Try Manilla For FREE- Keep Track Of Bills Online


What is Manilla? Manilla (manilla.com) is a FREE web based service that helps consumers better manage all of their household accounts, including financial, utilities, subscriptions and travel rewards programs, in one secure place online. Under a single password, Manilla provides customers with an automated, organized view of all of their account information, text and/or email reminders to pay bills and unlimited storage of account documents that Manilla has seamlessly retrieved for the consumer.

Why is Manilla necessary? Most people have more than 20 different household accounts, including three to four credit cards, several travel and hotel rewards accounts, multiple magazine and newspaper subscriptions, plus cable, phone, and other assorted utility bills. In order to stay on top of all this, people have to manage daily incoming paper mail, an array of online usernames and passwords, and websites in order to access important account information and take action. Manilla seamlessly retrieves all your account information – current balances, previous payments, upcoming bills due – and stores it for you in one secure place. Most importantly, you need only one password to view, manage and organize it all.

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How To Use Online Coupons To Save Big!

As you may know, I am a huge coupon user; coupons from the Sunday paper, online printable coupons, peelies, tear pads, and so on! Big shock huh!?!?! Shopping is my favorite hobby, especially when there is a sale matched with a coupon, ahhh, love it!  I have never been a huge online shopper since I am one of those that like to touch before I buy, kinda person. But in the last year, I have really picked up on my online shopping. With coupon codes, FREE shipping and hot deals that aren’t always offered in store, I am now in love with online shopping.

While shopping for Back To School Deals and planning our family vacation for October, I have been all over online looking for the best sales on travel equipment, hottest clothes, places to stay, backpacks and sites to see. We are even looking to possibly stay in Canada- which I have never been, but was able to find the top 50 deals in Canada to help make our visit a little more frugal!

How To Use Coupon Codes To Save While Shopping Online- There are many sites out there that offer the latest % off or $$ off promo codes to make the most of your money. I tend to stick to sites I use and trust, Coupon Codes.ca is one, making sure they are legit before I shop! There is nothing worse then finding some great items on sale, get to check out and find out that the coupon code I found does not work.

Find FREE Shipping Codes To Make It An Even Better Deal- Along with using coupon codes, there are many places that offer FREE shipping codes with a certain $ amount purchased or buying a specific item. These codes are my favorite! Not only did I not have to get dressed and go shopping at the store, spending gas and dragging the kiddos out, I didn’t have to pay to have it delivered right to my door!

Before You Shop Online, Make a List- Before you head to your favorite online retailers, make a list of items you are looking to buy. This will help you search the hottest coupon and promo codes before you shop to snag the best deals. Our girls love clothes from Justice, so I know to grab their coupon codes before searching their site!

Shop Your Favorite Stores In Your Pj’s- Just because you decide to shop online, doesn’t mean you can’t shop your favorite stores or brands. Most online coupon & promo codes sites offer codes for places like Sears, Travelocity, Amazon, Toys R Us, Macy’s, Dell and much more! With all these Back To School Deals, I feel like my errand list gets longer and longer everyday. Trying to grab all of the hottest deals this time of year can get tiring and very time consuming, so shopping online at home, is quick and easy. Search the latest coupons and promo codes, shop your favorite stores and save big!

This post was sponsored by Coupon Codes. My opinion is 100% my own.

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Find Savings at A Full Cup

 

AFullCup forum offers sections for all the major stores including CVS, Rite Aid, Walgreens, Walmart, Target, as well as tons of grocery stores. You can discuss deals, coupons, and even everyday life.

Search the Coupon Database to find Coupons from all sources and details can be found here.

Find others who are Coupon Trading: Need a coupon or have a coupon you won’t use. Trade the coupons you won’t use for the ones you need or want.

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Why Having an Emergency Fund is Necessary

Brought to you by secureloanconsolidation.com

After four years of deep recession with unemployment rates hovering just under 10 percent, far too many Americans have become accustomed to living paycheck to paycheck. The idea of setting something aside for an emergency, while attractive, seems all but impossible. The alternative, however, may be much worse. During the recession, consumers were concentrating on debt consolidation as much as possible, but without an emergency supply of money — usually six months’ worth — one crisis could wipe out years of financial progress.

How big should an emergency fund be?

Experts recommend enough money to maintain normal living expenses for three to six months. Factors to consider in planning just how much to set aside include:

- size of the family

- existing debt

- amount of insurance coverage present

- work situation of other household members

Obviously a single person will need to set aside less money than a family, and a single mother of three would need more than a family of four where one parent continues to work. There is no set answer on amount, but all financial advisors agree that an emergency fund is a must.

How can hard-pressed consumers set anything aside?

The initial goal is simply to establish the fund and to get in the habit of adding to it regularly. After that:

- One of the best ways to build an emergency fund is to bank the annual tax refund rather than spend it. Approximately three-quarters of all tax payers get, on average, $2913 back each year. Put that money in a savings account where it can sit and earn interest, and leave it alone.

- Let spare change accumulate by tossing it in a jar. Even the smallest deposits in an interest-earning savings account build up over the year. Saving spare change really involves rounding up the regular expenses and putting that little extra back for a rainy day.

- Track expenses and competitively work to lower what is spent each month, with the difference going into the emergency savings account. Many people find this method to become a game, especially if other members of the family are drawn in to “work the numbers.” This is also a great way to make children more cost conscious.

It’s important to remember that all aspects of expense tracking and saving are exercises in discipline. The more that “muscle” is exercised, the stronger it gets.

What’s the best vehicle for an emergency fund?

In the beginning a simple savings account is the best place to park an emergency fund. Normally there are no fees attached to such accounts and they are easily maintained. As the fund grows, however, it’s important to consider where the most interest will be earned. At the point, it’s time to investigate options like certificates of deposit. Avoid volatility at all costs, which means no investing in stocks.

Remember, too, that the whole point of having an emergency fund is liquidity. Don’t tie the money up so it cannot be accessed when it’s needed. In time, as the amount gets bigger, it will be possible to leave a percentage liquid while investing the rest in higher interest earning accounts. At that point, the money isn’t just an emergency fund, but can be earmarked for retirement or future projects.

Ms. Bekiroglu is a published author, freelance writer and editorial consultant for secureloanconsolidation.com. After receiving a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of South Florida, she faced the mounting obstacle of paying over $24,000 back in student loan debt. Determined to eliminate the debt, she became knowledgeable about money management. She seeks to educate others with tips on managing student loans and other kinds of debt, as well as in general personal finance and money saving tips.

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Why Having Product Samples Saves Our Family Money!

Years ago I would have never signed up for FREE samples or waste my coupons on the trial size – I thought it was a waste of time and money. Who really ever uses just the trial size, anyways! Well I do!

Last summer when the tide coupons did not state that they could not be used for trial size, I was able to pick up several at Target for FREE. I thought I would hold onto them just in case or for vacation. A few weeks ago I suddenly realized that I had completely ran out of laundry detergent, no really, me- the crazy coupon, stockpiling mom!!  I thought I had some in the garage but sure enough it was all gone.

But when I checked my trusty stockpile I had 11 tide trial or sample packs to get me through at least a week. So no need to run out and grab it today, spending gas, time and money on something I got for FREE! I could then still get my laundry done and look for a sale over the next few days or a week! YEAH- my favorite- saving time and money!

So even though you may not want to use those coupons for the trial size or sign up for those FREEbies, it is good to have them on hand- just in case!

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Why Playing The Drugstore Game Can Help Your Budget!

Over the past few months we as a family have been so busy with soccer practice, games, field days, award ceremonies, PTC events, etc. So I felt that cutting out the extra shopping at the local drugstores for a little while would help save some extra time each week not having to chase the deals!

At first it was easy and actually I did feel as if I was shopping less. But the this week came along and I realized I was very low and even out of some stockpile items that are normally FREE or really cheap at the drugstore and they weren’t on sale this week.

Meaning I may have to pay full price for items I would normally get for FREE. Meaning money from our grocery budget that could be spent on other items is now going to be spent on basics I  would normally have in my stockpile. I know that the drugstore game is not for everyone but for our family getting shampoo, soap, razors, medicine, etc for FREE each week really helps us stretch our grocery budget tremendously.

So next week I will be back to CVS and Walgreens to grab some great deals.

If you are looking to get started at the drugstores check out how to get started.

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Ways To Save Space: Storing Leftover Paint

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I just finished painting our oldest daughter’s room (again) her lovely shade of pink and only had a small amount left over in the paint can. I hate leaving the leftover paint in the big can, first it takes up a lot of space but it rarely seems to be the same once it’s been opened and used. There is always dried paint or lumps in the can or the lid is hard to remove or replace.

image

So I started saving leftover paint in old spaghetti jars (love our tote of recycled items)! I pour the rest of the un-used paint into the jar, replace the lid and label the jar. I make sure I label what room it is for and the date. This is great for when we need to touch up spots on the wall, you know, when the girls bang things into the wall!! Plus these jars are a lot smaller than a large can of paint, saving me space in the garage and making touch-ups quick and easy!

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I also add the paint chip to the jar as well. This works great for when you may need a whole can of paint again, you have the paint chip & code making it easy to get the same color of paint if needed. I once took a small sample of left over paint to a local hardware store in hopes of matching the color and getting a whole can of paint. Needless to say, the dark tan color I wanted, was a golden yellow when we got home. So I now keep all paint chips for future use! In the past we have used baby food jars as well, but since we no longer have babies, we use the spaghetti jars!

So how do you store your leftover paint?

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Collect Coke Rewards: Earn Rewards or Donate To Your Local School

My cousin a few months ago was telling me how quickly he was earning FREE stuff with Coke Points from the Coke products he was purchasing. After investigating I found out how I could earn FREE stuff as well!

First you will need to Sign up, find Coke codes and enter them to cash in for great prizes- Easy! You can use your Coke Reward points for things like FREE movie rentals, magazine subscriptions, Coke products and more!

Even though we do drink a little bit of Coke products, I didn’t think I would gain enough points to cash them in for something great, so I looked into the school option. Coke Rewards allows you to donate your points to your local school to help them purchase school supplies, playground equipment, bulletin boards and much more. As a active member of our girls school PTC, I was super excited to see there was another way I could help my kids school with out having to write out a check.

After looking through the schools that were registered in our area, our girls school was not registered. So at out next PTC meeting I suggested we become a part of this program, they agreed that we should and I signed us up! That was just one month ago and we already have 53 points! With cuts made by our district, our individual schools can use any additional funding or programs that allow them to purchase new equipment and supplies for the school.

Coke also will run specials for just schools! I got an email Friday that stated Coke is matching all points donated on March 6 and March 7 for all school accounts! So if you have 10 points to donate to your local school, then Coke will match 10, making your donation 20 points! These points will add up quickly and will benefit your school greatly! So get started and help a local school earn FREE supplies! You can read the full details here for the Coke Matching Event!

Where to find Coke codes:

  • Under the caps
  • Inside tear-off on 12-pks
  • On multi-pack wraps

Codes can be found on 14 brands:

  • Coca-Cola
  • Coke Zero
  • Diet Coke
  • Sprite
  • DASANI
  • POWERADE
  • Minute Maid
  • Fanta
  • Barq’s
  • Fresca
  • Pibb
  • Mello Yello
  • NESTEA
  • Seagram’s

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Ways To Save: Keep Track of Your Online Daily Deal Purchases

Expired daily deals are a thing of the past with Couptivate.com! A great new FREE digital wallet that securely stores and organizes your daily deal purchases from sites like Groupon and LivingSocial, as well as coupons. Couptivate brings every deal you buy and coupon you own to one, simple page, and sends you email reminders so deals and coupons will never expire or go unused. It’s the perfect organizational tool for getting the most out of your daily deals and coupons. Sign up today for FREE!

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20% off Your First Box at ThredUP

The thredUP community – where moms swap kids clothes and toys. It’s easier than ever to hand-down outgrown children’s items and earn cashback. Use FREE USPS boxes or Concierge bags to de-clutter without leaving the house. Earn up to $10 for each great box you sell and up to $20 for each bag you stuff and return to us. Pick new boxes that start at just $9 and come full of great kids stuff. The average thredUP box has more than 15 items. It’s the best kids clothing deal anywhere

How does it work?

  • Gather all the books your child no longer reads, and list them by the boxful on thredUP.

 

  • Sign-up for free and thredUP will send you complimentary empty USPS boxes (if you don’t want to wait, go grab them for free at your local post office).
  • When another mom picks your box of books, thredUP lets you know. thredUP generates the shipping label and scheduldes home pick-up, so you can send books without leaving the house.

It’s even easier than Goodwill and you’ll send your family’s once loved books directly to another child who wants them.

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Monday’s Craft: Homemade Bath Paint


Over the weekend the girls asked if we could purchase the 3pk of bath crayons at Meijer for $4.99! I quietly laughed to myself and thought, I know how to make something better and for a lot less! They weren’t happy that I said no, but I told them when we get home I will make you something better to play with in the tub!

I found a can of shaving cream and grabbed the food color! Headed to the sink with an empty egg carton, added a few drops of food coloring to each section and then filled each section half full with shaving cream! Once you start mixing, the shaving cream will expand, so don’t over fill it- half full seemed to be plenty!

Once it is all mixed up, I grabbed a few paint brushes, put our 3 year old in the tub and let her at it!! She quickly thought this was the coolest stuff ever and of course the 10 year old and 7 year old wanted to have their turn in the tub when our 3 year old was finished!


Quickly making a masterpiece on the tub walls, our girls asked if this is something they could do weekly!! Since this is something that cost me less than .25, I have no problem with them doing this! I can normally grabbed a can of shaving cream for about .50 each – .75 each (on sale and with a coupon), plus a few drops of food coloring! I used very little of both the food coloring and shaving cream, so one can could last for weeks!

I love finding things around the house to use for fun new crafts for the kiddos!

FYI!! And just so you know, the homemade bath paint cleaned off completely and did not stain our walls or tub. I would recommend getting the tub walls wet before you let the little ones paint just to make sure that the color does not stain the grout in between the tiles! This seems to make sure ours didn’t stain!

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Up to $329 in Baby Savings from Similac

If you have a baby that is on formula, you already know how expensive it is to feed them everyday! But finding ways to save with a baby can be easy!

According to Sure Baby- For formula (up until your baby is one year old), expect to spend between $1,000 and $2,300 – depending on whether you use powder or ready-to-pour liquids. Plan on spending at least $40 a week on infant formula.

So why not try and save a little of your hard earned cash by signing up for Similac StrongMom program and get some great benefits! It’s FREE to join and you can get things like:

  • Get $20 worth of premium Shutter-fly birth announcements.
  • Weekly Pregnancy Journal- Keep track of every milestone with a pregnancy tracker. Ask your OB/GYN for yours during your first trimester.
  • Similac Travel Bag- Perfect to pack for the hospital. Available through your OB/GYN during your third trimester.
  • Similac Baby Organizer- Pack all of your baby’s essentials in one handy, portable organizer. Plus, it comes filled with free samples and offers. Ask for it at the hospital. Image does not reflect actual kit contents. †Available at participating hospitals
  • Get special coupons in your mailbox.
  • Get Similac Advance samples in your mailbox.

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Ways To Save- On Gift Wrapping

I did a Guest post over at Extreme Southern Couponing, here is a preview! 

With the economy still struggling, we are all on a tight budget for the holidays! One way our family cuts cost around the holidays is not using traditional wrapping paper for our Christmas gifts! We have several ways to find things around the house to use to wrap our gifts with little cost to us!

According to EarthCycle Americans spend $2.9 Billion a year on packaging-  ribbons, bags and wrapping paper! That means there are thousands of tree being cut down each year just to wrap your gifts! So we try to do our part and save a tree or 2 by using less gift packaging products at Christmas!

Newspapers- If you are a couponer like me, you have at least 5 newspapers around your house each Sunday. Unless it is winter time (use them to start our fires in the fireplace), I drop these newspapers in the recycle bin. Using these newspapers to wrap your gifts would not only help you save a little cash, you are recycling and possibly giving your gift receiver something to read!

Scrapbooking Paper- I have tons of totes filled with scrapbooking supplies and paper that I doubt that I will ever get to use. Scrapbooking paper has tons of designs and can be decorated with any supplies you have around the house to make them extra special!

Brown Paper Bags from the Grocery- I remember using these bags to cover my books in high school and spending hours decorating them with my favorite tv shows, best friends names, and cute artwork I felt like doodling that day. Grab some extra craft supplies around the house and decorate them with stamps, stickers, buttons, yarn, etc.

To see the rest of my tips of saving on gift wrap, check Extreme Southern Couponing!

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Ways To Save: Laundry Tips

Besides using coupons at the grocery, there are tons of other ways to save in your everyday tasks that can all add up to help you save big! Here are some tips on how I save while doing the laundry.

  • Energy Efficient- Purchasing energy efficient products is one way to help you save not only on water usage but on electricity. Energy efficient machines are made to conserve water while getting your clothes clean and most machines also allow you to use less detergent than with other machines.
  • Spin Again- Once your load of laundry is finished spinning it’s last spin cycle, run it through one more time. This will help ring out even more water, helping you use less water. The difference of electricity usage from another spin vs extra time in the dryer will save you money.
  • Keep Em’ Full- Only running full loads of laundry will help make the most of your usage of water. If you do need to wash a smaller load, make sure you adjust the settings for a smaller load so that your machine uses less water.
  • Don’t Over Fill- To go along with the tip above, overfilling is only keeping your laundry from getting completely clean and will make your need to dry them even longer- in return using more electricity.
  • Do Less Laundry- Even though most people won’t admit it, you have worn your jeans more than once before you threw them in the dirty clothes. That’s ok! Really! As long as you weren’t rolling around in the mud, it is ok to wear a pair of jeans for 2 or 3 times before they head to the wash. Now not all clothes are able to wait and not all people are able to pull this off (those with strong body odors). But if you have normal hygiene and can remain fairly clean throughout the day you can save yourself a few loads of laundry by wearing some of  your clothes more than once!
  • Use Cold Water- Using hot water uses more electricity to make the water hot therefore costing you more each month.
  • Use Correct Amounts-  Using too much or too little detergent or fabric softener can make your laundry dirty or needing a second rinse, causing you to spend more. Read the labels and measure your products to the labels specifications.
  • Non- Dry Clean Clothes- Purchase clothes that do not need to be dry cleaned. Not having to make that extra trip each month to the dry cleaner can save you time, gas, and money!
  • Hang Them Out To Dry- If you don’t mind a few extra minutes of work, hang your clothes outside on a clothes line. This will cut your electricity bill by quite a bit and save your dryer. Oh and there is that whole saving nature thing!!! If you feel that your clothes are stiff after they have been hung out to dry, toss them in the dryer for about 10-12 minutes to help soften them!
  • Make Your Own- There are tons of ways to make your own detergent, stain remover and fabric softener that are a little less harsh on your wallet. Simply do a Google search on making your own and you will find several recipes! Most of the items you will most likely have in your cabinet.
  • Wash Multiple Loads- This isn’t so much to help save during the washing cycle but when you toss them in the dryer. Doing several loads of laundry back to back will keep the dryer hot, making dryer time for additional loads less- the dryer won’t have to warm up in between loads.
  • Dilute The Detergent- If you tend to over do the detergent, next time you are finished with a bottle of detergent, save the bottle. Open a new one and pour about 1/4 to 1/3 of the new detergent into the old bottle and then fill the new bottle back up to the top with water.
  • Cut Dryer Sheets- Cutting dryer sheets in half is probably one of the easiest and most cost effective ways to save on laundry. Dryer sheets are a little pricey, but you need them, especially when winter hits. So cut them in half and get double your money’s worth.

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Compare Insurance Quotes To Save- Home, Health & Life

One way that our family saves money each year is to contact our insurance company and a few other companies to compare quotes and benefits! Our budget seems to get tighter and tighter each month and finding new ways to save is always on my mind. Our insurance company offers many options and gives us a discount for holding several policies with them. But you never know what else you can find, so we still check each year!

While starting our annual search, I looked at a company called Aviva. Aviva is a insurance company that is offered worldwide and has more than 53 million customers, so they know a thing or 2 about what insurance and what to offer it’s customers. Whether you are looking for home, car or health insurance you can find it here.  You can grab a quote and see a summery of coverage for your home a the click of your mouse.  Aviva even offers you the option to manage your account online and rewards you with special deals and discounts.  You can check out Aviva and see what you find!

Aviva is a leading provider of life and pension products in Europe (including the UK) with substantial positions in other markets around the world, making it the world’s sixth largest insurance group based on gross worldwide premiums at 31 December 2009. Our main activities are long-term savings, fund management and general insurance1. We have worldwide sales of £45.1 2 billion and £3802 billion of funds under management. We have 46,000 employees serving over 53 million customers in 28 countries around the world.

Aviva offers products on every aspect of your life, from…

  • Personal accident
  • Car insurance
  • Life insurance
  • Home insurance
  • Private health insurance
  • Travel insurance
  • Home emergency cover
  • Pet insurance
I was compensated to write about this company- Aviva. My opinion is 100% my own.

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