Target

Gifts For The Holidays Made Simple

Dec 29, 2016

Gifts For The Holidays

I love giving gifts and it so easy to put together a small gift for less. For those on your list whether it is your friends, postal carriers, coworker, teacher’s aide, bus drivers, hairstylist, barbers, etc.

Ghirardelli Peppermint Bark $1.99, Home Goods Walkers Shortbread Cookies $1.99 Home Goods, Gift Bag $.50, Target

2. Christmas Ornaments, $3.00, Target Lindt Milk Chocolate Truffles $1.00, Target Gift Bag $.50, Target

3. Reusable Wine Tote Bags $2.99, Home Goods Perfect for BYOB nights

Charitable Donation Gifts

I always hear people ask “what do you give to someone who has everything?” —–Make a donation to a charity that is near and dear to their heart. A lot of charities allows gifts in honor of someone.

Countdown to Christmas: Target Deals of December

Dec 18, 2016

Sporting Goods Sale! Mercedes ride on sale for $159 and 12″ Paw Patrol & Princess Kid’s Bike $59. Valid 12/18-12/24

BOGO 50% on window treatments: curtains, blinds & shades, hardware. Valid 12/18-12/24

Save up to 25% off domestics: bedding, bath, curtains and rugs. Valid 12/18-12/24

Up to 20% off kitchen gifts. Valid 12/18-12/24

15% off Fragrances. Valid 12/18-12/24

30% off all boots. Valid 12/18-12/24

BOGO 25% personal care & beauty gift sets. Valid 12/18-12/24

15% off hair styling tools. Valid 12/18-12/24

30% off select jewelry gifts. Valid 12/18-12/24

Free $200 GiftCard with your purchase of the iPhone 7. Valid 12/18-12/24

Camera Sale! Save on Canon, Nikon, Fujifilm and MORE. Valid 12/18-12/24

Save 30% on select women’s jewelry gifts. Valid 12/18-12/24

Save $50 on Xbox One S + free $30 GiftCard 500GB console with controller. Valid 12/18-12/24

Back to School Teacher’s Gift

Aug 25, 2016

DIY Back to School Teacher Gift

As the summer is winding to a close. It is time to start shopping for school necessities. For your kid’s teachers, here is a creative back to school gift you can put together in minutes.

Thanks to Danyelle at TheCubicleChick for this cool DIY Back to School Teacher Gift idea. On Saturday we had a weekend trip to Target and stopped by the $1-$3 spot. How can you walk in Target and miss this section of the store? It’s right at the entrance just whispering come over! First you get us with the bright lights and dazzling color scheme and now this aisle, Target. Thanks for yet another reason to spend more coins in your store!

My kids start school on September 8th, and we are still without the name of my 3rd grader’s teacher. We’re getting the gift ready to go.

As you can see we found chalkboard labels, the bucket, a notepad, 2015-2016 planner, pens and pencils all for $1. Cool, right!

I always a few arts and craft items on the shelf so I decided to add a little to it……

Finished…….

Office- Creating a Home Office

Mar 16, 2016

Office Space

Where do you work at home? I found myself working on the dining room table, sofa, loveseat, and my bed. The real drag was scurrying to find my laptop charger each time my battery was low. The need to create an office space came from me not having a clearly defined space to WORK. How did I fit an office space in an apartment with 1400 square feet of living space? It was actually simple!!!! I knew I wanted to utilize the wall space between the dining room and the living room, presto my office space was BORN!!!!

I mapped out what the was going to look like before putting it on a piece of paper. If you are ever in need of any ideas to get your creative juices flowing just go to Pinterest. Again I call Pinterest, INSPIRATION NOT DUPLICATION!!!

I visited IKEA online to search for a desk and chair for under $100. The BORGSJO desk was $59.99 and the FINGAL swivel chair was $39.99. Yes, 2 cents shy of my $100 budget!!!! Some may say IKEA boo-hoo -I can’t put anything together. If all else fails, I will find someone who actually enjoys using their hands and invite them over for an IKEA/Pizza party and as an extra include wine or beer!!!!! Whatever works to get the job done!!! I like a challenge and being hands on so I put together my office chair in 30 minutes and the desk in 1 1/2 hours. Kudos to IKEA for great quality control because all my parts were accounted for in each box.

Target has a great selection of office/home organization supplies so I decided to use three boards, a calendar, a cork board, and a white board. Each board serves a purpose in addition to my google calendar, I need visual reminders as well. The cork board serves to hold inspirations, schedules, pictures, etc. and white board is for me to list daily/weekly tasks and ideas. The black/white boxed art is from Home Goods and TJ Maxx and the shadow box with roses is from Marshalls!!! I have a love for fresh flowers so my desk must have flowers every week(Whole Foods, found some for $3.99/arrangement).

From my previous work office I was able to repurpose my IKEA floor lamp, pillow, vase and area rug. The best part of creating a space is everything has a purpose at some point. The black box with quotes is from HOME GOODS, this is perfect in black/white; incoming/outgoing mail, bills, to do tasks and filing.

In an apartment space, the best advice is to MAXIMIZE wall space. The rod and basket are from IKEA’S kitchen design center. The $1 jars are from Target’s $1-$3 aisle and the office supplies are from Target’s office accessory aisle. Oops I almost forgot the lime green pails (found in IKEA plants department) were $.99! Initially I wanted to use them for small potted plants but the pop of color is really COOL!!! Fresh flowers are a part of my deskscape!!! Flowers brighten any corner.

I ordered my HP printer/scanner/copier from Amazon(PRIME member) and since my desk is smaller I found a sturdy IKEA file cabinet. The cabinet has a dual purpose: a place to set the printer and 3 drawers for storage.

Side view of office space…….If you missed my blog post on how to DIY a desk mat-Desk Mat

Rear view of office space……

This was so much fun and I am looking forward to starting on my DIY bedroom -DD’s ballerina themed room. HOME GOODS, IKEA , and HOME DEPOT here I come… STAY TUNED !!!!!

Single Mom Chronicles: Shopping at Target with Cartwheel, Who Knew?

Aug 27, 2015

I guess you’re never too old to learn something NEW!!!! I added the Cartwheel app to my Android phone in May 2013.

For two years I have used the app incorrectly and wasted so much shopping time. During my trips to Target I would load my cart with items and then check whether each item was on Cartwheel!

I just learned on Sunday from a Target associate the app allows you to scan the barcode of each product. After scanning, Cartwheel will automatically add to your Cartwheel if there is a discount.

Here’s my tutorial on how to properly use Cartwheel:

When you open your Cartwheel, go to the upper left hand corner. Below is the drop down menu, scroll down to Scan Product.

Simply hold your camera back about 6 inches from the bar code and once in focus it will scan automatically.

If the product is part of Cartwheel it will add the product to your Cartwheel cart. This is a fabulous time saver!!!

Also learned Target will give you .05 cents for every reuseable bag and of course we all know about the 5% savings with REDCARD!!!!!

My Kid’s Chronicles: 3rd Grade School Supply Haul

Aug 20, 2015

3rd Grade School Supplies

Why did this year of school supply shopping bring so much STRESS!!!! Initially, I wanted to shop online to save time and what I thought was money. The school makes it easy by providing the school supply list for each grade. I took the list and went online to really do some comparison shopping. I started with STAPLES and even without a few of the items such as 2 boxes of tissues and plastic folders, my total was $66.00. Next up was AMAZON and some of the items were impossible to find individually there were a lot of items offered in bulk such as the marble composition books, spiral notebooks, plastic folders, tissues and disinfecting wipes for a total of $55(with items missing). Lastly, I went to TARGET (with the intention of picking up at the local store) and that was a quick peruse of the site because a lot of the items were SOLD OUT!

3rd grade School Supplies
• One 1-inch 3-Ring Binder
• 2 Marble Composition Books
• 1 Set of Crayons or Colored Pencils
• 1 Divider – Avery – 5 Tab – White – Big Tab Write On
• 2 Dry Erase Markers
• 3 Erasers
• 1 Set Multiplication Flash Cards
• 1 Folder – Plastic & Pocket – Blue
• 1 Folder – Plastic & Pocket – Green
• 1 Folder – Plastic & Pocket – Orange
• 1 Folder – Plastic & Pocket – Red
• 1 Folder – Plastic & Pocket – Yellow
• 1 Folder – Plastic Pocket & Prong – Red
• 4 Glue Sticks
• 1 Hole Reinforcements – Qty 200 – Avery
• 1 Set of Washable Markers
• 2 Spiral Notebooks
• 4 Dozen Ticonderoga #2 Pencils
• 1 Hand Held Pencil Sharpener
• 1 School Box – 5 x 8 x 2 – Plastic – Clear
• 1 Pair Kids Scissors
• 4 Packs Post It – 3 x 3
• 2 Boxes Tissues
• 1 Container Clorox Disinfecting Wipes
• 1 Ziploc Bags Quart Size (Boy)
• 1 Ziploc Bags Gallon Size (Girl)

I never bothered to even total because I am such a ONE STOP SHOPPER! On Tuesday, me and my 3rd grader headed to FIVE BELOW and managed to find the majority of her items. Unfortunately, I had to go next door to STAPLES to pick up some items missing at FIVE BELOW.

Two stores later and would you believe I still need to go to TARGET for an orange plastic folder, tissues, and disinfecting wipes as I know they are priced better than STAPLES and there is a chance I can use my CARTWHEEL!

Last year I used these labels to personalize the supplies.

Cooking and Baking By Me: DIY Meals-Garlic Stir Fry with Chicken

Apr 21, 2015

Another dinner prep kit made easy from Target. The only issue is cooking before the use by date. I purchased chicken tenderloins to add to the dish. I’m so unfamiliar with types of noodles and scoured the International section of my local supermarket. I did find a broccoli and beef stir fry sauce. After cooking the chicken I added the kit which contained minced garlic, diced red onion, white onion, green and red pepper. Once all was stir fried, I puchased a packet of Beef and Broccoli Stir Fry seasoning packet. Although I wanted noodles, I cooked a pot of white rice.

I would definitely purchase again however I will marinate the meat or seafood of choice overnight to impart more flavor. The stir fry seasoning packet did not give the dish a lot of flavor. Since I was unable to find a noodle selection I made rice.

Being a Parent: First Cast Countdown

Apr 23, 2013

Yes, the title is broad and vague. I often wonder is there such a person- a “perfect” parent? Realistically, none of us are perfect despite some of our egos saying otherwise. However, as a parent I feel it my responsibility is to have a clue on what is in my children’s best interest. The day DD returned home and I asked her to remove her sweat jacket , a swollen elbow! I told her it is either a fracture or sprain. First stop was the kitchen cabinet for the children’s acetaminophine, it felt like the only natural thing to do with a child in discomfort, right? Then I made an ice pack for our trip to the ER. After 4 1/2 hours in one emergency room, transport by ambulance to CHOP and an additional 3 hours in emergency room at CHOP we left with a cast for the DD.

How can I perfectly chronicle a full week with DD in a cast? After clear directions of not getting the cast wet, my first thought was the bathing dilemma, how? and then I wondered how will this cast fit into clothing. Then on top of it all it was her right hand, the writing hand so this introduces an issue at school with getting her work completed. Guess, who was the designated homework completer in the evening, that’s right- M-O-M-M-Y! There was a day off from school on the Monday after Easter which gave us a day to get acclimated to this major change. Then another day with the biggest hurdle trying to make her comfortable at bedtime. Another concern was the fact for a whole week we were unable to wash the right hand so being the germophobe I am I resorted to wiping the cast hand with sanitizer.

Also I forewarned her teacher before DD went back to school. It is amazing how much we take for granted with full function of all of our limbs. All in all kids are very resilient as they take blips on the radar in stride!

One week later a follow up appointment, xray and then evaluation with pediatric orthopedic doctor. After our follow up meeting with the pediatric orthopedic doctor, we left the hospital with another cast at a more flexible angle. A visit to the cast room where a technician cuts off the first cast while DD wears headset to protect ears from the buzzing noise. DD is tickled pink because as the cast is being removed the buzzing vibration tickles her arm. Prognosis, 2 more weeks in the new cast….I’m thinking yay me! Back home to endure 2 more weeks in a cast for DD. One thing we did learn is that it was easy to take a bath as long as the cast arm was hanging outside of the tub, well of course DD forgets and brings arm down and gets the cast wet. I immediately was off to call CHOP and the orthopedic doctor on call. When I received the call back he instructed me to use a blow dryer to dry the wet section. He also said as long as the integrity of the cast material was not compromised we were good. Lucky for us the cast was slightly wet on the surface and we were saved from another trip to emergency! Countdown to the 22ndl of Apri! Three weeks of acetamin0phen, ibuprofen(best for inflammation) and anti-histamines(for the itchy skin)

Yesterday was officially the last day with a cast, it was removal of cast and then xray.

After the cast was removed, DD’s skin was extremely chafed and her arm was stiff from being confined for 3 weeks. The doctor said she needs to slowly straighten her arm without any need for rehabilitation. She also has a note for school which limits her physical activity for the next month, no monkey bars, trampolines, bike riding, roller skating, etc. I told her the only thing she can and will do is SIT! She actually had the nerve to ask me No Monkey Bars? *******blank stare******* SCREAMING in my Head!

The first thing DD wanted to do was take a nice warm bubble bath and I am a big fan of Aveeno products. Oatmeal is very soothing for chafed skin however I already made 4 trips to Target in the past 5 days so I needed to bypass Target and find something in the local supermarket.

Another Johnson & Johnson product, reasonably priced Vanilla Oatmeal wash with a nice scent. I learned long ago that body wash makes nice makes a tub of fluffy bubbles and smells wonderful. She enjoyed submerging the cast arm and it worked so well on her skin. I will definitely buy this again!

Now we have a month of light activity, I’ll keep you posted!

Target Neiman Marcus

Dec 24, 2012

Why are these pieces calling me? I just need to add some Bordeaux shoes……What are your thoughts? The items are now 50% off…..
1st & 3rd, Robert Rodriguez the 2nd one, cape- Prabal Gurung