Ya'll - I'm Published!

Last year, around August, I was contacted by a magazine and asked to write an article for their quarterly publication. To say that I was thrilled is an understatement. It was a total God thing because He somehow orchestrated the right people to be in the right meeting at the right time discussing the right topic and miraculously my name came up. I've since been asked to write for them a few more times and they have been so fantastic and lovely to work with. It's also been a great outlet for me as I love to write and this has given me a good excuse to get to use a thesaurus. Oh how I love the thesaurus. I know, I'm a nerd. Granted, I just had to use spell check to fix "thesarus." I love words but spelling them is a whole other story. :)

Anyhoo, I digress.

In case you've never heard of FUSION, they are a devotional magazine for adults published by Randall House and it's distributed in the U.S., Mexico, and Canada. The magazine is part of the D6 curriculum that my church uses. I love the D6 program because it is consistent across the board, meaning that I am studying the same themes that my 5-year-old is learning about in her Sunday School class. It's really neat to hear her take on the same subject and it makes it super easy to discuss Biblical principles together.

Because there is such a big lead time in the publishing world, my article has just been released but this is a perfect time to share it. In the article, I give some ideas for how to have a fantastic and fun summer without breaking the bank. We are seriously counting down the last few days of school over here. Bring on summer fun!!! So, without further ado, please check out my very first published article....

Summer Family Fun on a Budget

(can I just tell you how cool it is to see my name in print! squee!!!)

Best Father's Day Present. Ever.

I saw this today and was so excited. This is a gift certificate for an airplane ride where you are the pilot - a real, in-flight pilot! Granted, the instructor is with you but STILL. You know your Dad or Hubby would go crazy for this!! I know mine will. Best of all, it's half price today on Groupon and there are aviation locations across the country. The certificate doesn't expire until 2012 so, if you have already gotten your Father's Day gift, think ahead to their birthday or Christmas.

1. If you are new to Groupon, sign up here, then complete the following steps to locate the deal.
2. Current Groupon members should go here.
3. Select the drop down arrow and choose Birmingham, AL then look for "Discovery Flight and Ground Lesson" on the right side.
4. Purchase.

Check out this cool video that shows an example of what happens in flight.

Enjoy The City Savings Book (Nashville) $20

My daughter's school is selling Enjoy The City (Nashville) books as a fundraising opportunity. I wasn't familiar with this book but it has some AWESOME deals. No kidding! For example, lets start with the FREE items. These are just plain ole FREE with no other purchase required. Nice!

FREE Oil Change from Firestore
FREE Medium Pizza from Papa Johns
FREE Small Deep Dish Pizza from Jet's Pizza
FREE Ice Cream Cone from Krispy Kreme

The oil change alone will pay for the book. Don't believe me? Look:

The book is also full of BOGO dinners and entertainment deals. My favorite page in the whole book is probably the one with kids entertainment deals from Peek-A-Boo Playtown and Pump It Up.

Listen up Publix shoppers. If your store accepts GFS as a competitor then you need this book. There are SIX $5 off $50 purchase coupons ($30 value).

You can also see a complete preview of the book.

****If any of you locals would like a book, please email me at couponqueendiaries@gmail.com so I can send you my mailing address. Checks should be made payable to Stanford Montessori PTO and books will be mailed to you around Feburary 4th.****

Plus, for every 10 books that sell, I will give 1 away on Coupon Queen Diaries starting on January 21st (when orders are due).

Thanks for helping to support the little school that we love. Plus, it's a heck-of-a-deal for you too