Thursday, June 30, 2011
TODAY ONLY!!! totally FREE photo book
7:21 AM
I have not tried this yet, but it has been popping up all morning on all the deals blogs, so let me tell you about it:
You can get a Free 11 x 8.5 Photo Book ($29.99 value) from Mixbook WITH free shipping!!! (Making this a complete freebie) To get this deal you will have to use Coupon Code FREEBK at checkout. This is good for TODAY, 6/30 only, so go make your book now! I cannot wait to make mine!
Just go to the Mixbook website here to get started.
Thanks Living Rich with Coupons.
You can get a Free 11 x 8.5 Photo Book ($29.99 value) from Mixbook WITH free shipping!!! (Making this a complete freebie) To get this deal you will have to use Coupon Code FREEBK at checkout. This is good for TODAY, 6/30 only, so go make your book now! I cannot wait to make mine!
Just go to the Mixbook website here to get started.
Thanks Living Rich with Coupons.
FREE Downy Unstoppables on FB NOW!!!
7:10 AM
If you go right now to the Downy Facebook page here and like them, then sign up for their giveaway, you could score a free Downy Unstoppables product. They are giving away 500,000 and it went live 8 minutes ago, so go now!
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
ENDED Review and Giveaway: Protech Dent™ Mouth Guard for kids ends 7/4
3:41 PM
I seriously could not be more excited about this review and giveaway! Yes, I said giveaway-and trust me, if you have kids in sports you are going to want to stay tuned and hear about this awesome product!
What is it?
I had the opportunity to review the Protech Dent™ Mouth Guard for kids. Let me tell you a bit about their product:
First let me tell you the first experience I had with my son and a mouth guard. Though it was for kids, he gagged on it and threw up on me. We ended up buying and molding many mouth guards last year trying to find one that did not gag this small mouthed kid. He hated it. I was really nervous to agree to a mouth guard review as I was afraid in might be a similarly horrible experienc to previous mouth guards. It was not! It was quick and easy and made a great mouth guard. In fact, I made a video of us shaping the mouth guard. Check it out:
Note he did not gag and he said it was great!! And we quickly and easily formed this:
I would recommend checking out Protech Dent™ Mouth Guards. They come in kids AND adult sizes so if you play sports you might want one for yourself!
Where can you get one?
Check out the Protech Dent™ website here. OR try to win one here from my blog!!!
One lucky Beckee's Deals reader will win the same thing we reviewed: one Protech Dent™ Mouth Guard for a child.
Here is how to enter the Giveaway (PLEASE make sure to leave an email address in each comment so I can reach you should you win):
MANDATORY ENTRY (Must do this first for other entries to count): Just let me know what sport your child will use this mouth guard for.
Once you have done that, you can get 4 extra entries by doing the following things (Just make sure to leave a separate comment for each entry, and leave me your email address in each comment so I know how to contact you should you win):
1. Become a PUBLIC GFC follower of my blog.
2. Subscribe to my blog via Email or an RSS feed/reader. (Yes-you can use this entry if you are already an email or RSS subscriber- just let me know how you subscribe to my blog).
3. Become a Facebook fan of my blog here.
4. Follow me on Twitter here.
Be sure to leave a comment for each entry with your email address. The winner will be chosen using Random.org. This giveaway ends on Monday, July 4th at 11:59 PM Central Time.
***Please note...This review was made possible by Mom Spark Media. I was provided a product for my review and one lucky reader will get a mouth guard of their own. As always, all thoughts are my own.***
What is it?
I had the opportunity to review the Protech Dent™ Mouth Guard for kids. Let me tell you a bit about their product:
- The first thoroughly scientifically tested mouth guard
- Developed in The Operating Room for patient safety
- Ultra thin (1.6 mm)
- Extremely comfortable
- 30% stronger than conventional mouth guards - a revolutionary technology with built in crumple zones
- No germ transfer from dirty hands
- ISO-certified - all American manufacturing
- These athletic mouth guards are specifically designed so you can breathe without difficulty, easily talk with teammates during practice and games, and drink without removing the guard.
First let me tell you the first experience I had with my son and a mouth guard. Though it was for kids, he gagged on it and threw up on me. We ended up buying and molding many mouth guards last year trying to find one that did not gag this small mouthed kid. He hated it. I was really nervous to agree to a mouth guard review as I was afraid in might be a similarly horrible experienc to previous mouth guards. It was not! It was quick and easy and made a great mouth guard. In fact, I made a video of us shaping the mouth guard. Check it out:
Note he did not gag and he said it was great!! And we quickly and easily formed this:
I would recommend checking out Protech Dent™ Mouth Guards. They come in kids AND adult sizes so if you play sports you might want one for yourself!
Where can you get one?
Check out the Protech Dent™ website here. OR try to win one here from my blog!!!
One lucky Beckee's Deals reader will win the same thing we reviewed: one Protech Dent™ Mouth Guard for a child.
Here is how to enter the Giveaway (PLEASE make sure to leave an email address in each comment so I can reach you should you win):
MANDATORY ENTRY (Must do this first for other entries to count): Just let me know what sport your child will use this mouth guard for.
Once you have done that, you can get 4 extra entries by doing the following things (Just make sure to leave a separate comment for each entry, and leave me your email address in each comment so I know how to contact you should you win):
1. Become a PUBLIC GFC follower of my blog.
2. Subscribe to my blog via Email or an RSS feed/reader. (Yes-you can use this entry if you are already an email or RSS subscriber- just let me know how you subscribe to my blog).
3. Become a Facebook fan of my blog here.
4. Follow me on Twitter here.
Be sure to leave a comment for each entry with your email address. The winner will be chosen using Random.org. This giveaway ends on Monday, July 4th at 11:59 PM Central Time.
***Please note...This review was made possible by Mom Spark Media. I was provided a product for my review and one lucky reader will get a mouth guard of their own. As always, all thoughts are my own.***
Beckee's Best of Omaha Grocery 6/29-7/5
1:54 PM
Here are my favorite deals in Omaha grocery this week:
Hyvee
Hyvee
- Oscar Meyer Sliced Bacon 12oz, 16 oz or 2.1 oz fully cooked 3/$5 (that is $1.66 each)
- Red Ripe Arkansas tomatoes $.99/lb
- Sabra Hummus 10 oz-Buy one for $3.99, get 1 free
- Budget Saver Assorted Twin or Banana Pops 2/$4
- Anderson Erickson Greek Yogurt 6 oz $.88
- Large Eggs 18 ct $1.88
- Oscar Meyer Meat or Turkey Hot Dog or Bologna 16 oz (excludes beef, cheese and premium) $.99 (limit 4)
- 80% Lean Fresh Ground Beef 3 lb roll $5.97 (that is $1.99/lb-limit 2 rolls)
- Pepsi Product 2 L $.77
- Popsicle Pops (firecracker, orange/cherry/grape, fudgesicle or tropicals 8 ct) $.99
- Purex Laundry detergent 50 fl oz 5/$10
- Northern Bathroom tissue ultra plush or soft'nstrog 6 double rolls $2.99
- 7-Up Product 6 pack bottles 16.9 fl oz 6/$10 (which is $1.66 each)
- Hy Vee 100% Natural Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast $1.69/lb
- Hy Vee Marshmallows 10 oz bag $.98
- Hy Vee Graham Crackers 14.4 oz box $1.77
- Pepsi Products, Dr Pepper Products, 7 Up Products or A&W Products 12 pack cans 4/$10 (with purchase of 4 of the same brand. Limit 4)
- Green Seedless Grapes $.98/lb
- Blue Bunny Ice Cream $1.98 (56 oz square)
- Beef Brisket whole in the bag $2.49/lb
- El Monterey 32 oz family pack burritos $2.99
- Wonder classic buns 8 ct hamburger or hot dog $.98
- 7-Up Products (Dr Pepper, 7-up, Sunkist, A&W) 12 packs 4/$8.88 (limit 4)
- Tyson frozen skinless boneless chicken breast $1.69/lb
- 64 oz Roberts Lemonade $.68
- 4 lb C&H Sugar $1.98
- Coke products, Pepsi Products, Dr Pepper Products, 7 Up Products or A&W Products 12 pack cans or 6 pack bottles 4/$10 (with minimum purchase of 4 of the same brand. Limit 4-additional purchases 4/$13)
- Whole Watermelon (avg 15 lbs) $3.98 each
- 84% Lean Ground Chuck $1.99'lb
- Our Family 8 count Hamburger or Hot Dog Buns $.77 each
- Doritos or Lay's chips 10-11 oz $1.99
- Cucumbers 2/$1
- Chex Cereal 12-14 oz $1.97
- Coke, Pepsi, or 7 Up Products 12 pack cans $2.50 each (when you purchase 4 in one transaction with a limit of 3 rewards per transaction-so you can buy 4, 8, or 12 of the 12 packs in the transaction to get them for this price!)
- PueAgua Drinking Water 24 pack 16.9-oz bottles $2.49
- Cantaloupe large $.99 each
- Blueberries one pint $1.49
- Strawberries per 1 lb clamshell $.99
- Kirkwood 48 oz (3 lb) Chicken Breast bag $5.49
- 24 packs of Coke or Pepsi Products $4.48 (limit 2 of each brand)
- Meadow Gold butter 16 oz $2.27
- Doritos, Cheetos or Fritos 9/25-11.5 oz $1.78
- Peaches $.77/lb
- Bar S Jumbo Franks $.78 each (16 oz)
- Asparagus (white or green) $1.86/lb
- Best Choice shredded cheese 6-8 oz $.98
- Crystal Farms American Singles 12 oz $1.48
- Marie Callender's Pot Pies, Dinners, Steamers 5/$10
- Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ Sauce 18 oz $.96
- Vlasic Pickles 16-24 oz $1.86
- Doritos Tortilla Chips 11-11.5 oz $1.78
- Kraft Cool Whip $.88
- 7-Up 6 pack bottles $1.98
- Best Choice Skinless, boneless chicken breast 3 lb bag $4.88
- Cantaloupe $.96 each
- Bush's Grillin' or Baked Beans 22-28 oz 2/$3
- Rotella Hamburger or Brat buns $.99 package
- Pepsi or Coke 12 packs 4/$10 with in ad coupon
- Smoked Sliced Slab Bacon $2.99/lb
- Johns Morrell Hot Dogs 12 oz 2/$1
- Roberts Sour Cream 16 oz $.88
FREE bottle Pantene
9:15 AM
Want a coupon for a free full size bottle of Pantene? If so, go like Pantene North America on Facebook then fill out the form here. They will mail you the coupon in the next few weeks.
Monday, June 27, 2011
FREE $2 Mp3 credit on Amazon.com.
3:51 PM
This is awesome. Go to this gift code redemption page on Amazon.com (after you log into your Amazon account), and enter code CLOUDMP3. You will get a $2 Mp3 credit on Amazon!! LOVE that!
Thank you Mojo Savings, and Couponing for 4.
Thank you Mojo Savings, and Couponing for 4.
FREE (and Cheap) Kids summer movies!!
2:47 PM
I have to thank my good friend Merrilyn for reminding me about the free and cheap summer movies around town! (And speaking of Merrilyn, can I take a minute to congratulate her and her family for getting through residency-nicely done!!!)
Anyway-Here are some fun free/cheap Movies around town this summer:
1-Rave theatres have Free Movies every Wednesday at 10 am:
For locals, there is a Rave Theater at Westroads Mall (about Dodge and I-680). In other states, check to see if there is a theater nearby on this list.
2-Great Escape Theaters has free movies Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, beginning at 9:30 am. (I have found this place to be the easiest to get into for free movies and they have been really nice in the past...just an FYI for locals)
The flyer for the local Omaha theater (located at 7440 Crown Point Ave. or near 72nd St. and Sorensen Parkway) can be viewed online here. If you are not in Omaha, you can check for a participating location near you here.
3-Marcus Theatres has $2 family friendly films each Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday at 10am from June 21st through August 11th. You can see the schedule here.
For local readers there are 2 Marcus theaters in Omaha. They are located at: 14304 West Maple Road, 3201 Farnam Street, & 304 North 174th Street, as well as one in Bellevue at 3909 Raynor Parkway. If you are not a local reader, check here to check for a local theater that is having this same kids movie special. (They are located in Iowa, Illinois, Minnesota, North Dakota, Nebraska, Ohio, and Wisconsin.
And as an FYI, in the past I LOVED going to the AMC movies, but they have discontinued doing the Summer family movies. You can still get a much discounted price on movies before noon though. Please go here to read their statement about the less expensive movies and about why they have discontinued their summer free movies.
Anyway-Here are some fun free/cheap Movies around town this summer:
1-Rave theatres have Free Movies every Wednesday at 10 am:
For locals, there is a Rave Theater at Westroads Mall (about Dodge and I-680). In other states, check to see if there is a theater nearby on this list.
2-Great Escape Theaters has free movies Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, beginning at 9:30 am. (I have found this place to be the easiest to get into for free movies and they have been really nice in the past...just an FYI for locals)
The flyer for the local Omaha theater (located at 7440 Crown Point Ave. or near 72nd St. and Sorensen Parkway) can be viewed online here. If you are not in Omaha, you can check for a participating location near you here.
3-Marcus Theatres has $2 family friendly films each Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday at 10am from June 21st through August 11th. You can see the schedule here.
For local readers there are 2 Marcus theaters in Omaha. They are located at: 14304 West Maple Road, 3201 Farnam Street, & 304 North 174th Street, as well as one in Bellevue at 3909 Raynor Parkway. If you are not a local reader, check here to check for a local theater that is having this same kids movie special. (They are located in Iowa, Illinois, Minnesota, North Dakota, Nebraska, Ohio, and Wisconsin.
And as an FYI, in the past I LOVED going to the AMC movies, but they have discontinued doing the Summer family movies. You can still get a much discounted price on movies before noon though. Please go here to read their statement about the less expensive movies and about why they have discontinued their summer free movies.
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Beckee's Best of Omaha Grocery 6/22-6/28
10:57 AM
Here are my favorite deals in Omaha grocery this week:
Hyvee
Hyvee
- Bertolli Olive Oil 17 fl oz $5.98
- Doritos, Fritos, or Cheetos 9-11.5 oz $1.99
- HyVee Spaghetti, thin spaghetti, or elbow macaroni 2 lb $1.68
- Sweet Green Bell Peppers or Cucumbers 2/$1
- Welch's Grape Jam or Jlly 22 or 32 oz $1.98
- Coke Product 12 pack cans or 6 pack bottles 4/$10 (with in ad coupon)
- Hy Vee Peanut Butter 17.3-18 oz $1.28
- HyVee Butter 1 lb $2.48
- ALL 2X Laundry Detergent 32 or 50 oz 3/$10
- Michelina's Zap'Ems gourmet entrees $.49 each
- Prego 23.5-24 oz Pasta sauce $.99 (limit 2)
- HyVee 100% natural Fresh Chicken Leg Quarters $.49/lb (limit 4 packages)
- Hormel Little Sizzlers 12 oz (reg, maple ot hot & spicy) $.99 (limit 4)
- HyVee Natural Chunk Cheese 16 oz $2.99
- Kellogg's Cereal (Raisin Bran 20 oz, Frosted Flakes 14 oz, Froot Loops 12.2 oz or Corn Flakes 18 oz) $1.48
- Rotisserie Chicken $4.98
- Pepsi Products 6 Pack Bottles 24 fl oz 4/$10
- Hershey's Chocolate Bars (standard size-select varieties) 10/$4 (that is $.40 each
- Cottonelle 9 big roll bathroom tissue $3.88
- HyVee Ice Cream pails (4.25 liter pail) $3.99
- California Green Seedless Grapes $.99/lb
- HyVee Cottage Bread select varieties 20 oz $.99
- 7-Up or Dr Pepper 6 pack bottles 5/$10
- Coke Product 6 pack bottles 4/$10
- Our Family 18 pack large eggs $1.25
- Top Sirloin Steak or Roast $2.99/lb
- Pillsbury Family Size Brownies 19.5 oz $.88
- Bar S Thin Cut LunchMeat 9 oz $1.99
- 5 lb Dole Russett Potatos $1.98
- 5% Senior Citizen Discount
- Our Family Jumbo Franks 16 oz $.88
- Our Family Ketchup 40 oz $.88 (limit 3)
- 7-Up or Dr Pepper 6 pack bottles $1.88 (limit 5-additional purchase=5/$10)
- Tyson Frozen Split Chicken Breast $.99/lb
- Era 2X Laundry Detergent 100 oz $3.98 (limit 2)
- Chef Boyardee Pasta 15 oz $.49 (with in ad coupon)
- Tyson Bone In Split Chicken Breasts $.99/lb
- Green Seedless Grapes $.99/lb
- Keebler Cookies (13 oz Animal cookies, 13.3-14.8 oz Chips Deluxe, 6.6-11 oz Fudge Shoppe, 12.8-13 oz Pecan Sandies, or 14.2 oz Vienna Fingers) 2/$3
- Green Giant Red Potatoes 5 lb bag $2.99
- Our Family American Singles 12 oz 2/$3
- Land O Lakes Gallon Milk (1% 2% Skim or Whole) $2.39
- Lay's Potato Chips 10-10.5 oz or Lay's Kettle Chips 8.5 oz $1.99
- Powerade or Powerade Zero $.69
- Large size Cantaloupe $.99 each
- Strawberries 1 lb clamshell $.99
- Reggano Farfalle or Tri-Color Rotini 12 oz $.89
- Always Save Sliced Bacon 2/$5
- Always Save Peanut Butter 18 oz or 32 oz Always Save Grape Jelly $1.18
- Always Save American Slices 8 oz $.63
- Always Save Tomato Sauce 8 oz 5/$1
- Dozen Large Eggs $.97
- Del Monte Gold Pineapple $1.48
- Pepsi Product 24 packs $5.48 (limit 2)
- Mission Small Fajitas Flour Tortillas 20 ct $1.67
- Wacky Mac Pasta 12 oz $.77
- Sara Lee CLassic 100% Whole Wheat Bread $1.68
- Roberts Dairy Milk gallon skim, 1%, 2% or Whole $2.75 (limit 2)
- Frozen Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast $1.55/lb
- Arkansas Tomatose $.98/lb
- Santitas 14 oz Tortilla Chips $1.78
- Nabisco Snack Crackers BOGO
- Heinz Ketchup 40 oz $1.88
- Fresh Pork Steak $1.49/lb
- Deli Style Shaved Ham $2.99/lb
- Delightful Farms Boneless Chicken Breasts 3 lb $4.99
Trying to stay Frugal in an emergency/crunch...
8:54 AM
Wowsa! What a week...As you can tell, I have been absent from the blog (and from home) for about 3 weeks. I intended to be out of town for about 2 weeks, but apparently someone upstairs had a different plan for me.
I left for Utah to visit my family on June 1 right after the kids got out of school. My plan was to drive (with my mom's help-thanks mom) to Utah and visit with the kids until my husband flew out the evening of the 7th. We were then leaving the 8th to drive to Scottsdale Arizona to check out the new digs (we are moving there next year at this time). We were staying there until the 10th when we were going to drive over to Lake Powell for half the day then move on to the Ranch in Southern Utah with my husband's family. We were staying there until Tuesday the 14th, then back to Salt Lake where Wes had a flight home on the 15th. I then planned to leave Friday the 17th and drive to Cheyenne, WY, then continue on to Omaha on the 18th so we would be home with Wes for Father's Day on the 19th.
All went as planned all the way through Wesley's flight home. Shortly after he landed for his lay over in Denver, my van broke down and overheated majorly in Salt Lake. I had it towed to the place Wes has brought cars to since he started driving. My van was old and we had driven it into the ground and I had a bad feeling about this...(It is a 2000 Chevrolet Venture).
The next morning the call from the shop came, and it was bad news...lots of major things wrong, and let just say it boiled down to this...my van was dead and NOT worth fixing. So, here I was stuck in Utah with no way home, which begs the question of what to do, and how to afford to do it!
So, I askyou this...how does one stay frugal and get the best deal in a crunch? I NEEDED to get home, but how? Let me tell you what I did (and I will preface it by saying I am sure I could have saved more money than I did, but I think I did pretty well all things considered).
My biggest tip for staying frugal is this: Take the time to do your homework-SOOO worth it! I realized quickly that nothing I had going on at home needed to be done emergent-ly, so I took a day to do some homework. I researched my options-flying home with the kids, renting a van to go home or buying a new van in Utah and driving home. After a few quick internet searches and some phone calls, I knew I needed to just figure out how to accomplish the third option: Buy a new van.
So, the work began...researching new and used vans of all makes and models and looking to see what I could find. I did not know how to get financed when the money maker of the family was in a different state...Thank goodness my husband's brother-in-law works for a bank in Utah and was able to tell me what I needed to do to most easily make this work (thank you Cody). Also, in my research I realized that for my needs and my current financial situation, I needed to find a reliable used van.
After a day of research, I set to work last Friday getting preapproved for a loan, and looking for the available, reliable used van of my dreams. I am sorry to those readers that are not religious, but I need to tell you that here is where I believe prayers were answered and a miracle occurred in my life. On Thursday as I was researching, I searched for Used vans in the area over and over and found nothing that I thought I could afford that would be reliable. So, I prayed...a lot...all night and I asked to find a reliable van for less than $10,000 that was going to last for at least 3 years. I had a whole list of things that this van would ideally have-I wanted a Honda Odyssey if possible. I wanted lots of features that I thought I would NEVER find that I had in my dead van-like an entertainment system, like power doors, like a CD player. Nothing remotely like this was anywhere online that I could find on Thursday.
I learned on Friday that my husband's best friend owns a Used car dealership in Salt Lake and headed over there on Friday morning thinking this would be the answer to my prayers. I was wrong-they had no minivans. So, I went back to work and did another internet search. HERE IS THE MIRACLE: The first search I did popped up with a van that had everything I asked for (except a bit more mileage that I wanted). EVERYTHING else and more was included with this van-it was a 2002 Honda Odyssey with a few minor cosmetic issues (cracking leather on the arm of the drivers seat, and a tiny ding in the side that looks like another car door dinged it when it opened-tiny). And it was well within the range of money I wanted to pay! AND it runs like a beauty AND (amazingly enough) comes with a warranty from the dealership-not factory, but dealership for an additional 100,000 miles of 5 years (whichever comes first)...WHAT?!
To make an already too long story shorter, I will just skip some details of that day and tell you I bought this van! JOY! It took until Sunday morning for my insurance to kick in and I still had to deal with the broken van and get it off the mechanics loton Saturday, so I planned to leave on Sunday. My dad helped me get the dead van back to his house where it will sit until I get it donated (donating and taking the tax deductions was a better deal than the trade in value for us). That was a stressful 15 minutes getting it home as it died and died more...There were other stresses-I had to go buy 3 of those skinnier booster seats to make them fit easier in the new van, and had to buy a 5 point harness car seat for my 3 year old since her car seat was built in to the other van.
So, I thought the nightmare was over and I would at last be returning home. Sunday morning my sister-in-law and I set out with the kids to go home. Not too far from my parents house, my daughter's seat belt broke-YES broke. So, we returned to Salt Lake where there were people that love us to help us figure out this next part of the saga. My dad looked at the seat belt and fixed it, but we wanted to get a replacement to make sure it would not come out again like in the middle of nowhere in Wyoming or something. Stefanie (my sister-in-law) had her friend who does collision repair for a living check it out as well. We all came to the same conclusion that it seems ok but I should probably get it replaced to be safe. Remember though, this is Utah on a Sunday so nothing was open.
So, I went to church, heard my mom give an excellent lesson on families, then tried to relax for the day since there was nothing to do about the van until Monday. My aunt was having a short birthday party for her daughter and asked me to take the kids up to it. I decided to go, and while there, my other aunt who owns a Honda, told me that Honda has a lifetime guarantee on safety features (read seat belts) even if you are not the first owner! WHAT?! REALLY?! Yes, I found out Monday morning that it is true (Thanks Kris).
Monday I took the van to the dealer and they fixed the seat belt (for free) and we were finally able to leave for home around noon Monday. We (Stefanie and I witht he kids-thanks Stefanie) drove to Cheyenne and stayed overnight at the Little America (it was the best deal) and I splurged on room service (at that point I did not want to take the kids out of the room again until we were driving home the next morning-not frugal, but it was fantastically good food and a relaxing thing for me after all the stress).
Tuesday morning (yesterday), we got in the van to get home and made it a mere 2 miles before the throwing up began...I won't go into that, but let me say, it was a lot longer drive home that anticipated with more stops that we wanted to make...let me tell you this though...no throw up got in the new van-we managed to keep it in buckets and on the side of the road (sorry I-80).
So, here I am at home...with a new van that I am loving...(pictures coming soon)...As far a frugality goes, I did OK (well except the room service). I did not but a car out of my means to pay off, and I feel I got a good deal. I probably could have talked the dealer down on the price a bit, but the stress of it all made it not worth the possibility of losing the van...Here is my question to all of you---do you manage to stay frugal in an emergency/crunch? If so, how in the world do you do it? Give me some tips and tricks to share!
I left for Utah to visit my family on June 1 right after the kids got out of school. My plan was to drive (with my mom's help-thanks mom) to Utah and visit with the kids until my husband flew out the evening of the 7th. We were then leaving the 8th to drive to Scottsdale Arizona to check out the new digs (we are moving there next year at this time). We were staying there until the 10th when we were going to drive over to Lake Powell for half the day then move on to the Ranch in Southern Utah with my husband's family. We were staying there until Tuesday the 14th, then back to Salt Lake where Wes had a flight home on the 15th. I then planned to leave Friday the 17th and drive to Cheyenne, WY, then continue on to Omaha on the 18th so we would be home with Wes for Father's Day on the 19th.
All went as planned all the way through Wesley's flight home. Shortly after he landed for his lay over in Denver, my van broke down and overheated majorly in Salt Lake. I had it towed to the place Wes has brought cars to since he started driving. My van was old and we had driven it into the ground and I had a bad feeling about this...(It is a 2000 Chevrolet Venture).
The next morning the call from the shop came, and it was bad news...lots of major things wrong, and let just say it boiled down to this...my van was dead and NOT worth fixing. So, here I was stuck in Utah with no way home, which begs the question of what to do, and how to afford to do it!
So, I askyou this...how does one stay frugal and get the best deal in a crunch? I NEEDED to get home, but how? Let me tell you what I did (and I will preface it by saying I am sure I could have saved more money than I did, but I think I did pretty well all things considered).
My biggest tip for staying frugal is this: Take the time to do your homework-SOOO worth it! I realized quickly that nothing I had going on at home needed to be done emergent-ly, so I took a day to do some homework. I researched my options-flying home with the kids, renting a van to go home or buying a new van in Utah and driving home. After a few quick internet searches and some phone calls, I knew I needed to just figure out how to accomplish the third option: Buy a new van.
So, the work began...researching new and used vans of all makes and models and looking to see what I could find. I did not know how to get financed when the money maker of the family was in a different state...Thank goodness my husband's brother-in-law works for a bank in Utah and was able to tell me what I needed to do to most easily make this work (thank you Cody). Also, in my research I realized that for my needs and my current financial situation, I needed to find a reliable used van.
After a day of research, I set to work last Friday getting preapproved for a loan, and looking for the available, reliable used van of my dreams. I am sorry to those readers that are not religious, but I need to tell you that here is where I believe prayers were answered and a miracle occurred in my life. On Thursday as I was researching, I searched for Used vans in the area over and over and found nothing that I thought I could afford that would be reliable. So, I prayed...a lot...all night and I asked to find a reliable van for less than $10,000 that was going to last for at least 3 years. I had a whole list of things that this van would ideally have-I wanted a Honda Odyssey if possible. I wanted lots of features that I thought I would NEVER find that I had in my dead van-like an entertainment system, like power doors, like a CD player. Nothing remotely like this was anywhere online that I could find on Thursday.
I learned on Friday that my husband's best friend owns a Used car dealership in Salt Lake and headed over there on Friday morning thinking this would be the answer to my prayers. I was wrong-they had no minivans. So, I went back to work and did another internet search. HERE IS THE MIRACLE: The first search I did popped up with a van that had everything I asked for (except a bit more mileage that I wanted). EVERYTHING else and more was included with this van-it was a 2002 Honda Odyssey with a few minor cosmetic issues (cracking leather on the arm of the drivers seat, and a tiny ding in the side that looks like another car door dinged it when it opened-tiny). And it was well within the range of money I wanted to pay! AND it runs like a beauty AND (amazingly enough) comes with a warranty from the dealership-not factory, but dealership for an additional 100,000 miles of 5 years (whichever comes first)...WHAT?!
To make an already too long story shorter, I will just skip some details of that day and tell you I bought this van! JOY! It took until Sunday morning for my insurance to kick in and I still had to deal with the broken van and get it off the mechanics loton Saturday, so I planned to leave on Sunday. My dad helped me get the dead van back to his house where it will sit until I get it donated (donating and taking the tax deductions was a better deal than the trade in value for us). That was a stressful 15 minutes getting it home as it died and died more...There were other stresses-I had to go buy 3 of those skinnier booster seats to make them fit easier in the new van, and had to buy a 5 point harness car seat for my 3 year old since her car seat was built in to the other van.
So, I thought the nightmare was over and I would at last be returning home. Sunday morning my sister-in-law and I set out with the kids to go home. Not too far from my parents house, my daughter's seat belt broke-YES broke. So, we returned to Salt Lake where there were people that love us to help us figure out this next part of the saga. My dad looked at the seat belt and fixed it, but we wanted to get a replacement to make sure it would not come out again like in the middle of nowhere in Wyoming or something. Stefanie (my sister-in-law) had her friend who does collision repair for a living check it out as well. We all came to the same conclusion that it seems ok but I should probably get it replaced to be safe. Remember though, this is Utah on a Sunday so nothing was open.
So, I went to church, heard my mom give an excellent lesson on families, then tried to relax for the day since there was nothing to do about the van until Monday. My aunt was having a short birthday party for her daughter and asked me to take the kids up to it. I decided to go, and while there, my other aunt who owns a Honda, told me that Honda has a lifetime guarantee on safety features (read seat belts) even if you are not the first owner! WHAT?! REALLY?! Yes, I found out Monday morning that it is true (Thanks Kris).
Monday I took the van to the dealer and they fixed the seat belt (for free) and we were finally able to leave for home around noon Monday. We (Stefanie and I witht he kids-thanks Stefanie) drove to Cheyenne and stayed overnight at the Little America (it was the best deal) and I splurged on room service (at that point I did not want to take the kids out of the room again until we were driving home the next morning-not frugal, but it was fantastically good food and a relaxing thing for me after all the stress).
Tuesday morning (yesterday), we got in the van to get home and made it a mere 2 miles before the throwing up began...I won't go into that, but let me say, it was a lot longer drive home that anticipated with more stops that we wanted to make...let me tell you this though...no throw up got in the new van-we managed to keep it in buckets and on the side of the road (sorry I-80).
So, here I am at home...with a new van that I am loving...(pictures coming soon)...As far a frugality goes, I did OK (well except the room service). I did not but a car out of my means to pay off, and I feel I got a good deal. I probably could have talked the dealer down on the price a bit, but the stress of it all made it not worth the possibility of losing the van...Here is my question to all of you---do you manage to stay frugal in an emergency/crunch? If so, how in the world do you do it? Give me some tips and tricks to share!
Friday, June 10, 2011
AWESOME Father's Day ideas for dad!! #momsparkmedia
7:35 AM
Hey there! This is Beckee, coming to you from sunny Scottsdale, AZ. We are here checking out our new digs (we will be moving here in a year). While here, I had Wes bring with him this awesome product I got to review and tell you all about.
PhotoJewelryMaking.com is a site where you can find all kinds of high quality customizable photo jewelry kits. And the best part (at least for me) is that they are easy to do, and make a unique, fun gift!
I was lucky enough to get the Father's Day Easy Change Photo Cufflink's Kit to try out. The kit includes two silver cufflinks, the EZ Photo Resizer software and a 4"x6" piece of photo paper. Best part is that they normally cost $24.99, but they are on sale for $19.99!! I love saving money!!!
So, let me tell you, I went to the PhotoJewelryMaking.com website to check out what they have, and can I tell you, the selection is huge! You can get watches, rings, bracelets, keychains, and much, much more! And they are all totally customizable!
When it came to actually making the photos to go in the cuff links, I was pretty nervous about how to do it, but the photo resizing CD that comes with it makes it a breeze. AND if you have any questions about how to us that CD PhotoJewelryMaking.com offers a tutorial online about how to use it to resize your photos. I was easily able to resize my photo and prepare it to print. As I am in AZ and have no printer access, I could not print out my pictures and put them in my cuff links, but I did resize them easily, and it appears pretty straight forward and simple to put the photos in.
This Father's Day Easy Change Photo Cufflink's Kit would be an awesome unique gift for dads! Maybe your dad doesn't wear cuff links? Well, there are other options-lots of them, like a Silver Photo Keychain. Seriously-there are lots of options, just go check out the selection they have here.
Hey and while you are checking them out on their website, you should also go like them on facebook.
This review was made possible by Mom Spark Media. (please link Mom Spark Media to http://momsparkmedia.com) Thoughts are my own. And I should let you know that I did receive the Father's Day Easy Change Photo Cufflink's Kit to review for this post.
PhotoJewelryMaking.com is a site where you can find all kinds of high quality customizable photo jewelry kits. And the best part (at least for me) is that they are easy to do, and make a unique, fun gift!
I was lucky enough to get the Father's Day Easy Change Photo Cufflink's Kit to try out. The kit includes two silver cufflinks, the EZ Photo Resizer software and a 4"x6" piece of photo paper. Best part is that they normally cost $24.99, but they are on sale for $19.99!! I love saving money!!!
So, let me tell you, I went to the PhotoJewelryMaking.com website to check out what they have, and can I tell you, the selection is huge! You can get watches, rings, bracelets, keychains, and much, much more! And they are all totally customizable!
When it came to actually making the photos to go in the cuff links, I was pretty nervous about how to do it, but the photo resizing CD that comes with it makes it a breeze. AND if you have any questions about how to us that CD PhotoJewelryMaking.com offers a tutorial online about how to use it to resize your photos. I was easily able to resize my photo and prepare it to print. As I am in AZ and have no printer access, I could not print out my pictures and put them in my cuff links, but I did resize them easily, and it appears pretty straight forward and simple to put the photos in.
This Father's Day Easy Change Photo Cufflink's Kit would be an awesome unique gift for dads! Maybe your dad doesn't wear cuff links? Well, there are other options-lots of them, like a Silver Photo Keychain. Seriously-there are lots of options, just go check out the selection they have here.
Hey and while you are checking them out on their website, you should also go like them on facebook.
This review was made possible by Mom Spark Media. (please link Mom Spark Media to http://momsparkmedia.com) Thoughts are my own. And I should let you know that I did receive the Father's Day Easy Change Photo Cufflink's Kit to review for this post.
Saturday, June 4, 2011
Last day for my readers to get ArtisticLetters Deal!!!
7:08 AM
Did you see my review of ArtisticLetters the other day? It is a fantastic company and Jodi (owner and photographer extraordinaire) is offering my readers a great deal that ends TODAY. So go read the review and check out the deal here.
FREE fishing day in Utah is TODAY!!!
7:02 AM
You may have noticed less posting...I am in Utah visiting(and BOY was it an adventure getting here-I will post that story later. Spoiler alert: Burger King, tornados and hail were involved).
I wanted to put up a real quick post to let you Utahns know that today is FREE fishing day here in Utah! That means that you can fish in Utah today without a license! So, go out and have a great fishing adventure today then come back and tell me how it went!!
I wanted to put up a real quick post to let you Utahns know that today is FREE fishing day here in Utah! That means that you can fish in Utah today without a license! So, go out and have a great fishing adventure today then come back and tell me how it went!!
Thursday, June 2, 2011
ArtisticLetters review and EXCLUSIVE DEAL for my readers!!!
7:08 AM
Have you ever seen those fantastic pictures where photographers have used photos of random items around to spell out words? I ADORE that type of thing, so I was super excited when I had the chance to check out Jodi Gerber's work, and make some fabulous projects from them. (Oh and did I mention that she is offering a deal for my readers?! You will want to read on!!)
I want to tell you about Jodi and her work at ArtisticLetters, but first check out the kinds of amazing projects you can make:
And look at what I put together using her letters:
This one is for the blog.
This one is for the family.
And now that you have seen the kinds of great projects you can put together, let me tell you about Jodi and ArtisticLetters!
Jodi Gerber (Photographer extraordinaire!) of ArtisticLetters has created an entire catalog of black & white letter images throughout the past 3 years. She has done it all by taking photos of objects in nature that resembled letters of the alphabet. She recently decided to offer her ENTIRE catalog of 250+ letter images to the public on CD or Download so that anyone could create their own designs! It’s such an awesome and original way to make artwork for your home or whatever (scrapbooking, greeting cards, and digital designs consisting of wedding invitations, baby’s birth, etc.). Really there are endless possibilities! You can use it for really any letter related project you can imagine!
So, What's the Deal?!
As I mentioned, Jodi teamed up with me and is offering my readers (YOU!) Exclusive Discounted Pricing of up to $6 Off!
Please visit her website http://www.buyalphabetphotos.com/ and browse the images, testimonials, and ideas.
Then check out the Exclusive Pricing and Freebie by clicking on this link:
http://www.buyalphabetphotos.com/exclusive-pricing-and-freebie-page-expires-june-4.html (FYI, This link is only accessible here for my readers – you won’t be able to find it on her website.)
AND guess what else?! Jodi also offered my readers a FREEBIE alphabet set (with purchase) as a Bonus! And here’s the great part – you get to choose a Damask set from 6 different galleries! More info about this freebie is available on the special link above.
The exclusive pricing and freebie offer expires Saturday, June 4 at midnight so be sure you take advantage of this great deal while it lasts.
You can also visit Jodi’s facebook page and click “Like” to find more info and receive future promotions.
I would LOVE to see what kinds of amazing projects you do with Jodi's work! Let me know what you end up making if you choose to take advantage of this great deal!!
I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com created by WebBizIdeas.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commissions 16 CFR, Part 255 Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising. Tomoson Product review & giveaway Disclosure.
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