I know many of you hate this time of year because you despise doing your taxes. I would bet there are quite a few of you who wait until the last minute, freak out and then pay extra to a CPA to get them done at the last possible second. Or maybe even file and extension.

Well, end the stress this year with Turbo Tax! The Home & Business edition guides you step-by-step through your 1040 and even offers a Schedule C for small business owners. And while the thought of extra forms may sound daunting, Turbo Tax makes the process easy.

Save money this year and do your taxes yourself. Pick up Turbo Tax at your local Office Depot store and get started this weekend. You’ll be so glad you did. Plus you can electronically file and you will receive your refund in your checking account in 2-3 weeks. You can spend it (or save it!) before all those procrastinators even get started!

Turbo Tax and Office Depot want to help you with your taxes. One lucky Saving with Shellie reader will win Turbo Tax Home & Business 2012.

Ready to win? There are three methods of entry:

:: Required

1. Leave a comment letting me know what you did for your taxes last year. Did you do them yourself? Pay someone else? Did you get a refund or have to pay?

:: Optional for Extra Entries

2. Subscribe to Saving with Shellie via RSS feeds or email. If you already subscribe, leave a second separate entry saying you do so.

3. “Like” Saving with Shellie on Facebook. Leave a third separate entry saying you are a fan.

This giveaway will end Tuesday (2/7) at 11:59pm CST and I’ll announce the winner on Wednesday (2/8).

Good Luck!

Disclosure: This giveaway was sponsored by Turbo Tax and Office Depot. Office Depot will provide the Turbo Tax software for giveaway purposes. This post was not reviewed or edited by Turbo Tax or Office Depot. The thoughts and opinions are completely mine.

Have you “liked” Saving with Shellie on Facebook yet? If not, you’ll want to do so because I share lots of time sensitive deals on the SWS page and other great deals. Earlier today we had an Amazon gift card giveaway. So there’s lots of perks for Facebook fans.

And one of the best perks just went live this afternoon! I’ve partnered with some other great bloggers to bring you a chance to win a 40″ LCD Television. Just in time for the Super Bowl! If you’d like to enter to win, just head over to Facebook and “like” the seven participating blogs and complete the form.

Good luck!

$700 Cash Bash

Welcome to our $700 Cash Bash! We’ve teamed up with 13 awesome bloggers to give away $700 Cash! Three winners will win big. All prizes will be paid via PayPal.

1st Place $400 Cash
2nd Place $200 Cash
3rd Place $100 Cash

Enter To Win

Entering to win is quick and easy! Just “like” the sponsors Facebook Pages below and fill out the short entry form! That’s it!

This giveaway ends February 1st at 5pm PST/ 8pm EST.

Good Luck!

Black Friday and Cyber Monday are just around the corner and I know many of you are hunting for deals online this year. Skip the crowds and take advantage of free shipping and other discount coupon codes. You’ll find the same prices and likely get an even better deal.

If you’re looking for coupon codes, I encourage you to checkout CouponCabin.com. They work directly with merchant partners to provide exclusive online codes that you won’t find anywhere else. They also scour emails, forums and merchant sites to provide the most comprehensive amount of online coupon codes. They also hand test the codes so you know before you shop that what you’re seeing is legit.

That means you’ll save even more when you use a coupon code from CouponCabin.com. In fact, the average user saves $19 and CouponCabin.com has saved it’s users almost $22 million in the past 90 days! You’ll find coupons for all your favorite stores like Nordstrom, Toys R Us, JCPenney and Victoria’s Secret. And while coupon codes are their primary focus, you’ll also find printable retail coupons if you prefer to shop in-store.

At CouponCabin.com you’ll find more than 2500 exclusive coupons that you won’t find anywhere else. Plus with almost 4,000 stores and more than 100,000 available offers you are sure to find a code for everything on your Holiday Shopping List this year.

Coupon Cabin wants you to check them out and to kick start your holiday shopping they’ve generously provided one lucky Saving with Shellie reader with a $50 Amazon Gift Card.

Ready to win? There are three methods of entry:

:: Required

1. Leave a comment letting me know how you save during the Holidays. I try to shop during the fall so all my expenses aren’t in one month. I do shop with coupon codes anytime I can and very rarely pay full-price for gifts.

:: Optional for Extra Entries

2. Subscribe to Saving with Shellie via RSS feeds or email. If you already subscribe, leave a second separate entry saying you do so.

3. “Like” Saving with Shellie on Facebook. Leave a third separate entry saying you are a fan.

This giveaway will end Tuesday (11/22) at 11:59pm CST and I’ll announce the winner on Wednesday (11/23).

Good Luck!

Disclosure: This is a sponsored post and giveaway courtesy of Coupon Cabin. Coupon Cabin provided the gift card for giveaway purposes. This post was not reviewed or edited by Coupon Cabin. The thoughts and opinions are completely mine. Others may have a different experience.

THIS GIVEAWAY IS CLOSED.

Winner: Yvette P.
Comment: WOULD LOVE TO WIN THIS FOR MY LIL MAN!!!!! I LOVE MY COUPONS AND FREEBIES!! ))

Educational electronics are a hot commodity during the holidays. They are a win-win for parents and kids alike. Kids love the fun factor while parents love the learning aspects. One of the leaders in this industry is VTech Toys. They make educational learning toys for babies, toddlers, preschool and grade school aged kids. Their popular VTech V.Reader is aimed at kids aged three to seven, brings reading to life with animation, sounds and a color touch screen.

VTech recently contacted me about testing out their V.Reader. Well, Baby J doesn’t talk and still prefers to throw things on the floor so I let my good friend Melissa try it out on her two girls age 2 and 4. Here’s what she had to say about it:

The VTech V.Reader is an e-reading system designed for 3-7 year-olds and aids in teaching phonics, math, and science and also has interactive art and music applications. Book cartridges can be purchased or books can be downloaded to the reader and the V.Reader reads the story and highlights the words. You can even push a button for help defining words – something my daughters found especially fun.

Since our V.Reader arrived, my four- and two-year-old girls have been using it non-stop. Their favorite activity to do with the V.Reader is the art application. They naturally love to draw, so being able to choose and change colors, make pictures, and save and show them off to everyone was a big draw. My four-year-old also really enjoyed practicing tracing her letters. Since we are preparing for a family vacation, this gem came at just the right time.

My husband and I were not as happy with the V.Reader at first. The set-up was a bit cumbersome even for my techie husband. We also were disappointed to find that the V.Reader didn’t come with an SD card or batteries, delaying when we could have it ready for our girls to use. The stylus pen is also not attached, meaning that it was lost approximately 20 minutes after the girls began using it; thankfully, the touch screen works with their fingers as well.

However, after persevering through these small issues, we really are enjoying the V.Reader as well as the entertainment and learning opportunities it is bringing our children. We are especially looking forward to bringing it on the plane and the many long car trips we take. We would highly recommend it as a good Christmas gift for any preschooler.

A few extra notes…The V.Reader not only utilizes physical cartridges, but you can download content off of VTech’s Learning Lodge Navigator. The Learning Lodge Navigator is filled with fun, educational games for the V.Reader and other educational learning products. VTech recently announced the addition of four new Sesame Streets titles available on the Learning Lodge Navigator, such as “S is for School!” and “Counting All Around.”

To kick start your holidays VTech has generously offered to give one lucky Saving with Shellie reader a new VTech V.Reader!

Ready to win? There are three methods of entry:

:: Required

1. Leave a comment letting me know how you get your kids excited about learning.

:: Optional for Extra Entries

2. Subscribe to Saving with Shellie via RSS feeds or email. If you already subscribe, leave a second separate entry saying you do so.

3. “Like” Saving with Shellie on Facebook. Leave a third separate entry saying you are a fan.

This giveaway will end Tuesday (11/8) at 11:59pm CST and I’ll announce the winner on Wednesday (11/9).

Good Luck!

Disclosure: This giveaway was sponsored by VTech. VTech provided V.Readers for review and giveaway purposes. This post was not reviewed or edited by VTech. The thoughts and opinions are completely mine and my guest reviewer Melissa. Others may have a different experience.

THIS GIVEAWAY IS CLOSED.

Winner: Lee
Comment: I agree with u the Calypso Mango sound really good, I like anything mango.

Here in the South we drink iced tea like water. It healthy. Refreshing on a hot summer day. And always served at parties and barbecues. If you are an iced tea lover, I encourage you to check out Mighty Leaf Iced Teas. The eco-friendly pouches contain hand-blended, whole leaf teas and brew half-gallon pitchers.

I had the chance to try Mighty Leaf Tea at a conference back in August. I tried the Calypso Mango Iced Tea and it was yummy! It’s a black tea so does contain caffeine which meant I couldn’t drink as much as I would have liked. If I weren’t pregnant I probably could have downed the whole pitcher. My husband got that luxury instead.

They have several other new yummy varieties too:

• Ginger Peach Iced Tea (My husband’s favorite)
• Organic Black Iced Tea
• Calypso Mango Iced Tea (My favorite)
• Sunburst Green Iced Tea

The flavors I mentioned above are just their newest varieties. They have tons of other varieties too like Earl Gray, Mint and Chamomile. Even Organic and Decaf options.

Mighty Leaf Tea would love for you to try their iced tea. They are currently offering a 15% discount on teas ordered from the Mighty Leaf website with coupon code summertea15. If you would prefer to shop in-store you can find them at Whole Foods, HEB, Safeway, Kroger, World Market and other grocery stores.

Mighty Leaf Tea will also provide one lucky Saving with Shellie reader a Mighty Leaf Tea Brewing Kit. It comes with one box of each of their tea varieties as well as a Bodum Iced Tea Pitcher which makes fresh iced tea in minutes.

Ready to win? There are three methods of entry:

:: Required

1. Leave a comment letting me know what Mighty Leaf flavor you’d most like to try.

:: Optional for Extra Entries

2. Subscribe to Saving with Shellie via RSS feeds or email. If you already subscribe, leave a second separate entry saying you do so.

3. “Like” Saving with Shellie on Facebook. Leave a third separate entry saying you are a fan.

This giveaway will end Tuesday (11/1) at 11:59pm CST and I’ll announce the winner on Wednesday (11/2).

Good Luck!

Disclosure: This giveaway was sponsored by Mighty Leaf Tea. Mighty Leaf Tea will provide the Brewing Kit for giveaway purposes. This post was not reviewed or edited by Mighty Leaf Tea. The thoughts and opinions are completely mine. I received an iced tea sampler in exchange for this review.

THIS GIVEAWAY IS CLOSED.

Winner: Liz
Comment: I love my mother-in law because she always makes lasagna and cheesecake, my husband’s favorite, every time she visits.

Yes, I know it’s Monday and I usually have giveaways on Fridays but you may have noticed I wasn’t around much this weekend. We moved. It was stressful. It was long. It’s finally over. Well, except for the unpacking. I thought I’d celebrate with a giveaway!

Thankfully, I didn’t have to worry about Baby J. My sweet mother-in-law watched him so we could get things done. However, I know not all of you have a mother-in-law as sweet as mine. If not, you might want to check out the new TV series that premieres tonight (10/24) at 10pm ET on Lifetime called Monster In-Laws. Here’s the synopsis:

Monster In-Laws” features real-life married couples as they reveal their relatable in-law problems. Sometimes funny and sometimes not, each episode follows the family as one spouse is trapped between the person they married and a member of their immediate family, desperate to put an end to the battles that are tearing them apart. Seasoned relationship experts bring the family under one roof and force them to face their issues so they can reach common ground and mend their broken relationships.

In honor of this new series, Lifetime is providing one lucky Saving with Shellie reader with a nice spa gift pack that includes a $50 gift card to the Body Shop, a gel Facial Mask and bath salts and bubbles.

Ready to win? There are three methods of entry:

:: Required

1. Leave a comment letting me know what you love or hate most about your in-laws. I love that my mother-in-law is retired and only lives 20 minutes away. I can drop off Baby J anytime I need a break or have a doctor appointment.

:: Optional for Extra Entries

2. Subscribe to Saving with Shellie via RSS feeds or email. If you already subscribe, leave a second separate entry saying you do so.

3. “Like” Saving with Shellie on Facebook. Leave a third separate entry saying you are a fan.

This giveaway will end Monday (10/31) at 11:59pm CST and I’ll announce the winner on Tuesday (11/1).

Don’t forget that today only (10/24) you can also grab a $40 Body Shop voucher for just $20.

Good Luck!

Disclosure: This giveaway was sponsored by Lifetime. Lifetime will provide the Spa Prize Pack for giveaway purposes. This post was not reviewed or edited by Lifetime. The thoughts and opinions are completely mine. I was not compensated for this post.

THIS GIVEAWAY IS CLOSED.

Winner #1: Jessie C.
Comment: Subscribe to Saving with Shellie

How many times have you asked someone if you have something in your teeth? Help make your mouth feel clean and ready for the day with the new line of Crest Complete products. Plus, you have a chance to be featured on the Crest Facebook Page!

To be featured on the Crest Facebook Page, here’s what to do:

• Include a story in your Crest Complete post about how oral hygiene has affected your life
• Think funny – how you walked around with a green speck on your tooth all day and no one said anything
• Think awkward – how you interviewed for a potential job and the HR person had bad onion bagel breath
• Think empowering – tell us how feeling confident about your smile got you ahead
• Five of the most creative posts will be announced and linked on the Crest Facebook page

Crest gave me the opportunity to try out their new Crest Complete products and I have to say I’m a fan. Pairing the Crest Complete Toothpaste with Scope and the Oral-B Complete Action power toothbrush made my mouth feel so fresh and clean, like I just came from the dentist.

Crest wants you to have a fresh, clean mouth so they are offering a Crest Complete Prize Pack to one lucky Saving with Shellie reader.

Ready to win? There are three methods of entry:

:: Required

1. Leave a comment letting me know who you think has the most beautiful smile. Maybe your mom, maybe a celeb…who’s smile do you love to see. I would say Baby J but he has minimal teeth so I don’t think it counts. But I will say one of my dear friends just lights up a room with her smile. But since she reads SWS, I won’t embarrass her and share her name.

:: Optional for Extra Entries

2. Subscribe to Saving with Shellie via RSS feeds or email. If you already subscribe, leave a second separate entry saying you do so.

3. “Like” Saving with Shellie on Facebook. Leave a third separate entry saying you are a fan.

This giveaway will end Tuesday (10/25) at 11:59pm CST and I’ll announce the winner on Wednesday (10/26).

Good Luck!

Disclosure: This post was sponsored by Crest and P&G. I was given a Crest Prize Pack for review and giveaway purposes. This post was not reviewed or edited by Crest or P&G. The thoughts and opinions are completely mine. Others may have a different experience.

THIS GIVEAWAY IS CLOSED.

Winner #1: Cassie
Comment: email subscriber!

Winner #2: Michelle
Comment: pumpkin spiced latte

Yesterday I asked Saving with Shellie Facebook readers what their favorite fall treat was. Quite a few of you said Pumpkin Spice Lattes and the Salted Caramel Drinks at Starbucks. So I thought I’d treat you to your favorite treats! Two lucky Saving with Shellie readers will win a $10 Starbucks gift card.

Ready to win? There are three methods of entry:

:: Required

1. Leave a comment letting me know what is your favorite thing about fall.

:: Optional for Extra Entries

2. Subscribe to Saving with Shellie via RSS feeds or email. If you already subscribe, leave a second separate entry saying you do so. Plus, I might have posted a clue for all you Facebook fans!

3. “Like” Saving with Shellie on Facebook. If you’re already a fan, leave a third separate entry saying you do so. And I’d love for you to chime in on today’s post telling me about the best deal you got this week!

This giveaway will end Tuesday (10/18) at 11:59pm CST and I’ll announce the winner on Wednesday (10/19).

Good Luck!

Are you a Randalls or Tom Thumb Shopper? These two Safeway affiliates in Texas have rolled out a big Gas Reward Points promotion here in Texas. It’s a great way to save on gas. You can earn points by purchasing groceries ($1 = 1 point) and having prescriptions filled too (1 prescription = 50 points)

Every 100 points gets you $.10 off per gallon for a single fill-up at a Safeway gas station. You can use your points in increments of 100 and use up to 1000 points for a single fill-up. And 1000 points adds up to $1 off per gallon! That means big savings at the pump.

However, now through October 29 you can earn 4x Gas Reward Points when you purchase qualifying gift cards. For every $1 you spend, you’ll earn four points. You can buy gift cards and use them to quickly earn Gas Reward Points. That means $125 in gift card purchases earns you $.50 off at the pump!

Do you have a home improvement project planned? Buy some Lowe’s gift cards on your next Randalls or Tom Thumb visit. If you buy a $100 Lowe’s gift card, that means 400 points or $.40 off per gallon. Then just use the Lowe’s gift card instead of cash when you buy your project supplies.

Do you use iTunes as a reward for your teens? Buy a few iTunes gift cards on your next Randalls or Tom Thumb visit. A 3-pack of $10 cards ($30) will get you 120 points. That’s $.10 off per gallon.

The possibilities are endless. For regular purchases you make, check to see if Randalls/Tom Thumb offers a gift card to that store. You’ll get gas rewards and still be able to shop at your favorite locations at the same time.

Safeway wants you to watch your Gas Rewards Points add up. They will send one lucky Saving with Shellie reader a $50 Safeway Gift Card to use toward the purchase of qualifying gift cards.

Ready to win? There are three methods of entry:

:: Required

1. Leave a comment letting me know how you save on gas. I try to consolidate all my errand running into one area so I’m not driving all over town.

:: Optional for Extra Entries

2. Subscribe to Saving with Shellie via RSS feeds or email. If you already subscribe, leave a second separate entry saying you do so.

3. “Like” Saving with Shellie on Facebook. Leave a third separate entry saying you are a fan.

This giveaway will end Tuesday (10/11) at 11:59pm CST and I’ll announce the winner on Wednesday (10/12).

NOTE: The 4x Gas Reward Points Promo is only running in Texas! If you are a Safeway shopper outside of Texas you are welcome to enter the giveaway for a shot at the $50 Safeway gift card. However, you won’t receive 4x Gas Points if you use it to purchase gift cards.

Good Luck!

Disclosure: This post was sponsored by Safeway. I was given a $50 gift card for review and giveaway purposes. This post was not reviewed or edited by Safeway. The thoughts and opinions are completely mine. Others may have a different experience.