NOW CLOSED: Nestlé Back to School Basics $500 Giveaway
by Briana Carter on August 10, 2009
Summer is almost over for many of us and school has started or will be starting shortly. For my family, school starts this week and we are always looking for ways to save money and time during this hectic period. I’m happy to announce in partnership with Nestlé, I’m bringing you some money saving and time saving tips using some of my favorite Nestlé products.
Let’s start with lunch.
As the price for school lunches increase each year, you can save money by packing a your child’s lunch a couple of days of the week. Skip the prepackaged lunches and create your own healthy alternative. NestleFamily.com has many fun lunch ideas such as Sports Time Lunch Fun to get your creative juices going.
We don’t pack a lunch everyday but we try to do it 1-2 times a week during the school year. During the summer is actually when we make lunches for day camp on a daily basis. To save time, I like to buy a combination of prepackaged items for convenience as well as buy in bulk and make my own smaller packages.
For example, I will buy Juicy Juice in individual packages for those quick mornings when we are scrambling to pack a quick lunch – which is most mornings. For those days when I have actually planned their lunch, I will pack their juice in a sports bottle to save money as it is less expensive to buy Juice in a larger package than the convenient individual size juices.
Lunch for Two - PB&J, Cut Strawberries, Cheese (2% Milk), and Juicy Juice
To the right is a typical lunch, which feeds both of my school aged children. This particular meal was packed during Summer Day Camp so for convenience I packed some of their items together for them to share. The big bottle of Juicy Juice was not packed but shown as an example for what is in the sports bottle.
- Get the best deal on lunch box items by combining sales and coupons. Stock up when they are at their lowest price. Stack with Mail in Rebates and other store loyalty programs.
- Skip prepackaged chips, cookies, and other snacks unless convenience dictates otherwise. Buy larger packages and use snack size containers or bags to make your own small portions.
- Use reusable containers and utensils for lunch storage whenever possible.
- Freeze your child’s beverage to act as a freezer pack to save space in the lunchbox.
- Sneak a fun treat like Raisinets in your child’s lunch for a fun surprise!
My absolute best investment for lunch making, was the Cut n Seal from Pampered Chef. This allows me to make our own crust free sandwiches. The kid’s favorite is peanut butter with jelly but you can use this tool to make any type of sandwich. It makes it a little more fun for the little ones and you can freeze these and use as needed! Stock up on bread when at a low price and make a batch of these to save time and money.
To save time, I like to go ahead and make up enough sandwiches and “sides” for the week. Then the kids can pick and choose which items they want for the day, which allows them a little control over their lunches. Items not needing refrigerated such as crackers, chips, snack cookies can be pre-bagged by you for your own convenience.
So in addition to these money/time saving tips, Nestlé is offering a $500 Walmart Gift Card to (1) lucky Bargain Briana reader to help with your Back to School Expenses. Plus, stay tuned for more Back to School money saving/time saving tips!
How to Win?
Easy Entry: Share your favorite Back to School Money Saving Tip by leaving it on this post as a comment.
Bonus entries (Up to 4 additional entries):
- Blog about this giveaway.
- Tweet: BTS Money/Time Saving Tips from @bargainbriana + Enter to Win $500 Walmart Giftcard: http://tinyurl.com/mmsdqe #nestleBTS
- Grab my button. (It is on my sidebar)
- Subscribe to my free newsletter via email or RSS. (You don’t want to miss out on any deals/giveaways!!!)
- Use my “Tell a Friend” Widget to share with a friend via email, Stumble, Digg, etc.
Leave a separate comment for each extra entry. It is very important that you leave a separate comment for each additional extra entry.
Ends around 8/28 at 11:59 EST. (As long as you can still comment you can enter!) Winner, chosen by random.org, will be announced on the Giveaway Winners Page by 08/29/09 and I will contact you shortly. (If winner doesn’t respond to my email within 48 hours, I will pick another winner.)
Want to win more? Enter to win the rest of my current giveaways!
Bargain Briana Giveaway Disclosure: This is a sponsored giveaway by Nestle. All reviews/recommendations are based on my own honest opinion and experiences and not edited or written by the sponsor.
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Watching all the blogs to see where all the best deals are for school supplies. I check bargain briana everyday for cool tips and great deals. While shopping in stores I always get asked where i found all the coupons and deal info. I always send them to Briana’s web site. Bargainbriana.com is an easy url to remember.
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After school starts and Target and other stores put backpacks and lunchboxes on clearance, I always pick up a few extras at 75% off. We’ve had a few years when the strap on the backpack broke mid year or the lunchbox was forgotten on the bus. These back-ups have saved a ton of money.
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I blogged your giveaway
http://luvtosave.blogspot.com/2009/08/nestle-back-to-school-basics-500.html
Our local Wonder Bread outlet store has snack cakes, bread and buns at highly discounted prices. I stock up on the bread and freeze it so I always have some on hand for the emergency lunch. One of my kids can’t stand the salisbury steak!
Try to buy at least 1 extra of the school supplies. When spiral notebooks are on sale for .05 I bought 10 of them – the price of what they are normally. We don’t need them now, but between school and ‘scrap’ paper, it’s saving in the long run.
I guess my best money saving tip would be making large batches of cookies and freezing them and taking out a few everyday for lunches. It really saves money and the kids adore a little homemade with their day:) Thanks for a chance at such a great giveaway!
I used your widget to “tell a friend!”
I like to keep my kids aware of what the plans are for the day. A little post it note inside their lunch reminds them of any sports practice that night, any change in plans and who will pick them up from school.
My best tip is to buy back-to-school clothes in the off-season. I got most of my daughter’s back-to-school wardrobe at the end of last winter and am now getting out the rubbermaid tubs full of clothes. I snagged Levis for $4.97 on clearance back in March and have tons of long sleeved shirts to mix and match with them, all at a fraction of the cost that I would be paying if I were to buy them now. Now I’m stocking up on summer clothes for next year. Also, now is a great time to stock up on socks and underwear.
i am a former teacher, and my favorite back to school tip is: feed your children breakfast!! it really does make a difference for the school day!
you are in my reader.
My tip is to only pack what your kid will eat and stock up on lunch items when they are on sale.
Do you know that Nestles imports atleast 50% of the apples to make juice from CHINA. Also most products are not make inUSA. Do we want our food made in other countries with lower health standards? This is really scary to me.
My first comment had an error message…Hope this one goes through.
I save money buy stocking up on some fall items at the end of winter when they’re on clearance.
What a great giveaway!
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I like to stock up when school supplies are cheapest for the whole year, plus I buy more for their classroom. This year I am waiting until until lunch boxes go on sale and then my kids can have a new one, until then they are using their old ones from last year.
Pick up kids’ clothes at the end of the seasons when they go on clearance, even if they are larger than your child’s current size. Avoid super trendy stuff or character- or movie-themed items that would date them. Go for the basics: jeans, tees, polos, shorts, etc., to form the bones of each season’s wardrobe. I keep new clothes divided by size and season in my son’s closet, and clothes currently being worn in his drawers, so when he needs something in a larger size, I just have to check the closet. The most important point is knowing how much items cost so that you can recognize good deals.