Harris Teeter Super Doubles 11/2 - 11/8

Harris Teeter will begin Super Doubles (will double coupons up to 1.98) on Wednesday! Here are a few websites to give you some ideas on great deals:

Southern Savers

Faithful Provisions

Hot Coupon World

Coupon Teacher

Here are some current catalina deals that may be useful when planning your trip:

Jello Snacks

Buy any refrigerated Jello Snacks, including Pudding, Gelatin, and Mouse Snacks and Temptations by Jellp Between 10/31/11 and 11/27/11 and Save up to $4 OYNO

Buy 3 and save $2.00 OYNO
Buy 4 and save $3.00 OYNO
Buy 5 or more and save $4 OYNO

All items must be purchased in shopping order. Limited to product in stock. No cash back. Offer expires 11/27.

Barilla Sauce

Buy any Barilla Sauce between 11/2/11 and 11/11/11 and save up to $3 OYNO.

Buy 2 and get $1 OYNO
Buy 3 and get $2 OYNO
Buy 4 or more and get $3 OYNO

Coupon printed at register.

All items must be purchased in shopping order. Limited to product in stock. No cash back. Offer expires 11/11.

Huggies

Buy any Huggies Diapers Between 10/31/11 and 11/27/11 and Save up to $6 OYNO

Buy 2 and save $3 OYNO
Buy 3 and save $5 OYNO
Buy 4 or more and save $6 OYNO

Coupon Prints at register.

All items must be purchased in shopping order. Limited to product in stock. No cash back. Offer expires 11/27.

For the Locals: Williamson County Parks & Rec Couponing Class

The Williamson County Parks and Recreation Department will offer new couponing classes at the Franklin Recreation Complex, 1120 Hillsboro Road, and a monthly coupon swap event. The couponing basics class is 9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Nov. 9 or 1:30-4:30 p.m. Nov. 13.

Learn how to use coupons, and how find the best deals for buying fresh and healthy foods, household products, beauty supplies and more. Gain knowledge that could help you save more than 70 percent on groceries.

Either class is $18, plus a $3 supply fee payable to the instructor. To register, call the Franklin Recreation Complex, 615-790-5719, ext. 10.

Once a month, Franklin Rec will host a coupon swapping event. Bring any unused coupons to the swap and get the coupons you need while sharing with others. Instructor Cristina Hooghrirk will be on hand to answer questions. Join the swap on 9:30-10:30 a.m. Friday, Nov. 18. The coupon swap is $5. To reserve your spot, call 615-790-5719, ext. 10.

Menu Plan Monday: 10/31/2011

Monday: Monster Meatloaf, Children of the Corn & Bobbin' for Apple Slices
Tuesday: Turkey Chili
Wednesday: Crock Pot Autumn Sausage
Thursday: Caribbean Rice
Friday: Peach Dump Chicken
Saturday: Beef Stew
Sunday: Pancakes & Eggs

Link Love: Penny Prints at Snapfish

Check out Momma Cheap's post on how to get up to 300 prints for a penny each! It's a great deal and perfect for all those Halloween photos!

For Halloween: Candy Corn Screwdriver Recipe

Now this looks like a great treat (for the parents, of course)!

Candy Corn Screwdriver
from Betty Crocker

Ingredients:

Ice
1 cup Vodka
1 1/2 cups Pulp Free Orange Juice
16 Candy Corn Candies

Directions:

In cocktail shaker, place ice, vodka and orange juice. (Depending on size of cocktail shaker, you may have to work in batches.) Shake 30 seconds.

Pour into 4 chilled martini glasses. Garnish each with 4 candy corn candies.

Makes 4 servings

Link Love: Great Nutrition Links!

Someone recently asked me what I like to read. I realized then that my choices in preferred reading was quite extreme. When I have the time (not often) I can usually be found reading sappy historical novels (brain candy) or scientific medical books like the history of plagues (which made me into a true supporter of immunizations). Thus, I like to also read current research on nutrition. Here are a few great articles you also might like:

6 Cancer Fighting Snacks

Aspirin Slashes Colon Cancer

The Multiple Nutrient Needs of Bones

Astaxanthin Benefits and Dr. Oz's show about Astaxanthin

For the Locals: Franklin Pumpkinfest!

Franklin, TN, is hosting its annual Pumpkinfest this Saturday, October 29th from 10 am to 9 pm with more than 75 arts and crafts vendors, a children’s activity area on 3rd Ave. S., Five Points stage, Sister Cities’ Great Pumpkin, Franklin Tomorrow Chili Cook-off and more.

Held in conjunction with Pumpkinfest is the second annual Franklin Battle of the BBQ presented by Heineken. For more information, please see www.franklinsbattleofthebbq.com

And there’s a night-time cemetery tour in Downtown Franklin with the “Grave Matters: The Stories Behind the Stones” tours Saturday night, Oct. 29, at the Old City Cemetery and Rest Haven Cemetery from 7 to 9 p.m. For more information and to purchase tickets, see www.franklinonfoot.com

The street festival of Pumpkinfest is free and open to the public from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Franklin’s Main Street from First to Fifth Avenues. The fun continues until 9 p.m. on Main Street from 4th to 5th Avenues, with children’s activities and booths closing at 6 p.m.

Other activities include:

• The Battle of the BBQ Peoples’ Choice tent on 4th Ave. S. invites the public is invited to taste pulled pork (at $5) or ribs ($1 per bone) with Heineken beers in the Heineys and Butts tent. Be sure to vote for your favorites!
• The Franklin Tomorrow Chili Cook-off on 4th Ave. N. from 11 a.m. until 3 p.m. on Oct. 29. Tickets to taste chili from local organizations and restaurants will be available for $5 at the intersection of Fourth Avenue and Main during the event.
• Fall and holiday arts and crafts around the Public Square from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. More than 60 vendors will be displaying hand-crafted items perfect for fall and the holidays.
• Cemetery Tours 7 to 9 p.m. Participants will walk from tombstone to tombstone at the Historic Resthaven cemetery on North Margin Street, hearing from costumed re-enactors about the people who are buried in certain graves. Tickets are $15 per person for adults, $5 for children, but the activity is not recommended for children under 6. Tickets are available from www.franklinonfoot.com and at the Heritage Foundation. Participants should bring a flashlight and wear close-toe shoes.
• Costume Contest starts at 3 p.m. at the Five Points stage. It’s $1 for each entry and categories are pets, children ages 0-5, ages 6-13 and 14+. Enter at the headquarters tent on the Public Square between 10 a.m. and 2:30 p.m.
• Five Points Stage:

10am—Franklin School of Performing Arts

11am—All That Dance

11:30am—Prima Performance

Noon—Waste Management Elvis

12:10—Scott Ellis School of Dance

1pm—Kristin Butke School of Irish Dance

2pm—Tommy Jackson’s Rocky Top Revue

2:50pm-Pull-Tight Players Youth Guild

3pm—Waste Management Elvis

3:10pm—Costume Contest

4pm —O’Brien School of Dance

4:50pm—Waste Management Elvis

5pm—’50s Music—The Fabulous Suedes

6pm—’60s Music—SixtyFour Band

7pm—’70s Music—Emy and Soul Survivors

8pm—’80s Music—SASS

The annual fall event is presented by Bank of America and Waste Management and produced by the Heritage Foundation of Franklin & Williamson County and its division, the Downtown Franklin Association. Pumpkinfest is co-sponsored by the City of Franklin, Jackson National Life, Publix Super Markets, Fox 17, MY30, CW58, Williamson A.M./The Tennessean, Clear Channel Radio, and Williamson Medical Center. Pumpkinfest is open to the public with free admission except for special activities as noted. For more information please call 615-591-8500 or visit www.historicfranklin.com.

Menu Plan Monday: 10/24/2011

Monday: Stir Fry
Tuesday: Chicken Dijon & Steamed Vegetables
Wednesday: Sicilian Meat Roll & Cranberry Walnut Slaw
Thursday: Meatless Taco Soup (crockpot)
Friday: Spinach Turkey Meatloaf & Zucchini
Saturday: Black Bean Casserole
Sunday: Egg Muffins

Travel: Seaworld & Aquatica

While we were in Orlando this past week we fortunately got to visit Seaworld and Aquatica. If you purchase the Orlando Entertainment book, you can buy Seaworld tickets and get Aquatica (Seaworld's water park) for free online at the Entertainment website. The nice thing about purchasing that way is that you print off the tickets from your computer and you then go straight to the turnstile where they scan it and you are in. Be sure and save the paper tickets for Aquatica.

Seaworld is a lot of fun, especially if you like to watch shows. Some of our favorite things were seeing Shamu, petting Stingrays, climbing around on their super jungle gym (good even for the adults), and the Kraken Coaster. What we didn't like was there was only one decent ride (Atlantis) that our two youngest children could ride. There were three other potential okay rides that they probably could ride but they were closed (Shamu Express, Paddle Boats, and Skytower). So if you have kids between the ages of six and nine, I would not recommend taking them to Seaworld. While the shows were great, kids love rides as well and are extremely disappointed when they can't go on them. Our ten year old was big enough to ride the three good rides available which he loved.

While Seaworld was a little disappointing, Aquatica was surprisingly fun. I'm not a big pool person but even I loved it. The day we visited was a bit chilly for Florida (low 70s). Much to my extreme appreciation, the water on the slides/lazy rivers/rides was heated! All three children could also go on all of the slides. Usually water and three young children stresses me out since only one of the three can swim. However, there were lifeguards positioned (it seemed like) every ten feet. Also, even my youngest (6) could stand up easily at the end of a slide or in the lazy rivers. There was also a fantastic water castle-like playground that the kids loved. We purchased the all day meal plan which was worth it and reasonably priced. Basically you could go to this one buffet style restaurant where you could eat all day. The food was typical cafeteria food but did have fruit and an incredible red velvet cake (my super picky skinny eater had three pieces). We also splurged on a cabana (about $59 during the off season). It was nice to have a little more private area to leave our things, and it had a refrigerator and locker. The best part was that the kids felt super special to have their own cabana and now want to build one in the back yard. If you go, be sure and try Roa's Rapid River and make sure you get a life preserver. It is really fun but even great swimmers will benefit from a life jacket. Before I chose Aquatic I googled the accidents that occurred there and one involved a man on this river without a life preserver (morbid, I know but I like to be informed). Finally, I definitely recommend visiting Aquatica, we are already planning to go back some day!

There are other fun things to do in Orlando as well. We took the kids to the Orlando History Center in downtown Orlando. They were having a promotion for a free day which we took advantage of. I asked the employee in the gift shop what his favorite places in the museum were and he said the fourth floor so that is where we started. It contained a lot of early pioneer and Indian artifacts which the kids liked. There was an Indian corn grinder that the kids could actually use (and did). There was also a room about prehistoric times in Florida and a section on the history of Orlando including the rise of Disney. There was also a space capsule that the kids could climb into and play a video game (very popular). The thing that I did not like about this museum is that the kids had to read a lot to get anything out of it. My first and second grader are not strong enough readers to appreciate what they were seeing and certainly could not sit still long enough for me to read it all to them. Also, it seemed that the gift shop was far more enticing than the displays. Still it was worth seeing though I recommend that older kids might like it better.

We also took a trip to Winter Garden, Florida (about 30 minutes from Orlando) to see the Central Florida Railway Museum. It's a great little museum with a lot of train memorabilia and free (donations optional). The older man running the museum was extremely nice and took the time to talk to us. We then wandered around Winter Garden and discovered it is truly a gem and we will probably return to enjoy this adorable little town in the future. For the locals, it is just like Franklin, TN with a Florida twist. For all others, think Mayberry. It is obvious that a lot of money has been spent in creating a lovely small town atmosphere. There are cute antique stores and gift shops. You can see a play in the old theater. There is also a small sister museum to the Railroad museum a few blocks away with history of the area. There was a caboose that the kids could climb on and an antique fire engine that kids could get in to and explore. The lady running the museum told me that there is a fantastic mall nearby as well (though we did not see it). If you have kids that like trains, I recommend that you visit this area!

Link Love: Free Crest at Kroger

Check out the post at Faithful Provisions on how to get free Crest toothpaste this week at Kroger!

Save Up To 75% on All Halloween Costumes, Toys & Treats at The PetSmart Halloween Sale!

In case you want to get into the Halloween spirit for cheap by dressing up your pet, check out the sale at PetSmart!

Traveling: Federal Reserve Bank Money Museum

This is my kids' fall break and we are traveling from Tennessee to Orlando, Florida. So we packed up the car, said bye to the pets and housesitter and off we went on Sunday. From past experience I know that we never, ever leave when we (I) want to, so to de-stress I now plan to stop midway to our destination in order to get into a vacation frame of mind. Using points through the Sheraton Hotel system, we stayed in Atlanta at the Sheraton Suites Galleria. We've visited nearly all the Sheraton Hotels in and around Atlanta. So far this one is our favorite. The suites are perfect for a family of five. Each room has a couch that pulls out to a full size bed. So if you get a room with two doubles and use the pull-out, it fits our family size perfectly. The hotel is in an easily accessible area that appears to be safer than the others. Best yet, it is connected to a beautiful mall with lots of restaurants. Just a note, if you ever want to stay there, request that your room is on the mall side, not the side of the interstate. It is quieter.

I am a planner and believe that there are lots of things that are fun to do without breaking your wallet. I wanted to find something to do that was appealing to the kids and the adults in Atlanta before we drove the rest of the way to our destination. We started our morning at the beautiful IKEA store downtown. The restaurant opens at 9:30 and breakfast is free (eggs, bacon & potatoes) on Mondays until 11. Also, if you join their family discount program, you get free coffee whenever you visit. So for about $8 we had the free breakfast, coffee, kid drinks, fresh fruit and a couple of sides for the five of us. Of course, you will probably purchase something in the store but if you planned on that, it is quite the bargain!

Our next stop was the Federal Reserve Bank Money Museum. It is in the center of Atlanta and totally cool (and free). Parking was not a problem. There are pay spots around the square. I think it was around $2.50 for about an hour and a half which was perfect. The bank is huge but the museum portion is fairly small. When you walk in you go through security and then sign in to get badges. Some of the highlights were seeing the history of money, examining counterfeit money, lifting a real brick of gold worth nearly three quarters of a million dollars, seeing a $100,000 bill, and actually seeing the workers count piles and piles of money. There are a lot of touch screens that even the younger kids enjoyed. The museum also gives away small packets of shredded money to the visitors. My son was allowed to take enough to pass out to his classmates when he returns to school. I highly recommend visiting if you are passing through Atlanta. It's educational and who doesn't like seeing wagon loads of cash?

Another option in Atlanta that was my second choice is to visit the MLK Museum which is free as well. Probably we'll try it out the next time. Also, as we were driving south through Georgia, I noticed an aviation museum along the way. Since technology is so totally cool now and I was able to google it on my phone, I discovered that it was free and contained just a ton of planes. It will also be on my list of things to do the next time we travel this way. It's the Museum of Aviation in Warner Robins, GA. It has 93 aircraft and hundreds of exhibits on a 43 acre site. My kids would love it. It also appears to be close to the interstate which would make it an easy stop along the way.

We finally arrived in Orlando last night around 9 pm. We are staying in a condo resort where we have a full kitchen and two bedrooms, one with two doubles for the kids. It's a timeshare (boo, hiss) that we purchased years ago to force ourselves to actually go on vacation (it worked). I actually do really like it because it is gated (safer for kids) with lots of activities and pools. Just fyi, in case you ever want to bring frozen food with you, it does stay frozen/really cold for 24 hours if you first put in two fully frozen chickens in the bottom, fill the rest with frozen foods, and then top off with lots of ice.

What's on the list of things to do today? Well, it never goes as planned but I did a little research of free fun Orlando things to do and usually have something up my sleeve when the kids get bored. Orlando also has a lovely IKEA, and it just so happens that today is the day that kids eat free all day. We may try it out tonight. It has a great kids play area. Also, there is a site that promotes events called Yelp! which has made a deal with a few local museums around here during the month of October where if you mention Yelp! you get in for free. The Morse Museum of American Art is one of those and we may try it out since it is cloudy and possibly rainy here today. Or maybe I'll just have another cup of coffee...

For the Locals: Dyer Observatory

Do you want something cool and free to do? Months ago I registered for the Dyer Observatory free night. We took the kids last night and had a great time. They had multiple telescopes (huge and small) to look through and see the stars around us. At each telescope there were astronomers to tell you what you were looking at. Make sure you check out the cool library while you are there.

If you are local, it is located not far from the Brentwood exit off of 65. It is very easy to get to and my GPS took me straight there. Apparently it is very popular and you have to make reservations months in advance. So when reservations for the next year open up, I recommend signing up early. When you arrive, you will be checked off of a list before you can even park (free as well). October is a great month to go as the weather is usually great during this time of year.

Vanderbilt’s Dyer Observatory is free and open to the public March through November during monthly Open House Telescope Nights and Open House Days.

Open House Telescope Nights feature access to the Dyer Telescope when the weather is clear and an astronomer is on-hand to answer questions. If the weather is cloudy, the observatory will still be open for tours and an “ask an astronomer” session.

The Open House Telescope Nights are held from 7 to 9 p.m. the second Friday of every month and the second Thursday of the month during the summer. They are free of charge, but reservations are required HERE (see form at bottom of page).

HG Hill Big Meat Sale

This week HG Hill is having their big meat sale. Go HERE to see this week's circular.

Ground Beef, 10 lb package, 18.90
Bottom Round or Rump Roast, 10 lb package, 28.90
Sirloin End Cut Pork Chops, 10 lb package, 13.90
Fresh Fryer Thighs or Drumsticks, 10 lb package, 11.90
Fryer Leg Quarters, 10 lb package, 5.99
Covered Wagon Sliced Bacon, 10 lb package, 21.99
Corn Dogs, 10 lb package, 9.99

Menu Plan Monday 10/10/11

Monday: Ham & Beans and Corn Bread
Tuesday: Appley Kielbasa & Steamed Vegetables
Wednesday: Shepherd's Pie
Thursday: Chili
Friday: Meatloaf & Cauliflower Dijon
Saturday: Crockpot Pineapple Chicken
Sunday: Hamburgers

Save-A-Lot Deals!

Save-A-Lot has a 10 for $10 sale through October 15th. Here are a few of the great deals:

Butterball Turkey Bacon, $1.00

Eckrich Franks, $1.00

Eckrich Bologna, $1.00

Coburn Large Eggs, dozen, $1.00

Other deals:

Boneless Skinless Frozen Chicken Breast, 1.69 per lb

Hillshire Farm Smoked Sausage, 1.99

Go HERE to view the circular with all the deals!

Food Saver Shopping Trip 10/5/11

Since football, cheerleading, soccer, Cub Scouts and Daisy's began, I have not been doing a lot of shopping. However, this was such a great deal I wanted to share. It has been a while since I have found a sale with coupons on tomatoes. This week Food Saver has a promotion where if you purchase 10 items on their list you get $5 off when you check out. Red Gold tomatoes and beans are on the list which make for a great deal! This sale will run through Sunday. Sales begin on Mondays for Food Saver.

14 Red Gold Tomatoes, regularly .95, .45 after promotion (.50 with 10%)
6 Red Gold Beans, regularly .95, .45 after promotion (.50 with 10%)
-(2) .75/1 IP Qs
-(6) .55/3 MF Qs from tearpad at the store this trip
Final Price: .26 ea

12 Best Choice Corn or Green Beans, .29 (.32 with 10%)

Dr. Pepper 10, 2 ltr, 1.43
-.55/1 hangtag on 2 ltr this trip
Final Price: .88 (.97 with 10%)

Subtotal: 25.77
Coupons: 5.35
Promotion: 11.00 (actually added back in the 10% which is cool)
Tax: 1.19
Final OOP: 10.61

For the Locals: Spine-chilling Puppet Shows for Halloween!

One of the best things about living in Nashville is all the great free entertainment. Check out these free Halloween puppet shows at the Nashville Public Library!

The Ordeal of Dr. Trifulgus
October 7, 8, 14, 15

Fridays and Saturdays at 4:00 pm
Nashville Main Library Children's Theater, 30 minutes
Ages 8+ Only!

Based on the short story by Jules Verne, best known for his novels 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and Journey to the Center of the Earth. One puppeteer tells the dark tale of a bitter, old doctor who finds out the hard way that being greedy and selfish can cause grave results.

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow
October 21, 22, 28, 29

Fridays and Saturdays at 4:00 pm
Nashville Main Library Children's Theater, 30 minutes
Ages 8+ Only!

Based on the story by Washington Irving, this version is shadow puppetry and storytelling at its best and most frightening.

For the Locals: Touch a Truck Free Event!

Saturday, October 8th
9 am to 1 pm
Thompson Station Church Parking Lot

Kids will have the opportunity to look at, climb on and sound all the bells and whistles on nearly 30 different kinds of large-scale construction and public service vehicles. Kids can also paint a vehicle to take home at the free craft tent and check out a variety of entertainers on the performance stage, such as musicians, magicians and more. Door prizes will also be given away with cool items such as motorized kids vehicles. Admission to the event is free; though cost is incurred for concessions. For more information on this family-friendly event contact the Williamson County Parks and Recreation at (615) 302-0971, ext. 16.

Menu Plan Monday: 10/3/11

Monday: Chicken Nuggets & Blueberries (Football, Cheer & Cub Scouts)
Tuesday: Sweet Salsa Dump Chicken & Rice
Wednesday: Crockpot Ho-Bos
Thursday: 40 Clove Garlic Chicken & Zucchini
Friday: Kid's Choice
Saturday: Salmon Loaf & Steamed Vegetables
Sunday: Quiche & Homemade Muffins