You are here: Home / Archives for Fun Freebies

Follow Up Post: What we purchased to get rid of cable

March 24, 2011 by · Leave a Comment

Sorry it’s been about six weeks, as I promised a follow up post to this post from January.

A few of you had inquired as to what we are doing if we are indeed getting rid of Comcast. My first tip (and if you read that old post you’ll see what I’m talking about) is to call Comcast and ask them to reduce your bill. Chances are they will offer you a reduced rate for six months. At least you’re saving some money while you pursue your options.

My frustration with Comcast skyrocketed on Super Bowl Sunday. I said to my husband “I can’t believe we pay so much money to Comcast, we’ve invested money in our HDTVs, and I’m sitting here on Super Bowl Sunday watching a crappy picture.”  See, I will not pay more for the HD part and for a long time we didn’t have to. Our HDTVs would produce the HD picture, we just had to find the channels. Comcast would move them around, we’d still find them. Now I think they have completely blocked them, except for one of our TVs. We have three HD sets and can still get the HD on one of them. And seriously Comcast, it’s 2011! I do not want some circa 1980s cable box cluttering up my living room! All right, back on topic, I’m starting to digress & vent…………….

This is what we purchased, pick and choose accordingly to suit your household.

HDTV antenna – gets network and PBS stations in high-definition for free (ABC may require a different antenna because it is VHF for some reason) $45
HDHomerun Dual – connects TV antenna to this Tv tuner box and then the tuner to your PC which ultimately lets all of your PCs watch TV.  We use this because all of our TVs are connected to a PC (PC is for online content like hulu and Netflix).  $125

This replaces basic cable and leaves you with high definition channels and a DVR.  Of course if you want Netflix or any other online content you have to find a way to connect the tv to your internet connection.  Options for online content include a set up like ours with multiple PCs for different zones in the house, you could buy a high end netbook and connect it directly to the tv you are watching, or you could buy a game console like ps3 or xbox.  Using an antenna plus a device for online content equals something much better than premium cable TV.

Keep in mind that my husband is an IT guy by trade, and he loves electronics. Our entire house is all networked together and the work was done by him. We can even run our entire home from one remote control if we want to (and our 2-year-old just LOVES to get a hold of that remote!). If you had to pay someone to do this for you, obviously there would be additional charges. He purchases almost all of our electronics stuff from New Egg. They consistently have the best prices and are on ebates. They also have price protection for 30 days, so if you find it cheaper they will refund the difference.

Filed Under: Fun Freebies Tagged With: , , ,

Snow! Gah! Think spring-think about bikes for the kids! (or other larger items)

March 23, 2011 by · Leave a Comment

I can’t believe we actually have snow & ice here today in southeastern PA. I am sooooo sick of it.

A few weeks ago, I posted a deal I found on a new bike for Brian. He just turned two a few weeks ago and we got him a brand new bike. Guess how much it cost? It was free! Yessirrreeee, it was. It’s this one:

I purchased it with Pampers points and it was shipped right to my door. The irony being that for most of the Pampers, I didn’t pay for them either!

But, spring is here and there probably isn’t enough time to accumulate enough points for a free bike this year. Still there are other affordable options.

Toys R Us: Through this weekend, Toys R Us is having a bike trade in. Through Saturday, March 26, but you can take in a bike to trade in toward a new one. Save $20 on any bike priced $99.99 or below; save $30 on a bike from $99.99-$149.99; or save $50 on a bike $150 or more. Trade in a helmet to receive 25% off a new helmet, too. Details here. I wish I had heard about this before we bought the helmet, I would have traded in mine since I sold my own bike.

Goodwill: Sure, there can be some less than desirable merchandise there, but sometimes there are some great finds at Goodwill. It certainly doesn’t hurt to look. I recently went to the one on Concord Pike in Wilmington and found brand new, unopened packs of Pampers/Splashers swim diapers, for $3!

Freecycle: This is a great site where people list things they are giving away. You have to join a group to see what’s listed there, but there are over 8 million Freecyclers across the nation. They would rather give something away than throw it away. And if nothing else, you’re sure to be entertained as there are some odd posts on Freecycle. If you really were in a wheeling & dealing kind of mood, get a free bike from someone on Freecycle and trade it in at Toys R Us.

Craigslist: I have a love/hate relationship with craigslist. I found a great toddler bed on there at a great price as well as our double stroller. I also did well with selling our old stroller. But you have to weed through a ton of nonsense to get there. People don’t answer emails, they back out at the last minute, don’t show up…..sometimes saving money is hard work! 

Ask around! If you have an older child-ask their friends, cousins, nieces, nephews or someone else who is otherwise active with older school children…ask! “Hey, by any chance do you any bikes that you don’t want anymore?” That’s exactly how I got rid of our high chair and pack & play–someone just asked me if I knew anyone selling them. I said, “Sure, Me!” and the deal was done.

Except for the bike deal at Toys R Us, any of these options would be good for any larger outdoor toy, like the infamous cozy coupe, kid sized picnic tables, scooters and more.

Filed Under: Fun Freebies Tagged With: , , , ,

Putumayo Sale!

March 22, 2011 by · Leave a Comment

If you’ve read my blog for the past few years, you know I’m a huge fan of Putumayo and Putumayo Kids. Although I recently read an article that said that basically my 2-year-old will grow up not knowing what CDs are. That’s a good sucker punch to the stomach to make you feel old. We still have vinyl and cassettes in our basement. Foreigner 4 on 33 anyone? Ok, I’m rambling.

My point is, I’m not ready, not just yet, to give up purchasing CDs. At the very least, my very old car has a CD player in it, and I hope to get another 2-3 years out of it. And I need decent kid-friendly CDs for the car.

Putumayo has CDs on sale, three for $29.95 plus free shipping. Use the code SPRING at checkout.

And if you’ve never checked out Putumayo Kids for your kids, please do so. The new Acoustic Dreamland is awesome! And teachers, they even offer free teaching guides and classroom materials to use PK in your classroom.

Putumayo is unfortunately not on ebates.

Filed Under: Fun Freebies Tagged With:

Think Spring! Deals at Burpee

March 21, 2011 by · Leave a Comment

Are you on ebates yet? If not, you must join! You get $$ back on the things you’re going to purchase online anyway.

Steps:

Join Ebates.

Must enter the shopping site you want via ebates. They have a huge list of stores. Even groupon is on ebates, so you can get $$ back on your groupon purchases.

Shop as usual, and you can still use discount codes.

Wait for your check to arrive in the mail. It’s that easy!

Today’s Daily Double from Ebates is 10% back from Burpee. Whatever you purchase from them, Ebates will refund 10%! And here are some codes for you to stack with the 10% off. At least since some of us are experiencing cold, wet and even some snowy weather, we can dream about our summer gardens.

Use code DD5 to receive $5 off a $25 purchase.

New customers-free shipping on all greenhouses.

If you purchase a $30 order, use code START5A to get $5 off, plus you’ll receive free anniversary seed packets.

Filed Under: Fun Freebies Tagged With: , , , , ,
« Previous Page
Next Page »