EAT & Drink > Birthdays
Taking Advantage of Birthday Freebies 2025
Oh, f’ me, I’m 43. I don’t belong to many corporate loyalty programs, and I don’t find running around town for a cookie or a subpar cup of coffee much fun. But this year, I have some extra time and I want to get as much as I can. Gimme, gimme, gimme all the sugar and crap I can get.
From scouting out the perks and signing up, to going to three different cities for all the stuff…getting all these rewards quickly turned into a full time job. My original plan to get all these things from stores in Palatka and Gainesville is starting to expand out to Jacksonville, Orlando. There are even more perks if I go farther out to Tampa, Ft. Lauderdale, and Miami.
Join me on this adventure!! There definitely will be a video, but not until the end of the month, most likely!
Free Birthday Cake & Flowers
My birthday party isn’t very big. In past years it was with the horses, goats, chickens, dogs, and cats, and my boyfriend. This year, with the horses and goats gone, the invite list is a lot shorter. It’s still nice to have a cake to share.
I signed up a year ago, so there’s nothing left for me to do but wait until the ‘perk’ shows up on the app. As of Jan 1, only the flowers have shown up. The bakery assistant said I might have to wait until the 3rd for it to show up on the app.
She also said that that year I can choose from any of the bar cakes — including the limited edition ones. There’s a chocolate mint cake that looks interesting, but is it better than the carrot cake?
Carrot cake is that seemingly healthy option. It has veggies in it, and isn’t cream cheese frosting better than straight buttercream? I know it’s a delusional set of thoughts, but I actually enjoy the texture of carrot cake over regular sheet cakes. Every southerner knows that Publix is synonymous with chicken tenders, subs, iced tea, and carrot cake.
So, what about those flowers? Because I signed up around this time last year for Club Publix, my anniversary reward also pops up now. The deal is for a bouquet of the Salsa flowers, which is a mix of pink roses, lemon-yellow daisies, and other purple and green flowers. It’s a bright spring mix, a happy group of flowers for this dismally grey January weather.
Skincare Freebies
I signed up for the loyalty programs for Sephora and Ulta, and now it’s time to reap those rewards. I’ll be going to Sephora for a free sample-sized set of products (maybe the Kerastase?), and then Ulta for whatever they’re giving away, and then hopping over to the professional beauty supply store to raid their freebie sample display.
Free Food
Let’s go get some food.
I missed out on a free sub from Jersey Mike’s. Even though J and I go here a few times a year, I started my loyalty account on January 1 and don’t have proof on that account that I purchased a sub in the past year. That’s one of the stipulations of the reward. Oh, well. I guess I’ll have to wait until next year for this perk.
Travel
Lucky for us that a lot of these perks can be redeemed after my official birthday.
I’m loving the $15 discount from Hard Rock. I love HR — the casino, the spa, the POOL. There are a few Hard Rock resort locations “nearby” — in Daytona Beach, Hollywood (Florida), Miami, and Tampa. Which one to go to?? (ResortPass Links: Daytona Beach, )
Overall…
I’m excited to be starting this new age with with some extra perks.
Thanks for reading! Don’t forget to check out my latest video on YouTube!
Jenny Claire is an award-winning educational materials writer, travel journalist, and food critic, formerly based in New York City and Taiwan. She calls a cute cabin in the woods of rural North Central Florida home, but lately she’s been spending most of her time cruising and traveling. She also was a secret travel critic and writer — but her lips are sealed on those details!
Living the Sunshine Life