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Pay with your Phone with Isis Wallet #MC

June 17, 2014 by

MomCentral Isis Campaign

Being a Verizon customer comes with lots of perks; great service , wide coverage and useful apps. Isis Wallet is one of these useful apps. It’s an app that makes shopping easier at some of your favorite retail locations.

I can run my daily errands with just my car keys, phone and sunglasses in my hand and leave the purse in the car. In a 3 mile radius I can fuel up my car, grocery shop for the week, pick up prescriptions, take the dogs to their check-up, stock up on Rob’s favorite beer, Summer Shandy and pick up a gallon of locally made artisan ice cream.

That’s just in my little college town area. Imagine the shopping opportunities available in a larger market.

Starting up the Isis Wallet is simple. First confirm your carrier and phone is compatible.Pick your Carrier, Isis Wallet

Download the Isis Wallet app. If you receive a message that you require an enhanced SIM card to store and protect your sensitive payment information your carrier will provide this card free of charge in an authorized store.Isis Wallet linking up other cards

Add your debit card, credit card or bank account or your American Express®, Chase®, or Wells Fargo® credit card info and receive the same perks and benefits as a cardholder without actually holding the card. OterAdd loyalty and bonus cards from select merchants and find offers like free Jamba Juice or $1 back on purchases made from your American Express Serve Account.

Now you shop. Using the app you’ll find local retailers that accept Isis Wallet. Wave the back of your phone on the “contactless symbol” when instructed by the cashier and your payment will be made. Isis Mobile Wallet is accepted at hundreds of thousands of locations across the country including McDonald’s, Jamba Juice, Macy’s, Toys’R’Us, Coca-Cola vending machines, etc. To check out locations near you: https://www.paywithisis.com/where.html. That number grows making this app a great tool to have on hand.

If you sign up for the American Express Serve prepaid card you will receive an initial $25 balance to put towards your purchases.Isis Wallet American Express Serve

Our smartphone are already so smart Isis Mobile Wallet is just the next natural step in making our lives easier and more streamlined. What’s next? Driver’s license on our phone? Stay connected with Isis Wallet on their Facebook Page.




Tackling the To-Do List with Ingo Money

January 24, 2014 by

2014 disclosureEach morning my routine starts with getting the kids up, dressed, fed and out the door in time to catch the bus. Each morning they ask why I can’t drive them to school. Each morning we have the same conversation.

There is a perfectly working bus on its way. Why would I waste my gas and time to drive you myself.

What I really want to say is hurry up and get on the bus so I can get my work done.  My to-do list is never ending. I really should have 4 of them going at the same time, personal, household, blogger and work.Tackling the To-Do List

I tackle my convoluted to do list by priority. Those priorities can change each day though. Some days the house is going to stay a mess while I have errands to run and bills to pay.  Some days the blog is going to be lonely because I have to take some time for me and work out or visit with friends. In the end my time and tasks are balanced out.

Using management tools and apps are key to staying organized each day at home and on the run. Keeping finances on track is imperative to running a smooth household. Having a high school senior is costing us a few extra dollars here and there. Senior dues, cap and gown and college application fees are just the beginning of what we are spending money on this year. It’s surprising how quickly some of these expenses are due so instead of making our daughter wait on us to write a check or withdraw money we think providing her with a prepaid card might be the simplest way to go.

Ingo Money is a mobile app that lets you load funds from checks to a participating Prepaid card.   Once you’ve enrolled a participating Prepaid card, just take a picture of your check with your smartphone to send to Ingo Money. To learn more about Ingo Money, please visit: http://ingomoney.com

Right now Ingo Money is hosting an instant win game on Facebook . Every day from 1/15 – 2/11, you’ll have the chance to win one of four $20 e-gift cards just by answering what you’d be doing and where you’d be with all the time you’d save using the Ingo Money app. Additionally, every time you play the game or someone plays through your share link from the game, you’ll receive a sweepstakes entry for a chance to win the grand prize of $500 towards the smartphone of your choice.

Ingo money Money in Minutes instant win game

How do you tackle your to-do list each day?




Trying the 52 Week Money Challenge

January 7, 2013 by

For the last week I saw this image floating around Facebook and blogs. I looked at it but I didn’t pay much attention to it. I understood that you had to set aside money but thought it was daily and knew that would’ve been impossible.
52 week money challengeHere is a downloadable/printable version from my frugal friend Lisa Lightner from her Easy Savings post.

On Friday I took an extra moment to REALLY read about it and figured this was something we could definitely do. Right now finances are tough but we can definitely gather the $1, $2, $3 and $4 to put away. The 52 Week Money Challenge is a simple way to force yourself to save money each week. Will it make you rich? NO! But at the end of the year you’ll have a nice chunk of money to go towards a vacation, room makeover, new car, tuition or whatever you want.

Rob and I instantly gathered up the change in my wallet and an archaic container to hold each weeks deposit. The crafty mama in me cringes as I look at it but I knew if I didn’t put that money away instantly we’d quickly lose interest and forget.

So I superglued a Chinese Wonton Soup container closed, cut a slit in the top and with a Sharpie wrote down the weeks that have been deposited. I have $6 in my wallet so it all went in. I also wrote down 1, 2, 3 so we’d know where we were during the process.
saving money, 52 week money challenge
Right now adding a couple bucks doesn’t seem hard but when it comes to October-December, close to the holidays it will get harder. We’ll find excuses not to put money in it but we have to be determined to get to $1378. The system can be switched to start with $52 deposit this week working your way to $1. Right now I don’t have those funds so we’re gonna do it this way.

Don’t think that you HAVE to physically add dollar bills to a piggy bank. You can set up  new savings account through your bank and arrange direct deposit so that it can be done online.  I thought it would benefit us if we could actually SEE the money being stashed away, like an encouragement.  It it works against us then we will be moving it to a financial institution.

Crossing our fingers!




Get $25 from PASS from American Express

February 26, 2011 by

She’s spending more time with friends shopping, eating, hanging out on Main Street. She’s got her phone, her iPod and now her own PASS Card from American ExpressSM. All she needs is her license and car and she won’t need Mommy and Daddy anymore; that is until she runs out of money on her PASS Card.

The PASS Card is PREPAID reloadable “credit” card. It’s safer than cash, convenient to monitor, easy to add funds and risk-free of overdraft. The program is geared to teens and young adults as a way to teach financial responsibility. We can send our kids to the mall or movies with a little peace of mind that they will only spend a certain dollar amount. This can teach them how to balance shopping for the things they need versus they things they want, shopping on price rather than just fashion and how to track how much money is spent on things like their half caf grande soy vanilla chai skinny latte no foam habit.

What I like best about this program is the no-chance-of-losing-the-money-I-just-handed-you concept. Sabreena is a great student, super sweet, responsible, caring and smart. That being said she’s sometimes a bit scatter-brained. This lets me hand her the card and know it’s safe if she drops it, leaves it in another pair jeans or worse, leaves it at a store. If the PASS is lost or stolen the cardholder isn’t responsible for fraudulent charges AND AMEX will replace the funds.

Find out for yourself the convenience and ease of the PASS card by signing up for yourself. If you do before April 25th you’ll receive and an additional FREE $25 by using code SS25 when you order a $25 card. Start your kids off on the right financial foot. Start talking budgets, limits and responsibility with them today so they make smart decisions in the future.

This is a sponsored post courtesy of SheSpeaks but the opinions and descriptions presented belong solely to LookWhatMomFound…and Dad too! Your experiences and reactions may differ from ours.




Couponing isn’t for everyone

December 30, 2010 by

Last night I watched TLC’s Extreme Couponing. I was fascinated and intrigued. I love listening to stories of how people save obsene amounts of money with coupons and sales and matching and doubling and all the other tricks. What I can’t grasp is how people have 6 hours a day to stroll through a grocery store. I barely have enough time in a day to cook, clean and keep the kids safe I don’t know how I could squeeze in hours of couponing. Oh I know, I could stop blogging 🙂 and reading the internet.

Honestly I’ve tried couponing in the past but on a smaller scale but I find that there aren’t coupons and sales available for the things that we buy. We don’t drink soda or juice boxes. We don’t eat a lot of processed or ready to eat foods. And we really just don’t have the space for all the bulk shopping. We do shop healthier than most of the people I watched on this show so I’m not sure how our lifestyle would benefit. I don’t find coupons for fresh produce and fresh meats. Maybe I’m not looking; I’m sure I don’t know where to look actually.
What I really want to save money on is dishwasher detergent, laundry detergent, feminine products (hate paying for this stuff), trash bags, toothpaste and deodorant. We spends tons of money on these things and I’d love to start here! Someone wanna train me in couponing? Point me in the right direction!




Feeding Penny Pig, a lesson for saving money

March 13, 2010 by

I like to think I’m raising a bunch of book lovers. I’m also hoping I’m raising them to make smart choices. For the most part Shaun knows money is earned. He doesn’t fully grasp the value of things but he knows his money gets saved rather than spent. Feeding Penny Pig is a new book we’ve been introduced to that helps children learn some basics about money, earning allowance, doing chores and responsibility.

Penny Pig is a very special piggy bank that is given to a young girl, Laney by her grandmother. The piggy bank was a gift to not only teach a lesson about saving money but also taking care of her new friend. Feeding Penny Pig offers a unique view into a child’s piggy bank saving while making it logical but still child-friendly.

Author JEANNINE FOX, or “Mimi” as her granddaughters call her, is a Certified Financial Planner® and Certified Public Accountant. She has been practicing financial planning in the Houston area since 1981. Fox is the branch manager of The Planning Team in Houston and a branch manager and investment advisor representative of NEXT Financial Group, Inc. She has a Bachelor of Science degree in business from the University of Alabama and an MBA with concentrations in finance and accounting from the University of Houston. Fox has also been a featured guest on a variety of radio and television shows, and a contributor for The Money Paper, Southwest Airline’s Spirit magazine, Financial Planner magazine, Senior Spirit and USA Today. She currently lives in Magnolia, Texas, where she enjoys spending time with her family.

Feeding Penny Pig is a great read with a solid lesson, perfect for children aged 5-8. Shae enjoyed listening to the story and looking at the illustrations but the message was perfect for Shaun’s age.
Feeding Penny Pig can be purchased on Amazon.com.

This is a sponsored post but the opinions and descriptions presented belong solely to LookWhatMomFound…and Dad too! Your experiences and reactions may differ from ours.




What would you do if you won the LOTTERY?

August 25, 2009 by

Honestly, what would you do if you won a MULTI MILLION DOLLAR LOTTERY? Would you continue to work? Would you buy fancy cars and a HUGE house with a cleaning staff? Would you give money to your family and friends? Would you invest? Would you start-up that business you always dreamed about? Would you further your own education?

Rob and I always have different ideas about what we would do. His thoughts are to immediately go to a Ferrari or Lamborghini dealership and purchase the car of his dreams while I want to pay off ALL debt then buy a bigger house closer to our family. Don’t get me wrong I do want a BIGGER house, 6 bedrooms, pool, home theater, big garage and a weekly maid but I want these things in the area that we are from, I want to be close to our family and friends again. I’m not trying to move to our own island in the South Pacific.


I would definitely stop working and I’m sure Rob would too. We’ve always wanted to own a bar so I’m sure that would be something we invested in. Charity is a definite too but there are so many good causes out there it’s really hard to say what are more important over others. More volunteering would be a great way to make a difference without being financially burdened to help everyone.

We have to be first though. Our children’s educations would be handled, the girls wedding money would be set aside, they would be taken care of until they were adults.

The first call we would make was to a financial planner. Our futures need to be first on our minds rather than the money burning a hole in our pockets.
Of course we would have to PLAY the lottery to even win and we never ever play.