Christmas on a budget.

My husband lost his job a year ago, and I've been out of work for quite some time. So, aside from getting myself a seasonal job which pays a little bit, we've been relying on unemployment (which, as some of you may know, is next to nothing). My dear, sweet hubby had been stressing more and more as each day brought us closer and closer to holiday shopping.

Thankfully, I had already prepared for this! By the time Black Friday rolled around, we already had about 90% of our shopping done! Really, we only needed to go out on Black Friday for gifts for eachother (mostly the hubs. I had already gotten most of his gifts, too)! How? Well, it took a little elbow grease, but not a lot. I used a ton of different sites to get free gift cards, and I also had several Kohl's promo cards to use! Additionally, there are a number of daily deal sites that offer free credits.

So, how do you get free gift cards? Well, it's super simple. There are quite a few sites that reward you with gift cards for doing various things. Here are my top picks:

Crowdtap

Crowdtap is simple to use. Do Quick Hits (answer a question), Missions, and Actions to boost your points. Once you reach a certain amount of points, you can cash out for things like Amazon gift cards!

Swagbucks. Swagbucks gives you points for tasks like searching the web, doing surveys, watching videos, and more! This has been the most profitable for me! You can redeem SBs for a number of things, gift cards, electronics, and more!

Mypoints. You don't need to make a purchase through mypoints in order to earn gift cards! I just do the emails, and I also get points for doing bzzactivities through BzzAgent! Super easy!

Surveyhead. Take surveys and you can choose from a number of different gift cards!

Fab. Fab is a great daily deal site that has a ton of cool, unique stuff. They give you a $10 credit when you sign up, plus they occaisionally give credits just because.

One Kings Lane. This is another daily deal site, which I have written about before. I used my free $15 credit to get a glazed terra cotta candle holder for my mom, which turned out to be way bigger than I thought, and it was gorgeous!

This year, I have earned $175 in free gift cards (most of them were from SwagBucks), plus I've received arond $60 in free credits from various daily deal sites. And those Kohl's promo cards I mentioned? I have gotten at least four of them over the last year. They are $10 off of $10 minimum purchase, and they are valid with sale items! I like to match those with $10 sale items, so I get stuff for free! I tend to get Amazon gift cards, that way I can find the best deals on awesome stuff...and free shipping!

Review- Burt's Bees Intense Hydration

It's fall, and you know what that means. Dry, itchy skin. I have dry skin normally, but during the fall and winter it's even worse. So when I receieved a BzzCampaign invite a few weeks ago for Burt's Bees Intense Hydration, I was super stoked! I love Burt's Bees products, and the fact that I was getting something to try out on my super dry skin made me giddy!



I was a little skeptical at first, because I've tried numerous products in the past that were supposed to be fantastic at rehydrating dry skin and having no luck. Plus, I'd never heard of this clary sage stuff that they were taking about. When the package finally arrived, I wasted no time trying everything out. I got a cream cleanser, a face mask, and a night cream...all full size! Plus, I got little samples of the night cream and day lotion to pass around. I have to admit, I tested one of the day lotions. WOW!

Unfortunately, in my excitement I forgot to take a before picture of my skin. So, I'll just describe it to you: my skin was flaky, a little red, tight and yet somehow oily (which I assume is my skin trying to overcompensate for being super dry), and every little line and flaw was made even more visible because of the dryness. It was so terrible! I gotta tell you, it's sort of depressing for a lady in her mid-twenties to have skin that bad. It makes you feel less than confident.

I've been using Burt's Bees Intense Hydration every day since I got my kit, and my skin has never looked better! No lie! My skin is smooth, supple, and bright. My pores are less visible, as well as my laugh lines. I literally cannot stop touching my face! I've been receiving complements left and right. It's awesome! We've been having dry weather lately, and my skin isn't even itchy. Sweet!

Thanksgiving week - Pumpkin Cupcakes!

On Wednesday, I made pumpkin cupcakes for my friend David's birthday. Oh man, they were awesome! For months I'd been dreaming of pumpkin and spice, and cinnamon buttercream. And I finally fulfilled that fantasy. These cupcakes were a SMASH! Light and fluffy, with frosting that wasn't too sweet.

Doesn't that look like a yummy cupcake? I just had to put a little candy pumpkin on top. So cute!

(Recipe adapted from About.com)

2 1/4 sifted all purpose flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground clove
1/2 c butter
2 eggs, beaten until frothy
1 c pumpkin puree
3/4 c milk
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Sift together flour, bakings powder, baking soda, salt, and spices into a bowl. Cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy, and then beat in eggs and vanilla. Blend in pumpkin.Alternately stir in milk and dry ingredients until batter is smooth. Spoon batter into papaer cups (you can greas and flour them if you wish, I did not). Fill about 2/3 full. Bake at 375 for 20-25 minutes.

Once my cupcakes were cool, I made a basic vanilla buttercream frosting, to which I added cinnamon. No exact science here, just make your frosting and add cinnamon to taste. Decorate any way you like, and enjoy!

Thanksgiving week recipe #2 - Mashed butternut squash

I love, love, LOVE, mashed potatoes. However, sometimes I look for something a little different. I saw that my local grocery store had butternut squash for a great price, so I grabbed some and headed home!

When I got home, it occurred to me that I have no butternut squash recipes. None. Heck, I didn't even reall know how to cook it in a basic way! Thankfully, my MSL (Martha Stewart Living) had come in, so I flipped through it hoping to find something. And find something, I did! Inside was a basic recipe for mashed butternut squash. And, aside from the peeling and chopping of the squash, it's reall easy to make!

(Adapted from a Martha Stewart recipe)

1 large butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and diced into small chunks
2 tbsp butter
salt and pepper, to taste
a pinch of nutmeg

Cut squash in half and remove seeds. Peel, and cut into one inch chunks. Place in a pot and cover with water. Boil until almost all of the liquid has evaporated. Drain, and mash in your preferred method (I used an old-timey potato masher, but you could use a ricer or whatever). Add butter, salt, pepper, and a pinch of nutmeg. Enjoy!

Thanksgiving week! Recipe 1 - Cranberry Sauce

With Thanksgiving a week away, I've been on a bit of a holiday flavor kick! Yesterday, I made Cranberry Pork Roast in my trusty slow cooker. I also made some super cute pumpkin cupcakes with cinnamon vanilla buttercream frosting for my friend David's birthday.

So, I've decided to dedicate the next week of posts to Thanksgiving/Thanksgiving-inspired recipes! Don't worry, I'll keep them simple and budget-friendly! Today, I'm going to share my favorite Thanksgiving recipe: Homemade Cranberry Sauce. It may sound difficult, but it isn't! I just love the flavors!

(This recipe is adapted from a Tyler Florence recipe)

16 oz cranberries, fresh or frozen
1 orange, zested and juiced
1/2 c. packed brown sugar (or more, if you like a sweeter sauce)
1 large cinnamon stick, or several small ones

Put all the ingredients into a saucepan over medium heat and simmer until the cranberries burst and the sauce thickens, about 15 to 20 minutes. Serve at room temperature or cool and refrigerate. Remove the cinnamon stick before serving.

Super simple, right? I made this for the first time six years ago, and my in-laws have requested it every year since then! Try it! You'll never go back to canned!

BzzCampaign - Pork. Recipe included!

I'm a BzzAgent. I know I may have mentioned that before, but I really enjoy saying it. What is that, you ask? A BzzAgent is a person who trys stuff and spreads the word about said products (basically). So, down to the nitty gritty: I'm in the Pork Be Inspired campaign, which is actually kind of fun. Why? Well, I get to try out new and exciting recipes involving pork. Recipes I may have been to lazy to try before.



My BzzKit came a week ago or so, and I was pleased by what was inside. In addition to some great coupons, I also received a silicone basting brush and a digital meat thermometer, as well as some recipes, and a small booklet with pork facts. I was amazed to find that pork loin is leaner than boneless skinless chicken breast! Who knew? I prefer pork loin to most other cuts most of the time, however it can get fairly pricey. Thankfully, I had a $5 off coupon that came in my kit, and it just so happened that Ralph's had a sale on pork loin! Score!

So, tonight I'm making Cranberry Pork (slow cooker recipe):

2 1/3 - 3 lb pork loin roast
1 can whole berry cranberry sauce
1 medium onion, chopped
2 tbsp soy sauce
pepper

Sprinkle pork with pepper and place in slow cooker. Add chopped onion. Mix together cranberry sauce and soy sauce, then pour over pork and onions. Cook on low for 7 hours.

TADA! That's it! You can tweak this recipe any way you like, it will still turn out great! It's a great meal, and pairs nicely with mashed butternut squash!