Sunday, November 27, 2011

New Goal: Saving Money

In general I am a thrifty person- I pride myself on my ability to find great deals on things.  I never pay full price!  But, that doesn't mean I still don't spend.  I just tend to get more for my money.  I've decided that I need to try to curb that spending for the next couple of weeks in preparation for the holidays!  I know I will be going out more, buying gifts etc, so my goal is to save as much money as possible and or make some extra cash.

Here is my plan:

1.  Keep posting on my blog- as when people visit and check out the ads I make a small commission.

2.  Collect all my spare change and cash it in to coinstar for Amazon.com gift cards or something similar.

3.  Sort through my clothing and sell things I don't wear that are in good condition to either Clothes Mentor (Plato's Closet for adults) or consign them.  - Please let me know of any good consignment shops in the area.

4.  Use coupons, shop for groceries, and avoid the fast food places.

5.  Avoid going to the mall.

6.  Use ebates.com when shopping online so that I can earn cash back on everything I spend! Seriously, I was dubious at first but all you have to do is sign up and use their site as a portal to all the normal places you shop online (Old Navy, Shutterfly, Macy's, Groupon etc) and they give you a percentage back in the form of a check every 3 months.  My first check from them was less than 10 dollars, but I don't do a lot of online shopping.  I do have plans to order some gifts from Shutterfly though so Ca-Ching, it will be a little more money in my pocket.

What are your best money saving/making tips? Oh- and help me out- visit one of the ads!

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Dear Santa 2011

As I've been surfing the interwebs I keep seeing things I want, so I figured it's time to write my letter to Santa.

Dear Santa,

I have been a very good girl this year and I'm hoping you can get me a few things:

1.  Scrabble: Alphabet Scoop

2.  Wreck This Journal by Keri Smith







What are you eyeing this Christmas?

Monday, November 14, 2011

A Challenge Update #1-2

I know I'm late, but here are the first two weeks of my shirt challenge.  I have not included the weekends because frankly, it's a lot harder to get pictures of.  I might just take pictures of the tops on hangers instead of on my body.  

Week 1- Tuesday thru Friday





Week 2- Monday thru Friday




I'm really enjoying this project so far... it might be a little more of a struggle at the conference later this week but we shall see!

Sunday, November 6, 2011

Restaurant Review: B-Spot (Crocker Park)

Last night my date Mike took me to B-spot at Crocker Park.  This is the third full-fledged location of Michael Symon's burger spot.  For those of you not in the know, Michael Symon is Cleveland's resident Iron Chef!  We got to the restaurant a little after nine following a movie and were seated immediately.  The place was filled, but not over-crowded.  Our waiter was very prompt and though it took us a few minutes to decide on what we wanted to eat our food came in less than 10 minutes after we ordered.

Mike ordered the Shroomage which had portabella mushrooms, blue cheese, Lola steak sauce, and griddled onions on it.  At one point he commented that the blue cheese was rather strong but that certainly didn't stop him from eating the entire burger.  I ordered the Thin Lizzy which comes with griddled onions, cheddar, mayo, and pickles.  Again, due to my dairy issues I asked for no cheddar.  The waiter offered to add something on instead so I asked for lettuce and tomato.  My burger was cooked a perfect medium, just as I asked.  It was very juicy and tastey- albeit a bit on the messy side.  We also shared an order of Lola Fries which were thin cut fries with rosemary and salt.  I liked them a lot.   Mike and I both ordered Pepsi but it should be noted they have some delicious sounding cocktails and offer what they call "bad a**" milkshakes that can be made "adult" by adding different liquors.  Last night was definitely one of the times I really missed being able to have dairy.

The ambiance was great.  The place was casual but not too casual.  Stainless steel, wood, and a few spots of color were all part of the decor.  On our table, and I believe all of the tables was a full roll of paper towels (ingenious if you ask me) and a basket of condiments.  There was a young fun feel that made me feel right at home.  Oh, and their prices are very reasonable!  The cheapest burgers go for $6 and the most expensive burger is $11.

I would definitely recommend B-Spot to anyone.  It'd be a great place to grab a bite with friends, or like we did, on a date.  Enjoy!


Via www.bspotburgers.com

Here's the info for all of their locations:

Crocker Park- 20 Main Street- Westlake, OH 44145


Eton- 28699 Chagrin Boulevard- Woodmere, OH 44122

Strongsville- 18066 Royalon Road- Strongsville, OH 44146

The "Q"- Downtown Cleveland (Only open during Cavs games)
B Spot Burgers on Urbanspoon



Wednesday, November 2, 2011

A Challenge

As I was frantically cleaning my apartment the other day in anticipation of a realtor visiting I realized something... I have a ton of clothes.  Yet, I tend to wear the same 10 tops or so over and over again.  So starting yesterday (November 1st) I am seeing how long I can go without re wearing the same top.  I'm having a coworker take a picture of me each day so that I can document the process.  I plan on lasting at least the month- but I may be able to go even further.  I'm going to do my best to not buy any new tops during this experiment as well... though I may bend that rule when I attend a conference in Chicago that is just a mile away from all the Michigan Ave shopping.

Stay tuned, on Fridays I will post my outfits from the work week.  On Sundays I will post my weekend outfits.