All posts by Anne Younger

Anne is a 30-something full-time SAHM mom of 5 ranging from 3 to 17 and grandma of 1 who resides in Ashwaubenon (Green Bay) Wisconsin. She started blogging in 2008 as a way to regain her sanity. She enjoys coffee, chocolate, cheeseburgers and vodka along with spending time with her husband and kids.
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Holiday Cards from Minted

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*This post is made possible by Minted.  I received a promotional item in order to facilitate this post. All thoughts and opinions are my own. This post may contain affiliate links.*

As you have learned over the life of this blog, I love to send cards out to friends and family, especially cards that show off my adorable kids.  Minted recently launched their 2013 holiday card collection and they have some great designs to choose from.

I like to send out two cards each year (when time allows for it).  I send one card to our family and another to friends.  Since I like to send different messages to friends, I tend to go for a card that offers space for me to write a quick note, whereas cards that go to family are your standard holiday card with pictures of the kids.

I love the look of these folded holiday cards from Minted.

Minted Folded Cards

I love that each of these cards still gives me the chance to share pictures of the kids with our friends and I have plenty of room on the inside to pen a heartfelt message.

I’m also kind of swooning over these adorable holiday minibook cards.  

I love that these can be personalized, right down to the matching envelope and I can write little updates about the kids inside as well as news about our family.

Really, I am torn as to what to do..there are just so many options.

What do you think? Which card should I create to send to our friends that we don’t see or talk to all the time?

I need to make a decision quick because Minted is currently offering $25 OFF + Free Shipping on ALL holiday cards (USE CODE:  JOY25FS) through Monday, November 11th.

Leave me a comment and let me know what you think I should do!

#cbias

Walmart Family Mobile Unlimited Plans Help You Save for the Holidays

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Last month, I picked up a Concord Smartphone from Walmart and signed up for service with Walmart Family Mobile powered by T-Mobile to test out their unlimited plans and see if their service would work for our family.  Since our current mobile bill is our biggest bill, next to the mortgage payment, we were motivated to try a new provider so we can cut our costs and start saving some money in addition to finding a plan that will give us the coverage we need for the traveling we do during the holiday season.

My initial investment in the Walmart Family Mobile service was $49.88 for the phone (thank you Walmart for the Rollback on phone prices) and $25 for the activation kit, $3.97 shipping, plus taxes for a grand total of $83.19.

What did that $83.19 get me?

My phone and my first 30 days of service on the Walmart Family Mobile plan.  

Little did I know that I was going to learn to love not just my service with this plan, but the savings too!

This is my bill that I received today when I logged into my online account management and information center.

Seriously, can you believe that??? $22.76!!

Talk about a cheap wireless plan!

The great thing is, our contract is coming up with our current mobile provider and we are seriously considering making the switch when that time comes!

I’m happy to make the move since I can get a sweet Samsung Galaxy S4 with this plan as well.

I am already imagining the holiday savings we could build from the monthly savings we would have once we switch plans, we could actually take a little family vacation too!

Walmart Family mobile definitely offers the lowest price rate plan out there, and I’ve done my homework and shopped around.

I love that the Walmart Family Mobile service is powered by T-Mobile because I am able to get reception in areas I cannot with my current provider.  Having coverage further North of Green Bay is a great thing with our family since we spend a lot of time up that way over the holidays visiting extended family.  It is great to know that we won’t be experiencing dropped calls, others will be able to text and call us and if there is an emergency, we will be able to make a phone call when we need too!

For now, we will definitely be continuing our service with Walmart Family Mobile using our Concord phone.  For the price of this plan, it is definitely worth the investment to keep the service so we have a phone that actually works when we are away from home over the holidays.

If we do make the switch to Walmart Family Mobile, the Concord phone would actually be a great gift to give our little Alexander.  Although he is only 5 (almost 6) I would love for him to have a phone in an emergency so he could call me if he needed too.  I love that smartphones are so smart that you can install apps and change settings to make them totally little kid friendly. Alexander is obsessed with calenders since he started school so I set up the calender on the Concord to display the days that are special to him.

 

He loves it when he sees the phone light up with a calender alert and he loves it even more when he sees his name on that alert!

If you have a teenager who doesn’t have a mobile phone yet and you’ve been thinking about getting them one, this is definitely the way to go.  No need to worry about them going over their minutes when gabbing with friends, using too many texts or surfing the net and eating up your all of your available data.  Give them a Concord Smartphone with Walmart Family Mobile for the holidays!  The great thing is, the price is so low that when they transition and take the service over, the bill is extremely affordable.

Remember, for lest than $40 a month, you can get UNLIMITED Talk, Text and Web with Walmart Family Mobile and I’m confident you will get the best wireless service that you can receive and NO CONTRACT!

Knowing that this service will save us at least $160 each month makes Walmart Family Mobile look even better everyday!

 

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Buddy Valastro: The Cake Boss The Family Celebrations Tour

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*This post is made possible by Mills Entertainment.  I received a promotional item in order to facilitate this post. All thoughts and opinions are my own. This post may contain affiliate links.*

I don’t know if I’ve ever told you this before, but Alexander and I developed a slight addiction to the reality T.V. show, The Cake Boss a few years ago.  Watching Buddy Valastro and the rest of his family in action became something we did together weekly.  Then, when the show arrived on Netflix, we started it all over again.

Now……Buddy Valastro:  The Cake Boss is coming to Green Bay on The Family Celebrations Tour at the Weidner Center on November 20th and 7:30PM.

Join America’s favorite baker, Buddy Valastro, for an all new show of cakes, stories, and fun. TLC’s Cake Boss will be appearing at the Weidner Center in Green Bay on Wednesday, November 20th at 7:30pm.

In this live, interactive event, TLC’s Cake Boss will share stories from his highly popular TV shows (Cake Boss, Next Great Baker), his family at Carlo’s Bakery, will answer audience questions, and most importantly, will give lots of live cake & cupcake decorating demonstrations, sharing tips and techniques in a high-energy experience for the whole family.

One of the centerpiece shows of the TLC network, a sixth season of Cake Boss began airing in May 2013. Viewers continue to celebrate the mouthwatering desserts and not-to-be-missed Valastro family moments occurring in bustling Hoboken, NJ, home of Carlo’s Bakery, which celebrated its 103rd anniversary this summer. In addition, Buddy’s other TV series on TLC Next Great Baker is set to launch another season THIS MONTH!!!

Buddy Valastro is the author of four books, including Family Celebrations with the Cake Boss, which was released today by Simon & Schuster. As he does in every book, Buddy brings his characteristic warmth and flair, sharing personal stories alongside cooking, baking, and decorating tips.

Tickets are on-sale NOW at weidnercenter.com, 1.800.895.0071, or at the venue box office. Tickets are $29.75/$36.75 plus applicable service charges.

A limited number of VIP tickets are available for $95 which includes a post-show meet and greet, Cake Boss tour laminate, a copy of Buddy’s new book Family Celebrations with the Cake Boss, and a special surprise.

You can save an additional $5 on your tickets by entering promo code BUDDY when ordering your tickets.

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE TICKETS NOW!!!!

Learn more about Buddy Valastro and The Family Celebrations Tour at BuddyOnTour.com.

You can also catch Buddy for a book signing while he’s here!

Nov. 20, 2013: Green Bay, WI – 3:30 PM

Festival Foods
2348 Lineville Road
Green Bay, WI  54313

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Put Together a Great Bridal Shower Gift at Target

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*This post is made possible by Target.  I received a promotional item in order to facilitate this post. All thoughts and opinions are my own. This post may contain affiliate links.*

I am a fan of weddings.

I love everything from the planning, to the shopping, the prepping, the parties….oh the parties.  I love me a good Bridal Shower.  

Since we were in the process of moving while planning our wedding and getting everything together so quickly, I chose to forgo my own.  Planning bridal showers is fun and it is even more fun to shop for a special gift for the newlyweds.

It has been awhile since I attended a shower, but I do recall the last one was a childhood friend’s.  Her and her fiance were in the same position as Alex and I. They had met after having been in previous relationships, there were already kids involved and they were essentially combining two well established households into one.

When shopping for a gift for a couple who is already living together, has a family or is not in need of much, I like to put together a few of my favorite household items, things I use on a regular basis.  In addition to a gift for the couple, if there are kids involved, I like to include them in the gift as well!

We actually have a wedding we were invited to attend this month, and I put together the following as a great little gift for the entire family.

 

*A set of melamine mixing bowls, fall themed towel & pot holders and 2 fall themed plates for the kiddos.

Basically, when I am shopping for a gift, I think of something that I would like to receive as a gift. Classic wedding gifts are china, stemware, silver etc. For me, the reality is to give a gift that will serve an everyday purpose because the classic gifts tend to sit and collect dust.

Does the couple in question like beer or wine? Gift a fabulous set of glasses.

Maybe they prefer a fresh brewed cup of coffee……a Keurig Vue (my personal favorite) is a great gift as well.

Or, if all else fails and you really don’t know what to buy, you can never go wrong with a gift of…….

 

The Target Wedding Catalog is a great resource when shopping for the perfect shower gift or to use as inspiration when creating your Target Wedding Registry.

Target makes it easy to create your registry online or in-store and makes it available for your guests to shop online or in-store as well!

Be sure to follow along with all the wedding planning fun by following hashtag #TargetWedding on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram & Pinterest!

Content and/or other value provided by our partner, Target.