The Power of Zep!

Recently I've been using Crowdtap, a great website where you get to learn about, explore, and experience various brands and products. Most recently I was chosen to receive a free sample of Zep cleaning products to try out.

I was so excited when my products arrived. I LOVE free stuff, and great to get all this to try out AND share with friends!

I quickly went to work because I wanted to test out my new products and see how they really worked. I used the Zep Quick Clean disinfectant all over my toilet bowl and seat. That's one place in the house where I worry most about the spread of germs. I imagine it will also come in handy this winter since it's cold season. I'll be sure to use it on all the door knobs in the house and other places where we touch often, such as light switch plates. My one concern about this product is that the label states it can be a hazard to humans and domestic animals, and so you must be careful when using it!

The product I was really excited to try is the Zep All-Around cleaner. We get THE WORST soap scum in our bathtub. And I'll admit that with such a busy schedule I don't always get around to cleaning as often as I'd like to, so it can build up quickly. I did a quick test area in the corner of my tub and I was amazed at how easily Zep All-Around cleaner took off the soap scum. The nasty orange/pink gunk wiped right off onto a paper towel without a problem. With my typical tub cleaner I find myself scrubbing, and scrubbing, and scrubbing. I will definitely be purchasing Zep All-Around cleaner in the future for bathroom cleaning. I can't wait to see what else it works on!

How I Pay for Christmas

Christmas is a big deal for me and my household. It's one time of year where hubby and I can splurge

a bit on each other, and our daughter too. However, it can be quite expensive, especially when there are also friends and family to buy gifts for as well. So my secret weapon to cut down on these costs is by participating in various rewards programs throughout the year to cash in on in the Fall for gift cards and cash! Here's a rundown of the programs I use and how they work:

 

 

Program:
MyPoints

How it Works:
 This is the very first rewards program I signed up for, way back in 2007. Over the years I've earned hundreds of dollars in gift cards through MyPoints. There are several ways to earn points. You can shop through hundreds of online retailers through the MyPoints website and you'll be rewarded points based on the amount you spend. Often the amount of points awarded varies depending on the retailer, but ranges between 2 and 15 points per dollar spent. Other ways to earn points are by printing and redeeming grocery coupons through the site, taking part in special offers, and even by simply reading e-mails. It's just 5 points per e-mail, but those can add up quickly. When you're ready to cash in on your points, you can redeem them for various retailer/restaurant gift cards, or even cash through PayPal.

How you can sign up: Just Click Here

Program:
Plink

How It Works:
This is the easiest rewards program I've ever taken part in. I've only been participating for about 5 months, but the points have added up quickly and I've already cashed in for $60 in Amazon Gift Cards! All you do is sign up and link your debit card. Before anyone even asks, YES, it's totally safe! They only do this to track your purchases. There is selection of retailers and restaurants that participate, and you choose which ones you shop with most often and add them to your "wallet." Whenever you make a purchase at one of these locations, the Plink points are automatically added to your account. Then, when you're ready you can cash in for your gift cards, or even donate your points to charity!

How you can sign up: Just Click Here


Program:
Swagbucks

How It Works: This is another newer program for me, but it's pretty easy and rather fun to participate in. It's similar to MyPoints as in you can complete special offers to earn points. However, Swagbucks puts out daily codes that you can find and enter to redeem for points. They also have daily surveys, give away points for playing games on their website, and even will randomly give out points if you use their search tool when surfing the web. Again, this is a program where the points add up quickly and you can redeem the for the usual gift cards and cash. It almost becomes addicting because they have a daily goal set for how many points you should earn, and if you hit the goal you get bonus points. It's a little bit of a challenge, but like I said, it's a lot of fun too!

How you can sign up: Just Click Here

Program:
SavingStar

How It Works:
Now this program is a little different than the others. It's great for people who enjoy couponing. SavingStar initially asks you to link your grocery store cards to the site. Right now I have my Rite Aid, CVS, and Giant Eagle cards linked, though other places participate as well. The site lists "offers" and when you purchase the item(s) listed in the offer and use your linked store card, you'll earn the specified amount into your account. For example, lets say one of the current offers is .50 when you purchase a box of Cheerios. The next time I'm at Giant Eagle and buy Cheerios, SavingStar will add .50 cents into my SavingStar account. Often they will offer even higher rewards amounts such as $5 for purchasing $15 in specified products. What's great is that you can still use your regular paper coupons and it won't affect your SavingStar savings. One thing that's different about this program is that your redemption options are limited to donating to charity, Amazon Gift Cards, or you can get cold hard cash through bank deposit or Paypal. I've been using SavingStar for just over a year now and have made close to $100.

How you can sign up: Just Click Here

While I participate in other programs, I find these to be the easiest and most lucrative. They really help to make up a chunk of my Christmas shopping budget, and are fun to take part in. I hope they help you too!

Peach Dump Cake

Peach Dump Cake Recipe

Ingredients:

Pour peaches and juice or syrup into baking dish.

 "Dump" yellow cake mix on top of peaches and pat down.

 Melt the entire stick of butter and pour on top of the cake mix.

Bake for 50 minutes at 350 degrees.

 Let cool for 5 to 10 minutes, and serve warm with cool whip or vanilla ice cream.

It's VERY rich, so a little goes a long way. Also try with pineapple, blueberries, or your favorite fruit!

I'm Thankful for Coupons...

It's been quite a while since I've posted. I've spent the last month doing plenty of couponing, but no major deals I really had to share. I've also been very busy with classes this semester, spending time with friends and family, etc that my blog has been put on the back burner.

Today however, I scored a great deal that I wanted to share, and write a short note about how thankful I am for coupons, since it is Thanksgiving week afterall.

To start out, here's my awesome deal:

Twenty-four cans of Libby's peas, corn, and green beans! Priced at Dollar General normally for .85 a can. They are on sale this week for .40 a can. I had several coupons for $1 off when you purchase four, making each can just .15 cents! So my total for all 24 cans came to a whole $3.60 for what would normally retail at $20.40. I have several cans in my stockpile already from using the same coupon previously, though I didn't score as great of a deal. However these don't expire for 2 to 3 years, and so this should last us quite a while, and allow us to make a nice donation to the local food bank as well.

And that leads me to why I am so thankful for coupons. We're able to have wholesome food, personal care items and other necessities on hand all the time for mere cents. It's like a security blanket and provides relief knowing that if we're short on money for whatever reason, there's at least one thing we don't have to worry about. Secondly, despite the fact that we're far from rich, we can still afford to give to others who may not have as much as us. I know I've made that same statement before, but it means a lot to me to be able to give to others, especially those who really need an extra hand. We may not have a lot compared to many people, but we're blessed with what we do have and I'm thankful that coupons let me share the wealth.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Mail Call!

I'm a bit of a dork, but one of my highlights each day is when the mail comes. Today was especially exciting because I haven't had a mail delivery this good in quite a while. Here's what I found in the mailbox today:

• The new Organize In Style booklet with over $35 in coupons! Coupons are enough to make me squeal with glee, but it gets even better...

• Another coupon, but this one is for a FREE bottle of Advil. Awesome!

• My two new pairs of glasses from Gogglges4u.com. I've been waiting almost a month for these to arrive. I admit, I'm a bit disappointed as they don't look quite as good on me as I hoped, but with my super savings skills I paid less than $50 for both pairs, and that includes the shipping. So in reality, it was a heck of a deal and I now have several pairs of eye wear to mix and match with my wardrobe.

• The best find of all in my mailbox today was TWO $50 Target gift cards! These were the rewards I chose when I redeemed my points from MyPoints.com. Don't know about MyPoints? You're missing out! With MyPoints all you have to do is sign up and they'll send you daily e-mails. For every e-mail you open and click the enclosed link, they'll reward you with 5 points. You can also earn points for: online shopping, taking surveys, playing games, even printing and redeeming coupons! I've been using MyPoints for 5 years and each Fall I redeem my points for gift cards so I can cut costs when it comes to my Christmas Shopping. It's like free money and takes very little effort. Sign up for MyPoints Here!

It's amazing what little things can make my day.

Hanging Garden Results

And so it is officially Fall, and I've realized I never shared the conclusion to my hanging garden experiment. I'm sad to say, the whole thing was not as productive as I'd hoped it would be, and I probably could have used the money I spent on the materials and the plants to purchase fresh produce from the local supermarket or farmers market.

In the end, the zucchini which started out promising, yielded one medium and one small fruit. I did however slice, bread, and fry it up. It was a delicious dinner one summer evening served alongside spaghetti. I'd hoped for so much more from the two plants, but the one that hung from the bottom of the bucket completely died before producing anything. The other started producing several small zucchinis, but they dried out and rotted before maturing. I was disappointed because I really looked forward to making some awesome dishes.

The pepper plants also didn't meet my expectations. I ended up with 7 or 8 very tiny peppers. I picked them and put them in the fridge with intentions to stuff them (not that they were really big enough) and from then on forgot about them. So, we ended up with a handful of tiny shriveled peppers. I guess it just wasn't meant to be.

The tomatoes came out the big winner. We ended up with maybe a dozen or so, but they were patio tomatoes and so they were rather small. The few large ones that we did get ended up ripening just as we were leaving for our yearly trip to Iowa, and so my mom had the pleasure of enjoying those. Hubby did get to savor a few of the smaller ones on sandwiches or by themselves.

All in all, as hard as it is to admit, the whole thing was a big flop! I guess I just don't have a very green thumb. Does that mean I'm done with my container gardening escapades? Not a chance! I'm sure there's a better way to go about it, and so it's a challenge for me to attempt next year.

Simple Italian Roast Recipe

Roast, potatoes, and carrots is one of my favorite things to make because it's a super simple crock pot meal, and there's really no way to ruin it. Here's my personal recipe for a great Italian Roast.

Ingredients:

1 beef roast of your choice

4 medium potatoes, quartered

2 small onions sliced

1/2 to 1 bag of baby carrots

1 quart of beef broth

1 bottle of Italian Dressing (I use Kraft Tuscan Italian)

Directions:

Lay the veggies on the bottom of the crock pot and around the edges.

Lay the roast atop the bed of veggies.

Pour the entire bottle of dressing over the top of the meat and vegetables. Then pour the beef broth on top as well.

You can slow cook the meal on low the entire day, or if you're in a hurry you can cook it on high in about 4 to 6 hours, depending on the size of your roast and whether it's fresh or frozen.

Super simple and really delicious!