4000 Watt Generator for $299!!!!

If you or someone you know needs a generator, check this deal out!  It's a 4000 Watt gennie for just $299.  It ships free, which is definitely a bonus!  It's such a good deal, I can't stop using exclamation points!!!  Get it here while it lasts!

Great Groupon!

I've said it before, and I'll say it again.  One great way to save money on your holiday shopping is to use groupons.  I have a lot of people on my list that would like some clothes from Old Navy.  Right now they have a Groupon that gets you $20 worth at Old Navy for just $10!  If you're new, sign up here:  http://www.groupon.com/r/uu9780447.  If you're already a member, you can find this deal here:  http://www.groupon.com/ch/grouponicus/deals/gx-nat-old-navy-national-birmingham-al?c=all&p=2. 

I'm sure they'll have some great deals at the store in the next few months that will make your deal even sweeter.  Happy Shopping!

Digital camera/camcorder for $4.99

Here's a great deal for older kids or adults.  It's a camera/camcorder/webcam and it's only $4.99!!!!  The deal is only good for 8 more hours, and you have to be a member and sign in to get the deal.  It's free, so don't sweat it!  1saleaday.com

Cozy Coupe + Pumper $49 at Walmart!

Ok....how cute is this great Pre-black Friday deal???  You can get your choice of one of these 3 cozy coupes, plus the pump for just $49.97 at Walmart.com here.

Crockpot Potato Soup

Here's an easy crock pot recipe that will warm up your belly on a cold night.  Yummy!

1 pkg(30 oz.) frozen shredded potatoes
1 Can cream of chicken soup
3 cans chicken broth
0.5 tsp ground onion
2 tbsp real bacon bits
1 cup sour cream
1 8 oz pkg cream cheese
1.5 cups shredded cheddar cheese
Salt to taste

Add potatoes, chicken soup, chicken broth, and onion to crock pot.  Cook on high for 4 hours or low for 6-8 hours.  The last hour of cooking, add remaining ingredients and turn down to low(if you were cooking on high.)  Stir occasionally.

Shop Smart!

There are a few tricks that I use to shop frugally.  It can add up really quick.

1.  Before you go to a store, check out retailmenot.com and see if you can print out a coupon.  They also have discount codes if you are shopping online. 
2.  If you are about to go grocery shopping, or to a superstore, check out www.southernsavers.com.  She will have a list of everything that is on sale for most of the local stores and the coupons that match the deal(for extra savings!)  She will also have links to print out coupons.
3.  Before you visit a website, sign in through shopathome.com and often times you will get a percent of your purchase back in cash!  Just look up the store's name up top, and it will show you what coupons or codes are available.  Click there, or just click "shop now."
4.  Price check.  I always check ebay.com and amazon.com for prices when I see something on sale at another website.  Sometimes that "great deal" you think you're about to get isn't that great.

A few minutes of planning before you shop can make a lot of dollars' difference!
Happy Shopping!

Minute to Win It for Wii

I like browsing Amazon.com for affordable gifts.  Today I came across Minute to Win It for the Nintendo Wii for just $6.99!  I think that's a pretty awesome deal and it was on Santa's list.  Get it here:  http://www.amazon.com/Minute-Win-Nintendo-Wii/dp/B003WY86LQ/ref=sr_1_1?s=videogames&ie=UTF8&qid=1321481383&sr=1-1

6PM $11 Deals-Today Only!

An awesome site called 6pm.com is having a sale with tons of stuff for just $11.  Shipping is free!  I've got my eyes on some Chuck Taylor Converse for little Sydney.  If you want an even sweeter deal, get 4% cash back by signing up for Shopathome.com and search for 6pm.  Click "shop now" and that's it!  Happy shopping!

Home remedy for heartburn/acid reflux

So last night, I had the worst heartburn of my life.  I had only eaten bland food, but my chest was still on fire!  I used a remedy that my brother-in-law told me about after I saw him perform this strange task at what seemed to be out of the blue.  All you have to do is eat a teaspoon of plain yellow mustard.  That's it!  I didn't think it would actually work, and I hate mustard, so I really didn't want to try it.  After aching so bad I couldn't stand it, I pouted about how bad mustard tastes, but then I swallowed that teaspoon of mustard and......gone!  After a few seconds, I was no longer suffering.  Who knew?!

Poppyseed Chicken Casserole Recipe

Last night I had a lot of canned chicken that needed to be used, and Campbell's cream of chicken and mushroom soups are on sale, so I went to my go-to chicken casserole recipe.  It's creamy and crunchy and I eat way too much when I fix it.  I love it because most of the ingredients are already in my pantry.

Poppyseed Chicken Casserole

4 Chicken breasts(or canned chicken)

1 16 oz. carton of sour cream

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 sleeve buttery crackers

2 tbsp butter or margarine

Poppy seeds

Boil chicken breasts until done.  Shred or cut into bite-sized pieces and place at bottom of square casserole dish.  If you're using canned, just drain and toss it in the bottom.  Mix sour cream & 2 cans of soup and spread over chicken.  Crush crackers and spread them on top.  Melt butter and sprinkle over crackers.  Sprinkle poppyseeds on top.  Bake at 350 for about 30 min., or until top is brown. 

You can serve it over rice if you want. Serve with the veggie of your choice, or whatever your child will actually eat!  :o)

Video Game Deals at Walmart.com

Walmart has some great deals on video games today.  I'm not sure how long this is going to last, so if you have some gamers on your list, take advantage!

Buy 2 Xbox games, get 1 free

2 Wii games for $30

2 PSP games for $20

2 PS3 games for $30

2 DS Games for $30

Online Wishlist

Another great site that I just love is www.thethingsiwant.com.  It's an online wishlist that you can use with any website or store.  It's nice because you don't have to search different websites to see what your family wants from each.  You can also manually input an item.  A few years ago, I told my family about it, and they made their own lists.  Now if I want to find out what Mom wants for Christmas, I just look up her name and I can reserve whatever I want to get her.  Think of it as an online registry.  Also, I can let everyone know what I actually want.  :o)

Supercook

I recently came across a website, www.supercook.com, that just fascinates me.  You can add the ingredients that you have in your pantry or your refridgerator, and it will give you thousands of recipes for dishes you can make with what you already have!  As I was scanning the next Publix ad for great deals, it occurred to me that I could take even better advantage of this website by adding the foods that are on sale during the week and come out with a pretty cheap meal.  This is my new favorite recipe site....just thought I'd share!

Nap Mat Tutorial

When Sydney graduated to the "Big Girl" class at the age of 2, they told me to bring a nap mat for her to sleep on the cot instead of the baby beds or cribs.  I looked and looked, but I didn't see anything I really liked.  A lot of the mats didn't seem thick enough to be comfortable, and they seemed ridiculously pricey.  I decided to use the sewing machine my mother in law had given me for Christmas and make my own.  I found a great tutorial here http://jennygarland.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/NapMatTutorial.pdf.  It was my first big project, so I made a lot of mistakes, but a good old seam ripper can take care of that.  By catching the materials on sale and using coupons, I'd say my total spent was around $30.  You could probably save more if you use less expensive fabric, but I really love minky dot blankets, so that's what I used.  The only changes I made were leaving the side of the pillow part open with velcro so that it could be removed for washing, and I bought a pillow form instead of using batting so that it could be removed more easily.  It was a little more costly by doing that, but to me it's worth it.  Below is my masterpiece.  I'm glad it's not zoomed up enough for you to see the many imperfections, but it was made with momma love, so Sydney loves it any way.

Make Money, Don't Spend It!!!

Yesterday CVS paid me $7 to pick up two lotions and an iced coffee drink.  How is that possible, you ask?  I had an Aveeno coupon for $3.00 off two Aveeno products.  I picked up a couple of the  I also scanned my CVS card at the magic coupon scanner and got a coupon for a free "Illy" coffee drink, which I found near the starbucks stuff in the fridge.  The cashier scanned the items and my coupons.  The register made a funny noise, but that was because I had a $3 coupon for the lotions, but the cost for them was only $2.98.  After a click-click-click from the cashier, everything worked.  She printed out my wonderful $7 ECB's.  As far as I'm concerned, that's money in my pocket and I like it!!!  The deal will only last until Saturday, so hurry and take advantage!

If you don't shop at CVS and have a card, you need to.  Who doesn't need free toothpaste, deoderent, etc.???  Check out http://www.southernsavers.com/getting-started-guides/how-to-cvs/ and she'll tell you how to save mega bucks.

Frugal Christmas Shopping

If you're like me and you have a big family, Christmas can cost a fortune.  If you shop smart and know a few little tricks, it doesn't have to put you in debt.  Here are a few ways that you can get great gifts for everyone and still be able to feed your family.

1.  Start early.  Throughout the year I read blogs and watch for deals that will work for people in my family.  For the person that you never know what to get, so you usually end up getting some Christmas doo-hickey, buy it on clearance after Christmas for the following one.  They won't know the difference.  Promise. 

2.  Regift.   If your child recieves two of the same gift for his or her birthday, put in in a hiding place and you'll probably come up with someone to give it to next Christmas or for their Birthday.  Regifting isn't cheap, it's smart.....just don't give your size 16 Aunt Sally your regifted size 2 sweater.  Also, if someone gives you a gift card to a place that you don't care for, just use it later to buy someone on your list a gift.

3.  Make it.  If you are creative enough, and have a pinterest.com account, you can find a million different beautiful things that someone would love to own.  (Oh, how I love pinterest.)

4.  Do surveys.  I do surveys when I have a few spare minutes to earn Christmas money, which I redeem in amazon.com gift cards.  Mysurvey.com, www.globalopinionpanels.com, www.surveyhead.com are a few of the sites I use.  I have over $60 sitting in my amazon.com account, waiting on just the right deal to come along, which brings me to my next idea....

5.  Cyber Monday.  I usually have to work on Black Friday, and I don't like big crowds of angry shoppers, so I opt for the awesome cyber monday deals.  I usually look for the ones with free shipping. 

6.  Shop at home.  Before you go to your favorite website to do a little shopping, go to shopathome.com and see what they have to offer.  Often times they offer a % cash back on your purchases or have codes you can use for discounts. 

7.  Groupon!  Using groupons is a great way to get good deals at stores you would be shopping anyway and also finding new cool stores to shop.  Often times the deals are 50% off.  Click here to sign up for awesome deals.  http://www.groupon.com/r/uu9780447.  Living social is pretty much the same deal.  Sign up here:  https://livingsocial.com/redeem_invite/14759186-aly571?ref=lnk.

Hopefully this will keep you from selling your kidneys so that you can spread the Christmas cheer.

Free Potty Training DVD

I've dreaded it and I've procrastinated, but it is time that we get serious about potty training.  It just so happens that Pampers is giving away a Potty Training DVD at http://www.pull-ups.com/na/potty_training_DVD.aspx#.  Free stuff is the best stuff, right?!

Kiki's Fashions Giveaway

Finding cute, affordable maternity clothes can be quite the challenge.  When I was pregnant, I googled it several times before coming across www.kikisfashions.com.  They have things that I would wear even if I weren't pregnant.  I didn't want "mommy" clothes.  They are giving away 6 gift cards for $50.  See http://moneysavingmom.com/2011/11/48-hour-giveaway-kikis-fashions-maternity-50-gift-certificate-6-winners.html for details.  It's a 48 hour giveaway, so hurry and enter!  (I entered so that maybe I can win one for my preggo sis-in-law.)

New blog

I often find myself injecting coupon talk into random conversations with friends and strangers.  I just can't help myself.  I created this blog so that when I find a great deal or have a good idea, I can shout it from the rooftops blog style instead of really shouting from the rooftops.....which would involve police and psychiatrists....and that's just a lot of trouble for everybody.  So here it is.  Enjoy!