Frugal Friday!

Let me first apologize for being MIA for the past couple of weeks. I apologize. Now, let me get on to my entry for this week!

It's the little things in life, not the big and extravagant ones, that I get most excited about. To give you one example, my dad and I have our father-daughter dates at Sam's Club on Saturdays and I'm giddy all the way to the store! We walk down the aisles and pick up all of the samples. If we are feeling really crazy, we'll get a hot dog and coke on the way out!

To further explain my excitement about the little things in life, I'll tell you about last Friday. Last Friday, "Enrique" and I went on a date. Not that dating him is a little thing in life, but many might not think of our date on Friday as anything exciting. I'm not "many" because it was actually my idea of the perfect date! That day, I wasn't feeling well and he had a long day so he decided to keep it low key. He picked me up and we went to one of my favorite places ever, Central Market. I could spend hours walking around Central Market - tasting samples, looking at the wide selection of fruit, alcohol, cheese, pretty much everything, and filling my cart with something from each aisle - I just love it! I am also a fan of music, especially live music. Lucky for me, Central Market has live music on Friday and Saturday nights. We looked around at our dinner options and each decided to prepare our own salad from the salad bar. We (by we, I mean he) paid for our salads and we (by we, I really do mean we) walked outside to listen to some really fun music. There were family friends talking and laughing as their children were running wild on the playground and all over, there were friends drinking coffee and others eating gelato. It was just a fun, yet relaxing, environment and a great way to wind down from a crazy week. We left Central Market after dinner and drove over to Town Square in Southlake. By this time, the stores had already closed so we just walked around and picked out our favorite things in the store windows. As much as I enjoy the thrill of buying a dress that I have fallen in love with at first sight, window shopping can be just as much fun!

Moral of the story: For me (and hopefully for you, too) dates aren't about how much money you spend, but more about how much fun you have with the person you are with. This is just one idea of a fun date for those of you who are on a budget, or just want to try something else besides dinner at a boring restaurant with mediocre customer service and a movie.

Got any other fun, inexpensive date ideas? Holler!

Pei Wei - 09.09.09

09.09.09 - TODAY ONLY! - Pei Wei is giving 50% off of their new Japanese Chile Beef Ramen to the customers who bring in a package of store bought Ramen noodles. Pei Wei will donate all of the Ramen collected, plus $1 per package, to a local food bank. Go get you some!

Frugal Friday!

One thing I've noticed (and love so much) since I started my Frugal Friday posts is that everyone always feels inclined to call and/or e-mail to tell me about their great purchases! I always get so excited and I feel like a teacher might feel when her student comes back and says, "Look Teacher! I did it all on my own! Aren't you proud of me?" From my fingertips to your eyes (maybe your ears if you are like my roommate and the only way you know what my blog says is because someone reads it to you), I am soooo proud of you! Keep it up!

I really enjoy blogging. For me it's an outlet, a great stress reliever. To combine that with something that I'm passionate about, bargain shopping and finding great deals, is so fun! Well, you know it's been a long and crazy week when you have been looking forward to Friday all week long and suddenly realize at 5:30 pm on Friday that it's already Friday! I was driving home and thought, "Oh crap! I forgot to do my Frugal Friday post last night! How did this happen!?!?" Lucky for me (and you), I got an e-mail today from one of my best friends, Bonnie, that said, "Put this on your Frugal Friday!" It was like she knew that I had been running around like a crazy person and didn't have time to relieve any stress by blogging about my frugal week!

Her e-mail said, "September is Volunteer Appreciation Month at Studio Movie Grill! As a reward for all the hardworking volunteers in Texas, Studio Movie Grill is giving away movie tickets! Simply click on this link to print out the coupon and enjoy a movie with a friend! The passes are good from September 8th through September 30th at any Studio Movie Grill location."

If you don't already volunteer at a local non-profit, what are you waiting for? This website will help you find volunteer opportunities in your area. What a fun thing to do as a family or maybe even for a girls day/night out!

If you're in the Dallas area, my vote for a non-profit organization to volunteer with is Camp Summit. Camp Summit's mission is to provide barrier-free outdoor experiences that promote personal growth and foster independence for children and adults with disabilities. Their campers range in age from six to adulthood and may be developmentally delayed, physically challenged, dual sensory impaired (deaf and blind) or have multiple disabilities. Camp Summit, like most non-profit organizations, is always looking for volunteers to serve the community alongside them. If you're interested in volunteering with Camp Summit, contact their main office at 972-484-8900.