Child labor ain't cheap

It's like my kid was born with the knowledge of child labor laws. When she was a little younger and I'd ask if she wanted to help me rinse dishes or something, she'd say, "No, that's what you do."

So I love making stuff, especially funky, fun stuff. So I figured out a way to make awesome leg warmers with a neat design motif and very little sewing. I was going to take pictures and put the directions for free at my website, www.stitchnmama.com.

If you go there, you won't see a photo of the project or any directions. I never got that photo.

I thought it would be great for the kiddo to model them for my website. She wasn't thrilled with the idea of becoming famous like Carly and Sam, probably because she can smell a marketing ploy a mile away. But she agreed...with conditions:

"How much does it pay?"

"What?"

"You'd pay me to take my picture, right?"

"Sure. $5."

I figure $5 to a 6 year old kid was pretty good money. She laughed in my face.

"I thought it would be more like $30 or $50." Somehow $40 got left out.

"Nope. Just $5," I said, hoping my cheery voice would distract her negotiating skills.

"Well you always take a lot of pictures and that's time I could be playing," she explained. Before I knew it, I'd talked her down to $20. Now who's the better negotiator?

Why aren't the pictures on the site?

I'm not paying until I take the pictures. She's not being photographed until she gets paid.