Although my husband is doing pretty well at his job and I am succeeding in my home ventures, we still ran into some hurdles when it came to holiday shopping.  It seemed we got hit with one unexpected expense after another from multiple vehicle repairs, to medical bills, to a mysterious mix up with our energy company.  In any event, we knew we were going to have to do something if we were to buy all the gifts we wanted to buy this holiday season.  Here are some companies that really pulled through for us at the last minute!  (Things we did in addition to our "regular work.")

Treasure Trooper:  You all probably get sick of hearing me sing TT's priases, but it cannot be helped.  They are a great GPT and always come through when I am in a bind.  I've been consistently making about $100 from them each month by simply doing free offers whenever the mood strikes me.  This past month, I also did some of their new offers for silver coins which buy you Visa gift cards, X-Box 360's, i-pods, and more.  You can get 50 silver coins without paying a dime which will get you a $50 gift card.  The X-box will end up costing you about $100 in offers (paying for shipping and handling and such) and the i-pod less than that.  The Visa gift cards are good anywhere and there is no limit on how many you can get.  You can even pay bills with them!  If one were to really set their mind to Treasure Trooper and do the offers that do require a dollar here or there for shipping or require you to cancel unwanted offers, $500-$600 could easily be earned monthly before whatever referral money you bring in.

Readers Paid: Again I made over $100 with them in 5 minutes per day or less spending nothing.  They have some great free offers that pay up to $10 or so just for getting free quotes or requesting information. 

It Pays to Learn: They do not have many offers, but if you are in a jam financially they are a great program because they pay you daily right into your paypal.  You can also take Quizzes to earn points and cash.  When you have enough points, you can use them to advertise on the site.  You can advertise your more profitable programs and thus earn twice!

Associated Content: If you write (and I find myself writing a lot), Associated Content brings in some good money quickly.  They pay anywhere from $3-$50 per article or story (and I've heard sometimes even more) and they pay three times per week directly into your paypal account.

Ebay- My husband went through some of his clutter in the basement and found some great items he was willing to part with.  This brought in some much needed income.

My Kids' Closet: If you want to avoid ebay's fees and you have children's items to sell, this is the place to do it!  Right before or right after the holidays is a good time to clear out the old to make way for all the new"stuff" that comes into your home and clutters up your playroom!  I placed a few items on there and they sold quickly and locally.  Because they were local I did not have to worry about shipping them.  You also have the option to have someone who works for Kids Closet buy the item from you or help you to sell it (for a percentage of the sale) if you are in a hurry.  You yourself can even work for them promoting the site or assisting sellers!

Live Ops: They get so busy during the holidays (and generous too!).  Working as a call center agent for Live Ops from October until February is like swimming in a pool of money.  The calls are endless and the bonuses are many.  They pay every two weeks and the potential to earn feels limitless!

Google Adsense: On my various websites and blogs I place Adsense and I make some extra cash from it monthly.

So these were our main lifesavers for the past two months and I am so grateful to have opportunites like these to dig my family out of the financial holes that we sometimes fall into.  In the days before the internet, the opportunities were fewer and most of them required you leave the house.  Don't get me wrong, leaving the house is nice but with gas prices and the issue of childcare I'd just as soon stay home to work and go out for pleasure!  Also, from home I can often work two or three gigs at one time.  I plan to pursue a higher degree next semester and I'll be able to study and work at the same time.  Most importantly to me, I can keep my daughter with me and not have to worry about what type of care she is getting from someone else.  Soon enough she'll be in school and I'll have the opportunity to return to work outside the home if I choose.

But will I choose this??  Lately, I think about all the money I could make if I had more hours to work from home uninterupted and still save on the gas, clothing, etc.  Also, I shudder when I remember some of the jobs I worked in the past and how stressed of a person I was.  The weekends were never enough time for me to recover.  Instead, the weekends were full of catching up on housework and running errands.  I never stopped and I never fully relaxed.  I was a much different person then.  I like the looser, work at home me much better!  I also like controlling my own destiny and having my own businesses.  I know that when I work harder I'll earn more.  This was not necessarily the case in my other positions.  I'd love to return to counseling again and if this is where fate takes me I am okay with that.  However, I do not think I'd be interested in joining the corporate world ever again.  It's just not my cup of tea and the money increase was really not worth all the tension! I love having money and not having to worry about it, however, there are more important things in life to me.  Plus the rush I get from knowing I have helped someone is a far greater high to me than shopping!  But that is just me...to each their own.  Right now I am quite happy working from home.  It agrees with me and I get to be a mom, pursue my ambitions, and care for my family.  I wouldn't trade it for the world!