Weekend Bloggy Contest Round Up

Go green Girly Giveaway, click banner to enter by June 12th. Bath Luve Giveaway on Chic Shopper Chick ~ Ends June 5th

SSS ~ Walgreens & Joanns

I didn't go to CVS this week at all, I do plan on going tomorrow to use my last $5 off $15 coupon, so hopefully they have some good deals. I did take advantage of that $10 of $30 coupon at Walgreens though. The Walgreens didn't have the new books out, but the girl behind the counter had one. She told me it wasn't good till June 1st, so I had to show her that it was in fact good. She was like oh, he he. Glad I checked before heading out! I was just going to pick up the rebate stuff, but I decided to get a new cooler. I swear by coolers in the summer, even if we are only going out for an hour or two. My girls are always thirsty & it is to expansive to hit the gas station while out. They only had the one I bought & then a more expansive one. I liked how tall this one is, yet think enough to still fit on the floor of my car. It was $19.99 with a $5 rebate, so after coupon it ends up being $5. If you factor in my 10% bonuses, it will end up being free if I stick with rebate stuff next month! I also picked up the calcium, vitamins, Ecotrin & water filter. Ended up being $2.41 OOP + I used 28.69 on my Gift Card. I will be getting back 24.97 back with rebate + ~ 2.50 (10%). Love playing the drugstore game :)

Later, my daughter had a 4 hour fun night at school. I was scheduled to work part of it, but after I was done she was like Yeah you can go. Oh my baby is getting closer & closer to being a teenager! I decided to run to Michaels & Joanns to use some coupons. I originally wanted flip flops at Joanns, but the sizes were to vague, so have to bring my daughter. I did find these great Space Project things, my daughter has a gigantic Space Board Game project due on Monday. They got it Tuesday, yep less then a week. It is also due just 4 days before school is over & worth 100 points! I think the biggest project they have had has only been worth 50. These were .50 a piece. I got a space border for poster board, blue glitter letters, silver/gold moon & stars & then 9 die cut planets. Should really help her project!

I also found that cute pirate chipboard set, and then iron ons. I found that cute owl for me, the ice cream for my 6 year old & then the Rock for my oldest. Everything was .50, I spent $4 plus tax on all that. I'm thinking about going back to pick up more of the poster board project things. Can't beat the price & nice to have hand. My youngest is only going into 2nd grade, so she has years of projects. My oldest is going to Middle School, so I'm sure they will be thrown with crazy projects as well.

Visit more Super Savings Saturday.
super saving saturdaydrugstore game

Gas Petition

I know there are tons of opinions on petitions, but if it is a cause I really care about I feel what the heck. With gas being $4.10 by me, I figured I'd sign this.

Dear MoveOn member,

We all know gas prices have skyrocketed over the past year, but it's just supply and demand, right?

Everybody's taking a hit, aren't they?

Well—no.

As millions of Americans struggle to make ends meet, thousands of oil company executives are struggling with a different problem: what to do with all their extra money.

We get record prices, they get record profits. And it's gotta stop.

Tell Congress to pass a windfall profits tax. If big oil companies continue over-charging Americans, some of their ridiculous profits should be invested in green jobs and alternative energy research.

The oil industry's profits are absolutely staggering. In 2007, the industry netted $155 billion. In profit. For context, Barack Obama's plan for a clean energy future calls for $150 billion. Over 10 years.

Subject: They're swimming in our money

Hi,

While we're paying record prices for gas, oil companies are collecting record profits. And it's gotta stop. If big oil companies continue over-charging Americans, some of their ridiculous profits should be invested in green jobs and alternative energy research.

I signed a petition urging Congress to pass a windfall profits tax to do just that. Can you join me at the link below?

http://pol.moveon.org/windfallprofitstax/?r_by=12763-5181869-g3HhTw&rc=paste

Thanks!

Wed/Thurs/Fri Contest Round Up

Don't forget about the great Arts Cow offer on digital prints. If you make a purchase between 5/16/2008 and 5/31/2008, you will be granted 5 free custom mousepad credits. If single order amount is over $15.00 (including shipping fees), will get not only 5 free mousepad credits, but also EXTRA 400 free prints (including 200 4x6s and 200 5x7s) * I ordered this on Thursday & my credit was instant! I know have 100 prints a month through December without any referral credits either! I'm thinking about using my referral credits for the dog tags. Check out their jewelry, looks really good & priced great. I bought a circle necklace for $6.99 & used a coupon for half off that!



Win 2 pairs of Baby Legs during Mandi's Favorite things contest that she is running. This is week 2, she will draw a winner next Sunday. Mention my name {Ginny} and we will both get an extra entry!

• Baby Pajamas ~ Ends May 30th
• Barney DVD ~ Ends May 30th
  
• Veggie Chop ~ Ends June 1st
• Skid on Sassy Frazz ~ Ends June 5th
• Wild Dill giveaway ~ Ends June 6th
• Nintendo DS ~ Ends Unknown - The Cron Blog is looking to get 150 - 200 subscribers, when that happens the contest will end. There are a few other ways to enter as well :)
  

I’m having a quickie - The Five-Minute Shower Challenge

Did you know that the average shower length is 8 minutes*? By reducing that to 5 minutes, you can reduce the amount of water you use by nearly one-third, or roughly 10 gallons per day. And that’s where this challenge comes in. Crunchy Domestic Goddess is challenging all of her readers to reduce their shower time to 5 minutes. If you already take a 5 minute shower, perhaps you’ll consider cutting back a little bit more? Reducing the length of your shower by just one minute could save you up to 1,825 gallons** of water each year.
* GreenPrint Denver
** Utah.gov

More Tips To Help You Conserve Water

In the shower:

• Turn off the water while you are lathering up your body, washing your hair or shaving, then turn it back on when you need to rinse.
• Replace your showerhead with a low-flow showerhead
• While you are waiting for the water to warm up, catch it in a bucket and use it for watering your plants or garden or for flushing your toilet
• Shower with a buddy ;)

Elsewhere in the bathroom:

• If it’s yellow, let it mellow
• Turn off the water when brushing your teeth
• Fill up the sink with water while shaving instead of letting the water run

• 
  

Vintage Thingies Thursdays

I have this little Vintage Brooch from my Grandmother that I just adore, measures about 2 inches. It is 2 large Red Rhinestones with Clear Rhinestones for the Ears & Collar accents. Cats are my favorite, so I think it is just adorable. She has gold whiskers & tail. I love Vintage Costume Jewelry. I love how big it is, talk about bling bling back then, lol. My grandmother moved to New York in the late 1950's from New York. I believe this piece is from the 60's, but I'm not sure. They moved from New York I believe in the 70's. Depending on when this is from, it was either purchased in New York City or Detroit.

Contest ~ The Accidental Demon Slayer

It’s never a good day when an ancient demon shows up on your toilet bowl. For Lizzie Brown, that’s just the beginning. Soon her hyperactive terrier starts talking, and her long-lost biker witch Grandma is hurling Smuckers jars filled with magic. Just when she thinks she’s seen it all, Lizzie learns she’s a demon slayer – and all hell is after her.

Of course, that’s not the only thing after her. Dimitri Kallinikos, a devastatingly handsome shape-shifting griffin needs Lizzie to slay a demon of his own. But how do you talk a girl you’ve never met into going straight to the underworld? Lie. And if that doesn’t work, how dangerous could a little seduction be…?

“I tore through this book at a break-neck speed and loved every minute of it.”
—Tate Hallaway, New York Times bestselling author of Romancing the Dead

Enter to win here.

Gift Ideas for Dance Recitals

It is the long awaited Dance Recital Season, that all little dancers look forward to. A lot of parents, grandparents even aunt & uncles like to give some kind of little gift at the recital.
Flowers ~ Now of course Flowers are one of the best options. Personally I hate spending money on flowers, but the kids just love them! Most studios do a bow at the end, and the kids can take out there flowers. Show off their families love. And yes, most kids feel this way. There have been years that we only did flowers one of the nights. My daughter was just heart broken that she didn't have flowers for the 2nd night. There have also been years that she has taken apart of her flowers to let other girls have some to hold.

I try to have my husband & I see one night of the show, and then grandparents/family go another night. That way, the girls have someone in the audience for each show. They also get flowers for each show. I have been lazy the last few years, and just bought mine at Kroger. You can find nice colorful bouquets for under $9.99. Some of the flower shops though have great deals and will even spray glitter on the flowers. That is always a big hit!
Jewelry ~ This would probably be geared more towards girls then boys. What little girl doesn't love some pretty jewelry. There are many dance themed jewelry items. Especially charms, you can put them on necklaces or even charm bracelets.

Cherished Time Designs has a nice selection of Dance gifts. The Dance Shop, also has a selection of charms & keychains.Books ~ Usbourne has a great selection of dance books. I'm sure other companies sell them as well.
Personalized Gifts ~ Personalized presents has an amazing selection for dance related gifts that are personalized.

Blanket Worx makes photo blankets, pillows & towels for the dancer.
Dance Trinkets/Merchandise ~ There is a huge amount of dance related items. I find the biggest selection online, but most local dance stores sell items. Hallmark has also been getting better with there selection. You can find frames, mugs, photo albums, scrapbooks, keychains (girls love these to attach to their bag), Pins (especially rhinestone), etc. If you have a doll fan you could get Pink Ballet Recital Doll.

Here are a few places that sell dance related items: I Dance U Cheer, Find Gift, Ballerina Gifts, The Crazy Dazy, Dance Xtras, Bambina Ballerina

You can also read my review of a pretty doll that makes a great gift ~ Corolle Camille Ballerina 13" dollCafePress ~ They have a great selection of dance related items, check it out here.
Needed Dance Items ~ Dance can be very expansive. Is your dancer needing a new dance bag, leotard, skirt, tights, etc? This is a great time to get that needed items, plus give a gift! If the dancer isn't your child, ask the parents is there anything little Lucy needs for dance?
Something related to theme of recital ~ This is always fun, if your recital has a theme, find a gift to match it. My oldest danced in the Nutcracker two years in a row. I found her Nutcrackers during Christmas time & gave her those. My youngest was a duck & a cow one year {yes I was furious, but anyways} so I gave her a plush duck. This year the theme is Green/Environment, hmmm I could have some fun with that but I don't think the girls would like the gifts they got. I could also do nothing and say it is better for the environment, Bwahahahah.
Dinner ~ If you don't want a physical gift but want to do something. Take your dancer out to lunch, dinner or even out for ice cream. What better way to celebrate then time with family. Plus no clutter coming home :)

* UPDATE * If you are buying dance gifts for Christmas this year - Dancewear Solutions is offering free shipping on orders over $50, use code FSNOV14

WFMW: Luscious Lips on the Cheap

This is a really quick easy tip to help your lips look Luscious! Add a few drops of olive oil and a pinch of salt and sugar to an orange slice. Then gently rub on your lips for two minutes.

Great Gift Idea for your Dancer

I've been working on a post for great gift ideas for the Dance Recital Season. One of the items I planned on featuring are the Bambina Ballerina bow holders. These are just gorgeous, and any dancer would love them. They are pretty enough to be used as wall art vs. bow holder if you aren't interested in the bow holder. I think any dancer would just swoon over these. The reason for my early post about these is that Pink with Sparkles is currently holding 2 contests towards Bambina Ballerina!

Giveaway #1 - Win a $30 Gift Certificate to Bambina Ballerina:

• Visit Bambina Ballerina and oogle the merchandise.
• Enter a comment on this post that tells us which product is your favorite.
• Be a little creative with your answer and make sure that we have your contact info!

Giveaway #2 - Win a Bambina Ballerina Bowholder of Trisha’s Choice:

• Post about this Bambina Ballerina giveaway on your blog.
• Leave a comment on this post with the link to your post to be entered to win!

Good luck! One of my favorites is pictured above. {pic taken from Bambina Ballerina website}

Memorial Day Contest Round Up

An Ordinary Life is giving away a Dyson. Kristen wants to know why we need one. Let's see, above is 1 reason! My furball cat, she seriously sheds worse then a dog, it is crazy. Reason 2 is my kids! They are messy little buggers and both have allergies/asthma. I actually have a third reason, the last time we moved we left our vacuum. I know, stupid huh. We are using a hand me down at the moment that lacks the needed suction :)

Envyla is holding a contest for a MomAgenda. These are geared towards moms & look they would really help organize your life. I sure need that, let me tell you! Enter the contest here by May 31st.

Stone Soup is holding another Monday Giveaway, go check it out here. Get your entry in by Sunday noon.

Chic Shopper Chick is having a great giveaway from From*Me Tees, enter by June 1st.

Win a $10 gift card to Starbucks at What's that smell? Enter by June 6th.

Weekend Snapshot ~ Memorial day Weekend

Nothing exciting this weekend. My husband took the kids away for the weekend, and I have been cleaning my 10 year olds room. Can we say disgusting, ugh that girl!

Ginny's Weekly Recap

I have decided to start doing a weekly recap of things that have happened this week. Part of why I blog is to keep track of things going on in my life. Some things I never get around to posting, so I thought maybe this would be an easier way to get things recorded.

This was a big week for my oldest daughter. She graduated 5th grade on Thursday! It was a cute ceremony. They put together a very sweet dvd with a bunch of pictures of all the kids. We were able to order a copy for $3. We still have dare graduation, a fun night & a field day. There is so much going on before school gets out.

So you think you can dance started back up again this week. I only caught part of Thursdays show. My kids & I love this show, we've been watching it since it started. One of the reason that I really like this show is it is real people trying to achieve a dream. The talent is just amazing! I can't get over the hip-hop dancers. The things that they can do, usually with no training just amazes me. Robert Muraine was just amazing. Click his name to see his audition, seriously crazy! Twitch is another favorite and Victor Kim. There were a couple girls that I really enjoyed as well. Kherington Payne was one of them, I can't find the name of the other girl. She was the one that had been all over the place last year, she did good this year. Of course, Sex, came back on the show. Seriously is that guy crazy or what?

My new favorite snack is Banana Chips. I've always liked them, but for some reason have been craving them lately! I bought a big container of them! I was snacking on some at dance the other day. Some mom was like, you know those aren't good for you right. I was like WTF? Such an odd comment. The other lady we were talking too was like, ok. The women just kept saying, just didn't want anyone thinking they were eating a healthy snack. Very strange!

I recently finished a ton of books, including Real Murders by Charlaine Harris, California Demons by Julie Kenner and 7th Heaven by James Patterson. Thinking about reviewing them, we'll see. I just started reading Long Ride Home by Susan K. Marlow, which I will be reviewing, so stay tuned!

Fun Blog to check out, The Fail Blog. Very funny pictures, really enjoying this blog!

My first post went live on Chrysanthemoms, go check it out here. Feel free to leave a comment :)

I have a bunch of reviews coming up as well. I already mentioned Long Ride Home. I will also be reviewing Prima Princessa Presents Swan Lake, the Couponizer and a few other things!

Annoyed with Ebay Customer!

I normally try not to publicly complain about my ebay customers, but I am so mad right now! I sold a Scraprack, the woman paid on May 12th via Paypal e-check. The e-check finally clears on May 21st, and I shipped the SAME day via UPS ground with tracking. Then I log into my paypal account today, and I am negative almost $200 because the woman filed a claim on the 23rd. I am furious! I think that is a bunch of crap that paypal will hold the money before I even respond. Plus ebay just changed their policy that customers cannot receive negatives anymore. Which I have been against since they made that crazy announcement.

I just love how she waits till a holiday weekend to start asking questions. Ugh, I am so mad. Who knows when this will be resolved, meanwhile my stock is on it's way to her home & my money is floating around in paypal cyberspace.