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Family budgets seem tighter than ever and I know us mom’s are doing all we can do to make sure that our families pull through with their needs meet and even a want now and then. I also know moms are notorious for suppressing our needs for “sanity treats”.
Sanity treats are those little indulgences that can pull you out of a grumpy mood and add a bit of sparkle to not only your day but to those around you who benefit from your uplifted mood.
For me my sanity treat is a hot or iced tall caramel macchiato made with nonfat milk. Sometimes this enjoyed with a friend, sometimes alone in the store with the laptop keeping me company, and other days I get it thru drive thru on my way to hitting the grocery stores.
Your “sanity treat” might not be coffee perhaps it is stealing away with a good book, or listening to a few great tunes, whatever it is what if I told you that in just 2 minutes a day you could make $10 each and every month to support you sanity.
How 2 minutes a day could buy you sanity
1. Swagbucks
Swagbucks is a search engine that randomly gives you points with every search. In addition to entering all my searches through their search engine I also do the “daily poll” and “NOSO” which earns me an additional 3 points a day. Entering my searches into Swagbucks doesn’t take me any time I would not have spent and doing the two extras takes me just 40 seconds a day (I timed it).
2. Bing Rewards
Bing rewards is also a search engine but their rewards program pays you for just your first 30 searches of each and every day (1 point for every 2 searches up to 15 points a day) . The most effective way I have found to manage Bing Rewards is to do my 30 searches all at once. I pick a topic and then hit the “related searches” in the side bar counting the entire time until I make 30 searches. I then check my dashboard to do the bonus pnt for the day. Sometimes Bing Rewards has double point days or extra points for additional actions so I make sure to look for these too. It takes just 1 minute and 20 seconds a day to make my Bing points for the day ( I timed it)
Each and every month I earn a $5 Starbucks e-card from Swagbucks and a $5 Starbucks e-card from Bing Rewards giving me $10 a month to spend at Starbucks.
Remember you don’t have to spend your points on Starbucks cards both companies also offer Amazon cards. At Swagbucks the $5 Amazon card is 50 points less than the $5 Starbucks card meaning you could earn more than $10 a month over the course of the year.
Perhaps you love curling up on the couch after the kids are in bed with a great chick flick, Bing rewards offers free movie codes for Redbox for just 75 points.
Do you love roaming the aisle of Barnes & Noble and picking up a good book Swagbucks offers $5 e-cards for 500 pnts.
Are you a Target dollar spot and clearance shopper? Swagbucks has $5 e-cards for 500 points for Target as well that can help you get your sanity deal high (make sure you spend it on something for you and not the kids, bubble bath? chocolate?)
Whatever your favorite “sanity treat is I bet you could find away to pay for it with these two point programs.
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I see alot about Swagbucks but never really knew how it all worked
I love Swagbucks though I’ve only used mine for Amazon purchases. Using them occasionally for Starbucks would be a great idea. I just wish we had a drive-through one near us.
Thanks for sharing this tip at Fabulously Frugal Thursday! I know what my next little indulgence will be. 🙂
I absolutely love swagbucks and bing! My husband and I both have an account for each. We use mine for amazon gift cards (that we save for Christmas shopping) or walmart cards to use for grocery shopping. My husband’s accounts are the “fun” money. We use his for starbucks, barnes & noble, or restaurant splurges.