Happy New Year! (And another rebate app to help you save the money!)

HAPPY NEW YEAR! I hope you were all able to ring in 2016 with loved ones and yummy food. We certainly did. We're looking forward to what 2016 holds (particularly New Baby! and the end of course work for Brad!). I'd tell you all the fantastic, party-rrific things we did to celebrate the new year, but it would look like us watching football, doing a puzzle, and going to bed before midnight. PARTY ANIMALS. We enjoyed it, though, so I'm not knockin' it. This is a good representation of yesterday:

Happy New Year!

A while back, I wrote about Ebates and how Brad and I have been earning quite a bit of money back on purchases and referrals we make online. Seriously, y'all: it's been fantastic. We ended up having to take care of a ton of car maintenance right at Christmas time (our timing is awesome) but simultaneously were informed that we were getting a check from Ebates for almost $200, which put a nice buffer in place (and made our feelings hurt a little less). I cannot recommend it enough. And, if you use my referral (button in sidebar!), you and I both get a cashback bonus! It's a win-win all the way around.

In the spirit of sharing helpful tips with friends, I thought I'd tell you about Ibotta, as well. Ibotta is another kind of rebate app that I've been using for about 6 months. I use it primarily for groceries, but it can also be used on select restaurants and retail purchases. I use it sort of like you would use coupons in store. Except, I don't have to clip and hand over coupons. The way it works:
1. You make your purchases.
2. You pull up the app and find the rebates available at the store you shopped at. 
3. You load the rebates that you want.
4. You scan the barcodes of those items that you purchased and take a picture of your receipt.
5. You submit your images.
6. Money is added to your account.
Some weeks you rack up, some you don't. But some is better than none, in my opinion.

When you have $20 worth of rebates in your account, you can cash out with PayPal, Venmo, or with a selection of gift cards you might like. I've made almost $40 in the past 6 months just from taking a few minutes to scan things after a grocery trip. Guys, when you're married to a fella in a Ph.D. program and you're a stay-at-home mom, you take cash back when you can, and getting it back on groceries is awesome. 

HERE'S my Ibotta referral link, if you want to check it out. If you use it, you and I both get a sign-up/referral bonus. Yay! It's a little more work than Ebates, in that you have to play occasional 15-30 second videos or read short recipes or answer a poll question, but I've found it to be a nice little reward for going grocery shopping.

I hope it works well for you! Happy shopping and happy 2016!