The Socialite Look: Splurge vs. Save List

Just because you don't live off of your trust fund it doesn't mean you can dress that way! I love all of these tips on how to splurge and how to save on what you want so that you can dress like a socialite. This is a fun list and an even funnier book. If you are looking for a light, humorous read, find the book and read it this summer. 

The Socialite Look: How to Dress Like You Have a Trust Fund Even If You Don't

By Bridie Clark,

Author of The Overnight Socialite

Splurge vs. Save List Splurge on: Classic pieces -- the little black dress, the Chanel ballet flats, the perfect clutch -- that you'll wear for years to come. If you plan on making it as a socialite -- in the Jackie O, not Casey J mode -- you'll be dashing off countless thank you notes. Invest in personalized stationery. Sites like tinyprints.com offer an affordable alternative to monogrammed letterpress. Charitable giving. Nothing's worse than a socialite who struts the red carpet but can't write a check for an important cause. No matter what your budget, find some way to give -- or give your time -- to the organizations that resonate with you. Save on: Staying Bergdorf blonde can be an expensive habit. Fortunately, most of the top salons hold "training nights" for stylists' and colorists' assistants to hone their skills under the watchful eye of the experts.  Sign up, and you'll get top-end color for significantly less than the salon's usual rates. Furniture. Estate sales, auctions, and online sites like 1stdibs.com and eBay have heirloom-quality pieces to lend sophisticated polish to your home. If a piece isn't quite heirloom-quality -- but the price is right and the bones are solid -- give it a coat of high-gloss paint, in a quirky turquoise or a punchy coral.  Hostess gifts. Hand-wrapping small items -- soaps, candles, a few chocolate truffles -- adds a personal touch which will impress the recipient. High-end exercise classes and personal trainers. You can check out what's keeping Gwyneth so fit at tracyandersonmethod.com, or purchase a DVD. Core Fusion, a class that's popular with the Posh Upper East Side set, is also available on DVD. Or you can downward dog along to a Jivamukti yoga CD, the choice of fit and fabulous yogis in downtown Manhattan.         Retail. Paying full-boat is for the masses. Instead, explore sites like Gilt.com (you can become a member by visiting gilt.com/theovernightsocialite), designer outlets, or your local thrift and consignment shops. Make enough of a name for yourself, and it won't be long before designers are sending you their wares.

© 2010 Bridie Clark, author of The Overnight Socialite

Author Bio

Bridie Clark graduated from Harvard University, and has written for The New York Times, Vanity Fair, New York, and Quest. Her debut novel, Because She Can, was published in nineteen countries. She lives in New York City.

For more information, please visit www.bridieclark.com.

Click here to read my review (totally love the book) and enter to win a copy of the book. GIVEAWAY THE OVERNIGHT SOCIALITE

Thanks to FSB Associates for the article.

Homemade Crispy Pita Chips

My family loves to eat some type of bread with their salad. So I took pita bread and lightly brushed with butter, spray oil or olive oil. Then poured on garlic powder.  I baked at 350 until they where crunchy outside/soft inside. They were a huge hit and very cheap!


We've done the same thing with hot dog and hamburger buns. They are always a hit. 


What about you? Do you have a quick & easy meal time tip?

How much sugar is too much? Caramel Apple Cake Recipe

A Spoonful of Sugar Helps the Medicine Go Down

But how much sugar is too much?

Mary Poppins suggests a spoonful of sugar to help the medicine go down, but how much sugar is too much? On average, an adolescent consumes 34 teaspoons of sugar, or 500 calories worth each day.

Parents can help children limit sugar intake to the recommended 6.5 teaspoons per day by avoiding cookies and candies, and instead serving sugar free or no sugar added sweets such as those made from Sans Sucre Baking Mixes. Sans Sucre, meaning “sugar free” in French, produces a line of guilt-free baking mixes in four varieties from coffee cakes to brownies.

“Children generally love sweet treats, but parents want to be health conscious. We created our Sans Sucre line of mixes for healthy eaters who still want to enjoy great tasting desserts,” said Steve Bernard chief executive officer of Bernard Food Industries.

By replacing sugary snacks and desserts, children and adults alike are consuming less sugar which lowers the risk of diabetes, heart disease and, most commonly, body fat. The Sans Sucre recipe below is a sugar free dessert that all can enjoy.

Caramel Apple Cake

1 fresh apple chopped, peeled and cored

2 boxes Sans Sucre Apple Cinnamon Coffee Cake baking mix

1 cup water

1 egg

4 tablespoons all-natural applesauce

1 cup sugar-free caramel

Preheat oven to 375^o F. Prepare 8”x8” pan by lightly greasing or spraying with non-stick cooking spray. Chop apple into chunks. Blend water, all-natural applesauce, egg and both mixes in a medium bowl using an electric mixer. Fold apple pieces into cake batter. Spread evenly in greased pan. Bake 25-30 minutes or until inserted toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely. Drizzle sugar-free caramel over top of cake. Store covered.

About Sans Sucre Baking Mixes

Sans Sucre is the first line of baking mixes from foodservice industry specialists, Bernard Food Industries, Inc that are flavored with Stevia, an all-natural sweetener. In addition, they are sugar-free or no sugar added, low fat, no cholesterol, lower in calories and lower in sodium. For more information visit: www.sanssucrefoods.com.

About Bernard Food Industries

Since 1947, Bernard Food Industries, Inc. has been dedicated to providing solutions to the foodservice industry.  Family owned and operated by the Bernard family, Bernard Food Industries, Inc. has 1,000 specialty food products, including beverages, soups, seasonings, sauces, baking mixes, and more. Of those products, 350 are dietary in nature. For more information visit: www.bernardfoods.com orwww.edietshop.com.

Note: This article was provided by Sans Sucre and they have a  line of baking mixes is the first to use Stevia in place of sugar or artificial sweeteners.  Stevia is an all-natural sugar substitute that is sweet in taste and free of calories, carbohydrates and fat, making it a healthy alternative. However, there is a distinct difference in taste between Stevia and regular sugar. “Like soda and diet soda both Stevia and sugar have different flavor profiles,” says Steven Bernard, chief executive officer of Bernard Food Industries.


This article was provided and I did not test the recipe. 

Tasty Easter and Cinco de Mayo Menu

Welcome back to Menu Planning Monday! Thanks to all who stopped in and even linked up! Remember you can link up any menu or recipe. If you have a menu plan link up, feel free to leave that in the links too! Have a great week!


DUH! It isn't MAY! It is April. Oh well we are going to have Cinco de April and then again in Mayo! hahaha My hubby set me straight! 


Monday- Thai Peanut Noodles & fresh fruit kabobs
Tuesday-Cajun Chicken Pasta (recipe & picture posted later today) & a huge salad
Wednesday-DON'S MEXICAN SALAD (getting ready for tomorrow!)
Thursday-HAPPY CINCO de MAYO! Chicken Tostada Salad with Salsa Verde and Happy Margarita drink
Friday-Texas Straw Hat (still celebrating!)
Saturday-Speedy Sausage Muffins
Dessert- (making these for Easter breakfast at Church)
Cinnamon Rolls 
Coffee Cake
Focaccia (Easter Dinner with friends)


Easter Recipes


I've linked up at OrgJunkie's Menu Plan Monday link up.

I will pin some of the below post on Pinterest as I have time during the week! If you do pin my post, please leave a comment and I will be sure to get yours pinned. Thanks! Have a super week.

Before you go shopping, check out my new, Monday printable coupons & deals.

Monday Hot Deals & Coupons

Household Items

• $1.00 off Windex Multi-Surface Glade
• $10.00 off any Holmes or Bioniare aer1 Ready
• $1.00 off 1 Woolite Pet Oxygen Stain Remover

Personal Care

• $1.00 off COLGATE ORABASE
• $0.50 off 1 Suave Professionals Keratin Infusion
• $1.00 off when you buy any AXE Product
• $1.00 off any JOHNSON'S Baby Oil product

Food & Grocery

• $1.00 off 2 General Mills Kid cereals
• $0.75 off Multi Grain Cheerios
• $0.50 off One Package of LAND O LAKES
• $1.00 off one Resource ThickenUp Clear
• $1.00 off two Pure Protein Bars
• $0.40 off one Frigo Italian Style Cheeses
• $0.40 off one Dragone cheese product
• $0.40 off one Treasure Cave cheese product
• $1.00 off one Kashi steam meal
• $1.00 off 4 LARABAR or JOCALAT bars
• $0.75 off any Cascadian Farm product
• $0.75 off 2 Pillsbury Refrigerated Cookie Dough
• $0.40 off 2 Pillsbury or Grands! Sweet Rolls
• $0.40 off one Stella cheese product
• $0.75 off TWO MorningStar Farms Veggie Foods

Pet Products

• $1.50 off ten (10) cans of ALPO Dog Food

Together Counts for Active & Healthy Families Sweepstakes

Raise your hand if you find that your family spends less time together than 5 years ago. Our family is very guilty of this. In our home, we have 3 teenagers who all have different jobs, hobbies, schools, sports and more. Everyone is running in opposite directions. When we are all home we find that everyone is doing their own thing. As the mom, I try to make sure that every dinner meal counts. No matter how many are at home we have sit down dinners during the week. 

As for outdoor activities we have done geo caching together which is a lot of fun and gets everyone involved. On our last vacation we looked at all the geo caching sites and found 16 on our trip. This was a really fun adventure and it is something that can be done anywhere you go. It is especially fun on car trips because it breaks up a long, boring drive. What do you do as a family? Are you more or less active than a year ago?

Just this past week I learned about Together Counts. It is a nationwide program that is inspiring active and healthy living in families. Their program is all about Energy Balance. This means balancing the calories we consume with the calories we burn. This of course can be such a challenge today. This is a first of its kind coalition that is bringing together more than 195 retailers, food and beverage manufactures, restaurants, sporting goods, trade associations and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and professional sports organizations.

Together Counts campaign is working to get more families eating and getting active together all with teaching and using moderation. To kick off this campaign and celebrate their first anniversary, Together Counts is hosting a fun sweepstakes on their Facebook page. Prizes include gift cards, George Forman Grills and membership to Anything Fitness.

To get more information on their campaign check them out online at their website, Facebook (enter sweepstakes) Twitter and Pinterest pages.

You are invited to their Twitter party as they celebrate Child Nutrition Month on April 3rd from 8-9 EST. You have a chance to win $50 cash gift cards. For more information and to RSVP, check out Resourceful Mommy. I will do my best to be at the Twitter party. Look for me as I tweet as SusieQTpies.

This sponsored post was written as part of a campaign for Together Counts and Global Influence Network.

How to Be a Coupon Consumer – Without Getting Consumed By Coupons

Expert Offers Tips for Easy Ways to Save
On Every Trip to the Market

More people than ever are clipping coupons for their supermarket trips, but they’re often not saving as much as they could, says Toni House, author of How to Reduce Your Weekly Grocery Bill to $85 Per Week – Or Less!.

"You can easily shave $5 to $20 off your weekly grocery budget with a minimal investment of time," says House. "Cutting your bill just $10 a week will save you $520 over the course of a year.

"Taking a couple of extra steps to ensure you can use all the coupons you clip will save you more money – and protect your investment of time in clipping them."

How can consumers take advantage of coupons without becoming consumed by them?

Let us count the ways!

• Learn different stores’ rules. Call the grocery stores that are convenient to you (near home OR work), ask these questions and write down the answers: Do you have double or triple coupon days? (If so, what are they?) Do you accept other stores’ coupons? Do you allow "stacking" coupons – using them on sale items? 

• Seek coupons far and wide. The Sunday paper is always a good place to start, but most households also get coupons through direct mail. And you can find coupon deals at SaveYourMoneySaveYourFamily.com, Coupon-Lady.com and a host of other sites. If there are brand-name products you just have to have, try Googling the name and "coupon." 

• Plan meals around your coupons. Say you have coupons for 30 cents off a box of pasta, half-off spaghetti sauce (a type you normally buy – not a pricey splurge!), buy-one, get-one canned mushrooms and $1 off a pound of ground chuck. Can you smell dinner simmering? For less than $4? 

• Organize your coupons. An expandable folder, like you might use for taxes, is a convenient place to store coupons at home. You might organize it by product – frozen foods, snacks, meats, or by expiration date. If you’re going to do some meal planning around coupons, you might want a section for those. As you clip, sort the coupons immediately so you don’t end up with a big pile that never gets sorted or used. Clip the meal coupons together and drop them in either the meals section or, if you’re organizing by date, the date the first one is set to expire.