Merry Monday week 3!

Merry Monday is upon us again and we are counting down the last days until Christmas!

Miraculously I became an early bird holiday shopper this year, but if you are anything like I was in holidays past, then you may be a Christmas procrastinator.

Don’t worry, I have good news! I have found some great last-minute holiday shopping resources that will guide you in the direction of some very merry, affordable and fun gifts just in time for Christmas!

For all of you last minute shoppers out there who think that personalized gifts are impossible at this point- think again!

Zazzle.com is the perfect place to create great personalized gifts, and right now they are offering 50% off express shipping! So not only can you give a thoughtful gift, you can actually give it on Christmas day! Hurry, Hurry, Hurry…………. You still have to create it:)

You are short on time, have a tight budget and are stumped about what to give……… Don’t fret, just go to TheLedger.com and check out their article entitled 20 last minute gift ideas for less than $20

If you are still having trouble finding that perfect last minute gift then you may want to visit http://www.redenvelope.com/ and/or http://www.amazon.com/, they both offer overnight shipping on unique gifts, toys, and apparel.

And if you just don’t feel like sorting through all of the listings then check out
www.gifts.com. This site makes shopping a breeze by dividing gifts into categories based on the recipient’s personality.

Now that you (hopefully) have all of the gifts out of the way, you can concentrate on the most important aspect of the season… FOOD!

Weather you are planning a large holiday buffet, or a small cocktail get together, these are the sites where you will find the tastiest recipes around.

http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Holiday---Celebration-Recipes/Christmas-Recipes

http://allrecipes.com/recipes/holidays-and-events/Christmas/Candy/Main.aspx

http://www.foodnetwork.com/holidays-and-parties/index.html

That’s all for this Merry Monday, come back next week for our final Merry Monday and some hot post-Christmas finds!

Have a safe and happy holiday!

Merry Monday Week 2!

Merry Monday is technically coming to you on Tuesday this week (sorry for the delay)

However, I still have some very Merry finds for you on this Tuesday evening… I hope you will enjoy!

Today while browsing the web for some yummy new cookie recipes, I stumbled upon www.marthastewart.com and I found so many great recipes, but one in particular caught my eye “Gingerbread Snowflakes”!

Leave it to Martha Stewart to come up with a cute and fun rendition to the traditional gingerbread man.

Here is what you’ll need to whip up these awesome cookies:

Makes 16 cookies
6 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for work surface
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
1 cup packed dark-brown sugar
4 teaspoons ground ginger
4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cloves
1 teaspoon finely ground pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
2 large eggs
1 cup unsulfured molasses
Royal Icing (Links to her recipe)
Fine sanding sugar, for sprinkling

Directions
1.Sift together flour, baking soda, and baking powder into a large bowl. Set aside.

2.Put butter and brown sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; mix on medium speed until fluffy. Mix in spices and salt, then eggs and molasses. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture; mix until just combined. Divide dough into thirds; wrap each in plastic. Refrigerate until cold, about 1 hour.

3.Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Roll out dough on a lightly floured work surface to a 1/4-inch thick. Cut into snowflakes with a 7- inch snowflake-shape cookie cutter. Space 2 inches apart on baking sheets lined with parchment paper, and refrigerate until firm, about 15 minutes.

4.Bake cookies until crisp but not dark, 12 to 14 minutes. Let cool on sheets on wire racks.

5.Put icing in a pastry bag fitted with a small plain round tip (such as Ateco #7). Pipe designs on snowflakes; immediately sprinkle with sanding sugar. Let stand 5 minutes; tap off excess sugar. Let icing set completely at room temperature, about 1 hour. Store cookies between layers of parchment in an airtight container at room temperature up to 5 days.

Yum Yum Yum.... They are almost too pretty to eat!

Now that we have had our cookies, it’s time to wrap the gifts and Hobby Lobby is having an incredible sale on gift-wrap. They are offering 50% off all gift-wrap from now until December 19th!!

They are also offering 30% 50% off storewide! This is the prefect opportunity to stock up on all of your crafting supplies and find some great gifts too!

The clock may be running down for all of you last minute shoppers, but even if you’re late, you can still be frugal.

Here is a great website I happened upon today that will guide you toward some of the best ways to stretch your buck and still find those great last minute gifts! http://moneysmartlife.com/the-best-websites-for-christmas-shopping-deals/

That’s about all for this late edition of Merry Monday….. Visit us next week for more great holiday finds!

Have a great night!

Merry Monday's

Hello everyone and welcome to Merry Monday’s! We hope you will enjoy the fun finds we have for you today.

First off, I have compiled a list of some awesome holiday shopping deals.

Target - $10 off $40 purchase of select Playskool toys

Rush over to Target for fabulous savings! For a limited time, you can save $10 on your $40 purchase of select Playskool toys. Choose from toys for infants, toddlers and older children as well. Hurry as this offer expires 12/20/2009.

Spiegel - Up to 50% off shoes & accessories

Click over to Spiegel for amazing savings! For a limited time, you can save as much as 50% on shoes and accessories. Shop for boots, pumps, wedges, satchels, totes and so much more. Hurry as this sale ends 12/31/2009.

American Eagle - Save 20% on your order

There's nothing like a great sale to ease the stress of holiday shopping. Click over to American Eagle and use promo code 56871295 to save 20% on your order. Spend $100 or more and receive free shipping as well. American Eagle has tons of hip styles and great holiday deals. This offer ends TODAY 12/07/2009.

Head on over to http://www.bargainist.com/ to get more info on these deals and more!


Holiday crafts are the perfect way to wind down after a stressful day and a fun and creative way to spend quality time with your family.

Here is a wonderful craft that I found at Woman’sDay.com . This activity can be fun for the whole family, not to mention it’s also easy and inexpensive to make:

Simple Stockings

Materials:
Pencil
Paper
Fabric scissors
Felt
Needle and thread
String
Craft glue
Tags and rub-down letters

Instructions:
Draw a stocking shape on paper and cut it out to make a template. Trace the template twice onto felt and cut out.

Stitch the two stocking pieces together along sides, making sure to leave the top open.
Cut out fun shapes from a contrasting colored felt.

Play around with your shapes to create an interesting pattern. When you're happy with the design, adhere shapes with craft glue. Finish stocking by labeling it with a name tag—use rub-down letters to spell out name.

For more creative and fun craft ideas visit Woman's Day.


If this busy season has left you short on time and/or budget then check out Santa’s Wonderland at Bass Pro Shop.

From now until December 24th all Bass Pro Shops will be offering free games, activities, crafts and even a FREE photo with Santa every weekend!!! To get more info and find a Bass Pro Shop near you visit http://www.basspro.com/


When all of the shopping and crafting is over you’ll want to fill your tummy with something yummy. Therefore, I have found a delightful recipe for some tasty treats that are sure to hit the spot!

Christmas Turtle Candies

Ingredients:
4 ounces pecan halves
24 individually wrapped caramels, unwrapped
1 teaspoon shortening 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:
Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C).
Cover cookies sheet with aluminum foil, shiny side exposed. Lightly grease foil with vegetable oil spray. Place 3 pecan halves in a Y shape on the foil. Place 1 caramel candy in the center of each Y.

Bake just until caramel is melted, about 9 to 10 minutes.
Heat shortening and chocolate chips over low heat just until chocolate is melted. Spread over candies and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Nutritional Information
Amount Per Serving Calories: 213 Total Fat: 13g Cholesterol: 1mg

I found the recipe for this scrumptious treat at http://www.allrecipes.com/.

That's all for this Merry Monday, be sure to check back next week for more fun holiday finds:)

Have a great Monday!

It’s almost Cyber Monday!

Cyber Monday is coming and it’s the perfect chance to grab all of those great deals you missed on Friday.

This is also a wonderful way for us to ease our way into Merry Mondays. Every Monday this December, we will be offering up all of the great holiday shopping deals (online and in stores), cute crafts, recipes and much more to help everyone make their holidays just that much merrier!

I have been searching around to find all of the hottest Cyber Monday deals, and so far I’ve been pleasantly surprised at all of the awesome offers.

Below I’ve compiled a list of some of the best deals I’ve found and a link to a really cool website that offers almost all of the daring discounts that the online retailers will be offering up tomorrow.

Toys R Us online - Free shipping when you spend $49 or more on your total order. Plus $20 off your purchase of any leapfrog products $75 or more.

Macy’s online– Save an extra 25% on all clearance items. Free shipping on all order of $75 or more- use code “cyber” at checkout. Plus, keep your eyes open for all of their “ web buster” deals.

Target online- Amazing discounts sitewide ( up to 70% off ) and free shipping on ALL ITEMS!

Kohls online – 60-70% off and final clearance of up to 80% off. Free standard shipping on orders of $75 or more.

Vista Print -50% off all of their holiday cards. Plus free shipping on all orders of $50 or more.

To get more info on these deals and so much more, check out http://www.cybermonday.com/

And be sure to check out the BLACK FRIDAY-CYBER MONDAY SALE going on now at Ozark Scents!

Happy shopping everyone!

Happy Thanksgiving & This weekends HOT deals!!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!

After the turkey is gone and you have rested up it will be time to hit the stores in search of great deals Friday! Yes, it is that time of year to start the Holiday shopping rush! This weekend there will be deals in abundance and what better way to shop than handmade?

I will be participating in 2 different sales events this weekend...one through The Busy Moms of Etsy Team and another event called Spend $30 on November 30th Support Handmade Movement! So stop by Ozark Scents this weekend to see what we have to offer!

The Busy Moms of Etsy Team will be doing a team wide event for the weekend of Black Friday through Cyber Monday. Many shops will be participating in this event. You can find great special deals like free shipping on many great items all created by the Busy Moms of etsy. To find out which shops will be participating and what deals they have to offer check out the Busy Moms Blog. You can also type in to search on Etsy "busymomsale" or "blackfriday" or "cybermonday" You can also find a complete listing on the Busy Moms Etsy Page.

The Support Handmade Movement will be having a $30 on the 30th event to promote handmade. The idea is to spend $30 on November 30th to support handmade. There is a complete list of shops participating in this event on this forum post with descriptions of what each shop has to offer. This is a wonderful way to get some holiday shopping done and support all the wonderful handmade artists' of Etsy. You can also find all participating shops by using the keyword "30on30" in your Etsy search.

Hope you all have a very Happy Thanksgiving weekend!

Take care!

♥Amy

Happy Etsyversary Ozark Scents!!!

Hello all!

It’s been a long time since I’ve posted anything here, but today is a special day, today marks the one-year anniversary for Ozark Scents on Etsy. That’s right, it’s an Etsyversary!!!

It’s been a great first year for Amy and Ozark Scents; she’s been hard at work, perfecting her craft so that she can offer her customers the best quality candles, soap and customer service….. and I might add that I think she’s been doing a great job!

Amy is so grateful for all of the business and support she has received from her customers, fellow etsians, and fellow bloggers that she is going to be offering some great deals over at Ozark Scents this week. As we speak, Amy is fast at work gearing up for her big celebration sale.

Okay, I can feel your eyes perking up at the mention of sale, so I will go ahead and spill all of the juicy details :)

Starting today, Ozark Scents is offering FREE SHIPPING on all orders $50 or more (shipped within the U.S.), and many of Amy’s wonderfully scented candles will also be on sale for just $6!

Not to mention, Amy has been busy stocking up on new fall and winter fragrances including Egg Nog, Cornucopia, and Deck the Halls to name just a few. So stop on by and get a head start on your Christmas shopping!

Here is a quick note from Amy:

“It has been a wonderful first year on Etsy and I thank all of you who I have worked with! Your support has been more than great. I hope to keep working with you all for another year. Thank You! “


Happy Etsyversary Ozark Scents!!!

Have a great day everyone :)

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

Have a Fun & Safe Halloween Weekend! :)

♥Amy