Ultimate Blog Party 2011!

I want to say a big welcome to all of the new readers and future friends from the 2011 Blog Party over at 5 minutes for Mom! It's so great to have you here and I hope you enjoy the site. I so enjoyed last year's party, and I can't wait to partake in this year's festivities.

As it says on the top of my blog, I am a frugal wife/student/mom/airman looking to share great frugal ideas, success in the world's grocery challenges, a clean house, well-adjusted children and world domination. OK, maybe not the last one!  I love to share whatever tips or tricks that I can develop in my little brain when it comes to keeping family life and finances frugal, while still keeping my home a fun place to grow and love one another.

So you can get to know me further, and my site, as well as learn a few frugal ways(and recipes) that are perfect for partying, take a gander at these links:

Frugal entertaining (tips for all year 'round)
Coin rafflle- perfect for any party!
Quick lemonade- the frugal way
Homemade marshmallows
Apple chips
chocolate popcorn

And to recover from your online party hangover:
A frugal spa day...at home!

And since 5 Minutes for Mom is so awesome, they are giving away prizes to the bloggers that are participating in the party! I'd love to win a total blog re-vamp from Creative5 Designs.

Maybe a blog re-vamp from Simply Fabulous Blogger Templates. Yes, I need a blog re-vamp. Did you figure that out yet?

Or how about an Ergo Baby Carrier(been wanting this for months!) from Heavenly Hold. That's a great prize!

I am super excited about this party and will be ready to jump into all the fun.

Have a great week and keep this party going. Stop on over to 5 minutes for Mom and see what's planned for us!

Breathe In...Breathe Out...

Last week, I ran away from home.

I mean, I didn't really run away, like packing up my stuff, leaving a Dear John letter, and changing my name before I hit the mexican border. I just got out of the house. Without announcing it really. I said I would be back and eventually did.

Meal Plan Monday!

Yet another military weekend coming up, so I want to make some fun but simple meals for the 4 days I actually have to cook.

Monday: Sweet and sour chicken with brown rice with cabbage
Tuesday: spaghetti with meatballs and side salad
Wednesday: Baked Tilapia with lentils and brown rice
Thursday: Egg Drop soup with fried wontons
Friday to Sunday: Mama's off to serve her country! Dad and the kids will be having leftovers

Dessert of the week: Strawberry surprise cake

ShopRite Deals 3/27 to 4/2

Have you all signed up for ShopRite YourBucks yet? You'll get 2.00 of YourBucks just for signing up. Click here to get started.

Click here for information on 4 Hats and Frugal's ShopRite match ups.

Halls cough drops- 4 for 4.00(must buy 4)
use .75/1 coupon from 3/27SS doubled- 4 FREE

Diamond Crystal kosher salt 3oz- .69
use .30/1 printable coupon doubled- .09
(better yet, print this coupon and save it! it's good until 2012, so plenty of time to use it but print it before it's gone!)

Frugal magazine tips

I decided that with all the wonderful, FREE, subscriptions I get to great magazines, I should share the best frugal tips and blurbs from them. Also, this will give me a place to reference back for my favorite tips without keeping loads of magazine pages on file somewhere. Every month I'll do this rundown, and hopefully you all can learn something too! 


From Woman's Day:
Instead of spooning cupcake batter into liners and making a mess, fill your turkey baster with the batter and then fill up the cups.
For a cheap stain remover, try filling up 50% rubbing alcohol and 50% water. Spritz on stain and blot for a few seconds. It works for all fabrics except silk and linen.
To remove smells from the fridge, soak a cotton ball in vanilla extract, put in a little bowl, and place on the lowest shelf. Remove it from the fridge in a few days after the cotton ball dries up.

From All You:
For an intense hydration for dry hair, mix 1/8 cup olive oil with 1 teaspoon honey, leave it in your hair for 5 minutes after shampooing, then rinse.
Instead of using a steel wool pad, ball up some aluminum foil to remove baked on foods from glass pans.
After shaving, soak the head of your razor in some baby oil for a few minutes to keep the blade rust-free.

From Martha Stewart Living:
If you favorite shade of foundation is discontinued or very hard to find, send a sample to Three Custom Color Specialists. For 37 dollars, they will match it. That's a great deal for a foundation that you KNOW works for you skin. Imagine how much you would waste trying to find another one that even remotely works.


Want to see more tips from magazines? Check out my previous posts!

He hates when I do that...

There are many things that are different between my Husband and I. Whether it be our tastes in certain foods(how can he love Miracle Whip so much?) or how we like to spend a weekend together, there is always something. We both do realize that this keeps the spice in our marriage but there are a few things that just gets under each other's skins no matter what. For my husband, it's my incessant planning.

Now, he doesn't mind the planning really, but it's when I plan things for myself that he should be planning for me. For example, every year, without fail, I tell him that I would appreciate if I didn't have to do the planning for my own birthday celebrations. I promise to let go and give him a chance to take over. At first, I feel relieved. I don't have to worry about if we go somewhere and one friend with a specific diet won't like the restaurant, or worrying about what time I should tell everyone to be ready, what cake I want, what places are great for celebrating a birthday, etc. I can wash my hands of it and move on.

Then, the weeks go by. I hear from friends asking what the plans are and I tell them to expect a call, or text, or e-mail from Hubby any day.

Then even more days go by. Still no plans are made. And I get nervous. Really nervous. For quite a few years, I had a long string of un-happy birthdays. Spending them away from family, having friends actually forget that it was my birthday until days later, and even a few tragedies happening around the big day. So, when I hear that NO plans were in the works with only a week or so to go, I get that tinge of angst. So....I just go ahead and do it myself.

It always turns into a bit of a fight, but because it's my birthday, my dear Husband tries to let it go as quick as possible and follows through with the plans I planned for him to use as his "plans." The birthdays tend to go off without a hitch. But, after the festivities are over, I hear it. Boy, do I hear it. At least he's nice enough to wait until my birthday is over to lay into me about it, but I know he would like to do quite a bit of yelling right when it happens. And it happens EVERY YEAR. Why do I continue to do it when I know it bothers him? I don't know. It's one of those stupid things that I do annually that I just can't break. Maybe one day, when I'm old and gray, I'll get the point.

But for now, I can take solace in the fact that even though I'm a pain in the ass around my birthday, he still loves me in the end. I wonder if we can make a trade. I'll work on my "planning" issues if he'll work on his "put your socks IN the hamper, not around the hamper" issue. There's a thought.

This post was inspired by Mama's Losin' it Writer's Workshop

Walmart/Sam's Club gift card winner!

Wow! You all must really love Walmart and Sam's Club! There were 31 qualifying entries on the blog, 8 facebook entries and 5 twitter entries. I'll have to remember that walmart is a popular prize for our next group of giveaways ;o).

Now, let's see who won!

The winner, as picked by Random.org is entry number 42...

Twitter entry: @4Hatsandfrugal My Favorite thing to buy from #walmart would have to be the deli pre-made/ready to cook pizzas!

Congratulations to crazylicious85! I've contacted them through twitter and they have 48 hours to respond or I will pick another winner. Thanks to all for entering and stay tuned for more giveaways.

Speaking of giveways, have you entered the amazon gift cards giveaway? Multiple winners!

Meal Plan Monday!

It's rubber Chicken week! I love these weeks. I feel like the meals just make themselves. Plus, it's going to be rainy and chilly most of the week, so these meals are perfect for that weather.

Monday: Roasted Chicken with roasted potatoes and green peas
Tuesday: Chicken and dumpling soup
Wednesday: Mexican corn soup
Thursday: Chicken fried rice
Friday: Pizza night!
Saturday: A free day! Will go to one of our favorite places(with a coupon!)
Sunday: Birthday dinner for my Dad!

Dessert of the week: Choco-nana pie

ShopRite Deals 3/20 to 3/26

Looks like another breather week! A great break to just use up all those dollar days catalinas. There are also a few deals that we can roll the catalinas into this week, so that's a plus! Don't forget about your Munchie Mania catalinas, as well.

Reach crystal clean toothbrushes- .99
use .50/1 coupon from 1/9SS doubled- FREE
use 1.00/1 printable coupon- FREE
Buy 4, use 4 coupons and get back 4.00 catalina. 4.00 money maker after coupons and catalina!

Kraft BBQ Sauce- .99
use .75/1 coupon from 3/6SS doubled- FREE

Allen's steam supreme vegetables- .99
use .55/1 coupon from 3/6RP doubled- FREE

Vigo 10oz yellow rice- .99
use .50/1 coupon from 3/13RP doubled- FREE

Turn a spark into a firework

"Everyone has a spark in them, but it's up to you to turn that spark into a firework." - Katy Perry

I recently heard Katy Perry say that quote in reference to her song "Fireworks." She said it was the reason she decided to write that particular song; she wanted everyone to know that they could be truly influential in the lives of others and their own and be as brilliant as a firework.

Frugal Forecast- Spring

I posted some of these tips last year around this time, but these are definitely worth repeating. I also added in a few more tips that I discovered after spring of last year.

With the Easter holiday coming and going, I figured this would be a good time to remind everyone, including  myself, of the upcoming occasions we can start preparing for now.

Since after-Easter sales will be abundant this week and next week, we can get a jump on some of the gifts we may have to give in the coming months. The pastel colors of everything from candy to baskets can help us create a frugal yet beautiful gift for Mother's Day and Father's Day.  I do like to collect as many pastel items as I can for those holidays and build other gifts around those.  These "Mom and Dad packs" seem to go over well every year with all of the people we have to purchase for in May and June. I even make up one for my Aunt's birthday, since it is always a week or two before Mother's Day.

Keep a look out for sales on electronics like cameras and computers around Mother's Day. Stores like Best Buy and Circuit City tend to have some of their best sales, besides the black friday ones, around Mother's day for some reason.  A few years ago, Hubby was able to get me a laptop for mother's day for about 50% less than it's regular "sale" price. They even threw in an extra battery and laptop case during the sale. If you are in the market for a new computer or want to get a new digital or DSLR camera, this is the time to buy.

Also, keep in mind that wedding and baby showers will be sneaking upon us as well. With the official coming of spring, you will start to see more summer items in the stores, and all the spring items being put on sale or clearance. These are perfect for shower gifts.  Yellow pastel items are perfect fillers for a shower gift.  Add in a pack of size 1 or 2 diapers(which also have been on sale and clearance all over) and a few packs of onesies, and you have a gift that a new Mom would love. Click here  for a few more great ideas for frugal shower gifts. The same goes for Wedding shower gifts. Keep an eye on household deals on sites like amazon.com. They constantly have Tupperware containers on special pricing, along with full stove top sets.  These are great to give for a shower gift. I've also seen some great prices on cookbooks, magazine subscriptions, and even bedding. You may even get lucky and find something that is listed on the registry! If you use swagbucks, you can use your bucks to attain amazon gift cards, making your out of pocket price even lower.

Also, graduations will be upon us as well. I tend to save up my points from mypoints, and cash in on gift cards that upcoming college students, or college graduates can use(Old Navy for new clothes, Target or Walmart for dorm items, etc).  Or, for college students that are family members, I do what was done for me: I buy a cheap but sturdy hamper, fill it with must have college items like ramen, laudry detergent, band aids, rubbing alcohol, dry erase board, cups, plates, etc.  I still to this day have that hamper that my Mom's best friend filled up for me and have repeated this gift 3 times with wonderful reactions. You can also add in a roll of quarters to really bring the gift full circle.

I'm always hesitant to stock up on holiday items each year, but I always get over the fear and stock up anyway. Throughout the year, I do end up using all of the goodies I find to make great gifts for friends and family, without breaking our budget.  I'm never disappointed.

Win a 20.00 Walmart/Sam's Club gift card!

Did you know that Sam's club is owned by Walmart? Oh yeah, duh, everyone knows that.

Well, did you know that you can use Sam's Club gift cards at walmart and vice versa? I didn't! How cool is that?

Meal Plan Monday!

Getting back into the groove after a week working at the base. Should be nice and easy meals.

Monday: Linguine in a homemade marinara with side salad
Tuesday: Chicken adobo with brown rice and carrot "spaghetti"
Wednesday: Brown butter tilapia with brown rice and spinach
Thursday: Happy St. Patrick's Day! Slow cooker corned beef and cabbage with potatoes
Friday: It's my Birthday! Don't know what we're gonna have but it'll be something I've been craving!
Saturday: Being taken to NYC for a big birthday celebration! I think we're going to have korean BBQ Yum!
Sunday: Dinner at my parents' house; probably another birthday meal :o)

Dessert of the week: Toasted oats cereal bars
Baby food of the week: She's now eating what we eat! Love baby-led weaning!

ShopRite Deals 3/13 to 3/19

Looks like we'll get a breather this week! Don't forget to keep using your dollar days catalinas. Also, the first kraft catalina from last week's sale starts this week, so don't let that one go to waste!

Del Monte 6pk raisins- 1.50
use .75/1 coupon from 12/12SS doubled(expires 3/15!)-FREE

NEW! Reach crystal clean toothbrushes- .99
use .50/1 coupon from 1/9SS doubled- FREE
Buy 4, use 4 coupons and get back 4.00 catalina. 4.00 money maker after coupons and catalina!

Buy 3 Right guard deodorants, get 3.00 catalina
Right guard deodorant- 1.89
Buy 6, use 3 BOGO coupons from 3/13RP- 5.67 and get back 6.00 in catalinas! .33 money maker!

Buy 2 Purex laundry detergents, get 2.00 catalina
Purex detergent- 1.99
buy 2, use 2 1.00/1 coupon from 3/13RP- 1.98 and get back 2.00. FREE after coupons and catalinas!

French's brown mustard- .99
use .50/1 coupon from 1/23SS doubled- FREE

Colgate toothpaste- .77(wednesday to saturday only)
use .75/1 coupon from 2/27SS doubled- FREE

Bailey's creamer- 1.24
use 1.00/1 coupon from 3/6SS- .24

Hormel compleats- 2 for 4.00(must buy 2)
use 1.00/2 coupon from 2/13SS- 1.50 each
use 2 .55/1 coupons from 2/13SS doubled- .90 each

Purex 3-in-1 sheets- 3.99
use 3.00/1 coupon from 2/20RP- .99

Land O Lakes dozen eggs- 2.50
use 1.00/1 coupon from 2/6SS- 1.50
use .75/1 printable coupon doubled- 1.00

Tropicana Orange Juice- 2 for 5.00
use 1.00/2 coupon from 3/6RP- 2.00 each

Great deals for your kraft/coke/nabisco catalinas:
Nabisco graham crackers- 2 for 5.00(must buy 2)
Buy 2, use 5.00 catalina, get 2 for FREE

Coke 2liter- 2 for 3.00
Buy 4, use 5.00 catalina, get 4 for 1.00, or .25 each

Powerade- 1.00
Buy 10, get 5 for Free
Buy 15, use 5.00 catalina, get 15 for 5.00 or .33 each

Nabisco single serve snack packs- 2.99
Buy 2, use 5.00 catalina, get 2 for .98 or .49 each

Nabisco 100 calorie packs- 2.99
Buy 2, use 5.00 catalina, get 2 for .98 AND a free crystal light drink mix!

Oscar Mayer deli meats- 3.00
Buy 2, use 5.00 catalina, get 2 for 1.00

Other Deals
Cabbage- .17/lb
Red or golden delicious apples- .79/lb(good deal!)
Boneless Chicken Breasts- 1.69/lb(rock bottom price!)
Corned beef- 1.88/lb

Amazon.com giveaway- $100 in gift cards!

March Madness is starting!

First off, I want to say a big hello to my new readers coming from Stockpiling Moms! Thanks so much for coming over to see what this little gal is doing in the blogosphere!

I'm so excited to do this giveaway for you all.  If anyone deserves to win $100 to use at amazon.com, it's you guys! But there will be a twist. Did you expect anything different from me?

Dear Bethenny......

Dear Bethenny Frankel,

Hey doll. How are you doing? Great, great. Well, I just wanted to write you a quick little something to express my appreciation to you, reality star.

Consignment confidential

Parents everywhere struggle with the idea that their kids are truly expensive.  Even with all the newspapers, studies, magazines and TV shows that say that it takes a quarter of a million dollars to raise a child these days, it's still hard to wrap you head around that.

Now, as a frugalite, that reality becomes even more fuzzy, since we know where and when to shop to get our kids needed items for cheap. We also know what items our kids just don't need and can steer clear from them. But what about those things that we just absolutely have to get them? For example, clothes are right at the top of that list and can be so expensive, especially with constantly growing kids.  Around the end of 2010, I started to have such an issue with Sonny Boy's wardrobe. No lie, he literally grew out of each new set of pants every month. I was so proud of the stockpile of clothes I had for him but as I started to see it dwindle, I panicked a bit. I had taken advantage of the big coupons that Old Navy had given out on their Old Navy Weekly site throughout the year but that bevy of clothes were quickly leaving Sonny's drawers. Even his socks were getting too small!

I had been to a few consignment and thrift stores before the Duchess came to stock up on clothes and items for her, but it seemed like I couldn't find the same deals on clothes for Sonny. That is, until a friend told me about Kid to Kid. It's a cool franchise of stores around the country that not only have previously used clothing items, but has books, toys and even new items to purchase. Now, here's my favorite part: they'll buy your clothes from you and you can use that credit towards stuff in their store. This is nothing new; pretty much all consignment shops do this but for some reason, Kid to Kid had better....stuff. Items were of great quality, nothing looked dingy or "used" and it was neat in there! Totally neat! No disrespect to thrift stores, but the ones around me are, well, gross. Sad lighting, unorganized racks and just not a great place to shop. I think the main reason I ventured to Kid to Kid(it's about 30 minutes away from me) is that they do buy back your items and give a good price for them. Since I had all of those clothes that Sonny grew out of (some that were never even worn!) I didn't just want to "give" them away. They were hardly used or new and I needed some type of return. They did a good job of accomplishing that.

But, I didn't just stop at Kid to Kid. Since it is so far, I didn't want to drive all that way every time I had clothes to get rid of, or clothes that I needed to buy. Since we now have 2 kiddos racking up the clothes, I had to think of another option. I did some online research and found "virtual" consignment shops. This just blew my mind. "Shops" where you could trade kids clothes with other parents and pay a small fee and shipping. A big ol' box full of clothes for shipping. Huh? What? Is this reality? So far, my favorite is OutGrowingIn. Sign up was free, they had a low shipping rate and the clothes were awesome.  If I found out that Sonny had outgrown another 3 pairs of pants, I could get them washed, packed up, shipped to whoever and then look for replacements within a day.

There are a few things I have learned while shopping for kids clothes in cosignment/online swap stores:

1. Don't get distracted by the pretty things.  During my first two times at Kid to Kid, I got distracted by the insane deals on new items. I knew what I had come into the store to get but they got me with the "pretty things." I had a list and budget and they ruined it. If it's not in your brain to purchase that day, keep it on the back burner. Now, with that said...
2. If there is one, re-arrange your budget. Those pretty new things may have distracted me, but when I saw something that we may not have needed right then and there, but I knew we would down the road, I had to rearrange the budget for the day.  Cute little headbands? Another book for Sonny Boy? Cool to get, but unnecessary.  2 Winter coats that can be used next year that are on clearance for 1.00? Well, that's something we need. 
3. Clothing swaps are just that; don't be disappointed.  A box of clothes is awesome but you shouldn't expect every piece of clothing to be something you will use. For the most part, you do get boxes of items that you will take advantage of, but there could be that one time you don't and it may disappoint you. If you expect the worst and hope for the best, you'll always have a good swap experience.
4. Buy from one, sell to the other. This is something that I've come to love. Because I buy from Kid to Kid and have an account there, for the most part, they won't buy back items I got from their store. Also, there are times when they actually don't want a few of the items I'm trying to sell off. This is where the online swaps come in. I can place those perfectly good items in a box and swap them since they weren't sold to Kid to Kid. But, I can also switch it around. If I get great items in the boxes that the kids wear and then quickly outgrow, I can put them in the Kid to Kid bin in my closet. This tip had exponentially decreased our kids clothing bill.

How do you all with kids save money on your clothing bill? Do you consignment or thrift shop?

ShopRite Deals 3/6 to 3/12 UPDATED!

Click here for information on 4 Hats and Frugal's ShopRite match ups

UPDATED: Looks like the kraft deal for this week is working on SHELF PRICES! I changed up the deals to reflect the new totals and put up a few more good deals without coupons.

Coffee Mate flavored creamer- 1.24
use .75/1 printable coupon doubled- FREE

Jolly time popcorn- 1.00
Use .50/ coupon from 2/13SS doubled- FREE

Act II popcorn- 1.00
use .40/1 coupon from 2/27SS doubled- .20

Butterball turkey bacon- 1.50
use .55/1 coupon from 1/16SS doubled- .40

Land O Lakes spreadable butter- 1.50
use .50/1 coupon from 2/6SS doubled- .50

How to make your own skin treatments(guest post)

In today's economy everyone is trying to save money. One great way to save a lot of money is by making your own skincare treatments. Not only will you be reducing the amount you spend, you'll also know exactly what you are putting on your skin--which means no more of the dangerous chemicals or additives that can found in commercial products. 

Make Your Own Facial Scrubs

Facial scrubs can be very expensive to buy and can be very damaging if you have sensitive skin. You can make your own gentle facial scrub with a few ingredients from your kitchen. All you need is two tablespoons of oatmeal, two tablespoons of brown sugar, two tablespoons of pure aloe vera (this can be from a plant or a gel), and one teaspoon of lemon juice. Combine all the ingredients until you have a creamy mix. This cleanser is gentle enough to use daily and can be kept in the refrigerator for up to three days.

Make Your Own Facial Masks

A facial mask is a good way to rejuvenate and moisturize your face and neck. This again is something that can be made with simple kitchen ingredients. You will need one tablespoon nonfat dry milk, one half of a peeled cucumber, and one teaspoon plain yogurt. Mix all ingredients in a blender until smooth. Apply to your face and neck in a circular motion. Leave on for 15 to 20 minutes and then rinse off with water.

Make Your Own Moisturizer

Love the smell of strawberries? You can make a great facial moisturizer from them by mixing one tablespoon olive oil, one tablespoon coconut oil, one tablespoon vegetable oil, two tablespoons of smashed strawberries, and one drop of vitamin E oil together. Mix all the ingredients until well blended. This is safe enough to use as a daily moisturizer and can be stored in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator for several weeks.

Make Your Own Acne Treatment

Making your own acne treatment can be as simple as using one common kitchen staple: apple cider vinegar. Apple cider vinegar has many cleansing properties. When used once a day it will keep your acne to a minimum. To use, simply dip a cotton ball in apple cider vinegar and gently rub over your face. If you are looking for a simple quick fix, try dabbing a little mint oil on the blemish and watch it disappear.

Make Your Own Wart Remover

A wart can be unsightly, embarrassing, and costly to remove. One of the safest, natural ways to remove a wart is with apple cider vinegar. To use apple cider vinegar to remove your wart, you must first start with clean hands. Next you will want to apply petroleum jelly to the skin around the wart--this will protect it. Soak a small piece of cotton in the apple cider vinegar and place it on the wart, wrap with medical tape and leave it on for at least eight hours. Repeat this every day until it disappears. Another way to remove a wart is to wrap a piece of duct tape around it, leave the tape in place for several days. Remove the tape and file the wart with an emery board. Repeat this daily until the wart is gone.

Guest post from Bailey Harris. Bailey writes about health insurance companies, finance, and related topics for www.healthinsurancequotes.org.

ShopRite: Jello pudding money maker starting tomorrow!

My awesome reader Mary let me know earlier this week that there will be an great double dip deal at ShopRite this week.  She saw the double dip deal I posted in this week's match ups, and wanted to make sure I knew about this one.

Buy 5 Kraft products, get 12.00 back
Buy 4 Jello products, get 3.00 back
Jello pudding pack- 3.00
Philly cooking cream- 1.49
coupon for .75/1 Jello snacks- located here
coupon for .60/1 Jello snacks- located in 2/13SS

Deal Idea:
Buy 4 Jello pudding snacks
Buy 1 Philly cooking cream
use 2 .75/1 printable coupons doubled
use 2 .60/1 jello coupons doubled
Pay 8.09 and get back 15.00! 6.91 money maker after coupons and catalinas!

Deal Idea:
Buy 4 Jello pudding packs
Buy 1 Philly cooking cream
use 4 .60/1 jello coupons doubled
Pay 8.69 and get back 15.00! 6.31 money maker after coupons and catalinas!

Here are some other deals that have popped up:
Mrs. T's peirogies- 1.49
use 1.00/1 printable coupon(use zip 34986)- .49

Friendship sour cream- 1.29
use .55/1 printable coupon doubled- .19

Remember, this deal starts tomorrow, so get those coupons all set to go. Thanks Mary!

February Facebook/Twitter winners!

I am loving this new monthly giveaway! I don't have to check comments or write a whole post about the giveaway or anything lol! Ok, down to the winners:

Facebook Winner: Melody Wood Lloyd
Twitter Winner: @ababe28

Congrats to you two! Please e-mail me at 4hatsandfrugal (at) gmail and I will give you further information on your prize.

March Madness (Great posts and giveaways this month!)

Happy March! I'm so excited about this month. We are 2 months away from the beginning of the year, spring starts at the end of this month, and it seems like everyone is in full groove of how they want to tackle 2011. What a great time to inflict some madness!

This is also the month of my birthday, and like pretty much every other year, I love to give others gifts on my birthday! I figured, since I hardly ever get what I want for my birthday, I might as well give to others and make them happy for the month lol.  Plus, I love all of my regular readers AND I'm excited to get my new readers into the craziness of this blog. Hi new readers! I've been working hard on the blog through the month of February and I can't wait to share the new goodies with all of you.

And oh yeah, giveaways! We're going to have a "March Madness" week that will be filled with some of my favorite things. I want to give those favorite things away to you! The only catch is, I'm not telling which week I'm going to start giving gifts. So, keep those eyes peeled. I may make an official post, or I may just nonchalantly announce it at the bottom of a post.

I also have some cool posts and recipes scheduled for this month and I can't wait to share those with you too.

I hope you all have an awesome month and have fun with me here on the blog.

BTW, did you like 4 Hats and Frugal on facebook yet? Are you following me on twitter? Um, here's a hint, you should really get on that. I'm just saying....