my etsy endeavors & a couple sales

So since my husband has been laid off for the past 9 1/2 months, I decided to start not one but TWO little businesses on Etsy! It's great! And I really enjoy it!

First: Amber Black Designs

On Amber Black Designs I sell custom cupcake toppers, sticker labels, party favor tags, etc. All of them are personalized with your info on them! Super fun! If you're interested in anything, I'd love to give you 25% off your purchase! Just put a note when you purchase that you're there from To Save A Penny and I'll give you the 25% off!








And second: Sweet Funky Love

On Sweet Funky Love I design and sell headbands, barrettes and accessories! Having four girls now, headbands and barrettes are a necessity! Again, if you're interested I'd love to offer a discount! If you buy 2, you'll get 1 FREE! Just purchase your two and leave a note telling me which one you'd like for free and that you're there from To Save A Penny!

30% off old navy--online only--2 days

Today and tomorrow only, take 30% off at www.oldnavy.com by using the code SAVEBIG. Also, spend $100 or more and get free shipping!

chili's: free chips & queso appetizer!

Yum! Chili's, oh Chili's, how I love thee!

Sign up for the Chili's email club and you'll get special offers in your email plus a coupon for a free Chips & Queso appetizer! YUM!

claim jumper--.77 cent dessert, today only

This is a fantastic deal! Get ANY dessert at Claim Jumper for only .77 cents, today only. They're celebrating being open for 33 years (1977)! What a great way to celebrate! This offer is only good for dine-in, one per table, per visit, per check! You need to become a fan of them on Facebook and then print out the above flier and take it in to get your almost free dessert.

Happy Eating! Oh and I HIGHLY recommend the I Declair. It's a MOUNTAIN of chocolate and ice cream and whipped cream goodness!

a roller coaster of craziness

So what's been going on the last few months? Well, besides the obvious of having, ahem, twins...we've been quite busy!

Just about every huge life change has happened to us. And we're living testimony that you survive trials in life!

In December of 2009, my husband got laid off from his job. Yeah. Stress. Two-ish months before the twins were going to be born. That's a pretty fantastic time to lose your insurance. Ha. Not!

It actually turned out to be a blessing in disguise though. Since the hubsters was unemployed AND I was pregnant, that meant I was automatically qualified for Medicaid, which meant NO FINANCIAL WORRIES for the remainder of the pregnancy AND delivery. One word--

BLESSING!

I was super scared about how much it was going to cost to have twins, especially if they needed any NICU time (which Ainsley did--for a week). How in the world were we going to afford that?! Well, God worked that one out for us. He took Jason's job!

Then, since we were unemployed (meaning zero income) we also had to foreclose on our condo. We tried a short sale. But the insurance company decided they'd only approve it if we gave them $10,000. Yeah. Um, psst, we're unemployed!!! Oh well. We tried. So now the SIX of us have moved from our dinky 970 sq foot, 2-bedroom condo into a much bigger, much roomier, much lovelier house that our dear friends are renting to us. Again, blessing in disguise (or not so disguised!).

As far as the work front goes...still nothing. We live in one of the worst (if not THE worst) cities for unemployment. There just isn't anything. So now we're looking nationwide for something. Anything.

And that's where we're at. I've started a little business on Etsy (that I'll tell you about later), that helps bridge the gap between unemployment benefits and bills that need to be paid. We've had to swallow our pride time and again in applying for assistance. But what're you gonna do with four kids and no income? It's where a lot of people in our country are at. It's tough.

So I guess To Save A Penny will be a chronicle of our survival!

BACK!

I know. 8 months.

That's how long it's been since I last posted. Phew!

So why has it been 8 months? Well...because these little beauties graced our lives 6 months ago...


On March 6th, 2010, we welcomed Ashley Jade and Ainsley Joy into our lives! It's been a bit of a whirlwind since then but we're so thankful for them! Here they are now, 6 months later:



Pretty cute, right?

Well, I'm back now to some penny saving love! The last nine months have been pretty crazy, so I'll fill you in on the details soon!

I'd love to hear who's still here, shoot me a comment or an email and let me know!

free coffee at the coffee bean

Yay for you if you live in CA, AZ, TX or HI! If you do, then your local The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf is the place to be today (Thurs, Jan. 14th)! Between 4 and 7 pm they are giving away a free 12 oz heritage drink. This includes either a Cafe mocha, a Sunrise Ice Blended or Berry'd Treasure Ice Blended drink! YUM! Go here to find a location near you!

old navy clearance--75% off

Right now at Old Navy they have a bunch of clearance that is up to 75% off. That means there's a bunch of stuff for only a few bucks! If you use your Old Navy or Gap card you also get free shipping! Sweet! PLUS, shop through ebates and get an additional 2% back! Go here to check out the sales!

making the most of the time

With a new year comes new goals...right?

Yeah, not so much.

Usually.

This year though I've made some really simple goals. I would have made them at a different time of the year, but it just so happens that they come at the beginning of a new year. Perfect!

My hubby and I (and our two girls) have been blessed with a really fantastic church that faithfully preaches the Word of God at every opportunity! We are in a place where we are growing so much from week to week, and we are so thankful! We are being challenged in our spiritual lives and so a couple of my new goals have sprung from that. Here they are:

1. My hubby and I have committed to studying the books of 1 and 2 Peter together. To help us in our study we bought a study guide that we're working through together.

2. To go along with studying 1 and 2 Peter, I have committed to memorizing both books by the middle of the year. Broken down, that is roughly 6 verses a week. For me, memorization comes fairly easily so this isn't too daunting of a challenge for me. As a child, I participated in a program called AWANA, where I memorized Scripture every week. Most of the verses I know now are from that time. I also started to memorize the book of Ephesians a few years ago and got part way through chapter two...it's amazing how much of that I still remember, years later. I am SUPER excited for this goal! This week is 1 Peter 1:1-5--and I'm well on my way!

Those are the main two goals that I've made this year. I have some other goals floating around in the back of my mind that I'll share later.

I'd love to hear what your goals are for this year? Maybe I'll even steal a few of them!

papa john's: b1g1 free pizza deal

If you're planning on ordering some pizza in the near future (like, before 1/13/10!), you may want to order from Papa John's! Here's the deal: buy one large or x-large pizza at regular menu price and get a second pizza of equal or greater value FREE! Just use the code DH0110 when you order online to get the deal!

Go here to order online!