Get a Melissa & Doug 25% Off Coupon When You Take the North "Poll"

Melissa & Doug want you to tell them which of their educational toys you think is the best! Just click on the image below to place your vote in the North "Poll!" You'll Get a Melissa & Doug 25% Off Coupon** to use at MelissaAndDoug.com just for voting!

Christmas is already sneaking up on me...

So, who has started their Christmas shopping yet? 

I am SO far behind this year!  Not only have I not been using my coupons to their full extent, I've totally been slacking off on tucking things away for Christmas.  I have put a few things in my closet for the husband and the girls, and I just ordered a couple of things the other day when the Disney Store was having a sale (free shipping too, yeah!), but usually my closet is overflowing by now with Christmas gifts, and this year it's sooooo not. 

I haven't really been out much to find and scoop up clearance deals, and on top of that, I just don't know what to get everyone this year.  The girls have a super long list (and they want everything they see in commercials, of course), but our house is already overflowing with toys.  I just don't know where I could put much more of them.  I need to do a major toybox and playroom clean out and declutter before the holiday season, for sure.  The husband only wants super expensive things (I bet he'd be thrilled with a PS3).  Then of course there are our parents, and I never know what to get them...I usually end up baking for them and putting together a gift basket.  Any ideas?

Browsing Amazon

I'm just browsing Amazon and I'm finding all sorts of great mark downs, good for Christmas gifts or gift closets.

Don't forget to sign up for Amazon Moms to get free 2-Day shipping with Amazon Prime!

Also keep in mind, that with Amazon prices can change in an instant so I do apologize if the price I have listed is incorrect.

   Play Doh Fun Food Poppin Movie Snacks - $4.99, down from $14.99

  Play-Doh Campfire Playset, $7.99, down from $16.99

  Crayola Crayola Color Twister, $5.99 down from $14.99

  Pop On Pals Ice Cream / Ambulance Set. $4.99, down from $14.99

Pop On Pals Trash/Construction Set  $4.99, down from $14.99

Pop On Pals Figure Police / Baseball $3.99, down from $9.99

Mega Bloks Pull Along Musical Pirate Ship  $12.99, down from $29.99


Hot Wheels Toy Story 3 Sparks Turbo Launcher $5.49, down from $13.99

Toy Story 3 Buzz Space Ship Radio Control Vehicle  $5.49, down from $17.49

Hot Wheels Smash Up Speedway  $6.99, down from $14.99


I am DONE shopping for Christmas (for the kids, at least) so hopefully these can help someone else! :o)

PetCakes

Well Made™ Toy Manufacturing Corporation, introduces PetCakes™, a new collectible plush pet line that will be a sweet treat for children ages 3 & up. Each PetCakes animal features a "frosting" hat, comes nestled in its own cupcake wrapper and has its own whimsical backstory. At first look, children will see a delicious cupcake but will then be surprised by the pet they find snuggled inside! Combining sweet faces and cuddly plush with a clever cupcake theme, PetCakes are collectible and provide hours of open-ended imaginative play. PetCakes make perfect gifts for a special friend and for pet lovers. They are ideal for birthday party favors, stocking stuffers and as rewards for good grades. Most of all, PetCakes deliver the kind of fun kids eat up!

We were recently given the opportunity to try these adorable little characters out.  I opened the door a few days ago to find a box waiting for me.  Upon opening it up, I found these four sweet little puppies!

Twinkle Sprinkles™ is a playful, loving, and mischievous Beagle, whose colorful pink sprinkled frosting top looks good enough to eat! Twinkle Sprinkles likes to yelp when happy and sleep in her cupcake wrapper where her nose stays nice and toasty.

Coco-Coconut™ is a fluffy poodle with a loving side that is as sweet as a frosted cupcake. Cuddle Coco-Coconut and keep her cozy in her cupcake wrapper.

Blueberry Buddy™ is a Shar Pei who acts tough for his size but is a loving push over who’s as sweet as the blueberry frosting on his head. When sleepy, Blueberry Buddy cozies up in his own cupcake wrapper.

Randy Candy™ is a lovable mutt, scampering around playfully and taking long naps in his cupcake wrapper. Randy Candy is topped with tasty frosting and a cherry.

They are almost cute enough to eat!  They are the perfect size for small hands, not too big, and yet not too small either.  They are recommended for children ages three and up.  I chose to let my girls play with Coco-Coconut and Twinkle Sprinkles (my favorite!) first, and I tucked the other two pups away for Christmas because I think they are the absolute perfect size to stick in the top of a stocking!  How cute will that be?  I think they would make a wonderful Christmas gift.  

The girls (they are 4 and 3 years old) loved these.  I tried to take a couple videos and they kept running off to play with them. Our only complaint was that they were attached to their cupcake holders, but that was an easy fix to just cut the string.  

My three year old even fell asleep (on the family room floor!) with hers.  Adorable!

PetCakes are now available at specialty stores, http://www.toysrus.com/search/index.jsp?kwCatId=&kw=petcakes&origkw=petcakes&f=Taxonomy/TRUS/2254197&sr=1 (online only – not yet in the stores), http://www.etoys.com/ and http://www.amazon.com/PetCakes-5511587-Twinkle-Sprinkes/dp/B0047O390I?ie=UTF8&tag=thec01-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969.  They have a retail price of $13.99



Would you like to win one?  Well, you're in luck!  PetCakes has generously allowed me to host a giveaway for not one, but TWO of these sweet treats!


Mandatory Entry:


-Visit PetCakes and tell me which is your favorite, or which you think would be your child's favorite. 


For an extra entry (leave a separate comment for each entry) you can:


-Follow The Coupon Wars (publicly) via Google Friend Connect.


                                   -Blog about this giveaway, and leave the link in the comments.


That's three chances to win!  PLEASE make sure you leave your email address or some way to contact you in each entry.  If I can't figure out how to contact you, you can't win.  I will end this giveaway on Saturday, 12/11/10...  8:00pm, Eastern time.  Any entries left after that will not be counted.  I must also note that this giveaway is only open to those in the US. 


Good luck!!

Well, I saiiiiiid I was done Christmas shopping.  I may tuck these away for next year, haha...or maybe Easter baskets.  I had a $10 Hallmark coupon so I used it on two dolls and an ornament.  The ornament was marked down to $2.xx, and the dolls were $4.99 each.  Paid $2.83, including tax. 

I also had a $5 coupon that I used to purchase two rolls of wrapping paper.  They were buy 1 get 1 for .99, so it was $5.99 for two rolls, and just .99 (plus tax) after the coupon. 

This is "sort of" a deal, and I am posting it because I just think it's really neat.

We had a girls day at the mall with my mom and grandmother, and browsing a collectible type store my mom came across some Christmas ornaments that were priced at $1...and she found one from 1984!  How perfect, as that's the year I was born.  I was only hoping they had a 1983 as well for my husband but no such luck. 

I also love that it says Norfolk, Virginia on it as well as we lived near there for a couple of years. 

Remember that $3 MP3 credit I mentioned recently?

If you're looking to get into the Christmas spirit, you can get this 99 Most Essential Christmas Masterpieces album free (and stilll have some credit left!). 

It is priced at $1.99.  As always with Amazon, you never know how long prices are going to last, so if you're interested, I would jump on this.  

If you missed the $3 MP3 credit information, just use code GET3MP3S

I *love* this time of year!



Amazon seems to put this set on sale every year and I have always missed it.  Not today!  Right now you can get The Original Christmas Classics boxed set for just $12.99!  AND it ships free with Amazon Prime if you have that (I do!  Free trial!!).  If you would rather have a BluRay, that is priced at $19.49.  

This set includes:
* Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
* Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town
* Frosty the Snowman
* Frosty Returns
* Mr. Magoo’s Christmas Carol
* Little Drummer Boy
* Cricket on the Hearth

(I wish it had Twas the Night Before Christmas too...but you can find that, along with Frosty's Winter Wonderland, for $5.99, if you're interested.)

I am placing my order right now (YAY for having Amazon credits from surveys!) and I'm not even going to be able to wait until Christmas to give it as a gift, I know I'll be popping it in our dvd player the day it arrives.

Holiday Cards from Shutterfly

I have always loved receiving holiday cards, and my absolute favorite are the more personal photo cards.  Years ago I thought it was so expensive to send those cards and so I never even attempted to have them made, but for the past couple years I have found such great deals on the photo cards that I haven't been able to resist ordering them.  As a bonus, I actually *remember* to mail my holiday cards out when I am sharing sweet photos of my children with family and friends. 

Shutterfly is a great website you can use to order copies of your precious memories from, and I have used them with great results in the past.  You can check out their lovely selection of Christmas cards here: http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/christmas-cards. I just love the Royal Elegance card.  I really like the Family Wall cards as well.  So simple, elegant, and beautiful.  They also have Holiday cards:
http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/holiday-cards, and Hanukkah cards: http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/hanukkah-cards. They even have options for other holidays and events...so many to choose from, you just have to check them out. 

Did you know, that Bloggers can actually receive 50 holiday cards for FREE?  Talk about a great deal!  I just got my girls their Christmas dresses yesterday and I am so excited to play around with the camera and try to get some good pictures to use for this years cards.  I love looking at the cards from years past and seeing just how much the girls have grown.  We may even try some family photos this year!

I love when Kohl's randomly mails me $10 in Kohl's Cash.

When I first saw the Hideaway Hollow collection I thought it was ADORABLE.  I knew my girls would love it, so when I got some Kohl's Cash that's what I got.

They have actually sent me enough Kohl's cash recently for me to buy the ENTIRE set (minus one of the small mouse sets because there are 3 total and I need to keep the numbers even, haha!

That, coupled with their sales, has made it much less expensive than it was originally.

I do need to give credit to my mom though because she gave me a some of her $10 Kohl's Cash as well and even purchased two of the items for me using a $10 that had been sent to her.

I'm sooooo excited that Santa will be able to leave these under the tree (and at a fraction of the cost)!  :o)

 $7.94, as opposed to $24.99! 

 This total would have been $7.20 less, but when I saw those shirts I thought the girls would love them...had to get them.  :o)  Still, $3.05 for the furniture sets after the $10 Kohl's Cash, great deal considering they're normally $14.99 each. 

 Not sure why some of my pictures get flipped.... :o/  Not sure how to fix that either since they flip after they're uploaded.

Out of curiosity I just added up what I would have spent purchasing all of the Hideaway Hollow items at their full prices (going by the price stickers on the ones I purchased)...  $203.09!! (!!!) Wow.  What I have actually spent?  $39.58. That doesn't include the two my mom purchased, but I think that was around $14 (if I remember correctly) for both, so that still only makes the total around $53-54 total....for 10 playsets.  AMAZING what using store coupons and shopping sales can do.