Entertainment

Valentine’s Day Gift Ideas for Kids & Adults

by The Queen on February 11, 2011

in Entertainment

This Monday is Valentine’s Day. The stores are all decked out for this special day. Are you ready to play cupid? Or is your gift list overflowing with names from your kids’ school, your sweetie and the babysitter who is letting you and your sweetie enjoy a kid free evening? Don’t let Valentine’s Day become more work than play.

Here are some ideas to help you enjoy the day without breaking the bank.

Kids’ Valentines

It seems every school now celebrates Valentine’s Day in a big way with class parties and events. Celebrating is great but sending in Valentine’s cards and treats for two dozen kids is not much fun. So here a few easy and inexpensive options:

Krispy Kreme – Krispy Kreme lets you have your cake and eat it too. They are offering a free pack of Valentine’s cards with a matching coupon for a free doughnut with every purchase of a dozen doughnuts. So you can buy a couple of dozen to take into the school or your office and then use the free cards as both the Valentine and treat.

Do It Yourself – Instead of buying candy year after year, buy a heart cookie cutter and reuse that. You can make and decorate your own heart treats with cookies, brownies and Rice Krispies treats. And your kids can even help too.

Adult Valentines

The Food – This year Valentine’s Day falls on a Monday. Many restaurants are offering Valentine’s weekend specials starting on Saturday. From large chains to upscale restaurants, you will find all kinds of special dining deals.

The Flowers – The price of roses skyrockets during Valentine’s Day. Your corner florist or grocery store may charge you double or more the standard cost. One of the best deals in town is at Whole Foods. You can buy two dozen red roses for $19.99. But these can sell quickly, so make sure to call ahead.

The Gifts­

Personal Puzzle – You can create a customized crossword puzzle of your relationship. It’s easy and free to create any custom puzzle at http://www.discoveryeducation.com/free-puzzlemaker. You can even create a hidden message puzzle.

Favorite Fragrance – Men and women like fragrances, but choosing one as a gift can be hard. Sephora has made it easy with their Deluxe Fragrance Sampler. For $50 you get a set of 12 fragrance samplers. You test them all and then choose your favorite to receive as a full size with the enclosed voucher.

A Special Deal – The local daily deal sites like Groupon, Living Social and ScoutMob are offering special deals for this special time ranging from couples massages to specialty photo sessions to romantic dinners. You can enjoy a nice activity or dinner together at a sweet discount.

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Super Bowl Party Ideas & Tips

by The Queen on February 4, 2011

in Entertainment

This Sunday is Super Bowl 45. Whether you are a fan of the game, the commercials or the half time show, the Super Bowl is a great excuse to throw a party. A Super Bowl party is a great idea because it is a casual event that you can easily throw together. You just lay out some food and drinks and that is it. No fancy dinnerware or three course meal is required. 

To throw a Super Bowl party and save time and money, start with a game plan.

Pre Game Plan

Plan ahead – The teams have a game plan and so should you. What will you be serving and how many people will you invite? What about decorations? Get a plan and shopping list together. For menu and decorative ideas check out www.RealSimple.com/SuperBowl. All the grocery stores are competing for your party business, so take advantage of all the sales and promotions.

Consider a potluck – Looking to save time and money, make it potluck. You still need to plan and organize the event; otherwise you will end up with 10 bags of chips and no chicken wings. Decide on what items you would like your guests to bring and make a list. Use www.Evite.com to invite everyone. Evite now offers a potluck option. You can make specific requests and your guests can easily see and choose what they would like to bring. And remember potluck doesn’t have to be all or nothing. You can do it halfway too. For example you can provide the food and just make it BYOB – Bring Your Own Beverage.

Platter Options – Serving up a platter of food is easy for you and gives your guests options. So many stores offer platter packages now and you can take advantage of the sales and selection. Shop around for the best deal at:

  • Grocery stores like Publix and Kroger
  • Casual Restaurants like Zaxby’s and Schlotzsky’s (We just ordered a chicken platter from our local Zaxby’s for 20% off.)
  • Club stores like Costco and Sam’s Club

 Buy Pizza Online – Super Bowl Sunday is the busiest day of the year for pizza delivery. Save time and money by ordering online. Instead of waiting on the phone, place your order online and take advantage of special discounts. As I always say, never leave a promo code box blank. Visit www.retailmenot.com to find promo codes for Papa Johns, Dominoes and Pizza Hut.

 Post Game Plan

 Make it easy for others to help clean- After the game you don’t want to be left with a big mess to clean, so make it easy for others to help clean up during and after the game. Place extra trash bags near the trash cans. Have extra paper towels and wipes placed around the serving and eating areas. Have an empty dishwasher ready and ask your guests to put dirty items there directly. And don’t be shy about asking people to help.

Have guests write their name on beverage cups or containers – The biggest messes typically come from beverages. And you end up with half empty cups and containers everywhere. To cut down on messes and cups everywhere provide guests a Sharpie and ask them to write their name on their cup or can. With their name on it, they will now take responsibility for the cup. They can no longer say “It’s not mine.” This simple task can really help cut down on clean up time.

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Having Fun Without Breaking the Bank

by The Queen on June 2, 2009

in Entertainment

Movie on the MallEverywhere you turn there seems to be even more upsetting news about the economy. It’s all enough to make you depressed. You want to go out and have fun to forget about it all but then you remember how much it’s going to cost you. So what are your options, being depressed or being broke?

Before you pull out the bag of potato chips and pint of ice-cream, don’t despair. There is another choice – having fun on a budget.

Budget for Fun

First things first, the best way to ensure you have fun guilt-free is to budget for it. No matter how tight of a budget you have, you should leave room for fun. If you don’t budget for it, you will not only overspend but you will also not have as much fun because in the back of your mind you know you can’t afford it.

Set aside a certain amount each week for a fun activity whether it is a cheap movie rental or a date night with your honey.

Stretching Your Entertainment Dollars

Once you have set a budget, then you can start looking for all the fun that’s waiting to be had. Here are some inexpensive ideas:

  1. Go earlier – Many restaurants offer early bird specials before the big crowds come to dine. So call your favorite restaurant and ask about their early bird specials or happy hour deals. Cinemas also offer early bird specials too. If you can’t miss a movie starring Brad Pitt but don’t have his bank account, go before noon. AMC Theatres offers tickets for 40% off before noon on weekends.
  2. Look for coupons and promotions – Do a search online for your event, venue or restaurant and the words coupons and promotions. Many offer printable coupons online or you can sign up for their promotions list. If you can’t find anything online then try an Entertainment book. Entertainment books offer tons of coupons for restaurants and entertainment venues such as theme parks, museums and more.

Paying No Dollars for Entertainment

Cheap is good, but free is GREAT. You can actually have more fun not spending money than spending money. So where can you have fun for free? Actually in more places than you think.

  1. See a movie for free – This time of year many communities and organizations feature free movie nights in parks and other public places. Not only is it free but a nice departure from closed in theatres. Just do a search for free movie and your city name and you should see a list.
  2. See a free concert – Get on your local city or county recreation and activity newsletter/email list. Local communities plan many free or low cost activities for their residents and you just have to be in the know. Events range from free concerts, children’s art projects to free movies. You pay your taxes so make sure you enjoy the benefits too. And many times the activities are not restricted to just residents.
  3. See a museum for free – Many cities and counties offer free museum admission to their residents on certain days. Check with your city and museum to see when they might be participating. If they don’t have any current dates, don’t worry you can still see museums for free. Bank of America customers with any kind of debit or credit card can see select museums for free the first weekend of every month.
  4. Volunteer for free entry – Instead of paying for entrance to a celebrity golf tournament, theatrical play or other entertainment ask to be a volunteer. In exchange for an hour or two of service you get free admission. Not to mention you usually get better viewing access.

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Taste of Atlanta Ticket Giveaway

by The Queen on September 30, 2008

in Dining,Entertainment

Taste of Atlanta Coupons and ContestTaste of Atlanta returns to the streets of Atlantic Station on October 11 & 12!

Grab a plate and enjoy tastes from over 70 of Atlanta’s favorite restaurants like Dolce, Imperial Fez, The Sundial and more. In addition to great food there are kids activities, entertainment and cooking demonstrations from national and local celebrity chefs.

You can also catch Grammy Award winner and cookbook author Trisha Yearwood, food and wine authority Ted Allen, and Top Chef Finalist Richard Blais at the event.

As a Shopping Queen reader, you can receive $5 off your ticket. Purchase tickets by visiting www.TasteOfAtlanta.com and entering Promo Code SHPQN to receive this exclusive discount.

If you want to win your tickets instead, enter my first ever giveaway. One lucky person will win a pair of tickets to Taste of Atlanta (general admission) for Sunday, October 12th.

Enter by filling out the form below. You get one entry for providing your name and email. Here’s how to earn a few extra entries:

1. Click Here to Follow me on Twitter and leave a comment below letting me know.

2. Signup for the Shopping Queen newsletter and leave a comment below letting me know.

3. Share a link. Post a link to this contest (or this blog in general) on your blog or on discussion groups or forums you belong to (please follow posting guidelines) and leave a separate comment for each link you share. 

The giveaway is open for entries until Tuesday, October 7th, at 11:59PM EDT. One winner will be chosen at random, and announced October 8th. Good luck!

This contest has ended. The lucky winner was Jennifer G.

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Free Night of Theater 2008

September 17, 2008

Free Night of Theater is back again this year with even more cities. This year, the program has expanded to over 100 cities nation wide. This is an opportunity to check out shows in your local theatres for free in the month of October. You will need to make reservations. However, reservations aren’t currently available. [...]

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Restaurant Week Info

July 22, 2008

This week is Restaurant Week in Atlanta and New York City. You can enjoy a three course meal at some of the city’s best restaurants for only $25 – $35. Actually New York City will run Restaurant Week for two weeks, so you can try out many restaurants that have been on list. Boston, Dallas, [...]

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Free Museum Admission with Bank of America

June 1, 2008

Bank of America has expanded it’s Museums on Us program. Now even more museums in more states are part of the program. You can receive free admission to select museums the first weekend of every month simply by showing any Bank of America card. Remember this when traveling too. If there isn’t a participating museum in [...]

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