PayPal $185.00 Cash Giveaway!

Think of all the things you could do with $185.00 and have fun doing it!   Just enter now to win!

Zucchini Recipes!

It's that time of year when everyone is looking for zucchini recipes!  Enjoy the fruits of your labor!  Zucchini origins stem from the Americas, although it was cultivated in Italy for many years after it’s initial discovery. It is picked immature from its flower, as it will be most flavorful and easiest to digest when small or medium sized. The flower is edible too (if you dare), and in Italy and other cultures, the flower is even breaded and fried before eating!

So why is Zucchini good for you? A serving of Zucchini only has 25 calories, and provides essential nutrients such as zinc, magnesium, and vitamin C (lets not forget fiber).  According to World’s Healthiest Foods, zucchini can help prevent cancer and disease. Not only that, it has more potassium than bananas!

MOM'S ZUCCHINI BREAD

makes 2 loaves

Prep Time: 20 Min   Cook Time: 1 Hr   Ready In: 1 Hr 40 Min

Ingredients

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 2 1/4 cups white sugar
• 3 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 cups grated zucchini
• 1 cup chopped walnuts

Directions

1. Grease and flour two 8 x 4 inch pans. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
2. Sift flour, salt, baking powder, soda, and cinnamon together in a bowl.
3. Beat eggs, oil, vanilla, and sugar together in a large bowl. Add sifted ingredients to the creamed mixture, and beat well. Stir in zucchini and nuts until well combined. Pour batter into prepared pans.
4. Bake for 40 to 60 minutes, or until tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in pan on rack for 20 minutes. Remove bread from pan, and completely cool.

Nutritional Information 

Amount Per Serving  Calories: 223 | Total Fat: 10g | Cholesterol: 26mg

 ZUCCHINI ALFREDO

Prep Time:  15 Min  Cook Time:15 Min  Ready In:  30 Min

Original Recipe Yield 6 servings

  Ingredients

• 1 (12 ounce) package uncooked egg noodles
• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 4 cups shredded zucchini
• 1/2 cup milk
• 4 ounces cream cheese, cubed
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
• salt and pepper to taste
• grated Parmesan cheese (optional)

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add egg noodles and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.
2. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in garlic, and cook 2 minutes. Mix in zucchini, and cook 10 minutes, until some of the moisture has evaporated.
3. Pour the milk into the skillet, and stir in cream cheese until melted. Mix in basil. Season with salt and pepper, and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Serve over the cooked pasta.

Nutritional Information 

Amount Per Serving  Calories: 379 | Total Fat: 17.4g | Cholesterol: 72mg

 CALIFORNIA GRILLED VEGGIE SANDWICH

 Prep Time:30 Min    Cook Time: 20 Min   Ready In: 50 Min

Original Recipe Yield 4 servings

   

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1/8 cup olive oil
• 1 cup sliced red bell peppers
• 1 small zucchini, sliced
• 1 red onion, sliced
• 1 small yellow squash, sliced
• 2 (4-x6-inch) focaccia bread pieces, split horizontally
• 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese

Directions

1. In a bowl, mix the mayonnaise, minced garlic, and lemon juice. Set aside in the refrigerator.
2. Preheat the grill for high heat.
3. Brush vegetables with olive oil on each side. Brush grate with oil. Place bell peppers and zucchini closest to the middle of the grill, and set onion and squash pieces around them. Cook for about 3 minutes, turn, and cook for another 3 minutes. The peppers may take a bit longer. Remove from grill, and set aside.
4. Spread some of the mayonnaise mixture on the cut sides of the bread, and sprinkle each one with feta cheese. Place on the grill cheese side up, and cover with lid for 2 to 3 minutes. This will warm the bread, and slightly melt the cheese. Watch carefully so the bottoms don't burn. Remove from grill, and layer with the vegetables. Enjoy as open faced grilled sandwiches.

Nutritional Information  

Amount Per Serving  Calories: 393 | Total Fat: 23.8g | Cholesterol: 22mg

 

 

 

$150.00 TARGET "Back to School" Spree Giveaway!

Did SUMMER just fly by for you and now it's time to get ready to buy some new clothes or school supplies or a combination of both for your child (children)?   Well this is the GIVEAWAY to help you!   A $150.00 TARGET "Back To School" Spree Giveaway can be yours if you enter this contest!  Be sure to go through all the pages on the Rafflecopter and LIKE each one, thanks!   Here is the list of participants:


Please include these in your blog post:

Sponsored by:
Oh My Gosh Beck!
Dollars2Dimes
Always Searching for Savings
Makobi Scribe
Keenly Kristin
Racing and Saving Mama
A Dime At A Time
Random Thoughts
Randomosity
Thrifty Ninja
The Centsational Saver
Conversations With Carolyn
Libby's Library
Beautiful mark. Girl
Baby Coupons & Stuff
Avon by Debby
Freebies and Deals
About A Mom
Let's Start Saving Now

AND HERE'S WHERE TO ENTER THE CONTEST:

Tonight's free game of DICE is sponsored by HOODIEZZ.COM for a free laptop sleeve

We are pleased to announce that Chris "Digits" Lamar is going to be giving away this FREE netbook or laptop Sleeve for tonight's FREE GAME OF DICE! Chris' store is HOODIEZZ.COM  Today I'm requiring that the players come to this blog entry and post that they are playing.   This is a huge gift!  Please do this....   go to http://www.facebook.com/My​Hoodiezz and LIKE his page and think about shopping the back-to-school event that he is having there!  You will see the link to the event on his FaceBook Fan Page.     


Dice is like rolling two dice only I do it from the RANDOM.ORG website.   It's like rolling a pair of regular dice and you will pick two numbers from 1-6 and I will roll the dice and tell you the numbers that come up on my roll from random.org .  In order to win, you have to get the same numbers in that exact order and then you type "DICE" and I will verify your numbers and see if you are indeed the winner.   Sound like fun?

I'll check Chris' website to see that the person who "won" has LIKED his website AND wrote a commnet on his page...  possibly something like thanking him for being the sponsor of DICE tonight on Avon Products by Carolyn.  This will all be explained again BEFORE the game begins so everyone knows the rules of the game.

Thank you Chris for sponsoring today's game!  We really appreciate you!

Necklace and free samples from Avon giveaway (F21 necklace!)

FAN APPRECIATION GIVEAWAY! LIVE NOW! Goes for one week! This is a Forever 21 necklace (description is given on the link below the picture) and you will also receive AVON samples! Please join soon! You only have a week! Thank you all for being fans and supporting Avon Products by Carolyn!

You can access this giveaway which runs from now and for one week at Avon Products by Carolyn Giveaway.

My review of CamelBak Groove Tritan 600

You’re on the move but you still want clean fresh-tasting water without the disposable bottled water guilt. CamelBak Groove is a bottle with a coconut-derived activated carbon filter built into the straw. Engineered to have a flow rate equal to that of the regular Better Bottle, each filter reduces chlorine, taste and odour for 180 litres.

• Reusable
• 100% BPA free
• Spill-proof and NSF certified
• CamelBak Groove filters instantly
• Turning tap water into fresh tasting water on demand.
• 600ml

I won this wonderful water bottle from a giveaway at Racing and Saving Mama   The product comes from Camelbak  (outdoor gear and sporting goods). and can be purchased at Trendz at this direct link.  I followed the instructions for the filtered water bottle and drank a full-water bottle last night and this morning.  The water is delicious!  I really like the bite tube to drink from.  It's much better than regular sipper tubes.  I will be using this to drink from on my daily 30- minute walks along the beach.  I also plan on using this bottle as the filter and filling up other sipper bottles in the home.   My husband has his own water bottle that he uses daily.  This is a wonderful product and I look forward to buying the replacement filters from Trendz..

Conversations with Carolyn: Coupon Binder!

Conversations with Carolyn: Coupon Binder!

Rachel's Reviews and Giveaways! 2 months featured ad space for your blog or business!

http://rachelsgiveaways.com/2011/07/giveaway-2-months-featured-ad-space-for/

"I’m in the process of redesigning my blog layout since I’m moving over to a self-hosted WordPress blog, and I plan to have some featured advertising space near the top of my sidebar. This will be available for a monthly rate, but I’m also opening up space to feature 2 winners of this giveaway!

Each winner will have space for a 150×150 button linking to your blog or business, featured in a premium space in my sidebar. This is a great way to increase awareness of your website or brand and drive traffic.

One of the things I enjoy most about blogging is the power of networking and helping other blogs achieve success, so I’m looking forward to promoting your blogs. If you have a WAHM or etsy business, here’s a free opportunity to get your name out there.

The mandatory entry is super easy – just leave your name and email address to be entered. Website and graphic must be family-friendly.

Win It: Two winners will each receive 2 months of featured ad space located on my right sidebar for the button/graphic of your choice. Open worldwide!

I’m using the Rafflecopter beta program to hopefully make giveaways easier for you to enter and for me to manage. Please comment below if you have feedback or questions, but you must use the Rafflecopter entry form to enter.

Here’s how it works: The mandatory entry is listed at the top. Hit “click for instructions” under each entry, and the necessary links or info will appear. Then click the green “I did this” button, and it will prompt for your email address and any information needed to verify the entry, such as your twitter username.

Helpful hints: if you don’t see the form, try refreshing the page or using a different browser. You must have Javascript enabled. If you don’t see the Tweet button, try hovering over the green “I did this” button first."

2000 FAN GIVEAWAY! USA RESIDENTS ONLY!

Welcome to the 2000 FAN GIVEAWAY!   This is for USA residents ONLY!  Anyone who signs up who lives outside of the USA will be disqualified. 

OUR SPONSORS ARE:



AVON PRODUCTS BY CAROLYN and the free gift and no shipping charges is:

$10.00 GIFT CARD!

SHAUNA the SCENTSY EXPERT!  and the free gifts with no shipping charge is:

Surfer Chick Scent Circle
Bubbly lemon tonic and guava frolic with sweet cherries and blackberries in this youthful scent.

Kahiko Hula Scent Circle
Say "aloha" with exotic passion fruit, mango, and papaya.

 Jessica Collamati, MARY KAY Indep. Rep

is giving a 30% off COUPON for any of her Mary Kay Products!  No shipping fee!

 

DAWN of COUPON COUSINS is giving away 2 COUPON INSERTS  (no charge for shipping!)

Please remember to THANK the SPONSORS for their gifts when you receive them.  As always you will have 48 hours to respond to the sponsor when you win your gift!   Thank you for playing!!  Good Luck!

Italian Wedding Soup

Italian Wedding Soup
Serves 6

1/2 pound ground beef, extra lean
1 egg, slightly beaten
2 tablespoons bread crumbs
1 tablespoon Romano cheese
1/2 teaspoon basil
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
5 3/4 cups low sodium chicken broth
2 cups kale, thinly sliced
1 cup orzo pasta
1/3 cup carrot, finely chopped

In a medium bowl, combine bread crumbs, meat, egg, cheese, basil and onion
powder, shape into 3/4 inch balls.

In a large saucepan, heat broth to boiling, stir in kale, orzo, carrot and
meatballs. Return to a boil, then reduce heat to medium. Cook at a slow
boil for 10 minutes or until pasta is al dente. Stir frequently to prevent
sticking.

Per serving: 280 Calories; 8g Fat; 24g Protein; 28g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber; 58mg Cholesterol; 578mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1 1/2 Grain (Starch); 2 1/2 Lean Meat; 1/2 Vegetable; 1 Fat.

SERVING SUGGESTIONS: I like bread with soup so either bake some in your
bread maker or buy a nice loaf of crusty bread to go with this. Add a salad
if you want, but you've got tons of green stuff going on this hearty soup.

VEGETARIANS: Skip the meatballs by omitting first 3 ingredients. Add extra vegetables to
vegetable broth instead of chicken broth.

KOSHER: Use beef broth instead of chicken.

$200 VISA Gift Card Giveaway!! July 27th to August 10th, 2011 One Winner!

Wow!  A $200.00 VISA Gift Card Giveaway!  Just think of all the Avon Products or Back-To-School items that you could buy for that amount of money!   Incredible!   And all you have to do to get this chance to win it is simply LIKE the following pages and enter to win on all the spots on the Rafflecopter!   GOOD LUCK!  Here are the sponsors who are participating:


Dates: July 27th to August 10th
Prize: $200 Visa gift card - one winner
Sponsored by:

1. A Dime At A Time
2. Oh My Gosh Beck!
3. Avon Products by Carolyn
4. Clever Couponeer
5. Let's Start Saving Now
6. Racing and Saving Mama
7. Coupon Cousins
8. My SoCal Life
9. Cori's Coupon Corner
10. Saving Green In The Bay
11. Baby Coupons & Stuff
12. Ni​fty Mom
13. Howard House Reviews
14. Mommy's Money Saving Madness
15. Keeping Cents
16. Sassy Saving Moms
17. Texas Frugality
18. Always​ Searching for Savings
19. Hayden Coupon Mom
20. Freebies​ and Deals
21. Mommy Octopus
22. Nifty Thrifty Savings
23. Twingle Mommy
24. Beauty Brite
25. Semmes Savers
26. Fab Steals and Deals
27. Dollars 2 Dimes
28. Mommy's Crazy 4 Coupons
29. The Krazy Coupon Queen

Giving up the JUNK FOOD for HEALTHY FOOD!

Yep, you heard it here! John and I are on a mission now to eat healthy and give up the JUNK FOOD for the HEALTHY FOOD!

No more junk food!

And instead we are switching most things to this:

So we've traded in some things lately for some really good junk food options:

POTATO CHIPS are out and POP CHIPS are in!
SODA is out and FLAVORED and VITAMIN waters are in!
ICECREAM is out and SKINNY COW is in!
CANDY is out and SKINNY COW CANDY is in!

We've joined CLUB SKINNY and are going to get rid of some pounds we put on from junk food!

We want to know just who is with us on this endeavor?  

So no more chocolate bars for John for clipping coupons  but instead he gets Skinny Cow Candy!  It's worth it to be healthy and wise!

PRODUCT REVIEW: Soylicous Melter and Tart Chunks

 I won this Soylicious.com Tart Melter in a GIVEAWAY!   I give this a 10 out of 10!   It came with three packages of tarts: Cinnamon and Clove Bud, Eucalyptus & Mint and Asian Fig.    All three of the scents are
absolutely wonderful!  I will definitely be buying more tarts when I am done using all the ones that I have!

This is what they have to say about the melter:  "Plug-in Warmers: Our Electric Plug In Warmers, feature two piece construction so you can remove the bowl to make a quick and easy change between your favorite fragrances. You can also purchase these warmers with your choice of 2 tart chunks. The bulb is 15 watt and the warmer will rotate while plugged in, transforming into a night light after you remove the wax bowl."

This is what they have to say about the tart chunks:  Tart Chunks: Our tart chunks are made with the same process as our candles, superior melting time and scent throw. Order from our expansive line of fragrances or create your own by mixing two or more of our delicious flavors for instance (Cafe Latte/Vanilla = Vanilla Coffee Bean).

I would highly recommend buying their warmers (aka melters) and tart chunks.   At least the three scents that I received.  The scents just fill the whole living room and kitchen!  They last long too.   I was able to get three days of constant warming out of two chunks at a time.  

Chicken Breasts in Caper Cream Sauce

<We tried this recipe given to us through ALL RECIPES and it was just delicious!   Thought I would pass this on to all of you!>

Prep Time: 5 Min 

Cook Time: 15 Min

Ready In: 20 Min

Ingredients:

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves 1 teaspoon lemon pepper 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon dried dill weed

1 teaspoon garlic powder 3 tablespoons butter 1/2 cup whipping cream 2 tablespoons capers, drained and rinsed

Directions:

1.	Season chicken breasts with lemon pepper, salt, dill weed, and garlic powder.
2.	Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Place breasts in skillet, and increase heat to medium-high. Turn chicken frequently, until brown, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium, and cook 5 to 7 minutes, until breasts are cooked through. Remove chicken to a warm serving platter, and cover with foil.
3.	Return skillet to stove, and increase heat to high. Whisk in whipping cream, whisking continuously until reduced to sauce consistency, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in capers. Pour sauce over chicken, and serve.

 

Conversations with Carolyn: Coupon Binder!

Conversations with Carolyn: Coupon Binder!

My CVS TRIP today! Super Savings!

My CVS trip today!  Here's what we bought:

M&M's  (2/$6.00) with a coupon for $.75/2
GAIN ($11.66)  I had the TIDE coupon and they didn't have any TIDE   :o(
SCOTT paper towels ($4.44) and I sent the wrong coupon   :o(
COTONELLE toilet paper ($9.99) and no coupon   :o(
DURACELL regular came with a glue stick (scrapbooking!)  ($5.99) and a coupon for $.75/1
DURACELL rechargeable ($5.99) and a coupon for $1.50/1

We spent the $30.00 to get a FREE $10.00 GAS CARD

Total:  $52.10
Saved:  $21.66

The paper towels and toilet paper went to the STOCKPILE (it's growing now.!  2 shelves are filled will have to clear off the top shelf for more now) 

Remember, we are ETHICAL COUPONERS... we don't buy it unless it's something we regularly buy.  We don't buy what we don't use, don't clear shelves, but we use our coupons and save!   The M&M's are for my husband for being the coupon clipper!

1200 FAN GIVEAWAY (there's a charge for shipping on some items)

Welcome to the 1200 FAN GIVEAWAY
(plus the charge for shipping on some of the sponsor's items)

The following Sponsors are offering their giveaway items!

AVON PRODUCTS by CAROLYN
This is FAR AWAY and values at $10.00 and there's a $1.00 shipping charge to the winner. Be sure to only sign up for this prize if you are willing to pay the $1.00 shipping charge via Pay Pal!

DIVA DUST by NICOLE of SLUMBER PARTIES BY NICOLE  (shipping charge to winner is $5.00)
 Be sure to only select this prize if you're willing to pay the $5.00 shipping charge.  Thanks!

 

$5 Inspired Silver Gift Card Photo by Angie of Angie's Angel Help Network  (no charge for shipping!)

LOVE SPELL HAND AND BODY CREAM 2 oz.  by KITTY of GIRL NATURE  (There's a shipping charge of $2.00 on this prize.  Only sign up for this prize if you're willing to pay the $2.00 shipping fee via PayPal)

Love Spell Fragrance Oils: Blend of Summer Flowers and Orange.

With ingredients like Safflower Oil, Shea Butter, Vitamins A, C and E and a Botanical Extract blend of Chamomile, Comfrey, Cucumber and Aloe, our ultra moisturizing Paraben Free Hand and Body Cream is luxury for your skin.

$5.00 AMAZON.COM GIFTCARD by Patti of SHORE SAVINGS WITH PATTI (no charge for shipping)

Note about the shipping.  This is something that I now I have to do.  We vendors pay for the price of the prize and we can't pay for the shipping of the items.  That must come from you.  These are not terribly high fees but we who sell products are business people and this is coming out of our pockets to ship.  Thanks for your understanding.

Sunday trip to CVS!

This was a total coupon and sale shopping trip!  It may not look like much to the EXTREME couponers, but for an ETHICAL couponer like us, this was just great!   The whole order came to over $70.00 without coupons and we saved $30.00 some and got a $10.00 gas card to go with it!  The Hershey bars are for the man responsible for clipping all my coupons, my hubby!  Thank you John! 

The toothpaste, shampoo, soda pop and one of the pickles went to our mini but nice looking STOCKPILE!

900 FAN GIVEAWAY!

 CONGRATS WINNERS!  You have 48 hours to contact the sponsors of your prize!





Congratulations fans of AVON PRODUCTS BY CAROLYN!  We just hit 900 fans and we're having a giveaway!   The following sponsors are offering products in this giveaway:


COUPON COUSINS from DAWN:

$5.00 GIFT CARD

 

OR 

WENDY HINES ...    she does a lot of book and product reviews.

Christine’s Coupon Swap 

AVON PRODUCTS by CAROLYN

 

SHORE SAVINGS WITH PATTI

Here is how you enter:

$100 Amazon Gift Card Giveaway

 

Have you ever wanted to have a gift of $100.00 on a gift card to spend however you 

wanted to?   Well this is your lucky chance!   Twenty bloggers, including me, got together

and decided to make your dream come true!   So here you have the chance at winning this 

$100.00 Amazon.com giftcard!   What would you buy with your gift card?

Here's how to enter:  

Go follow each of us on Facebook using the Rafflecopter widget below. That's it! You get one entry for every page that you enter... so to increase your chances of winning, you'll want to make sure to like all twenty blogs.

We're even giving you some daily bonus entry opportunities! You can come back once a day and tweet our giveaway or share it on Facebook for one bonus entry each.

This giveaway will open for entries at 12:01 am (EST) on Thursday 7/7 and close at 11:59 PM (EST) on Thursday 7/21!
 

The following blogs are in this together:


Oh my gosh, Beck!
A Dime At A Time
Conversations with Carolyn
Baby Steps with H2O at home
The Adventures of J-Man and MillerBug
Aubut Family
Makobi Scribe
Simply Stacie
Rockin' Deals
Our Family World
Libby's Library
Staying Me...
Beauty Brite
Just Married with Coupons
Let's Start Saving Now
Racing and Saving Mama
The Centsational Saver
A little of this A little of that...
Someday I'll Learn
Brag All About It