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We had Macey’s 5th birthday party at BounceU and it was a huge success. BounceU is what we call a “bouncy place” and offers a climate-controlled indoor play place just FULL of fun activities for the kids. For Macey’s party, we got to go to two rooms full of amazing giant inflatables. There were slides, climbing structures, obstacle courses and MORE. The kids had a ball and so did those of us adults that participated. It was just SO much fun!

I wanted to take a few minutes to share my appreciation for the BounceU staff as well. Everyone was super friendly and I felt they went above and beyond in making Macey’s party a success. From my first call to book the party until we walked out the door at the end, we were met with courtesy, genuine kindness, enthusiasm and smiles. Costumer service is clearly the name of the game at BounceU and they have it down pat!! We had one party “captain” with us the whole time and he facilitated getting the kids going on the activities, kept things moving along and played with the kids the whole time. He also set up the party room for us. He helped serve cake and drinks as well. When it was time for Macey to open her gifts, he gave each one to her and wrote down who gave her what gift. He also loaded our van at the conclusion of the party. Mickey and I were free to enjoy Macey’s party without having to do much of anything except have fun. How great is that?!

If you are looking for a great birthday party spot and you have a BounceU location near you, I highly recommend checking them out. The prices are really reasonable and the costumer service is second to none. Kudos to BounceU!!!

Today Papa and MiMi (aka: my Dad and Stepmom) took Mickey, the girls and I to the Georgia Aquarium. For Mickey, Macey and me, this was a second visit and for Mariana it was a first. Mickey and I took Macey for the first time back in February (I believe) of 2006 before Mariana was born that May. We’ve been wanting to go back, but haven’t seemed to find the time. Papa and MiMi offered us this chance today and we had a fantastic family outing at the Aquarium. The crowd was pretty big, but it was still a whole lot of fun. There is just something so amazing about seeing all those fish - especially the whale sharks and the beluga whales! The girls were both in awe!!

We started out our visit to the Aquarium by going to the The 4D Theater and Deepo’s Undersea 3D Wondershow which was fantastic!! Mariana wouldn’t wear her 3-D glasses, but the rest of us did and it was quite a show!! Macey didn’t quite seem to know what to make of it at first, but she loved it! We then went to the rest of the exhibits. One of the first things that caught the girls’ attention was the exhibit of jellies. Those are so cool even though I always dislike seeing them when we’re at the beach. I think my favorite part was going through the tunnel with the whale sharks and other fish swimming over us the whole time. Like I said, the whole experience was wonderful!!

After the Aquarium, we went out to dinner at Willy’s which was super delicious!! It was just a great afternoon and evening to spend with family. Thank you, Papa & Mimi, for a wonderful time!!

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Click here for a Baskin Robbins coupon to receive $3 off any cake. They have some really CUTE (and delicious!) Mother’s Day cakes. This offer expires on May 12th.

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We were away over the weekend, so I didn’t get to post. So, I’m here now waking up my sleepy blog. :p

I hope it was a great weekend all around. We were in South Georgia over the weekend. It was a really nice family weekend. We got lots of Nana time in which is always nice. Mickey and I even got to have a dinner date on Saturday which was great for us. The weather was incredible all weekend too and we just had a really great family weekend.

The reason we went down for the weekend was for our nephew Jackson’s baptism which was on Sunday. Jackson did great for the whole ceremony. He fell asleep in his mommy’s arms (is there anything more peaceful than a sleeping baby?!) and stayed asleep through most everything. He almost woke up when Liz leaned his head down to get his water and oil, but he went right back out. We had the honor and privilege of being included in the ceremony as Jackson’s Godparents and we take that vow very seriously and right to heart. We love that little boy so much and we feel so blessed that he has come into our family.

I will post more later. I need to catch up with a book review and deals. I’m also reading an incredibly powerful book that I can’t wait to post more about. It’s called The Shack and as soon as I’m done reading it, I’m going to post more.

Happy Monday!

Each day I’m going to endeavor to find deals to post here. I think that’s fun. I’m always looking for ways to save money and be more budget-conscious and I have had others comment to me that they are too, so this is a great way keep track of deals out there.

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The first deal I have for you all today is a Coupon Site where you can click and print over $180 in coupons! How cool is that?!

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My second deal of the day is a sale going on at The Childrens Place. They have a great sale going on their “outlet” items righht now. This includes spring clothes! With the promo code S1A48 you get an extra 15% off too! Plus, shipping is only $5 flat!! How’s that for a great deal?!

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The third deal I have today is on magazines. Click here for Time Warner’s Friends & Family subscription page. You will find some GREAT deals on select titles there.

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Happy shopping, y’all!

This post is sure to show everyone what I nerd I really can be or really AM…either way you look at it. But, hey, I just have to share because this never happens. I beat Mickey in Wii Golf this morning! WOO HOO! Check this out:

That’s my “Mii” on the left  with the -1 score and Mickey’s on the right with the very uncharacteristic +5 score. Lately I have been addicted to Wii Golf and Mickey indulges me by playing 9 holes with me on it. He usually wins. Sometimes he only beats me by a stroke or two, but he’s been known to take me to the cleaners. Well…NOT THIS MORNING! Ha! I finally won. Granted, he gave up on the 9th green when he knew he wasn’t going to win and his putting added a couple of strokes due to that. But, still…victory was mine. And, I’m just nerdy enough to post about it too.

It’s the weekend again. Time to bust out the “honey do” list and get to work! Our forecast today originally called for rain and we did have a short shower this morning, but the rest of the day should be pretty nice. Soooo…it’s project time! Here’s the short list of things we hope to get accomplished this weekend, specifically today:

• Clean up around the back deck. This entails blowing the old leaves out, cleaning up toys that have fallen under the deck, etc.
• Update the girls’ backyard play fort. This is all Mickey’s project.
• Do some spring cleaning and organizing inside the house.
• Mow the lawn.

Of course, we also want to do some fun family activities too. So, it’s shaping up to be a busy weekend, but really has the potential to be a great one! I hope it’s great all around for everyone!

Happy weekend, y’all!

Mark your calendars for Wednesday, April 30th because that is 31 Cent Scoop Night at Baskin-Robbins from 5p-10p!

Participating Baskin-Robbins stores will have this special promo going on in honor of America’s firefighters. In some locations, patrons will be given opportunities to donate to their local fire charities.

Sounds like a winner to me!

These are a few photos from our long weekend in South Georgia. (Just a little note: you can click on the photos to make them a little bit larger. I didn’t know that until Mickey told me last week, so I figured it was worth mentioning.)

This is our “niece”, Susie. She is Charlie & Liz’s dog and is the sweetest girl ever! She absolutely LOVES to chase tennis balls. Here she is in the yard wanting me to throw a ball for her. See how she has laid it down for me?

She’s waiting patiently for me to throw the ball for her.

I wish I had action shots of Susie and the tennis ball. The girl LOVES to play ball. She literally does not know the word “stop” when it comes to ball.

Here is Macey flying her Hello Kitty kite with directions from Daddy

The kite

Mariana and Macey check out the fish at the Flint Riverquarium in Albany

There were a couple of school groups at the Riverquarium at the same time we were there, but it wasn’t too crowded at all. Here is Macey checking out a rattlesnake with some kids from the school groups.

Mariana and Daddy check out the alligator

Of course, Macey had to see too.

I just had to snap some pictures of the sky on Friday. It was a gorgeous spring day and the sky was brilliant blue with beautiful clouds.

On Friday afternoon, Mickey and I took Macey to the All American Fun Park in Albany.

Macey played miniature golf for the first time ever and LOVED it!

She got a little instruction and some help on occasion from her Daddy, but she caught right on in no time!

I should also add that Macey got a HOLE IN ONE in her first ever round of mini golf! We didn’t see it, but she told us she already hit her ball on one hole and we found it in the cup. Pretty cool, huh?! She was thrilled!

We rode go-carts at the Fun Park too. Macey rode with her Daddy and they beat me around the track. (I let them…ha!!)

After the go-carts we rode bumper boats and it’s too bad I don’t have action shots of THAT because Macey rode with Mickey and they soaked me!! I got them some too, but not nearly like they got me.

A few cool sunset pictures from Friday. Isn’t God a magnificent Artist?!

I have never watched The Biggest Loser before, but I have always heard great things about it. Well, I got HOOKED this season. Hooked hard. What a great show!! I love that there is a show that is doing so much to help people overcome obesity and move towards a healthier and more fit lifestyle. Sure, there are elements of competition and “game play” involved, but that doesn’t deter from the overall outcome of each contestant walking away with significant health benefits.

I started watching this season during week 2. It was the night before Mariana had surgery to put tubes in her ears and I was watching tv with Mickey and my mom for distraction. We all got pulled into the show at that time. It has just been incredible to watch as these contestants have shed weight and gotten healthier over the past few months.

The finale is coming up on Tuesday night. I can hardly wait! And, America gets to vote to decide who the third finalist will be!! Click here for the NBC Biggest Loser homepage where you can cast votes for your choice for the finale. Voting ends at 10pm EST today!! I can’t wait to see who the third finalist will be. I already voted for my choice, but I’ll keep that under wraps for now.

If you haven’t tuned in to The Biggest Loser yet, it’s not too late. The finale is sure to be amazing! And, I will definitely be eager for the next season to start!