Tuesday, May 9, 2017

Sharing is Caring: Ebates

Ebates.com pays you to shop online.  That's it, really, it's that simple.  I personally use Google Chrome to access the internet most of the time and there is an app for Chrome.  Any time you go onto a website that has an ebate available, a message pops up that lets you know how much rebate can be earned by shopping the site.  If you don't use Chrome or if you shop on your phone, you can go to the Ebates website and find the store you will be shopping and access their site from there.  I'm sure there is an app for that, too. If you search the app and website, you can also find coupons and deals from Ebates affiliate sites.

Right now you could earn 15% cash back at places like Kohl's, Staples and Dick's. Earn 3% for select purchases at Amazon.com.  You could even earn 6% back at Groupon!  Talk about savings!  Ebates puts all your rebates into your account and then occasionally sends you a check or deposits your earnings into your PayPal account.  That's it.  You literally get paid for shopping you were going to do anyway and may even find a deal you weren't aware of.  Be sure to use any of the links in this email to sign up for your very own Ebates account and start saving some money today!


How do you like to save money?  Did you sign up for Ibotta to save money with me?

Tuesday, April 25, 2017

Sharing is Caring: Ibotta

Folks, I have got away from just subscription services so I've changed the name of this series.  I want to share my opinions with you because you are my friends and I do care!  Today, I want to talk about Ibotta.

Ibotta is an app on your smart phone where you can earn rebates on things you are already going to buy.  I mostly just use it for grocery rebates, but there are rebates for many other kinds of websites and products.  I recently even found out that there are rebates for WINE!  This makes me VERY happy.  The issue is that your liquor store has to list what you purchased on the receipt and a lot of them don't.  My newest favorite store does though, and they are the least expensive store in town for the brands I buy AND they are right on my way home!  Big win for Rum Runners!  Thanks guys!

Anyway, Ibotta.  You find the products you are going to be buying anyway; milk, bread, eggs, onions, baby formula, trash bags, orange juice... seriously, there are a whole bunch, you get the point.  You may have to take a poll or watch a short video to qualify for the rebate, but it never takes very long or they may offer a recipe for you to use the product in.  Do your shopping.  When you get home, you scan all the items that qualify for rebates and a picture of the receipt and BAM!  they put money on your account.  When you get enough money on your account, you can cash it out to your PayPal account and put it in your checking or you can use it for gift cards for Amazon or Starbucks or many, many other places.

If you have a rewards card for the store you are shopping, I use my Reasor's reward card, they will save the information so the cashier can scan the barcode on your phone in case you don't want to carry your card with you.  With Reasor's and I assume other stores they have connected this way, you don't even have to scan your products and receipt.  The purchases just upload and they pay the money to your account shortly after you finish your shopping.  Even better!

You can earn even more rebates if your friends are using Ibotta.  There are multiple levels of bonuses each month and you get there faster if you AND your friends are using the app.  I want all of you to join my team and we can earn those bonuses faster!  Go to your phone's app store and download the Ibotta app and use the code BIDYBHU to join my team!  I use the app often and earn bonuses often so if you join me and use it with me, you will earn bonuses, too!

Tuesday, April 18, 2017

Is that subscription worth it: Audible

When you have little ones, you have your hands full.  When your hands are full of kid's stuff, it can't be full of books!  I love my kids AND I love to read, this is quite the dilemma!  How does a busy mom manage to squeeze reading into her busy schedule?  Audiobooks!  There are many ways you can listen to a book these days.  There's the old fashioned book-on-tape, but nobody has tapes anymore so I guess it would be book-on-CD or you can download audiobooks to your phone/tablet/computer/other device.

Places I like to listen to a book:

My daily commute to and from work
Trips to Lily's doctors appointments in Tulsa
While working at my desk at the office
While taking a shower or cleaning house


While I love to get things for free and I love my local library, I hate waiting lists.  I have often found myself at the end of a long line of people waiting to borrow a popular audiobook.  I have very little patience for that sort of thing so I happily subscribe to Audbile.  For $14.95 I can enjoy a new title each month.  There are always new and exciting books offered as well as classics and everything in between.  Audible members can enjoy discounts and member-exclusive sales in addition to their monthly book title.  There is something called Audible Channels, that I have to admit I haven't explored yet, but sounds exciting.

Unlike most of the products I've reviewed on this site, I couldn't find a link for you to use so I could earn free stuff.  I'm sad about this, but I'm still happy to share my love of Audible with you.

Where do you like to listen to a book?  

Tuesday, April 11, 2017

Is that subscription worth it: Dollar Shave Club

Hello Friends!  I'm back today with another product review!  Today I want to talk about Dollar Shave Club.  I know you probably couldn't tell by looking at him, but the Hubs is sensitive, well his skin is anyway.  He could only use certain razors and they were NOT the inexpensive ones.  He was pretty skeptical when I told him I was ordering razors online for him to try, but these were a success!

The way it works:

In your first box, you get a cartridge of blades and a handle to attach them to.  Each subsequent month, you just get the cartridge of blades and you can always add additional handles for a small fee if you need them.  There are three different levels of razors:  The Humble Twin, "A lightweight razor with a shallow pivot head for blade contouring. Comes with 5 refill cartridges per month" for $1/month; The 4x, "A more advanced razor with a wide open back for a fast, easy rinse. Comes with 4 refill cartridges per month" for $6/month; and The Executive, "Our best razor. Includes a trimmer edge for hard to reach places. Comes with 4 refill cartridges per month" for only $9/month.  Folks, this is a great deal for some good quality razors.  I was so impressed with the razors, I started using them myself.

The company also offers a line of shave and shower products for the menfolk.    I recently ordered a body wash from the Wander collection for the Hubs and it smells amazing.  He also uses the Post Shave Cream and says it works very well.  We have been members of the Dollar Shave Club for quite some time now and have NO intention of turning back.  The nice folks of Dollar Shave Club sent me an email recently with a code I could share with a friend to get their first month free.  Aren't you glad you are my friend?  Use any of the links in this email and the copy and paste the code at the check out and you, my friends, are on your way to your first month free!  Are you ready for the code?  Here goes:



RFFMF31746ED5D4AD8D9

As with all my product reviews so far, I'm not getting paid for my opinion and my opinion is all mine.  If you use the links, I will earn credit for free products, so I'm thrilled when someone uses my links.  I hope my reviews will help you to find some new favorite products.  If you have tried any of the products I have reviewed, please comment and let me know what you think!  Even if we don't agree, I'm open minded, I want to hear what you think too!  

Tuesday, March 7, 2017

Is that subscription worth it: Ipsy and Birchbox

All of my reviews so far have been for products that I have liked and would recommend all my reader friends subscribe to.  Today I'd like to talk about a product that I didn't enjoy enough to keep paying for.  Actually, it's two products, but they are so similar that I'm going to lump them together.  Today we are going to talk about Ipsy and Birchbox.

Both products work the same, you fill out a questionnaire so they can decide what products you might enjoy and then they put together a package and ship it out.  With Ipsy, they always send your products in a cute little cosmetic bag and I use those bags for various things around my house that don't usually have anything to do with cosmetics.  With Birchbox, you don't get the cute bag, but you get to pick one of the samples you get each month and still get to be surprised by the rest.

The problem I had with both services is that I might get the same product in a different shade or the same shade of something in a different brand in back to back months.  I don't need 2 lipsticks in a pretty berry shade, even if they are different brands.  When this started happening with Ipsy, I switched to Birchbox, but it happened with that product, too.  The positive thing about these products is the price.  Each box it $10 and you will usually get a full sized product as well as a few sample sizes.  These services would be great for someone who is starting a beauty routine or trying to shake up an existing rut.  As for me, I have a ton of makeup and hair products that I've purchased over the years that are cluttering up my makeup bag as it is.

Did you have a different experience with these products?  I'd love to hear about it!

Tuesday, February 28, 2017

Is this subscription worth it: Book of the Month Club

This week I'd like to talk about Book of the Month.  This seems appropriate for by blog since I was doing so much book blogging before my last hiatus.  I was signed up for Book of the Month at one point last year, but I wasn't reading many paper books so I was having a hard time finishing one before the next came in.  I have since worked paper books back into my routine and I'm excited to get started on some new ones.

The way it works:  You can sign up for a 3, 6, or 12 month subscription and you pay for it up front.  The more months you sign up for, the lower the cost of each book.  At the beginning of the month, you get to pick from 5 books chosen by a panel of BOTM judges.  Each month there is a celebrity judge who gets to choose a book, also.  They will ship out your chosen book around the 5th of the month and you should get it in a week or so.  If you don't think you will love any of a current month's selections, skip that month!  You can cancel any time.

These are always current releases and books all the publishers and book bloggers are talking about and it's a hardcover!  If you just sign up for 3 months at a time, the shortest and most expensive plan, it's $14.95 per month.  $14.95 for a hardcover book?!?  Folks, I don't know if you have shopped books lately, but that's not bad at all!  I spent almost that much on an ebook of a new release I've been waiting for.  You can buy a copy of previous month's books for just $9.99.  I think this is a great deal if you are going to purchase books for your library.  I love to find a paper book that is a great read because you can SHARE it!  Let your friend borrow is, let your mom borrow it, let your sister borrow it, let the husband read it!  You can't do that (at least not easily) with ebooks or audiobooks.  If it turns out that it's not as good as you were hoping it would be, donate it to your local library.  Local libraries are a gem of our communities and they are often severely underfunded.  They LOVE when people donate books they can actually put on the shelf.  Books that readers WANT to read.  Then when you go see your tax guy in the spring, write off the books that you donated!  You practically make your money back on your investment and you can feel good about donating to your community.

As always, if my post makes you want to run out and subscribe to this product, PLEASE use the links so I can get credit on the site.  I blog for free and have to work a real job to spoil my kiddos and feed the family.  Share the love and shop the sites through my links so I can spoil myself with these subscriptions!

What do you subscribe to? 

Tuesday, February 21, 2017

Is this subscription worth it: eMeals

Hey folks!  I may be getting back into the swing of this blogging stuff, I'm here for yet another regular post!  This week's subscription review is for a eMeals.

eMeals is actually a service I've been using for more than a year and I think I talked about it once before.  This service provides a weekly dinner menu with seven meals to choose from.  You can pick from several different types of menus like meals on a budget, kid-friendly meals, Paleo, vegetarian and many more.  You can mix and match each week by switching between the different menu types and and family sizes.  If you use the mobile app, you can add the meals to your plan and the app creates a shopping list for you.  The shopping list is very handy because it breaks everything down by the isle it should be on and it tells you which meal you are purchasing the item for.

I don't know about your family, but in my family the "What do you want for dinner?" debate happens WAY too often.  I make a suggestion, someone shoots it down, most of the time, nobody has any suggestions and we just end up staring at each other.  eMeals has made this much less challenging and has made grocery shopping more streamlined.  With all the changes we've had in the last 6 months, we like anything that makes life easier.

You can sign up for a free 14 day trial with this service to see if you will like it as much as I do.  If you decide you love it, and I think you will, you can sign up for three months at a time for $29.99 or do like I did and sign up for 12 months at $59.99.  Trust me, it's well worth the investment.  As with most subscription services, if you use my referral link, I earn free months, so please check them out using any of the links in this post.  I like free!

Have you thought of any subscriptions I should try?  I'm a sucker for this kind of thing and I'll try almost anything once.  Let me know, I'd love to hear from you.

Monday, February 20, 2017

The Wait

If you read my last review, you know I've started a trilogy.  I have now finished the second book in this series and the wait is on because the third book is already loaned out from my library's Overdrive account.  This is almost as bad a finishing a series completely.  Now I'm just sitting around waiting for the next book and have no idea what to listen to in the mean time.  I'm reading a paper book and a book on my Kindle, so I'm not completely book free at this point, but I can't settle on my next audiobook.  I've started and deleted a few already because I couldn't get into them.  This morning I even listened to the radio on my way to work!  I almost never do that anymore.  The only time I listen to the radio is when someone big enough to have an opinion is in the car with me.  The babies just have to listen to my audiobooks because I think they don't really care or know that they can care about such things yet.

I should probably pick something from the list I made for Book Riot's 2017 Read Harder Challenge, but I can't pick because there are so many great choices on my list!   I printed the list and have filled in almost all of the tasks, but I've only completed three so far.  I ordered paper books for 2 more tasks and I'm almost finished with a Kindle book for one task.  Choices, choices.  There are piles of books in my house and on my Kindle, but it's hard for me to choose an audiobook.  Tell me, how do you choose?  What have you listened to lately that I should hear?  I want to know, folks!

Tuesday, February 14, 2017

Is this subscription worth it: IdealShape

Okay, this one isn't actually a subscription service, but it's a product I buy fairly regularly.  IdealShape has meal replacement shakes and bars and water mix-ins.  Their special ingredient is supposed to help keep you full for hours, but folks, my favorite part of this company's line is that it tastes good.

I've tried lots of different meal replacement shakes and bars over the years because I like the convenience of them.  Ideal is by far the best.  Melanie asks me to buy the bars all the time because she likes them.  She says that she can eat one for breakfast and not be hungry before lunch.  She even takes one to school for a mid-afternoon snack.  I joke that these are so good that you couldn't possibly lose weight by eating/drinking them, but you really can.  I have before.

I'm not currently eating well or exercising, but I still like to have a shake in the morning because it's convenient and it helps keep me full until lunch.  Someday, when I'm not so tired from babies who don't sleep at night, maybe I'll get back on track and start eating well again, until then, at least I have Ideal for convenience and because it's yummy!  I would recommend you start with one of their variety packs.  They have a variety box of shakes, bars and Boost, their water mix-in product. Some of our favorites are the double chocolate bar, the chocolate shake and the salted caramel shake, but I haven't tried any of them that I didn't enjoy.  Check them out and as always, use the referral links so I can earn free product, too!

Wednesday, February 8, 2017

Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard


Mare Barrows is a poor Red girl from the Stilts.  Her life is turned upside down when she is busted trying to pick pocket a generous stranger.  Due to a curious event that should have left her dead, she is thrown into the dangerous world of the Silvers and is being trained to be their princess.

I have toyed with this book for a while now.  I even downloaded the audio once on the library's website and never got into it. Now I have finally finished it and had the second book downloaded before I'd even finished the first.  There were twists and turns in this book that I didn't really see coming.  It kept me interested all the way to the very end and left me wanting more, but that is the point as it is the first in a trilogy.  The narrator, Amanda Dolan, may be one of my new favorites, she did such a wonderful job.

Have you read this book?  Did you finish the series?

Tuesday, February 7, 2017

Is this subscription worth it: Adore Me

Hello blog friends!

I'm so sorry for my extended absence, but babies and work and all the things have had me so busy!  Just when we thought things were getting 'normal', Lily got pneumonia and ended up back in the hospital for a few days.  Everyone has been passing around a head cold and now Mel is sick.  I refuse to get sick because I just don't have time for all that!  Lots of echinacea, vitamin C and multivitamins to combat this mess and I've been diffusing Thieves and R.C. and any other oils I think might fight the crud.  Hopefully we'll get all this kicked soon.

Here are a few pics I've taken of the kiddos lately.




I've been getting suckered into lots of different subscription services lately.  Some have been great, some are just okay and some just weren't worth it.  I decided that it is probably my duty to share what I have found!  For my first subscription service review, I chose Adore Me.

Adore Me is a site where you can get discounted bras, panties, lounge wear, lingerie, etc.  They have something for all shapes and sizes.  I was super skeptical of this service because buying a bra in my size is NEVER inexpensive and usually hard to find.  You don't just go into the local departments store and pick up a size G bra and even if you find one, it's NOT pretty.  I know, it goes under my clothes and almost nobody sees them, but there is a reason that this is a billion dollar per year business.  We like our undies to be pretty.

I caught a special the first month and got my first set for $14.95!  That is super cheap for a bra and panties in any size, but especially in my size.  I was so thrilled with my first order!  Everything fit great and there was even a coupon for $10 off my next order in the box.  This month used my coupon and ordered another set and I was just as pleased as I was with the first and there was another coupon in the box!

It's easy to skip a month if I'm not interested in anything new and I can cancel any time.  If I don't get around to actually clicking the skip button, I'll have store credit available for when I decide to purchase something new.  As with most subscription services, if you refer a friend, you can earn credit toward future purchases so if you are interested, I'd appreciate you clicking the link so they know I sent you.

Now I don't know anyone who needs to order a new bra and panty set every single month, but I think this is a wonderful site to use to stock up the intimates drawer and clean out those old ratty things you should stop wearing.  I definitely say go for it with this service.

Stay tuned and I'll try to make this a regular post.  If you have a subscription service you think I should try, please let me know.  I'm kind of a sucker for this type of thing and I'll try almost any of them once.