DIY Record Dessert Stand Tutorial

So, I recently created these dessert stands for my little guys birthday party and they were so easy that I just had to share a how to....

1. Get some glass candle holders from the Dollar Tree. Mine were for votives, but taper holders would work just as well.

2. Grab a can of spray paint and give 2 thorough coats. I had red on hand, and that worked great with my color scheme.

3. Lay records on a flat surface. (I got mine from Goodwill for $0.25 each!) Put some Krazy Glue all over the rim of the top of the candle holder and stick it to the middle. Allow to dry and voila! (Since we were doing a Beatles themed party, DaHubby printed out some stickers from his computer to cover over the original label on the record.)

4. Adorn with goodies! We obviously did yellow submarines out of twinkles, but they will hold just about anything.

Tip: These are not that sturdy, so choose things that you can balance or buy wide candle holders.

Also, don't be crazy and do this to your real record collection!

Total cost: $5 for 4 stands!!!

More Beatles Bday Party details coming soon...

Sweet Curious George Birthday Party

My friend Kristin just threw the most adorable Curious George party for her little girl's 1st birthday!

We were so excited to attend since she is my little guy's bff. I will let the pictures do most of the talking, but I picked up a lot of great ideas from her brilliant decorations! Tables were topped with stuffed Georges as well as books checked out of the library. Can you say "free"? Amen.

All the snacks were laid out so thoughtfully and so baby-friendly!

Those are just disposable shot glasses from the Dollar Tree filled with yogurt melts, and Kristin printed custom labels for the tops of the fruit cups. Genius. Frugal. Spectacular. Stealing.

You have to love the yellow hat left behind by George's friend. It's just a sombrero from the Dollar Tree spray painted and adorned with kiddy puzzles!

The favors for the kiddy's were Curious George activity packs and books, bubbles, and socks. Many of the items just happened to pop up in Target the week beforehand. You have to love that! Favors for the adults were these perfect sugar cookies made by a friend of the family. They were delicious and such exquisite work!

I only wish I had a picture of the adorable yellow-hat-shaped smash cake that our friend Renee made, but alas, my arms were full of my own cupcake-hungry boy.

There you have it! Hope these pics inspire your next party!

Almost $400 in groceries for $118!!

Wow! I just had to share what I think is a great haul...

Total Value $370.88 for $135 Out of Pocket, Plus I Ended with $7 in Rewards & $10 Gift Card! True Cost = $118 which is a 68% savings on real, honest-to-goodness groceries!!

For those who don’t care to know the details, the abreviated list included a 6 month supply of paper towels, a 3 month supply of laundry detergent, 2 full size pizzas, 13 cans of soup, 3 boxes of cereal, 6 free 2-liters of soda, the most perfect pumpkin ever, and a bunch of other stuff we needed for this week and to build our stockpile!

For those who are curious to know how I did this, here’s what I bought and where....

CVS: (Value $88.73 , Out of Pocket $36.77, Gift Cards/Reward Earned $13 , Adjusted Total $23.77)

• Transaction #1 (Total after using coupons and previously earned ECBs= $1.67, earned $4 new ECBs)

Buy 2 CoverGirl Blushes $4.99
Use $8.00/2 Covergirl Face Products, Limit 4 Like coupons per transaction from PG 10/2 (exp 10/31)
Pay $1.98, Receive $3.00 Extra Bucks
Final Price: $1.02 Moneymaker

Progresso Soup, 18.5-19 oz $1.66
Buy 4, Receive $1.00 Extra Bucks, Limit 1
Use $1.00/4 Progresso Soups any flavor from GM 10/2 (exp 11/26)
or $1.00/4 Progresso Soups any flavor from GM 9/11 (exp 11/5)
Pay $4.00, Receive $1.00 Extra Bucks
Final Price: $0.75 each when you buy 4

Gold Emblem Candy Corn, Autumn Mix, or Pumpkins, 8 oz $0.10
Limit 2

• Transaction #2 (Total after tax and applying $4 ECBs fm Trans #1= $35.10, but earned $3 new ECBs plus a $10 Amex Gift Card)

Starbursts, Singles $0.50
Buy 4, Receive $1.00 Extra Buck, Limit 1
Use 2 B1G1 Free – Starbursts, Singles, CVS Coupon – (cvs.com)
Pay $1.00, Receive $1.00 Extra Buck
Final Price: Free when you buy 4

CVS Jumbo Pack Supreme Diapers or Training Pants, $6.99
Get $2 ECBs (Limit 1)
Use $4/2 coupon from the coupon machine last week, Pay $10, get $2 ECBs back

Buy 5 Scott Choose – A – Size Mega Rolls, 6 Pack $6.00
Use 5 $1.00/4 Scott Towels, 4 or more rolls from SS 9/11 (exp 10/23)
Pay $25.00, Receive $10.00 Gift Card
Final Price: $3.00 each when you buy 5

Albertsons (Value $138.10, OOP $50.85)

Coffee-Mate, 16 oz, Sale $2.00, bought 2, Used 2 $0.55/1 printable coupons, Final Price $1.45 each

La Victoria Sals 16oz & La Victoria Enchilada Sauce 28oz $1.50/each, bought 4 of each Used 4 $1/2 coupons fm 8/14 SS Final Price $1/each

Smart Ones, included in buy 10/save $5 promotion, $1.79 after discount, bought 10 Used $3/10 coupon fm 8/7 SS Final Price $1.49 each

2 Fiber Plus Cereals, included in buy 10/save $5 promotion, $2.29 after discount Used 2 $1/1 printable coupons Final Price $1.29 each

Campbells Select Harvest Soups, included in buy 10/save $5 promotion, $1.29 after dis bought 9, used 3 $1.00/3 printable coupons Final Price $0.95 each

Best Life Spread, $2.89 sale price Used $0.50 catalina coupon fm last visit Final Price $2.39

Dr Pepper 10, $1.69 sale price (they only had one, so that’s what I got) Used Free Coupon fm SS 10/9 Final Price Free!!

Idahoan Loaded Potatoes $1.69 Used Free coupon fm October All You Magazine Final Price Free!!

Maxwell House Coffee, $8.99 sale price (not a great price, but needed and got me free cereal!)

Honey Nut Cheerios- Free with Coffee purchase!

Starbucks canned coffee- $2 (very much needed since I couldn’t go home to brew the Maxwell house above)

Walgreens: (Value $24.11, Out of Pocket $11.38)

Now, here I got a little messed up because the Infant Care Booklet and November Booklet did not arrive in my Walgreens on time. Below are the deals you could do, but above is the total I actually paid. :(

Huggies Baby Wipes, Refill Pack, 184 to 216 ct $4.99, On Sale Starting 10/23
Use $0.50/1 Huggies Wipes, 64 ct+ from SS 10/23
And Use $2.00/1 Huggies Big Pack or Wipes, 184 ct or 216 ct from Walgreens Infant Care Booklet (4 digit code #5519)
Final Price: $2.49

DiGiorno Pizza, 12 in $5.00
When you buy 2
Use 2 $2.00/1 – Digiorno Pizza – (facebook.com)
And Use $1.00/2 DiGiorno Pizza, 12 in from Walgreens November Booklet
Final Price: $2.50 each when you buy 2/

Foods Co: (Value $40 at least , OOP $20.53)

I lost my receipt, so I can’t give you exactly how much I got on the produce, but my total above should be pretty accurate. The perfect pumpkin was my deal of the day!!!

Hass Avocados- $0.79/each (a staple for the baby)

Granny Smith Apples- $.49/lb

Italian Squash- $.78/lb

Yellow Onions- $.25/lb

Kroger Pancake Mix 32oz, or Syrup 24oz- $1.68, got 3 of each

Amazing Perfect Pumpkins- $2.98 each!!

Rite-Aid: (Value $45.56, OOP $2.91 after Up Rewards, earned $4 new Up Rewards)

Xtra Laundry Detergent or Nice ‘n Fluffy Softener $2.00
Buy 3, Receive $2.00 +Up Reward
Pay $6.00, Receive $2.00 +Up Reward
Final Price: $1.33 each when you buy 3

Always, Carefree, or Kotex Liners $1.00
Use 2 $0.50/1 Carefree product, any from SS 8/21
Or $1.00/2 – Carefree, 18-22ct – (adperk.com)
Final Price: 2 for FREE

Arm & Hammer Toothpaste, Orajel Toddler Toothpaste, Baby Tooth and Gum Cleaner $3.99
Buy 1, Receive $2.00 +Up Reward
$1.00/1 Orajel Kids MY WAY toothpaste from SS 10/26
Pay $2.99, Receive $2.00 +Up Reward
Final Price: $0.99

Can of Sliced Pineapple $1.79 (not a great deal, but I needed them and had Rewards to spend)

Cover Girl Eyeliner $5.99, Sale BOGO 50% off, Use $8/2 coupon fm PG 10/2= Free, so I picked up 4!! (I now have all the makeup I’ll need for 2012!!!

Save-Mart: (Value $29.68, OOP after tax and coupons $7.16)

Dr. Pepper Ten 2-liters, $1.49 each (on sale fm $1.99), bought 5, Used Free coupons fm SS 10/9 = Free for all 5!!!

Pillsbury Cake Mix, $0.88 with in store coupon, limit 4, bought 4= $3.52

Black Plums, $0.47/lb, bought 1.78 lbs= $0.84

Sunrype Fruit leather (just a little snack to pick me up after shopping). $1.00

Roma Tomatoes, $0.47/lb, bought 1.54 lbs= $0.72

Dollar Tree: (OOP after tax $4.70)

Diet Pepsi- $1 (much needed as this was my last stop)

Black Licorice- $1

Canned Vegetables, sale $0.79, bought 2 (not a great price, but I needed them)

Whipped Topping- $1

Now, if I had packed my own snacks and coffee, and gotten the discounts I was expecting at Walgreens, my savings would have been much higher. But! I am not striving to show you perfection, I aim only to encourage you to do the work to get your family all the things you need for less!

Check out www.saveathomemommy.com for local grocery deals. You can even click and print a shopping list right from the site listing all the coupons you'll need to get the best prices! Happy Hunting!

Spent $32.56, saved $71.79= 69% saved! Plus I got $4 back!!

Here's my latest trip to Albertsons....

• 3 boxes of Kraft Velveeta Cheesy Skillets, Sale 3/$5 or $1.67 each

Use 3 $1/1 from SS 8/21

Pay $0.67, get $1 coupon back for meat= $0.33 moneymaker on each!!

• 7 Ken's Steak House Dressing, 16oz, Sale 10/$10

Use 7 $1/1 from SS 8/14

Pay $0.00, FREE!!!

• 6 Chex Mix Sweet & Salty, 8.75oz, Sale 10/$10

Use 6 $0.50/1 from SS 7/10

Pay $0.50 each

• 1 Frigo String Cheese, Sale $3.49

Use $0.55/1 from SS 8/21

Pay $2.94

• 2 Fresh Express Salad Kits, Sale 2/$6

Use Buy 2 kits, get free bag of Tyson Cooked Chicken Strips

Pay $6 for both bags of salad and bag of pre-cooked chicken

• 2 Pam non-stick cooking spray, sale 2/$5

Use 2 $0/35/1 from SS 8/7

Pay $4.30, get catalina for $1 on next order= $3.30 for both or $1.65 each

• 1 Minute Maid Lemonade, Sale 10/$10 (no coupon, but Auntie Sissy is babysitting and she likes lemonade)
• Eggs $2.79 (not a great price, but what are you gonna do?)
• Pluots $2.65
• Don Francisco coffee, sale $6.49 (Crud! I had a coupon and forgot it!)
• Albertsons English Muffins, Sale $1.39 (this is a great example of saving with generics if you don't have coupons for the items you want/need)

My heart beat a little hard when the register read $104.35, but after Preferred Club Card and coupons, my total came down to $32.56, and the cashier handed me $4 in coupons back. Phew! This, my friends, is how you get coupons on meat....use coupons to buy things that earn you meat coupons! It's just that easy!

And there you have it! I cleared no shelves, so you should be able to grab these deals too! I especially recommend the free salad dressing, thank you very much! ;)

Rocket Cake

Here's my latest adventure in cake decorating.... Rocket from Little Einsteins!

My nephew wanted a Rocket cake for his 4th birthday, so I did my best. I used a 1/2 sheet cake for the base and iced it in a sky blue. The Rocket itself was made of 1 oval cake baked in a Pyrex dish and a round cake baked in a Pyrex. I chose Pyrex so there wouldn't be any hard edges. The boosters are Twinkies with graham crackers cut at an angle. I put a couple of orange Candy Melts (the kind used for molds) as headlights, an unwrapped cherry Blowpop for the antenna, Twizzlers Pull-n-peels for the seeming, and red hots for the rivets. (The red hots were a last minute idea from Dahubby. Brilliant!) The clouds were just good old-fashioned white icing squeezed out of a Ziploc freezer bag that was snipped 1/2" at the corner and generously mounded. Not perfect, by any means, but recognizable to Jaxen, and that's all that matters!! I think the key is to just get in there and do it. Be fearless in the kitchen!

In my mailbox..

A while ago I signed up for Vocal Point. It's a company that sends you free items to try so that you can blog about them. Well, my first freebie came recently...a full size bottle of Downy Unstoppables Fabric Freshener Crystals. (It came with the cutie ankle socks pictured.)

So, I gave it a try, and I like it! When you're doing P90X as I am, your workout clothes take a smelly beating, and most times my shirts come out of the wash smelling like melted deodorant. Instead, with Unstoppables, they came out smelling fresh and super clean. Maybe it's an illusion. Maybe it's magic. ;) I was worried the smell would be overpowering (which it was not after the wash), or that the freshness would fade, but so far so good. I am currently wearing a shirt that was washed 4 days ago and it smells like it just came out of the dryer.

Now, will I buy this product without high value coupons?

No, but that's how I am with everything!

Spent $34.29, Saved $47.63 & Got $12 back!!!

If you've talked to me recently about couponing, you know that I have been attempting to focus my energies on the grocery stores rather than simply the drugstores. Here's why- toothpaste, shampoo and body wash pretty much all go on sale every couple of months so it's not difficult to create a stockpile of these items. It's not, however, going to feed my family. I have to focus my grocery budget on food! So, since I now have a 2-3 months supply of most health and beauty items from my first couple of months doing this coupon thing, I'm waging war on Albertsons!! (And Vons and Winco and any other store I can get good deals at.) Here's my adventure today.....

• 4 Crest Toothpastes, Regularly $3.79 each, Sale 2 for $3

Used 4 $0.75/1 coupons

Paid $3 for all three, got 2 $1 catalinas from Albertsons and 1 $2 from Crest

(Since I paid $3 and got $4 back, this was actually a moneymaker!!!)

• 2 4-packs of Dannon Light and Fit yogurt, Regularly $2.99 each, Sale 2 for $4

Used 2 $1/1 coupons

Paid $ 2, got $1 catalina back from Albertsons

• 1 Gallon of Fat Free Milk, Regular Price $3.89

Used "Free Milk" Catalina from previous General Mills purchase

Since the value of the coupon is for $4.50, the cashier gave me the overage of $0.61!!!

• 1 Pkg of Johnsonville Italian Sausage, Regularly $5.99, Sale $4.29

Used $1/1 coupon

Paid $3.29, Got 1 $1 Catalina from Albertsons

• 2 Lucky Charms, Regularly $3.99, Sale 4/$10

(Ok, so I went in with Honey Nut Cheerios coupons, but the participating size was sold out. I only got the Lucky Charms because they went with the General Mills deal for free milk fm GM and $ Catalinas fm Albertsons. I will probably make some marshmallowy treat with them.)

Paid $5, Got Free Milk Catalina from GM and $2 Catalina fm Albertsons

• 2 Boxes of Nature Vally Granola Bars, Regularly $4.19, Sale 4/$10

Used 1 $0.75/2 coupon

Paid $4.25, got the Catalinas already listed above (this was one deal with GM cereals)

• 2 Boxes Emerald Breakfast-on-the-Go, Regularly $3.59, Sale 2/$5

Used 2 $1/1 coupons

Paid $3, got $1 Catalina from Albertsons

• 1 12-pack of Quilted Northern Toilet paper, Regularly $ 10.49, Sale $6.49

Paid $6.49, got $1 Catalina from Albertsons

• 1 tub of Cottage Cheese $2.70

No coupons, just needed it

• 1 bunch of bananas $1.51
• 1 lb of Strawberries $3.99,

(Ok here I got robbed because the price listed on the shelf was $1.99, but when I got home and checked the ad, they are supposed to be BOGO at $3.99 and the cashier simply didn't say anything. Good reason to keep the weekly ad with you when you shop! Either way, they are much cheaper at Vons this week. I just didn't have any other deals I liked at Vons this week.)

Also pictured are 3 items from Target....

• 2 10-packs Papermate pens, Sale $1 each

Used $1/1 Target coupon

Paid: $0 - 2 pack for Free!!!

• 1 5ct pack of Zyrtec, Sale $5.29

Used $5/1 coupon from Walmart website

Paid: $0.29

....So that's how I spent $34.29, Saved $47.63, and came away with $12 in Catalinas that can be used toward my next Albertsons purchase...oooh! and a Catalina for another free milk! Life is good!

There are a lot of great deals listed in the weekly ads. For coupon match ups, check www.saveathomemommy.com or use her Coupon Database to search for coupons that you can use. I hope this helps/encourages you to go and get great saving for yourself this week!