Bath & Body Works $20 VIP Tote ($100 value)

Bath & Body Works is currently offering their Spring 2011 VIP tote for $20 with an additional $40 purchase.  The tote includes: A full-size Shower Gel (10 oz.), Body Lotion (8 oz.) and Fragrance Mist (8 oz.) in Country Chic, a travel-size Body Lotion in Coconut Mango (2 oz.), Anti-Bacterial Gentle Foaming Hand Soap (8.75 oz.) in Fresh Lavender, PocketBac Hand Sanitizer in Fresh Picked Strawberries, Red Glitter PocketBac holder, Pink Flower Wallflower Starter, Wallflower Single Refill in Hydrangea, and a Gauze Sponge.

I always pick up one of these on Black Friday and they are great.  The totes are always really nice and you can either keep the contents for yourself or split them up for gifts.  You really can't beat the price.

http://www.bathandbodyworks.com/product/index.jsp?productId=11542849&cm_mmc=CH-_-20110425TOTE-_-10019979-_-mainINVITE&cm_lm=barkeep23@gmail.com&cp=4090263

Sleep deprivation!

Usually as a mom of twins when it comes to talking about sleep deprivation I am talking about myself, this time I am talking about the girls.  My girls had gotten off of their normal sleep routine which makes for some grumpy girls (and mom and dad!).  After running all day on Sunday, my youngest Isabelle refused to go to bed.  We put them to bed around 8:30 and within a few minutes she was screaming.  We try to let them cry it out for a few minutes to see if they will go to sleep but this time she had herself so worked up that she was covered in sweat.  Into their room I went and back into the living room they both came.  After a little mom and dad time we attempted to put them back to bed again.  Within minutes she was screaming again.  Back into their room to check on them and once again, they were both back in the living room.  Gracie always tags along as she is afraid she will miss something no matter how tired she may be.  After a little more quality time and past dad's bed time, we put them back down again.  Within a few more minutes Isabelle was screaming again, I went back into her room to comfort her and try to get her to sleep but she wanted nothing to do with it.  Gracie had given up and was sleeping soundly.  At this time is was 10:00, with Isabelle on my lap and my husband and other daughter sleeping soundly, we watched the County Music Awards until she couldn't stand to be awake any longer.  She finally went to bed around 10:45.  With all of this in mind this is where the sleep deprivation part actually comes into play.  They both slept until almost 10:00 yesterday morning.  They usually nap around 12 or 1, not today, I was keeping them up all day so they could get back on their normal sleep routine.  The day was rather uneventful, a few bouts of crying here and there until after dinner.  Isabelle was so sleepy at 6:30 that she cried for almost 15 minutes until she fell asleep on my chest.  In an effort to keep her awake until closer to her normal bed time, we decided to give them a bath.  At first she wanted nothing to do with it and cried until we got her out.  She stood at the side of the tub for awhile until she decided that she wanted to get in and play with her sister.  The bath continued for awhile (30-40 minutes) and then the fun of getting them dried off and clothes on began.  They both went to bed close to 8:00 and slept all night long until around 8:30 this morning.  My husband in all of his wisdom says that maybe we should keep them up all day so they will sleep all night and when I reminded him of the screaming and crying due to sleep deprivation, he quickly changed his mind.  It is about nap time and I hope that the deprivation from yesterday has gotten them back onto their normal schedule.  If not, it will be more sleep deprivation for me.

My Savings

Yesterday was grocery shopping day for me.  After about an hour of sitting at the computer and looking at the sales ad and clipping coupons and completing my grocery list I was ready to shop.  I went to the store with my coupons organized and my shopping list in hand.  I strayed little from my list and bought a cart full of groceries. I quickly realized that even with a coupon some items just were not worth the money and I decided to save the coupon until a sale. I always wait until after everything is scanned to present my shopper card and my coupons; I just love watching all of my savings come off.  My total prior to card and coupons was around $275, after savings $209.08, I saved $67.55 with my card and coupons.  Woohoo!!!  While the cashier was scanning my coupons a couple of them were given back to me as I had digitally loaded them on my shopper card, after reviewing my receipt here is the lesson I have learned from that, if a coupon can be doubled, do NOT load digitally as it does not get doubled.  It may have only been $.25 but every little penny adds up.  I absolutely despise grocery shopping but I love the thrill of saving money.