Why not get great presents for some of your favorite people without spending a single dollar?!!!!

HOW?
By trading things that you can make or do with other girls or even adults that you know. Here are some examples:

Amy baby-sits for a little girl named Alice. Alice's mom Rita, makes the most amazing strawberry jam. Now, Amy's mom is CRAZY for strawberry jam, but she works and would never have time to make that yummy homemade kind. Figure it out yet?

Jammin' with Rugrats
Amy offers to baby-sit Alice free in exchange for six jars of Rita's jam. Amy puts the jars in an old basket she's been saving from a fruit basket her dad's company sent last Christmas, ties a beautiful bow on it and presto -- a gift that Amy's mom will ADORE. And it didn't cost any cash! Pretty cool, don't you think!?

Mathematically Wired
Joan's friend Claudia makes beautiful earrings. She makes them out of silver wire. Joan's sister just got her ears pierced and she can't get enough earrings. Claudia is really bombing out in Algebra. Algebra is as easy as breathing for Joan, so she offers to tutor Claudia several times after school to help her to pass the upcoming giant Algebra test in exchange for a pair of earrings for her sister.

Planting Knots Inline
This one is really interesting. Sue traded her friend Jen six inline skating how-to sessions for one of Jen's giant macramé plant holders that she then traded to her neighbor Mrs. Clausen for one of her beautiful flowering houseplants. Sue plans to give it to her flower-loving grandmother for the holidays!

Can YOU cook? Sew? Baby-sit? Weed a garden? I'm sure there are ALL KINDS of things that you can do to trade for gifts for your family and friends. Keep your eyes and ears open and you'll see loads of people who make or do things that you'd want to trade for.

Keep in mind that a gift doesn't have to be an actual thing, it can also be something someone does for someone else. If your mom would love decorating advice and your best friend's mom is a designer, maybe you can clean, shovel, or baby-sit your way to an hour of her consulting time to give to your mom as a gift!

Happy swapping! Enjoy being a big giver without being a big spender!!!