Saturday, August 8, 2009

~Save Money on Kids Art~

Do your kids love doing arts and crafts? Do they go through mounds and mounds of paper to create their masterpiece? Do you cringe every time, not only for the cost of the paper but the environmental impact? If so, you will love this post!

If you live in an urban area with retail clothing store chains chances are they have old signage that they throw away after an event is done that is perfectly good for art! I happen to manage for Reitmans and I know that for every one of our events there is usually a few posters that we throw away because they are outdated. The backside of these posters is plain white and it is a fairly heavy material. So I've started to take the ones we will be throwing away home for art projects. It's a win, win situation. My son won't care if there is marketing on the back side...he'll be thrilled to have a 2 foot by 4 foot piece of paper to create on...(In a few years though, he's only 15 months now:) For now the paper goes to his daycare for the other kids)

I also may be a bit weird but I keep the crayons that we are given at family restaurants and take them home. Right now, my son doesn't even use them so I'm taking home full packets but in a few years there will still be lots of usable crayon in them, no sense wasting them.

Speaking of leftover crayons...I can't remember what site I read it on but I read on another blog about taking little bits of crayons and melting them in muffin tins to create multicolor crayon disks. I also have a sister who collects empty glue stick containers and melts the crayon pieces and fills the glue stick holder with the melted crayon. When it dries you have a giant crayon in a holder that won't break!!! I love both these ideas and will use them for sure when the time comes!!!

Hope you can find a local retailer that will give you a call when it's time to change signs. You can really get some great art paper doing this!!!

Friday, August 7, 2009

~Cheap Entertainment~

Think you have no money for a family trip out? Think again! There are lots of things to do around your area that will not only let you have fun but will create lasting memories.

Look up local U-Pick farms in your area. Take the whole family out to the farm and pick some berries. Not only will they learn about how food is produced but they will enjoy the sun, all the berries they can eat while picking and best of all, the fruits of their labor later when you make something yummy! When we go we pack a lunch for everyone and lots of water. Our U-Pick has an ice cream store on site so we each have one cone for a treat while there.

Go to the Library and Join a Summer Reading Program. The library usually has a summer reading program for kids and adults. At my local library if I complete my reading program my membership for the next year is free! I've also been taking advantage of the DVDs that I can take out for free from my library. Hubby and I sit down and list off the movies that we like or want to see and then I request them. It's always a surprise what movie will become available first so it keeps it interesting. At my library all movies can be kept for one week and you can renew for up to one more week. Not bad for my $7 a year membership (soon to be FREE).

Go Camping. Pitch a tent, light a fire, sing koombayah (yup can't spell that one)and have some s'mores. Everyone can do this, whether it's in your back yard or at a campsite, there will be fun!

Nature walk at the park. Take a walk with your family and collect items along the way that your kids can use to create art with later...leaves that can be pressed, used as stencils etc... Use this time to have some one on one time with each family member. Some of our favorite memories come from taking a walk!

Throw a picnic blanket, sunscreen and a beach umbrella in the vehicle and leave it there. All summer. Then if the urge strikes and the time permits you can set up with minimal fuss and enjoy a day at the park. In the winter we have crazy carpets in our vehicle...just in case we see a good hill and want to slide down it of course!

Airmiles reward miles redemption. Get yourself some Blockbuster and Cineplex coupons for free or B1G1 free movies. Or other gift cards that provide entertainment.

Community coupon books are usually a great investment. My local book has 4 free oil changes, 4 free haircuts, a whole section of B1G1 free meals and much, much more. It is well worth the $45 I paid for it plus the money I spent went to a good cause. Hubby and I are enjoying date nights lately thanks to the B1G1 free meals in that book.

Of course there are always local museums, parks and events that you can go to and have fun for next to nothing. The key is to pack a lunch, bring your own water and carry lots of sunscreen...great way to enjoy the summer!

Thursday, August 6, 2009

~Home Decor on a Budget~

Do you have a dated bookcase sitting in your living room and want to add a little something to your decor? Use these simple tips to transform what you already have into new pieces with cheap little tricks!

Bookcases can be changed to easily add another design element to a room. One way to do this is to simply paint the shelves and case one color and the backboard another complementary color. Or, paint the case one color, the top of the shelves another and line the backboard with a cool wallpaper print that ties it all together.

Perhaps you have an old wooden chair that has seen better days. Spray paint it a cool color, add some rich looking cushions and voila! New look for any room.

Do you want a dramatic piece of wall art for your living area? Take a plain beveled edged mirror, a glue gun and some shells or some other lightweight decorative material and glue them around the edge of the mirror to create a textured one of a kind frame! Or go out into nature and pick up some cool looking branches, spray paint them white, attach to a empty picture frame without the backing and voila another wall art. Branches can also be painted and put into vases or apothecary jars around a room to add instant art.

A good friend of mine, scoured garage sales and yard sales looking for an older style panel door. When she found just the one she took the hardware off, sanded it, painted it and mounted it above her bed for a headboard. It looks amazing!!!

So you can see, a little creativity, a glue gun a paint brush and some time and you can create your own style!

Wednesday, August 5, 2009

~Fix It and Forget It Cookbook~




The Fix it and Forget it Big Cookbook by Phyllis Pellman Good is jam-packed with 1400 Best Slow Cooker Recipes. A good friend of mine showed me this book when I was visiting her a while ago. When I got home I took it out from the library to get a better look at it. It is unbelieveable how many creative and tasty sounding recipes they have in this book. This is a meal planning must have!!!

It is on sale at Chapters for $25.70 or $24.41 with an Irewards card. Amazon has it for sale for $24.54...really boils down to preference at this point. With Chapters you can get either Cash back from Smart Canucks or Airmiles from Airmilesshops.ca. Plus if you are like me you probably have onlince Gift cards for Chapters from doing surveys so you likely won't have to spend any money through Chapters. But on the other hand you may prefer Amazon or have gift cards for them too! Whichever you choose, this is surely to be a favorite that you will pull out again and again whenever your schedule calls for a slow cooker meal.

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

~Cheerios Frozen Bananas~


Looking for a healthy, fun summer snack? Look no further! This great little idea popped into my inbox this week from the folks at General Mills.

Cheerios® Frozen Bananas

A three-ingredient frosty delight has good-for-you treat written all over it.

Prep Time: 10 min
Total Time: 1 hour 10 min
Makes: 8 servings

2/3 cup Yoplait® 99% Fat Free creamy strawberry or creamy strawberry banana yogurt (from 2-lb container)
3 cups Cheerios® cereal
4 firm ripe bananas
8 craft sticks (flat wooden sticks with round ends)


1. Line cookie sheet with waxed paper. In shallow dish, place yogurt. In another shallow dish, place cereal.
2. Peel bananas; cut each banana crosswise in half. Insert wooden stick into cut end of each banana half. Roll each banana half in yogurt, then in cereal to coat. Place on cookie sheet. Freeze about 1 hour or until firm.
3. Wrap each banana in plastic wrap or foil. Store in freezer.

Monday, August 3, 2009

~Mystery Shoppers Required!~

Got an email looking for shoppers to perform Visitor Information Center shops in Hinton,AB; Lloydminster, AB; and Walsh,AB. Pay is $65 and there is a small purchase required to prove your visit. ($2 or $3). You may take your friends or family with you on this shop and it is a great way to learn about these areas. If you would like more info about this contact me at scrapinitblue@yahoo.ca and I will link you up with the powers that be. I will be doing the one in my local area this month and have already seen the questionaire and they look to be fairly basic and easy shops to perform.

This company pays paypal and I have shopped with them in the past. Also Spot Check Services are looking for shoppers in remote areas. They pay well and also give one airmile per shop...payment is made via direct deposit on the 15th of every month. So check out their website to sign up and have some fun dining out and shopping.

~Coupons and More!~

Well sorry folks, July got away from me and I elected to spend it outside with my family enjoying the sunshine. I live in far northern Alberta so warm sunshine only comes a few days a year and I want to enjoy it while it lasts!!!

So I'm back and have some quick little updates for this blog. While I was on hiatus from blogging London Drugs went and started an online weekly coupon distribution. You simply go to their site www.londondrugs.com and click on the link for coupon offers at the bottom of the page or follow this link: Coupon Offers Simply print off and gather up other coupons to stack and you are on your way to some serious savings!

This weeks best deal that I can see is on the Kashi granola bars. If you have any FPCs from Kashi from their promotion earlier in the year you can stack them with their own coupon and get three boxes of granola bars for free! (Well taxes of course)

My personal London Drugs best this week was on Herbal Essences Shampoo. I stacked 3 FPCs, 5 B1G1s plus a few $1 and $0.50 off with their in store promotion of buy any three Herbal Essences products receive a free styling product. I walked out of the store with 15 Herbal Essences Shampoo/Conditioners, 2 Hairsprays, and 3 bottles of Mousse for $13.41. Needless to say our hygienic needs will be met for the next little while!!!

I also picked up 2 cases of Pampers this weekend and paid $17.83 instead of over $80.00!!! Plus I'll pick up $2 in Futura UPCs and 14 Gifts to Grow codes which equate to around $2 in Futura transfer. Not too shabby if I say so!

Upcoming posts on Save a Loonie: Fun Summer Treats for kids, Cheap Entertainment, Home Decorating on a Budget and more money saving tips!!! Stay tuned!