My job has me online pretty much all day, everyday. I’m gathering content ideas from financial websites, social media pages, and trying to keep up with the latest financial and marketing trends. Kinda boring. However, this has allowed me to enter and win a couple of cool Facebook contests, either saving me moola or giving me the chance to experience new things. And if you’re a social media buff and pay closer attention, you’ll probably find that a lot of the pages you like and companies you follow have contests and giveaways. They’re usually pretty easy to enter!

How I won a  two night hotel stay and $100 Visa gift card on Facebook.

A preface to this successful contest entry: way back in the year 2000, my family went on a trip to Disney World. It was me (then, 15), my sister (then, 9), my dad and my mom. We hit every park and loved every minute. Honestly, this was the best vacation we ever had. There was little to no fighting and my dad snored minimally to allow for a goodnight’s sleep for everyone else in the hotel room.

Then came the Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster – a new indoor coaster featuring Aerosmith that propelled riders from 0 to 57 mph in 2.8 seconds. Now, normally my parents weren’t much for carnival rides, let alone roller coasters. And I think prior to this, the scariest ride my 9 year-old sister had been on was perhaps the Scrambler. But we were at Disney World and the spirit of adventure was present in the Diedrich Family that day. We were going on that ride.

“Does it go upside down?” my sister asked, with a nervous quiver in her voice. “No, I don’t think so dear,” my parents said. They knew very well it went upside down. But they also knew very well that we weren’t going on the ride if my sister knew it went upside down. I don’t think even Pinnochio would’ve told that lie… I should’ve asked him while we were there.

Well, we went on the ride and of course Disney has cameras set up to catch the horrified expressions on people’s once happy faces:

This picture makes me laugh every time I see it. Back row: My sister and my mom. Front row: my dad and I. For some reason we’re all wearing shades of blue. We’re not intentionally one of those weird families who dressed alike at theme parks. Also, notice how my mom and I make the same face, and my dad and sister make the same face.

To make a long story less-long: I submitted this photo to a Travel Wisconsin Facebook Contest. The 10 photos with the most votes won a two night stay at a hotel and a $100 Visa Gift card. This photo got the most votes (hundreds of votes). As repayment to my family for embarrassing them on Facebook, I used the $100 gift card to take them out to our favorite restaurant> I offered the two-night hotel stay to my parents but they insisted that my boyfriend and I would have a better time in picturesque Plover, Wisconsin (where the hotel stay was valid). We had a great time, by the way.

A Disclaimer

Prior to submitting my contest entry, I did a little digging just to be sure the contest and the Facebook page were legit. They had run previous contests and announced the winners. They had a great website and were affiliated with other reputable websites, as well. That was enough for me.

Final Words for Weeks 16 & 17

I now have $153 saved up in my 52 Week Saving Plan account. Each week it feels more and more amazing to be going on this journey. I can’t wait to get to the finish line!

Have you started the 52 Week Savings Plan? Give it a shot!