livingsocial Archives - My Pocketful of Thoughts

Valentine’s Day is around the corner! Did you get your gift yet for your significant other? This past Sunday I went up to the mall to find the perfect Valentine’s Day gift for my boyfriend. I had an idea in mind when I went but wanted to check out the stores and see what was on sale. I spent a total of 7 hours there, can you believe that. I did find some great items though and I know my boyfriend will be happy with his gift.

Last week I started to pay attention to what deals were on Living Social and Groupon. I scored a great deal on Living Social for Shari’s Berries. We both love chocolate covered strawberries. I was going to pick them up from Godiva, but this year they are a whopping 7 dollars each. I heard the price, turned right around, and walked back out. One dozen chocolate covered strawberries will run you $84.00 + tax. BANANAS! I paid $32 for Gourmet Chocolate Covered Strawberries and that paid for shipping as well.

Here’s how easy the process was:

I got the email from Living Social giving me the code to use $30.00 towards my Shari’s Berries Purchase.

I then headed over to the website to see what was available for my Valentine’s Day Festivities.

I found a Dozen Gourmet Dipped FANCY Strawberries on SALE! SCORE! Godiva who?

I added a cute card, because it was free and yes, we are AWEsome!

It gave me a couple of goodies to add to my cart, but I stayed strong …wishing I had added the Chocolate Dipped Chocolate Chip Cookies.

I was a new customer, so I selected the corresponding section.

If I needed them by noon, there was an available option for that, but since I leave work at 5:30 it wasn’t necessary. Email for upcoming occasions and get $5 off, yes PLEASE.

I entered in my shipping information. Then my payment and billing info.

I was given an opportunity to review my order one last time.

My order was good to go.

I got an email confirmation that my order was received.

It took me about 7 minutes from going from my email and completing the order. I saved myself money and time by not standing in the long line at Godiva. I will have fresh, Chocolate Covered Gourmet FANCY Strawberries. I will chill the wine and it will be a lovely time for me and my boyfriend.

Did you pick out your gift yet? Check out my Google + Album as I walk through my local mall, Finding the Perfect #Valentine’s Day Gift for HIM.

Until then,

PS: I’ll let you know how I like Shari’s Berries. I always see the advertising but have never ordered from them before.

If you like what you’ve read, warm my heart and follow the blog! Likes are great for those who don’t want to comment. Just go to right side panel, look for FOLLOWERS and click Join This Site!

Join the My Pocketful of Thoughts community by giving a LIKE to the FB Page! Just hit like and feel free to share it with lovely like minded people by hitting send below.

Join in on the conversation, click here to get started.

Eating out doesn’t have to be $$$!

Taco Loco Receipt after Groupon Voucher

It makes sense, to cut back on spending unnecessarily, if you’re feeling the crunch of the times. Raises for most people are on pause, jobs continue to come or go, and prices on our basic necessities keep climbing to ridiculous highs. Ten years ago I can honestly remember eating out almost every night and not worrying about the cost (my body suffered more than my wallet :/ ). Today I think about eating out differently. As I do with everything I spend money on these days, my first thought goes to how can I pay less. With so many different programs out there it is hard NOT to save money on your favorite dining out experiences. The photo on the left depicts my Groupon deal at a local Mexican Restaurant. The deal was $12.00 for a $25.00 voucher good for Lunch. I just cut my bill in half without even ordering anything! My niece and I enjoyed a yummy meal and after tip I spent $5.33. A total of $17.33. I could have spent an additional $3.00 but we were running short on time.

Here are a few of the sites I have found to get deals:
groupon, restaurant.com*, living social, spotlight deals on OpenTable, the facebook page of your favorite restaurant and of course the twitter page of your favorite restaurant

Finding and using deals gives local businesses, well, business. It gives you a break from the kitchen. You can try out new locales you might not have thought of going to OR where you’ve always wanted to go to. You might hear additional specials along the way that do not require a coupon or voucher. You might find that most restaurants now feature a Pre-Fixe menu on certain days of the week to strum up hungry tummies.

My only tip is that you read the fine print, ALWAYS before purchasing. While you can find a CRAZY deal on you favorite restaurants, there is ALWAYS the fine print. Some restaurants restrict what night it can be used, what time of day it can be used, specials and location restrictions, number of minimum guests, minimum amount to be used, and gratuity automatically added. The point is you can go out for a night on the town without breaking the bank, with some planning before hand.

Where do you look for deals on eating out?

Until then,

*I find that restaurant.com saves the most once you catch their discount code deals (acquired from their facebook page) overall.