Free Kashi Cereal (and other helpful products) through RecycleBank

Wanna take a few minutes today to get something useful for free?


Sign up for RecycleBank and get 40 points for signing up. You can also get 50 points for joining the Ebay Green Team (which, from what I can tell, doesn't commit you to anything). With those 90 points, you can search through their rewards to "buy" coupons with your points. Today, they have a coupon available for a free box of Kashi Cereal for 50 points. Pair that with a BOGO at Publix, and you have yourself two boxes of free Kashi Cereal! As I was perusing the rewards, they also have some good Huggies coupons and some free Seventh Generation products (including free baby wipes and dishwashing soap). They've even got a great men's deodorant coupon for 50 points, which would probably make for free or "moneymaker" deodorant at CVS or Walgreen's sometime soon. I think most of these coupons will be mailed to you rather than ones you would print.

Other than the 90 points I suggested above, I am not sure how to earn many more points, but I will post more points if more easy points become available.

From what I have read, RecycleBank exists to reward people for living more "green" lives. I really like the coupon offers they have. They are for more natural products that can be harder to find good deals on. Check it out, and come away with something free!

Join Swagbucks Today - Get 60 swagbucks!

Hey friends,

I mentioned "Swagbucks" at the seminar Saturday. It is an online search engine that will give you "bucks" just for doing your normal searches. I use it periodically, and in the last few months, I have earned enough "Swagbucks" to get 3-4 $5 Amazon gift cards. People who do a lot more searching than I do earn more. Anyway, it's a nice way for us to have a little extra online spending money without a whole lot of effort.

Today is Swagbucks' Second Birthday. You would usually get 30 swagbucks for signing up, but TODAY ONLY you get 60. Pretty good, huh? It costs 450 for a $5 amazon gift card. It may seem like a lot, but it really doesn't take long to get there if you search the internet at all.

Here's the link where you can join: Swagbucks...Sign up today for 60 free "bucks"!

Or you can click on the "Swagbucks" link in my righthand toolbar.

Happy Searching...and Swagbuck earning!

The Whys and Hows of Google Reader

So I spent a lot of time yesterday talking about my "Google Reader." By far, it is the tool I use the most to find the best deals and coupons. I rarely just go on the internet searching for deals and coupons. I have a few money saving blogs on my Google Reader, and I receive new blog posts in my Google reader inbox (similar to receiving a new email in my email inbox). This way, I don't waste time looking up blogs and coupon sites only to find there is nothing new posted...my Google Reader will let me know if anything new has been posted. One of the reasons I love my Google Reader the most is keeping up with friends' blogs. BUT...the money saving blogs are great too.

Here is a great "How To" on setting up a Google Reader. I really can't recommend it enough for both personal blog reading and money-saving blog reading:

How to Set Up a Google Reader

Thanks to Molly Piper for sharing this blog post.

Welcome to Maven on a Mission!

Thanks for joining us today for the Savvy Shopping and Saving Seminar. I hope this blog will help point you to the things that most interested you during our time together. I have a passion to know and inform others of information that is accessible to all but often known by few. That is why I have named this blog "Maven on a Mission." My husband gave me the name "maven" a few years ago, and I found it rather endearing (mainly because my man knows me so well). According to "Wictionary," a maven is "a trusted expert in a particular field, who seeks to pass knowledge on to others. I desire to be resourced and to resource others...and that is my mission with this blog. I will probably not be the primary blog you will consult for savings information...but I will do my best to pass along what I learn as I learn it...because that's what a maven does.

Feel free to email or comment on this blog with any follow-up tips or questions as you embark on your own adventure in savvy shopping and saving. I will post more in the coming weeks. Feel free to add me to your Google Reader (or whatever blog feed you choose to use). I will post when I can, but I recommend you add the blogs below to your blog feed to get the most up-to-date deals and coupons.

My Favorite Money Saving Blogs:

Money Saving Mom

Hip2Save

Fiddledeedee (I mainly read her Wednesday Publix match-ups, but she also does "Organic Fridays" that are helpful as well)


Helpful articles about today's topics:

Staying on Budget using a Cash System

Making the Most of the "Buy Ahead" Principle

Calendars that Work (for monthly menu planning)

Where to find the El Sentinel

Best Deal I Found so Far on Orlando Sentinel (New subscribers...but you may want to wait and ask what the person selling them in the grocery or drug store is selling them for. Shoot for $1.00 or less per week for Wednesday-Sunday subscriptions.)

Couponing 101

Getting started at CVS

Making CVS work for You

Getting started at Walgreens

Coupon Terminology and Target Basics

SC Johnson $5 Rebate (can be done up to three times)

Great sites for ad previews:

iheartcvs

iheartwags (Walgreens)

iheartpublix (usually posted on Mondays)

TotallyTarget

Have fun exploring...and go do a deal this week. Start small. Learn one system...the one that motivates or intrigues you the most. Once you learn one system well, you can pick up others more easily. And feel free to email with any questions. I'm a maven. This is what I love.