Living Social: Eye Exam + $100 toward Glasses for only $50!

If you're in need of an updated eye exam or some new glasses, you might want to take advantage of this deal on Living Social: $50 for an Eye Exam + $100 toward Glasses at Slatten Eye Care in Norman!  That's less than the cost of just an eye exam at most places, let alone the $100 toward glasses.  Since my husband is well overdue for an eye exam, this is exciting for us!

Here's what to do:
1. Head here and register or sign-in at Living Social.
2. Click the "Buy now!" button and complete your purchase details.
3. Find your voucher in your account within 24 hours.  You can simply print the voucher and take it with you when you go in for your exam (though you'll need to schedule an appointment first!)
4. If you share the deal with three friends who also purchase, yours is FREE!!!

Fine Print:
Limit two per purchaser; up to one additional as gift • Limit one per person per visit • Appointments are required and subject to availability • Merchant cancellation/re-scheduling policy of 24 hours applies; voucher subject to forfeiture • Not valid for contact lenses • Not valid with insurance • Entire value must be used in a single visit •Other conditions apply • PAID VALUE EXPIRES ON March 16, 2017 • PROMOTIONAL VALUE EXPIRES ON September 18, 2012

Living Social: Coupon Book with GREAT Homeland coupons!

Today's Living Social deal for Oklahoma City is $12 for an Enjoy the City Coupon Book for Oklahoma City.  If you notice, the entire first page is filled with coupons for $5 off any purchase of $50 or more at Homeland.  There are twelve of these coupons and all are good through December 2012!!!  So that right there is $60 in your pocket!  There's also a great page of BOGO Sonic coupons.  Even if you don't use any of the rest of the book, I would say $12 is well worth both of those pages of coupons!

Here's what to do:
1. Visit Living Social and sign-in or register.
2. Choose Oklahoma City as your city.
3. Click the blue button that says, "Buy Now"
4. You will be able to find your voucher in "my account" starting tomorrow.
5. When your voucher is available, you will redeem your voucher on-line to have the coupon book shipped to your door!

Living Social: Two Movie Tickets for $9!

UPDATE: This deal is STILL available - through today, 6/10!

If you like to go to the movies, but hate planning around the cheaper showtimes, today's Living Social deal is the deal for you!  You can get two movie tickets through fandango.com for only $9!  Woohoo for cheap date night!

Here's what to do:
1. Head here and register or sign-in at Living Social.
2. Click the "Buy now!" button and complete your purchase details.
3. Find your fandango deal in your account within 24 hours.  You can use the coupon code when checking out at fandango.com - this also applies to the normal service fee, so no worries there!
4. If you share the deal with three friends who also purchase, yours is FREE!!!

The fine print:
Limit 1 purchase per customer only • Promo Codes are valid only for Internet purchases made at www.fandango.com and are not redeemable at theater box office, via Fandango’s telephone or mobile services or through any other website operated by third-party merchants
 
• Cannot be combined with any other offer or promotion
 • Not valid on IMAX or 3D showings
 • Limited to tickets with maximum face value (including Fandango’s convenience fee of up to $2 per ticket) of $15 • Both tickets must be purchased for the same movie and show time in a single transaction • Promotional value of Promo Codes expire September 9, 2011. Paid value of Promo Codes expires on September 9, 2016, except where prohibited by law. • Promo Codes have no cash value unless required by law, and will not be replaced if lost or stolen, and are not for resale or commercial use
 • If a movie ticket (with Fandango’s convenience fee included) is more than the $15 maximum Promo Code value, the user must pay the difference with a valid credit or debit card

Vacations on a Budget

My husband and I recently returned from a mini-vacation to Branson.  Though our trip wasn't free, it was considerably less expensive than it could have been.  I thought I would share a couple of tips for taking a vacation on a budget.  Keep in mind I am no expert, so if you have any tips of your own, feel free to share!

Daily Deals - Because I knew we would be visiting Branson a few times this year (thanks to a season pass to Silver Dollar City we received for Christmas), I subscribed to the Springfield (near Branson) version of Groupon, just in case any deals came up for hotels, shows or restaurants nearby.  And it worked!  Only four days before our trip, a Groupon came up for The Legend of Kung Fu, a show in Branson I had wanted to take my husband to from the moment I first heard about it last year.  Because of the Groupon (and a $10 credit I had), we paid only $26 for two tickets for the show - which typically sell at $38 each! 
I also currently subscribe to the Groupon and Living Social sites for Los Angeles (where we plan to visit this summer) and St. Louis (where my parents live, so we visit frequently).

Booking Travel - Similarly, I subscribe to Southwest Airlines e-newsletter, so I can keep my eyes open for sales.  As mentioned, I know we'll be visiting L.A., but we have yet to book a flight, so I'm keeping my eyes peeled for a good sale.  There are also sites, like Travelocity, Expedia and HotWire which help you find the best deals on flights anywhere.

Accommodations - I typically refer first to hotels.com when booking accommodations.  For our Branson trip, I found a one bedroom suite with a full kitchen, fireplace, and balcony overlooking the lake for less than $90/night through hotels.com.  Any of the aforementioned travel sites also offer hotel bookings.  And the daily deals sites occasionally offer deals on hotels.  Another option, if you're looking for high class lodging at middle-class pricing, are some weekly "flash deal" sites.  Some I subscribe to are Living Social Escapes (after you sign up, you can see the "Escapes" tab on the left side of the page) and Snique Away.  The catch on these is that the deals are only offered for a week, you have to book your stay (for specific dates) at the time of purchase and these are typically non-refundable, so you need to know for sure when you intend to travel. 
Before I book anything, though, I always check TripAdvisor to read reviews on the lodging of choice, because you never can tell.  Reading honest reviews from other travelers is my best insight to what I'm looking at and seeing what the hotel won't tell me.  Is it in a bad location?  Not in the best condition?  Are the staff friendly and accommodating? 

Always go through E-Bates! - When I booked for our Branson trip, I visited E-Bates and used their link to visit hotels.com in order to earn 3.5% cash back on our hotel stay.  I also went to E-Bates before purchasing the Groupon for our Branson show, earning me 2% cash back on that purchase.

These are my favorite ways to vacation on a budget.  What are some of yours?

Living Social: $9 for Two Movie Tickets

Today's Daily Deal at Living Social (at least for the St. Louis area, so look there if you can't find it in your city**) is $9 for two movie tickets through Fandango - meaning they can be used anywhere!  The value of the movie tickets is up to $15 - so you can use these tickets at any time  - what a deal!  Interested?  Head here!

*Must be used before June 6, 2011.

**To find deals in a different city, click on "More Deals" in the left sidebar.  You can then scroll down to find St. Louis (or Tulsa, even, for this deal).

Living Social: $25 for $50 of Shoes

Today, Living Social is offering as their St. Louis deal $50 worth of shoes from shoebacca.com for only $25.  If you sign up through my referral link, you'll get $5 off your first order from Living Social - making this deal only $20.  This voucher is valid on sale items and includes FREE Shipping!  This could potentially equal two pairs of designer shoes (like the cuties above) for $20 - that's just $10 each!  Or, if you're willing to get spendy, these beauts are just $42 (which, of course, is under your $50 limit).

 Are you drooling?  Because I am!  So, go here to buy!

*EXPIRED* $10 for a $20 Amazon.com Gift Card!

HURRY!  Today's National Deal at another daily deal website, Living Social, is a $20 Amazon.com Gift Card for only $10!!!  This will sell out quickly, I'm sure, so hurry here to snag yours!

Fine Print: Limit 1 per person, no gifting allowed • Amazon.com Gift Card does not expire • Voucher purchase is valid for US-based customers only • LivingSocial Terms and Conditions apply • The Amazon.com terms and conditions set forth below are deal specific terms that supersede any inconsistent terms in the LivingSocial terms and conditions. • Amazon Gift Card cannot be purchased with Deal Bucks.

Living Social: $25 for $50 of Shoes

Today's Living Social (a website very similar to Groupon) deal for Oklahoma City is $25 for $50 worth of shoes from Shoebacca.com.  This includes free shipping!  If you're in the market for shoes, you may be able to get even two pairs out of this deal by shopping their "sale" items.  I would be sure to check out the site to be sure there's $50 worth of shoes you'd want if you got the voucher.  This could be a great way to get quality, stylish shoes on the cheap!  To take advantage of the deal, go here!