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The group buy craze has progressed to unreal proportions—it seems every day there is a new site I’ve never heard of or a deal too good to pass up. It’s in the news. It’s all over Facebook. It’s a never ending buffet of half price deals on just about everything you can think of—and, I’m not so sure that’s a good thing.

The instinct is to see a one-day only deal and snap it up—whether the item or service is actually in your budget or not. However, when it’s something you would have purchased anyway? Daily deals are an awesome money saving idea, as long as you have the funds set aside to cover the purchase. One of my budget goals for this year is to create a fund just for this.

So far, we have enjoyed 3 for 1 Redbox rentals, a date night at a gaming center, a family day at an indoor rock climb and even purchased amazing gifts. Our Year of Awesome is really shaping up with hockey tickets, family memberships and fun center passes—all purchased through Groupon, EverSave and Savvy Source.

Next month, MFJ and I are taking a Zumba class with a punch card purchased on EverSave, and I didn’t pay a penny!

The referral programs for each of these sites can quickly add up and help cover the cost of the deals you really want. When I see a daily deal that interests me, I share it with my friends & followers on Facebook & Twitter. If someone makes a purchase, my account gets credited & I can use it to purchase my own deals.

In between, I keep myself in check—making exceptions only for things that are already in my budget. Start by registering for deal sites in your and watch your email for offers that fit into your spending categories. Here is a list to get you started:

• EverSave
• Groupon
• Home Run
• Juice in the City
• Living Social
• Tippr
• Plum District
• Savvy Source

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I’m not a financial planner or a budget expert. I’ll just be walking you through the steps I take each time my budget needs an adjustment. In fact, I’ll be participating myself!