All posts by Alicia

Best Buy Ultra HD TV In Store Events

Ultra HD TV Featured At In-Store Events At Best Buy Saturdays Through November 1st

For those of you who love watching TV and movies and always want to have the latest and greatest technology, you’ll want to plan a visit to Best Buy any Saturday from August 9 – November 1.   Experts from LG, Samsung and Sony will be there to tell you all about the Ultra HD TV technology and show you how much more amazing your favorite TV shows, movies, and even the photographs you take, will look on these amazing TVs.

 

Best Buy Ultra HD TV in store eventsBest Buy brings you the best 4K Ultra HD TVs.

4K Ultra HD TV’s offer stunning resolution with four times the picture resolution of full HD 1080p.  The increased pixel allows you to sit very close for a fully immersive experience and imagine how the increased resolution will make your photographs look when you mirror or transfer them to your 4K Ultra HD TV!  Besides looking amazing, 4K Ultra HD TV’s feel breathtakingly lifelike with an amazing level of detail.

4K Ultra HD improves the quality of all current movie & TV shows to gorgeous nearly 4k Ultra HD quality offering consumers a better picture for everything, not just new shows created specifically for 4K Ultra HD.

Sony has introduced a 4K Ultra HD Media Player that comes loaded with free 4K content, plus, you can download more than 200 4k films.  Find out more about it at Bestbuy.Com/SonyExperience.

Best Buy Ultra HD TV In Store Events

Visit a store near you to on any Saturday from 11am-3pm August 9th through November 1st, to experience and learn about Ultra HD TV.  Don’t forget to enter for a chance to win your own 55” Ultra HD TV (includes installation & Geek Squad Protection) while you’re at Best Buy!

Go to www.bestbuy/4kuhdevents for more information.

50 select stores across the US will have exciting giveaways from Sony & LG including tickets and cord keepers while supplies last.

Disclosure: The reviewer has been compensated in the form of a Best Buy Gift Card and/or received the product/service at a reduced price or for free

Polkaduck.com 30% off coupon code 2014

Exclusive Coupon Code: 30% Off Laptop Carrying Padded Messenger Sleeve!

Polkaduck.com 30% off coupon code 2014

Kids are increasingly required to take a laptop or tablet to school which can be a nerve wracking situation for parents.    While most backpacks have a padded section for a laptop or tablet I don’t feel confident that my son’s MacBook would survive being stored in a backpack.

Do you remember how much stuff you carelessly crammed into your backpack when you were in high school?  I shoved binders, spiral notebooks, textbooks, pens and pencils into my backpack without considering for even a second what else was in my backpack and what I could damage.  Putting a laptop or tablet in a backpack could be an iffy situation.

I learned about an online store today called Polkaduck.com that sells laptop sleeves, phone cases, and other accessories for devices.  When I saw their 13″ carrying padded messenger sleeve my first thought was that it is really cool because it has an adjustable shoulder strap then I thought that would be great for high school and college students who inevitably cram stuff into their backpack which is really not safe for a laptop or tablet.

This 13″ laptop sleeve has a large pocket with velcro on the front and two pockets on the back.  Your teenager won’t (probably won’t) lose their mouse or charging cord if they use a laptop sleeve like this one!   I absolutely love that it has a shoulder strap.  Did I mention that already?  I get excited about little things like shoulder straps.  🙂  Laptop sleeves like this one are lightweight and this one is water-resistant and durable.  Even better.. it’s just about $19!

BUT, you will get 30% off the 13″ padded carrying sleeve when you use coupon code INSIDERMBP13 through September 30, 2014!

This laptop sleeve is also available in these colors:

laptop carrying padded messenger sleeve with shoulder strap

Stay tuned to The Mommy Insider for a giveaway of (5) 13″ Laptop Carrying Padded Messenger Sleeves from Polkaduck.com!

If you can’t wait for the giveaway, you can buy one of these super laptop sleeves on Polkaduck.com here.

 

Walmart.com Shopping App

Download the Walmart App to Save Time & Money on Everyday Household Shopping! + Win a $25 Walmart Gift Card!

Walmart app

I’ve been doing most of my household shopping online for the past few years.  I buy everything from paper towels and schools supplies to cleaners and pet supplies online.  I usually go to a store’s website on my laptop and often use a store’s app on my Android phone or iPhone to catch up on shopping while sitting outside or in the carpool line.  I use an app because for some reason I feel guilty if I shop online during work hours even though I work from home.  It’s when I sneak outside to get some fresh air (aka away from the kids) that I launch a shopping app and order the things we need that I don’t want to go to the store for.

If you like shopping from the comfort of your home as much as I do, you’ll love Walmart’s shopping app!  Walmart has a smartphone app for Android and iOS and it just might be my new best friend.  By shopping for household items on Walmart.com or by using the Walmart smartphone app, you are giving yourself the option to shop wherever and whenever you want – at your own convenience. 

Walmart iOS App
Walmart ios app

 

Convenience and Low Prices

I’ll be honest, I am not a fan of going to big stores to shop.  I’d rather pay a little extra and have stuff delivered to my house – than sit in traffic, take the kids, wander around the store aimlessly looking for stuff, and then wait in line to check-out.   Some things that I buy online 80%+ of the time are paper towels, toilet paper, detergents, cleaning supplies, pet supplies, office supplies, staple clothing for the kids like socks, and beauty supplies.   It’s well known that Walmart almost always has the best price on everything, so why not take advantage of the low prices and not have to go into the store?!  It’s a win/win!

Walmart.com Shopping App

Walmart.com offers the great variety and savings on everyday low prices that you’ve come to love at your local Walmart, especially on your favorite P&G products.  We have P&G products in almost every room of our house and you probably do too.  A few P&G products we use every that are available at Walmart.com at low prices are Tide 2x Ultra For High Efficiency Machines Liquid Laundry DetergentBounty Select-A-Size Paper Towels, and Charmin Ultra Soft Toilet Paper Mega Rolls. When you select an item in the Walmart app you will see the item’s price, ratings and reviews for the item, store availability, an ‘add to cart’ button, ‘save for later’ button, product description, and related products.

Walmart Android app
Walmart android app

 

About the Walmart App

Always visible at the top of the app in Android is the search function, share function, and your cart so you can see how many items you’ve added to your cart.  Always visible in the iPhone app is a ‘List’ button, ‘Store’ button, and your shopping cart.  Searching for products is not quite as easy in the iPhone app as it is in the Android app. Once you finish selecting items and putting them in your cart, simply click the shopping cart icon to check out.

You can choose to have your purchases delivered to your Walmart store for free delivery or shipped to your house free with orders over $50.  If easy, at-home shopping and low prices isn’t enough to convince you to download the free Walmart app, the app recognizes when you’re in a Walmart store and provides easy access to the weekly ad, store information, new items, Rollbacks and more.

By using the Walmart smartphone app, you can easily build a shopping list by scanning all the products you’re ready to purchase again.   This is great for things like my son’s body wash which he is really picky about and if I don’t get the right thing he’ll all but refuse to use it.  I can just scan it and know I am adding the right product to my shopping list!  

The Walmart app is free to download and will save you time and money on your favorite household products including P&G products!

We are giving a lucky reader a $25 Walmart gift card!

Enter using the form below.  Entries accepted through August 18th, 2014.  Winner will be contacted by August 20th. Entrants must reside in the U.S. and be 18 years or older.

 

Back to school organizing and tips

15 Back-To-School Pins That’ll Save You Time, Money, and Sanity!

My kids go back to school August 4th and while I feel more prepared for the start of the school year than I have in the past, I still feel like we’re going to have to rush to the store this weekend to grab a few things and Monday morning will be hectic.  I would like to say that both kids will have their outfits picked out for the first week of school by Sunday, a lunchbox menu will be posted on the refrigerator, and the kids will be excited to do their homework after school.    I’m joking about that last one.   That couldn’t possibly happen.  😉

My online search for back-to-school organization and preparation ideas led me to Pinterest time and time again today.   While I get some of the most interesting ideas from Pinterest I hadn’t considered going to Pinterest to get back-to-school ideas.  Silly me!

Pinterest is a great place to get back to school money saving tips, outfit ideas, and homework station ideas.  Who’d have thought?

Some of my favorite back to school tips and other back to school related content you will find on my Back-To-School Pinterest board are:

  1. Back to School Routines for Kids & Mom
  2. DIY Homework Caddy
  3. 25 Things to sew for back to school
  4. Back To School Organizing: 5 Easy Steps To Packing School Lunches
  5. Back to School Savings Tips and Sale Information
  6. Back to school command center ideas
  7. Kids closet clothing tags for back to school outfits
  8. Crayon bin color labels printable
  9. First day of school photo – printable by grade
  10. School day routine printables
  11. Back To School: Get Organized with an Easy School Planning Wall!
  12. Back to SCHOOL: DIY Dry Erase Clip Board
  13. DIY Back to School Station
  14. Back to school survival kit
  15. Back to school homework station

Follow The Mommy Insider’s board Back to school on Pinterest.

If you don’t have a Pinterest account, you should probably get one.. today!  It’s free to sign up for a Pinterest account and you can think of Pinterest as your virtual bulletin board.  I look at my Pinterest boards as the bulletin boards I’d like to have on my office and kitchen walls to inspire me, but don’t want the clutter on the walls.  You can pin an image from just about any website and once you pin an image, you can go back to it anytime via your Pinterest page.

Happy pinning!

Schoola used children's clothing

Save A School’s Music Program While Saving Money on Used, Brand-Name Back To School Clothes at Schoola

Schoola - used brand-name back to school clothes Schoola Twitter page
How you can help:

1) Shop on Schoola. For every transaction that is tracked via my unique referral code, Schoola will donate $1 to the school you selected to support.

2) Request a Schoola donation bag.  For every person who requests a Schoola donation bag via my unique referral code, Schoola will donate $1 to the KIPP Academy. PLUS – when you donate the clothes and fill out your child’s school information, $2 of every $5 made will go back to KIPP Academy, a win/win for KIPP Academy AND for your child’s school!

My son didn’t show an interest in music until he tried out for middle school band.  He was trying out to play drums but ended up being assigned the trumpet.  While he wasn’t thrilled about his band director’s choice of instrument for him, it took just a few weeks for him to warm up to the trumpet and since starting middle school he has absolutely blown me away when he plays the trumpet.  It’s been so great to watch him gain confidence and be proud of himself because of the progress he’s made and the amazing performances his class put on three times a year give me chills.

Sadly, there are many schools that don’t get funding for art and music programs so the students don’t get to experience the pride and joy of creating beautiful music and performing what they’ve worked so hard to learn and accomplish, in front of hundreds of proud parents.

Band concert

Schoola children's clothing shopSchoola, an online shop dedicated to recycling brand-name children’s clothes, with 40% of the proceeds going to schools in need, including your child’s school, gives parents like you and I the ability to give schools that aren’t normally provided enough funding for art and music programs, the funding they need to create a program that their students will benefit from in amazing ways for years to come.   What parent doesn’t want to save money on brand-name clothes for their kids and help a school develop and maintain a music or arts program at the same time?

I can’t believe how quickly my kids grow, especially my daughter.  Do girls really grow faster than boys?  It seems like every two months I have to buy her an entire wardrobe because she’s outgrown the old one.  Schoola gives kids the opportunity to wear brand-name clothes for much less than what you’d normally pay.  That is great, but this opportunity is about more than being able to buy slightly worn brand-name clothing for my kids for way less than what I’d pay at the store; it’s also about having the opportunity to teach my kids that giving back to those in need is so important.

Shopping is something we all do.

Our kids all need clothes.

Feel good about how your purchase will help kids at KIPP Academy and other schools by shopping at Schoola!

Watch the video below to learn about KIPP Academy and how Schoola is going to help them fund a music program:

How YOU can help KIPP Academy raise funding for a music program:

1) Shop on Schoola. For every transaction that is tracked via my unique referral code, Schoola will donate $1 to the school you selected to support.

2) Request a Schoola donation bag.  For every person who requests a Schoola donation bag via my unique referral code, Schoola will donate $1 to the KIPP Academy. PLUS – when you donate the clothes and fill out your child’s school information, $2 of every $5 made will go back to KIPP Academy, a win/win for KIPP Academy and for your child’s school!

Schoola used children's clothing

About KIPP Academy and their fundraising goal

KIPP Academy’s goal is to raise $25,000 to fund a music program.

A small school in the Bronx, KIPP Academy works hard to support kids who need all the help they can get. Ninety-five percent of its students qualify for free or reduced-cost lunch. More than one in seven receives special education services. Music helps KIPP Academy reach and engage every child who enters its doors. The slogan on the Music Room wall sets the stage—All of Us Will Learn Music.  No matter what backgrounds they come from or what challenges they face, they learn lessons together that will serve them the rest of their lives.

The 20 Days of Schoola starts July 28th and ends August 16th, 2014, so head over to Schoola and request a donation bag and/or shop for clothes for your child to help raise money for KIPP Academy’s music program and your child’s school!

 

This post is brought to you by Schoola, the best place to buy discounted kids clothes all while give back to schools in need. Click here to learn more about Schoola. Click here to see what people are saying.