Justin Timberlake + interior design?!?!

Well we all know Justin Timberlake can sing, act and host SNL with the best of them, but now he is also apparently launching a line of home goods according to InStyle. JT has teamed up with an interior decorator to create a line of "wallet friendly" home goods. The home goods are available online only through homemint.com, which will officially launch in May. You can become a member of the HomeMint website for $10 a month which would allow you early access to products and discounts, but you dont have to become a member to shop the site :). If you would like to check it out click this link here: http://hmnt.co/WC2. Personally I can't wait to see what he comes up with! Especially since it is supposedly "wallet friendly"!!

New obsession...Sneakpeeq!!

Well I just discovered a new site that will help me waste time online...Sneakpeeq!!!! For those of you who haven't heard of the site, its a cool little shopping site that features a bit of everything! I recently signed up for it, and discovered some cute jewelry, purses, and Puma clothes and shoes. Oh and did I mention that you can get it for up to 70% off retail price?!!?

I absolutely LOVE this Puma jacket!!! The retail price is $80, but the Sneakpeeq price is only $48!!! Oh and I forgot to mention that just for signing up you get a $10 credit, making the above jacket only $38!!! Love it!!

With sneakpeeq, you click on the products you like and they will show you the retail price. You then click on the "peeq for your price" button and it will tell you what you will end up paying (plus 5.95 shipping). You are allowed 20 "peeqs" per day, and they seem to add different shops quite frequently. It seriously is kind of addicting :).

So, if you are like me and LOVE shopping, I highly recommend checking them out today. All you need to do is click on the banner located towards the top of my blog and it will take you there. I should let you know that in order to become a member you need a Facebook page with the new "timeline" format. If you haven't already changed to timeline, you might as well do it because as of Feb. 2, they will all be automatically changed anyways.

Check it out and let me know what you think!!!

Taco Casserole Recipe :)

Well if you read my post on my goals for 2012, you will remember that one of them was to try a new recipe every couple weeks (also to coupon more which I will get to later :)). So today I decided to try a recipe, which I found in a Campbell's cookbook. The recipe was for a taco casserole and it seemed pretty easy and didn't require a lot of ingredients, so sounded like a good one to me. Here it is:

1 lb ground beef or ground turkey

1 can (10 3/4 oz) tomato soup

1 cup salsa

1/2 cup UNCOOKED white rice

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup slightly crushed tortilla chips

1/2 cup cheddar cheese

1. Cook meat in 10 inch skillet, until well-browned. Drain off any excess fat after cooking.

2. Mix soup, rice, milk, and salsa in skillet with cooked meat. Stir together.

3. Pour or spoon mixture into 1.5 quart cassrole dish and cover (I acutally used a 2 quart dish, no biggie)

4. Bake at 400 degrees for 25 minutes. Stir

5. Line edges with crushed tortilla chips and top with cheese (I honestly didnt measure my cheese out, just used enough to my preference).

Makes 4 servings

The final product:

The cheese only took a couple minutes to melt. I also added a little sour cream to my serving, which was pretty good. Turned out pretty good, and didn't take long to prepare at all. Good for a quick weeknight meal!

Oh and as I mentioned above, one of my other resolutions was to start couponing again. Check out what I was able to get today from Kroger:

Tide: Reg price 7.99- On sale for 5.99 with Kroger card

Duracell: Reg. price 4.49- On sale for 3.99 with Kroger card

Crest: Reg. price 3.52- On sale for 2.69 with Kroger card

Herbal Essences shampoo: Reg. price 2.99

So here we go, I had a $2 off coupon for the Tide and a $1off coupon for the batteries, shampoo and toothpaste. My Kroger doubles up to $1 so that took off an extra $2.69 (my store doesn't do overages), making my total saved with coupons $7.69. They also had a P&G event sale going on, meaning if you bought 4 P&G products you got an automatic $4 off your total. So subtract the $7.68 from coupons and then the $4 from the event sale and I saved a whopping $11.68!!! Bringing my final total for all the above NAME BRAND products to $3.98 (plus tax)!! Not too shabby at all seeing as how the Tide is normally twice that much alone! So glad I'm back to couponing!!

Bargain Shopping!!!!

There's nothing I like more than getting great products for amazing prices. That is why I always check the clearance sections of EVERY store I go to in pretty much every section. That would be how I was able to get these great toys for my nephew at 50% off or more, which will be used for some of his Christmas gifts.

Retail Price: $39.99

Paid: $9.99

This toy is actually for ages 3+ and my nephew won't even be two by Christmas, but this was too good of a deal to pass up. I will just save it until next Christmas :)

Retail Price: $22.99

Paid: $10.99

This one is ages 18 months and up so he actually will be receiving this one for Christmas this year :)

Retail Price: $19.99

Paid: $9.99

My nephew absolutely LOVES Sesame Street and he was with me when I bought this. He played with it for a long time and then threw it in the back of the cart. He will actually hand you back the toys that he doesn't want so if he throws it in the cart that's a good sign :).

I was also able to get some AMAZING deals on books at Borders since they are closing. Let me tell you, I am pretty sad that they are going out of business, but that doesn't stop me from snagging up the good deals while I can.

Got both of these books for only $3.59 each!

The Cars book actually has 4 jigsaw puzzles inside, plus the sliding puzzle on front.

The recipes in the cook book look absolutely delicious too!

Each of these books cost me only $2.99 each.

The Baby Animals book is a really nice board book too so my nephew won't be able to tear the pages.

This book was 60% off so it only cost me $2.78

I just love all of the Charlie Brown holiday specials when they come on TV so I just had to buy the books for Caden and his new baby brother. This book has stickers inside it too :)

This book was also 60% off so I only paid $3.18 for it.

 Unlike the Thanksgiving one though, this one is actually a board book so I don't have to worry about him tearing the pages.

These two cost me $2.39 each

They are both lift a flap books too.

These books were all only $1.49 each.

I actually ended up getting two of these for free, but didn't realize it until I got home and looked at the receipt. Seven of these are board book also, the only two that aren't are the two Christmas ones in the top row. Let me just say that I read the "Room for A Little One" book that is pictured in the second row and it is such a cute story. The Sponge Bob Christmas tree one is also a lift the flap book.

This book only cost me $1.19.

Not a board book, but my nephew also loves Mickey Mouse Clubhouse so for $1.19, it doesn't really matter if the pages get torn.

All of these book only cost me 50 cents each!!

All of these are also board book, except for the Handy Manny one. The dinosaur ones are just too cute with the little "googly" eyes!

Total cost for all 27 books- $42.74!!!!!

Not too shabby at all huh?? Since Caden already has a bookshelf full of books at his house, all of these have found themselves a home in Caden's "room" at Aunt Nicole's house :)

I also went back to Borders last weekend and was able to get some more great deals on books for myself. Right now everything is 60-80% off and they close in the next week or two. I will definitely try to make it there again to see what kind of deals I can scrounge up!! I was able to get myself a $20 calender for next year for only $4 and some change though :)

CSN Stores Review

Time for another review of the great CSN Stores! CSN is amazing because you can find pretty much anything you are looking for there. Sometime in the very near future, I am hoping to get a LCD TV, therefore I will need a new LCD TV stand. Here are some of the lovely ones I found that I just love!

I like all the little storage areas with this one. Plenty of room for the DVD player, Wii and cable box.

 

Love the look of this one!

They also have many different fireplace TV stands which I just adore right now!

I will be looking at all my choices so when I do get my new TV I can get the perfect stand to go along with it :). Be sure to check out CSN for TV stands and anything else you may need!

Black Friday Savings!!

Back again lovely readers! I know its been a while, but I just HAD to post the great deals I got this year for Black Friday shopping! I should let you all know that Black Friday is one of my most favorite days of the year. This year we woke up bright and early at 330, headed out about 430 and arrived at our first destination before 5 am. Spent 5 am-1 pm shopping, took an hour break and headed out again to a couple more stores. All in all spent about 12 hours shopping by the time we were done for the day. I ended up falling right asleep at about 9:15 pm that night, but it was so worth it! I'm sure I walked off all of the calories I ate for Thanksgiving dinner too! Now for the deals:

First stop was Macy's:

Steam Mop: 19.99 regularly 59.99

Ralph Lauren Pillow: 6.99 regularly 20.00

Nautica 3 Piece outfit for my nephew: 19.99 regularly 49.50

Total Spent (before tax) $56.97

Total SAVED 72.52!!!

JCPenney's

2 Long Sleeved Thermal Tees: $6.88 each regularly $20.00 each

1 Long Sleeved Tee: $4.88 regularly $16.00

Total Spent $18.64

Total SAVED $37.36!!

Target

2 Towels @ $1.49 each regularly $2.99 each

3 Piece PJ Set $10.00 regularly $19.99
Date Night DVD $10.00 regularly $19.99

Dear John DVD $5.99 regularly $19.99

Ghosts of Girlfriends Past $3.99 regularly $13.00

Marley and Me $3.99 regularly $13.00

500 Days of Summer $5.99 regularly $19.99

Julie and Julia $3.99 regularly $19.99

17 Again $3.99 regularly $14.99

Valentine's Day $9.99 regularly $19.99

Toy Story 3 $13.00 regularly $19.99

Funny People $3.99 regularly $19.99

Grown Ups $8.00 (after $5 off coupon) regularly $19.99

Total Spent $81.91

Total SAVED $164.96!!!

Kmart

Saw VI (which also includes Saw I) $2.99 regularly $20.99

Jeopardy for Wii $14.99 regularly $29.99

Total Spent $17.98

Total SAVED $33.00!!

Meijer

Death at a Funeral DVD $8 regularly $19.99

Wizard of Oz DVD $8 regularly $16.99

Lady Antebellum CD $6.50 regularly $14.99

Hamilton Beach Single Serve Blender $9.99 regularly $15.99

Mad Gab Game $10.00 regularly $24.68

Hamilton Beach Toaster Oven $19.99 regularly $29.99

Total Spent $62.48

Total SAVED $122.63!!

Also I went back to Meijer on Saturday for the Super Saturday Sale

Digital Camera:$59.99-$12 Santa Bucks= $47.99; Regularly 89.99

Total Spent $47.99 (plus tax)

Total SAVED $42.00!!!

Walgreens

6 Rolls of 50 sq. Ft Wrapping Paper for $4 total regularly $12

3 rolls of Scotch brand tape for $.99 total regularly $5.29

Total Spent $4.99

Total SAVED $12.30!!!

I was also able to get an Adobe Photoshop Book from Borders for $19.98 that was regularly $39.99 thanks to the 50% coupon!! Stood in line there 45 minutes, but it was worth it!!

Finally, I have needed to get a wreath for my door for the last few years, but am too cheap to fork out the $25-50 for them so I decided to go to JoAnn's Fabric and get stuff to make my own. The wreath and all the decorations were 60% off so I only spent $9.99 including tax and was able to MAKE this:

Not too shabby in my opinion and I saved at least $15!!!

So all in all my Black Friday was a very successful one. Some of the items bought were gifts for family and some were gifts to myself. I probably spent more than I should have, but I saved more than I spent so it's all good!

Thrifty Thursdays!!!! (and my beautiful dish I won!)

I think I have thought of a new post topic!!! Since I am all for saving as much money as I possibly can, but still getting quality stuff, I thought I would start "Thrifty Thursdays". These posts will feature the best deals I have found for the week. They may include items that were on sale or clearance and also items I have picked up for cheap thanks to coupons!! I went to Kroger this past weekend and was very impressed with myself. Here are some of the best deals I was able to get:

Drano: $4.19-$1 coupon (doubled)= $2.19

Nivea Body Wash: $6.99- $3.49 (kroger card)- $1 coupon (doubled)= $1.50

Herbal Essences Shampoo: $2.37- $1 coupon (doubled)= $0.37

Duracell 4 pk Batteries: $3.69 -$1 coupon (doubled)= $1.69

Mr.Clean Magic Eraser 2pk: $2.59- $1 coupon (doubled)= $0.59

Febreeze Set and Release: $2.89- $1 coupon (doubled)= $0.89

Crest Whitening Toothpaste: $2.39- $1 coupon (doubled)= $0.39

Crest Extra Whitening w/ sample of 3D vivid white: $2.50 (w/Kroger card)-$1 coupon (doubled)= $0.50

Always pads: $3.45- $1 coupon (doubled)= $1.45

Energizer 10 pk AA batteries: $5.99- $1 (Kroger card)- $1 (e-coupon)- $1 coupon (doubled)= $1.99

Febreeze Noticeables refills: $4.89- $1 coupon (doubled)= $2.89

Colgate Wisp 4pk: $2.39- $1 coupon (doubled)= $0.39

Retail Price: $41.94

Price I paid: $14.84

SAVINGS: $27.10!!!!!

I was also able to get a box of 10 packets of Quacker Oatmeal free, Coffeemate Liquid Creamer for 1.10 and a box of Idahoan single serve mashed potatoes (10 pk) for $0.69. Not too shabby!!!

Since Kroger will double coupons up to $1, I always take all my coupons that are above 50 cents here to redeem them. I highly recommend everyone doing this. You get brand name items for basically free!!

Also this week I made a trip to my apartment office to pick up some packages that I had received. First off, I made a donation to the USO to help our troops and they were kind enough to send me a nice big USA Flag :). I also received an adorable dish that I had won from a recent blog giveaway thanks to Teresa @ FunFritzFamily. I won the lovely little dish pictured below from Good Memories Cafe.

I LOVE IT!!! It is so cute with great detail. I love the little cloud above the tree that says "dream" on it. Thank you sooo much for my beautiful gift :).

I'd also like to thank all my fellow bloggers for the recent awards I have been receiveing. I have received a few these last couple days and I am ecstatic! I am so glad you are enjoying my blog!!!

Christmas shopping in July!

Well I should really be cleaning up the apartment right now, but I found a mini "Deadliest Catch" marathon on the Discovery Channel so that won't be happening yet. Therefore I decided to type up a little blog entry for today :) Yesterday I took the day off work and took a little shopping trip down to Great Lakes Crossing in Auburn Hills. I love this mall. So many great stores and they generally always have great deals. After a great lunch at the new "Toby Keith's I Love This Bar and Grill", it was off to do some shopping. First purchase happened at Victoria's Secret. I was able to get all of this:

1 robe, 5 bottles of hand sanitizer, and 5 travel size lotions for $32.27. Retail value was $105. Total savings of $72.73!

Next stop was Carter's so I could get some Christmas gifts for my beatiful little nephew. I was able to get all of this:

Retail value: $86.00. Spent $32.21. Total savings of $53.79!!

Finally I headed down to Aeropostale. Had to buy a few things for myself on this little shopping trip too. I bought myself all of this:


Retail value: $164. Spent: $69.75. Total savings of $94.18!!

Kinda ended up spending more than I planned to, but I also saved more than I spent so not a bad day of shopping at all!

Coupon crazy!!!

I remember when I first moved into my own apartment 4 years ago. The first thing that I wanted to do was go GROCERY SHOPPING!!! I was so excited to just go to the store, fill my cart up with anything and everything that I wanted and come home and put it into my new empty cupboards, fridge, and freezer. I moved on a Friday afternoon when it was about 9o degrees out. I got to the apartment office, dropped off my deposit and got my keys. Get to my apartment, stick the key in the lock and IT DOESN'T WORK!! So now I have to call the maintanence guy since the office is now closed and wait an hour to even be able to open my door. Finally get everything moved in at about 10 p.m. Now the moment I've been waiting for. Time to hit the grocery store! I get to the store, fill my cart with everything I need and want and head for the checkout line. The cashier rings all my items, bags them and sticks them in my cart...then tells me the total. Almost $100!!!! Seriously?!?! I just spent $100 on food for one person that will only last a couple weeks! Needless to say, the desire to grocery shop ended there!

Being the frugal person that I am, I decided from now on everytime I go shopping I was going to be using coupons! These days I am clearly not the only one. I go to the store and see all these people with these big baseball card albums full of neatly, organized coupons. My bestie Becca has all of hers organized into every category imaginable in a nice photo box. I on the other hand cut all mine out and just stick them into an envelope. I am not organized AT ALL. One day that will change! I may not be the most organized coupon user, but I do search for any and every useful coupon I can find. Every Sunday I open the paper up and start clipping away. I also hit the internet for great deals. Some of my favorite coupon sites are http://www.coupons.com/, http://www.redplum.com/, and http://www.smartsource.com/. I will also search for coupons for certain items like cat food, toilet paper, or laundry soap. I am determined not to pay full price for anything! I am pretty sure that in my independent living life I have paid full price for maybe 10% of everything that I have bought. Otherwise if its not on sale or has a coupon for it, its not getting bought at that moment!

Well now that I have blogged about my coupon habits, its time for me to get to clipping and hitting the grocery store. My favorite part now isn't filling the cart and it certainly isn't putting all of that food away. My favorite part now is looking at the bottom of my receipt to see how much I have saved :). So fellow coupon users, what are your favorite sources for coupons? Do share please!!!