Indiana Beach - GREAT deal through 7/31 only on 2013/2014 Season Pass

I've never been to Indiana Beach, my my kids' church group is going next week and my husband is going along since my kiddos are little.  Today, Wednesday, 7/31 until 3pm ONLY they're running a deal for $45.95 for a season pass for the rest of 2013 and all of 2014.  Included with the pass are 4 day passes for 2014.  This is a GREAT deal, as it will be $35.95 for a ONE day pass for my husband, and this way he gets to go this year and we'll ALL get to go next year with his 4 extra day passes for 2014 (which include the rides and the waterpark).  I read reviews on YELP, and it sounds like this is a quaint old-school amusement park, and I think my kiddos will be perfect ages for the next few years to enjoy. 

Donate Blood, Win a Trip to Disneyland!

Donate Blood TODAY! 


You only have until Wednesday evening (7/31) to donate blood and be entered to win a trip for four to Disney World! This great vacation package includes airfare, hopper passes and your hotel.  All you have to do is donate blood and save a life.  Check www.GiveBloodNow.com on Thursday for the August promotion.

Meijer BOX TOPS Bonus Coupon - $ for your kid's school!

Does your kid's school collect BOX TOPS?  My son's school does a competition for BOX TOPS each semester - the class that brings in the most wins a pizza party.  He looks for these things everywhere!  He's yet to have his class win, even though we always seem to be collecting these things!  I'm hoping with this deal (below) we might get the pizza party this year (very exciting when you're six)!  I stocked up on yogurt tubes for his lunches (we freeze them & they're ready by lunch & still cold), ziplock bags, Greek Yogurt, etc., and got my bonus Coupon! 

Right now at Meijer, through 9/7/13, buy 10 participating products and get a coupon for 60 bonus BOX TOPS!  Items you can purchase include Yoplait GREEK 100 calorie yogurt for $.99, so if you get 10 of those, you'll spend just under $10 and your school will earn $6 in box tops from the coupon!  What a deal! 

Have 20 products?  Do them in two separate transactions and you'll get 2 coupons worth 60 box tops each!    For the entire list of products that are included, click here.  (Hint, you can pull this list up on your phone while you're shopping for extra help!)

Lowes Build & Grow FREE Kids Clinics - This Weekend (7/26-27)

This weekend at Lowe's your kids can build an RC car from Toy Story for FREE.  Lowe's has a kids Build&Grow kids clinic on Saturday at 10am or Sunday at 2pm.  Register HERE to reserve your spot, or you can show up (first come first served).

Children's Place Sale - Jeans & Uniforms for Back to School

Children's Place is having a sale on back-to-school clothes through July 28th.  If you order any jeans or leggings, you get FREE shipping.  See codes below for up to 30% off.  They have jeans on clearance for $9.99, and with the 30% off code I got them for $6.99... a great deal for my growing men!  I got this same pair for my older son last year and they were really cute, so I went ahead and ordered a few pairs for my youngest since he's growing like a WEED!  Go to http://www.childrensplace.com 

Uniforms are on sale also - I highly recommend the khaki pants for boys - they are cute & sturdy and withstand a LOT of washes!  They seemed to stain less than the Old Navy ones I got for my son last year - worth the money!

Zucchini-Chocolate Chip Muffins.... Yummy.

'Tis the season for zucchini, which always seems like an "all or nothin'" kind of veggie.  I either have none, or way too much!  :)  I do whatever I can with it this time of year, and then shred and freeze the rest for baking throughout the winter - it defrosts up fine for zucchini bread (I freeze it in 1 cup amounts). 

I discovered a new recipe tonight that my family loved, and I recommend, so I wanted to pass it along.  The original recipe was from ALLRECIPES.com, and I modified it slightly.

Original recipe makes 12 muffins - I recommend doubling it!  

 

1 cup white whole wheat flour

1/2 cups all-purpose flour (unbleached)

3/4 cup white sugar

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup milk (or evaporated milk, or sweetened condensed...whatever you have)

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 egg

1/2 cup canola oil

1 cup shredded zucchini

1/2 cup chocolate chips 

Cook at 350 degrees for 20 mins in muffin tins.  Yummy. 

 

Frozen Chocolate Banana Bites.... YES!

Okay, just made my first batch, and these will definitely become a staple in our house.  :)

Quick, easy, and yummy.  Not too terribly bad either if you use natural peanut butter & unsweetened coconut.  This recipe is from another blog I found, the "Never homemaker".  

FROZEN BANANA BITES

What you'll need . . .

• 2 large bananas
• 1/3 cup chocolate chips
• 1/3 cup natural peanut butter
• Unsweetened coconut flakes

Method . . .

1. Set out a large plate or bowl with a piece of parchment or wax paper on it.
2. Cut up the bananas into good-sized chunks. Each banana should give you around 5 to 6 pieces.
3. Heat the peanut butter and chocolate chips in the microwave on high for about a minute. Then stir until smooth.
4. Dip the banana pieces in the chocolate-peanut butter mixture. Lay them out leaving some space between them on the parchment/wax paper. Then when you've "covered" them all, use the remaining mixture to spoon over the tops (for even more chocolate-y goodness).
5. Then sprinkle the unsweetened coconut flakes on top. Transfer to the freezer for about an hour until hardened.
6. You can enjoy them like this (but they really aren't frozen yet -- and when they're frozen, the banana tastes like vanilla ice cream) . . . I suggest then covering with some plastic wrap (or really you can do all of this in some kind of Rubbermaid container) and let freeze overnight.