Tips for Getting a Deal on Glasses!

Kids are rough on everything, including glasses. The big kid usually goes through 1-2 pairs a year, just in day-to-day wear and tear (and being a 10-year-old boy). Luckily I’ve found some ways to save money on glasses and I thought I’d share.

1- Take advantage of existing vision insurance. Look on the back of your kid’s health insurance card to find out which company handles the vision coverage, or give your child’s health insurance carrier a call. My kids receive one eye exam and 1 free pair of glasses per year. I’m not sure if it’s available in all states.

2-If you need help getting glasses or vision exams for your kids, check out Vision to Learn. They operate in 13 states and partner with the Boys and Girls Club, offering free eye exams and eyeglasses for kids. If you aren’t in a state where they operate, check out InfantSEE.  They offer Kids 6 months-1 year a free eye exam.

If you are 65+, you can obtain a free eye exam from Eye Care America.

3- Onto the deals. Once you have your prescription in hand, check out online stores like Abbe glasses. They have great deals on frames and lenses. I scored two pairs of glasses for under $50 for the big kid with their BOGO sale. ILoveGlasses also has good deals as well. Both of these companies are great for budget-conscious families. If you are looking for something a little higher-end (or for grown-ups), I also like Warby Parker.

They have a great glasses try-on program, and they also sell Contacts. In fact, they have a free contact offer.

Having used Warby Parker before, their glasses are great, and their service is amazing! We bought glasses online, and later when they needed to be adjusted (helpful tip: Don’t roughhouse with kids when you are wearing glasses), we took them to our local Warby Parker store and they “tuned up” the glasses FOR FREE!

And if you are wondering what to do with all of the old eyeglasses in your house that are no longer your current prescription…. The Lions Club helps recycle eyeglasses and get them into the hands of the needy. You can find out more about how and where to recycle your unwanted eyeglasses here.  I also recommend checking with your local optometrist’s office. They frequently partner with local Lion’s Clubs to collect old glasses. You could help a person in need get the glasses they can’t afford!

What are your tips for saving on glasses and contacts?

**This post may contain affiliate links, for more information about how we use affiliate links, please visit our Disclosure page.**

 

MyPoints: Refer Friends and You Both Earn 300 Points!

unnamed.jpg

I’ve been using MyPoints since 2011, and I’ve earned a lot of cash back just by doing my normal online shopping through MyPoints. About $550, to be exact.

Right now they are offering a great deal! When you refer a new user, and they earn 300 points, you both get a 300 point bonus. It’s easy to earn 300 points!

I love using MyPoints. I can earn points shopping online and utilizing in-store pick up with stores like Walmart, Target, Home Depot, and JCPenney.

  • I ordered Christmas Gifts and earned 1200 points.

There are so many point-earning opportunities.

You can double dip on earning points or cash back by using a point earning credit card like American Express or Discover Cards or taking advantage of a points program that rewards you for purchases on their website, like JCP Rewards.

I love that I can earn gift cards which I use to offset the cost of holiday gifts.

Talk Back: What is your favorite Cashback program?

12/32/2021 Freebie Friday!

It’s Friday! And the last Friday of the year, and usually that would mean a blowout freebie and deal post, but not so this year. Between supply chain shortages, the uptick in the new variant, there aren’t tons of great freebies or deals, but I’m always on the lookout.

But, fear not friends, I’ve still got some good stuff for you!

 

Freebies:

Deals:

Starting off 2022 Right: How to save money at the grocery store and beyond!

Saving money is my bag. It’s what I’m good at, and I’ve made a name for myself as the resident frugalista in many of my friend circles.

A lot of people want to save money as one of their New Years Resolutions, and with the price of everything going up (thanks to inflation and the global pandemic), it’s becoming more important for people to learn and use some frugality skills.

So let’s get started on saving you some money at the grocery store and other places as well. Since I’ve been writing about these topics since 2016 on various blogs, I have tons of great posts that will be linked to throughout this post.

Start by making a list of what you already have at home. I use inventory sheets that I made on Canva.  I have one for the Pantry, one for the fridge, and one for the freezer. They live in plastic page protectors, and I update them when I am cooking (or afterward). It makes seeing what we’ve got on hand a breeze.

  • Shop sales- Buy and eat what is in season. This doesn’t only mean produce. Various items are on sale during the year, usually to correspond with holidays. My list of sales cycles can be seen here.
  • Buy in bulk if you are able.
  • Utilize Store apps to save money- CVS, Walgreens, Target, Vons, Ralphs, Food4less, Sprouts, etc.) all have apps with digital coupons and savings. With a few clicks, you’ll be saving money without clipping coupons! This tip is a great way to save on cleaning supplies, health and beauty aids, and OTC meds. 
  • Utilize cash back apps. My list of favorites can be found here.
  • Take advantage of local farms and CSA’s. I love Yasukochi Farms CSA. They are a local farm and have great produce boxes.

Right now they are having a New Years Sale! Choose either a 1-month regular box subscription for $88, or a 1-month jumbo box subscription for $120. To learn more or order, check out their website.

For less than $30 a week, we get a big box of produce delivered to our door. It helps us stay on budget and eat healthy!

Basically, it boils down to being organized, which can be hard. Choosing 1 or 2 of the above to get started and adding them to your routine until they become second nature, and then adding in 1 or 2 more, and so on and so on.

 

Starting off 2022: It’s Budget Time!

Soo, the potato is crazy in the photo, but it made me laugh, so I included it.

As I mentioned in this post, we’ve got 7 posts coming through the end of the year to help you start 2022 off on a good foot.

I’ve talked a lot about budgeting before and not much has changed except that the cost of stuff keeps going up. Inflation is a bitch, y’all. And with wages not keeping up with the inflation, we’ve got to do what we can. We need to control the factors that we have to ability to control.

Setting up a budget takes time. You can do it all at once, but be prepared to spend a few hours working on it.

You’ll need:

Access to your bank account or bank statements for three months.

A Google Sheet page, or an Excel Spreadsheet

List of your monthly financial obligations. Here are just a few of those:

  • Mortgage/Rent (Our Mortgage payment includes impounds for our Homeowners insurance and property taxes)
  • Gas/Electric*
  • Gift Fund
  • Transfer to Savings
  • Life Insurance
  • Auto Insurance
  • Hulu
  • Car payment
  • Kids 529
  • Netflix
  • YMCA
  • Internet
  • Credit Card Balances
  • Student Loan Payments
  • Water Bill*
  • Groceries*
  • Fun Money (stuff to do with kiddos/girls nights in/date nights)*
  • Gasoline*

Of all of these categories, the only ones that have any difference per month are the ones I indicated with an asterisk (*). For Gas/Electric and the water bill, I averaged the cost over three months and used that amount for the budget.

The categories I included above are what is in my budget, you may have other items that my family does not. Some of the expenses such as Health Insurance and retirement savings come out of paychecks, so for our family, they are not included in our budget. You may wish to add them to your budget if you pay them directly.

Cash for some Budget Line Items: For items such as groceries, fun money, and gasoline I visit the ATM each week and take out cash. I paperclip the money for each budget line item together and keep them separate in my wallet. When the money is gone, no more spending.

Doing cash for those line items really helps me take a hard look at shopping for groceries (this is when cash back appscouponing, and price per unit knowledge all come in handy), and making sure that I am getting the best deal on gas (I have the GasBuddy app, it’s very useful). Any unspent money gets rolled over to the next week.

If you are discovering that you have too many bills and not enough money (and hey, it happens), trim where you can ( this article has some helpful suggestions), and if that’s still not enough, here are some Southern CA/San Diego based resources to help you.

Please do not be embarrassed to seek help. Resources are available to help you. If in the future you are able to give back, please do, but in the meantime, accept the help that is offered.

Next up, we’ll be talking about ways to save money on groceries and beyond. The beyond is going to be how to get toothpaste and health and beauty items for free (or really cheap) without turning into the stereotypical crazy coupon lady. Because clipping coupons out of ten plus newspapers each week is sooooo 2008. Seriously. I love to save money, but I don’t clip Sunday papers these days.

12/20/2021 Weekly Meal Plan (Holiday Edition)

0a5e9dab796cea8a07eabe4eb4795b9e.jpgIt’s the First day of Winter Break! WOO! We’re making cookies and relaxing, but this week will be packed with adventures, including play dates and zoo trips!

I did some cooking (and cleaning) yesterday. I’ve got some tasty treats coming up this week, including Christmas Eve Pizza!

We’ve been trying a lot of new foods lately, thanks to the really great freebies from Social Nature lately too. It’s fun to try new foods.

For those of you that are new to meal planning, I’ve got an easy 101 style post here with super easy tips and steps. After you get that down, here is info about batch or freezer cooking.

I’ve gotten a pretty good inventory of the pantry, freezer, and fridge done (I try to update it after every shopping trip), so I’m able to plan meals and use up what we’ve got with little waste. If you are looking for a kitchen inventory printable, I have made my own and you can find them for sale here on my Etsy Store.

I only post our dinner plans for the week, because our other meals are usually the same each day.

Breakfast: Coffee with 1/2 and 1/2  for me, and pancakes or something along those lines for the kids. They are also into fruit and bagels for breakfast. The Ancient Grain bagels from Einstein Bros. are the current family favorite. I pick them up on Mondays when a dozen is only $7. I slice them and freeze them to keep them from going bad too quickly.

Lunch: I have a plastic tote in the cupboard full of self-serve snacks. I buy treats and snacks in bulk and fill up snack-sized zip-top bags. I’m back to packing lunches again. However, school lunches are free this year- Little Bit has been buying her lunch and expanding her palate.

Dinner: I’ve got some tasty (and quick) meals planned for this week!

  • Monday: Nuggets, fresh fruit, noodles, or cheese toast 
  • Tuesday: Chicken enchilada casserole
  • Wednesday: Roasted Veggie Soup, popovers with butter
  • Thursday:  breakfast burritos, hashbrowns, fruit salad
  • Friday: Christmas Eve Pizza!
  • Saturday:  Early dinner with my mom (dad is still in the hospital, prayers are welcome)
  • Sunday: Leftover Fiesta

Please stay safe you guys!

New Freebies from Try Products!

I posted about Try Products over the summer. There are a few new freebies from Try Products now. Try Products has amazing products for you to try absolutely FREE.  It’s 100% Free. No credit card is required EVER!

Here are the latest new offers:

12/17/2021 Friday Freebies!

This was my busy week. Doctor’s appointments, Bitty getting her casts off (and into walking braces/casts), an IEP meeting, and the last week of school for the year! WOO! The kids are looking forward to decorating cookies, going to look at Xmas lights, going to the zoo, and playing Legos.

There are still more holiday events going on around town. For more information and resources click here.

If you are looking for birthday freebies, fret not! I put together a list new for 2021- Check it out here.

There are some pretty cool freebies this week!

Freebies:

Free Josh Bilicki Racing Hero Card
Allure Beauty Enthusiasts – Free Beauty Products
Free MaryRuth’s Megadose Vitamin C Liposomal
Free $20 Dessert Credit with Philadelphia Cream Cheese
Free CleanWell Botanical Disinfecting Wipes
Free Wiley Wallaby Gluten-Free, Low-Sugar Party Pack
Free St. Jude Patient-Art-Inspired Sticker Pack
Free Dude Wipes at Walmart
Free Tinted Acne Patch Treatment + $40 eGift Card
Free Combo Meal at White Castle
Free Stop Soldier Suicide T-Shirt
Free Eucerin Sunscreen Sample Kit
Free débutante Taste of Japan Cooking Party Kit
Free Pack of Siete Tortillas Product Coupon
Free Noosa Yogurt Product Coupon – 1st 500
10 Free Disney Movie Insiders Points
Free Medium Fries w/ Any $1 Purchase at McDonalds – Every Friday
Free Subscription to The Red Bulletin Magazine
Free 30-Day EverTears Self-Heating Eye Compress & Heating Pads
Text for $10 Off at Lane Bryant = Free Item
Free Kindra Essentials Kit
Free Subscription to Hudson Valley Magazine
Possible Free $200 Senior Citizens & Weight Loss Research Study
Free Sun-Maid Recipe Booklets
Free Snickers, Milky Way, or Three Musketeers at Casey’s
$3 for 1 Year of Healthy U TV (reg. $69)
Free Thermo Pro Food Thermometers
Free Froyo for Your Birthday at SweetFrog
Free Charlie Moore Autographed Card

12/13/2021 Weekly Meal Plan

0a5e9dab796cea8a07eabe4eb4795b9e.jpgThis past weekend was BUSY! I haven’t had a chance to go to the store, but I think we’ll be able to stretch it for a few more days until I have some free time. This week is looking busy too. Little Bit gets her casts off Wednesday after school- Hooray!

I did some cooking yesterday- I made some side dishes, including Roasted veggies, Rice a Roni. I made lunches for the adults, and re-organized the lunch/snack basket for the kids in the pantry. I also used up some of the wilting fruit to make some zipsicle style popsicles (strawberry and banana, and pineapple). And I made cookies!

Since this week is so busy, we’ll be having a lot of quick-prep dinners, or we’ll be relying on the foods I prepped yesterday.

We’ve been trying a lot of new foods lately, thanks to the really great freebies from Social Nature lately too. It’s fun to try new foods.

For those of you that are new to meal planning, I’ve got an easy 101 style post here with super easy tips and steps. After you get that down, here is info about batch or freezer cooking.

I’ve gotten a pretty good inventory of the pantry, freezer, and fridge done (I try to update it after every shopping trip), so I’m able to plan meals and use up what we’ve got with little waste. If you are looking for a kitchen inventory printable, I have made my own and you can find them for sale here on my Etsy Store.

I only post our dinner plans for the week, because our other meals are usually the same each day.

Breakfast: Coffee with 1/2 and 1/2  for me, and pancakes or something along those lines for the kids. They are also into fruit and bagels for breakfast. The Ancient Grain bagels from Einstein Bros. are the current family favorite. I pick them up on Mondays when a dozen is only $7. I slice them and freeze them to keep them from going bad too quickly.

Lunch: I have a plastic tote in the cupboard full of self-serve snacks. I buy treats and snacks in bulk and fill up snack-sized zip-top bags. I’m back to packing lunches again. However, school lunches are free this year, but so far, there is nothing on the menu that appeals to the kids.

Dinner: I am planning some great meals this week. I did some batch cooking yesterday and got the fridge organized.

  • Monday: Nuggets, fresh fruit (orange and apple slices are on tap), rice a roni
  • Tuesday: Soup and Cheese Toast, Fruit, Roasted Veggies
  • Wednesday:  Waffles or Pancakes (kids choice), Fruit, Eggs- And maybe Beyond Meat sausages
  • Thursday:   Bean, Rice, Cheese, and Roasted Veggie bowls
  • Friday: take out (Usually pizza and Chinese food)
  • Saturday:  Leftovers
  • Sunday: Fritatta, Salad

Please stay safe you guys!

12/10/2021 Friday Freebies!

We’ve had a busy week- Decorating our tree, checking out local lights, and wrapping gifts! And the kids and I are going through our closets and cleaning out the clothes that no longer fit or serve us to share with others- I’m a big fan of hand-me-downs.

There are a bunch of events coming up over the next week. Toy exchange tomorrow, and more information and resources here.

If you are looking for birthday freebies, fret not! I put together a list new for 2021- Check it out here.

There are some pretty cool freebies this week!

Freebies:

Free Fresh Cravings Hummus
Mack’s Free Ear Plug’s Giveaway – Every Weekday at 11am EST
Free 2022 Snort Calendar
Free Sample of CeraVe Moisturizing Cream
Free Coffee or Tea at The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf
Claim $25 in the Godiva Class Action Settlement
Free Special K Protein Meal Bars Chatterbox Kit
Free Olly Sleep Gummy Vitamins at Select Stores
Free Sample of Chanel Perfume
Free Farmacy Beauty 3-Day Healthy Skin Sample Set
Free Doritos Locos Taco at Taco Bell
Free Holiday Chocolate Candy at Big Lots
Free $50 Charity Donation Card
Free Medium Fries w/ Any $1 Purchase at McDonalds – Every Friday
Free Subscription to Vanity Fair Magazine
25 Free Disney Movie Insiders Points
Free Toasted Breakfast Burrito at Taco Bell – Today
Free Coffee or Fountain Drink at Pilot Flying J
Free Happy Hippo Kratom Sample
Free Subscription to Cosmopolitan Magazine
Free Samples of Astroglide Lubricant
Free Sample of Derma E Hydrating Day and Night Cream Duo
Free $25 Teens Research Study
Free Rockstar Energy Drink at Casey’s
Free Catit Creamy Cat Treats
Free Liquid I.V. Hydration Multiplier Sample
Free Church Mutual 2022 Calendar
Free $5 Amazon Prime Video Credit
Free Brown Scapular
Free Hot or Iced Coffee at Pret A Manger on Fridays
Free 2022 Erie & Arts Calendar
Free $200 Household Appliances Research Study
Free Lane Bryant Gift Card Giveaway
Free Youtheory Daily Fat Burner

Deals:

New Apple AirPods 3rd Generation ONLY $139.99 (Reg $179)
Arizona Men’s Graphic Hoodie ONLY $10.49 (Reg $44)
Disney Minnie Mouse Phone and Camera ONLY $10.99 (Reg. $22)
Funkoverse Marvel 100 4-Pack ONLY $20.15 (Reg. $40)
Kate Spade Glitter Crystal Stud Earrings ONLY $19.99 (Reg $32)
Fortnite Early Game Survival Kit Figure Pack $9.93 (Reg. $20)
Martha Stewart Mattress Pad ONLY $16.99 (Reg $40) – Any Size!
Hot Tools Mid-Size Pink Hair Dryer ONLY $17.99 (Reg $50)
My Little Pony Izzy Moonbow Set ONLY $5 (Reg $15)
Kate Spade Lexy Shoulder Bag ONLY $89 (Reg $399)
Disney Raya Fashion Doll ONLY $6.05 (Reg. $16)
Minnie Mouse Cell Phone & Camera Set ONLY $10.99 (Reg $22)
50% OFF Sweatshirts and Sweatpants at Old Navy