The Christmas season has BEGUN

The Christmas season is really here. I kinda love that we had our first snow today, the day after Thanksgiving. How kinda FUN! Glad I had no plans to shop on this crazy and cold day. Me and my boy (hubby is at work, my girl is at her aunts house) are all cuddled up on the new comfy cozy couch in our new room in the basement. How lovely!

So back to this Christmas season thing...gifts...for hubby....so HARD to be thoughtful. My husband has his own business, and besides playing pool -which he has not done in forever and has all the equipment-his hobby is tools and building stuff and because that ties into his work, he has all the tools he needs and if he doesn't he waits until he has a project for work and then he can buy the tool and write it off on our taxes. So.....buying gifts for hubby=hard.

I like to be super thoughtful, I really don't like just getting gift cards, so......I guess the next best thing is some kind of electronic equipment...Slingbox, blue ray player??-not sure we want to go this route yet, new game system, new video game (which he just bought himself....I was a little annoyed...my only idea)....HELP...if you have any suggestions on a fool proof gift for a hubby!

Yummy Yum Gift

I always try to think of gifts for Christmas that won't just lay around and collect dust. I want a gift to be used, and liked. In getting older you realize if you want something you can just go get it for yourself (usually). It is when you get older you actually start asking for stuff you will use rather than stuff you WANT.

Do you know what I mean?

A trusted name is always good too. I do like to save $ and get the best deal, but sometimes the best deal is something that may cost a bit more but you KNOW is gonna be good!

We all see them popping up around the holidays at malls and in stores, so why not grab some for a friend or family member...I'm talking about Hickory Farms products and gift packs!





You can check out all they offer at www.hickoryfarms.com

You know what really sells me?? They make it easy to ship to military serving all around the world by shipping to APO/FPO addresses! How great is that?! If you know someone serving why not spread a little cheer to them and send some tasty treats.



Hickory Farms is ALWAYS good, all the sausages and cheeses I got to sample were wonderful...not to mention my favorite little strawberry hard candies...what a treat!
And I didn't have to wonder if they would be, I knew with a name like Hickory Farms I'd be happy!

It might not be an "exciting" gift but it will not lay around collecting dust, it will be eaten, I am sure of it!
And when they open the gift packs there eyes will be pleased too!

"I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour campaign by Mom Central on behalf of Hickory Farms and received a Hickory Farms gift basket to facilitate my review."
Thanks MOM CENTRAL

Giant Eagle Coupon Match up 11/19-11/25

It's late, I know...busy week here...but here it is!!

Giant Eagle 11/19-11/25

These are best of the best deal that I KNOW are a good price (cheaper than Marc's!), there are other deals and sale/coupon match ups.

Giant Eagle butter quarters $1.68

Holiday Hershey kisses, Jingles, M&Ms plain or peanut $1.99
printable from last week if you still have it or if it is still available=$.99

Super Pretzel (another sale I wait for) 4/$7=$1.75
you might have .50/1 coupons from previous inserts=$.75ea

Carnation evaporated milk 10/$10
you might have .50/2=$1/2

Reddi Whip 2/$4
you might have a .50/1(Sunday)=$1

Cool Whip 10/$10=$1
no coupon I know of, but a good price

Swiss Mix hot coco mix 10/$10
you might have .50/2 (Sunday)=$1/2

My FAVORITE Giant Eagle go to is Cherry Picker and she goes through the whole add, some she found that I think are good enough prices to get are:

Johnsonville Breakfast Sausage $2.50
you might have .55/1 from previous week=$1.40

Nabisco saltines/Triscuit/Wheat thins $2.00
$1/2 printable =2/$3

Libby's canned veggies .50
.50/2 printable=Free

Blistex lip balm $1.00
you might have $1/2 (Sunday)=$1/2...think STOCKING STUFFER...my kids love chapstick!

She has a ton of stuff listed! Check it out, I don't list stuff you can get at Marc's cheaper, but some of you don't shop there {GASP};)

Happy Shopping!!

:Fruit Loops::

I was never big on giving my kids sugary cereal. I tried to stay away from it, but then I decided it wasn't horrible to have "special" cereal every once in awhile. And now we get it a lot. I try to stay away from the "really bad" stuff and stick with the less offensive stuff like Honey Nut Cheerios, Fruity Cheerios, Frosted Mini Wheats etc. One day I read an article on the good and the bad cereals out there, and was very surprised that Froot Loops were a decent choice!! Of course the kids love them and I do too!! Cereal is our #1 pick in the mornings, so easy!

When I got the chance to review the NEW Froot Loops, I was excited...that they were trying even harder to make the cereal more nutritious and that Id get a few free boxes to try!

I was so excited to try the New Froot Loops with FIBER, that I ripped into both boxes one night before dinner;) We also go the opportunity to try the Apple Jacks with Fiber but didn't get to compare, but I am sure the story is the same!

The verdict in our house is that they are.....GOOD. The taste is VERY close. The crunch is a bit different and I actually like the Froot Loops with Fiber crunch BETTER. My son is too young to know any difference and my daughter (shes 9) said she tasted a difference, but I'm the mom and my mouth said they were very similar, so similar I wouldn't be able to tell the difference if the box wasn't in front of me.

Kudos to the cereal companies for striving to make the cereals we turn to on busy school mornings a bit better for our kids!

You can check out more about Froot Loops and Apple Jacks cereals with added Fiber here: http://www.kelloggsnutrition.com/

Thanks MOM CENTRAL for including me in this opportunity to taste and share about Kellogs Froot Loops & Apple Jacks!



"I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour campaign by Mom Central on behalf of Kellogg’s and received boxes of Froot Loops and Apple Jacks and a gift certificate to thank me for taking the time to participate."

Giant Eagle Coupon Match up 11/12-11/18

Giant Eagle sales/coupon match up Nov 12-18

Giant Eagle turkeys are just $.59/lb
You can get the Honeysuckle turkeys at Marcs for $.59/lb-Grandma says these are better;)

Delmonte canned veggies and College Inn broth 20/$15...but automatically get $5 off when you but 20...so that is 20/$10=.50ea
You may have these coupons (or multiples to use) from the red plum (insert that come in the mail-in NEO ohio)
$1/2 cans College Inn
$1/8 cans Delmonte canned veggies
example: I have 2 of each of these coupons, which I can use because the amount of cans doesn't exceed the amt of cans I am gonna buy...I will be paying $6 for 20 cans making each can $.30...great stock up price!!

Philadelphia Cream cheese 4/$5or $1.25
you may have $1/3 from Red Plum mailer
you should be able to find $1.25/3 on ziploc container stand at most Giant Eagles (on 117th the stand was found by the refrigerated juice just down from the cream cheese) if you buy 3 it will be .83 ea (good price)

Pillsbury Grands 4/$6 $1 off automatically when you buy 4 -4/$5 or $1.25
I know there are printable coupons out there as well as some from previous mailers...I won't buy these I don't need any...so I didn't check this out.

International Delight coffee creamer 2/$3 or $1.50
.55 printable
and also .55 from Sunday paper (a few week I think)=.40ea (GREAt price...cheapest Ive paid this year)

Campbell's Cream of Mushroom or Chicken 5/$4 or .80
you should have .25/4 coupons floating around from previous weeks=.68ea
you may be able to find a printable also...maybe better than than the .25/4

Land O Lakes soft margarine, spreadable butter tub 8/$10 or $1.25
you may have .40/1 from a long time ago=.45
I so wish I had more of these...I love to stock up on these=(


A $2 catalina (machine that spits out coupons next to the recepit machine) will print if you buy $10 worth of any mix of below items in a single transaction of these items-you can use the $2 coupon on your next visit to GE:

Wish Bone salad dressing 2/$4
.75 printable =.50 - I was only allowed to print once=(

Hellmann's Mayo 2/$6
you may have .50/1 in Red Plum=$2 (not an incredible deal...but I do need some so I will grab one)

Skippy PB 4/$10 or $2.50
you may have .40 in Red Plum=$1.70

Knorr side dishes 10/$10 or $1
you may have .50/2 in Red Plum =$1 for 2

Ragu 3/$5 or $1.67
you may have $1.25/3 in Red Plum=$1.25ea

Bertolli Meals $5.99

Imperial Quarters 5/$4

Deals I didn't see that Cherry Picker did that I thought were worth sharing:

State Fair corn dogs $2.75
(remember that coupon I told you to print last week??).55 printable=$1.67

Jimmy Dean breakfast $2.75
bowls, sandwiches or omelets
you may have : .75¢ Jimmy Dean bowl =$1.00
or .75¢ Jimmy Dean sandwich =$1.00

Those are some of the deals I will be picking up...I am sure there are other great deals there too...I can refer you to some other ladies who type out everything on sale at GE....let me know if you need a link!

Also leave some comment love if you use any of my listed deals...it will make all my work seem worth it;)

2 weeks

Only about 2 weeks and our basement needs to be done...yikes..stripes...fruit stripes gum...hahaha...not sure where that came from;)

So much to do.
But I am so excited to get it done, now hubby just needs to get at it...we pick up the couch this weekend...so we should have the painting done...but don't...

Grandma dropped the turkey off in my freezer tonight, that kinda freaked me out.
Is Thanksgiving gonna be here is 16 days?

the swirling thoughts

Don't you get sick of the millions of twirling thoughts in your head. The ones that invade the thought you want to be in your head...do you know what I am talking about??

I wish I could think straight about the things I need to do, the things I want to do, the mom I want to be, the wife I want to be, the things that matter.

But instead there are so many other thoughts that invade my mind continually...finances, weight loss, what I didn't do, what I didn't succeed at, what a person thinks about me and on and on....why is it so hard to quiet those voices, but hard to quiet the ones that matter?

I am working hard on making the ones that matter learn how to YELL.

Giant Eagle Coupon Match up 11/05-11/11

Some of the GOOD Giant Eagle deals I see...there are more I am sure but these are definitely worth it!

Progresso soup -$1.25
you might have this coupon-.50/2 Progresso soups=$1.50 or .75 ea

Land O lakes butter quarter-5/$10 or $2
decent price if you need some and if you buy 5 you get a catalina for $2 off your next shopping trip

College Inn Broth 32 oz-2/$4 or $2
you might have a $1 off 32 oz coupon=$1

Betty Crocker potatoes- 8/$10 or $1.25
you might have a few .40 off coupons=.45ea

Coffee Mate 2/$3
you might have 1.00 off printable=.50 ea
you might have $1.50 off 2 printable=.75 ea coupons.com
stock up...these don't go bad too fast...my husband goes through these so fast in the winter, since he takes a whole big thermos...I wait for these sales!!

No Yolk Noodles 3/$5 or $1.67
you can print .75 off coupon =.17...print 2 of these, and use both!!

The Betty Crocker free pan deal, when you buy 4 participating products is still a go...but most stores are out of pans=( want more info let me know!

Like I said there are other deals,I am sure, but these are the best ones I see!!
Let me know how your shopping goes=)

So pretty

Like I mentioned a few weeks ago, I recently got the chance to review a pot from cookware.com.
I was so excited because I have been wanting a nice saucepan...with a lid...I have 2 with no lids=(

I was pleased to see saucepans in every price range. From about $20 right on up! I picked a really nice looking stainless steel saucepan with glass lid for about $30.

It looks so pretty hanging from my pot rack, all clean and shiny...now I just need ALL new pans so they can all be shiny and pretty=)

My pan came really quickly, and I hope that wasn't just because I was doing a review, but that they are just on top of things like that!

I have used it a few times and it has cleaned up great! I am sure it will be around for a long time.

They have many name brands and lots of specials going on as well. If you are looking to replace a pot or pan or get some new ones for all the big cooking holidays we have coming up, why not check out cookware.com! I am positive you could find a pan in the price range you want!

Thanks cookware.com for letting me choose a pan in return for letting people out there know where to go to find good deals on pots and pans and more!

Coverage

Isn't is annoying when you are somewhere and your cell phone goes blank in the middle of a conversation? Or when you are somewhere and there is absolutely no cell reception (like at my church)??It is like 2010 shouldn't there cell towers everywhere by now??
I think we pay enough for our cell phones that they can make us all happy.
But anyway...I am thankful for cell phones, they come in so handy, like when you see dresser on the treelawn down the street and you also see the garbage truck right down the street and you call your hubby and ask him ever so nicely to go get the dresser.
Woo- hoo we got a free dresser, not bad at all either.
And then you get to contact an expecting friend and ask if she wants like 50 baby hangers for her little guy and she says YES!!