-screened credit card offers in the mail every day? Me too. In fact, I loath them. It just seems like such a waste of paper—and then there's the shredding and the ripping up and the tossing. Ugh.

So here's most awesome thing I've done in a long time: I signed up at Opt-Out Prescreen.com awhile ago and in the last few weeks, almost all of those offers have magically stopped. Yess!! I saw this site on Get Rich Slowly a long time ago, but didn't get around to it for awhile. Yeah, I'm so glad I finally did it. It's worth a look if you hate all that junk mail as much as I do! (Oh, and it's free.)

PS: Some people were concerned that it might be a scam, but according to this FTC site, it's legit. Phew.

Photo via.