Month: May 2025

2025- Summer Movies for Kids on the Cheap!

Abby H.1 Comment

One of the kid’s favorite summer activities is to hit up the local theater for a showing of one of their favorite movies.

Big buckets of popcorn, snuck in candy (shhhh), and a drink and they are ready for 2 hours of fun in the Air Conditioning.

AMC Theatres is bringing back Summer Movie Camp starting 6/23/25. Tickets are just $3.oo/each at the box office!

 Summer Movie Clubhouse at Cinemark starts June 2, 2025. Bring the kids and enjoy exciting family-friendly big-screen entertainment for just $1.75 (plus taxes) per ticket for each movie.

Lots of smaller theatre chains have also joined this bandwagon! Marcus Theatres, MegaPlex, Epic Theatres are just a few. These theatres do not have locations in California

Theatre chains that have not published their schedules yet, but in the past have had family/kids movies in the summer:

Reading Cinemas usually has the Reel Kids program, with ticket prices reduced to $2/ticket!

Regal Summer Movie Express usually offers tickets for $2 on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, featuring summer movies the whole family will enjoy.

UltraStar Cinemas doesn’t have anything posted yet, but they do offer discounts on tickets and popcorn on Thursdays year-round.

Talk Back: What summer movies are you looking forward to seeing?

Saving on Summer fun with Tweens and Teens with Groupon!

Abby H.1 Comment

We’ve got less than 30 school days left, and the kids are already asking what we’re doing this summer.

In the past I’ve written posts about free stuff to do in San Diego over the summer, and I’ll have one up later this week, but Tweens and Tweens sometimes are “too big/too cool” for the splashpads at parks, or don’t want to go to the library for craft events.

I headed over to Groupon this morning to see what I could find that might appeal to my posse.

If you are looking for different activities, new restaurants to try, or maybe even a massage, check out Groupon. They have all sorts of cool deals available!

Mending Clothes to Save Money: The Tiny Holes

Abby H.

Mending clothes is a simple way to save money. Knowing a few stitches is a good skill. In a previous post, I wrote in 2018, I discussed what to have a basic sewing kit and how to repair a hole in the back pocket of a pair of jeans using a commercially available denim patch.

Today we will be discussing mending tiny holes in clothes. These are tiny holes that can be caused by catching on jewelry, work badges, or lanyards, or clothes rubbing together in an overloaded washing machine or dryer.

Zippers, buttons, and other clothing fasteners can cause holes to form and clothes when they rub on fabrics in the washer or dryer. This is why it’s important when you put your clothes into the washing machine that you button, zip, or otherwise fasten your clothes shut before washing them. Cleaning out pockets can help too- especially if you have a rock collector in your family (I do with mine).

Things like bras or clothing that has sharp edges like rhinestones or beads should be washed either by hand, or put into lingerie bags. Remember to clasp up your bra so the hooks do not snag on anything- even in a lingerie bag.

Clothing moths, or carpet beetles, can also nibble holes and clothing. They prefer natural fibers like wool, rayon or ramie, cotton, bamboo, or tencel.

Perfect type of rip/tear for a satin stitch

Tiny holes can be mended with a satin stitch. A satin stitch is a close back-and-forth stitch over the hole with the stitches close together.

Longer tears or rips along the seam are best secured with the back stitch. It is a very secure stitch, and very easy to do. There is a great tutorial on YouTube from Sewn Company here.

I spent about an hour a month mending clothes. Between kids, being kids, and the fact that I get the majority of my own clothes secondhand, and therefore don’t know the exact age of them, it is not uncommon for me to wear holes in elbows of sweaters, or in pockets. I do spend a lot of time mending pockets.

One thing I do not mend is socks. Socks are inexpensive enough that when they develop holes, they become rags for dusting, or cleaning up spills. When T-shirts become too holy, they also become rags for cleaning up, spills in the kitchen, or wiping off counters, or cleaning the bathroom mirrors.

5/3/25 PRC Research Study Round Up!

Abby H.

PRC aka iOpinion is a nationwide research study company. They are always running studies and looking for more respondents. They email me once a week about the online studies they are looking to fill.

Topic: Baby Food
Who: Adults aged 18 and older who have a child aged 1- 3.
Format: Online Interview (webcam required)
Date of the study: May 1-9, 2025
Duration: The group will last 45 minutes
Pays: $150

If you are interested in participating, complete the intake survey here. If you pre-qualify, a recruiter from PRC will contact you via phone.

 

Topic: Shopping Habits
Who: Adults aged 18 and older.
Format: Online Interview (webcam required)
Date of the study: May 8, 2025
Duration: The group will last 45 minutes
Pays: $100

If you are interested in participating, complete the intake survey here. If you pre-qualify, a recruiter from PRC will contact you via phone.

 

Topic: Diagnosed Health Conditions-May 2025
Who: Adults aged 18-75 with specific health conditions. ***Must provide proof of health conditions.***
Format: Online Individual Interview
Date of the study: May 15-23, 2025
Duration: The group will last 60 minutes (plus 15 15-minute early check-in)
Pays: $125

If you are interested in participating, complete the intake survey here. If you pre-qualify, a recruiter from PRC will contact you via phone.

 

Topic: Fast Food
Who: Aadults aged 18-65.
Format: Online Bulletin Board
Date of the study: May 15 – June 5, 2025
Duration: The online bulletin board will last 4 hours total
Pays: $500 (must complete all required activities)

If you are interested in participating, complete the intake survey here. If you pre-qualify, a recruiter from PRC will contact you via phone.

 

Topic: Personal Purchases
Who: Adults aged 18-66.
Format: Online Individual Session
Date of the Study: May 19-20, 2025
Duration: The session will last 60 minutes
Incentive: $150

If you are interested in participating, complete the intake survey here. If you pre-qualify, a recruiter from PRC will contact you via phone.

 

Topic: Insects
Who: US residents nationwide, aged 18 and older.
Format: Online Bulletin Board
Date of the study: April 28 – May 7, 2025
Duration: The online bulletin board will last 10 days, 10-15 minutes each day
Incentive: $175

If you are interested in participating, complete the intake survey here. If you pre-qualify, a recruiter from PRC will contact you via phone.

 

Topic: Kid’s TV Shows
Who: Adults aged 18 and older.
Format: Online Focus Group
Date of the study: May 1-9, 2025
Duration: The interview will last 90 minutes
Incentive: $150

If you are interested in participating, complete the intake survey here. If you pre-qualify, a recruiter from PRC will contact you via phone.

 

Topic: Paint
Who: Adults 18 and older.
Format: Online Bulletin Board (OLBB – everyone) and Online Focus Group (some will be chosen from the online bulletin board)
Date of the study: May 7th – June 5th, 2025
Duration Online Bulletin Board: The online bulletin board will last 75 minutes over 2 days.
Duration Online Focus Group: The online focus group will last 75 minutes (if chosen).
Incentive for Online Bulletin Board: $400 for Architects, $300 for Designers, $225 for Painters/Construction Related/Remodelers/Handyman, $150 for Consumers
Incentive for Online Focus Group: $450 for Architects, $350 for Designers, $275 for Painters/Construction Related/Remodelers/Handyman, $125 for Consumers

If you are interested in participating, complete the intake survey here. If you pre-qualify, a recruiter from PRC will contact you via phone.

 

Topic: Personal Care Products
Who: Adults aged 18 and older.
Format: Product Test + Online Activities
Date of the study: May 19-22, 2025
Duration: The product test will last 4 days + 60 minutes of online activities
Pays: $200

If you are interested in participating, complete the intake survey here. If you pre-qualify, a recruiter from PRC will contact you via phone.

 

A few notes about PRC:

  • It is recommended to use the web browsers Google Chrome or Firefox to complete the pre-qualification survey.
  • Only one participant per household.
  • Our surveys are open to U.S. Residents.
  • Incentives are paid via Digital Incentive unless otherwise stated.
  • To participate in any study that requires a webcam, please use a laptop or desktop computer ONLY—No smartphones or tablets.
  • If you use ChatGPT or any other AI assistance for your responses/feedback during any of the research projects, please keep in mind that you will not receive compensation and will be removed from the database.
  • If you pre-qualify, a PRC Global Market Research recruiter will contact you via phone.
  • Due to the many survey responses, PRC can only contact those who seem to fit well.

Weekly Reset- Preparing for the week ahead (family edition)

Abby H.1 Comment

This is by no means a comprehensive list of everything I do each weekend to reset, but it does hit all the major points.

On Saturdays, I do the weekend prep for the week ahead. This includes the following:

Laundry. I try to do a few loads of laundry during the week so that it doesn’t pile up, but Saturday is my day to fold clean clothes, hang things up, and make sure everything gets put away. And mate socks. I usually listen to a podcast or watch something on my phone while I do this. I keep my eyes open for deals on laundry detergent. One of my favorite deals is the Buy one, get two free Arm and Hammer detergent deals that happen every 6-8 weeks or so at Walgreens. The deal starts again tomorrow, May 4, 2025.

Put outfits together. I started doing this about a year ago, and it saves me time every morning. I can just go into my closet, pull off an outfit off the hanger, and I will have a top and a bottom already to put on. My youngest picks out their clothing before bed every night, and my big kid does not care what he wears to school. So most of his clothes are mix and match athletic shorts or exercise pants, and a funny graphic shirt or a sweatshirt if it’s cold.

Clean out the fridge. I was up this morning before 7:30, and I reorganized the fridge and pulled out the food that was starting to look a little beyond its days. I prep the fruits and vegetables that may expire or go bad first. For me, that means roasting vegetables, making a fruit salad, or making applesauce if we have some apples that are starting to bruise or go soft. Applesauce is super easy to make and does not take that long at all. If you have a lot of apples, you can make it in the crockpot. My crockpot applesauce recipe can be found here.

Restock the lunch/snack bins. I keep two plastic bins in my pantry full of lunch components for the kids lunches.  I tend to buy snacks in bulk when they are on sale, and then stash the extras downstairs in the garage in a plastic tote so they don’t all get consumed quickly.  For us that includes: Granola bars, goldfish crackers, bags of popcorn, gogosqueez pouches, lunch-size bags of preferred chips, freeze-dried fruit, dried mangoes, crackers, beef jerky, and individual bags of cookies. 

Restock the drinks and the protein shakes. I have a premier protein premade protein shake every morning for breakfast with 20 ounces of cold brew. Every weekend, I go down to the garage, grab enough for the week, and stash them in the fridge.  I will also put drinks in the fridge if we have premade drinks (that does not happen very often), and more juice boxes/Arizona iced teas in the fridge for the kids’ lunches for the following week. I will usually also make a pitcher of lemonade.

I make a batch of cold brew. Previously, I used my French press, but that was taking a while, and it takes up a lot of room. So I started making bundles with oversized coffee filters and cotton twine, but that just made too much waste. So this weekend, I’m gonna make some cold brew filter bags that are reusable. I’ll be using muslin and cotton twine, and I am hoping to make several of them. You can also buy cold brew bags online.

Clean out the kids’ backpacks. Usually, they will do it themselves, but every once in a while, I peek in there and find piles of crumpled papers and broken pencils and other stuff. This also includes pulling out their lunchboxes and making sure that their school iPads are charging. Once a quarter or as needed, I will throw their backpacks and lunch bags into the washer. Nothing is worse than a stinky backpack/lunchbox.

I clean the bathrooms each weekend. This includes taking out the garbage, sweeping, cleaning the toilets, and spraying down the showers. 

Vacuuming and sweeping. My cousin gave me a Roomba recently, and Roomba is currently doing its thing in the living room. And it does a really good job, much better than the Shark iRobot we previously had. Also, this Roomba has the cat on high alert. She sits and supervises to make sure that none of her toys get sucked up. 

Changing the sheets. I changed the sheets every weekend. I usually do one bed on Friday, one bed on Saturday, and one bed on Sunday. And put the bedding in the washing machine as soon as I strip it off the bed, that way I don’t have that much more laundry to do. These are my favorite sheets from JCP. They are on sale frequently, and cotton sheets are great for warm or cool weather!

I’m sure you are asking: What do the kids do? The big kid takes the trash and recycling down. The smaller kid helps gather dirty cups/dishes and gets them ready to load into the dishwasher. They both help with laundry. They pick up their belongings, and they keep their rooms tidy.

5/3/25 Weekly Freebies and Deals

Abby H.

This weekend is starting off right! Getting housework done, blog posts written, and of course- drinking a big iced coffee!

I’ve updated my list of freebies for birthdays in 2025, which you can find here.

If you are looking for free food resources, my comprehensive list can be found here. It is focused on San Diego County, but additional resources are outside my area.

Let’s get onto the Freebies!!

FREE RESCUE! Pest Control Party Pack
FREE Bulgari Allegra Fragrance Samples
FREE Sample of Cesar Warm Bowls Dog Food
FREE Ionvac Hand Vacuum Cleaner at Walmart After Cash Back
FREE Sample of Redken Naked Gloss Lightweight Shine Oil
FREE Petmate Chuckit! at Walmart Chatterbuy Kit
FREE Craving Cheesecake Donut at Krispy Kreme
FREE Fragrance Samples from Macy’s
FREE Sample of Lunar Hot Sauce
FREE Chocolate Dipped Fruit Cone at Edible Arrangements
FREE Sample of Sheba Selections Filets Cat Food
FREE Sample of Erborian CC Creme
Unlock Your Wellness Journey with Free Nutrition Samples: Try Before You Buy
FREE Salonpas Lidocaine FLEX Patch Sample
FREE Pet Travel Water Bottle & Food Container
FREE Movie Ticket to Fight or Flight
FREE 4pk of Mother’s Day Greeting Cards & Poise Liners
FREE Sample of Blue Lizard Sensitive Mineral Sunscreen Lotion
FREE Sample of Carol’s Daughter Goddess Strength Curl Restoration Concentrate
FREE Sample of Narrow Gate Coffee
FREE Fiona Grey Beer Drunk Glory Days Koozie

 

Deals:

Kate Spade Leila Medium Crossbody ONLY $59 (Reg $299)
PROfit Handheld Massage Gun ONLY $34.99 (Reg $75)
NEW Smashburger Coupon! 50% Off Shakes Every Friday from 2–5pm
Save Up to 70% Off on Clearance Items at JCPenney – Prices From $1.99
SKIMS Discount Codes & Coupons: Up to 60% Off an Order of Panties, Bras and Shapewear

Freebies and Deals for Teacher Appreciation Week!

Abby H.

Teacher Appreciation Week starts on May 5th, 2025. It is always the first week in May.

This year, it seems there are a lot fewer straight-out freebies and more discounts and BOGOs. Most of them require downloading an app—keep this in mind and be prepared to do a little legwork. And have your staff badge with you to take advantage of these deals!

At the time this article is posted, many freebies and deals that were available in previous years have not yet been confirmed for 2025. Be aware that if you see other articles with information to double-check that they are confirmed for 2025. I spent a lot of time going down rabbit holes and ending up at dead ends.

My absolute favorite deal is one that you can combine with coupons, store deals, and rebates apps (like Ibotta, Fetch, etc.): Vons’s/Albertson’s is offering Teachers a discount of 10% off their groceries (exclusions apply), May 3-6. With the rise in grocery prices, this offer may be the most practical.

Join Sonic’s Teachers’ Circle via their app before May 5 to unlock a whole slew of freebies to use between May 5 and May 9. You’ll receive exclusive rewards like a BOGO Sonic Blasts, entrees, or cheeseburgers, free large drinks or slushies, and a free small side with an entrée purchase. This is a legit offer, and sometimes Sonic has other in app offer throughout the year for teachers too.

15% off at Michaels. This is another one that is valid all year. It’s perfect for all kinds of teachers. I love this because teachers need supplies all year, and Michaels has great deals. You can use this online and in-store. It takes a little bit to be verified, but it’s worth it!

Not a freebie for everyone, but if you like Chipotle, this one might be right up your alley.  Teachers who verify their employment status at teacherthanks.chipotle.com between April 30 and May 12 will be entered for a chance to receive a free entree e-card. Chipotle will choose 100,000 winners who will be notified the week of May 13.

Office Depot/Office Max: They offer Discounts and additional bonus offers when you sign up and verify your teaching status through their website.

Staples: Similar to Office Depot’s offer, Staples is offering 20% off in-store purchases with an app coupon and a teacher ID.

Apple: This is a great offer- Apple offers educators and support staff a discount on a new Mac or iPad through the Apple Education Store. To take advantage of this offer, verify your educator status to unlock the discounted pricing.

In past years, Starbucks, Chick-fil-A, Insomnia Cookies,  McDonald’s, and other restaurants have offered freebies or discounts for teachers with an ID. If you are looking for specific freebies, I recommend reaching out to brands or restaurants directly. For year-round discounts and offers, check out the NEA website.