Wednesday, July 7, 2010

Restaurants.com – $25 certificate for $2! – Couponing to Disney

Restaurants.com – $25 certificate for $2! – Couponing to Disney

Link to Couponing to Disney

Restaurants.com – $25 certificate for $2!

Posted: 07 Jul 2010 12:20 PM PDT

Restaurant.com is offering their $25 gift certificates for just $2 when you use the code FUN at checkout. The certificates are valid for one year but the discount price is only good until July 12th!

Here are a few restaurants near Disney you might want to check out:

House of Blues located in Downtown Disney (try zip 32830) or at Disneyland (try zip 92801)
You do have to spend at least $35 before coupon and pay 18% gratuity on your total bill.

Garden Grove located at Disney’s Swan and Dolphin Resorts (try zip 32830)
You can eat dinner with some of your favorite Disney characters! You must purchase at least 2 entrees (this is a buffet) and 18% gratuity will be added to your bill.

Todd’s English bluezoo at Disney’s Swan and Dolphin Resorts (try zip 32830)
You must purchase 2 entrees and 18% gratuity will be added to your bill.

Shula’s Steak House at Disney’s Swan and Dolphin Resorts (try zip 32830)
You do have to spend at least $35 before coupon and pay 18% gratuity on your total bill.

Kimons at Disney’s Swan and Dolphin Resorts (try zip 32830)
You must purchase 2 entrees and 18% gratuity will be added to your bill.

Keep in mind that these do not work like traditional gift cards, they are more like a 50% off coupon. Each restaurant has it’s own fine print on what you need to purchase in order to use these gift certificates. I’ve seen them where you have to spend $35 and pay 18% gratuity to use the $25 gift certificate. However, this is still a great deal and a great discount and you can print them right from your computer. An instant gift. Just make sure you read the fine print.

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What’s in your mailbox?

Posted: 07 Jul 2010 11:25 AM PDT

Every day I post "What's in your mailbox?" The goal is to have your mailbox full of all the items I post from the 4 a Day and 5 a Day features. Be sure to let us know what you got and let's see who we can declare had the best mail day of all!

Here's my mail from today:

  • Old Wisconsin Sample and $1 coupon
  • Starbucks Via Sample

What's in your mailbox?

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Guest Post: The Magical Mouse School House

Posted: 07 Jul 2010 11:00 AM PDT

A Disney education experience is only a click away at the MAGICAL MOUSE SCHOOLHOUSE, a unique new blog that plusses the homeschool experience and prompts home educators to think outside the textbook. Bi-weekly posts incorporate teachable moments found in Walt Disney entertainment and leave readers with creative applications and suggested lesson plans for kids preschool through high school.

Covering a wide variety of categories—from the history of Walter Elias Disney to the magic behind animation techniques—the MAGICAL MOUSE SCHOOLHOUSE blog provides appealing and engaging teaching tools. For instance, watch Dumbo and learn about aviation. Build a paper airplane with an elephant's proportions. Discuss fuselage size and shape. Ask students if large wings (or ears) help or hinder flight. Read Swiss Family Robinson and watch the Disney film version. Compare and contrast the movie with the book. If possible, visit the Swiss Family Robinson Tree House at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom and take a virtual walk into the movie.

Non-homeschooling parents can employ takeaways to supplement their children's schoolwork or to keep their kids from stagnating during summer break or other time off from class.

Classroom teachers can also utilize the blog to enhance their lesson plans and offer additional course work.

We encourage you to stretch the boundaries of your home classroom and embrace the teachable moments that take the guise of Disney movies, Disney theme parks, Disney story books, Disney art, and more!

You can learn while you play when you discover that Disney IS school!

MAGICAL MOUSE SCHOOLHOUSE hosts every Wednesday of July and August.

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Rebate of the Day: Conagra Coupon Booklet

Posted: 07 Jul 2010 10:30 AM PDT

Rebate of the Day is a series that will showcase a different rebate Monday – Friday. It is brought to you by my friend Tabitha who blogs at Saving Towards A Better Life.

Today’s rebate is The Conagra Coupon Booklet offer. Be sure to go here for all the details!

Be sure to read about all the previous rebates of the day here. Plus don’t forget to check out My Rebate Database!

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Guest Post: Making Your Savings Count

Posted: 07 Jul 2010 10:00 AM PDT

I don’t know about you, but I’m a bit of a “savings dork”. I get such a rush out of leaving the store with a cart full of groceries for under $20. I feel like the IKEA lady “START THE CAR”!! It’s so fun to stand at the register watching the total go down (and down and down). I love to send off for the freebies I’ve wanted to try and the rebates for the products I already did. I keep track of my rebates by writing them down in my little planner. It’s fun to come home to a mailbox full of samples, freebies and rebate checks. I gasp in horror at my fellow shoppers who go through the line with NO coupons or go to Walgreens without even picking up the coupon book from the front of the store. Is that even possible? Are they wealthy? Did they recently hit the Powerball?
I remember life before saving money. There was a time when I paid full price. Sadly during this same period of time I was horribly in debt and living in ignorant bliss not thinking about the future. I worked a lot, but spent equally. I made big mistakes with money. I once went on vacation to the Bahamas for 5 days (on credit) without paying my electric bill. They shut off the power as I was getting ready to go. What did I do? I packed in the dark silly! Crazy, huh? I am embarassed to admit it, but I once even had a credit card confiscated by a store clerk because I hadn’t paid the bill (I was young-that’s my excuse). I think he even got a reward from the credit card company or something (funny now-not then). My point is this; wherever you are- I’ve been there. Don’t ever think you are too far gone or there’s no hope for you financially. You can always turn your “ship” around!
If you are on this site, you have already made a conscious decision to try to do the right thing for your family financially.  I started out in much the same way. After I became a “savings dork” I decided to put every penny of my savings towards my family’s debt.  As of today we have paid off over $84,000 in debt. That includes a $30,000 student loan, paying off a 2 year old mini van that was $23,000 and just over $31,000 in credit card debt.  I would urge all of you to set aside at least a portion of the money you save towards paying down or off your family’s debt. You will be amazed at how quickly your balances will shrink.  This will truly give your family a future, your marriage peace and you- a whole new stress free life!
My family is not debt free yet, but we are getting there. When we get debt free I plan on doing two things:
  1. Going to the Bahamas (paid for in cash).
  2. Coming home to a house that has electricity!

Karen blogs at Mommy Luvs 2 Save where she teaches you how to save money and get your family out of debt one day at a time!

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Guest Post: How To Make Your Cashier Love You

Posted: 07 Jul 2010 09:30 AM PDT

We all know how important it is to find the “right” cashier at the checkout lane. I am the worst, I literally walk in the store, scout out my options, and roam the aisles until the one I like is available (this is sometimes tough to do at my Publix, they’re usually chomping at the bit to help me!)

I hate to say it, but some folks in this world are just nicer than others, so obviously the same goes for cashiers. But I’ve found that most (definitely not all) will warm up to me with a few helpful tips.

* BE NICE TO THEM! Smile, make small talk, ask how their day is going (easy, right?)
* If someone is behind you and has just one or two items, let them go first. I’ve offered to do that many times and sometimes they would rather stay and watch my deals! But it’ll let the cashier know you’re not there to make them crazy, and the person behind you in line won’t go nuts. (I had my first grouchy person ever behind me in line last week. Bless her heart, I don’t think she could have sighed any louder and been any more miserable! My sweet cashier was totally on my side though and just kept scanning those coupons!)
* Let your cashier know you’ve got coupons. Some like the whole stack up front, some couldn’t care less how they get them. Let them know you’re excited about the deals!
* Save your rain check items or items that are free with a coupon until the end. That way they can easily give you the deduction for your rain check or free coupon because they’ll have the item right there with the coupon.
* Don’t use expired coupons. While Kroger and some drug stores will occasionally accept these, Publix will not. If you use one, they’re bound to question every coupon you’ve got. You want to let them know you’re totally fair, because some of them are looking for you to mess up!
* Clip the entire coupon! A reader just emailed me from Georgia and said that many cashiers are getting stuck with the entire printed sheet and they have to clip the coupons before turning them in. Really, is there another way to drive cashiers more crazy? We want them on our side! Keep scissors in your purse and you can even clip in the checkout line while they’re scanning your items (although I do recommend making sure you watch the prices while they’re scanning).
* Always, Always, ALWAYS be ethical with your coupon usage. The way you coupon sets the stage for yourself and other couponers, and it’s not worth sacrificing your integrity for a dollar. Go HERE to see more on Publix coupon acceptance policy and HERE to see more on coupon ethics (thanks Kim Saves!)
* If a coupon doesn’t work and you feel it’s legitimate, NICELY ask to see a manager. You might say something like “I thought the last time I was here you all took those, I just want to make sure so I’ll know for next time.” Or, if it’s not that big a deal, just let them know you don’t want to purchase the item (unless it’s something you really want!)
* If you’re buying something to donate, let them know that – they love it! Because I did the $100 challenge at our church, many of the cashiers at my store know I grab things to donate, so they like to see my finds! One night I was buying 15 boxes of potatoes (imagine that!) I was a little worried that they might limit how many deals I could get, so I just mentioned that I was buying some for our food pantry. It made them excited to see how cheaply I got them!
* When all else fails, figure out your favorite cashier’s schedule. There’s a guy at our store that we all LOVE (he’s really great – he even knows my name!) A friend of mine loves him too, so we’ve tried to figure out his schedule. We really need something more exciting to do than couponing, don’t we?

I really believe that as long as we treat our cashiers kindly and with respect, odds are they’ll do the same us. (I know there are some exceptions, but so far I’ve been pretty lucky!) Do you all have any other tips on buddying up with cashiers? I’d love to hear them!

Laurie blogs at Passionate Penny Pincher where she teaches you how to save money on the things you love the most!

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A review of the Britax Frontier 85 comination seat

Posted: 07 Jul 2010 09:00 AM PDT

Out of the mouths of babes.

Britax was so very gracious to let us review their new Frontier 85 combination seat. It is an updated version of their original Frontier combination seat released in 2008, which just happens to be the seat we were using and this one has replacing.

Let me start by saying that the Frontier is a harness-to-boost combination seat. It is a forward facing only seat and should be used only by children who meet the minimums for this seat and their state’s laws. You can review the instruction manual for the Frontier 85 here and your state laws here.

**Please remember that these are the bare minimums and should be used as a guideline as to the youngest/smallest you may forward face your child. Know that it is considered safe practice to keep your child in each step for as long as possible.

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends that a child be a minimum of 2 years old before forward facing. Britax respectfully applies the same age to their minimum requirements of the Frontier. For both the original Frontier and the Frontier 85, a child must be a minimum of 2 years, 25 pounds, and 30 inches tall to use the seat in harness mode.

For booster mode a child must be a minimum of 40 pounds and 42 inches tall, but no age limit is given. Again, it is considered best practice to keep them in the harness for as long as possible, and with a maximum harness capacity of 85 pounds, they should make well past the minimum requirements.

The original Frontier harnessed to 80lbs with roughly 18″ top slots.
Top slot height is important to know as in a forward facing seat you want the straps to be at or above the shoulders and the harness is considered outgrown when the shoulders go over the top slots, regardless of the child’s current weight.
The Frontier 85 was increased to harness to 85lbs with roughly 20″ top slots.
This is an awesome update, as this put the Frontier 85 as the current highest harnessing seat on the consumer market.

Britax has a wonderful interactive information page on the Frontier 85 here that includes videos, specs, customer reviews, installation videos, demos, and color options. I love Britax’s new interactive website. I feel like this gives parents the information they really need to make an informed decision.

Both the original Frontier and the new Frontier 85 share Britax’s TSIP wings on the headrest. You can read more about Britax’s TSIP here. I love the added protection, but more than that I love that they work well for pillows during a nap.

My 6 year old outgrew the harness in the original Frontier a few months ago, but she doesn’t sit properly in a booster, which means she is not yet safe to ride in its booster mode. I was excited to hear the Frontier 85 had new taller slots, and she now rides in it with a decent amount of growing room in harness mode.

I decided to recruit my 6 year old nephew to help with the review. Who best to give their opinion, than a child using the seat?

I asked him what he thought of the Frontier 85 over the original Frontier. This is what he had to say:

“I like the new cupholders. The new one isn’t as tight. I like that it is more room. It is more cooler and has bigger cupholders, instead of the ones you pull- it was kinda hard. I like cupholders and armrests and pillows. I love it! 10 out of 10.”

Obviously he likes the new cu pholder design. He feels like there was more room in the harness and in the seating area and he suggested other kids should buy it because it will keep them safer.

Some things I liked about the Frontier 85 over the original Frontier were:
*The cup-holders are now part of the shell and always available for the child. In the original Frontier they pulled out from the side and were difficult to use on a regular basis.
*The harness strap material is thicker, which seems to keep them from folding over on themselves, as well as there is now stitching that helps keep the buckles from getting lost. *The chest clip now has a graphic to show the proper positioning.
*The harness adjuster is now a Push Button instead of a Lift Lever. Which is awesome because my 6yo likes to loosen his own straps sometimes.
*The sitting area of the seat has been trimmed back to expose more room for the child. The lap-belt guides have been revised and streamlined with fixed armrests.
*The recline block now snaps into place, which makes moving the seat around a lot easier.

Some things I think might be considered cons:
*The weight and bulk of the seat. It weighs about 24lbs and is almost 30″ tall. It can be hard to get in the car and wouldn’t be a seat I would move around a lot, but I don’t plan on moving it once I get it in.
*The amount of installation options can be overwhelming to decide between. What is most important is using the one that installs the best in your specific vehicle.
*The recline block must be locked in the forward position for harness mode. This makes installation in bucketed seats a lot more difficult. And opposite of this, the recline block must be locked in the back position for booster mode.
*The fabric is a mesh that has a tendency to snag and stain. It can be difficult to clean, like most seats, it is not machine washable.

In conclusion, we already knew we liked the Frontier, but the Frontier 85 absolutely tops Britax’s seats for us. We really love the updates. Britax has always stood behind their products for us, I really recommend them and their products. I especially recommend the new Frontier 85 for parents with children old enough to forward face.

Britax provided me with a Frontier 85 car seat to use. But my words and opinions are my own.

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Cheesecake Factory – $1.50 slices on the 29th and 30th!

Posted: 07 Jul 2010 08:30 AM PDT

Yum this is a GREAT deal!  I love cheesecake and I love Reeces…  Head on over to Facebook and “Like” The Cheesecake Factory! On July 29th, all “Likers” will get a slice of the new Reece’s Peanut Butter Chocolate Cake Cheesecake for only $1.50 with invitation!
And on July 30th, everyone gets a slice of cheesecake of their choice for $1.50! You must dine in for this offer, so be planning on that!

(Thanks My DFW Mommy and The Combat Clippers!)

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Bloggers: Link up your grocery store deals!

Posted: 07 Jul 2010 08:00 AM PDT

Bloggers: It’s link up your grocery store deals! You can link up as many grocery stores as you cover. Just word it like this: blog name – title of store.

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Facebook: Get a free greeting card from fidipidi!

Posted: 07 Jul 2010 07:30 AM PDT

With fidipidi™, you can create actual personalized, paper greeting cards right in Facebook for $3.99. You get your first card for FREE with code: 1stCardFree

They come in an envelope with a stamp and everything. Just download the fidipidi™ app (for FREE!), then design your card. Either choose a greeting card template or pick from the library of cards. Then personalize your card by adding photos from facebook or your computer. You can write your own sentiment or choose from their message catalog. Then fidipidi™ will take your online work and turn it into a touch-it, feel-it printed card, stamp it, and mail it.

So make sure you click over to fidipidi™ and get your free card today!

(Thanks My DFW Mommy!)

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What’s for dinner tonight?

Posted: 07 Jul 2010 07:00 AM PDT

What are you cooking for dinner tonight?

We are grilling out steaks for dinner. Doesn’t that sound delicious?

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Toys R Us introduces a Christmas Club!

Posted: 07 Jul 2010 06:30 AM PDT

Yesterday my friend Courtney was in Toys R Us and saw a pamphlet on their Christmas Club.
Here are the details:
*From now until October 16th, put any amount of money onto the card. Essentially it is just like a re-loadable gift card – but you cannot use it now.
*On October 16th, Toys R Us will add 3% of your total to the balance (so a $100 balance will have $3 added)
*Anytime from October 31st on you can spend the money on the card!

Also don’t forget to use your Rewards R Us card!

(Thanks My DFW Mommy!)

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Disney Movie Rewards: Donate up to 20 DVDs to a child in need!

Posted: 07 Jul 2010 06:00 AM PDT

Disney Movie Rewards is donating a Disney DVD to Gifts in Kind International when you donate 100 points. They are also matching your donating with a second DVD! And you can donate up to a total of 1,000 points or a total of 20 Disney DVDs! What a nice program!

Here are few bonus codes you might want to enter into your Disney Movie Rewards account if you haven’t already done so (to check if you have used these codes, look beneath the My Points box where it tells you My Recent Codes. Click on view all recent codes to make sure you haven’t used these. Don’t want you accidentally locking your account.

XI38VM994P – 5 points
9EKSMN38SH – 50 points
E9V03JA393 – 5 points
FPSNN83JX9 – 50 points

Let me know if any of those don’t work for you!

(Thanks Good Deal Mama!)

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Day 7 of No Dining July

Posted: 07 Jul 2010 05:00 AM PDT

Can you go an entire month without going out to eat? What about a week or a day? Can you cut your dining bill by 20%, 50% , 75% or more? That is what I challenge you to do!

At the end of the 30 days, I will choose one winner who will get $50 to spend at a restaurant(s) of their choice!

The rules:

1. You must challenge yourself. Try to spend less than you spend now. If you don’t go out to eat at all, challenge yourself to try new meals this month. As long as you are challenging yourself when it comes to your family’s eating habits, you can participate!
2. You must comment on at least 10 days worth of the discussion posts in order to be eligible to win the gift card.
3. The winner will be chosen at random. It won’t matter if you have been 100% successful or not.
4. You are allowed 1 freebie meal that you don’t have to count or report back to us about. Please report on everything else though so we can encourage and support one another!
5. Free meals do not count against you. This is a challenge to spend less money going out to eat than you usually spend. If someone else is paying for the meal or you have a coupon to make it free, great!
6. Here is a thought… consider keeping a tally of what you would of spent this month. For example, if you really want to go out for breakfast this morning and you resist… write that down! You could then donate that money to a food bank or deposit it into your fund!
7. Be sure to check out our list of casserole recipes here and the crock pot recipes here and the under 6 ingredient recipes here and the what’s for dinner posts here.

My progress:

No dining out for us yesterday!

How are you doing?

Leave a comment and let me know!

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Best Deal Magazine – Parents for $3.64 and more!

Posted: 07 Jul 2010 05:00 AM PDT

Best Deals Magazine’s deal of the day is one year of Parents for $3.65 when you use the code PXCJ711 at check out!

Plus both Fitness and Marie Claire are just $3.75 for a year subscription when you enter the code WKLYSPEC at check out.

You can also get Wine Enthusiast for $8.99 for a 1 year subscription when you enter the code WINE at check out.

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Disney photo of the day

Posted: 06 Jul 2010 07:38 PM PDT

Emily is a castle display in Downtown Disney.

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Let’s Clean The House – 8 pm check in

Posted: 06 Jul 2010 07:30 PM PDT

By 8 pm:

  • Cleaned up kitchen after dinner
  • Loaded Dishwasher
  • Prepared lunches for the next day
  • Emptied Trash Can

So who got everything done? My husband was off today and he’s a neat freak and well… my house is clean thanks to him!

You can see the master cleaning list here.

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Get a free 5×7 and a free collage from Rite Aid!

Posted: 06 Jul 2010 05:30 PM PDT

In addition to the free collage that I told you that you could get from Rite Aid earlier today, you can also get a free 5×7!

To get the 5×7:

  1. Go here
  2. Under "Prints", click "login" or "register"
  3. Click "Shop Now" (blue button)
  4. Upload or select your photos
  5. Click "Days: Get It In Days" (over to the left)
  6. Click "Days – Prints”
  7. Select 5×7 print
  8. Select your store and enter code FREE5x7JN
  9. And that's it!

To get the free collage:

  1. Go here
  2. Under "Prints", click "login" or "register"
  3. Click "Shop Now" (blue button)
  4. Upload or select your photos
  5. Click "Days: Get It In Days" (over to the left)
  6. Click "Specialty Prints", then "Collage Prints"
  7. Select 8×10 collage, choose your format, etc
  8. Select your store, enter code FREECOLLAGE
  9. And that's it!

(Thanks Jennifer for the heads up about the 5×7!)

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Let’s Save Some Money – Shopping at the thrift store

Posted: 06 Jul 2010 04:25 PM PDT

Saving money….. now there’s a topic we all love. Most of you are here reading my blog because you want to save more money. We save at the grocery store and we save at the drug store. But there are lots of ways we could be saving and stretching our dollar……

Do you have a good thrift store in your area? We do! It’s called America’s Thrift Store and there are 2 within 20 minutes of my house that I absolutely love! I went to one of them today with my Mother-In-Law and the deals we got were amazing! We got my nephew 2 pairs of jeans (Gap and Levi), 3 pairs of pants, 5 shirts, 1 hoodie and we got my daughter 8 long sleeved shirts and 3 dresses and it was $54! And they were all brand names! I am thrilled about his clothes because teenager clothes are expensive. These clothes are stain free, tear free and barely look like they have been worn! The most we paid for an item was $4 and we got a bunch under $1!

So do you have an awesome thrift store and if so, what is the best deal you have gotten there?

Ours is our Kincaid Armoire that we gave $75 for. It retails for over $1000 and didn’t have a scratch on it!

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The winners of the giveaways from July 1st and July 2nd!

Posted: 06 Jul 2010 04:14 PM PDT

Here are the winners of the giveaways ran on the blog on July 1st and July 2nd. Everyone should of just received an email from me! Make sure you check your email! Congrats to all the winners!

There were 2400 comments on the blog on July 1st!

The winners of the $10 Starbucks gift cards:

hurricanefnc@
angelflake@
middletonsb@
deweybound@
Yeatman1204@

The winner of the $100 for their Disney fund:

nativesfgirl2004@

Is Emailing Companies Worth It? – 185 entries

jennay1111@

Sams Club Gift Pack – 314 entries

jennd811@

Shrek Prize Pack – 510 entries

candace.chesnut@

Tinker Bell MP3 player – 189 entries

katehamernik@

$25 Disney Gift Card – 242 entries

cnelson@

Amway Intro Pack – 333 entries

marishajean@

Monogrammed Disney Tote – 227 entries

sunniewoodyplus2@

Jelly Jar Bows – 116 entries

meinezweijungen@

Smart Rents 3 month membership – 42 entries

rocknrod@
tchauvin@
heatherprose@

Coupon Clutch – 519 entries

susanmv@

Disney Bank – 345 entries

mommysaves@

Disney Budget Book – 343 entries

zamoras04@

$20 Walmart Gift Card – 455 entries

aporter717@

No Dining June Challenge –

knboggs@
We did great this month, and doing the challenge really helped me resist some of those times where it would have been easier to just grab fast food on the run. In recent months our dining out has been $100+. Our total for June is officially $51.81. Yay!! Down by about 50%, and that includes Father's Day and my husband's birthday (we went out, but used coupons, for both, lol). I'm definitely on board again for July :)

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Time for some childhood magic!

Posted: 06 Jul 2010 03:45 PM PDT

30 minutes a day is all it takes. Getting creative and finding something unique to experience will your children every day. I just got a subscription to Family Fun magazine, plus I have a lot of activity books to do with the kids. So every day, you’ll find a post here about something big or small that I did to make my children’s childhood magical. After all, isn’t that what Disney is all about?

Today my husband took the kids bowling for the very first time! They spent 3 hours at the bowling alley and apparently had a blast. This was their first time and they are hooked! I didn’t get to go with them (I had to run errands with my mother-in-law), but I plan to go next week!

What did you do with your kids today?

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12 A Day in 31 Days!

Posted: 06 Jul 2010 03:27 PM PDT

Over the past year we have emailed 360 companies with the 5 a Day program. That’s a huge accomplishment! But I know a lot of my readers are new to this program and eager to follow along.

As most of you know, my mother in law just moved to town and she is eager to give this a try. So for the next 31 days, we will be emailing 12 companies a day off the spreadsheet. This is in addition to the regular 5 a Day that I will be posting! By the end of a month, you will have a mailbox full of awesome coupons and be ahead of the game!

So who’s with me?

Today we are emailing #37 to #48 on the spreadsheet. If you need ideas on what to write or not quite sure what this is all about, be sure to read this.

Post here when you are done!

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5 A Day 7.6.10

Posted: 06 Jul 2010 03:25 PM PDT

Photobucket

You can check out the 5 A Day Mail Campaign details here and keep track our progress on the awesome new spreadsheet!

1. Ocean Spray

2. Hungry Jack

3. Woolite

4. Purex

5. Stroehmann

Remember you can catch up on all the previous 5 A Day’s here!

Be sure to leave a comment when you are finished!

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Rewards Program Update 7.6.10

Posted: 06 Jul 2010 03:20 PM PDT

One of the biggest ways I earn money for our trip is by using rewards companies like survey companies and companies that pay you to click on links in emails. It won’t make you rich, but you can average $20-$75 a month by doing them.

I suggest you make an alternate email address to use for these companies. That way they don’t get mixed in with your everyday emails. I mainly do the click sites while I am watching TV or chatting on the phone. Good luck!

Grand total: $17.46  in 5.5 hours or $3.17 an hour.
I almost didn’t post this because it’s pretty bad, but I wanted everyone to see that even I have times when I don’t make much from the survey companies.

Ispos I-Say – Each point is equivalent to 1 cent. You need at least 1000 points to get a $10 in cash!
Suvey’s taken:  50 points – 2 min; 10 pts – 1 min; 90 pts – 30 min; 10 pts – 1 min; 20 points – 2 min; 10 pts – 1 min; 90 pts — 22 min; 90 pts – 20 min (follow up for laundry detergent they sent me! 2 full bottles!)
Total: 370 pts in 79 minutes or $3.70 (laundry detergent was worth at least $10 though!)

LightspeedEach point equivalent to 0.008c . You need 575 pts to receive a $5 Paypal payment. All surveys are 75 pts or more.
Suvey’s taken: 75 pts – 25 min;
Total: 75 pts in 25 minutes or 60 cents.

Mindfield - Surveys are in $ amounts. You need $5 or more to receive a Paypal payment.
Suvey’s taken:  Didn’t qualify for any this time
Total:

My Points – Click on links in emails for points. Pays in gift cards. Over 70 to choose from. One is $10 CVS for 1450 pts. Each point is worth 0.006c. Each email is equivalent to 3.5c each. You just click!
Balance: 1202 points since 1/24. Only click on emails.

My Survey – Each point equivalent to 0.008c.
Suvey’s taken: 35 pts – 13 min; 10 pts – 6 min; 65 pts – 32 min;
Total: 100 pts in 45 minutes or 36 cents

Opinion Outpost – Each point is worth 10c. You need 50 points to qualify for a $5 payment.
Suvey’s taken: 1 pt – 1 min; 28 pts – 30 min
Total: 29 pts in 31 minutes or $2.90!

Reward Port – Click on links in emails. You need 4500 to get $10 to Amazon. Each point is worth 0.002.
Balance: 488 points since 6/18.

Send Earnings – Click on links in emails. You need a $30 balance to receive payment. Receive $5 sign up bonus.
Balance: $19.98 (Joined 7/23. Have not done consistently and do not do anything but click on email links)

Survey Head - Pays in cash amounts. You need $25 to cash out. You get a $5 bonus for joining.
Suvey’s taken: $1 – 20 min; $1 – 15 min; $1 – 25 min; 50c – 10 min; $2 – 15 min
Screeners:
Total: $5.10 in 85 minutes

Survey Savvy - Pays in cash amounts.
Suvey’s taken:
Total:

Valued Opinions - Pays in cash.
Suvey’s taken: $3 – 35 minutes
Screeners:
Total: $3 in 35 minutes

Toluna – Pays in cash. 3,000 points = $1
Suvey’s taken: 1200 pts – 10 min; 3000 pts – 13 min; 1200 pts – 10 min
Total: 5400 pts in 33 min or $1.80

*A screener is when they ask you questions to see if you qualify for the paid survey.

See my previous Rewards Program Updates here.

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Disney introduces payment plan for Florida residents

Posted: 06 Jul 2010 02:35 PM PDT

My Florida residents have probably heard about this deal by now, but I completely forgot to post it!

Disney has introduced a payment plan for their Florida Annual Passes. You will be required to pay the equivalent of one day admission when you purchase the annual pass (that’s $79 for adults) and then you can pay the remainder each month! It sure beats dropping over $1,000 at once!

You can use this payment plan for the variety of Florida passes they offer. Get more details on Disney’s site. Plus don’t forget that being a passholder entitles you to varies discounts on food, merchandise, events, hotel and more throughout the year!

(Thanks for the reminder Angela!)

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*Hot* Bowling Coupons for AMF Bowling Centers!

Posted: 06 Jul 2010 02:35 PM PDT

AMF Bowling Centers just released some hot coupons that you might want to print now! (They didn’t last long the last time….)

Unfortunately there isn’t an AMF Bowling Center in the Birmingham, AL area, but be sure to check and see if there is one near you! The kids went bowling for the first time today and had a blast!

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Entertainment Book on sale for $7.99 plus cash back!

Posted: 06 Jul 2010 02:26 PM PDT

This week all of the Entertainment Books are on sale for $7.99 each! (The coupons in them expire November 1st.) Shipping is just $1!

But the deal gets even better with the cash back offers! Just sign up/log in to one of the ones below and search Entertainment Book:

Ebates offers 25% cash back and if you are new member you will get a $5 bonus! That makes the final cost of this book just $1.74 shipped after the cash back!

Shop at Home also offers 25% cash back and if you are new member you will get a $5 bonus! That makes the final cost of this book just $1.74 shipped after the cash back!

So if you haven’t signed up for one of those cash back sites (I have been paid for by both before), you might be able to score a really great deal on these books!

(Thanks MoJo Savings!)

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Get Deceptively Delicious from Kohl’s for $5.99 shipped!

Posted: 06 Jul 2010 02:20 PM PDT

One of the new Kohl’s Cares for Kids items is the Deceptively Delicious cookbook for just $5 (plus 99c shipping!). I bought this cookbook when it first came out (gave $17 for it!) and it’s awesome! I love sneaking fruits and vegetables into my kids foods.I also have the Sneaky Chef books as well.

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Kohl’s Cares for Kids now has Pooh items for $5!

Posted: 06 Jul 2010 02:00 PM PDT

The new Kohl’s Cares for Kids featured items are Winnie the Pooh characters and books for just $5 each! They also ship for just 99c each. Or you can find them in the stores by the registers.

100% of the net profit from the sale of Kohl’s Cares for Kids items support kids’ health and education initiatives in communities nationwide!

(Thanks Danni!)

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What do you notice on Ali’s dress?

Posted: 06 Jul 2010 01:38 PM PDT

(Thanks Robin!)

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Free Ben & Jerrys when you sign up to volunteer!

Posted: 06 Jul 2010 01:34 PM PDT

Target and Ben & Jerry’s are giving away a coupon for a FREE ice cream at Target when you sign up to volunteer for one of the select opportunities. You can also pass on the free ice cream coupons to up to 5 friends! What a nice thing for them to do!

This offer is good until 12-31-10!

(Thanks Miami Mommy Savings!)

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Publix 7.7 to 7.13 (14 under $1!)

Posted: 06 Jul 2010 01:24 PM PDT

Photobucket

Just getting started? Read this guide here!

Publix doubles coupons up to 50c every day! This listing takes into account the doubled coupon amount.

Warning: If you live in Florida, your coupons don’t double. Also your BOGOs ring up full price and zero instead of half price like in the rest of the states. If you don’t live in Florida, all the deals on this post will work for you exactly as I have it listed. Also Florida sales run Thursday to Wednesday. Visit The Prudent Patron’s under $1 list for stores that do not double.

These are the hot deals that are under $1. Please visit I Heart Publix to find the complete ad match up. I am only listing the items that less than $1 (or are such a great deal I don’t want you to miss them).

Musselman’s Apple Sauce, Chunky or Natural 23 – 24 oz jar — B1G1 @ $1.89 or 95c ea
Use 75c/1 from the Publix Smart Savings Booklet
Total: 20c ea

Ziploc Bags 8 to 25 ct — 2/$4
Use 40c/1 from 5/16 SS (exp 7/10) plus use the $1 Target printable
Total: 20c ea

Yoplait YoPlus Yogurt 4 pack 4 oz — B1G1 @ $2.50 or $1.25 ea
Use 50c/1 printable Coupons.com, Smartsource.com
Total: 25c ea

Glass Plus Glass & Multi Surface Cleaner 32 oz — B1G1 @ $2.49 or $1.25 ea
Use $1 printable
Total: 25c

Suave Hair Care Products 4 to 15 oz or Body Wash 12 oz — $1.39
Use 50c/1 Natural Body Wash
Total: 39c ea

Propel Water Beverage Mix, or Powder Packets, or Gatorade Thirst Quencher or G2 Gatorade Powder Packs, 8 or 10 ct box — B1G1 @ $2.99 or $1.50 ea
Use $1 Propel printable
Total: 50c ea

Luigi’s Italian Ice 24 – 36 oz — B1G1 @ $2.99 or $1.50 ea
Use 50c/1 from 5/2, 5/15 or 6/27 RP
Total: 50c ea

Barilla Plus Multigrain Pasta, Assorted Varieties, 14.5 oz box — B1G1 @ $2.19 or $1.10 each
Use $1/2 printable (click on coupons)
Total: 60c ea

Egg Beaters 15 or 16 oz carton — 3/$5
Use $1 from June All You
Total: 66c ea

Nature’s Own Bread 100% Whole Wheat 20 oz — B1G1 @ $2.85 or $1.43 ea
Use 75c printable
Total: 68c ea

Simply Potatoes, Homestyle Slices, Shredded or Southwest Style Hash Browns, Diced Potatoes With Onion or Red Potato Wedges, 20 oz bag — B1G1 @ $2.50 or $1.25 ea
Use $1/2 from the Publix Smart Saving Booklet
Total: 75c ea

Uncle Ben’s Ready Rice 8.5 – 8.8 oz — $1.25 ea
Use 75c/2 printable
Total: 88c ea

Red Rose Tea Bags, Original, 100 ct box — B1G1 @ $3.39 or $1.70
Use 75c from 6/20 SS
Total: 95c ea

Ocean Spray 100% Cranberry Juice Blends or 100% Fruit & Veggies Juice Blends, Assorted Varieties, 64-oz bottle — B1G1 @ $3.99 or $2 each
Use $1 printable or $1 from 5/2 RP
Total: $1 ea

Yellow Flyer 6/26 – 7/16

Nesquik Singles — 10/$10 or $1 ea
Use .50/1 from 5/2 SS
Total: Free!

Better than Eggs or All Whites — $2 ea
Use (2) $1 from 6/6 RP and B1G1 from the yellow flyer
Total: 2 for free!

Emerald Trail Mix 5.5 oz — 2 for $2
Use $1 from 6/27 RP
Total: Free!

Kraft Sandwich Shop Chipotle 12 oz mayo — $1.99
Use $1 from 6/13 SS and $1 from Publix flyer
Total: Free!

Fage Authentic Greek Yogurt 5.3 to 7 oz, — 4/$5 or $1.25 ea
Use .50/1 from Add Dairy To Your Summer Booklet or .50/1 Printable
Total: 25c

House Autry Seasoned Fish or Chicken Fry 11 to 12 oz — 2/$3 or $1.50 ea
Use .50/1 from 5/9 SS or50c printable
Total: 50c

Van Camp’s Pork and Beans — 4/$3 or 75c ea
Use .30/3 from 5/16 SS
Total: 55c

Lindsay Pitted Ripe Olives 6 oz — 3/$5 or $1.67 ea
Use $1/1 printable
Total: 67c

The Goodlife Recipe Cat Snacks 3 oz — 3/$5 or $1.67 ea
Use $1/1 pritnable
Total: 67c

Lindsay Re-closeable Italian or Large Pitted Olives 6.5 oz — 2/$4 or $2 ea
Use $1/1 from 5/2 RP or $1 printable
Total: $1

Tornados 8.4 oz — 2/$4 or $2 ea
Use $1/1 from 5/9 SS
Total: $1 ea

Green Flyer 6/12/ – 7/2

See the full ad here.

More Deals:

Lea & Perrins 5 oz — $1.99
Use $2 from 6/27 SS
Total: Free!

Do you cover Publix on your blog? If so, link it up here:

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Guest Post: Making the most of a vacation in San Diego

Posted: 06 Jul 2010 10:30 AM PDT

If you plan on vacationing in San Diego or live in the town and need more to do, here are a few tips from my friend San Diego Deals and Steals!

I thought I should put together a list of some great money saving options for anyone who is planning on vacationing or staycationing in San Diego!  I will attempt to make this brief…

* Start off with an Entertainment book – but wait! FIRST go through Ebates to get an additional 25% off!  These books are so deeply discounted by the time summer comes around – you could use it one time and it will more than pay for itself! everything from amusement parks to dinner to dry cleaning to mail in rebates for your hotel!

*So Cal City Pass – if you want to hit all the major themeparks in So Cal – this is a great way to do it *side note* see my previous blog post on city pass – if you live here you may want to upgrade some of those already  one day admissions to year passes for little or NO cost!

*FREE museum days! Check and see if the museums you are interested have FREE days – the following do…Active Military? – you are in lucky – you and your family can attend several museums all over the US (TONS here in San Diego) for free until Labor day!
SD Botanical Gardens is free every 1st Tuesday
California Surf Museum is free every Thursday
Balboa Park has several free museums EVERY Tuesday!
The Escondido Performing Arts Center hosts a free concert every 1st Wednesday
The New Children’s Museum is FREE every second Sunday
*special note* check your local library to see if they have added free museum passes – ours in San Marcos just did – yay! if you are a SD resident you can take advantage of ‘borrowing’ a ticket to see several museums and aquariums for free!

You can read even more tips here.

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