Fun and Frugal

I went to Blissdom this past weekend in Nashville.  What is Blissdom?  It’s an annual weekend conference for 500 women bloggers.  Industry experts teach us all kinds of things from technical coding workshops to creative writing workshops and everything in between.  I learned a lot and hope to put some new skills to use over the next few months.  We were at the same hotel as the Tea Party with speaker, Sarah Palin, but I never saw her.

I did however, see two other celebrities: chef and entertainer, George Duran–host of  FoodNetwork’s Ham on the Street and soon-to-be host of TLC’s Ultimate Cake Off.

And another little-known guy named Harry Connick, Jr!  He and his talented band gave us Blissdom gals a private performance.

I also enjoyed visiting with Jenny from SouthernSavers.com.  (For those that don’t know what we look like, I’m the brunette and she’s the blonde.)

Enough of that, though.  There were lots of great sponsors (some big brand names) at the conference who gave attendees lots of swag and I want to share some with one lucky Fun and Frugal reader!  Here’s a little goodie bag I put together.  You’ll get some Cover Girl products, MAM pacifiers, Alexia snacks, a facial mask, ear warmers, Red Plum coupon clutch, a stainless steel water bottle and travel mug, and more, all in a reusable grocery bag!  Here’s how to win: leave a comment telling me which celebrity you would most like to meet (or at least see in person) and why.  I’ll draw one random winner Friday night, Feb. 12, 2010.  The winner will have 2 business days to reply to my email notification or an alternate winner will be selected.  One entry per person.  (If you are receiving this by email and do not know how to leave a comment – click on the title of this post above “Blissdom Swag Bag Giveaway” and it will take you to the Funandfrugal.com blog.  Click on “Comments” in the lower-right corner just below the post and enter the info requested.  Or go to www.funandfrugal.com and enter “Blissdom Swag Bag Giveaway” in the search bar on the right and it will pull up the post and then you can leave a comment under it.)

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If you live in the Cleveland area, you might be interested in purchasing a Bruins discount card for $10 from Lake Forest Middle School.  They just came out and are good until 2-1-11.  Below are all the discounts on this jam-packed fund-raiser card.  If you do not know anyone selling them, you may send a self-addressed stamped envelope and $10 check payable to Lake Forest Middle School to:

Lake Forest Middle School
c/o Adam Kirkpatrick
610 Kile Lake Rd SE
Cleveland, TN   37323

Bruin Card – expires Feb 1, 2011

Antonios – 10% off dinner
AppleBee’s – 10% off
Baskin Robbins – $1.99 2 scoop purchase
Bradley Florist – 10% off fresh flowers and gifts
Chick-Fil-A – Free Chicken Sandwich with combo
Chili’s – Free chips/salsa with entree
Cici’s – Free drink with adult buffet
Dominos – Buy any large pizza get one free
Fazoli’s – Free small drink with purchase of adult entree
Fulin’s Asian Cuisine – Free appetizer with purchase of Chinese entree
Gobble’s Automotive – $5.00 of oil change
Jack’s Kleen Rite – 10% off dry cleaning
La Altena – 10% off
Marco’s – Buy one get one free
Moe’s – 10% off
Mrs. Winner’s – Free medium drink with purchase of sandwich
Papa John’s Pizza – Buy large pizza get a large free
Quizno’s – 10% off
Rafael’s – 10% discount – dinner only
Schlotsky’s – 10% off
Shane’s Rib Shack – 10% off
Smoothie King – $.50 off 20 oz., $1.00 off 32 oz., 40 oz.
Subway – Buy a regular 6 in and 32 oz drink, get a regular 6 in free
Walter’s Auto Wash – $2.00 of oil change or 10% off any Car Wash package
Zaxby’s – Free drink with meal purchase

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Here is a rundown of upcoming events in the Cleveland, TN area.  But, first, I’d like to thank one of our sponsors–Sara’s Hallmark in Cleveland–and remind you they have different printable coupons each month at FunandFrugal.com/Coupons.  Be sure to head over to Sara’s Hallmark this week to purchase cards and gifts for Valentine’s Day.  While you’re there, register to win the large voice-activated “I Love You” bear, valued at $99!  They will be open special hours this week: 9 am to 6:30 pm February 8-12 and 10 am to 6 pm February 13.

Tuesday, Feb. 9

• FREE Kids Meals are Back! Every Tuesday is Family Night at the Cleveland Chick-fil-A from 5-8 pm. They have something fun for the family each Tuesday night such as a craft, family movie, magician, clown, etc. Bring the family for dinner and fun! This Tues. Feb. 9 they will be having Pokey Dot the Clown!  Plus, the Cleveland Chick-fil-A is offering free kids meals on Tuesday nights from 5-8 pm again for the month of February! (Limit 2 free kids meals per adult meal purchase, no other coupons or discounts allowed.) Be on the lookout for cow appearances throughout the week at lunch and dinner. Also, purchase a 10-pack of Chick-fil-A Valentine cards for $2.50 – they each have a FREE ice dream offer on them.  Thank you to the Cleveland Chick-fil-A for sponsoring FunandFrugal.com!

Friday-Sunday, February 12-14

• 4th annual Fog Fest hosted by the Monteage Mountain Chamber of Commerce.  From Southeasttennessee.com: “The Monteagle Mountain Chamber of Commerce is hosting their 4th Annual Fog Festival during Valentine’s Weekend.  There will be three days of fun activities, learning opportunities and open houses, including pottery throwing and glass blowing demonstrations, classes on local history, wine making and herb gardens. There will also be wine tastings and winery tours, as well as nature walks. There will be several special Valentine’s Dinners and other romantic opportunities on Monteagle Mountain. For more information, contact the Monteagle Mountain Chamber of Commerce: 931-924-5353.”
• Looking for a place to take your Valentine in the Chattanooga area?  Check out chattanoogafun.com for several options of dinner cruises, dinner train rides, and other events.

Saturday, Feb. 13

• It’s another free date night from The Embassy – Cleveland!  RSVP at embassy-cleveland.com for a free married couple’s Valentine dinner to be held Saturday, Feb. 13 from 7-9 pm at Westwood Baptist Church in room 101.

Sunday, Feb. 14

• Happy Valentine’s Day!

Coming Up

• Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey are coming to the UTC Arena March 11-14, 2010. Tickets range from $10-$36. If you have a baby under age 1, you can request a complimentary ticket to be used anytime here. (Note, I don’t recall how long it takes to receive your certificate in the mail. It may not arrive in time for this particular show, but would be good to go ahead and get to save for a future show because it does not expire.)

• Ticket are now available for Day Out with Thomas at the TN Valley Railroad Museum April 23, 24, 25 and May 1 and 2, 2010. For those of you with little Thomas the Train fans in your household, you will love this fun-filled day like we do! Tickets are $14-$18. You can get a $2 discount on Friday tickets by using code FRIDAY2.

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Here’s a few freebies, coupons, and deals to celebrate Friday!

• Free Kotex at Wal-Mart with this $2/2 coupon.  Click here to see a picture of the two packages that cost $1 at Wal-Mart from an older post of mine.
• Free Stayfree Thermo Control sample (Thanks, Money Saving Mom)
• The Nicoderm CQ free sample and $7 coupon is still available for anyone that is interested.
• Need diapers?  You can have an opportunity to win a year’s worth of diapers when you join Pampers Village.  Speaking of Pampers, click here to see the good deal I got on them at Babies R Us recently if you missed it.
• Request a free sample of Prilosec.
• Do you have a business?  Vista Print offers lots of free samples including 250 business cards, 140 return address labels, a free rubber stamp, and more!  (You do have to pay shipping.)  I order my business cards from Vista Print and have always been pleased with the quality and value.  No business?  You can get 100 Mommy Cards for only $1.99 (plus shipping)!
• Free $10 coupon booklet from Eat Better America (Thanks, Money Saving Mom)
• Save $2-$10 on select Hasbro board games/toys (Scrabble, Clue, Pictureka, Catch Phrase, Chuck My Talking Truck, and more) or Playskool toys (Mr. Potato Head, Busy Ball Bopper, Step Start Walk N Ride, Sit N Spin, and more)

• And lastly, my favorite magazine, All You, is on sale again at Amazon.com for only $15 (50% off) for a one-year subscription.  It’s my favorite because it’s full of great coupons every month.  The March 2010 issue has over $75 worth of coupons in it!  Click here if you’d like to order from Amazon.  I’m not sure how long they will have it at this price.  You can also buy it at Wal-Mart for $2.49 per issue (which would cost you $29.88 per year.)

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Sorry, I’m a couple days late on this…but it’s a new month, which means new coupons from Coupons.com and Red Plum.  You should be able to print two of each.  Remember, once a print limit is reached, the coupon gets pulled, so be sure to print any and all you think you might want now.  Also, remember that Publix doubles coupons up to $.50 and Bi-Lo up to $.65 (some stores will not doubles ones that say “do not double” though).  Here are a few of my favorites:

From Coupons.com:

• $.50/1 Tetley tea bags, any size
• $1.50/1 Bird’s Eye Steamfresh meals
• $.75/1 Cheerio’s Multigrain
• $.40/1 Betty Crocker cookie mix
• $.50/1 Betty Crocker frosting
• $.50/1 Green Giant Valley Fresh Steamers
• $.50/2 Pillsbury crescent rolls
• $1/1 Fiber One Yoplait yogurt multipack

From Red Plum:

(enter your zip code and it will pull up more coupons)

• $1/1 Healthy Choice Fresh Mixers
• $.40/1 Domino sugar (2 lbs or larger)
• $1.50/2 select Kellogg’s cereals

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