Saving Money — Page 21

How to Save money on Formula + Rafflecopter Giveaway!

Babies = Expensive!

I’ve said it before… Babies are darn cute, but they’re also darn expensive. I was on a very tight budget while I was pregnant, and was really careful about what baby items I bought. There is SO much stuff, it’s all SO cute, and it’s all marketed as MUST HAVE items, it can be hard to know what you really need and what you can skip! I asked around to friends- What 3 items did you totally rely on, and what do you wish you’d skipped? That helped me prepare a nursery without overspending. {FYI- Boppy Pillow, extra baby sheets, a baby swing, baby medicine/first aid kit were the top must-haves, bottle warmer was the one I heard from EVERYONE that I could skip.}

Baby Arrives, Along with MORE Expenses!

Then, when baby gets here, there are even more unplanned expenses. A big one for me was formula. I had planned to breastfeed for at least 6 months, and was really committed to reaching that goal.

Unfortunately, things {as so often happens with a new baby in your life} did not go as planned. My little one arrived 3 weeks early, and had a lot of trauma during delivery. She spent a few days in NICU, then more time in the Pediatrics wing…And in all of the stress and confusion, no one ever brought me a pump or allowed me to feed her {I couldn’t even pick her up until the second night}, so we had a rough start. More complications followed, and after a month and a half of tears and frustration from both me and baby, we finally switched to formula.

The Switch to Formula

While I was really disappointed in switching to formula, baby was much happier with the change. But I could not believe how expensive formula was, or how fast we went through it! My oh my. We started out on Similac, and that worked great for her… Until she got sick for a week, and we found out about the Similac recall. They insisted that it probably wasn’t related, but many other moms were reporting the same symptoms! So we looked for an alternative.

Check out Parents Choice–

A wonderful choice for us, and your baby too, is Parents Choice formula. We switched to this line, and I was worried about how she would react to a new formula, but there was no change at all, and she loved it. But the big change for ME was that it was SO much more affordable. They have a really cool tool to help you discover how much you can save… Our savings switching from Similac Advance to Parents Choice is $634.91 per year. Wow, right? Try it yourself, Parents Choice $avings Calculator.

Great Quality at a Great Price

There are tons of other items for your baby in the Parents Choice line… My little girl is a HUGE fan of the banana puffs :) And, Parents Choice is generously offering a $10,000 Scholarship to one lucky winner in their new sweepstakes!

Win Your OWN set of Parents Choice Products!

Parents Choice Formula

One lucky winner will win this whole set of products:

12.9 oz can of Parent´s Choice Premium to try.
12.4 oz can of Parent´s Choice Advantage to try.
Two $3.00 off coupons for Parent´s Choice Infant Formula (redeemable at all Walmart stores).
Parent´s Choice Starter Set – a complete nurser system that includes a variety of bottles, nipples, liners, leak proof caps and retainer rings.

Rafflecopter Giveaway

{Disclosure: The Parent´s Choice Infant Formula product sample, information, and giveaway have been provided by Parent´s Choice through MyBlogSpark.}

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Posted by Meagan Paullin on July 31, 2011 Filed Under: Contests | 4 Comments

FAN-tastic Freebie Friday! {20+ New Freebies!}

I love freebies...

Today is a round up of new samples, plus some of the most popular of the week, in case you missed them!

FAN-tastic Freebie Friday:

Has anyone ever tried this “Cash for Gold” deal? If so, I’d love to hear some feedback on whether you think it’s worth it. Leave me a comment if you’ve got any info! Thanks.

$20 Free Gift Certificate: Enter the Peeled Snacks Recipe Contest, and you’ll get a $20 Gift Certificate! Every one who enters gets one.
Free Cat Products: Sign up for a new branch of my FAVORITE SURVEY SITE EVER- Synovate Cat Lovers Panel, and have the chance to try out new cat products and be rewarded for your opinions. Love it.
MySavings: Get todays new Free Samples- Coffee, magazines, haircare, salad dressing, and more! Free Samples.
Stakkd: Get a FREE sample of this new caffeine mixer. Sample Request.
LearnVest: Sign up for FREE! You’ll love their daily tips to live frugal and fashionable. Today you can learn 10 things to do with $10 bucks! LearnVest Free Membership.
Pampers: Join Gifts to Grow, get 100 FREE points, and redeem them for kids toys, free diapers, and more. Join Here.
Free Allergy Med’s: See if you qualify here- Allergy Study, and be eligible to get FREE allergy medications, FREE doctor visits, and even be paid for participation.
Depends Sample Pack: Get a sample pack by requesting it with a quick form. Click Here.
Free Samples with sign up: Get Free Nestle Nido Milk samples. Join the community here- Click Here.
Free Food at Chili’s: Print a coupon to bring with you on your next visit to Chili’s and get FREE Chips and Queso with your order!
Free ProForce Cleaner: Hover over the images of the bottles on the Sams Club site, and it’ll bring up a little box to request a sample! Don’t need to be a member.
Prescription Discounts: Sign up for this card to get up to 75% off meds- Click Here, or – Click Here to find printable med’s coupons.
Freebies for Women: Some great daily coupons, giveaways, and samples. Sign up for their daily update or just check out what’s available now- Click Here.
Free The Google Story Book Summary: Click Here to get it.
Make your own FREE tshirt: Great for the kids. The T-Shirts are made of 100% Pre-Shrunk cotton and are available in sizes from S to XXL The T-Shirt is FREE, just pay for Shipping and Processing! Click Here.
Vindale: Get FREE products to try out at home, just like I do. Sign up give your opinion and win! Click Here.
Free Gift Cards + More: Start earning bucks today and you’ll soon be cashing out for Free Prizes. I redeem all points for Amazon Gift Cards. Start today! Click Here to join me!
Free $3 Credit: Introducing the Animated Photo card! Move your hand to reveal as one image blends into the next. Get an instead Free $3 credit. Click Here to get one. These are SUPER cool.
Daily Freebies: Check out That Freebie Site for each days new updates. They’re new, but have some good stuff.
Freeflys: Most of you are already using this, but did you know you can search by category too? Search for your favorites on Freeflys.com today.

Free Laser Hair Removal: LAST chance! Get this months entry in to win a FREE treatment! Enter here to win!

If you have some freebie lovin’ friends, feel free to use the social buttons to share this! Everyone loves free stuff, right? Have a great weekend… And watch for a couple of BRAND NEW Rafflecopter Giveaways starting later today! :)

Posted by Meagan Paullin on July 29, 2011 Filed Under: Shopping, Contests, Product Testing, Freebies | No Comments

20% off ENTIRE Purchase at Michaels Craft Store

New Coupons and Savings at Michaels!

Click here to get the NEW Michaels Printable Coupons! 20% off of your entire purchase, even including sale items. Plus, there are several more coupons you can print too.

{Coupons are valid July 31, 2011 US Ad Valid through August 6, 2011}

Love crafts? Subscribe to FaveCrafts Free Quick & Crafty e-mail newsletter and enjoy new craft projects, tips and videos. Click Here to get it too!

Posted by Meagan Paullin on July 29, 2011 Filed Under: Freebies | No Comments

FREE Help & Treatment for Rheumatoid Arthritis + Earn up to $650

Get FREE Rheumatoid Arthritis Treatment:

I myself have had early symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis, and have watched all of the women on my mothers side suffer from this. It is a surprisingly nasty disease, and seriously impairs your quality of life. I keep hoping that mine will take a very long time before really getting worse… You would be surprised at all of the other problems that this disease can cause! I wanted to share this study, in case some of you are skipping treatment due to lack of insurance. I don’t have insurance right now either, and I understand how tough it can be!

Details:

We’re currently helping a pharmaceutical company find people with rheumatoid arthritis who may be willing to participate in a research study in your area.

Additional Targeting Info: This disease is 2-3 times more common in women and occurs with increased frequency between the ages 30-60. Open to males and females 18+ (Only Certain Zipcodes Qualify).

Most people don’t understand what it’s like to have rheumatoid arthritis — or how limited medication can be at slowing its progression. I work with Acurian, a company that recruits people for clinical research studies. We’re currently helping a pharmaceutical company find people with rheumatoid arthritis who may be willing to participate in a research study in your area.

Local research doctors are evaluating the effectiveness and safety of an investigational drug in pill form that can be taken along with methotrexate, a common medication for rheumatoid arthritis. If you or a loved one has rheumatoid arthritis and take methotrexate as one of your medications, we’d like to share information with you about this study. See if you may qualify. Click here: Rheumatoid Arthritis Paid Study Opportunity.

Qualified participants may receive the following at no cost:

Study-related medication in pill form.
Study-related care from a local study doctor.
Study-related health assessments.
Compensation of up to $650 may be available for your time and travel. Specific compensation amounts will vary by research site.

After completing this study, you may also be able to take part in a long-term continuation study offering study medication and ongoing monitoring. This research study is enrolling now. Take the next step and see if you may qualify. Click here today: Rheumatiod Arthritis Paid Study.

I hope that this reaches someone that can really benefit from it, so if you know of anyone who suffers from RA, please feel free to forward this to them!

Posted by Meagan Paullin on July 28, 2011 Filed Under: Freebies, Product Testing | No Comments

Have Allergies? Get Paid to Join New Study, Plus FREE Med’s.

If you suffer from Allergies, check this out:

Research study needs volunteers with seasonal allergies. I work with Acurian, a company that connects people with clinical research doctors. We’re currently helping a pharmaceutical company find people 5 to 65 years of age who suffer from seasonal allergies that are willing to participate in a clinical research study in many areas. This can be a really effective way to get affordable treatment, especially if you don’t currently have insurance.

Seasonal allergies may result in additional health problems, including asthma. Research doctors are enrolling today and health insurance is NOT required. All information is kept strictly confidential.

If you or your child is burdened with seasonal allergies, contact us right away to learn more about the benefits and risks of the study. Click here: Allergy Study to learn more.

Qualified participants may receive at no-cost:

Study-related doctor visits and examinations up to 15 months.
Investigational oral medication.
Allergy medications during the 2012 pollen season.
Compensation for time and travel. {This means that they will PAY you to participate in this trial!}

I’ve never been a part of a research trial, but I have some family members who have, and they thought it was WELL worth the time they spent, and have all said that they were very safe and would do them again. If you participate, {I wasn’t in the right area} let me know how it goes….

Posted by Meagan Paullin on July 28, 2011 Filed Under: Freebies | No Comments

Extreme Couponing Help for Busy Moms

My Coupons...

Love the idea of saving with coupons, but feel like you just don’t have the time?

SavingsAngel helps busy moms dramatically cut their grocery bills. The best of all the blogs and websites with game-changing technology in one easy-to-use system. Personalized shopping lists from hundreds of weekly sale-coupon matchup deals. Search for specific products or coupons.

PLUS personalized help for beginners and great tips for experts. Click Here to join me at SavingsAngel, and start cutting YOUR grocery bill in half.

So far, I’ve LOVED SavingsAngel. Seriously.

Some of the best parts of the membership:

You get assigned a Mentor that helps to coach you and answer your questions. Take the time to connect with them, it’s so worth it!
There is a really extensive and inclusive forum, where you can chat with other members to share tips, learn new tricks, and get help.
SavingsAngel does the work for you… They match up all of the coupons and deals for you each week. They have links to guide you right to where you can print out coupons to match your local sales, to get items each week for free or almost free.

If you’re a busy mom on a strict budget {which is EXACTLY who I write this blog for!} then you will really be able to benefit from the services that you get a SavingsAngel. They do the majority of the work for you!

Check them out and get started here: SavingsAngel Sign Up. If you use my link today, you’ll get a BONUS of FOUR weeks of the service for FREE! How does this work? Well, when you sign up for a 4 week subscription, {and trust me, no lie, pinky promise you!!} that the low subscription price is MORE than worth it. If you sign up for that subscription here with my link, then you’ll also get a bonus of an additional 4 weeks for FREE! Imagine how much money you will have saved by then….

If you’re already using them, I’d love to hear what you think! I’ve only been a member a little over a month now… How have they helped YOU save?? Share in the comments!

Posted by Meagan Paullin on July 27, 2011 Filed Under: Freebies | 5 Comments

{Giveaway} Win a Black & Decker Steam Mop!

Your housekeeping routine is about to get a little bit hot and steamy…

I’m a Cheating Housewife.

I hate mopping. HATE it. Always have. But I am a bit obsessed with cleanliness. Ok, maybe a lot of obsessed. So, when the Swiffer first came out, I was in heaven. FINALLY, I thought, a new way to keep my floors clean without the mess and frustration of a mop and bucket. And yes, the Swiffer worked good… But it didn’t work great.

Things are getting steamy…

Then, I was contacted by Black & Decker, to see if I’d be interested in trying out their new Steam Mop, and sharing my opinions of it with you guys. I’d been eyeing these for awhile, but after having such high hopes for the Swiffer, and being a bit let down, I was a little hesitant.

Then the steam mop arrived. And I thought, well, I’ll just give it a try- and the cheating began. It was just going to be a casual fling, I thought I might go back to the Swiffer if this didn’t work out… But my oh my, I fell in love. Yes, my affair with the steam mop has turned into a long-term commited relationship. This is one of the greatest cleaing tools that has ever come into my life. Seriously.

See it in Action:

Steam Mop, How do I Love Thee? Let me Count the Ways…

Economical: Unlike a Swiffer, you don’t need to spend big bucks on cleaning fluid refills or cloths and pads. The Black & Decker Steam Mop uses just water, and comes with 3 reusable pads. When they get dirty, you simply throw them in the wash! Easy peasy.
Good with Kids: This is EXTREMELY important for me. I have a baby who crawls around on the floor all day. If a product is toxic enough that it needs to be locked in a cabinet, then why would I want to use it on the floor that she is playing on? I love that the Steam Mop gets rid of 99.9% of germs with just water!
It’s got sweet moves: I can’t even tell you how awesome the swivel action is on this Steam Mop! It tilts all the way down flat to reach under furniture, swivels around cabinets without any work at all, can sneak right around corners and into tight spaces…. Very impressive.
It gets the job done: Not only does it have all of these cool features… It has serious cleaning power too! Our floors get super dirty, super quick. The kitchen is our most used room, and has two doors that lead to the deck outside. There are 5 dogs, 2 boys, a baby, and 3 adults in this house…. You can imagine how messy it gets in here! But this Steam Mop cleaned the floors so easily… It honestly is so simple to use, and does an uh-MAY-zing job.