Sharing My Two Cents

Friday Freebies 7/4 - Happy 4th of July!

2008-07-04T02:21:15Z

Freebies

I’m actually posting this a bit early for all you night owls or early birds. I’m sure a lot of you will be busy tomorrow so here’s a chance to get your freebies now.

I’ve got a new poll up. Last week’s poll asked if you had ever made your own bread. 100% of those than answered have! I’m surprised by the answers, I just made homemade bread for the first time a few weeks ago. I’ve made banana bread a million times before, but never a loaf that you could slice and make sandwiches with.

Have an awesome 4th of July everyone!

For a Free Sample of Sani-Hands for Kids call 1-877-SANI-KID (1-877-726-4543)
Free Sharps Container (This is a great freebie for diabetics or anyone who needs to use needles at home. This will give them a safe way to dispose of them.)
Free 10 Month Subscription to More Magazine
Free subscription to Cosmopolitan (4 issues)
Maybelline Mineral Power Natural Perfecting Liquid Foundation
Gillette 2 in 1 Body Wash or Shampoo
Free Can of Mighty Dog Food
Free sample of Pero Caffeine-Free Coffee Substitute Beverage
Nivea Extreme Comfort Shave Gel
Free Celebrity Fragrance Samples (Celine Dion Sensational, McGraw by Tim McGraw & Baby Phat Seductive Goddess)
Old Spice Red Zone Body Wash
Free Suze Orman Will & Trust Kit
Where it says Gift Code type in “People First” for a free download.

Menu Planning Monday 6/30

2008-07-02T01:08:44Z

I’m late posting my menu again, life keeps happening. My poor sweet husband developed a tooth-ache over the weekend. I’ve shuffled around the menu a bit this week due to his aching tooth making it hard for him to eat foods that need to be chewed a lot. He was able to get in to see the dentist on Monday and has a root canal scheduled for tomorrow (Wednesday).

This weeks Meal Plan:
Monday - Parmesan Tilapia, Rice, Corn (didn’t get to this last week)
Tuesday- BBQ Chicken Quesadillas (yumm! We just had this. Would have NEVER paired BBQ sauce with taco type ingredients. I used Sweet Baby Ray’s Sweet Vidalia Onion BBQ sauce. This was delicious!)
Wednesday - Homemade Pizza, watermelon slices
Thursday - “Panera” Broccoli & Cheddar Soup, homemade French Bread
Friday - Grilled Marinated Shrimp, New Potatoes, watermelon slices
Saturday- Chicken Divan, rice, sliced cucumbers
Sunday - Bean Quesadillas, cucumber sticks

To see more weekly meal plans visit Organized Junkie

Earnings for June 2008

2008-07-01T01:35:57Z

In May I earned $143.11. Here is what I earned during June.

Surveys
My Survey $7.30
Survey Savvy $11.50

Rebates $7.84

Get Paid to….
CashCrate $0

Blog Money
Commission Junction $0
Amazon $0
Misc. Advertisements $176.87

Writing
Associated Content $.93 (Performance Bonus)

Total $204.44 as of June 30th, 2008

Gift Cards

$5 Amazon Gift Certificate for doing a survey

Friday Freebies 6/27

2008-06-27T12:05:33Z

Not much going on here except for some cleaning the next couple days. We have an Open House on Sunday and I want everything to look perfect. I’m going to buy some fresh flowers, bake some cookies and just make the home look really homey. Wall-E (the new Pixar movie) comes out today. I love Pixar movies and can’t wait to see this one. We’re thinking of taking the kids tomorrow.

Freebies

Speaking of Wall-E and freebies get a FREE Wall-E watch with each redemption of a child’s admission ticket when you see the movie on the opening weekend (which is this weekend). I can’t tell if this is something they’ll give you this at the theater or if you mail in for it. If you go see Wall-E today and they give you a free watch can you let me know? I’ll see what else I can find about it.

Free Seattle’s Best Coffee Sample (new link)
Free toothpaste from the Natural Dentist (take short survey first)
Huggies Pull-Ups
Free Food Allergy and Intolerance Survival Guide
Call 1-800-662-2544 for free samples from Nordic Naturals
National Geographic Kids Big Screen Safari (select theaters across the US)
Luvs Diapers Welcome Kit and a $5 coupon
Simply American Greetings Card
Free bottle of Country Bob’s All Purpose Sauce (I’ve gotten this one before)
Free Lancaster Anti-Aging Sample

Thursday Round-Up - School Supplies Already?

2008-06-26T18:46:06Z

Ya’ll must think I’m crazy but I’ve got school supplies on the brain. School starts back up for my kiddos in a little over a week!! They are on a year-round schedule for school and this will be their 2nd year of this schedule. It still seems a bit strange, they’ve only been out of school for 3 weeks now. I’m still holding out hope that Target will get their school supplies display out soon. That’s where I find the best deals and can get the back to school shopping done quickly.

Hmm…which reminds me, I need to go order some LL Bean backpacks right now. Their backpacks last forever (one has lasted 5 years now) but the kids do eventually outgrow them. The old backpacks will get handed down, and the older kids will get new backpacks this year.

I don’t know about your stores, but my local grocery stores have had some pretty decent deals lately. Not anything spectacular like triple coupons (I wish!), but still some good sales have been going on. It makes the rising grocery and gas prices just a little less painful. If you don’t know what the deals are this week make sure to check out the deals I have listed a bit further down.

Get Your Coupons!

Coupon preview for Sunday, June 29th.

Proctor & Gamble coupon insert preview for July 6th.

Take a quiz (super easy!) at Earthbound Farms and receive free coupons for Earthbound Farms and Horizon Organic dairy products and the 2008 Pocket Guide to Choosing Organic. All while helping to raise $20,000 for Healthy Child Healthy World (a non-profit).

What Are the Deals This Week?

Rite-Aid
CVS
Target
Wal-Mart
Walgreen’s
Don’t forget the Walgreen’s $5 off a $20 purchase printable coupon - ONLY GOOD ON Friday June 27th!
Local Grocery Stores

Survey Results Are In!

Last week I polled my readers on their coupon usage. I asked:

How Long Have You Been Couponing?

20% of you have never couponed before
10% are newbies and have been doing it less than 6 months
10% have been using coupons for 6-12 months.
10% have been at it for 1-2 years
50% have used coupons more than 3 years

This week I’ve got a new poll up - look on the right of the site to make your vote. I’ll reveal results next week (so far I’m kind of surprised by how the results are turning out!).

A Survey Extravaganza (aka a List of Really Good Survey Sites)

2008-06-24T19:43:32Z

Last week I covered companies that offer opportunities for you to test products and provide feedback on them. This week I’d thought I’d give you a list of survey companies. Some are my old favorites, and some are new to me.

Stay Organized-

There are so many great survey companies these days it can be hard to keep track of what companies you signed up with and all the survey invitations that come in. Here are two solutions to help you with that.

Create a separate email address for surveys - You can use gmail, hotmail, yahoo or any other free email provider service to create another email address account. Check with your internet service provider, often times they provide you with the ability to make email sub-accounts.

Create a separate folder to store your survey invites. - This is the option that works best for me. I’ve created a folder that holds all sign-up confirmations for the companies that I’ve signed up with. These hold my log-in information and help me remember which sites I’m already a member of.
You can set MS Outlook so that all new emails from survey companies are directed straight to your survey folder. Periodically check the folder for new survey invites when you have the time to answer the surveys. Be careful though, some of the more popular surveys that pay a lot might fill up fast.

The List

This is not an all-inclusive list, but it should keep you busy for awhile. As I learn about other companies I’ll share them.

Esearch
Survey Savvy
Mindfield Online
Survey Spot
My Survey
Data Intelligence - Town Square
Stanford Graduate School Behavioral Lab
Noesis Noe-It-All
Say Nation
Baker Street Solutions
Focus Forward Online
WRatings
Team Look-Look
Yale School of Management (they don’t pay for surveys, although you are entered into a contest for payment)
My View

I’ve written quite a bit on taking surveys for a little extra cash. Here are some of my previous articles you might find helpful:

Can I Make Money Taking Surveys Online?

Taking Surveys For Money?

Menu Planning Monday 6/23

2008-06-24T12:21:41Z

I’m late posting this as I’ve had to make some last minute changes. Hubby was supposed to be out of town for work until Friday but will be home tomorrow. Yay! Last week’s menu was wonderful. We found some new recipes that are being saved as keepers.

This weeks Meal Plan:
Monday - Breakfast dinner - Pancakes
Tuesday- Spaghetti, Garlic Bread, cucumber slices
Wednesday - Chicken Baseballs, salad (my family loves these!)
Thursday - Parmesan Tilapia, Rice, Steamed Broccoli (Hubby isn’t a fish fan, but loves this Tilapia recipe)
Friday - Homemade pizza, carrot sticks
Saturday- Skillet Chicken Parmesan, homemade french bread, salad
Sunday - Open House today - we’ll be eating out!
To see more weekly meal plans visit Organized Junkie

Friday Freebies 6/20

2008-06-20T16:44:53Z

Here are this week’s freebies. I love all the free magazine subscription offers. I haven’t paid for magazines in a long time. Enjoy!
Free Multi-grain Cheerios
Free packet of wildflower seeds from Burt’s Bees
Free Schick Intuition Razor (make sure to check the “Yes” box that you want a free razor)
Nutritioniste Skin Renew Lotion
Free Ultra XCID sample
Free Sport Fishing magazine subscription
Free travel bag and coupons - JUNE 20th ONLY! First 15,000 people. Enter code: 2MCNMB5. Link is active now!
Free Woman’s Day subscription
Join Club Senseo and get a free bag of coffee pods

Free Redbox movie rental for 1st time customers. Use code: DVDONME

Product Testing - Part III

2008-06-17T14:13:42Z

I’m continuing my “Getting Paid to Test Products” series. As I learn of new sites or companies to test with I’ll share them.

If you missed the first parts of my series here are Part I and Part II. Helpful tips are included if you are new to product testing. Remember, you won’t get rich from it, but it’s a great way to earn a little extra cash and get free products to use. All just for giving your opinion.

Cosmo’s Buzz Club’s “Test for the Best” Product Tester’s Panel
Kashi Taste Tester Panel
Mentadent Product Tester (If you are interested in getting coupons and joining the testing panel make sure you check yes for questions #2-4
El Monterey Product Testing
Soffe Fan Club Product Testing
All You Reality Checker
General Mills Advisory Panel
As Seen on TV product tester

Neito Research - Diaper Research Study
Call 1-888-412-5552 or email them at nietoresearch@yahoo.com
Priority is given to those who email.
They’ll need your name, phone number and child’s weight and diaper size.
If you call and get a voice mail leave a message and they will return your call.

Arquest - Diaper Study
Phone # is 1-888-342-7372 Dial Ext. 634 for boys and Ext. 646 for girls
They are looking for families with children in diaper sizes 3,4,5
Compensation is provided in the form of free diapers and cash.
Note: I called them yesterday and the studies are already full this month for boys in size 5 diapers. They were very friendly and said to call back next month.

image by lusi

Monday Menu Planning 6/16

2008-06-24T04:28:34Z

Yay! Hubby is not traveling this week so we are back to a normal menu and schedule. I’m going to try out some new recipes I found via Being Frugal. Organic meat is expensive so I’m trying to work in more meatless meals each week.
This weeks Meal Plan:
Monday - Crockpot Cream Cheese Chicken, pasta, salad
Tuesday- Seven Layer Tortilla Pie, corn
Wednesday - Leftovers/Breakfast dinner or Eat Out (possible day trip to the beach)
Thursday - Chicken Lasagna, Green Beans
Friday - Homemade pizza, carrot sticks
Saturday- Bean Quesadillas, cucumber sticks
Sunday - Frittata, French Bread (homemade), salad
To see more weekly meal plans visit Organized Junkie