Take me out to the moooo-vieeess!

Of course starting each day off right with breakfast is what many of our households do, but what's a good way to spend your evenings? Sometimes its nice to get out of the house with the kids, do something different... see a movie perhaps??
Its almost November (can you believe it?!?!) and that means that General Mills will be starting their eMovie cash program!! After you purchase two participating cereals, you can head to the eMovie cash website to enter your codes and print out your eMovie cash! Some of the cereals participating are Honey Nut Cheerios and Cinnamon Toast Crunch- two of our absolute favorites, as well as Lucky Charms, Trix and Reese's Peanut Butter Puffs.

You can check for participating theaters in your area using their eMovie Cash Locator. You can read more into their frequently asked questions here.

With all the movies that come out during the holiday season, there are so many that are on my must see list- Amelia... The Men Who Stare At Goats... The Princess and the Frog... and of course, who can deny that they NEED to see the highlight of the holiday movie season- The Twilight Saga: New Moon.

Want to win a Movie Moment prize pack? You'll get 4 eMovie cash certificates as well as a coupon for a free box of General Mills cereal. Leave a comment here letting me know what your favorite family movie is to watch! What movie are you looking forward to seeing in the theaters??

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This giveaway will accept entries until 11:59 pm on Sunday, November 22nd. Winner will be drawn with random.org and emailed. Winner must reply within 48 hours to winning email or a new winner will be drawn. Please make sure that your email is accessible, whether in the comment or a blogger profile, cause if I cant contact you, how can you win??

Opinions are my own, I was provided items free of charge to review and giveaway (by General Mills via MyBlogSpark), which in no way changed the way I feel about the product!

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YoBaby YoBaby YO!

Lil' Buddy has become one pain in the neck of an eater all of a sudden. Its ridiculously annoying and obnoxious and nothing like his sister was. Boug would eat anything in sight and Bud will only eat a select few things. Thankfully, one of those things he'll eat is yogurt and of course, YoBaby has been a fave for a while now. Now I'm stoked that they have the new 3 in 1 yogurt meals that have not only their yogurt, but also fruit and vegetable puree at the bottom as well.

Being 100% natural and organic is a huge perk, because who wants to feed their kids junk that is processed and unnatural, loaded with sugar and who knows what else? With the 3 in 1 meals, I know that Bud is getting nutrition in, as well as not just eating cheese sandwiches and egg noodles. He loves the flavors that they come in, pear & green bean, apple & sweet potato, as well as peach & squash, I'm thinking he enjoyed the apple & sweet potato the most though. Another great thing about him with these, is that he's trying to learn how to use a spoon at this point and the consistency is perfect for him to dip his spoon in and attempt to feed himself with it.

Want to win a YoBaby 3 in 1 meals prize pack?? Leave a comment here with which flavor do you think your little one would like? Or have you already tried other YoBaby products, what flavor of those do they enjoy?? Prize pack includes a YoBaby travel bowl with lid, organic cotton YoBaby bib, an Eric Carle growth chart, 3 free YoBaby meals coupons.

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This giveaway will accept entries until 11:59 pm on Sunday, November 15th. Winner will be drawn with random.org and emailed. Winner must reply within 48 hours to winning email or a new winner will be drawn. Please make sure that your email is accessible, whether in the comment or a blogger profile, cause if I cant contact you, how can you win??

Opinions are my own, I was provided items free of charge to review and giveaway (by Stonyfield Farm/YoBaby), which in no way changed the way I feel about the product!

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Pink Together....

If you watched my Monday Mingle, you'd know that I have a thought on breast cancer awareness, and all cancer awareness, that it shouldn't just be one month. We should be aware ALWAYS, doing what we can to beat these aweful illnesses. Not just one month of the year. Regardless, it is breast cancer awareness month and now there's lots of light being shed on some great causes. One of those is of course, Susan G. Komen as well as PinkTogether.com and ShopKomen.com.

PinkTogether.com is a great site where people can reach to others, discuss and have a community of breast cancer survivors and supporters. No matter what the scenerio, support is always needed and this is a great place to find it. I love that General Mills is supporting Susan G. Komen, PinkTogether.com and ShopKomen.com. General Mills will be donating $2 million dollars to Susan G. Komen for the Cure as well as $1 (up to $20,000) for each encouraging comment, virtual flower bouquet or story shared on PinkTogether.com in October.

Another great way to support is by buying products that give back to breast cancer causes, which you can do at ShopKomen.com. 25% of each purchase benefits Komen for the Cure fight against breast cancer. With now being the season for gift giving, you can make it twofold, by purchasing items to give as gifts from ShopKomen and having that 25% donated back to Komen for the Cure. Its a win-win right?

Would you like to win a ShopKomen.com/PinkTogether.com prize pack? To enter, visit PinkTogether.com and let me know what you think, you can send a virtual bouquet, add a comment, tell me what touches your heart... whatever you'd like to do to support this cause. One winner will receive a ShopKomen.com/PinkTogether.com prize pack consisting of a sleeved travel mug, running ribbon charm bracelet, pink leather strap keychain, pink cinch bag and a set of inspirational note cards.

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This giveaway will accept entries until 11:59 pm on Sunday, November 15th. Winner will be drawn with random.org and emailed. Winner must reply within 48 hours to winning email or a new winner will be drawn. Please make sure that your email is accessible, whether in the comment or a blogger profile, cause if I cant contact you, how can you win??

Opinions are my own, I was provided items free of charge to review and giveaway (by PinkTogether via MyBlogSpark), which in no way changed the way I feel about the product!

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Color Me Happy!!

I feel like every time I turn around, I find a crayon, a broken crayon, a "naked" crayon, a crayon paper... something crayon related. Ever since Boug was little, all she did and still does is write. Needless to say, Crayola's are a staple in our house. And with the new "Lights, Camera, Color" application at crayola.com, there's even more for Boug and other kids to do with their crayons! (Heck, you'll even catch me coloring from time to time... shhhh...)

How cool is being able to turn your digital pictures into coloring pages for the kids? That's just what you can do with "Lights, Camera, Color" from Crayola.com. I honestly had to peek at the "Lights, Camera, Color" without Boug hanging around, and I got sucked into messing around with photos, adding in props and backgrounds and words and all the other fun stuff that you can do to your pictures.

How fun would it be to create a whole coloring book, specially customized for your family, or your friends? Special coloring pages to celebrate different events, or to give your little one free reign over your camera for a day so that they can take pictures of the stuff that they'd like to color?

You'll find your codes for "Lights, Camera, Color" inside marked packages of crayola crayon boxes so that you can print out the coloring pages. You can try it out for free anytime, but you'll have to have a code to be able to print. In the 64 count and larger boxes, you'll get a code for 6 months with unlimited prints and the 48 count boxes you'll get a code for 3 months with unlimited prints. I have a one-day pass code to share with you to try out "Lights, Camera, Color" for yourself! Your promo one-day pass code is::: PRT77F3S

Would you like to win a 150 count Crayola telescoping crayon tower that includes a6 month unlimited print code? Leave a comment here letting me know if you have a specific picture in mind you'd like to turn into a coloring sheet!

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This giveaway will accept entries until 11:59 pm on Sunday, November 8th. Winner will be drawn with random.org and emailed. Winner must reply within 48 hours to winning email or a new winner will be drawn. Please make sure that your email is accessible, whether in the comment or a blogger profile, cause if I cant contact you, how can you win??

Opinions are my own, I was provided items free of charge to review and giveaway (by Crayola via MyBlogSpark), which in no way changed the way I feel about the product!

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Life's a jungle, eat it up!

I'm happy I've found a way to keep myself out of the kids candy this Halloween. Because seriously, I do not need to be eating their candy... Every year, I dig and dig through Boug's treat bag and score about 5 extra pounds on each thigh. Is it worth it? Nope. This year I'm going to keep on hand a special treat for me so that I can keep away from that big plasticy pumpkin faced bag that beckons my name.
I've got Tiger's Milk bars on hand to curb my candy cravings this year, and I'm stoked, cause they're not only yummy, but they're balanced. They're a great source of protein and nutrition, and are packed with 16 vitamins and minerals.

Of course I've had to dip into my Tiger's Milk stash already, but not to worry, I'll definitely be keeping them around for this coming weekend. The peanut butter flavor has got to be my favorite, though they come in peanut butter with honey, protein rich, and peanut butter crunch varieties as well.

You can pick up your Tiger's Milk bars at Trader Joe's, Albertsons, Meijer, and other retailers. You can even pick them up in bulk at Amazon.com

Opinions are my own, I was provided items free of charge to review, which in no way changed the way I feel about the product!

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Monday Mingle

Once again, its Monday Mingle time as hosted by the ever so lovely Eighty MPH Mom! Want to participate? Head over to Eighty MPH Mom and link up your Monday Mingle video!!

As mentioned in this vlog: ShopKomen.com (also, I didn't know the exact amount of proceeds going to Komen for the Cure, it is 25%)

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Menu Plan Monday

Another hectic week, though with good news this time... hub got a promotion at work, which means his hours will change, which will allow me to head back to work a few nights a week!! I love when we can work opposite each others schedules and there's no need to pay a babysitter to watch the kids, because at the amount that babysitters and daycares want nowadays, whats the point of even going to work? Recipes are below!!

Monday: Pasta with Meat Sauce (carryover from last week)

Tuesday: Sweet & Sour Chicken with Rice


Wednesday: Homemade Butternut Squash Ravioli


Thursday: Pesto Stuffed Steaks


Friday: Hot Dogs


Saturday: Halloween- Pizza at my grandparents & trick or treat!


Sunday: Chili Mole


Once again, breakfasts are usually cold cereal, oatmeal and sometimes Boug just wants toast and a banana! Lunches usually are leftovers or sandwiches paired with yogurt or fruit generally. My meals are usually a bit heavier in meats and chickens as hub is a butcher and brings so much home for free or next to nothing!! Check out more Menu Plan Monday entries at orgjunkie!!

Recipes:::


Pasta with Meat Sauce:
To be honest I will throw whatever cut of beef that I have in the freezer in the crockpot with a jar of sauce, I let it go about 6-7 hours and by the time I prepare dinner, the beef is all shredded and I just put it on top of some pasta!

Sweet & Sour Chicken (from My Kitchen Cafe)
Chicken:
3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Salt and pepper
1 cup cornstarch
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup canola oil

Cut boneless chicken breasts into chunks. Season with salt and pepper. Dip chicken in cornstarch and then in egg. Fry in a little oil until brown but not cooked through. Place in a single layer in a baking dish. Mix sauce ingredients (below) together and pour over chicken.

Sauce:
¾ cup sugar
4 tablespoons ketchup
½ cup vinegar
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon garlic salt

Bake for one hour at 325 degrees. Turn chicken every 15 minutes. If you like extra sauce, make another batch of sauce and bring it to a boil on the stovetop. Stir constantly and let cook over medium heat until thickened and reduced - about 6-8 minutes.

Butternut Squash Ravioli: (I think I got this from a magazine??)
Filling:
2 c. mashed butternut squash
1 tbsp. milk
1/2 c. parmesean cheese
pinch of nutmeg

Pasta:
2 c. flour
1/2 tsp. salt
3 eggs

Cook your squash and allow it to cool. I usually do mine at 400 degrees (cut in half, face down) for about 20-25 minutes. I let it sit to cool and scoop out the squash with a melon baller. When cooled, mash your squash together with the milk, nutmeg and parmesean cheese.

For the pasta, make a flour mountain and make a well in the center, beat together the salt and the eggs and pour into the well in the flour. Mix together little by little with a fork until all together, then knead with your hands to make a ball. Half the ball and let the pasta dough rest for about a half hour or so. Roll out each half thinly and cut your circles.

Put about a spoonful of filling on each circle, depending on size, and wet the edge of the circle with some water, place another circle on top and crimp the edges with a fork. Boil all ravioli for about 15-20 minutes to desired tenderness!

I serve this with a thyme butter sauce, simply melting about a half a stick of butter with some thyme in a small saucepan and simmering until fragrant.

Pesto Stuffed Steaks:
This one you'll have to do to family size, we use 3 decent sized steaks and just butterfly them and jam the insides with pesto and grill!
Recipe calls for ribeyes, good steaks, but you can definitely use your preference, we like ribeyes, but we'll be using shell's for this.

Chili Mole: (From Betty Crocker)
1 lb. ground beef
1 chopped onion
1 pk. chili seasoning mix
1 28 oz. can crushed tomatoes
1 28 oz. can diced tomatoes
1 can spicy chili beans, undrained (I'll use red kidneys)
1 oz. unsweetened baking chocolate, coarse chopped

Brown beef with onion in a skillet and drain. Mix beef, onion and remaining ingredients in crockpot and cook on low for 4-6 hours.

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Make all your steps smart!

Cooking and feeding and coming up with new recipe ideas and transitioning from bottles to cups, from sippys to regular... its all a bit overwhelming at times and I can admit that I've gotten stuck in ruts with foods and whatnot...

How helpful is Evenflo's new Smart Steps feeding line?!?! Their new products are designed to help parents and caregivers dish out the right amount of food for their toddlers. New products like the transition cup with its soft spout, the insulated cup that has a neoprene sleeve to keep drinks warm or cool longer, the portion scoop that makes giving the right amount so easy, and many other great new products. I especially love the idea of the portion plate that shows right there that the meal is balanced and portioned properly!

I love all things that make my life even the tiniest bit easier and the Smart Steps line has done that. Even the website is full of ideas to make life easier, with everything from dealing with a picky eater to their portion health feeding arc, from the food pyramid to kid friendly recipes. How do you deal with your picky eaters? Try giving them choices, let them pick the veggie that they'd prefer, or let them even help prepare them with you as you cook!

You can read more about Evenflo's Smart Steps at the Mom Central website. While there you can even grab coupons for the new Evenflo Smart Steps products!

I wrote this review while participating in a blog campaign by Mom Central on behalf of Evenflo and received a sample to facilitate my candid review. In addition, Mom Central sent me a gift card to thank me for taking the time to participate.

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Good Nutrition Builds Healthy Babies!!

One of the most important things that we do for our children is make sure that they get the nutrition that they need. With so much varying information out there, how quickly things change and not knowing where to turn, its nice that the Infant Nutrition Center has now launched a website that is chock full of resources for making nutritional decisions that much easier.

When I had Miss Boug, I feel like I was young, turning 22 only a week after I had her, and the first year especially was tough, thinking I didn't know what the hell I was doing. I looked through countless magazines, watched the tv shows, read the books and checked websites to make sure that I was doing the right things for her. Sometimes its just so much to take in and if its not done right, its overwhelming to understand. With the Infant Nutrition Center's website having fourteen videos and illustrations that break things down, easier to focus on, easier to understand, its such a great help.

Of course we all know, "breast is best," but sometimes that doesn't work for everyone. Even though having two kids and feeling like I'm semi-knowledgeable, the Infant Nutrition Center site helped me learn even more about development in my kids that has already passed as well as stuff that will continue to occur.

In a clear, easy to comprehend format, the Infant Nutrition Center is a definite resource that I'll be looking to in the future and passing along to friends! (like you right now!!) I'd have to say the brain size illustrations were the most interesting to me, I didn't realize that Lil' Buddy's brain was the size of a smallish head of lettuce right now!!

I wrote this review while participating in a blog campaign by Mom Central on behalf of Mead Johnson. Mom Central sent me a gift card to thank me for taking the time to participate.

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A couple of great amazon deals-

This is just a quickie post, since I'm doing a little amazon shopping as I type this, but I just came across a couple of awesome deals!!

Harriton Womens Long Sleeve Twill Shirt:
Size XL in Black w/Stone is only ONE PENNY!! (+ shipping)

Timberline Colorado Telluride Full Zip Jacket
Size youth baby (2-4) is only $2.04 (+ shipping)

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Wordless Wednesday

"Hey, Wait for me!!"

As always, check out more WW participants at EM, 5M4M and the hub!

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Safe Sleep for your Sweetie

When a new baby arrives, there's a ridiculous amount of planning that you did to get ready for that moment, and although you think you've covered all your bases, you quickly learn that you didn't. I didn't realize how handy and perfect that the Halo SleepSack's are until Boug was almost a year, no one told me, I didn't realize and I kicked myself for a while for not having one.

The SleepSack's are wonderful, not only because they're great for keeping your sweetie warm, but more importantly (in my opinion) they are a phenomenal way to reduce the SIDS risk. With the Halo SleepSack, you don't need to have any loose bedding in the crib, like a blanket. That loose bedding is a threat in a way, it can get into your babys face and make breathing difficult quite easily.

The importance of keeping your baby safe obviously doesn't go overlooked with parents, but the Halo SleepSack is one of those gifts I like to put on the "baby shower gift roster" for all my friends. You can even head to the Halo site and print out some "safe sleep tips" to put along with your gift of safe sleep. Those are just my thoughts though on a perfect baby shower gift, there's more Halo items at the site and more resources that you can reference as well.

Want to win your choice of a pink or blue Halo Sleepsack? Leave a comment here with another Halo product that catches your eye! (Pink is size small, 10-18 lbs, Blue is size newborn, sleepsack swaddle, 6-12 lbs, your choice!)

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This giveaway will accept entries until 11:59 pm on Saturday, October 31st. Winner will be drawn with random.org and emailed. Winner must reply within 48 hours to winning email or a new winner will be drawn. Please make sure that your email is accessible, whether in the comment or a blogger profile, cause if I cant contact you, how can you win??

Opinions are my own, I was provided items free of charge to review (by Halo and MomSelect, which in no way changed the way I feel about the product!

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Bed Bouquet Review & Giveaway!

To be honest, the house we just moved into isn't the sweetest smelling place. Right across the street is barns and the polo field, next door is the sheep field and beyond that is the cow field. Needles to say, it smells a little "farm-y" around here. I've plugged in my air fresheners, lit candles, sprayed air freshener and done all the little things that you can do to freshen up the air in your house... and I've placed a Bed Bouquet under my sheets on my bed.

Bed Bouquet is a completely unnoticeable packet that has small vents in it that lets an awesome scent escape and freshen up the place where you need to be the most relaxed- the bed. Receiving the linen and the citrus scents, I had to try the citrus out first, I'm a big fan of all things citrusy smelling. I followed the instructions, peeled off the sticky side, pulled up my fitted sheet, peeled the cover off the vented side, stuck the Bed Bouquet to my mattress and put the fitted sheet back on. Though it wasn't time for bed, I curled up in my spot to check it out and see if it smelled through the sheet... sure enough, it was the perfect strength and it smelled lovely! And lasting about 30 days, I won't have to worry about it again for a few more weeks!

The scents available are fabulous, linen fresh, citrus, jasmine & white rose, and lavender & vanilla, and all are designed not to stain your sheets, cause no one wants to ruin sheets just for a sweet smell!!

Want to win a 2 pack of Bed Bouquet? Just leave a comment here with which scents you'd like (don't worry, you can change your mind if you win!) There will be 2 winners in this giveaway!

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• If you don't have a blog, you can gain extra entries by emailing a friend about this giveaway! Just CC me in your email! caseyscouch@yahoo.com

This giveaway will accept entries until 11:59 pm on Saturday, October 31st. Winner will be drawn with random.org and emailed. Winner must reply within 48 hours to winning email or a new winner will be drawn. Please make sure that your email is accessible, whether in the comment or a blogger profile, cause if I cant contact you, how can you win??

Opinions are my own, I was provided items free of charge to review (by BedBouquet and Family Review Network), which in no way changed the way I feel about the product!

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I'm just a fan of fancast!

Every evening goes the same way... dinner gets on the table late. Hub gets home late. Kids go to bed late.... Mom misses the few minutes of tv time that she wants each week. Its getting tiring!!

There are only two shows that I make a point to watch each week, Glee and Law & Order: SVU. I don't ask for much around the house, just to have an hour to myself on Wednesday nights to veg out... now here's my issue. Glee and SVU are on at the same. exact. time. Are you kidding me? Its like cable tv is conspiring with my family against me.Hallelujah!! At least I have found a way to watch my shows when its convenient for me. I can watch SVU now when it airs on Wednesday nights, but Glee I can watch afterwards online at Fancast.com!! I'm truly shocked at how well being able to watch a tv show, when I want, works into my hectic home life schedule. Between making meals and laundry and cleaning, I'm able to check out my show when it works for ME!

Fancast is awesome, there's a ton of choices to pick from on the site, all sorts of different shows and its ridiculously easy to filter and navigate through your results. I was even quite surprised when I saw that they offered full length movies at Fancast as well. And the best part of all, since I'm so stingy... its free! The advertisements that keep it free are pretty short and painless so that's definitely a huge plus!

You can even keep up on the latest news and gossip at the very same site that you're checking out your favorite shows and movies. Convenience is key and staying at the same website definitely works for me!

And seriously, its only Monday and Saturday's SNL is already up because I passed out about 4 minutes into it... and on that note... I'm off to watch SNL and drool over Gerard Butler at Fancast.

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Grocery Shopping Inquiries...

I wanted to answer some questions about grocery shopping, this stems from the questions that Rona has up over at her site. She's looking for some tips on saving money while grocery shopping. Here's her questions and here are my answers:::

Do you shop every week?
I do shop weekly, with my shopping bill between $50 and $100 per week, depending on what is needed. Diaper/wipes weeks are usually quite a bit more.

Are you only going to one store to accomplish this?
I only shop at Stop & Shop, because they're the only store in the area that double coupons.

How do you decide which store you'll shop a per week?
99% of the time, I only shop at Stop & Shop, but if there's a crazy good sale somewhere for something I want, I will make a special trip for that item at that store.

Those of you with special diets ~ how do you stay within your tight budgets?
We do not have a special diet, but we do watch what we eat.

Do you always use coupons? If you do, do you purchase the Sunday newspaper, print from online websites, coupon swap?
99.9% of the time, I use coupons, the majority of them being either cut from the newspaper or printed from online sites. I like to print from mypoints.com because they give you points for however many coupons that you print/redeem in a month, which can be turned in for gift cards. I tend to store all my points until the holidays and use the gift cards to buy presents for the kids. I think I only spent $30 out of pocket for Christmas last year. I will always buy something if the double coupon saving is greater than the item price and I will always find a way to work it into my meal plans. Our Stop & Shop will give you the overage off on the item, so in a way you "make" money. Probably the reason that I have 15 bottles of BBQ sauce as well at 15 packets of the rice and noodle sides. I love to also keep an eye out for free product coupons wherever I can, they help immensely with keeping the grocery bill down and I tend not to cook anything with more than 6 (substantial) items. That keeps the bills down as well, and keeps my time in the kitchen at a minimum usually.

Do you purchase paid memberships with Sam's Club, BJ's, etc? If so, how does this work into your budget?
Buying in bulk at a Sam's or BJ's doesn't really work for us, we don't have the storage space for bulk at our house. My mother does have a Sam's membership so if we do choose to make a trip over, we share their membership. (Huge suggestion to share a Sam's membership unless you plan on using it all the time. Go halfsies with a friend and take your trips to the bulk stores together.)

What's a bargain price on ground beef and boneless chicken breasts?
To be honest, I'm not sure. Beef and Chicken are the two things that I hardly ever have to buy. My husband is a butcher and brings them home for nothing. I will say though, when crockpotting a piece of beef- in sauce per say, you can always use a cheaper cut. I make a pasta with meat sauce and I've used every cut of been imaginable. Its pretty hard to ruin something in a slow cooker, and beef, regardless of cut, generally gets more and more tender when slow cooked.

Is it a challenge to include fresh fruit and vegetables in a tight budget?
It can be, but I did a little reseach and frozen veggies are right up there nutritionally with fresh. I will also go and pick from farms in season fruits and veggies to save a buck, its fun for the kids too. We just bought 2 pumpkins and probably about 15 apples for $8 at the farm up the road. Cheaper then the grocery store!!

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Bring Furbabies Into Your Heart

Though there's probably a million reasons that I wish we owned our own home, adopting a new pet is definitely one of them. The landlord here didn't really even want us to have our cat, but we talked them into it. The kids love their kitty and adding to the furbabies in the house would be something that they would just love. When we got my very first cat when I was no more than 13, we adopted the "Ever-Lovely Miss Violet May" from the aspca. We didn't have a computer at the time and we didn't know what resources were available.

Petango.com is making it easy for you to adopt a pet with their real time, searchable database for homeless pets. Instead of dishing out hundreds of dollars for a dog or a cat, you can always adopt an animal that has no home or family to call its own. Those are always the animals that would genuinely love to be a part of a family.

Petango.com makes it easy to search for these sweet animals by your zip code, so you can narrow down your choices to what you're looking for. Cat? Dog? Puppy? Kitten? You can even search "Other Pets" for other animal choices... I searched other pets in my area and six of the most beautiful horses came up. I wish I had a farm and a field of my own for these guys... There were even 120 dogs in my area, my heart breaks for them and like I said, I wish I had a home of my own so I could make a difference in just one's life. But what is even more heartbreaking to me, there are 703 cats in my area that need some lovin's... 703!! That's ridiculous!! (people PLEASE spay and neuter your animals!!)

Browse Petango.com - Adopt a cat! and all the other furbabies that you can adopt in your area!!

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Menu Plan Monday

Seriously, I'm happy for last week to be over and for a new one to begin. Hopefully this week the baby will kick his cold, I'll get more unpacked, more organized and less frazzled.... Two carryovers for dinners this week, I wound up realizing that I HAD TO cook a butternut squash one night before it went bad, and then Saturday night we had a family get together, which bumped another dinner into this week. This week is a "ridiculously broke" week, 80% of the dinner shopping is being done from my freezer... we'll see how this goes... I haven't been this broke in a longggg time!!

Recipes are below!!

Don't forget to enter into my Progresso Prize Pack giveaway!!

Monday: Pasta with Sausage

Tuesday: Crockpot Beef Stew


Wednesday: Tuna Patty Burgers


Thursday: Grilled Cheese & Soup


Friday: Crockpot Rotisserie Chicken

Saturday: Breakfast for Dinner

Sunday: Pasta with Meat Sauce

Once again, breakfasts are usually cold cereal, oatmeal and sometimes Boug just wants toast and a banana! Lunches usually are leftovers or sandwiches paired with yogurt or fruit generally. My meals are usually a bit heavier in meats and chickens as hub is a butcher and brings so much home for free or next to nothing!! Check out more Menu Plan Monday entries at orgjunkie!!

Recipes:::

Pasta with Sausage
4 c. rigatoni
1 lb. italian sausage, either in casing- cut up, or loose
1 sliced red onion
1/4 c. tomato paste
1/4 c. sun dried tomato salad dressing
1/4 c. chopped parsley
1/4 grated parmesean cheese

Cook pasta, brown sausage and drain, add in onions and tomato paste- cover and cook 15 min. Stir in dressing, serve on top of the pasta, top with parsley and cheese.

Crockpot Beef Stew
2 lbs. stew beef
pepper to taste
splash worcestershire sauce
3 potatoes, cut into chunks
4 celery stalks, cut into chunks
4 carrots, cut into chunks
salt to taste
1.5 c. beef broth
2 tbsp. minced garlic
1 large onion, cut into chunks
1/4 c. flour

Place meat into crockpot, mix together flour, salt, pepper and mix in with the meat. Stir to make sure meat is coated. Add in remaining ingredients and mix well. Cover and cook on low for 10 hours. Stir and serve!

Tuna Patty Burgers
1 package stuffing mix
2 cans tuna fish, drained
2 eggs
1/3 c. mayo

Mix all ingredients, form into burger patties and fry in oil. Place onto burger buns and enjoy!

Crockpot Rotisserie Chicken
Rinse chicken and sprinkle with your favorite seasoning. I use season salt. Place fryer chicken on top of 4-5 foil balls in the crock pot. Cook on high for 6 hours

Pasta with Meat Sauce:
To be honest I will throw whatever cut of beef that I have in the freezer in the crockpot with a jar of sauce, I let it go about 6-7 hours and by the time I prepare dinner, the beef is all shredded and I just put it on top of some pasta!

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Stuck on the Designer Collection!

As you may know, I'm a big fan of Stuck on You. I think that all their products are genius, styles are rockin' and the endless uses are phenomenal. Stuck on You has recently kicked up their styles a notch with the addition of their new designer collection.

The designer collection from Stuck on You offers up not only some super cute new icons for their products, but new products as well! The designs are ridiculously adorable, like the singing bird theme has to be my favorite, but they offer others like traffic jam, jungle animals, friendly monster and garden creatures.

Some of the new designer items are great for decor, like the personalized canvases that you can get in three different sizes. Size is an awesome choice so you can make it work perfectly for the room you're decorating! Not all companies offer different size choices in items like that. You an also jazz up your decor with a functional height chart to mark all your little ones milestones. I absolutely adore the patterned birds height chart!!

Of course I have to mention what Stuck on You is known for, their awesome labels. In their designer collection they now offer shape name labels, soooo cute and functional! It can add that bit of pizazz to a plain ol' sippy cup when you add a bug mania or jungle animal designer label to keep track of it!

As always, I'm so impressed with Stuck on You and their offerings, they never seem to let me down and the latest additions with the designer collection are definitely some of my favorite yet!

But don't forget, with the holidays coming up there will be lots of new items entering your household, don't forget to stick 'em with a label so they always return home. Also, Stuck on You has some of the best gift tags around, perfect for sticking on all holiday gifts this season!!

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My take on the Ninja Launch NYC

When I had the chance to attend the launch of Euro-Pro's Ninja Master Prep, I was beyond thrilled. In the beginning, a little skeptical, but thrilled none the less. I wanted to check this bad boy out and actually be able to put it to the test hands on, instead of just saying "Oh, it only looks like it works well because its a commercial on tv." I've been burned by tv products before, but I didn't want that to happen again. Needless to say, I'm sold.

The Euro-Pro Ninja Master Prep has all these claims like, it can actually crush the ice effectively instead of just making a mess, mincing, dicing, chopping, blending, pureeing, and I wasn't so sure. I had to see it first hand... Let me tell you, the Ninja Master Prep, actually is one of these products that follows through on all its claims and more... It was so beyond easy to use while giving the perfect results that you need. Though for me, being able to do all this easily is great, but there were the perks that sold me on it- like being microwave and dishwasher safe and the awesome way that it won't work unless its all put together right. No little fingers will be able to turn this bad boy on and get themselves into any situations... LOVE THAT!!Robin Miller, from Food Network fame, made me a lot more solid in my decision to fall in love with the Ninja Master Prep. She did one of the best jobs showing all of us how it works and providing great recipes to go along with the Ninja, that I couldn't have been more impressed with her. Not only that, the recipes were REAL. They weren't this fancy-pants, obscure ingredient recipes, they were down to earth and proved just how convenient a Ninja can be in our everyday lives. Even the Ninja website is loaded with her recipes, and the curried chicken salad had to have been one of my very favorite recipes so far. Ridiculously easy, ridiculously delicious.

I can't express how great of a job that Euro-Pro did to show us the products and accomodate us in NYC. Not only with the launch of the Ninja Master Prep, but as well as their other awesome products, like the Shark vacuums and steam mops... (can't wait to tell you about those!!)

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Pack in some flavor with Progresso

If you follow along here at A Couch With A View, you'll notice my menu plan Monday posts. Lately I feel like I've been able to move from my comfort zone and try out new things, new products and new recipes. I love my old "tried and true" but switching it up has been a great way to keep meals from becoming boring.

Though I've been trying to branch out a bit, there are certain brands and items that are just "staples" in my pantry. Progresso has always been one of those staples. I've always turned to their broth for recipes that call for it, no matter what. And of course, gotta love that the broths are 100% natural, fat free, gluten free, no preservatives, no added msg and no artificial flavors! Though recently I was given the opportunity by MyBlogSpark to try out not only Progresso broth, but their panko bread crumbs, which I've never tried. The panko bread crumbs were definitely what made the meal (chicken fingers for lunch!) They're so much lighter and flakier than regular bread crumbs, and of course baking them and not frying them made lunch a bit more healthy for us all!

You can grab coupons for Progresso products here, and for Progresso broths here. Though even if there were no coupon to be had, the panko bread crumbs and broth would be on my shopping list!

And since I love me some Food Network, some great tips from Michael Chiarello for using your panko bread crumbs and broth...
:Substitute panko bread crumbs for coating pork chops, fish or chicken! Dip in flour, then beaten egg, and coat both sides with panko before baking or frying for an awesome crunch!
:Instead of frying, bake chicken coated with panko in a 400 degree oven for 20 minutes for the great crispy crunch without the fat!
:To keep moisture in your leftovers, drizzle leftovers with broth before reheating!
:Replace your water with broth in recipes to add that extra flavor when you cook potatoes, rice and grains.
Want to win a Progresso prize pack? This includes a measuring cup, a baking sheet, Progresso panko bread crumbs, Progresso broth, a ladle, a slotted spoon and a Progresso soups recipe book. To enter just leave a comment here with what recipe you would use the Progresso broth or the Progresso panko bread crumbs in!

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This giveaway will accept entries until 11:59 pm on Saturday, October 31st. Winner will be drawn with random.org and emailed. Winner must reply within 48 hours to winning email or a new winner will be drawn. Please make sure that your email is accessible, whether in the comment or a blogger profile, cause if I cant contact you, how can you win??

Opinions are my own, I was provided items free of charge to review (by MyBlogSpark), which in no way changed the way I feel about the product!

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Please tell me if I have "idiot" stamped on my forehead...

Honestly, I'd really like to know what the new bus drivers issue is... is it that I called the bus garage and asked why my daughters bus got changed? I wanted to make sure that there wasn't anything bad going on. I wanted to make sure that there were no issues. She's only in kindergarten, and I haven't been through this song and dance yet...

Boug's bus route was changed because of the fact that there were 2 large busses that had too many children on them. So, without much advance notice, Boug's bus route was changed. To a small bus. A short bus. There's a stigma that goes along with the short bus. You can point your finger at me for letting that stigma carry on, but its always been that way and I can't say that I'm thrilled that she's riding one of those short busses. I understand why, and its not so bad because there are other kids on there that she knows, even a little girl from her classroom, but still... that stigma that goes along with the short bus kind of burns me.

But whatever, I got over it, I'm letting it go... until this morning. Literally 10 minutes ago, Boug got picked up by her bus, and as she's getting on the bus, the new bus driver shouts something to me as I'm standing there with Lil' Buddy. "Can you do me a favor and make sure you keep him back? I don't want him to dart out." My jaw dropped. My simple reply was, "Um yeah. I'm a responsible parent. I make sure that he doesn't go in the road." She made another comment about not wanting to run him over or having an accident or some bull...

This woman has never seen Lil' Buddy go in the road. I could understand if she had seen him in the road, but that's never happened. I always make sure I have at least one hand on the boy when the bus comes, and usually he's hanging out over by the front door of the house which is about 25 feet away from the edge of the road.

I feel insulted, I feel incompetant. The condecending tone was uncalled for. I'm a damn good, responsible, loving, caring and smart mother.

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Rummino FRN Review!

Keeping things lively and fun around the house during downtime is important. Sometimes we forget to take time for each other and get stuck in a rut. A great way to have a fun home night is with a great game.

We were recently sent, for review through FRN, Rummino which is a mix of dominos and rummy. And if you watched or participated in Monday Mingle, you'd see me talk about how the hub and I always used to play rummy. Rummino has been an awesome addition to our game collection and a must needed, well deserved break from the crazyness of everyday. Though it took us a minute to get used to the new rules and regulations of Rummino, we quickly caught on and before we knew it, we had played 3 rounds of it!!

Although I know Rummino is a little advanced for Boug, she's only 5 and the recommended ages are 8+, I know I'll be bringing Rumminio to the family gatherings this holiday season especially. We've been in a game rut for the holidays for the past few years and I'm sure Rummino is going to be a big hit!

You can pick up Rummino through the Marina Games website or at Amazon.com.

Opinions are my own, I was provided items free of charge to review, which in no way changed the way I feel about the product!

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Sprout with the Wiggles!!

Our house, somehow, became big fans of The Wiggles. I'm not even sure how it happened because the teeny little cable company at the old house didn't even offer whatever channel The Wiggles are on. I've got dvds, vhs tapes, Boug's been to see the live show and that octopus guy is floating around our house somewhere.

I have to admit, I've caught myself singing along with so many of the songs... not only while they're on, but even if something triggers a Wiggles song to pop into my head.
Now that we've moved, we have so many new channels available to us and I know where I'll be finding The Wiggles for the kids. Sprout is going to be the new, exclusive U.S. home of those four rockin', sing-songin' guys!! Its so awesome that The Wiggles have teamed up with Sprout because with The Wiggles being the number one preschool entertainers, and Sprout being the the first 24 hour preschool tv destination, it seems like a match made in heaven!

Over at facebook, you can even enter into the Wigglemania contest for a chance to enter to win a Nintendo Wii! Hurry up cause I just realized there's only about 2 hours left to enter!!

Don't let your Wigglemania end with Sprout and the contest, of course you can pick up your favorite Wiggles dvd and let the kids jam out any time that they'd like! Boug's been able to add "The Wiggles present Dorothy the Dinosaur's Memory Book" to her collection and thank goodness too, cause Dorothy is probably her favorite character from The Wiggles (shh... don't tell the guys...) Dorothy's Memory Book is loaded with songs like "Lettuce Sing (Fresh Fruit and Veggies)", "Say Aah at the Doctors," and many more!!


This post was written as part of a program for Family Review Network and Sprout Television, who provided the DVD for review.

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Queen of Hearts and Alice in Wonderland Costume Set GIVEAWAY!!!!

Queen of Hearts and Alice in Wonderland Costume Set GIVEAWAY!!!!

Now how perfect would it be if I could win this for Boug, who was already planning on being the Queen of Hearts for Halloween this year? This is one of the most amazing costumes I've EVER seen!! Keep your fingers crossed for me please!!

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Focus on breast cancer awareness with Cryo-Cell

I'm sure we all realize its October, which means its breast cancer awareness month. There's so much more than just being "aware" about breast cancer though. Now's the time to start paying attention to what is going on in the world around you, the literature that is available, the precautions and the strides that are being made to get us to a point where breast cancer, (and all cancers hopefully) can be a thing of the past.

Cryo-Cell, America's most established family cord blood bank, has teamed up with the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to expand on their knowledge of cell research. Cryo-Cell has made strides with banking cord blood, but why stop there when there's the possibility to help more with other "natural resources?" Cryo-Cell and C'elle are beginning to explore how menstrual cells can be collected, stored and used to help battle breast cancer.

Cryo-Cell, C'elle and NIH are getting heavy into this research, and could you imagine how wonderful it would be if its a option to use menstrual stem cells in breast cancer treatment?? You could say that its a scientific, ground breaking thing when "Aunt Flo" shows up each month!

Now ladies, Cryo-Cell has an awesome thing going here, not just with working with the NIH and C'elle, but you can "Protect Baby, Protect Mom" AND have a portion of the proceeds donated to the Susan B. Komen Foundation for each purchase. $50.00 is donated for the purchase that you make in the "Protect Baby, Protect Mom" program. When you enroll and purchase into the C'elle program, $25.00 is donated to the Susan B. Komen Foundation during the month of October. You can find out more about these programs here:
C'Elle Breats Cancer Donation
Cyro-Cell Breast Cancer Donation

Although stem cell research is a thing of great scrutiny, I'm still not sure why. I don't see what the issue is, if we can save so many lives. Save so many people from the pain and the toll that cancer takes on a body, why not invest in our own "natural, bodily resources" to take care of these diseases?

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