Slow Down, Gym Shoe!

Commercial Break: Bidazzled

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Bidazzled. All opinions are 100% mine.

I keep seeing ads for this new auction site called Bidazzled.

I finally signed up for it today! Its an auction site, but its not really like eBay. Its different because , first of all, it is not a site where you bid on products that are being sold by other people. You bid on new merchandise, for up to 90% off the regular price. The proceeds go to a lung cancer charity,The Ruch Foundation. 

I'm still trying to figure out how it all works. but so far, here's what I know.

You have to buy your bids in advance. Its about a dollar per bid, but you get bonus bids thrown in. For instance, if you spend $25, you get 29 bids. If you spend $50, you get 60 bids. You then take thos bids, and go bid on the things you want. As far as I can tell, each bid raises the price of the item five cents. So, if there were zero bids, and you bid once, you'd get it up to five cents. If someone else bids after you, they'd get it to ten cents. This goes on for the duration of the auction. When the auction ends, whoever is the final bidder gets to buy the item for the final price. (The amount of bids you spent on the item are subtracted from the price you pay. So, if the final price is five dollars, and you bid four times on it, you'd only have to pay a dollar.

Also, I've heard that if you do win, the Bidazzled people often offer to buy the item back for you for either cash, bonus bids, or a combination of the two.

And if you don't win, you actually get rewarded with bonus bids anyway!

It kinda sounds like fun, doesn't it? The only thing is, I am so poor, I don't really feel like spending twenty-five bucks on bids. But... if you sign up, you get five free bids to start you out! I've already bidded on something using one of my free bids, and aince I'llg et bonus bids if I don't win the item, I figureI'll be addicted to this in no time!

You also get bonus bids for referring your friends... so I'm going to put a referral link in my sidebar, and I hope you'll use it if you want to sign up!

Alright. This actually sounds like fun, doesn't it? Remember, its free to sign up, plus you get five free bonus bids. And I've been told that if you enter this code at your registration... BBP1202A ... you'll get an additional fifteen free bids!

So... go sign up! I hope you win something! Wish me luck, too!

Commercial Break: Surprising Breast Cancer Treatment Research!

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of CryoCell International. All opinions are 100% mine.

Most people have heard of stem cell research, and the ways that banking a newborn baby's umbilical cord stem cells can potentially save the life of that child or a family member later on. I recently learned something even more amazing. Menstrual blood is a rich source of stem cells, and women now have the option of saving and banking their menstrual blood.

Yeah, I know, it sounds a little gross. But listen to this. Menstrual stem cells can turn themselves into heart muscle, cartilage, nerve and bone stem cells. Researchers believe these cells have the potential to treat diseases like MS, Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, and breast cancer!

The people with Cryo-Cell International have partnered with the National Institute Of Health to do research on how menstrual blood stem cells can be use. Right now, menstrual stem cell research is in the pre-clinical phase, which means it is not quite ready to be tested by humans. But Cryo-Cell is very hopeful that menstrual blood stem cells will soon be used to help women and their immediate family members. They are already offering women the chance to bank their menstrual stem cells, using a kit that can be ordered through the mail.

In October, in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Cryo-Cell made donations, of $50 for every purchase of their “Protect Baby, Protect Mom” service (a combination of umbilical cord banking and menstrual blood banking services) and $25 for every purchase of their C’elle Menstrual Stem Cell service. The C'Elle Breast Cancer Donation and Cyro-Cell Breast Cancer Donation went to the Susan B. Komen Foundation.

If you think about it, it really is ironic, isn't it? Many women resent getting their period each month, and birth control is even available to keep menstrual blood down to a minimum. But now, that same monthly routine we've had to deal with most of our lives may soon be able to save our lives!

What do you think of that? 
 

Commercial Break: RepairPal

One of the biggest pains in my butt is my car. I love my little car... it was given to me by my grandparents, and is in better shape than any other car I've owned... but its old, and I'm not very good at keeping up it's maintenance. Just the other day, I was talking to my mom on the phone, and she suggested that my car might need a new battery pretty soon. Ugh... if its not one thing, its another! Every time I feel like I have some money saved up, my car seems to need something!

I found a website that makes the car repairs issue a lot easier! Its called Repairpal.com, and you can find all the information you want about car repairs, including price estimates of repairs to specific makes and models of cars, reviews of local car repair businesses, and much more.

For instance, imagine you have a Honda Accord, you live in San Francisco, and you find out you're going to need your timing belt replaced. First of all,if you'd like, you can read all about what a timing belt is, what it does, why it might need to be repaired, etc. You can also read questions and answers about timing belt problems that other people have submitted, or submit your own questions! Then, you can type in the make, model and year of your car, find out how much you might expect a timing belt repair job to cost, and search for a San Francisco auto repair shop that can do the work for you. The star ratings and customer reviews will help you find a shop that you can trust with your car! 

I'm definitely going to use this site whenever I have any problems with my car... and believe me, I have bad luck with cars! I hope this site comes in handy for you, too!

Commercial Break: Daily Deals From Charter

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Charter Communication. All opinions are 100% mine.

If you're anticipating being broke after the holidays, this may be a good time for you to think about switching to Charter for your cable, internet and/or phone services. Here's why... not only can you save a lot of money, but there are actually ways for you to come out ahead on the deal! Charter prides itself on offering lots of deals and sweepstakes for it's customers. In fact, over the past two years, Charter has set a new precedent in their industry by offering amazing sweepstakes for things like an HDTV-a-day, Toyota Prius, a new 2010 Chevy Camaro 2SS, and Xbox 360s!

To kick off the holidays, they're hosting their best event ever! Starting on Black Friday, and continuing through Cyber Monday, Charter will be offering gift cards, worth up to $200, for online stores, when you order certain services. For instance, if you sign up for three services through Charter, you'll get a $200 gift card! The gift cards are to online stores such asBest Buy, Kohls, Old Navy, Macy's, Walgreens, Game Stop, and even restaurants! You can buy a treat for yourself, or use the gift cards to get some holiday shopping done. You'll also get chances to win cool prizes.

But the fun doesn't stop after Cyber Monday. Beginning the next day, Charter will host 38 days of gifts, prizes and deals. Every day will be something different, so be sure to check out 

Charter's Daily Deal Web Site

on a regular basis! Look for deals and giveaways involving iPods, camcorders, TVs, GPS units, webcams, photo frames, etc. They'll even be giving away merchandise from your favorite Showtime and HBO series! (You're probably going to want to become a fan of Charter on Facebook to keep up with the latest giveaways from Charter!)

In other words, right now is the perfect time to switch to Charter for your cable, internet and phone needs! Good luck... I hope you win something great!

Commercial Break: Dirt Devil Holiday Buying Guide!

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Hoover and Dirt Devil. All opinions are 100% mine.

The following is a sponsored post. Enjoy!

Obviously, the holidays are coming up. Right now it seems like there's a little while left to prepare. But Thanksgiving is looming in the immediate future, and do you know how quickly the rest of the holidays will follow?

Everyone knows that I'm broke as of late. And, due to the economy, even if you aren't completely destitute like me, you're probably looking for ways to cut back on spending while still making the holidays great.

The people with Dirt Devil have created the Dirt Devil Holiday Gift Guide to help you do just that.

When I first heard about it, I thought it would be, like, a whole bunch of coupons or advertisements for Dirt Devil products. But its actually a downloadable guide with over three hundred ways to save money online, on all sorts of products, including Dirt Devil products.

It really is amazing. You're going to have to block in about an hour to read through this guide, try all of the tricks, visit all of the recommended websites, etc. Not only does this guide lead you to a bunch of different sites where you can find information on Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales, but it teaches you how to search for coupon codes and promo codes to save as much as possible on the products you want, and how to find cheap or even free things all over the Internet. They also teach you how to find sites that offer free shipping on Free Shipping Day. (On that day, which is in mid-December, many sites offer free shipping and a guarantee to have the product delivered to you in time for Christmas!)

Of course, the guide does also point you towards some special Dirt Devil deals, including "Gifts for Her," "Gifts for Him", and "Family Favorites."

They even have a section that tells you where to find printable coloring books and games to keep the kids busy while you get ready for holiday parties! 

I'm going to check out a lot of the sites in this guide. It is free, and easy to download, so I really suggest you check it out. You'll definitely find at least a few ways to save money!

Commercial Break: Get A Head Start On Your Holiday Shopping!

The following is a sponsored post! Enjoy!

One year, when i was a kid, my brother and I got bean bag chairs for Christmas. Mine was pink, and his was blue and white. We loved them and thought them were the most comfortable chairs ever... We used to run and plop ourselves into them!

I've been thinking it would be cool for Little Bear and Pufferfish to have bean bag chairs. It would be neat to set up a corner of the playroom as a cozy little reading corner with some bean bags and blankets. Maybe right by their book shelves. Maybe I would get a big basket and keep any current library books and puzzles in it, too.

I was checking around on SHOP.com, and apparently there is a much wider variety of bean bag chairs these days! You can buy soft, furry ones that look like they'd be so comfortable on cold winter evenings, or bean bag chairs covered with sued or corderoy. You can get them with your favorite team's emblem on them. You can get giant, love-seat sized ones. You can get them with different types of filling, from virgin urethane foam to  recycled polystyrene to plastic pellets to stuffing to... well, beans, I suppose! You can even get the kind that is durable enough to be kept outdoors. They are shaped like traditional bean bag chairs, or like regular chairs, or like animals or even lips!

It seems like the choices of bean bag chairs are endless... and I'm starting to realize that you can find just about anything on SHOP.com! Be sure to check out their Wine of the month club, if you need a super easy gift for someone over twenty-one!

I know I'm going to try to start my Christmas shopping early this year. I know its not even Halloween yet, but time sure goes fast lately, and before we know it it really will be Christmas! Good luck with your shopping!

Are You Sick Of Cable Yet?

If you're getting sick of your current cable company, insted of just switching to yet another cable company, why not try out Direct TV? Its different from regular cable, because Direct TV Service uses a satellite and accesses a private signal, instead of using cable wires. But that's definitely not the only difference! Having Directv Service means you have access to a lot more channels. This includes kid-friendly channels... a real bonus if your kids (or you) have had just about enough of Dora and Caillou! You can choose from more interesting channels like Starz Kids & Family, HBO Family, and Boomerang!

If you're a sports fan (I admit, I'm not, but i'm pretty rare in that I guess...) you'll like DirecTV even more, because DirecTV has many sports channels, as well as special packages from NFL, NASCAR, NCAA and MLB. 

Other benefits of switching to DirecTV include access to more than 130 High Definition channels, local channels included at no extra cost, and no activation fees.

So, if you're getting tired of the same old cable, I would suggest looking into DirecTV!

Commercial Break: Check Out ShopWiki

The school year has started, and since Little Bear and Rafael are in school most of the day now, I've been lookin for some extra kids to take care of along with Pufferfish! As it is, I watch Rafael every day after school. And I might have two-year-old twin girls coming once a week, starting next week! Tigerlily joins us too, once in a while. It would be really nice to find just one more kid, maybe a three or four year old, to watch full-time.

Anyway, if I start watching more kids, I thought I might use some of the money to buy some extra toys to put out. I'd probably stash them away, and take them out only during child care hours, to make them more exciting and enticing for Little Bear and Pufferfish. I'd especially like to find a few "boy toys" for Rafael, who is the only boy in the house under the age of 12, and who often feels surrouned by girls!

I started looking on Shopwiki for some new toys and games, and I found some good ones! I liked the Chase And Race game, which seems a little like Candy Land but more fast-paced for slightly older kids, and the I Spy Eagle Eye game. Great choices to keep Little Bear and Rafael busy after school!  I also found a whole bunch of different kinds of blocks and building sets, which I think would be perfect gender-and-age-neutral toys for all of the kids to play with together. I also looked at some toy chests, organizational items and furniture for the playroom. I'd love for Pufferfish to have a little rocking chair like the one she loves to sit in at the library. And I love those interactive rugs like you sometimes see in day care centers and preschools! Finally, I checked out heir extensive offering of children's books

The cool thing about ShopWiki is that they don't get paid for selling the items. They get paid for showing ads on the site. So, they dispay just about everything on the Internet... .not just the products that givee them kickbacks for selling them!

Anyway, I'll have to see how much money I end up making, before I start counting my proverbial chickens. But if I am able to afford a few extra things, I'll definitely be returning to ShopWiki!

Commercial Break: Stouffers Is Hosting A Sweepstakes!

(Only read this if you live in Canada!)

Raise your hand if you like paninis! Okay, thats most of you. Now raise your hand if you usually eat your paninis at home! Not too many people. Most of us only get the chance to eat paninis at restaurants or sandwich shops, when they're made for us!

But Stouffers offers an inexpensive, quick and nutritious way to enjoy a panini right at home. Next time you're craving one, try a Stouffers-panini! They come in ten varieties, including bistro Phily-Style Stea And Cheese, Bistro Barbeque chicken And Bacon, and Bistro Smoked Turkey Club.

Recently, Stouffers introduced four new variieties of paninis, inspired by the foods eaten in Italy (Bistro Meatballs And Peppers),  Greece (Bistro Chicken Souvlaki), France (Lean Cousine Grilled Vegetables And Goat CEESE), and India (Lean Cousine Mango Chicken Tikka).

To help celebrate the release of these four new varieties, Stouffers is hosting a sweepstakes. All you have to do is fill out some information, including your name and address. Then, you can go back to the site each day to enter the contest again. The three Grand Prize winners will get trips to India, Greece, Italy or France. Twelve weekly winners will get Sony Digital Camcorders. And every day, somebody will win free Stouffers coupons.

This sweepstakes is only open to people in Canada. So, if you live in Canada, you can register here!    Good luck!

I Wish I Had Good Jeans!

Today's sponsored post is all about jeans!

Dude, I'm short, and oddly shaped. I have small hips and skinny legs, but every ounce of fat in my body goes directly to my stomach. I can never find jeans that fit me right! Contributing to this issue is the fact that I am dirt poor, so I am always shopping for jeans in places like Wal-Mart or Target. Those stores have decent clothes, but they are made to fit the average person with the average body type. So I usually have jeans that are forever falling down, or jeans with stovepipe legs that make me look a little odd, or too-long jeans with cuffs that get all ripped up from getting caught under the heels of my shoes! Or, the kinds of jeans I hate the most are the ones that are so low in back that they show off your undies every time you sit down and bend over! Ugh! What I need are some decent jeans, like these!

The thing I like best about them are that they're made of stretch denim. I love stretch denim! They are so comfy, and they don't fall down as much... maybe because I can get away with wearing a slightly smaller size than usual when the denim is stretchy!

Here's a similar pair, only straight-legged instead of boot cut. They're made of stretch denim, too! I like these because they're kind of like classic, timeless blue jeans that you could wear with anything, you know?

And now, for something a little different! These are called harem jeans! Pretty unique, don't you think? I love them! I could definitely see myself wearing these in the spring and summer!

All three of these pairs of jeans belong to the Armani Exchange Premium Denim Collection, and they start at only $98. But times are rough for everyone right now, so they're also creating ways for you to save money. For instance, every day for the month of July, you can text A|X for a chance to win a pair of jeans. Just text the keyword  "DENIM2" to ARMANI (276264). Plus, up until the 19th of July, whenever you buy a full-priced pair of jeans from Armani Exchange, they'll give you a gift card for %20 off your next purchase of $100 or more.  

Thats a pretty good deal, don't you think?

And by the way, if you want to keep up with more news like this, you might want to check out the A|X Blog!

And now, back to our regularly scheduled blogging! ;)