Use ibotta to Get Cash or Starbucks

I love being able to save money on things that you are already buying. Just the other day, I was able to get a $10 Starbucks gift card from ibotta. I told my husband, we are going to have to go on a free date!

What is ibotta?

Ibotta is an free app, unfortunately it is just an app. You don't need a smartphone, but you will need a device that you can download an app on and take a picture. Think ipod, ipad if you don't have a smart phone.

There are several different rebates that you can take use. My favorite are groceries, but you can also use the rebates at movie theaters, restaurants, home improvement stores, and baby stores.

How do you use ibotta?

Pick from a list of rebates that you would like to take advantage of. Unlock the offer by learning a fact, watching a video, or taking a poll. Honestly, I don't pay a whole lot of attention to what they are telling me when I am unlocking the deal. I just want the money from unlocking.

Buy the item at the store. I love that milk is often included!

Take a picture of your receipt on your phone and they with verify your purchase to give you your money.

Do you really get your money?

One of my favorite things about ibotta, is that you can cash out at just $5. And you cash out to paypal and get real cash. You can also get starbucks, regal, or itunes gift cards. The cash out is right away so you don't have to wait.

How do I sign up?

I would love if you would sign up through this link, because I will get $5 for you. Then you can share your link with others and get more money for yourself.

You will also earn $2 if you sign up through my link and make a purchase in 10 days. Win for both of us!

Should I connect with Facebook?

I just learned that if you connect Facebook to your ibotta account, that you can earn money for your team of friends redeeming offers. So, this is one thing I would like up to Facebook!

This post contains affiliate links.

Linked to Equipping Godly Women.

Cut the Cord on Cable: Watch Tv For Free

TV. What are you willing to pay to watch TV and is it worth the cost? Are you willing to cut the cord on cable?

Seems to me like most people fall into two categories. First, they think their cable is too expensive, but they can't live without cable. Or second, they have given up cable and have filled in other options to watch TV. Do you find your family falling into one of these two categories?

Our story
When we first got married, my husband thoroughly enjoyed his cable TV...and spent too much for it! (For internet, TV and a home phone, the cost each month was $120. And, he thought he was getting a bargain, since that was what the Time Warner company told him. And he continued to give in each month as he was a Triple Play subscriber! In addition to this bill, a cell phone bill was also an additional expense at $40 each month.) After a while, we did disconnect our cable and was able to get over the air channels. We went back and forth about having cable and going without cable.

When we moved this last summer, we got our internet hooked up. We asked the Time Warner technician about just getting over the air channels, but he informed us he was unable to legally do that for our home in the current location.

So, my husband started investigating some other options, as he was more desirous of the television that I was. The house already had an older antenna installed that appeared to be in good condition. After tracing the cords in the basement, my husband was able to get us watching 2 channels. Well, it was more than what we had, but the channels played reruns from the early 1980's. Not really what we had in mind.

After a storm, the antenna mast got bent so we had a man come and secure the antenna which led to more channels up and running.

There are still people out there who specialize in antennas if you are interested in fixing yours or installing a new one.

How we watch TV for free
Now, we use our antenna and supplement our watching with the internet. We choose options that we aren't paying anything per month. There are other options out there, but we aren't choosing to use those options at this time.

One of our go to places is disablemycable.com to watch tv shows. I remember the first time I saw my husband searching this website. I thought this website is totally hokey. Not a beautiful site, but it is great that they put all the TV shows that you can watch online in one place. Some of the links/channels you can go to only have short video clips and not full episodes, but for us, some shows are better than no shows. (We are not TV worshippers by any stretch, but when at home we do enjoy turning on the TV.)

Another great place to go is YouTube. There are a lot of movies that you can watch on YouTube for free. I was at Family Video the other day and saw a movie that looked decent. We decided not to get that movie, and I came home and looked it up on YouTube and it was there. I just realized that you can watch House Hunters (HGTV) on YouTube. Uhoh! That might not be a good thing for me to find.

How to hook up your computer to your TV
If you are interested in watching your tv through your internet, you can easily hook your computer up to your TV, in order to have a bigger viewing screen. If you have a computer and TV with HDMI capabilities, you will only need a 6 Feet HDMI Cable to hook up your computer to your TV. Works great!

If you have Apple products, then you will need this cord to connect your Apple Products to HDMI.

There are other methods to hook up your computer to TV, but these are the two options that we have found that are cheap.

What we think
Honestly, we are completely ok with the amount of TV that we can get for free. I know that even with the limited amount that we get, we watch too much TV! I love the fact that we have ways to watch TV that have not cost us much up front and that is not costing us anything each month.

Many people tried to tell us we would save money by switching to satellite TV and internet, or shop around for a better rate. Although this can be true, many of the other companies have qualifying stipulations that you must sign on with a 2 year contract, or there are additional expenses beyond what is written in their typed (hidden) message at the bottom of the page. For instance "after purchase of $299 equipment + installation" or "for 6 month exclusive rate", or "with upgrade to Super Fast/Turbo/Rocket speed internet service". If you don't believe us, just read the fine print of those advertisements that you receive in the mail or see online. We also found it interesting that when you call the companies directly, they will try to convince you to sign on to their "premium package" because you will undoubtedly save so much money. However, although this may be the case, how many channels will you watch, or how much time will you spend online, or how many people will you be calling overseas this week? The time you will be forcing yourself to invest in your entertainment expenses could be better spent with the one's you love, or by interacting with real-life breathing human beings. My husband felt he needed to spend much of his time watching TV or being on the internet for the costs he was paying, but now enjoys not feeling like he is forced to recoup his expenses and be handcuffed to the cable companies.

Is it right for you
Cost has been our biggest influence in many of our decisions and we are glad that we have been able to find more frugal alternatives to live comfortably. We do not get all (or any) channels of ESPN, or every home improvement/DIY channel, but we get a select few channels that we can enjoy to flip on when we want to relax at night. Since a few years ago when my husband was spending over $120 a month for his cable, internet, and phone, the costs have steadily risen to approximately $160 a month for the same options. We now spend $0 on TV, less than $40 for internet and just under $60 each month for our 2 cell phones through PagePlus. So, for $100 each month we have our entertainment and communication covered. We would even like to see those numbers drop even further!

Many people tried to convince us that we were "old farts" who were too cheap to live like everyone else. We have to agree with them on this and like to toss out the phrase from Dave Ramsey "If you will live like no one else, later you can live like no one else!." Our choices might not be the best for you, but hopefully you are thinking a little more outside of the box of what we as Americans have grown to think is the accepted norm, some kind of cable or satellite TV. Cutting the cord to the cable company was a very enjoyable and eye-opening experience. We are able to spend more quality time with each other doing things we actually enjoy while saving money at the same time.

How about you? What do you do to watch tv?

Alternative to Verizon Cell Phones {Page Plus}

Are you looking for an alternative to verizon? Do you hate paying their outrageous bill?

When I thought of cell phones, I knew I wanted the service of Verizon. In our area, that really is the only thing that has decent service. My husband did some research and finally convinced me that Verizon is not the only way to go. He is sharing with you today what he shared with me. 

When my wife and I first started “talking” with each other, communication was (and still is) very important to our relationship. Initially our communication was kept to Facebook messages, but as time went on, and as our relationship grew, we desired to stay in contact more. Little notes being left for one another, a text message here and there, and phone calls were our primary means of communication.

My wife had been a long time customer of the cellular giant, Verizon, but I have always hated contracts. Call it a commitment issue (I call it being cheap), but I like to keep MY money in MY pocket. I had Verizon back in the day, but hated paying almost $50 a month for a single phone. Long story short, I paid out of the contract. I have used several prepaid cellular companies (Tracfone, Net10, and Virgin Mobile) since that time and have had ok service with them, but the one downside has always been coverage. Living in a rural area, where the nearest tower is 3 miles away, service is shoddy at best, unless you choose to pay $50+ a month for Verizon.

After my wife and I were married, we had the opportunity to go back into the Verizon network, but at a discounted group rate through a business plan. We decided to try it. After a month being on the plan, we were told that we would have to be on our own plan as the business needed the extra lines. My wife and I calculated the costs. Wow! $100-120 for two of us to have BASIC phones would not cut it! We had no land line phone and needed good coverage with good service. My wife and I refused to pay big bucks, but I knew I would NEVER convince a long time Verizon customer that it was ok to cut the cord. (You are probably thinking the same thing right now.) As a previous prepaid consumer, I knew there had to be an option out there that was just as reliable as Verizon, but at a cheaper cost. I only had to convince my wife of this, however. No easy task!

The search began. My criteria included: good service/coverage in our rural area, cheap, no contracts, and able to keep the same phone number. Almost all of the prepaid providers are good inside of larger towns, but migrate away from those areas and you have nothing more than a paperweight. The ONLY company that matched all of my criteria was PagePlus Cellular. This is a company I had never heard of before, but decided to do more investigating. After weeks of researching and comparing, deliberating whether or not it was wise to consider going away from Verizon, we bought a cheap, previously owned, Verizon phone and tested it out. (Any phone that has been used on Verizon, or that is equipped to work on Verizon’s network, will work on PagePlus.)

The result...it operated on the Verizon network!!!!! I could not believe it. There had to be a catch! There had to be a loophole that Verizon does not know about or something. The catch is this...the company, PagePlus, had signed an agreement that they will not use Verizon’s name in any dealings with their customers, and that they will not “knowingly allow the use of iPhone or Blackberry devices” on their network. That’s it! The NAME of the giant is not allowed. To me, that little catch is not a hindrance at all! The one little agreement with Verizon about the use of an iPhone or Blackberry is what scares off a few people; however, these phones will still work on their network, and data speeds (3G only) are equally comparable to Verizon because it is Verizon’s network.

So what are our thoughts on being customers of PagePlus? I personally could not be happier. We are using the same phones that we used while on Verizon, and whenever we want to change/upgrade our phones, all we need to do is go to eBay, or another PagePlus dealer, and buy a good quality used Verizon phone. I have an iPhone 4 and I love it. The same great Verizon service at a fraction of the cost. Great service, great price, and no contract! Who could argue with that!?

The Pros!
1) The coverage...as discussed earlier, it is the same as Verizon. See for yourself if you do not believe me. Page Plus Coverage vs Verizon Wireless Coverage. It’s the same map!

2) The cost...with Verizon for 2 basic phones on their Share Everything plan is $110 per month ($30 for each phone x 2 phones + $50/month for Shareable data). If one person has a smart phone, that cost increases to $120/month. So, on their basic plan, with their cheapest phones you are looking at the following equation ($110/month x 24 month contract = $2640). Note: that cost does not include their “hidden fees and surcharges”. And guess what, their prepaid plans are the same cost! Whoa! Who wants to pay that?! You may be saying, “we have no choice!” But wait...with PagePlus there are other options. You can have monthly renewable plans starting at $12/month (The 12) or up to $69.95/month for unlimited talk/text and 5gb of data! But the options are not limited to monthly use. What if you are only in need of a phone for emergencies? (i.e. senior citizens, little children staying at a friends house, etc.) PagePlus has you covered yet. Just buy a PIN! For $10, you can have available 100 minutes of talk time for 120 days of service. Texting can still be done on the PINs but half a minute is deducted for each text sent/received.

PagePlus offers many different options for plans. My wife and I like the Talk-n-Text 1200 plan. We get 1200 minutes of talk, 3000 text messages, and 250mb of data for $29.95/month. I know I know, many people feel that they NEED Unlimited Everything, but the truth is, many cell phone users do not hit 1200 minutes of talk, or 3000 text messages per month. (And, 250mb of data is not much, but you learn to control accessing the internet, and find time for more constructive things, like actually talking to people!) For data, I mostly am on my cell phone inside of WiFi networks, so I rarely even touch the data portion of my plan. So, what will PagePlus cost us? Minus the initial cost of the cell phones... $29.95/month for each phone x 2 phones x 24 months = $1437.60. And yes, that is the biggest reason we switched to this company! A savings of >$1200 per 2 year contract. No hidden fees or surcharges! We signed up for an automatic payment plan through PagePlus which raises the cost per month to $31.97 per line. That is still a whopping savings! PagePlus does offer a plan that is unlimited talk and text with 2gb of data for $55/month, which would put you right at the same cost of the Verizon basic plan (without additional hidden fees), but unless you need unlimited everything, there is no reason to pay for more than what you need.

3) No contract! Not much to say about this other than I am grateful we will not need to pay out of contracts any time soon!

The cons?
1) In my opinion, there are two small cons. The first is no Visual Voicemail (iPhone exclusive), however voicemail still works without a hitch. My solution, either use Google Voice as my voicemail (great service and free), or just call my voicemail everytime I have a missed call. No big deal. The other con (once again can be dealt with) is when you first sign up with PagePlus, an automated voice announces your current minutes before you make a phone call. This can be annoying, but if you do not need the reminder, or find it frustrating, you can call PagePlus and have it removed. This can be a help or hindrance, depending on how you look at it.

2) One item that my wife has missed is that of “My Verizon”. This is the service that provides a back-up in the “cloud” of all of your numbers, account information, etc. Instead of using this service (that you really pay for in the long run) there are free apps available that allow you to manage this (like Google Voice). The only other item that I wish PagePlus would improve is their customer service. PagePlus is located in Toledo, Ohio, and their customer service is based there, but if you plan on getting in touch with someone, be prepared to wait for an hour on hold. Communication is done best through email, I have found, or contact a PagePlus dealer.

Ok, I know you are wondering, “is he done rambling yet?” The conclusion is finally here!

Overall, my wife and I have enjoyed the benefits of the Verizon network, but we did not want to pay the exorbitant fees included with being a customer of theirs. Cost, coverage and service are fantastic with PagePlus and as long as they are providing cell phone service under Verizon, at a fraction of the cost, we will remain loyal customers to them.

~ Mr. NotAfraidOfTheSnow