Deal of the Day, Chili, and Food for Thought

I'm sure that many of your are aware of the 417 Deal of the Day, but for those of you who live in the area and are not aware of it, you should definitely jump on board.  It is a lot like Groupon, only it focuses on the 417 area specifically.  All you have to do is subscribe, and they will email you the deal of the day.  I have taken advantage of a few of the offers, including a $50 gift card to Incredible Pizza for $25.  You can look at some of the recent deals to see the wide variety of things they have offered.  

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Another cold day calls for another simple and tasty recipe.  I have never been a chili lover, simply because everyone makes their chili completely different.  After trying several recipes, I have found my all time favorite courtesy of a friend.  What sets it apart from any other recipe...BROWN SUGAR...that makes everything better right?

Chili

1 lb hamburger

1 packet chili seasoning

1 can dark kidney beans

1 can chili beans

1 can rotel

2 cans chili ready tomatoes (found next to diced tomatoes)

2 cans diced tomatoes

1/2 cup brown sugar

Mix ingredients together in crock pot or stove, heat and enjoy!

**For those of you who don't like a lot of beans or tomatoes, you can cut back the amounts and it still tastes great...just don't cut out the brown sugar!**

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I have been doing my daily devotionals out of the book Jesus Calling by Sarah Young, given to me by my friend Angie.  I would highly recommend it to anyone who is looking for a way to kick-start their morning.  It has been a great reminder to me of God's simple truths.  I will leave you with one of the devotions I read earlier this week that focused on fully trusting God.   

"Every time you affirm your trust in Me, you put a coin into My treasury.  Thus you build up equity in preparation for days of trouble.  I keep safely in My heart all trust invested in Me, with interest compounded continuously.  The more you trust Me, the more I enable you to do so.  Practice trusting Me during quiet days, when nothing much seems to be happening.  Then when storms come, your trust balance will be sufficient to see you through.  Store up for yourself treasure in heaven, through placing your trust in Me.  This practice will keep you in My Peace."

Psalm 56:4-5: " When I am afraid, I will put my trust in You.  In God, whose word I praise, In God I have put my trust; I shall not be afraid.  What can mere man do to me?"

Matthew 6:20-21:  "But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

What a great reminder to lean on him even in the good times!!! 

Early Christmas Present

I am so excited about the great deal I just received, so bear with me if I sound overly enthusiastic about it.  I know that I have promised to share with you guys some money saving tips.  Well, here is a great one just in time for Christmas!

I recently blogged about Shutterfly Christmas Cards and all the new designs they have to offer this Christmas.  Truth be known, I do love Shutterfly.  However, I was doing somewhat of an advertisement through them because of a blog post I stumbled across on Stretching a Buck.  For my fellow bloggers out there, just follow the Stretching a Buck link to an amazing Christmas card deal through Shutterfly.  As part of a promotion they are doing for bloggers, you will receive 50 free photo cards just for following the instructions on the link above.  I know it sounds too good to be true, but believe me it works!  You do need to allow a week or so to be approved, write a post about Shutterfly and receive your free code.  Just make sure to follow the instructions on the link and through the emails you will receive from Shutterfly.  It is so easy.  I chose the following Christmas card priced at $2.39 each in the 5x7 flat stationery option.

Times $2.39 by 50 and my total came to $119.50 plus tax and shipping.  After entering my code for 50 free cards...I paid only $8.61 for tax and shipping!!!  I would advise you to jump on this deal now if you are interested so that you can be sure to receive your cards in a timely manner.  I mentioned earlier how I love Shutterfly...after this deal I really love Shutterfly!

Garage Sale Finds

I think I have shared a little bit before about my love for anything and everything garage sales.  It wasn't until I had children that I realized how you can greatly benefit from someone else buying something new and barely using it.  One of the main things that I love to find on garage sales is toys.  I have found a lot of great deals on the smaller toys, but I think it's the larger toys that excite me the most.  A little disinfecting leaves the toys looking like new.  Just to give you an idea...here are a few of my finds.



Even though I can't take sole credit for this find (my aunt found it for me),
I got this Little Tikes Kenmore Kitchen for $40...retail price $149.99!



Step 2 table and chairs $10...retail price $54.99!

Imaginarium train table with battery powered train $50...retail price $229.99!

These are just a few of the many amazing deals I have been able to find on toys.  I can honestly say that I have only bought a couple of toys for the kids brand new and I usually get a deal on them when I do.  Kids go through stages of playing with toys just like they outgrow their clothes, so keep your eye out for some great savings at garage sales!

The Barber is In

Today was hair cutting day at our house.  You guessed it...I am the barber around here for my two boys.  One bad $15 hair cut for Brandon officially gave me the role of full time barber!  After coming home scalped, Brandon requested that I start cutting his hair.  I reluctantly agreed and went to Walmart and bought a set of Conair clippers and scissors for $29.99 similar to the one below.  Brandon had me convinced that I would have the clippers paid for after just two cuts and he wouldn't have to hassle with making an appointment anymore. 

Four years later not only am I cutting Brandon's hair, but I am also cutting Landry's.  I really don't mind it at all, especially when you total up the savings.  I figure a hair cut cost around $15 every month.  This totals up to be $180 a year per person.  That means I am saving around $360 a year just by cutting my boy's hair!  I'd say that I have more than paid for my cheap clippers! 

Swagbucks

I thought I would share with you my favorite search engine.  Swagbucks is a search engine that randomly rewards you with "Swagbucks."  I started using Swagbucks about a year ago and have earned around $200 in Amazon gift cards just for searching.  To get started, all you have to do is go to Swagbucks to register.

I would highly recommend downloading the Swagbucks toolbar and use it to search for everything.  When I check my email or facebook, I simply type in hotmail or facebook into the Swagbucks toolbar (instead of using google or your favorites) and almost daily receive "bucks" for this.  You can read all about it on the Swagbucks website.  There are many gift card options, but my favorite is the $5 Amazon gift cards.  I recently bought Landry's birthday present with my accumulated gift cards.  This sand/water table was $49...but I got it absolutely free with my Swagbucks.

It makes me so happy to redeem these "bucks" because it's so simple.  There's nothing like getting rewarded for such little effort.  It does take awhile to accumulate "Swagbucks," but if you can get your friends to sign up under you, you start earning "bucks" every time they do.  I consistently earn enough "bucks" to redeem for a $5 gift card per month without any referrals under me...so you guys could really help me out!  With Christmas just around the corner, you could start accumulating some gift cards to pay for some of those gifts!  I don't mean to sound like a salesman or anything, but Swagbucks is one of my favorite ways to earn a little extra money along the way.  Happy "swagging" everyone.