Swagbucks.com

In my never-ending search to make very little stretch very far, (and my love for free stuff). I just started using Swagbucks.com. Basically, its a search engine portal that allows you to earn Swagbucks for purchases and the chance to win prizes.

"www.swagbucks.com is an online portal dedicated to helping you earn digital dollars called "Swag Bucks," which can be redeemed for exclusive swagbucks.com merchandise." -Swagbucks.com FAQs

you can check it out here:

I've only been on it a few minutes and have already earned about 10 swagbucks. The site also gives points for turning in old cell phones and video games. That's a pretty good deal to get something out of those old useless objects laying around the house. The search engine so far seems comparable to Google so why not earn some extras while searching for things you do everyday anyway?

Take a look and tell him Gertie Sent ya!

Scrubbing Bubbles Shower Cleaner

I'm a mom of 3 boys. I work full-time. Take classes part-time. Keeping up my household can be a real chore. Especially after 3 wonderfully smelly/dirty/whatonearthdidyougetbehindyourear teenage boys come in from school, bike riding, basketball, hiking in the woods, and whatever else they get into. Our shower always looks like a war zone at the end of the week and it feels like a war zone when I attempt to scrub it down. My mom picked up the Scrubbing Bubbles Automatic Shower Cleaner a while back and loved it. It's just right up her alley since it's just her and dad at home. Well, I decided to give it a try. I mean, what could it hurt? All I would have to do is get those wonderful boys of mine to push a button. Sure, they can't remember to put their clothes four inches over to be in the hamper instead of the floor, but what the heck we'll give it a whirl. Guess what? It works! It must be Tim the Tool man Taylor disease because it has a motor on it but they actually push the button. AND, best of all, it actually cleans! It comes with One power sprayer, One 34 oz. refill bottle, One hanger for your shower head, and a lot of spare time to clean everything else. To use it, just press the button to activate, and close the shower curtain/door (don't peek! Trust me it takes forever to get your eyes to quit stinging). The power sprayer will beep for 15 seconds. Then the Scrubbing Bubbles® Automatic Shower Cleaner system will spin 360º for 12 seconds and automatically release a pre-measured amount of cleaning formula. It's best if you use right after the last shower of the day. It works so well that, SC Johnson offers a money back guarantee (just click the picture and it'll take you to the form):

I love this little gadget. At first I thought it was pricey but it more than paid for its self in a couple of weeks. You can also find coupons for it out there (that's how I got mine). With a money back guarantee, you really can't go wrong to try it. It is now my favorite "toy" replacing the Downey Fabric Softener Ball (which is still way up on my list of most useful household "toys".

19 Survey sites that pay

I'm sure you've been seeing an increase in ads, both online and on TV, for getting paid to take surveys. With times getting tough many people are turning to them for a little extra money. I've been doing a few for a couple of years that are great but along the way I've hit some real lemons as well. For someone just starting out in the paid survey "biz" it can be quit overwhelming. A great place to start is at my favorite site :) Hotcouponworld.com compiled 19 survey sites that are : legit, pay out, little or no spam, good way to earn extra money. I would suggest first and foremost don't expect to get rich fast. That's unrealistic but you can get some really great freebies, gift cards, and even cold hard cash with patience and dedication. Second, before jumping in and joining every site is to set up a separate email address so your inbox isn't bombarded with TONS of mail (trust me you will get some emails from them). Many services online have free email accounts like gmail, hotmail, Yahoo, and AIM. Setting up something like mysurveys@gmail.com to catch all your offers and surveys is a great way to keep them organized and separated from dear Aunt Jane's email with pictures of her baby cockapoo in his new sweater. My third bit of advice, don't go Gung ho...at least, not at first. Take it one site at a time, possibly two, until you get a feel for the process and get the hang of it. Once you feel comfortable and not overwhelmed, by all means hit the net and click away! It's a fun way to earn some extra income and eve learn about products before they come out. Plus, who can pass up on a little freebie popping up in their mailbox. Just be prepared to get your mailman a little something extra next Christmas for all the hard work of stuffing your mailbox with all those freebies! So go check out Hotcouponworld's recommended survey sites to get started!

OSO* Fresh product to save your fruits and veggies

I am a semi-homesteader, well, ok, I'm not much of a homesteader but I'm taking baby steps. One of those steps is I grow many of my veggies in the summer to can and freeze to eat all winter long. However, I still have a weakness for fresh fruits and veggies I can't grow so I turn to the store or market to get them. The only problem is we have to eat them so quickly because the frig turns them to moldy mush in the container, bags, or whatever we store them in. Well, leave to my friend Erin at Jane4Girls$800Annual Budget has found a great product, and of course tested it first hand, that will take away those mushy, moldy fruit blues.

It's called OSO* Fresh Food Containers and they look amazing. I know you're think "I've got to many plastic bowls", these are no ordinary plastic bowls.

Oso* Fresh™ Food Storage Containers are infused with EPA registered and
FDA approved micro-sized silver particles which are proven to reduce bacterial
growth and keep food fresher. While the silver particles keep bacteria out, the
easy-to-open snap on lids keep freshness in. Stackable units nest into one
another for easy storage. Microwave, freezer and dishwasher safe.

At first glance I thought they were pricey, but looking around the site I noticed you could by individual containers and in reality they are comparable to the "T"ware we buy at parties. The only difference is these will SAVE us money and time - time of buying new fruits and veggies and time from throwing out the unidentifiable stuff in the mystery bowl in the back of the fridge.

PAPERS! PAPERS! GET YOUR PAPERS!...

Sunday's papers that is. On a tip from Saving Money Ideas, I've learned that this Sunday's inserts will be a wonderful New Year's gift. With a total of 5 different inserts, three Smartsource inserts and two Red Plum (Valassis) inserts, the possibilities are endless. This basically amounts tons of savings and swaps for the avid couponer. How does she know? She pointed to Taylortown Preview to see a complete listing of the coupons that will be in this weekend's paper. So I ventured over and WOW! What an awesome resource. Her dedication and hard work/time really pays off. She offers a preview of the upcoming weeks insert coupons AND offers them for sale including past inserts. Of course, they are on a "While Supplies Last" basis but if you are looking for a particular coupon, she's more than likely got. Or if you just can't remember when a coupon came out or if there is one for a particular product, she has a search feature that works by pressing ctrl + F to pop up a search box at the bottom of the screen. To see what's coming click here: Taylortown

Yesterday I mentioned Hotcouponworld.com in my quest for free toliet paper. I thought I should tell you a little about hcw. I stumbled across this wonderful virtual community by accident one day and have never turned back. It's a huge resource for the hard core couponer AND the beginner.

At HCW, there's a place for everything - from introduction to couponing and the entire process to get started, to where to find coupons and even suggestions on how to set up a coupon organizing system. Other resources include individual sections for individual stores that list current and upcoming sales, how to handle any problems you encounter, sharing deals people have gotten there, and my favorite, the wonderful ladies (& gents) list coupon match ups to the sales ads. Helping you get the most out of your money.

There are so many resources on this site, you'll find yourself addicted to it. Not only do they help you learn and navigate through the wonderful world of couponing but they also list freebies, have a helping hand program, classifieds, coupon trading, and even a place to blow off steam.

If you are new to couponing or you're a pro and have never stopped by, I highly recommend clicking over there. Hotcouponworld.com is an excellent source of knowledge, encouragement, and just a lot of fun while saving. I learn something new every time I'm there. Go check them out: Hotcouponworld.com

Learning from JANE4girls $800 Annual Budget

There’s an amazing woman online out of Texas who has inspired not only myself but hundreds of people online to buckle down, get creative, and save on groceries and more. On her blog, JANE4girls $800 Annual Budget For A Family of 4, she not only tells you how she spends next to nothing on groceries she also shows you how to do it. With gift cards earned from rebates, surveys, and even test drives, she recently took herself and her girls to Red Lobster and ate for $1.85!!! I haven’t even been able to take my crew to McDonald’s for less than $20 but I’m inspired to look into this. Erin, who holds free couponing classes in her hometown of Katy, Texas, has taken couponing and frugal living to a new and fun level. She still lives like she spends a ton but has maintained an $800 budget with change to spare for this year. On her blog she shares her secrets to getting the best deal and even shares some recipes in which she uses items from her stockpile of goodies. All the things she does she does to share the knowledge she has gained learning to live frugally and still have fun. The coupon classes she holds in Katy, Texas she does at no charge so that she can share with others how to save and live a better life. During this time of economic downturn, it’s refreshing to find a great resource for not only information on saving some of our hard earned money but encouragement to enjoy the fruits of our labors as well as life in general. Kudos to this great motivator of the frugal. Thanks for helping us all learn to live for less. Great job, Erin! Great job!

Check her great blog out at : http://jane4girls800dollarannualbudget.blogspot.com/