Southern Belle in Training

Fashion, Travel & Lifestyle Blog || Est. 2012 || Virginia Beach, VA

December 23, 2015

Midweek Ramblings + Recent Purchases.





{Follow me on Instagram and Snapchat @miss_alk!}




Ramblings:

  • Credit Card Decisions: Something on my Winter Break to-do list was to start applications for my first credit card- and I'm feeling a little overwhelmed! First, I have to say that I am thankful for the fact that one of my parents' rules with me has always been to let financial things come in "steps." Unlike some of my friends, they never let me open a debit card in high school, and said that was a privilege to come when I was living on my own in college. Similarly with a credit card, they said that I had college to manage using a debit card wisely, and could get a credit card near the end of school. Looking back on it, I think that both of these things were excellent on their part- everything in good time! But now that the time has come for a credit card, I have no idea what to apply for! The one that I have been looking most closely at is the Discover IT card with cash back rewards (it also has no annual fee and no foreign transaction fees apparently!), but I haven't made any decisions yet. How was applying for your first credit card? What card(s) do you love and trust?
  • Boston at Christmas: Last Thursday, my dad and I took a day trip to see one of our favorite cities all decked out for the holiday season! I wrote a recap of our day in the city and shared the blog post on Saturday- check it out if you haven't yet! 
  • High school was a long time ago: On Saturday night, I went out for drinks with a few of my friends from high school. Few social events that I've ever participated in have ever made me feel so old!! Since when did I become such an "adult" that I can get alcoholic beverages with the same people that I used to eat lunch in the cafeteria with?! Haha. I haven't had a chance to do too many social things since I've been home this past week, so this was a really nice treat to catch up with a few people! It's always fun to learn what everyone is up to in college, and now also to discuss what future plans are for after graduation in the spring! 
  • This song: has been stuck in my head all week. :-) The irony about this song is that a friend of mine from college loved this band long before they were being played on the airwaves, and always used to tell me about them and how great their music was. Now one of their songs has gone mainstream, and I see why she has been obsessed for so long- ha! 


Purchases:
  • I don't do a lot of my shopping in Maine anymore- the quality of our mall (yes- mall, not malls. #MaineProbs) and other stores just isn't the same as Charlotte, and I've also gotten more into online shopping this year since I'm obsessed with Ebates (more on that at the bottom of this post! But I did manage to do some shopping when I was in Boston last week and also have found a couple goodies since I've been home.
  • I found the most gorgeous strappy pumps on incredible sale here in Maine this week! They are from one of my favorite shoe companies. (They are sold out online, but these are similar!) These will carry me through things in the upcoming semester like chapter meetings or presentations, and post-graduation I know I'll get lots of use out of them in my future job! 
  • I picked up the cutest new poncho sweater at this favorite store of mine while in Boston last week! Who else is totally obsessed with ponchos for this season?
  • Last year- one of my favorite Christmas gifts was getting this fun photo-a-day calendar for 2015. It became such a hit among my college friends that I would give away the funniest pages to all of my friends on campus! I was going to buy the same calendar again for 2016, but then I found this one (based off of another favorite website of mine). I think that this photo-a-day calendar will be just as great as the one I had last year! 

     As I mentioned above, I am loving this website called Ebates which assists with online shopping! It's so simple to use- you download a toolbar extension for whichever internet browser that you use on your computer, and then whenever you're making an online purchases from your favorite retailer, you just begin the shopping trip through Ebates. They then credit you a few days later with cash back on your purchase!! The cash back percentages for each store can range from 1-10%, depending on which stores are currently featured. I used Ebates for my Cyber Monday shopping, and made over $25 this year just from those purchases alone!
      I'm not being sponsored to talk about Ebates at all- just wanted y'all to know about this amazing website, especially with the after Christmas sales coming right up. You can sign up for it here! :-)


     Merry Christmas week to all of you! Thanks for reading!


      xoxo Miss ALK
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18 comments

  1. Love your Mid Week Ramblings! As for credit cards, I don't own one but talked to your banker to help out as well but no annual fees and no foreign trans if you travel outside US is a great start plus getting cash back is mighty fine! Great memories making with your family and friends! And I am definitely remembering Ebates for next year since I have heard great reviews from fellow bloggers...why not more cash back ;)

    Merry Christmas to you!

    Ursula

    www.blueridgebeautyblogger.com

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  2. Love his week's ramblings. I too am in search for a credit card. My parents raised me with similar financial steps too.

    XOXO
    mQs
    www.shorelifeofm.blogspot.com

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  3. I am all about Ebates! I would definitely recommend it!

    Mikayla | A Seersucker State of Mind.

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  4. I have the Capital One Venture Card and I love it. I would recommend it if you travel a lot. I also have an Amex Gold card which Michael and I both have access to. I have been hearing a lot about ebates and I will definitely have to check it out.

    xoxo, Jenny || Breakfast at Lillys

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  5. Credit cards can be so confusing! Even worse, trying to mess with getting one in a foreign country. Good luck!

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  6. I think your parents wisdom with financial planning and responsibility was definitely smart. I really struggled my first year of having a credit card and even though I am much more responsible now my credit took a toll and I'm paying the price years later. ebates seems like SUCH a cool program, I really need to check it out!

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  7. I swear credit cards get me in trouble every time, especially this time of the year! It's almost inevitable!
    www.kayleighskloset.com

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  8. My first (and only) credit card was with Capital One, and I do not recommend going with them! Not user friendly at all. And I would run in the opposite direction from Bank of America. We have our company cards with them, and I spend entirely too much time on the phone with them asking them to fix things that they broke on their end. Haha. It's the best! ;)

    Love those pumps!

    XO, SS || Seersucker Sass

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  9. I got the Discover card a few months ago, and I am already earning tons of cashback rewards. I love how there are no fees. They start you at about a 500 dollar credit, and the monthly minimum payment is 35, so it's not bad at all.

    It is so easy to earn cash back because literally ever purchase is cashback!

    Great post!

    xoxo Lex // LexMeetsWorld

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  10. Obsessed with "Stressed Out." It's pretty much my life right now. For credit cards, I definitely recommend Discover! You get cash back on all purchases plus bonus ones and then you get your credit score every month. They also have a new travel one that does the same thing I think plus it gives you travel miles, which is pretty nifty.

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  11. My boyfriend has the Discover card and he loves it! I don't have a credit card yet but I'd probably look into something like that for my first card. Good luck!

    Kayla | kaylablogs.com

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  12. Ah! I just opened two credit cards and they are seriously stressing me out. Paid my first bill today!!!
    xo
    Lauren

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  13. I love ponchos and I can't wait to see how you style it!

    XO, Brooke
    https://livethepreplife.blogspot.com

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  14. I'm looking into opening my first credit card as well and it's so stressful to find the "right one"! Also, I love Ebates!

    Lauren | The Arizona Prepster

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  15. I'm definitely going to check out your Christmas in Boston post.

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  16. Be careful with a credit card! I've gotten into a bit of debt with mine, but I'm working it off. If you have self-control it can be an amazing tool!

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  17. Ebates is the bomb! Hope you had a great Christmas!

    xo,
    Stephanie
    Diary of a Debutante
    www.thediaryofadebutante.com

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  18. I don't currently use eBates although I have heard tons of great things about the service. Right now I do use Swagbucks though and it has a great plug in on my computer that allows me to get SB back for online shopping.

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