An Ode To Liana

Dear Lia

You are one cool girl.

When you were born, you rocked our world.

As time goes by, your beauty grows.

Your love for life and others shows.

Your eyes of blue convey everything you feel,

Although some feelings aren't true...

For you they are real.

Your fashion sense is all it's own.

Your falls are legendary in our home.

Your cuddles

 Your kisses

Your sweet playfulness,

Your cheezing,

Your dancing,

And your giggles are the best.

You're a princess now and forever,

 With a heart of gold so pure.

Of our love you can be certain,

Now and forevermore.

Happy Birthday to our beautiful girl! Today is truly a day to celebrate!!!

E-Clubs

Many of the larger restaurant chains have E-clubs. You sign up for random news and deals by giving them your information. Sometimes a little information on your kids. Because we don't eat out a whole lot, the periodic coupons are not necessarily something that I wait to see in my inbox. There are 2 times a year, though, when I get excited for these clubs.

1. My E-club 'Anniversary'
2. My Birthday

The latter of the two happens to be this week. The big 3-0! Yes, I am excited.

I'd been wondering when these awesome coupons were going to be showing up in my inbox. This morning as I was deleting over 100 unnecessary e-mails, I stumbled upon them. Apparently, they didn't make it to my Blackberry, and since that's nearly the only method of checking my e-mail that I currently use...you get the picture.

So there they were. And I was excited! Here's a list:

McAlister's- $5 off next meal
Chili's- Free brownie sundae
Arby's- Free shake with purchase
Schlotzsky's- Free small sandwich
Joe's Crab Shack- Free dessert
Buffalo Wild Wings- Free dessert
IHOP- Free Rooty Tooty Fresh & Fruity
Mimi's Cafe- Free Entree with purchase of entree & 2 drinks
First Watch- Free Entree
Aunt Annie's Pretzel's- Buy 1 Get 1 Free
Spaghetti Warehouse- Free Spaghetti & Dessert
Macaroni Grill- Free Dessert
Marble Slab- Free Ice Cream Cone


Do you have a favorite restaurant? Or one that you would go to if it were free? See if they have an E-club!

A Great Idea For Kids

So we went to a birthday party last night for my little friend who's present I posted a week or so ago. The dessert was so perfect for kids I just had to post about it!

Top your own ice cream. Same theory as Peachwave, Orange Leaf, Cherry Berry stores where you get your flavor of yogurt and then put as many toppings on as you want. 

Each kid gets a bowl of ice cream, and then each topping has it's own bowl and spoon. They add whatever they want and are only limited by mom and dad, hehehe. Last night's toppings of choice were mini chocolate morsels, gummy bears, oreo's, rainbow mini marshmallows and sprinkles. They were in heaven!

Birthday Parties

In a post a few months ago, I talked about how birthday parties can break the bank. This past week, Isabella has had 3 birthday parties.

Eek!!!

One is our good friend's son, so I bought him a present quite a while ago. But I didn't have any 'age appropriate gifts in my box (unless a manner's book is ok. I think the parents would be offended as their kids are very well behaved) so that means a purchase! I had a Groupon that expired in a few days to Barnes & Noble which I thought would be perfect to use for their presents!

After picking out a smallish present for both girls, I only had to pay $2 out of pocket which brought the total to $12 for two birthdays, or $6 each. That's something I can handle!!!

If you have room in your budget, buy cheap giftcards on Groupon when you can. You never know when they'll come in handy!

Happy Valentine's Day!

I'm really excited for dinner tonight. I'm going to make tilapia with mango salsa...Yum. Then my hubs and I will enjoy dessert, which I won't post on here because, well, he reads these and it's kind of a surprise.

But then...on Tuesday...the day after Valentine's...the candy starts to clearance. And that, my friends, is something to get excited about!!!! 

Easter is right around the corner. And with so many pastel colors being used on V-day and those same colors being used at Easter, I can buy all the chocolate I need for my kids' Easter egg hunt. There are somethings I can't get, like Bunny Munny, until the Easter candy rolls out, but that doesn't stop me from buying the rest! Plus, Bunny Munny is more nostalgic and for me than it is for my kiddos.

But don't just stop at Easter candy! What do you have coming up? Do you have birthdays to celebrate? Will you be having a pinata for a party? Think in advance for what you are going to need candy at and buy it now! Or if you don't need it in the next 6-8 weeks, buy after Easter. It's a great way to cut down on expenses for upcoming events.

My favorite place to buy clearance seasonal candy used to be Walgreen's. Lately though, a lot of people have been visiting there for the clearance candies and I don't always get what I want. My local fave (Reasor's) is another great place to buy the clearance candy, as is Target. Make a list and buy ahead!