Kroger Cartbuster

In addition to the regular savings, Kroger will also be featuring a “Deal of the Day” beginning August 3 and running through August 16. You can visit www.cartbuster.com starting on the 3rd to download exclusive deals to your shopper card. (*Please be sure to check your local Kroger Co. Family of Stores for participating dates and deals. The Deal of the Day promotion is not valid at: Fred Meyer or Food 4 Less.) You can also visit the Kroger Facebook and Kroger Twitter pages.

Do you know who else is included in the Kroger Family of Stores? Even if you don’t have a Kroger in your area, you may have one of these: Ralphs, King Scoopers, City Market, Dillons, Smith’s, Fry’s, QFC, Baker’s, Owen’s, Jay C Food Stores, Hilander, Gerbes, Food4Less, Fred Meyer, Pay Less Supermarkets and Scott’s food & Pharmacy.

In celebration of the Kroger Cart Buster Savings Event, I’ve been given an opportunity to give away a $25 Kroger gift card (good at any of the stores listed above) to one of my readers. I’ve already used the one that they sent me! I stocked up on Weight Watchers Smart Ones and Yoplait yogurts to have for lunch for the next couple of weeks. Since I work from home, they are a perfect way for me to eat healthy and quickly while sticking to my budget.

To enter:

1) Leave a comment below telling how you would use the $25 Kroger Gift Card (one entry).

2) Post on Twitter about the contest and leave a comment below with your Tweet (one entry).

3) Sign up for our newsletter at the top of the page and leave a comment below (e-mail will be verified) (one entry).

4) Blog about this contest or post the contest in your giveaway section and leave your link to the post below (two entries).

Drawing will take place August 16, 2011, at noon Eastern. Must be a US Resident, age 18 or older to enter. Winner will be notified via e-mail and have 24 hours to respond or a new winner will be selected.

Disclosure: The Kroger gift card, information, and giveaway have been provided by Kroger and General Mills through MyBlogSpark.

I have to admit that I take the easy way of buying school supplies and always sign up in the spring to buy the back to school boxes that our PTO sells. However, there are still so many things that we need at the house to start the school year. I had never considered Sam’s Club before for school supplies although I’ve had a membership there for as long as I can remember.

When MyBlogSpark, Sam’s Club, and General Mills offered me the chance to review Sam’s Club and do a giveaway for my readers, I jumped at it! Armed with a $25 gift card, I headed to my local Sam’s Club to focus for the first time on something besides food. When I got there, I immediately found the Back to School section, which sort of merged in with office supplies as it continued a couple of rows. The first thing that I saw was the selection of pencils. We go through an unbelievable number of pencils at home for homework. We had to choose between mechanical and regular pencils and ended up with the mechanical. Either was a great deal and for less than $6 would last most families the whole year. Beside the pencils were markers, which we go through almost as quickly. I scooped up a couple of packages for coloring homework.

Next I started thinking about what we use a lot of during the school year. For lunches, we go through an insane number of sandwich bags. We got a huge box of Ziplock sandwich bags (my brand of choice) and the bonus was that each of the boxes inside the big box all had Box Tops on them. The other big item that I bought was detergent. We go through twice as many clothes during the school year because the kids usually wear one outfit to school and then something different in the evening–either dance clothes, gymnastics clothes, or clothes to play out in the yard. I stocked up on the biggest detergent that I could buy because I know that I will go through a lot of it very soon.

Bananas. I forgot that I actually did buy some food. I saw those big bunches of bananas and couldn’t resist. Perfect for lunch boxes because my braces-wearing daughter doesn’t need them cut up.

I also have a Sam’s Club “Plus Membership” coming and the cool thing about those is that if you upgrade between now and August 13, you get 150 Bonus Box Tops! Box Tops are huge at our school because we not only save them but we our classes compete to collect the most. Sam’s Club carries many different brands that have Box Tops, and the only thing better than Box Tops are Box Tops in bulk.

Now that I have gone on and on about Sam’s Club, how about I give away a $25 gift card??

To Enter:

1) Leave a comment below telling us what Back to School item you most want to buy from Sam’s Club (one entry).

2) Twitter about the contest and leave a comment below with your Tweet (one entry).

3) Sign up for our newsletter on the right and leave a comment below (e-mail will be verified) (one entry).

4) Blog about this contest or post the contest in your giveaway section and leave your link to the post below (two entries).

Drawing will take place August 26 at noon Eastern. Must be a US Resident, age 18 or older to enter. Winner will be notified via e-mail and have 24 hours to respond or a new winner will be selected.

*Thanks to MyBlogSpark, General Mills, and Sam’s Club for my items and the prize as well!

Edited: Congrats to our winner–Cheryl F, the Lucky Ladybug!

Every now and then when my kids are watching television I scream out “pause the TV”! It’s usually because I happen to catch a commercial for a great contest. Today while they were watching Suite Life on Deck I heard “win a Disney Cruise.” If there were ever a moment to pause, this was one of them.

Here are the details:

One Grand Prize: A 7 night Disney Cruise Line vacation for winner and 3 guests leaving from Los Angeles, CA and taken aboard the Disney Wonder to Disney’s Mexican Riviera itinerary. Includes air fare if you live more than 200 miles from LA. Plus a Toy Story 3: The Video Game for the Wii™ console system.

75 First Prizes of a Toy Story 3: The Video Game for the Wii™ console system. (ARV: $50).

Contest ends August 15, 2010. Click here to get more details and enter.

Updated: Click here to learn more about the 2011 Borders Summer Reading Program

Borders has announced their summer reading program, Double-Dog Dare. Jeff Kinney, author of the hugely popular Diary of a Wimpy Kid books, helped announce the program.

The reading program is open to kids under the age of 12. They must read 10 books (completely of their choice) and then list them on the form available on the Borders website. Once they read the books and complete the form, they can exchange it for a free book. (Last year it was for a coupon for 50% off any book). Free book titles include the following but may change:

Ramona the Brave by Beverly Cleary ISBN 0380709597
Miss Daisy is Crazy! by Dan Gutman ISBN 0060507004
Flat Stanley by Jeff Brown ISBN 0060097914
Dear Mr. Henshaw by Beverly Cleary ISBN 0380709589
The Ruins of Gorlan by John Flanagan ISBN 0142417440
Hoot by Carl Hiaasen ISBN 0440419395
The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth
George Speare ISBN 0440495962
Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes ISBN 0440442508
The River by Gary Paulsen ISBN 0440407532
Kristy’s Great Idea by Ann
M. Martin ISBN 0545174759

The form must be completed, signed by a parent, and returned to a Borders or Waldenbooks location by 8/26/2010. There is no purchase necessary to take advantage of the program. I love when companies do summer reading programs because it gives the kids a goal throughout the summer. The rule for my kids is that they cannot duplicate books for different programs. If they want to earn multiple prizes, they have to read that many more books. So far it hasn’t been a problem because they love to read! How about your kids? Do you participate in summer reading programs? What has your experience been?

Click here to visit the Borders website for more information about their Summer Reading Program.

ShindigZ is giving away party supplies! You can register to win a $200 ShindigZ.com gift certificate each year for the next 50 years. That’s a total prize of $10,000! Use your gift certificate to order decorations, tableware, party favors, and party supplies every year.You can also choose to take it is a one-time certificate of $2000 or an AMEX card worth $1000.

Click here to see full details and enter. Contest ends April 30.

The Weather Channel is giving away a Disney Cruise in its Choose and Cruise Sweepstakes. The Grand Prize is a  Disney Cruise Line vacation for 4 people to winner’s choice of the following: 10- or 11-night Mediterranean Cruise, 12-night Northern European Capitals Cruise, 7-night Eastern Caribbean Cruise, or 7-night Western Caribbean Cruise. Grand Prize also includes transportation to the departure port, a stateroom for 4, and $4,500.

Three instant win game prizes will also be given away and include a 4-night DCL Bahamian vacation for 4 people.  You can enter the Sweepstakes and play the Instant Win game twice a day. You can also get extra entries for sharing the contest with your friends. The sweepstakes ends April 2, 2010.

We have a terrific opportunity on one of our other sites for someone to win Bella’s Engagement ring from Twilight. We’ve partnered with Emitations.com for this promotion. All that you need to do to enter is leave a comment on the contest post that we have set up on Buy Twilight Stuff. You can get bonus entries for posting the contest on your own blog or Tweeting about it. We would love it if you would help us spread the word! The contest will end February 28.

It’s time for the second annual Create Dunkin’s Next Donut Contest. Although I didn’t enter last year, I loved reading all of the fun submissions! The winner last year was “Toffee for your Coffee,” a Sour Cream Cake donut with glaze and chopped Heath bar. It wasn’t my favorite, but I wouldn’t turn it down if someone gave it to me either.

The winner this year will get a check for $12,000. Simply create your ultimate donut for the chance to win the money as well as the opportunity to have your creation sold at participating Dunkin’ Donuts. You can actually save unlimited creations in “My Donuts” and keep coming up with tasty combinations until you’re ready to enter. You choose the type of donut, size, filling, and toppings, plus give it a name. Once you enter, you can share your donuts on all your favorite social media sites.

Visit Dunkin’ Donuts today because the contest ends Monday, March 8, 2010.

(P.S. I entered the Cookies and Cream Donut Dream, a chocolate cake donut with white icing and Oreo crumbles!)

It’s cold in Indiana! That’s why it couldn’t be better timing to receive a free Bright Pink Cozy from St. Eve Kids. Thanks to a special contest through TwitterMoms last month, I also have one to give away! Here’s a picture of my daughter all cuddled up in hers by the fireplace:

My daughter is only 6 but is very tall and this blanket more than covered her up. Her favorite part was the satin around the edges. Since she was a baby, her favorite blankets have always been the ones with satin edges. She loved the satin so much that I included it on every baby quilt I made after that! This blanket is so incredibly soft that it puts all of the other blankets I have thrown across my couch to shame. I have one of the “other” blankets with sleeves and it feels like it is made from felt. This one feels more like my favorite pair of pajamas–soft and warm.

If you want to buy one of your own, you can find St. Eve products at Bloomingdale’s, Macy’s, Nordstrom, Bealls, Kohl’s, Sears, and JC Penney. If you want to WIN one from me, here is how you can enter:

1) Leave a comment below with your favorite book to snuggle up under the covers with (one entry).

2) Twitter about the contest, including my name (@sunshinetricia), and leave a comment below with your Tweet (one entry).

3) Sign up for our newsletter on the right and leave a comment below (e-mail will be verified) (one entry).

4) Blog about this contest and leave your link to the post below (two entries).

Drawing will take place February 15 at noon Eastern. Must be a US Resident, age 18 or older to enter. Winner will be notified via e-mail and have 24 hours to respond or a new winner will be selected.

(P.S. One of my friends is also giving away another Pink Cozy at An Alternate Insight if you want to enter her contest as well!)

My kids are so into the Wizards of Waverly Place on Disney these days that my ears are perked up about it. I came across this cool contest where you can win a 5 day/4 night trip to Los Angeles and lunch with the cast. First and second prizes will be given including Wizards of Waverly Place lunchboxes, autographed magic wands, and soundtracks. In addition, the first 125,000 entries will get a free downloadable song from the Wizards of Waverly Place  TV Series Soundtrack.

You do need a UPC from specially-marked packages of Sara Lee Soft & Smooth Bakery products to enter. However, the rules specifically state that you can just go to the grocery and copy the code from the back of the product (so no purchase necessary). The contest ends November 30, 2009.

By the way, if your kids are into the show, be sure to check out our post about Wizards of Waverly Place merchandise.