Sabrina’s Money Matters

Now I’ve never been a gamer before…so after winning a Nintendo DS Lite, I’m sure my husband was wondering when I was just gonna pass it on over his way so that it would see some play…ha ha! The jokes’ on him!

Let’s get started with this review, because I love my Nintendo DS Lite!

You turn the system on by holding the power button on the right upper side of the system for about two seconds, the green light will come on.

For this review I’ve taken screenshots of Mario Kart which is a really fun game.

The cool thing about my Nintendo DS Lite is that because I won it from another country, the back of my DS compared my husbands DS is different, my Nintendo DS Lite has less legal mumbo jumbo on the back and my husbands has a lot more..check it out.

This is the back of my DS.

Believe it or not, that’s how we’ve been able to tell them apart.

My son recently bought one with the money he received for his his birthday, he bought a white one. It looks great, but his grubby little ten year old hands have gotten it a bit dirty, so there are no pics of his. I bought skins yesterday from Amazon for mine and my husbands’ Nintendo DS Lite. His skin is the biohazard symbol, very cool, and mine will have green flames rising from the bottom. I’m stoked.

The game system starts up easily enough, you click through the welcome screen, then the
options for game play, pictochat or download play.

I’ve taken pictures of each step through the process, though it’s pretty self explanatory, it’s nice to be able to see all the options you have. I’ve created a slideshow rather than have tons of pictures load up onto the site, I’ll use someone else’s bandwidth so you can see it and don’t have to wait for the site to load all the pictures. Each photo has a caption that explains what you see.

You’re probably wondering why it is you’re reading a review of a Nintendo DS Lite on a Money Matters website. Well, I won mine, we saved money on my husbands’ Nintendo DS Lite by using change we had saved from not using it when we receive it. And my son got enough money for his birthday to buy one for himself. And since your kids are bound to ask you for one, and you just might have found this site because you’re trying to price them and find out if it’s really worth the price.

Purchased brand new, the Nintendo DS Lite will cost you $129.99 at Gamestop, however you can also buy a refurbished DS for $119.00 and Used for $79.99. I must warn you however, the likelihood of you finding a new or refurbished one is somewhat limited. These are popular gamesystems, at a reasonable price. Reasonable enough that my 10 year old got enough money collectively on his birthday to buy one.

It’s worth it if you ask me, I’m 28, never played video games before really and now I’m hooked, once you start checking out the type of games and accessories are available, you’ll see why…

So about a week ago I uploaded Firefox with the Google toolbar. I realize I’m one of the few holdouts that were left. Stop laughing at me.

I did a few of my own tests to check the speed and video and flash heavy website load times, etc. Firefox outperformed Internet Explorer each and every time. So much so that I told my husband about it and pulled up YouTube, on each browser. I found the same video and got as close as I could to hitting play at the same time.

In a battle of speed, and quality of picture viewing, etc. Firefox kicked Internet Explorers’ spam happy behind. I downloaded the Google toolbar because that’s what I’m used to using for search. Made the transition a little more seamless to me.

So I decided no more Internet Explorer, I don’t have time to wait for things to load when there is a much faster alternative. See for yourself and test it out, you have nothing to lose and time to gain!

Time IS money!

Here are some handy links to save you some money on this Monday!

Coupon Codes for online shopping!

“3 Ways to Live Frugally Without Feeling Deprived”, is a great post, and I can really get behind the first tip having recently done this when replacing two cars in my family.

Free software for your home office needs, you can’t beat free, so check them out, you’ve got nothing to lose.

This is a must read on practicing self denial, or discipline when you find yourself wanting to keep up with the Jones’, “Handling the Frivolous Wants of a Toddler is not Much Different than Handling My Own Frivolous Wants”, again it’s a really great post and if I praise it too much I’m sure a tip will slip, lol.

Save money on lawnmower replacement parts! It’s summer time, the time when mowing the grass is a weekly chore, sometimes twice weekly. Take a discount and check MowParts.com for parts.

Learn How to Bargain Shop with this handy guide to pinching your pennies.

Here’s one that all of us parents could use, “10 Inexpensive Toys My Kids Love”. I think we all know the drain that can be placed in our checking accounts, often under the codename “children”.

And finally, a reader initiated blog about financial responsibility / accountability i.e. sticking to your budget.

Hope you enjoy the links! Leave some feedback on the Monday Money Saver and I might rinse and repeat for next week!

Happy Monday, thought we’d start with a laugh today :).

1. Leave the copy machine set to reduce 200%, extra dark, 17 inch paper, 99 copies.
2. In the memo field of all your checks, write “for sexual favors.”
3. Specify that your drive-through order is “TO-GO.”
4. If you have a glass eye, tap on it occasionally with your pen while talking to others.
5. Stomp on little plastic ketchup packets.

6. Insist on keeping your car windshield wipers running in all weather conditions “to keep them tuned up.”
7. Reply to everything someone says with “that’s what you think.”
8. Practice making fax and modem noises.
9. Highlight irrelevant information in scientific papers and “cc” them to your boss.
10. Make beeping noises when a large person backs up.
11. Finish all your sentences with the words “in accordance with prophesy.”
12. Signal that a conversation is over by clamping your hands over your ears and grimacing.
13. Disassemble your pen and “accidentally” flip the ink cartridge across the room.
14. Holler random numbers while someone is counting.
15. Adjust the tint on your TV so that all the people are green, and insist to others that you “like it that way.”

16. Staple pages in the middle of the page.
17. Publicly investigate just how slowly you can make a croaking noise.
18. Honk and wave to strangers.
19. Decline to be seated at a restaurant, and simply eat their complimentary mints at the cash register.
20. TYPE IN UPPERCASE.
21. type only in lowercase.
22. dont use any punctuation either
23. Buy a large quantity of orange traffic cones and reroute whole streets.
24. Repeat the following conversation a dozen times.
“DO YOU HEAR THAT?”
“What?”
“Never mind, it’s gone now.”
25. As much as possible, skip rather than walk.

26. Try playing the William Tell Overture by tapping on the bottom of your chin. When nearly done, announce “No, wait, I messed it up,” and repeat.
27. Ask people what gender they are.
28. While making presentations, occasionally bob your head like a parakeet.
29. Sit in your front yard pointing a hair dryer at passing cars to see if they slow down.
30. Sing along at the opera.
31. Go to a poetry recital and ask why each poem doesn’t rhyme.
32. Ask your co-workers mysterious questions and then scribble their answers in a notebook. Mutter something about “psychological profiles.”