If you’ve been reading Thrifty Mommy for a while, you’ll know that in the last year we’ve dealt with a poor housing market, moving, have a mortgage payment and rent, adoption, and now purchasing a home.  It’s been a financially exhausting year and I’m just not ready to lay down $200+ for something we don’t need.  Sure, we’d like to have one, but it’s not a need.  Say it with me, “Need versus want, need versus want.”  There really is a difference.  

This week I was shopping at CVS for some of the free (with Extra Care Bucks) three day sale items.  (They didn’t run out this time in the first few hours.  Yes, I’m shocked too!) After my purchases, the register printed out a coupon for $20 off an Xtreme Fit gaming mat.  I asked the cashier what the item was.  I figured it must be a pretty expensive item for it to be $20 off.  She showed me the item and I was pleased to see that it was only $49.99. 

Here are some features of the gaming mat:

• choose from aerobics, yoga training, muscle workouts, and more
• interactive trainer analyzes your progress
• create your own personalized workouts
• easy plug and play set-up
• over 80 games and exercises
• does not need any additional remote controls or game cartridges

I decided to give it a shot and spend the $30 and I’m so glad I did.  My family has had such a blast playing the gaming mat this week.  There are fishing games, running games, walking, racing, bowling, tetris, long jump, high jump, dance mat game, and so much more. You should see my kids running, jumping, and moving with this game.  Honestly, I have been dreading the winter months because of the kids being cooped up inside.  I was starting to picture them running through the house and making me crazy.  Now we have this gaming mat and I can set it up for them to play games that will help to get their energy out.

Alligator Girl watched her dad play bowling this week.  She must have picked up on his skills because she bowled a perfect game!

Cuddlebug is 4 years old and he has a great time playing too.  (Sorry for the red eye!)

The Xtreme Fit gaming mat is normally $49.99. I’m not sure what triggered the register to print out the $20 coupon, but it might be worth asking a cashier how to get a coupon.  The CVS site also has the mat on sale for $39.99 and it says it’s eligible for free shipping.  If you do decide to order it, please know that you probably won’t receive it until after Christmas.

You may call it a poor man’s Wii, but I call it a practical solution and a great buy for our family.

Have you seen the CVS Xtreme Fit Gaming Mat in the stores?

I was not paid for this product review nor did I receive any free products.  Image 1 from CVS.  Images 2 and 3 (c) Karen Weideman.

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Each 12 Days of Christmas mug and dessert plate bears a different design inspired by the popular Christmas carol, and is accented with holiday holly berry and garland.  The collection is crafted of Lenox ivory fine porcelain and includes a nice box that could be used for gift giving and storage.

Holiday 12 Days of Christmas Mugs - Set of 12 generous mugs by Lenox, each holds 12 ounces.  Mugs feature twelve different designs, all tied into the 12 Days of Christmas theme.  Each design is elegantly framed with the classic holly and berry garland of Lenox’s popular Holiday™ pattern.  Crafted of ivory porcelain, all mugs are dishwasher and microwave safe. Beautiful Lenox gift box also doubles as a storage box to keep this set protected as you wait for Christmas to arrive again.

Holiday 12 Days of Christmas Dessert Plates – Set of 12 generous dessert plates by Lenox, each measures 9” in diameter. Plates feature twelve different designs, all tied into the 12 Days of Christmas theme. All designs are elegantly framed with the classic holly and berry garland of Lenox’s popular Holiday™ pattern. Crafted of ivory porcelain, all plates are dishwasher and microwave safe. Beautiful Lenox gift box also doubles as a storage box to keep this set protected as you wait for Christmas to arrive again.

There are a few things about this set that really stands out to me.  Both the mugs and the plates are dishwasher and microwave safe.  If you’re like most families, you have a busy lifestyle and you need dishes that can be functional, easy to maintain and care for, and beautiful for guests and your family.  Also, the 12 Days of Christmas dishes are accented with the Lenox Holiday holly and berry garland, which allows them to be used with the Lenox Holiday china. These mugs and plates would be perfect for an after dinner coffee, hot chocolate, and dessert.  The sets come with a nice box for easy storage so that they do not take up a lot of space.

The 12 Days of Christmas mugs and plates retail for $200.00 per set, but Bed Bath & Beyond has them for a great price.  You can get the plate set for $79.99 and the mug set for $79.99!

And on to the giveaway .  .  . This giveaway is for a set of 12 Days of Christmas plates AND a set of 12 Days of Christmas mugs!!!!!!!  Isn’t this exciting?   

As always, I like to keep giveaways interesting and fun. There are several ways to enter the contest. Pick one or all of the options, but please leave a comment for each one you complete. It makes it easier to count the entries and pick a winner.

1. Tell us what you would do with the china if you were to win.
2. Tell which Lenox pattern is best suited for you and why.
3. Write a paragraph on why you like Lenox so much or a paragraph on some memories shared while using Lenox.
4. Tweet about this contest. Use the easy tweet button to the right or use the abbreviated url http://bit.ly/7mTk6I.  You may choose this option up to three times each day. Be sure to leave a status url so I can verify.
5. Tweet a picture of some Lenox china that you already own.
6. Blog about this contest.
7. Follow ThriftyMommy on twitter.
8. Digg, Stumble, or bookmark this post on Delicious or Reddit.
9. Subscribe to Thrifty Mommy.

This contest ends Thursday, December 17, 2009 at midnight and is available to those with a U.S. shipping address.  The winner will be contacted via email on Thursday, December 17, 2009.  The winner will have 24 hours to respond, but it’s best to respond as soon as possible so that we can get this beautiful set to you before Christmas. 

Good luck everyone!

Disclaimer: I did receive products to review, but did not receive any monetary compensation.  Image provided by Lenox.

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Although I have been eating tuna since I was a small child, I was excited to try some of the Bumble Bee products.  Bumble Bee has an assortment of inexpensive and nutritious lunch ideas that I want to share with you.

One of my new favorite tunas is the lemon pepper tuna. Bumble Bee now has three flavored tunas – Lemon Pepper, Sundried Tomato, and Spicy Thai Chili.  For less than $1.50, you can get a small can of flavored tuna with crackers.  This is a great inexpensive and healthy lunch idea. Bumble Bee offers the new flavored tunas in larger cans with no crackers.

For those that prefer their chicken and tuna with mayonnaise, Bumble Bee has premade chicken and tuna salad lunch packs. There is also a fat free tuna salad.   

Bumble Bee has a sustainability intiative.  They support global policies and management initiatives that ensure long-term sustainability of these resources. 

By becoming a Bumble Bee facebook fan, you can print a coupon good for $1 off three specialty items such as crab, shrimp, oysters, and sardines.

What inexpensive lunch ideas can you share?

images (c) Karen Weideman

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I was relieved and excited to find out that Lands’ End has a video explaining the different body types.  In addition to this, they sell swimsuits specific to your body type!  With this information, I suddenly felt more at ease about my swimsuit shopping. 

I clicked on the Lands’ End website, clicked on swimwear, and then clicked on the shape for my body.  Immediately, a selection swimsuits appeared which were designed to be more flattering for my shape.  What was even more surprisingly is that they weren’t all black or solid colors.  There were some nice prints.  I pondered upon this and decided to go for it.  I chose the polka dot floral enhancing v-neck swimshape tank swimsuit. 

I am extremely pleased with this swimsuit.  It is the nicest swimsuit I have ever owned.  The suit has a built-in seamless bra and figure smoothing panels.  I also like that the fabric provides UPF 50 sun protection.  This suit feels great and is definitely well made.

By the way, I have a special surprise for you all this week. (hint, hint!) 

Have you tried any Lands’ End swimsuits?  What is your favorite feature?

image from lands’ end

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Best parts of the sandals:
• They were easy to get on and off, both for me and her.
• My kids have fat feet so they were easily adjustable over the arch of the foot.
• They were easy to walk in for both the kids and didn’t cause my son to trip. I am presuming that a new walker wouldn’t have a hard time learning in these.
• They seem to wear well as my daughter is so hard on shoes right from the start.

The main issue I had with the sandals:
• I have always heard that you should have an ever so slight arch. These shoes don’t have any arch at all.

I know Stride Rite shoes are more expensive than say Payless shoes. But when they run good 50% off sales, they are more than worth it. My kids get hand-me-downs a lot and it seems that Stride Rite shoes are the best for wear and tear so the money is well worth it most of the time. You can also get them on Ebay. But these days the debate is this … Do we support our stores that run good sales to keep others in a job or do we do everything second had? What do you think?

images from stride rite

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The filing system shown above a great system to use if you’re only using The Grocery Game.  I definitely like the convenience of the system.  The big problem is, I’m missing out on saving money on unadvertised specials, close-outs, and triple coupon sales.  I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve been in a store and seen an unadvertised special or close-out item.  I know I have a coupon for the item, but since the coupons are not clipped, I have to search through all the inserts and hope to find what I need.

Finally I have switched to a new coupon organizing system!

I am now using the coupon organizer inserts from Smart Spending Resources.  The coupon organizer inserts fit into a regular 3-ring binder which sits on your grocery cart allowing you to flip through the binder and find the coupons you need.  A few things I like about this system from Smart Spending Resources:

1)  The coupons can be easily viewed.
2) The tabs are neat and professionally printed.
3) You can easily find coupons you need for unadvertised specials, close-outs, and triple coupon deals.
4) The system is neat and keeps loose coupons under control.
5) The system is expandable. More pages can easily be added to each section as needed.

A few tips for those who are interested in this system:
1) Be sure to buy an oversized 3-ring binder. I bought a regular binder and I mine is slipping around on the cart. I plan to pick up a larger binder the next time I go to the store. It will make couponing so much easier.
2) I would recommend purchases extra insert pages.
3) You might want to consider buying a zipper pencil pouch for your binder. I purchased one and will use it to put coupons I know that I will be using or to store my pen and calculator.

As always, I try to provide an honest product review, so I will tell you that this system is a lot more time consuming than my previous method.  I feel that the savings will be worth my time though.  As I’ve told you all before . . . Time is Money but Money is Time.

Have you tried the binder organizing system?

top image (c) Karen Weideman, bottom image (c) Smart Spending Resources

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Millstone is a popular coffee. I like that you can buy it by the pound. I don’t brew a lot of coffee, so I like that I can purchase 1/4 lb if I choose.  It also allows me to try different flavors and bean types without feeling stuck with a whole pound of something (if I don’t like it).  The problem I have with Millstone is that I find it to be incredibly bitter.  I have yet to find a Millstone flavor that I really like.  Any suggestions?

The Juan Valdez coffee is a more affordable option.  The price is pretty good and we’ve heard the Juan Valdez name for years, but I have never tried their coffee.  If anyone has tried it, please let me know what you think of it.

A few months ago, Wal-Mart began carrying a less expensive by-the-pound coffee.  At $6.54/lb, Veneto’s is an affordable alternative to Millstone.  I found that Veneto’s has a similar taste to Millstone.

A few other coffees I have tried are Folgers, Maxwell House, and Starbucks.  Folgers is ok, Maxwell House seems to taste good for a few days and then loose its intensity, and I have yet to find a Starbucks flavor that I enjoy.  They’re too strong, too bitter, or something just isn’t right.  I don’t mean to be so picky, but if I’m going to have coffee I want it to taste right.  Know what I mean?

I was getting very frustrated at my coffee experiences and so I asked my friend Marye at Kettle & Cup which coffee she recommended.  Her top recommendation was Ugly Joe’s.  I was giving thought to trying Ugly Joe’s (and still am), but then I came across Caribou Coffee while I was shopping at Target. 

I probably wouldn’t have bought the Caribou Coffee, but it was 50% off.  The $4 price tag made it hard to pass up, plus I had tried the Caribou Coffee granola bars before and they were quite tasty.  I decided to give it a try and got the Sumatra blend.  Let me just say, I am pretty happy with this purchase.  It is creamy and not bitter and the earthy taste is delicious.  I don’t know that I have found the “perfect coffee” for my personal taste, but this is pretty close. 

Some of you may have no problem drinking inexpensive coffee such as Maxwell House, Folgers, or S&D.  Unfortunately, I have developed a preference for a certain taste.  In areas such as this, it is difficult to use coupons and buy whichever brand is the cheapest.  It is, however, thrifty to find something that you like and not waste hard earned money searching for something that meets your preferences.

If you enjoyed this article you may also enjoy 20 Ways to Save on Coffee. 

Which coffees are your favorite?

Disclaimer:  These thoughts are only opinions and should be treated as such.Images 1-3 by Karen Weideman.  Image 4 from Caribou Coffee. 

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I was able to review the Bright Green dishwashing liquid and all purpose cleaner.  The question that I have often asked myself is, “Is it possible to use green cleaning products and get the same results?”  My experience so far has been a positive one.  In all the environmentally friendly products I have tried, I have not found a difference in the way the product cleans from the other products. 

The Bright Green dishwashing liquid cleaned my dishes very well.  It took the grease off my dishes and had a very pleasant lavender scent.  My son especially enjoyed it.  He asked if he could wash dishes, which in our house means that I put some soap and water in a bowl and he “washes” some of the dishes in the sink.  He ended up using 1/2 of the bottle, so there were lots of suds and my kitchen smelled great for days.  lol  The Bright Green all purpose cleaner is great for the kitchen or garage and it has a refreshing lemon scent.

And now, on to the giveaway!

The giveaway includes an attractive  reusable shopping bag and $1 coupons for Bright Green cleaning products.  Safeway credits customers $.05 each time they use any reusable bag at the checkout.

There are many ways to enter this contest.  You can choose as many as you’d like.

You can earn an entry for each item you complete, but you must leave a separate comment for each one.  It just makes it easier to tally and pick a random winner.

1) Leave a comment telling me why you’d like to win this prize or why you use green cleaning products.

2) Give this post a thumbs up at Stumble Upon and leave your Stumble name.

3) Tweet this post and leave your Twitter name or status url. To retrieve your Twitter status url, simply click on the timestamp of your tweet. It will say something like, “5 seconds ago from the web”. You can earn 3 twitter entries each day for each time you tweet this giveaway. You must leave a comment for each tweet.

4) Follow @thriftymommy on Twitter. Leave a comment with your Twitter name.

5) Blog about this giveaway and leave a direct link to your post.

6) Mention this giveaway on any forums or message boards and leave me a link.

7) Add Thrifty Mommy and/or Keeping the Castle and/or to your blogroll.  You can earn a separate entry for each one.

This contest ends Sunday, April 12, 2009 and is available to those with a U.S. shipping address (no P.O. boxes please). The winner will be contacted by email and will have 72 hours to respond or another winner will be chosen. You will not be put on a mailing list, but you must include your email address in the second box under your name (not in the comment box).

Good luck everyone!

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All the current information about plastics, BPA, chemicals, and contaminants is enough to make a parent’s head spin.  Lunchbots helps take away the worry and confusion by offering 100% stainless steel containers.  LunchBots provide an environmentally friendly alternative to disposable containers and they go a step further to eliminate all plastics from its containers.  Finally, there is a stainless steel alternative with a lid.  The LunchBots containers are easy to clean, sturdy, and provide a great storage container for lunches and diaper bags. 

LunchBots are available in two styles, both measuring 6.25″ x 4.5″ x 1.75″.  The LunchBots Uno is perfect for packing sandwiches, sushi, burritos, or snacks. The LunchBots Duo has a handy divider for crackers and cheese, fruits and nuts, and more.  LunchBots also provide a fundraising opportunity for schools, which I certainly would prefer to overpriced candy and gift wrap. 

LunchBots is offering free shipping to our Thrifty Mommy readers (US addresses only).  Simply use the code FREESHIP09. 

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Lands’ End is also offering Thrifty Mommy readers a free shipping code for Sun.Life products.  Simply enter the pin 6365 at the check out.  This code is valid through February 21, 2009.

The Sun.Life collection provides the same quality and style that you’ve come to expect from Lands’ End.  I received a pair of the khaki Sun.Life pants for my son.  They are lightweight, stylish, and they also have the adjustable waist that moms like so much. 

And now, for the giveaway.  The winner of this contest may choose one of the following Sun.Life collection products:

Boys Sun.Life Pants
Boys Solid Sun.Life Shorts
Boys Short Sleeve Sun.Life Tee
Girls Sun.Life Pants
Girls Solid Sun.Life Shorts
Girls Sun.Life Tee

How to Enter:

You can earn an entry for each one, but you must leave a comment for each item completed.

1) Leave a comment. You can say simply “enter me”, but I’d prefer something about the product. You can tell me which product you’d choose, what color you’d like to have, why you like Lands’ End products, or why you think sun protection is important. Anything along those lines.

2) Give this post a thumbs up at Stumble Upon and leave your Stumble name.

3) Tweet this post and leave your Twitter name or status url. To retrieve your Twitter status url, simply click on the timestamp of your tweet. It will say something like, “5 minutes ago from the web”. You can earn 3 twitter entries each day for each time you tweet this giveaway. You must leave a comment for each tweet.

4) Follow @thriftymommy on Twitter. Leave a comment with your Twitter name.

5) Blog about this giveaway and leave a direct link to your post.

6) Mention this giveaway on any forums or message boards and leave me a link.

7) Add Thrifty Mommy to your blogroll.

Other info:

This contest ends February 26 and is available to U.S. residents only. The winner will be contacted by email and will have 72 hours to respond or another winner will be chosen. You will not be put on a mailing list, but you must include your email address in the second box under your name (not in the comment box).

Good luck everyone and thanks to Lands’ End for donating another great prize.

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