Friday, February 27, 2009

And the winner of the pendant giveaway is...

Sump'n Sassy
I will be contacting you for your address soon. Congratulations and thanks for entering!


**Don't miss the post below this one. I have a creative challenge going on and the winner gets to "spend" up to $20 in my etsy shop on me.

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(¸.·´ (¸.·´★*¨¨*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆Kristie★*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆

Creative Challenge



And a PRIZE to boot! Read on for instructions.

I challenge you to create something beautiful this coming week. Something different than your usual craft, or your known craft with a different twist.
For example: If you normally sew you can still sew, just not fabric. OR, use your fabric in creating something, not sewn.
If you scrap, you can use paper in your creation, but not a layout or a card, etc. If you crochet or knit use the yarn in a different way other than knitting or crocheting. Does that makes sense? It's really not that hard.

Some of you may ask what is beautiful and who is to judge? That's easy. It is what ever you, the creator think is beautiful. And I will get the tough job of judging. ;)

Maybe you have an awesome collection of gizmos and gadgets, buttons and ribbons, rusted doohickeys, old magazines, old lace, old...anything. Maybe you have brand spanking new do-dads that you could throw together and just see what happens. It's about having fun. Once you've made your new beauty I want to hear all the details. What is was like being creative outside of the box. What you think of the finished creation. Anything you want to tell me about it!

It doesn't matter what you make.

If you're taking my challenge post here to let me know. When you've finished your beautiful piece post back here with a link to a picture of it. I'll pick my favorite item and that person will get to pick something from my etsy shop valued up to $20.

You have until Sunday, March 8th to get your entry in. I will announce the winner on Monday, March 9th.


Obviously I can not enter my own challenge. But here is something to get your creative juices flowing...

It's made with a skeleton key that was given a crackle finish, sanded and inked a bit. I tied on a piece of a real clothing pattern, a strip of tea stained muslin fabric, and ribbon made of threads that I coiled. It's topped off with a crocheted flower and small sprig of pink pepperberries that I got from Ryan. I love it and plan to hang it on my TV armoire by my bed.

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(¸.·´ (¸.·´★*¨¨*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆Kristie★*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆

Thursday, February 26, 2009

Good Deal Alert

Time to stock up!

There are coupons for .75/1 can of Sweet Sue White Chunk Chicken in the 1/18/09 Smart Source inserts, (coupon exp. 4/30/09).
At Dollar General they sell these for $1/can. So, .25/can after coupon.
If you have a Save A Lot it sells there for .99/can. A penny cheaper still. =)

Now, word has it that DG is switching out this brand and replacing it with another brand. So, don't be surprised if your DG is sold out. Luckily the DG I checked still had well over 120 cans. And I plan to get them all, HA, HA, HA. I went tonight and got 40 cans. Then I came home and ordered more coupons since it's a reg. item at Save A Lot I don't have to worry about hunting all over town for it. Best of all the exp. date on the cans I got isn't until 10/2010 and we will go through it WAY before that. The cans are little and it takes anywhere from 4-6 cans just to make fajitas for everyone.

Before I tried this I had never had canned chicken and honestly, the thought of it was offputting to me. All I could mentally picture was grissly bits and parts with some faint pieces of chicken in the mix. LOL That is not the case at all! It is truley clean, all white meat chicken and it tastes great.

What can you DO with it? Glad you asked.
chicken casseroles
chicken fajitas/burritos/tacos
chicken soups
chicken salads
chicken stir-fry
and many, many, many, many other things!

If you have other suggestions on meals to use this in let me know.


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(¸.·´ (¸.·´★*¨¨*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆Kristie★*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Reminder- New Trading Blog

Hey guys,
I made another blog called The Trade, Swap, and Barter Blog just for listing our trades. Since we've talked about it so much I thought it would be neat to have a place dedicated just for swapping and trading without having to wade through posts on every topic under the sun. lol

I hope all of you that are interested will follow it and be active participants. I think it could be a lot of fun and a good way to exchange something you no longer what for something you do want.

Since this is a new idea I'm going to give it about 6 months to see if it proves to be useful. If not I will delete it after that time. Please give it a look and let me know what you think.
I hope it will be enjoyed.

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(¸.·´ (¸.·´★*¨¨*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆Kristie★*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆

Monday, February 23, 2009

What's a good price on...

meats?
Specifically hamburger meat, chicken thighs, beef and pork roasts?
This is an area I am really unfamiliar with and have always just grabbed a pack of whatever meat I was after without any concern for the price.
Now that I have the deep freeze I want to focus on stocking up on meats but I want to get the meats at a good price, too.

One of my stores has hamburger for $1.29lb. this week. Is that good???


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(¸.·´ (¸.·´★*¨¨*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆Kristie★*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆

Dressed up taper candles.

I have such a split personality in that I like to decorate my home with primitive/ rustic things, yet I also love me some ultra feminine. I guess that's where they came up with shabby chic?

At any rate, I took some taper candles that I had and got a fun idea to jazz them up. Or as Emeril would say, "kick it up a notch."

They are wrapped in Felt Fusion so I wouldn't suggest burning them, but I think I'll put the black set on the nightstand by my bed. I love how they turned out and thought I'd share.
If I make more I might list a set or two on the Trade Blog. Any interest?


The black Felt Fusion is a flower, butterfly, and dragonfly pattern. The green is a scrolling leafy design.

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(¸.·´ (¸.·´★*¨¨*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆Kristie★*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆

Saturday, February 21, 2009

CVS Feb. 21st

I got $95.13 in product for only $3.82 real cash. I "rolled" $21.96 in EBs and got back $23.99, so a little bit of a money maker, but my OOP was a little higher than I would like.

11 cans Satin Care shave gel
6 trial size Head & Shoulder shampoos
4 boxes Trail Mix Crunch cereal
4 bags Ritz Bits
4 Neutrogena facial cleansing bars
2 6 Hour Energy shot packs
2 Fusion razors
1 Maybelline Dream Matte foundation

34 items total


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(¸.·´ (¸.·´★*¨¨*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆Kristie★*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆

Thursday, February 19, 2009

A place to trade.

Hey guys,
I made another blog called The Trade, Swap, and Barter Blog just for listing our trades. Since we've talked about it so much I thought it would be neat to have a place dedicated just for swapping and trading without having to wade through posts on every topic under the sun. lol

I hope all of you that are interested will follow it and be active participants. I think it could be a lot of fun and a good way to exchange something you no longer what for something you do want.

Since this is a new idea I'm going to give it about 6 months to see if it proves to be useful. If not I will delete it after that time. Please give it a look and let me know what you think.
I hope it will be enjoyed.

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(¸.·´ (¸.·´¸.·´¸.·*´¨) ¸.·*´¨)
(¸.·´ (¸.·´★*¨¨*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆Kristie★*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆

Thank You, Miranda!

In the mail today there was this beautiful bath cupcake that Miranda
sent to me. I will give it a try soon, though honestly I almost hate to use it because it is so pretty. It smells delicious and just looking at it is making me hungry! LOL
Thank you, Miranda! I can't wait to see what else you whip up.

Here are some others she has made. Don't they look awesome!


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(¸.·´ (¸.·´★*¨¨*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆Kristie★*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆

A few days left to get entered.

REPosting: Don't forget! The chance to win the pendant is good through Feb. 28th. You do not have to reply to this post but instead you need to FOLLOW my blog and post about the giveaway on YOUR blog to be fully entered. Doing one and not the other won't count. ;)

Pendant Giveaway!

Someone is going to win this tri-strand pendant made of yellow, pink, and purple Candy Jade beads with prong set crystals at the tips of the sterling silver headpins.
It will come to you in a gift box and purple velvetty drawstring sachet.
To be entered just follow my blog, and post this giveaway on your blog as well.

On Feb. 28th I will announce the name of the winner.
Good luck!
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(¸.·´ (¸.·´¸.·´¸.·*´¨) ¸.·*´¨)
(¸.·´ (¸.·´★*¨¨*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆Kristie★*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

Grocery Stockpile and other Updates

BEFORE
This is what the shelves looked like the first time I shared a picture.


AFTER
This is what it looks like now. I still don't have everything I want but I think it's coming along quite nicely. It's all stuff that we like and will eat. (Except the Electrasol and trash bags of course!)
Sometimes I look at other stockpiles and wonder...do they really eat all of that stuff or is he/she stockpiling it for stockpiling sake? KWIM? Well, that's not the case here. =)

On another good note DH just went and got a deep freeze that I found on Craigslist. Got it for a steal and now I can focus on stocking up on freezer goods. We got ALL new water lines installed finally. I'm a happy girl today. If only Chris didn't have to leave out for work tomorrow, and that darn newspaper with the coupons was still available my world would be close to perfect right now. lol

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(¸.·´ (¸.·´★*¨¨*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆Kristie★*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆

EDIT: Someone said they couldn't see the Electrasol. Click the second picture. It enlarges. =)

Saturday, February 14, 2009

CVS Feb.14th

Tonight was another good CVS trip. Everything fell in to place and I got everything on my list.
The retail value of everything you see was $136.94. I only paid $2.54!
My coupons made the razors, the Ritz, the Gillette shampoo, and the trial size Head & Shoulders absolutely FREE. The energy drinks, ear rinse, and aspirin were free without coupons, and the Colgate toothpaste was a money maker with coupons. I got back $3 MORE in ECBs than I spent. A good week indeed.

Just for fun I listed what I'll be keeping and what will be given away.
7 Gillette Shampoos- keep!
6 Ritz Bits- keep
4 Colgate toothpastes- give away!
3 large Head & Shoulders shampoos- keep
2 trial size Head & Shoulders shampoos- keep
2 6 Hour Energy shots- keep
2 EARinse- give away
2 Fusion Gamer razors- keep
1 CVS aspirin- give away

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(¸.·´ (¸.·´★*¨¨*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆Kristie★*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆

Sad news for me.

Dear Friends,
It has come to my attention that there will no longer be any Knoxville News Sentinel newspapers delivered to my area. The reason? The economy.

Why does this matter to me? Because that ONE Knox paper is the ONLY one around here that had the coupon inserts in them. (Proctor & Gamble or P&G, SmartSource, and Red Plum/Valassis)
Not being able to buy that paper every Sunday to get those inserts pretty much cuts off the life blood of my CVS deals and grocery stockpiling.
You see, I live over 70 miles away from Knoxville and I guess it has become cost prohibitive for them to deliver that paper to this area now.

Thank goodness I have of a couple of friends that send me what they won't use. Believe me I appreciate that very, very much.
My only other option is to look at the advance ads the minute they come out and try to ORDER (read: PAY) for the coupons for the upcoming deals/sales. This is not good. Sometimes the ads are not posted THAT far in advance. Shipping inserts is also expensive now too.

I am so sad about this guys. All the little white paper boxes are gone. Walgreens used to sell them inside the store and those are now gone too. =(

If anyone knows of another way I could acquire the inserts on a weekly basis, PLEASE let me know.

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(¸.·´ (¸.·´★*¨¨*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆Kristie★*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆

Pay It Forward

Since I was one of the lucky winners of Peggy's PIF , I now get the joy of passing on the fun.

I will randomly pull 5 items to give away. Might be some jewelry, some grubby taper candles I made, something I've sewn...you'll just have to wait and see. (wink)

Now, listen carefully. The first 5 people to post will be the winners. You will know if you are the in the first five right away since I do not approve replies before they get posted. lol You are responsible for making sure I have your mailing address. You can leave your email address in your reply and I will email you for your mailing address, OR convo it to me over at my etsy shop .

If you are one of the first 5 to respond you must then have a PIF on your on blog for the first 5 to reply. And on it goes. =) Good luck!

Ok, ready...


set...



POST!



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(¸.·´ (¸.·´★*¨¨*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆Kristie★*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆

Sunday, February 08, 2009

Hello from Greensboro, NC.

(Waves) Hi Everyone!
Well, as you can tell from the title I am in Greensboro, NC.
The family loaded up and came with Chris, as you probably guessed. I'm so transparent that way. lol
Looks like we will be here for a week.
One nasty snag- the GPS doesn't recognize this new road that we're on and so we had a rough time getting where we were supposed to be. I have to drive home without Chris and I am wondering how on earth I am going to find my way out of here.

Well, I guess that's all for now. Take care everyone.


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(¸.·´ (¸.·´★*¨¨*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆Kristie★*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆

Saturday, February 07, 2009

REPosting: Don't forget! The chance to win the pendant is good through Feb. 28th. You do not have to reply to this post but instead you need to FOLLOW my blog and post about the giveaway on YOUR blog to be fully entered. Doing one and not the other won't count. ;)

Pendant Giveaway!

Someone is going to win this tri-strand pendant made of yellow, pink, and purple Candy Jade beads with prong set crystals at the tips of the sterling silver headpins.
It will come to you in a gift box and purple velvetty drawstring sachet.
To be entered just follow my blog, and post this giveaway on your blog as well.

On Feb. 28th I will announce the name of the winner.
Good luck!
.·´¸.·*´¨) ¸.·*´¨)
(¸.·´ (¸.·´¸.·´¸.·*´¨) ¸.·*´¨)
(¸.·´ (¸.·´★*¨¨*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆Kristie★*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆

Friday, February 06, 2009

I'm so PROUD of you!!!

That handsome guy on the left is my hubby Chris. I just got a call from him telling me that he has been officially promoted to Head Supervisor. That means he is the supervisor of all the supervisors. LOL It also means a company vehicle, more time home, from hourly to salary with a dandy raise! (No more missed paychecks for his home time!)

CONGRATULATIONS, CHRIS! I am so very proud of you. You deserve it!
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(¸.·´ (¸.·´★*¨¨*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆Kristie★*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆

Thursday, February 05, 2009

Help me. LOL

Help us solve this mystery item.
My DS found this, this...thing under our house today. I have never seen it before in my life and we can not figure out what it is.
At first I thought it was an ordinary cooking pot of some sort, but it has plastic feet on the bottom of it. So? That wouldn't be used on a stove eye or even over an open fire.
It's made by Regal. It's aluminum, and apparently it used to have a lid that went on it.



Does anyone have the answer for me? What exactly is it and what is it used for? We would appreciate your help.

(Sorry it is dirty. Like I said it was under our house. LOL)

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(¸.·´ (¸.·´★*¨¨*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆Kristie★*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆

What angers me.

My friend Janera had a post on her blog talking about what she loathes. Well, this is my version of what really angers me.
Companies that put out printable coupons that WASTE SO MUCH INK! Yes, I'm yelling. Sorry.
But, c'mon people. I'm printing coupons to SAVE money. What good is a $1 off on the cereal if I am using up $1 worth of my ink? I mean LOOK at all the ink wasted so unneccessarily!
And, It's not like you have any way of knowing it is going to be an ink-hog beforehand. Oh no! You don't find that out until you're half way through the printing process. Sneaky, sneaky, and downright mean if you ask me. I also happen to have one of those printers that, if I tell it to cancel mid way through a job it gives me nothing but trouble and will NOT print anything else until it finishes printing the previously cancelled job.

If anyone affiliated with Kellogg's reads this (HA, HA) you should know that I plan to use this coupon and then I am NEVER printing another one of your coupons again. I will also think about your wastefulness every time I see a box of Kellogg's cereal.

And this folks, this angers me.



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(¸.·´ (¸.·´★*¨¨*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆Kristie★*¨☆¨★*☆★*¨¨*☆

Tuesday, February 03, 2009

Pendant Giveaway!

Someone is going to win this tri-strand pendant made of yellow, pink, and purple Candy Jade beads with prong set crystals at the tips of the sterling silver headpins.
It will come to you in a gift box and purple velvetty drawstring sachet.
To be entered just follow my blog, and post this giveaway on your blog as well.

On Feb. 28th I will announce the name of the winner.
Good luck!

Monday, February 02, 2009

SNOW!

It's actually SNOWING here today. YAY!


Sunday, February 01, 2009

CVS loot for Sat. Jan. 31st

I got $98.87 worth of product for only .28, yes .28 CENTS!

My plan worked out SWEET! I was only able to get 5 boxes of Electrasol at CVS, but even so my $/$$ coupon that CVS emailed to me paid all the taxes on it and my other coupons. (THANK YOU SO MUCH, CVS!)
I also grabbed yet another Fusion Gamer razor, a Gillette body wash, 4 L'oreal cleansers, Excedrin, 2 Theraflu, 2 packs of Whiskas Temptations cat treats, and went in the negative!
So, I grabbed a .50 roll of Spree candy and my total OOP (out of pocket) was .28 for everything. I used $30 in EBs and got back $31.49 in EBs.

I then proceeded to WM where they were more than happy to price match on the Electrasol, and were even as excited as I was about having "all those coupons." So, I grabbed 12 more boxes there. I got 17 total boxes of Electrasol between CVS and WM.
I am home. I am officially out of Electrasol coupons, and I am one very happy shopper. Shopping for free is the bestest.