Sweet(er) deals...while in your pajamas

Ok, so I admit. I can't do the Black Friday shuffle.  It's not good for my nerves ; ) My husband, however, occasionally enjoys the thrill of getting up early and treasure hunting for deals.

I tend to lean towards the convenience of online shopping and several sites that make the deals EVEN SWEETER.  Let me show you how.

Sadly, I dropped my Nikon camera right on the lens and broke it : (

So, that put me in the market for a new lens to capture holiday memories.  I thought, what better time to replace my lens than Black Friday?!  I was happy to find it for a good deal on Amazon.

Here is the breakdown of my purchase:

• Amazon $99 Nikon Nikkor Zoom Lens  with free shipping
• Searched through Ebates and received 8% cash back on my Amazon purchase
• Used $5 Amazon gift card from Swagbucks 
• $33 cash back credit from from Discover card
• 5% cash back using my Discover card

The final outcome - approximately $50 for my brand new lens.  Woo hoo!

So, the moral of this story is.... if you are like me and don't want to face the crowds, but are looking to get the best deals during the holidays, maximize the already amazing Black Friday online deals by also using:

SWAGBUCKS (free digital dollars for searching)
EBATES  (earn free rebates for shopping your favorite stores AND $50 for referring 2 friends and most stores offer double cash back today!)

In case you are in the market, here are my camera and lens.  I highly recommend both. 

 

Happy Saving and Earning!

*Disclaimer: links in this post may contain my referral links to products.

My favorite deals this week: more back to school specials

Today only from Target! Buy one get one free girls dENiZEN from Levis brand jeans. $17.99 plus free shipping.

Don't forget...free haircuts the entire month of August for kids 16 and younger at JCPenny Salons.

We Choose Virtues Giveaway

Yay! I'm so excited to do this giveaway. The kind people at We Choose Virtues sent me some items to review and give away to you (well, at least one of you).

We Choose Virtues offers products (or "tools") that help teach and inspire character. The tools help teach lasting character qualities and how to put them into action in everyday situations. Character does not just happen haphazardly nor is it offered as a course in any school that I know about?! These products assist parents and teachers in being intentional about it.

We have and use several of the products ourselves and really enjoy them. I know that I learn (and need) these character lessons right along with my little ones.

There are so many reasons I like these products:

First, the products are so user friendly and easy to comprehend - even for younger ages.

They are well made with bright colors and great illustrations.

Their products can be purchased with a faith-based (scriptures included) or non-faith based approach. Therefore, they can be used by teachers in public schools, at home with family, for homeschooling or Sunday School classes and so on.

There are several purchase options that you can choose from to best benefit your class or your family. They offer complete kits or individual products.

Today, I will be giving away the Virtue Flash Cards (faith-based) and the 100 Days of Virtue Chart and Stickers. Thanks to the nice We Choose Virtues crew!

Want it and don't want to wait for the drawing?

We Choose Virtues is offering the following discounts for the month of July:

• 35% of Virtue Flash Cards with code "FLASH35"

• free Virtues coloring book download with purchase (they usually offer this each month)

Win It!

Giveaway guidelines:

• Enter by posting a comment below about how you could benefit from these products.
• One entry per person please.
• Entries must be made by 11:59 CST on July 30, 2012.
• Winner will be announced on Tuesday, July 31, 2012.

Best wishes and I hope you either win or will check out their website and products at We Choose Virtues. It's definitely worth the time, effort and expense.

Back to school (already!?!) deals

Wow, how did mid-July arrive so quickly?! Many people are already thinking about the new school year and shopping for clothes and supplies. The stores are ready and waiting for the mass amounts of dollars to be spent.

I would like to help you in one way today (if I may) to keep a few more of those dollars in your pocket this school year.

If you tend to dread the thought of crowds, lines and store hopping, online shopping through Ebates would be a good alternative for you. I have mentioned Ebates in this previous post if you are not sure what it is.

Right now, they are offering extra cash back on many of the stores that a lot of shoppers would go to to check out the back to school bargains. For example, Kohls and Macy's are 6% cash back, WalMart is 3.5%, JCPenny is 4% and the Apple Store is 1%. If you are using a credit card (with restraint, of course ; )) that offers cash back for purchases, then you would be getting cash back in two places at the same time. Not a bad deal.

This is one way to save on time AND gas and actually get cash back for your purchases. It is free to sign up and start browsing stores.

Happy shopping (and hopefully saving)! Is it me or does that sound like an oxymoron?

Psssst...don't forget about Swagbucks

Hey everyone. Happy {frugal} Friday! I just wanted to remind you about Swagbucks today. If you don't know what I'm talking about, click here to check out my previous post which explains this phenomenon where you can earn free stuff.

If you've already signed up...don't get discouraged if it seems like it's taking forever to earn your digital dollars. Remember how you eat an elephant? One bite at a time. How do you get free stuff...one Swagbuck at a time. In fact, I'm using my Amazon gift card that I got from Swagbucks to order this book today:

Dr. Chi's Fingernail & Tongue Analysis Book - 1 book,(Chi's Enterprise)

Why do I feel like a cheerleader for Swagbucks right now?!?! Happy searching and earning everyone and have a great weekend!

My favorite deals today {Frugal Friday]

Toddler girls flats $5.99 at Target

Free orange chicken at Panda Express after 9pm (today only).  

My favorite deals (this week)

Half price frappuccinos @ Starbucks!
Yum!  This explains itself.  If you are one who prefers not to spend the price of a meal on a drink (I totally get ya), now's your chance to get one for a little less.

Free Mother's Day craft time @ Michael's this weekend.

Frugal Friday: my favorite deals

Coffee-mate is giving away coupons for a free creamer to the first 200,000 participants beginning 12pm EST. Yum!

March is national craft month. Michaels is offering another free craft event this weekend.

Frugal Friday: my favorite deals

Old Navy has $4 kids clothes - plus 2% cash back if you shop Old Navy through Ebates.

Burger King is offering free fries this weekend with St. Paddy's sauce. Yum!

Our Barnes & Noble is having Lucky Leprechaun story time this Saturday. Check your local store for this and other free events.

Frugal Friday: my favorite deals

March is National Craft Month so Michaels is offering free in-store events/crafts for kids. This Saturday, March 10th, ages 3+ can make a tote bag or a yarn doll

Chili's is offering free Skillet Queso and Chips if you sign up for their email club.

Frugal Friday: my favorite deals today

Free Pretzel Day at Auntie Annes on March 3

10% off + free shipping on clearance baby clothes and shoes

Champion women's bootcut (workout) pants $14 + free shipping

5 free cards from Shutterfly

Ebates: more money earning tips

Honestly, today my house needs some serious attention, so I was going to forego my "Frugal Friday" post in an attempt to find the floor {wink}. Then I received a very timely email (since it is "Frugal Friday") that I had a $40.20 check on the way from using Ebates to shop online. So, I thought I would share this little secret with you.

Actually, it's not really a secret. Thousands of people take advantage of this opportunity, but in case you don't know...I'm telling you.

Ebates is a site that pays you back for shopping online. Since I'm trying to help you save/earn money, I'm obviously not telling you to go spend money to earn money. I'm simply giving you another way that you can earn cash back for doing what you already do.

If there are items that you currently buy online or if you do birthday and/or holiday shopping online, Ebates is a way to do that and earn cash back for your purchases.

There are hundreds of retailers found on the site. Often, there are deals where the stores will give you double cash back. I've earned as much as 20% cash back for purchases.

I won't list stores, but some of the items I have purchased are photo books, shoes, items for homeschooling, books, etc.

It's free to join and you can sign up by clicking here. I hope you will take advantage of this little tip.

(Note: the links in this post are my referral links.)

Swagbucks {Frugal Friday}

This may be a familiar term to you. You may be an avid follower or you may not have a clue what I’m talking about.

Well, let me introduce you to the Swagbuck phenomenon. I was excited to be introduced to Swagbucks over a year ago. The thought of getting something for free is a very exciting concept for me and Swagbucks is just that.

Basically, Swagbucks rewards you for searching online. As you search, you randomly win digital “Swagbucks” for your searches (and other means on their site like daily polls, etc.). As your digital bucks add up, you can cash them in for various items.

It has become quite an event in our house. Even the kids get excited when mommy wins Swagbucks. I know, I know...we're a little strange.

I have gotten oodles of gift cards with my Swagbuck rewards and used them for gifts or to buy various items for homeschooling. I usually opt to use my Swagbucks to get Amazon gift cards. Since we are on our own when it comes to curriculum and school supplies, it has really helped to offset the cost.

I also use my Amazon gift cards to buy books on my book list. In fact, tomorrow I will be getting Calm My Anxious Heart: A Woman's Guide to Finding Contentment for FREE on Amazon. Woo Hoo!

If you haven’t signed up, I encourage you to check it out…heck you even get several Swagbucks just for doing that. Who knew?!? You can click on this Swagbucks link to check out what the craze is all about.

In future posts, I will be sharing how to rack up your digital "dollars".

Are you already a "Swaggernaut"? If so, share your Swagbuck strategy with us.

(Note: the links in this post are my referral links.)

Slimming down for the New Year

Each Friday, in honor of "Frugal Friday", I plan to post some tidbits about being frugal and saving money in various aspects of life. As I stated in another area of the blog, if there were an 11th Commandment, I'm pretty convinced it would be "Thou shall not pay full price for anything". {insert laugh}

Since we have just entered a new year, the time when many people vow to make changes for the good including slimming down the wasteline, I thought it would be helpful to give tips to get all of us thinking on how we can slim down our expenses. Isn't it a good thing to constantly reevaluate where those hard earned dollars are going?!?

There are probably several ways we all could save money in order to be able to save more, give more and manage less stuff.

Here are a few tips to get you thinking:

• Cable/bundle packages - TV (one of the biggest time stealers we have), do you need all of the channels that you actually pay for? What about something like Netflix where you can pick and choose when and what to watch. Or even more radically....what about no TV this year?!

• Landline telephones - can you forego the landline and just use cell phones if you have them?

• Cell phone plans - do you use all of the minutes and messaging you pay for each month?

• Memberships - are you regularly paying for memberships that you are not taking advantage of; gyms, clubs? Can you work out it home or just enjoy the great outdoors this year?
• Insurance - are you getting the best deal to protect your cars, home, family, and possessions? Shop around.

• Fees - are you paying fees for services you can get for free? Bank accounts, late fees, annual credit card fees. There is a lot of competition out there and most likely you can get the same or similar service for cheaper or for free.

I've found one thing that really challenges me is to dig a little deeper than the surface and actually reevaluate perspective. What is necessity, really? Unfortunately, our American culture thrives on bigger, better, faster, stronger and newer. The things we sometimes think we cannot live without are luxuries that most people around the world will never possess in a lifetime.

Do you plan to slim down in 2012? If so, share some of your tips with us.