Crowdtap & Old Navy

I love free stuff.  You too?  I thought so.  Thanks to my friends at Crowdtap and Old Navy, I was able to get some free stuff today!

If you haven't heard of Crowdtap, their mission is to "shift marketing to a fully collaborative and participatory process between brands and consumers."  Crowdtap achieves this by an interactive website - survey questions, web tasks, moderated discussions, and sometimes even sample shares.  For each action you participate in, you earn points which can eventually be used to purchase gift cards or donate to charity.  Just like in Swagbucks, I typically use my points to purchase Amazon gift cards.

I was lucky enough to be chosen for an Old Navy ActiveWear sample share!  I received coupons for one friend and myself - we were each able to pick out an ActiveWear top & bottom, totally FREE.  Old Navy ranks right up there on my list of favorite stores... FREE is good, but at a great store = even better.  Super exciting and maybe, just maybe, this will even give me a little motivation to be active.... currently my treadmill is serving more as a storage area than an exercise machine.

I picked out a pair of ActiveWear capris and a fleece jacket.  I'm loving both - the fleece jacket is a little longer than usual and almost has a peacoat-look.  My daughter was a little disappointed - there was a pink sports bra hanging right at her eye level that she thought would be perfect.  (She's 3 and anything pink is perfect).

(That's my blur of a 3 year old in front of me)

I also bought my first ever pair of skinny jeans at Old Navy today.  I have always been intimidated by skinny jeans, mainly because I don't really feel skinny.  But my friend convinced me to try a pair on, and actually....I liked them!  We'll see if I'm brave enough to wear them out of the house.

Thanks for a fun day, Crowdtap and Old Navy!

Coupon Chief Review

I was recently contacted and asked to review an online coupon source (we're talking coupon codes for online shopping here, not manufacturer's coupons for groceries), Coupon Chief.  I was intrigued, because you know how I love my coupons!!!  I'm also a big fan of shopping online when I can.....I love being able to find what I want and have it shipped directly to my door, all while in my comfy sweatpants sitting in front of my fireplace!  The only downside?  Sometimes it's harder to find the great deals online.  And ohhh, the disappointment when you find what you think is a great deal, and then when you have to add shipping & handling, it ends up being not-so-great!

Enter Coupon Chief!  It is one of the fastest growing coupon sites, with over 250,000 visitors each month.  Their database currently has over 50,000 coupons for over 15,000 stores!

I decided to do a little trial run and tell you about my experience.  Here's some points worth noting:

• Easy to navigate!  The homepage is visually appealing and includes sections for featured stores, popular coupons, and new coupons.  There is also a clickable search to browse by popular tag (computers, electronics, etc).  
• The Search Bar:  Front and center, easy to find, right at the top of the homepage.  You can search for a particular store (Target.com), or for a product (laptop).
• Updated ~ the coupons listed are coded in green (working!), yellow (uknown), or red (not working), so you don't have to waste your time finding deals that may end up in disappointment.  It even shares the success rate percentage!
• Printables too!  There are some printable coupons available for in-store shopping.
• New to online shopping & coupon codes?  There is a How It Works page that even includes a video tutorial!

Now granted, there are other coupon sites.  Some of them I've used before, and typically I've had some level of success.  Want to know what I think puts Coupon Chief ahead of the game?  (Besides all the great stuff I've already mentioned?)  The Pays-To-Share program!  Basically, you sign up for an account, upload coupons, and if someone uses your coupon, you get 2% of the sales!  Sweet!  I don't think anybody's going to get rich from uploading coupons, but it could definitely add to a great deal.

So there you have it, folks!  Add Coupon Chief to your bookmarks, and the next time you are doing some online shopping, check it out....you may score a great deal!  (Or at least pay for that pesky shipping & handling fee!)

Disclaimer:  I was compensated for this review, but all opinions are my own!

Mossy Rock Designs Spotlight & Giveaway!!

If you've been here much at all, you know we are adopting, and you know I have a passion for adoption.  So much of me wishes I had a big ol' pile of money just sitting around ~ to not only pay for our own adoption, but to help others do the same!  (In my head, my pile of money is much like Scrooge McDuck's and I like to open the door and dive into the gold coins and swim.....anybody else remember DuckTales?!)  Anyhoo....one way I can support others in their adoption journey is bring them some awareness, so from time to time, I'll be featuring an adoptive family and their fundraising adventures!  And guess what?  The first one is today, and it includes a GIVEAWAY!!!

Our first spotlight is (drumroll, please....) Katie Bradley of Mossy Rock Designs!!

Katie is a stay at home momma of two boys, a wife, daughter, and friend.  She and her family are in the process of adopting their daughter from Ethiopia.  Her passion is creating watercolor and ink nursery art, and she has also recently illustrated two children's books (one is Miss Bunny, Mrs Mouse and Me)!  Seriously, this girl has TALENT!!  Lucky for us, she has an etsy shop, and 100% of her profits go towards bringing her daughter home.

Would you like to see some of the items from her shop?  I thought so!

Hair Time

Baby Bear

Boy with a Sparkler

Meeting my Momma

and my personal favorites...

I Love Ethiopia

Small and Large Hand

Beautiful, right?  Let's get on to the giveaway!  Katie has offered up any 5x7 print from her shop to the winner!  And we're giving you lots of chances to win!!  (Please leave one comment for EACH entry!)

MANDATORY:  Visit Mossy Rock Designs, come back and tell me what your favorite item is.

EXTRA ENTRIES (again, please leave a comment for each one you qualify for!):
* "Like" Mossy Rock Design's Facebook Page.
* Become a follower of Katie's art blog (and show her some comment love!)
* Become a follower of this blog, The Cellar Door Stories, via GFC.
* "Like" The Cellar Door Stories' Facebook page.
* Make a purchase from Mossy Rock Designs!  (This one is worth 2 entries, so leave 2 comments!)


This giveaway will end October 7, and the winner will be chosen by Random.org.

Good Luck!