MelissaStuff

If you’re up and reading this, enter the Custom Stationery giveaway before midnight!  

I forgot to mention that when we did the Kelloggs/Keeblers deal, we saw multiple boxes that had tokens on them. If you buy 5 products with tokens, you can mail them in for FREE movie tickets. You have the possibility of getting 2 FREE movie tickets in each 10 item transaction. Just remember to remove them from the boxes and mail them in!

The U.S. Product and Safety commission and Antonio Flores have recalled Karino Baby Pacifiers because they fail to meet safety standards. The nipple can separate from the base easily. In addition, the handle is too long, the mouth guard is too small, and there is no ventilation around the mouth causing a choking hazard. 44,900 pacifiers have been recalled. Karino is printed on the handle side of the mouth guard. Mygra is printed on the handle. If you own one of these pacifiers, stop using the product and contact Antonio Flores immediately for a refund or exchange. Antonio Flores: (619) 395-4543

The Winner of the $20 GC to Addiebugs is Lauren! Congratulations. And for the rest of you, it’s Saturday – time to enter your giveaways ! The Custom Stationery ends today so get your entries in for those and make sure you aren’t missing out on any others.

Today in the mail, we received the most awesome thing – our own personal Carlisle cape! My boys don’t know how cool it is yet, because I’m saving it to give as a gift . . . but after opening it, I realized that it is such a hit I’m going to have to get at least one more or the boys will constantly be fighting over it. Power Capes is an expert in the field of making each child into their very own superhero. You get to pick the material, the colors and the letter for each cape you order so it is easy to reflect the personality of the child that will be wearing it. All of the items are personally sewn by moms and there is a money back guarantee if you are not satisfied with your purchase. I love that the closure of these at the neck is velcro. I can’t tell you how often I have to stop in the middle of doing something to tie on a cape made from a towel, a blanket, or even a pair of pants. Now, they’ll be able to put their own capes by themselves! I’m all for encouraging inde...

  Our crew loves going to the pool. We average at least once a week during the summer and supplement that with days at the splashpark and jumping in the sprinkler. Our vacation to Sea World was that much more exciting because there was a water park and the boys even got the chance to go down a water slide with Dad! We enjoy us some outside activities that involve aqua. Yes! I discovered a way to make it even better. Don’t laugh at me, but because I’m cheap we almost always pack a lunch. It’s healthier. It’s cheaper. And it generally tastes better than hot food on a hot day. But the downside is that if I pack it in a cooler, it generally gets pretty wet as the ice melts. So usually I put it in an insulated lunchbox and hope it stays cool enough to not make us sick or taste grody. BUT just yesterday in the mail I received a new goody – Fridge To Go . I received a small luncheon size bag that will hold about 4 cans. I packed hot dogs, 2 yogurts, spoons and a coke for us ...

I thought these pictures turned out well, but if something jumps out at you, please share. View Full Album

Okay, so ya’ll gave me GREAT advice on the dining room . . . and I really tried to apply each item. Here’s the outcome. By the way, my husband’s done moving furniture, so if you hate it – well, just don’t tell me.

I’m combining this so it doesn’t seem like I’m the neediest soul in the world.   This is the nursery, obviously. Again I can’t figure out a good angle to make it look roomy. It’s not all that tight, but the pictures make it feel that way, I think. The boy’s room . . . I didn’t take anymore because it seems pointless. Does this seem cute and inviting or tiny and cramped? This is my office which is one of my favorite rooms in the house. It has a HUGE desk to work at – both craft projects and computer work. But again it’s not easy to capture on camera. Do we just leave this out of the online photos and let people see it when they come?

This one doesn’t have much of a prayer I’m afraid, but maybe you have some easy, creative ideas. Sorry about the flash . . .   That looks a bit more cozy. And this was my attempt at getting a little bit of everything. What do you think? Should I focus on just the bathtub since that’s the coziest part of the room? Or does everyone want to know how the sink is set up? or that the shower is separate from the tub? Thanks for all of your help.

This is our Master Bedroom. And this is the doorway that provides easy access to the nursery which could also be used as an office if you don't have little ones.

Sorry! I contacted the winner and forgot to post. The ShooShoos winner is . . . MeasMom! She has confirmed and should be receiving these great shoes soon. If you didn’t win, please consider buying a pair of ShooShoos and boosting the economy of South Africa. By doing so, you prevent human trafficking and other human rights abuses. There are lots more giveaways too. Tonight the $20 Gift Certificate to Addiebugs ends, and tomorrow the Custom Stationery ends. Don’t miss out on them.

I know some of you may already do this, but I’ve also talked to many of you who have never heard of it or never done it. But I frequently contact companies with either Kudos for the thinks they are doing well or Komplaints about issues I’m having with their products. You wouldn’t believe how productive this is. Recently I complained to SC Johnson that I have had two different Automatic Shower Cleaning systems put out by their brand Scrubbing Bubbles just stop working after the batteries run dead. I replace them and the machine runs once then never works again. SC Johnson refunded the full cost of one machine and sent me a FREE coupon to replace the machine! On the Kudos side, I wrote Bar S to tell them that we eat their hot dogs like they are going out of business. They have both regular and turkey hotdogs and my boys can’t get enough. I rarely ever go to the grocery store without buying them. Bar S sent me a VIP coupon worth $5 – which I used to buy a $4.99 3 lb pack of their ho...

Okay, I already told you about the Kellogg’s and Keeblers deal at Albertson’s. I ended up with: 3 boxes of Fruit Loops 3 boxes of Rice Krispie Treats 2 large boxes of PopTarts 4 sets of Keebler cookies (different varieties) 2 boxes of Shredded Wheat 1 box of Kellogg’s Cornflakes 2 boxes of Cheezits 3 boxes of Keebler crackers (different varieties) For those items, I paid a total of $7. Then I also found these deals: Dial Handsoap – $1 - $.35/1 coupon that is tripled store coupon to make it $.79 Total: $.21 Money Maker if you use the manufacturer coupon before the store coupon Act II Popcorn - $1 (our store was almost sold out) - $.50/1 coupon that is doubled Total: FREE Coppertone Sports Sunscreen Spray (2 pak) - $6.99 (after coupon in ad) - $1/1 coupon hanging in front of them Total: $5.99 (or $2.99 for each bottle) Buy LARGE Strawberry Smucker’s Jelly - $2.99 - $.25/1 coupon that is tripled Get 1 loaf of Alber...

All the cheesecakes at The Cheesecake Factory are half price today in celebration of National Cheesecake Day. These kinds of deals always make the restaurant super busy so I suggest going this afternoon before the dinner crowd arrives. I’m going tomorrow night :( Too bad, I’m missed yesterday’s Cheesecake Factory deal and today’s!

I meant to mention this last week when I saw that the baby clearance as at 30% off. This is THE time to buy anything and everything baby. From the expensive beds, strollers and toys to the baby food, wipes and diapers – at this time of year you are likely to find it ALL on sale. The last I personally saw it was still 30% off but I am hearing reports of 50% off. It should go to 75% although it usually gets picked over fast and if there are any stragglers they might hit 90% off but you will have to scan them to find that out. Good luck!

I know sometimes you get surprised by purchasing the paper (or even multiple copies) and then find out there are no good coupons or no coupons at all! This website will save you from that. Each week it tells you what coupons you can expect in Sunday’s paper! Priceless, I know.

I asked you yesterday to help me get my house ready to sell – and you did! Thank you for all of your comments both publicly and privately. Please remember that I don’t have the budget to go buy new things and the house goes on the market tomorrow. The best suggestions will be the cheap and easy ones. For example, yesterday someone mentioned moving the arm chairs to the corners beside the buffet. Great idea. Love it that way. Wish someone had said that 7 years ago when we moved in. That’s the kind of help I need. For those of you that have a heart for decorating. I’ll do this again when we move into our new house and you can tell me just what to get and then I’ll make it my goal to find that stuff as inexpensively as possible!          Today, so far I have gotten the kitchen ready. **UPDATE: I have since moved the hope chest to a different room.**   And the den ready, so let me know what you think! **UPDATE: I have sin...

Don’t forget to enter our giveaways – today is your last chance to enter to win the $20 Gift Certificate to Addiebugs Etsy store. She has some adorable stuff!

This summer has been a busy one in the pool. We live at the pool, the splash park, and most recently Sea World. To top it off, as I mentioned, I am nursing ALL the time. Finding the right swimsuit seems to be a never-ending quest. I’ve tried several and they all have their goods and bads. None of them make me want to stand up and shout . .  or maybe that’s just my body. Swimsuits for All is a great Internet store that carries swimsuits for those of us that are a bit more hard to fit. They specialize in swimsuits for size 8 and up – but also carry large bust, small bust, maternity and even post-mastectomy. I looked and looked at all of the swimsuits. Once again it seemed everything I LOVED was made for a C cup or smaller. ERGH! Finally I settled on this Black and White Floral DD Cup Tankini. To be honest, I thought the top looked a little short and wide in the picture, but figured it was just the way the model was made. Unfortunately, when it arrived the top was short. ...

So, I’ve been very proud of my little one and myself that we are about 3 and 1/2 months into nursing and we do VERY little supplementing. With my first two, it was fairly significant. I breastfed primarily for the first 6 weeks or so and then we bottle fed 1/3 to 1/2 of the time. With my oldest it was because I went back to work, and with my middle it was because he was underweight and I thought it was related to not getting enough breastmilk. (3 years later I now know that’s just how God made him.) With Weston I nurse almost exclusively (unless he still acts hungry immediately following a feeding or I am away from him). In fact, on our recent family vacation I nursed everywhere! In the van, in the hotel, at the Zoo, under a tree at Sea World – I even majorly flashed a lady at the gas station because I thought the van windows were tinted enough, but the way the sun hit it exposed EVERYTHING. Sorry. This has brought along a whole new set of challenges, most of which revolve around n...

It makes me sad that when I look at my list of Swagbucks referrals that some of you still have 0 Swagbucks! You went to all of the trouble to sign up but you’re not doing the easy part (searching) and not being able to reap the rewards. My recommendation would be to go to Swagbucks.com and downloading the Swagbucks toolbar. Then you can simply use the “search” box to enter the website you want to go to – google.com, hotmail.com, melissastuff.blogspot.com :) – and win points every day! (Even in Google Chrome, once you’ve downloaded the toolbar your navigation bar will let you search Swagbucks by just entering the individual words directly into it!)   So search, search, search! You can earn double, triple, quadruple what you normally earn. . . . And if you haven't signed up, start today ! I've already redeemed $60 worth of Amazon giftcards and have redeemed $30 more this week . . . and points still left in my account. You could be reaping the same rewards. I promis...

There are reports that the toy clearance at Target has hit 75% off at certain stores. Even if the signs don’t say 75% off, scan the toys and see what they ring up. Let us know what you find!

Barnes and Noble has the Once-A-Month Cooking and Once-A-Month Cooking: Family Favorites cookbooks clearanced to $1.99 each as part of their Summer Warehouse Sale ! I know some people who are all about that! I haven’t quite made that leap yet, but maybe one day. There are lots of other $1.99 titles in the Summer Warehouse Sale — including some great children’s books. I found it was easiest to search by sorting by price ($1.99) and then age of children to see what titles were available. You can get 15% off the highest-price item in your cart with the discount codes listed here . Shipping is free if you order $25 worth.

So, the new blog design even surprised me in the end . . . it was a day early! We’re still tweaking and rearranging so bear with us. But hopefully this will let those of you that use your Smartphones to access my blog, read things a bit better. Let me know if you have any problems with any of it. My blog redesign was done by Jacqui of Wacky Jacqui Designs ! She is going to be a Blogmania Sponsor and will be offering a FUN giveaway as part of our total package.   Check out her site and keep her in mind when you need anything done for your blog – buttons, redesigns, title bars, headers – she does it all! I have contacted the winner of the $40 1-800-Flowers giveaway! Congratulations!!

Don’t forget today is the day for $1.50 cheesecake from The Cheesecake Factory . Grab the coupon on Facebook and you can get the  Reece’s Peanut Butter Chocolate Cake Cheesecake for only $1.50! Tomorrow ALL the cheesecakes are half price! Yum!