Guest Post: Word of The Year From Songs Kate Sang!

Photo Credit: Songs Kate Sang

I love this post from my friend Kate at Songs Kate Sang. She has some really inspirational and uplifting posts!


I've been planning on sharing my word of the year today for a little while.


Now, I find it absolutley ironic that I am announcing the my 2013 word of the year is grace.

Last week, when the entire family was sharing germs and we couldn't quite get past runny noses and upset stomachs, I wrote "dance like no one is watching" on the chalkboard.

Well, last night, I was photographing a company party - the company I used to spend my 8-5 at (Praise God for precious opportunities to connect with forever friends!). As my time was up, I sat down at a table to get a few last shots of the dance floor.

A friend came up to me and asked me to dance - and we tore up the dance floor for approximately 15.6 seconds. And then my elbow, my bootie and the floor made a swift introduction to one another. All I could think was, "Dear Lord, please tell me my no one saw that dance move or my undergarments. Amen." Remember ladies, jitterbug and hosiery just do not mix. Goodness gracious.

I spent this morning at Urgent Care and will be seeing an orthopedic surgeon tomorrow.

I have an elbow radial head fracture. Awesome.

And without further introduction - there it is: Grace.

Calm {2012}

Grace {2011}

Trust {2010}

Overshadowed {2009}

Available {2008}

Yup, we are having a redo word.

Apparently, I could use a redo on grace :)

Have a blessed day!

Kate

Pick Your Plum Flash Giveaway ($50 Value)!

I have a flash giveaway for a Pick Your Plum prize pack! The giveaway will only run for 24 hours and it is valued at $50! To enter, just head over to my Facebook page and click on the giveaway tab. You must have a US or Canadian mailing address to win.

Guest Post: Pink Lemonade Cupcake Recipe

Have you guys heard about these Pink Lemonade Cupcakes? I had heard from several people how delish they are but I had never tried them so this weekend I decided to try them out! I found a recipe on Pinterest (of course! ha). I sent Hubby to the store for the frozen pink lemonade and the cake mix. He came home and had gotten the right cake mix but got regular lemonade instead of pink lemonade...ok, I can deal with that we will just mix it up a little and it won't quite be the same as the recipe on the blog I found.     Once I had made the cupcakes I left the rest of the frozen lemonade concentrate sitting in the sink since I still needed some to use in the icing I didn't want to put it away quite yet. Well, hubby was helping me by taking the cupcakes out of the tin and setting them on the counter. He decided to be even more helpful and poured all the rest of the lemonade down the drain and threw away the container! AH!!!!!! When it finally registered that he had poured something down the drain I turned around and he was standing there with the empty container in his hand. I said, 'did you just dump out my lemonade that I needed for the icing?' and he looked at me and said 'oh crap I did didn't I'. lol     I had to figure out how to make some lemonade from bottled lemon juice, sugar and water...once I got the right flavor and consistency I decided you couldn't even tell a difference so I used it in the icing.  

 

Recipe:

white boxed cake mix

3/4 cup lemonade concentrate

 

Icing:

3 cups powdered sugar

1 stick butter

2 tbsp lemonade (or 1 tbsp lemon juice, 1 tbsp sugar and water)

food color

 

Really simple and soo good! What a great treat for the spring or summer time!

 

Be sure to head over to my friend Chrissy's blog ALilDashofDiva.com and check out her awesome posts!

 

 

 

Starbucks: $1 Off Espresso Beverage!

Here is a rare coupon for Starbucks! $1 off your next handcrafted espresso beverage. The coupon is good until February 1, 2013.

Costco Members: FREE Venus Embrace or Spa Breeze Razor!

If you are a Costco member you can score a FREE Venus razor! Just go HERE and click on get a sample. You will then need to enter your Costco card number and the razor will arrive in 4-6 weeks!

Fry's: FREE Egg Beaters Digital Coupon (1/25/13)!

Hurry and load this new FREEBIE from Fry's to your VIP card! The coupon must be loaded by 11:59pm and used by 2/9/13!

• FREE one (1) Egg Beaters 100% Egg Whites, 16oz

Giveaway: Shutterfly Valentine's Day Prize Pack!

I have always loved Valentine's Day! Maybe it's the yummy candy or the fact that everyone is in such a good mood. Okay, maybe not everyone. I try and teach my boys that Valentine's Day is not all about having a "girlfriend." At their age, they need to be thankful for all of their friends and loved ones. I try and get creative with my boys Valentine's Day cards, but usually I just purchase the super hero cards from the store. Oh well, at least I can say that I've tried!






This year I've been looking through the options on Shutterfly! I love how you can customize the cards with your childs name or even picture. This super hero card would be perfect for boys! It's from the terrific new classroom collection! (9 Designs) and new (6x8 3 Designs)

As I was searching through the cards I was impressed with the fresh color stories and artistic typography. They definitely outshine the store bought punch out cards.

I also spotted some really cute Valentine's Day gifts that would be ideal for the grandparents like the Photo Mugs or the Photo Cubes! The mug to the right is my favorite. The black and white photos mix nicely with the pop of color in the letters.






Now for a giveaway! One lucky reader winner will win a prize pack from Shutterly!

• (50) 4x5 Stationary Cards - small classroom cards
• (1) 5.5x5.5 Desktop Plaque

Disclosure: I was given a prize pack to keep and one to giveaway in exchange for my honest opinions in this post.


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Smashburger: B1G1 FREE Smashchicken Sandwich!

Here is a yummy coupon from Smashburger that is valid until 2/5/13!

• Buy one smashchicken sandwich, get one free!

Easy Peasy Cake Mix Cookie Bars!

Have you ever craved home made chocolate chip cookies just to find out that you don't have any flour? Well, I have an easy recipe for chocolate chip cookie bars using a cake mix and three other ingredients!

Ingredients:

• 1 Box Cake Mix (I used Yellow but any flavor should work)
• 2 Eggs
• 5 Tbs Butter, Melted
• 1 Bag Chocolate Chips

Directions:

• Combine cake mix, eggs and butter in a large bowl. When all ingredients are mixed well, fold in chocolate chips.
• Transfer the batter into a greased 9x13 pan. (The batter is pretty thick. I had to put cooking spray on my hands and spread the batter in the pan.)
• Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes. They are done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
• Cool completely before cutting. I know that is really hard to do but they will fall apart if they are not cool. I like to stick mine in the freezer to speed up the process.

The possibilities are really endless with the cake mix and chip combinations. Next time I might try a cherry cake mix with chocolate chips or a chocolate cake mix with peanut butter chips. Now I'm really making myself hungry!

Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf: FREE Coffee or Tea 1/30/13!

To help celebrate their 50th anniversary, Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf is offering a FREE cup of Coffee or Tea on Wednesday, January 30, 2013.

You can choose from a FREE regular sized Anniversary Blend coffee or Anniversary Blend tea.

Cute Organza Bags Perfect For Valentine's Day On Pick Your Plum!

Pick Your Plum is a daily deals site that has some really cute craft supplies! The organza bags that they are offering today, would be perfect for Valentine's day!

You can score 20 bags for $3.99, regularly $9.99 and shipping is only $2.95!

Be sure to check out their site, daily because the deals just keep getting better!

FREE 2oz Lotion From Bath & Body Works!

Hurry and claim the new offer from Bath & Body Works! The offer will be emailed to you and is valid 1/18/13 to 1/20/13.

• FREE 1 of 3 New Signature Lotions (2oz)

Yum! Money Saving Coupons To Quiznos!

Join the Quiznos Q club and receive up to $2 off! The coupons will be emailed to you after you sign up.

HOT New Coupon: BOGO Free Peanut Butter & Co!

There is a HOT new coupon that will not last long! Only 20,000 prints are available!

• Peanut Butter & Co. BOGO Free

Fry's: FREE Carnation Instant Breakfast! (1/18/13)

Today only, you can load a digital coupon to your Fry's card for FREE Carnation Instant Breakfast! The coupon must be used by 2/2/13.

Free Magazine Subscriptions Plus An iPad Mini Giveaway!

Sign up with Mercury Magazines and choose up to 3 FREE magazine subscriptions! You can also enter to win an iPad Mini!

Fry's: Save $1.50 On Produce!

Fry's has just released a new digital coupon that can be loaded to your Fry's card!

• Save $1.50 on produce when you spend $10 or more on produce

3 New Kashi Coupons to Help You Eat Right!

Are you trying to eat right in 2013? Here are 3 new Kashi coupons to help you stay on track!

Our Disney Countdown Has Begun!

We are heading to Disneyland in just a few weeks! My boys are so excited and of course I get that famous question a million times per day, "How many more days until Disneyland?" Okay, maybe not a million times per day but pretty darn close.

I've seen other bloggers create some really cute Disney Countdowns. I decided to do a little search on Pinterest and I found some great ideas!




Photo Credit: Capturing Magic


This is the chart that I decided to use. I printed from Capturing Magic. My 8 year old son noticed something was missing. Can you tell what it is?




Photo credit: A Little Tipsy






Michelle over at ALittleTipsy has a whole list of activities that you can do with your children to get them excited for an upcoming trip. As if you need to get them more excited...right?

She has this cute countdown activity, a recipe for Mickey Oreos and Mickey pancakes!












Be sure to checkout these blogs and look through their cute ideas! If you have any other ideas that you would like to share or any Disney tips, I would love to hear them!

Disney On Ice Dare To Dream Fit For a Prince!

Photo courtesy of Feld Entertainment

Disney on Ice, Dare to Dream was an amazing show. My boys were a little skeptical until they saw the show. It was definitely great for the Princess or even the Prince in your life!

The show started out in New Orleans with Tiana and Naveen. The music and the dancing took you on a journey to the French Quarter and the bayou.

Photo courtesy of Feld Entertainment

The second part of the show was all about Cinderella and Prince Charming. I love how they can condense the story but still keep all of the most entertaining parts of the film. My boys have never watched Cinderella and it was great to see their faces as the story unfolded.

Photo courtesy of Feld Entertainment

Rapunzel and Flynn Rider rounded out the show. They definitely saved the best for last! This portion of the show not only had the best skating but the characters used a ribbon suspended from the ceiling to do some amazing acrobatics and dancing. My boys loved this part of the show. The next day we even had to watch Tangled because they couldn't stop talking about it.

There is still time to see the show in Phoenix. The last show is on Sunday January 13th. Be sure to head over to ticketmaster.com to buy your tickets!

Dis­clo­sure: I am a Feld Fam­ily Ambas­sador, in exchange for my time and efforts in attend­ing shows and report­ing my opin­ion within this blog, as well as keep­ing you advised of the lat­est dis­count offers, Feld Enter­tain­ment has pro­vided me with com­pli­men­tary tick­ets to Feld shows andoppor­tu­ni­ties to attend pri­vate Feld pre-Show events. As always all opin­ions are my own.