The 43rd Annual Yellow Daisy Festival is almost here!

Just got the press release about one of the best arts & crafts shows around , and wanted to share with my Atlanta readers!!  If you haven't been, you've got to check it out!

Celebrating its 43rd year, Stone Mountain Park’s Yellow Daisy Festival (YDF) is one of America’s favorite and most well-known arts and crafts festivals. Featuring more than 400 artists, YDF is consistently voted one of the nation’s top arts and crafts shows by Sunshine Artist Magazine’s Annual “200 Best” survey. This year’s show will be held September 8, 9, 10 and 11 at Stone Mountain Park’s Special Events Meadow.

The Yellow Daisy Festival features 425 crafters and artists from across the U.S. The artists are selected from a pool of applicants by the Yellow Daisy Jury to display their distinctive hand-made work in categories such as pottery, fabric, painting, jewelry, sculpture, dolls, photography, fine arts and crafts and traditional arts and crafts. “One of the best things about the Yellow Daisy Festival is seeing the same shoppers year after year,” said Wendy Thomas, Stone Mountain Park Special Events Manager. “Generations of women come in groups to spend the day shopping and socializing; it is a unique aspect of this event.”  The annual celebration attracts an estimated 200,000 shopping enthusiasts to the four-day event. The event draws multi-generational shoppers as a family pilgrimage to shop for the hot craft item of the year. 

In remembrance of the 10th anniversary of 9/11, select YDF crafters are donating a piece of their artwork to be sold in a “We Remember” display. All proceeds from these sales will go to HeroBox, a non-profit organization that supports deployed American service members. More information about HeroBox can be found at http://www.herobox.org/. 

New for 2011, Yellow Daisy Festival shoppers can also enjoy accommodations right inside Stone Mountain Park at Marriott Evergreen Conference Resort. Yellow Daisy Festival Girlfriend Getaway Packages start at $209 a night, include a one-night stay at the newly renovated Marriott Evergreen Conference Resort, breakfast and a meet and greet with this year’s featured artist.

The Yellow Daisy Festival selected chARiTy elise as the 2011 Featured Artist. Originally from Maine, Elise has travelled the globe and currently resides in Tucker, Ga. Her artwork features designs including flowers, leaves, the sun, wavy lines and geometric shapes. This year’s featured artwork is a kaleidoscope design using vibrant colored acrylics on a 19 inch round masonite board. A glowing yellow daisy is predominantly situated in the center of the design. Her artwork will be included on all promotional and marketing materials for this year’s festival.   “It seemed like a perfect kind of design for such a tremendously vibrant festival,” said Elise.

In addition to the unique arts and crafts, the festival offers entertainment for everyone in the family and festival foods to meet a variety of tastes. Throughout all four days of YDF, there will be live main stage entertainment including the JaneDear Girls. The JaneDear Girls are a new breed of country music. They will perform their hit song “Wildflower” Sunday evening. The Children’s Corner will provide crafts, entertainment, face painting and Fair Hair.  The Men’s Den is a great venue for the gentlemen coming to the event that don’t want to miss the big game. The Men’s Den is outfitted with recliners and big screen TVs showing fall football.

Guests may also visit the 40th Annual Yellow Daisy Flower Show at Memorial Hall.  The theme for the 2011 flower show is “Daisy…Fabulous at 40!”  The Yellow Daisy Flower Show runs from September 9-11. The flower show is sponsored by the Redbud District of the Garden Club of Georgia. 

Shoppers can stop by the Humana tent, the festival’s presenting sponsor, for free giveaways and to enter for a chance to win a Stone Mountain Park Annual Pass Package good for four (4) Mountain Memberships. For more information on the Yellow Daisy Festival, please visit http://www.stonemountainpark.com/.

Or watch a slideshow of the event at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=09o9uN_IVbI. Listed in Frommer’s 500 Places to Visit with Your Kids Before They Grow Up and cited by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution as one of “35 Natural Wonders in Georgia You Must See Before You Die,” Stone Mountain Park is located 16 miles east of downtown Atlanta. 

To get to the park, take I-285 to Exit 39B, Hwy. 78 East.  Stone Mountain Park is Exit No.8 on Hwy 78. More information regarding Stone Mountain Park attractions and hours of operation is available at 770-498-5690 or by visiting http://www.stonemountainpark.com/.

Kroger Spin to Win ~ CASH prizes!!

Kroger has a great new Spin to Win contest on their website right now! Just pick four P & G coupons to download to your Kroger Plus card, and you get a chance to spin & win!  I don't usually like e-coupons since you can only use one (either paper OR ecoupon) per item at Kroger now. I don't want an ecoupon to cancel out my doubled paper coupon so I picked four coupons for products I don't use.  So I played, and I won $3 - yippee!! After you claim it, your prize money is added onto your Kroger Plus card for $ off your next purchase.

You can play every day, but you can only win 2 times during the contest.

Come back and let me know how much you won! : )    Thanks to Iheartkroger.com for the heads up about this contest!

Winner of Totino's Giveaway!

The winner of the Totino's Learn a Ton When School is Fun Giveaway is #17 ~ Elisabeth!! Congrats!! Next giveaways ~ a B&B stay, and a Betty Crocker Molasses Cookie Prize Pack! : ) Y'all be sure and check back soon to enter these!

Hurry ~ Get a $10 FREE credit from Eversave!!

Eversave is giving EVERYONE a $10 credit for their site!! New & existing Eversave members will get $10 in Save Rewards to use on any of their Saves.  They offer fantastic deals (aka Saves) from local & online merchants, and vacation Saves too. Use this $10 credit towards any of their Saves through 8/25 at midnight.

Sign up now to request your free $10 Save Reward.  If you are already a member your $10 Save Reward is waiting in your account!

It pays to join Eversave with perks like this - they're giving away millions!  Remember - this offer expires on August 25 at midnight!
 



* Post includes affiliate links*

Back to School Shopping Tips & Tools

Best Back-To-School Shopping Tips & Tools


According to The National Retail Foundation, parents expect to spend an average $603.63 on clothing, supplies and electronics for back-to-school. While this is the second biggest shopping period of the year, your back-to-school shopping list doesn't have to ring up in the hundreds of dollars.  Before joining the back-to-school frenzy, take a look at Credit Karma’s back-to-school shopping tips and tools to get an A+ on your savings.

Cool Tool: Let the sales come to you with Saleslocator.com, a nifty website that aggregates retail sales in your area. With a dedicated Back-to-School section, chart your shopping trip according to the sales and, with some smart planning, you won’t have to pay full price for anything.

Terrific Tip: Sign up for e-mail alerts from your favorite retail stores, especially for clothing. You’ll be the first to know when special one-day sales, online promotions, or daily deals are afoot, so work these special savings opportunities into your shopping game plan.

Cool Tool: Earn cash on back-to-school expenses by shopping with a cash back credit card. Earning 1-5% cash back on every purchase effectively shaves a few dollars off your bill, especially since you’re spending more than usual this time of year. Just make sure you pay the bill in full at the end of the month! A good choice for excellent credit is the Blue Cash Everyday from American Express; for fair credit, check out the Capital One No Cash Rewards Credit Card.

Terrific Tip: Follow stores on Facebook and Twitter, another great real-time source for the latest deals, especially for electronics like laptops, smartphones, and mp3 players. The key is to act as soon as you get word of the deal; these social media tips are great for significant savings on big-ticket items, but they sell out quick.

Cool Tool: Get an upper hand shopping in-store with your smartphone. Use price-comparison smartphone apps, like Compare Everywhere for Android, Red Laser for iPhone, or ShopSavvy for Android and iPhone, to swipe product bar codes and check for cheaper prices online and at other brick-and-mortar stores. You can check if your kid’s most-wanted Captain America backpack is cheaper a few blocks down.

Terrific Tip: Before hitting the mall, shop your own home first. You’d be surprised how many school supplies you already have tucked in drawers, closets, and under your kids’ beds. Take a full inventory of supplies, equipment and clothing that will work for the coming school year so you can cross a few things off your list before spending a penny.

“Split your back-to-school shopping list into two columns of needs and wants,” suggests Justine Rivero, Credit Advisor at Credit Karma. “This will help prioritize your spending and set aside the super-cool lunchbox your child wants (unless there is a great deal for it)."

First things first—shop smart on what you really need and avoid overspending.


Justine Rivero is the Credit Advisor and resident Credit Rockstar for Credit Karma, the pro-consumer credit advocate that helps more than 2.6 million consumers realize the everyday cost savings of having great credit health.  Credit Karma provided this useful article for me to share with my readers!

And the winners are...

For the Atlanta History Center giveaway:

# 20 - Gaye
#46  - Elisabeth

And for the Eversave BBQ Giveaway:

#2 Deb "Lionel" Caudle

Congrats guys!! Look for an email from me - just respond back with your mailing address so I can mail your passes out!!

Thanks so much for entering - more giveaways coming soon!

Contest Winners will be drawn tomorrow...

My Nana & her son ~ Easter '10

Hey y'all ~ I know I need to draw winners from the Atlanta History Center giveaway and the Eversave Giveaway....but I'm dealing with some personal business that has to do with my precious 89 year old Nana.  

I will get the winners picked tomorrow and email them - I'm so sorry for the delay.  If you have a second, please say a prayer for healing/peace for this woman so near and dear to my heart...I'd greatly appreciate it. 

Totino's Learn a Ton When School is Fun Sweepstakes & Giveaway!!

Are y'all familiar with the Box Tops for Education Program?  We collect those little squares from products we buy and also friends and family who save them for us all year long, then turn them in to D's school to help them buy things they need.  So far, that includes playground equipment, computers equipment and more.  It's an easy way for families to help their schools raise money.   Buy products with Boxtops on them, send them in to school and presto! They get 10 cents per Boxtop collected! And believe me, they add up quickly!

Totino's is one of many companies that participate in the Box Tops program.  This year, they will give away one million Bonus Box Tops (equivalent to $100,000) to help bring fun ideas to life both inside and outside of the classroom, through the "Learn a Ton when School is Fun" sweepstakes: 

This school year, four participating schools in the Box Tops for Education (BTFE) program will each win 250,000 Bonus Box Tops, equivalent to $25,000, from Totino´s to help fund a fun project at their school. View official sweepstakes rules here.    You can start, or continue to earn cash for your kid´s school by collecting Box Tops coupons from hundreds of products, including Totino´s!

This back-to-school season, Totino´s® Party Pizza® and Pizza Rolls® Snacks will feature double Box Tops on select varieties to help you earn even more for your kid´s school!

Fun is an essential part of learning.  In fact, there´s a special connection between having fun in school and academic performance.  According to a recent survey, 93% of parents believe their kids perform better when having fun during the school day.  Continue to help make your kid´s learning environment more fun and exciting by taking advantage of these simple opportunities from Totino´s - enter the "Learn a Ton when School is Fun" sweepstakes for your chance to win 250,000 Bonus Box Tops.  Serve up a quick and delicious after-school snack with Totino´s Party Pizza and Pizza Rolls Snacks, while collecting double Box Tops from each. You can also check out these videos from a group of Totino´s Fun-Atics, Box Tops Coordinators who are bringing fun to their local schools.

1 According to a survey conducted by Totino´s June 2011

Totino's & MyBlogSpark provided my family with a fantastic prize pack, and an identical prize pack to give away to one of you, too! The Prize Pack includes:

•  Brain Quest Smart! Game
• Micro Rubik´s® Cube Key Holder
• Drawstring backpack
• Three Coupons:  one each for a  free package of Totino´s Pizza Rolls Snacks, Totino´s Party Pizza and new Totino´s Pizza Stuffers.

On to the giveaway:  Check out the new entry form I'm using below ~ it's from Rafflecopter & should make entering contests on my blog SO much easier.  There is one mandatory entry and then several other ways to earn additional entries. : )   Good luck y'all!

Eversave Atlanta BBQ Giveaway!

Have y'all joined Eversave yet?  I just recently did and L.O.V.E. them!! They offer great daily Saves for businesses in many cities across the country.  You can get a half price meal, a salon mani/pedi for half price, deals on travel, makeup and more. These Saves are usually only available for 24 hours.  It's a nice way to try a new (or favorite) place at a really good price. It's free to join Eversave and they will even give you $2 in credits when you sign up for their daily emails!  I like that the vouchers for your Save are emailed right to you ~ so convenient!

Today is Best of BBQ Day at Eversave, and they have some fabulous BBQ deals!!




Click the text links below to check out today's national and Atlanta deals...


For all of my readers, there is a national deal from Pat Boone All-American Meats ~ $39 for $80 of premium meat delivered right to your door! And if you are new to Eversave, you'll have a $2 credit for signing up for daily emails, so you only pay $37. 

$39 for $80 worth of premium Pat Boone All-American Meats delivered right to your door
Offer expires: 11:59 PM - Aug 21, 2011

For my Atlanta peeps, Rick's Smokin' Pig BBQ in Gainesville has a yummy Save for you ~ $7 for $15 worth of delicious BBQ & non-alcoholic drinks. (New Eversave members will only pay $5 with their email credit!)  We haven't been to Rick's yet, but it's on our side of town so we'll be trying them SOON.  Their menu looks delicious!

$7 for $15 worth of authentic barbecue and non-alcoholic drinks at Rick's Smokin' Pig BBQ
Offer expires: 11:59 PM - Aug 15, 2011


And here's the best part of this post:  Eversave Atlanta is giving one lucky Atlanta reader today's Save for Rick's Smokin' Pig BBQ!  That means my winner will get to enjoy $15 worth of BBQ for FREE!  Here's how to enter:

There is one entry per person.  First of all, you need to be an Atlanta-area resident to win this Eversave voucher.  Like Eversave Atlanta on Facebook, then  follow @EversaveATL on Twitter, and of course, open a free Eversave account.   After you do these three things, please leave a comment below telling me you did, and include your email address so I can contact you if you're my winner!  If you don't have a Twitter account, just let me know that in your comment.

** If you want to enter, but don't have a google account, just type your comment, then choose "anonymous" from the pull down menu below the comment box - but make sure your comment includes your name email address, otherwise I won't be able to contact you if you win!!***

Contest ends Monday night, August 15 at 11:59 pm EST. I'll draw a winner using random.org Tuesday morning, and contact them via email.  The winner must respond within 24 hours, (or another winner will be drawn) and then they should receive their Eversave voucher via email within a few days. 

Thanks so much to Eversave Atlanta for sponsoring this fantastic giveaway! 

***Disclosure: I was given an Eversave Atlanta credit for sharing this deal, and one $7 voucher will be given to the winner from Eversave Atlanta as well.  Post includes affiliate links ***

Thanks so much for stopping by, and good luck!!

Back to School ~ Tea Leaves & Thyme Tea Room

Taking tea is a long-time tradition in our family.  My mom, known as Grandmama or G-mama to her grandkids, started this back when her three oldest grandchildren were small. That first time, my sister & I took the girls with Mom to Woodstock to Tea Leaves & Thyme.  It's a beautiful little tea room where you can go in, sit down and let your worries and cares disappear for a couple of hours.  Taking tea is all about relaxing and enjoying the flavors and variety of delicious foods and hot tea that will be served to you.  Each bite is savored, each sip is enjoyed.  We've visited other tea rooms, but Tea Leaves & Thyme is the one we keep going back to, time and again.  I love love love tea rooms!

This year, I wanted to take both kids for a special back to school tea.  K is a senior, and D is a 2nd grader, so they both have much different interests, but both were excited about this tea party! 

We arrived and were seated in a sweet little room all by ourselves *yay*!  We each picked out something fun to add to our outfits: I grabbed a big floppy hat with feathers and a bow.  D grabbed a fur coat and a top hat, and K grabbed a fur coat because she was cold! *She wasn't so much in to the dressing up part this time*  : ( 

We ordered Full Afternoon Tea - which is all of the goodies you get for tea time on a three tier tray, plus a chicken salad croissant and an endless tea pot.   D got the Mad Hatter's Tea ~ a smaller three tier tray of kid-friendly goodies, plus his own tea pot.   His tray included:  top tier:  fruit, plus chocolate chip scones, middle tier: a chocolate-dipped, heart shaped peanut butter and jelly sandwich, a chocolate-dipped raspberry cream cheese (rabbit shaped) sandwich with a marshmallow tail, and a ham stripe sandwich.  Dessert tier - a chocolate cherry & hershey kiss mouse, a petit four and a jello tulip.  He LOVED it all!

When our tray of food arrived, here's what we got:  top tier - cranberry scones with lemon curd and amaretto whipped cream,  plus fresh fruit.  Middle tier: finger sandwiches - ham stripes, pineapple cinnamon cream cheese, egg salad with maple bacon, cucumber cream cheese topped with sour cream swirl & a radish curl.

The dessert tray included cookies and cream brownies, some type of bar with chocolate chips, nuts, etc., lemon bars, and a butter cupcake with pinapple center and pink frosting. 

Plus we got that giant chicken salad croissant!

 Our first pot of tea was creme brulee, the second was winter comfort (I think) - it was a chocolate mint tea.  David had a creme brulee pot and a vanilla spice pot too! YUM!  We had a wonderful time making memories and enjoying a special afternoon before school started.

I am hoping to get my mom, aunt, cousins and others together at Tea Leaves & Thyme for a Christmas tea this year - that would be so much fun!!

If you live near Atlanta you must try out Tea Leaves & Thyme.  It would be a great place to have a bridal or baby shower, too.  I love going there for tea with friends & family - it's such a nice way to take some time for yourself!  Make sure to call first and make reservations - you probably won't get in without them!

Have you visited a tea room? What is a fun back to school tradition you share with your family?

** This is not a sponsored post - I was not compensated in any way for writing this! We paid full price for our teas and will do so again ~ we have been going there for over 10 years now! I really wanted to share this fabulous Atlanta tea room with y'all! **

Back to school with two giveaways!

Good morning y'all!  We are on day three of back to school here in Atlanta.  This year both of my kiddos are at schools outside our district - that means we leave the house at 6 am to drive K to her high school (senior year - yay!) and then at 7:30 D & I leave to go to his school.  At 1:50 I'm back in the car to go get in D's carpool line.   He gets out close to 3, but I need to be near the front of the line so I can drive to K's school by 3:10 to pick her up ~ she gets out at 2:20.  Crazy schedule, huh?! So far it works though. 

Anyhoo...it has been a little nuts here the last 10 days but now that school is back in session, I'm ready to be a f/t blogging mama again.  To kick it off, I'll have two new giveaways this week!! Want two hints?  \

Well....one is for some super-fun and some super-yum things to celebrate back to school from a company that will give away one million boxtops for education (which equals $100,000!) to schools across the country.  And the other will allow you and the guest(s) of your choice to enjoy a free night at a Bed and Breakfast of your choice when you purchase one night - so you can enjoy a nice little getaway for half price!! Stay tuned for both of these fantastic giveaways later this week!

Don't forget - if you are a local resident, enter my Atlanta History Center giveaway (next post below!) for a chance to win one of two family passes.  It's a great place to hang out and learn more about Atlanta in a really fun way! Kids and parents will both love the AHC.