apps

Is Part of Your 2019 New Years Resolution to Save Money?

Abby H.

file7251237401168.jpgDoesn’t everyone want to save money?

There is no better time to start than January 1st- New Year, New Start!

If you want to start the year off with a frugal mind, check out my posts below. I wrote most of them a few years ago, but all the advice/tips/tricks are still applicable.

Here are the top ten resolutions, and tips on how to make them all happen!

Resolution: #1 Make More Money!
Resolution #2: I want to save money!
Resolution #3- Live a richer, fuller life (without spending more money)
Resolution #4- Spend More Time with your Family (without breaking the bank)!
Resolution #5 & #6 Exercise & Lose Weight
Resolution #7: Get Organized
Resolution #8: Learn Something New
Resolution #9: Quit Smoking
Resolution #10: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

If you feel like you are too busy to “deal with” coupons:

6 Tips to Save Money WITHOUT Clipping Coupons!
How to save money without coupons: Part One- Meat!
How to save money without coupons: Part Two- Produce!
Simple Steps to Save at Target

I hope these tips and articles help!

 

Talk Back: How do you plan to save money in the new year?

Stretching your Food Budget….

Abby H.

ball_jar.jpgTimes are tough for a lot of us right now. Coupons and deals are drying up left and right. Here are some ways that you can stretch your grocery budget without wasting time or energy.

My Top Ten 99 Cents Only Buys

The eternal question at Costco: Is Bigger Better? Learn about Price Per Unit here. 

In addition to price per unit, you might consider starting a price book as well.

If you live in San Diego County, check out this list of Neighborhood Distributions all over the county. You can pick up 15-30 lbs of free produce each week. No proof of need is required. Just show up with your reusable grocery bags!

If you are low-income, have kids under 5, are a senior citizen, or a college student struggling with food insecurity, there are programs out there that can help you! Don’t be afraid or ashamed to admit that you need help!

There are also food share programs in almost every community in the US.  They provide low cost food boxes to families and individuals. A quick google search can help you find one near you!

In San Diego County, there are monthly distributions through the San Diego food bank at various locations. Colloquially called “commodities”, it’s officially called The Emergency Food Assistance Program (EFAP). Locations throughout the county distributes USDA food each month. If you live outside San Diego County, check with your local county or municipalities food bank network for more info on this service.

Don’t forget there are tons of money saving and rebate apps. My list is here.

Bartering: Most of us know someone with a backyard garden. Trade your skills (housecleaning, organizing, babysitting, car washing, you get the idea) for some home grown produce, or eggs (some of us live in areas where backyard livestock is ok).  This may not be available to everyone.

Menu Planning is another great way to cut down on food waste- It’s a lot easier than you think once you get started.

Talk Back: I’d love to hear your tips for stretching your grocery budget!

New Month, New Coupons!

Abby H.

Now that we’ve settled into July, it’s time to post about some of the new printable coupons! Last month I posted that the coupons weren’t that great. This month, they are slowly but surely getting better to ramp up for back to school.

file000786402730Here is your monthly reminder!  A new month means new printable and electronic coupons!

Check out the following sites:

One of my favorite website is the Sunday Coupon Review.  It helps me plot out scenarios in advance and I can email friends to ask for coupons in advance. Remember if clipping coupons isn’t your thing, but saving money is, check out my list of Smartphone apps that can save you the big bucks! New offers are added on the Smartphone Savings Apps all the time!

Here are just a few of the new coupons that have me excited:

Save $1.00 on any FOUR (4) WYLER'S LIGHT® Drink Mix Items - Includes Singles to Go, Canisters or Pitcher Packs
This coupon is great if you have a Dollar Tree location near you. These little boxes are $1.00 each and contain 8-10 packets. With this coupon, it’s like buy three, get one free!

 

Save $2.00 any ONE(1) CLEAN & CLEAR® product(excludes trial and travel sizes)
If you use this coupon, check your Target app to see if there is a cartwheel/savings deal in addition to this coupon- The best way to save money is to stack deals.


$1.00 OFF any ONE (1) Once Again Nut Butter ( 12 oz. or 16 oz.)
Perfect for Back To School Shopping, especially if your school is peanut-free or you have a peanut allergy in your home.

$1.00 OFF any TWO (2) flavors Lenny & Larry's The Complete Cookie 4 oz.

These cookies are so delicious.

 

 

And if you live in California, check out the CA Dairy Board’s website! Scroll all the way to the bottom of the page and look for this:

Screen Shot 2018-07-05 at 9.54.52 AM.png

You can print two coupons per computer, every thirty days. It’s a great way to save a little bit of money if you already purchase milk and other dairy products.

What coupons or deals are you excited about?

6 Tips for Combating the Mid-Year Frugal Slide

Abby H.

8517c9bb93cc1354d4320f323cf0afa6.jpg

It’s July, and for most of us, Our New Years Resolutions are a thing of the past. Mr. and I were talking today about ways we could reign in our budget. We’re not making it rain by any means, but… we could make a few changes. Here are my top ten tips, and trust me, I’ve already started incorporating some of these. I’ll have all of them back in the works by weeks’ end.

  1. Back to meal planning and sticking to it. No more trips to Denny’s when I am feeling lazy in the morning, or Mondays after group therapy.  That means I’ll be back to meal planning posts and new recipes too. And I’ll have several “back up dinners” on-hand in case the day gets away from me, or it’s too hot to cook the original meal. I took advantage of the sale on chicken breasts at Smart & Final the other day, and picked up 10 lbs. I came home and cut up the whole half breasts into more manageable sizes, and marinated some of it with different spices and put it in ziploc bags in the freezer. 10 lbs of chicken should get us 5 dinners, plus leftovers from each meal.
  2. Back to maintaining a robust snack bag in the car, refilling it daily, and remembering our water bottles when we leave the house. I fill our water bottles (we have these for the kids and these for the adults- in 40 oz) with water and ice before we leave in the AM and refill them as needed throughout the day in various places.
  3. In conjunction with #2, start taking surveys on receipts for deep discounts and free stuff again. I am Sonic’s text list, so when they have a daily deal that I have change in my car for, the kids and I stop for .50 ice cream cones, 1/2 price drinks (cherry limeade!). Frequently when you check out, there is a survey on the bottom of the receipt that will score you an XL (Route 44) size beverage for free! I really need to get back into stretching the buck.
  4. Check all my apps before I go shopping. I’ve been bad about this over the past few months. I’m sure I’ve missed out on Ibotta deals, Checkout 51 offers, and Cash Dash promos. No More! I’m back, baby!!
  5. Allowance. Yup, just like a teenager, I’m putting myself on an allowance, and Mr. is going to as well. I’m sticking to $40 in the summer, and $25 once we are back to school. This will just be for “fun money”. I still shop around for gas to stay within budget for gas each week. Costco is usually the cheapest.
  6. Keeping eyes open for cheap entertainment. Big Dude is in ESY (summer school) for the next few weeks, so a lot of the traditional summer things that are fun and cheap we haven’t been able to do (like Regal Summer Movies). We’ve mostly been doing fun stuff at the library, which is free, but I think we need to look beyond that. It’s starting to get too hot for park play dates!

I’d love to hear from you about how you combat the frugal slide. What do you do when you feel yourself slipping off your track?

New Month, New Coupons!

Abby H.

I’m a day late, I totally forgot it was the beginning of the month!

file000786402730Here is your monthly reminder!  A new month means new printable and electronic coupons!

Check out the following sites:

One of my favorite website is the Sunday Coupon Review.  It helps me plot out scenarios in advance and I can email friends to ask for coupons in advance. Remember if clipping coupons isn’t your thing, but saving money is, check out my list of Smartphone apps that can save you the big bucks! New offers are added on the Smartphone Savings Apps all the time!

Here are just a few of the new coupons that have me excited:

Save $0.50 when you buy ONE BOX Reese’s Puffs cereal
The kids love this cereal, esp. straight from the box.
Save $0.50 when you buy TWO any flavor/variety LÄRABAR™ bars

There aren’t too many new coupons this month, sadly, however, if you check out the Smartphone apps link above, you’ll find that there are plenty of ways to save and earn money. I recently cashed out $20 on Ibotta and $25 on Dosh!

New Dosh Promotion: Refer Friends, Get $15

Abby H.

In January, I introduced you to Dosh, a new Cashback app that you can use at tons of stores and restaurants all over.

I opened my email yesterday to discover this:

Screen Shot 2018-04-07 at 4.48.38 PM.png

Limited Time Promo: Get $15 for each friend you refer to Dosh who links a card and gets in-store cash back for the first time.*

Promo ends April 13th at 12pm CT, so start referring! Click for details.

So get Dosh-ing!  I now I’ll be saving my referral $$ to bankroll my next giveaway (Hint- it rhymes with Smamazon Smiftcard).

I’ve earned over $60 since January just by doing my normal shopping.

 

Ibotta: April is Referral Cash Match Month!!

Abby H.

Screen Shot 2018-04-05 at 7.58.15 AM.png

Ya’ll know I love a good Cash Back app, and Ibotta is pretty high on my list. In fact, prior to writing this post, I cashed out for $32.58. I had to share this latest promotion!

Screen Shot 2018-04-05 at 7.59.23 AM.pngApril is Referral Cash Match Month!
During April, get $5 for every friend who signs up with your code and redeems an offer AND we’ll match their cash back for you — whatever they earn this month, you’ll earn too! Sounds pretty sweet.

If you aren’t sure about all this Cash Back App stuff, check out my post here. But here is just an example of how you can earn money for stuff you usually buy:

Screen Shot 2018-04-05 at 8.01.45 AM.png

And this offer is available at over 50 stores (including Costco). There are also offers for fresh fruits and veggies, fresh meat, breads, shelf stable food, canned goods, frozen food. There are 75+ offers on the Ibotta App at any time.

 

Disclaimer: This post contains my referral link, and if you sign up and complete the offer, I’ll get the deal too. I use the money I earn from referrals on the blog to pay for hosting fees and giveaways- And also my weekly trip to Starbucks. You can check out my Disclosure for all of the deets.

Earn Cash back with Dosh!

Abby H.3 Comments

Screen Shot 2018-01-17 at 1.42.28 PM.pngI love a good cash back app.  Dosh is the latest, and it’s a little different than the others out there right now. Dosh is primarily for restaurants (including Denny’s, which is the kid’s favorite), but there are retailers like Hallmark, Forever 21, Cost Plus World Market, and Sam’s Club.

Signing up is easy, and there are no receipts to scan, or photos to take.  Sign up here, then link your credit and debit cards.  Once you use one of the cards at a participating retailer, you’ll get a push notification from Dosh, and in just a few days, you’ll have cash back!  The Cash Out threshold is $15.00 which is pretty easy to get.

Right now when you sign up and link at least two cards, you’ll get a $10 bonus!  Refer friends and receive $5 per referral that signs up and receives their first cash back!

Thanks to my kids and their love of Denny’s, plus all of the other great extra ways to earn money with the app, I’ve already cashed out $20!

Here is my pro-saving tip for the day: Double or triple dip on this by using coupons (There were Denny’s coupons in the mail recently, and many of the retailers that participate also have coupons out there) to lower your Out of Pocket (OOP), and then scan your receipt into Receipt Hog, and check apps like Cash Dash to see if there are any cash back opportunities. And if you shop at Sam’s Club, check out Ibotta, Fetch Rewards, and Checkout51 for more rebate/cash back opportunities! You’ll be earning in NO TIME!!

(The Dosh Link is my personal link, if you sign up and complete an offer, I may earn $5. This money helps me run the site and offer contests and giveaways. You can see my Disclosure  info here.)

Earn Rewards with Fetch Rewards!

Abby H.7 Comments

FetchRewards_Logo.png

Have you heard of Fetch Rewards? It’s the newest in receipt scanning, cash/reward apps. Most of us already know about all of the other smartphone apps (my list is here) that get you cash back or other rewards (like gift cards).

Fetch Rewards is different. Shop at any store, scan your receipt and earn points that you can redeem for Amazon Gift Cards (or other GC’s, I just love me some Amazon GC’s). You can use coupons, you can even use other apps like Ibotta, Checkout51, or Find&Save to double or triple dip.

Gift card cash outs start at just 3000 points for a $3.00 Amazon gift card!

Here’s how it works…

Purchase your regular groceries.. Seriously! Fetch Rewards is partnered with brands like Pepsi, Quaker, Starbucks, Naked Juice, Axe, Dove, St. Ives, Suave, Jello, Dreamwhip, Kraft, Coors, Miller, Polly-O, Oscar Mayer, Boca, Cool Whip, Weight Watchers Smart Ones, the list goes on! You can see the full list here.

Open the app and scan in your receipt. The app does the rest. It goes through your receipt and picks out the brands you bought and gives you points!

And it gets even better, they have Bonus Point Deals! Score Extra points when your purchase specific items! Here are a just a few available now:

See, it’s actual food from actual brands you have heard from before! And you don’t need to pre-select the deals before you go to the store to shop!

So, if this seems like an app you’d enjoy, check this out: Use my code ND2TB when you sign up and you’ll score 1500 points after you scan in your first receipt with Fetch Rewards. That’s half way to your first $3 Amazon Gift Card (or whatever $3 Gift Card you choose). You can find Fetch Rewards in your app store.

If you use my code, I’ll get 1500 points when you do. Win/Win, right? Honestly, my disclosure statement is here. I’m here to help ya’ll save money, not make a million dollars!

This is a great way to save up giftcards for holiday shopping or to defray other costs (They also have CVS and Target GC’s available).

Checkout51 Save, Save, Save, Win, Win, Win Sweepstakes!

Abby H.

You know I love Checkout51! It’s a cashback app that you can use AT ANY STORE!  Even stores like Dollar Tree, 99 Cents Only, and Grocery Outlet!

Right now, Checkout51 has a great Sweepstakes! You could win thousands of dollars in prizes every week, 7 weeks straight!

All you need to do is redeem any offer from the weekly offer list in the corresponding sweepstakes week and you will be automatically entered to win up to $2,500 a week!

There will be a total of $25,000 in prizes to US members every week & a total of  $12,500 in prizes to Canadian members every week.

Yep, thats right, $175,000 total to US members throughout the 7 weeks and a total of $87,500 to Canadian members throughout the 7 weeks.

If you haven’t checked out Checkout51 yet, here is their current offer list.