That’s where paint comes in handy. You can do all kinds of things with paint colors. You can make something classic look totally modern, or just give something a refreshing new color. That’s what I did with a couple of nightstands that I bought second hand for only $25/set. They were in a little worse shape than I thought when I first saw photos of them. This meant that I had some good work to do. I had to get started.

First I sanded them completely. I needed to get every bit of the old finish off of them. It took me a good while to get into all the cracks and crevices, but I got it done. After that, I took a damp cloth and wiped all of the dust off. It needed to be as dust free as possible before I started painting to get the best finish. Once that was done, I laid out a large blanket and got everything ready to paint.

What I should have done was buy some primer and use that first, but I wasn’t thinking about that, so I started with just paint. I was able to paint up one nightstand (not including the drawers) with a can of Rustoleum Ultra Cover 2x paint. I’m positive that had I started with primer, I would’ve been able to do the drawers as well.

After letting them dry for a few hours, they were ready to come inside! I think they look really good compared to what they were before! We have needed nightstands for a long time, so this project was perfect to get me jump started into finding and refinishing them!

There’s the finished project! It looks totally different than it did when we first got it, and I love the color! I believe this was Kona in gloss finish, and I’m so excited to have these in my room now!  What do you think?

You can find Rustoleum 2x Spray Paint in your local Walmart stores or on Walmart.com for only $3.77 in a variety of colors!

When I was at the store, looking for snacks for my girls’ school lunches, I passed over the Great Value brand a couple of times, because I had no idea that the packaging had changed so much! Check it out!

It’s so pretty, and as my hubby says, it looks a lot less “generic”. I agree! The new Great Value packaging looks very much like the name brand options in most cases, that they can be difficult to spot right away! If you love your Great Value products as much as I do, make sure you look for the new packaging while shopping! No more blank white packages! The packaging is still rolling out in stores, so you might see some old packaging mixed in with the new.

The most important thing to note is that the price did not change because of the packaging! Great Value products remain low cost with Walmart’s Every Day Low Prices!

I’d love to know what you think! Let me know in the comments below!

I like putting together my own gift baskets, that way I can personalize them a bit. I debated on what kind of gift basket I should do this year, and I figured, every one could use a little less stress in life, so I’d put together a relaxing basket. 

Walmart gave me a $25 gift card to put something together, so off I was to do some shopping. My first stop, candles! I was hoping to find a lavender scented candle, but they didn’t have any at my store, so I checked out whatever they had. I settled on a Mainstays Fresh Cotton
scented candle. One of my favorite scents!

Next, I headed over to the body care section. I found bubble bath, but I wasn’t sure about buying it. I, believe it or not, asked a random shopper what she would rather have. She actually told me that she would rather have body wash, since her tub was too small. I thought.. Good Idea! So I opted for the body wash/bath oil from Village Naturals called Restless Nights Relief in Lavender and Chamomile
. It smells really good! Along with the Body Wash, you must had a bath pouf to exfoliate!

Next up was the Aveeno Positively Nourishing Calming Lotion
in Lavender & Chamomile. I figured, if you’re taking a nice relaxing bath, why not moisturize right after? right?

Lastly, I went over the the card section and found a card that said everything that I wanted to say to my Mom. It was actually perfect, so I was excited to find it!

Total for my gift basket?

Candle: $5.00

Aveeno Lotion: $5.96

Body Wash: $4.97

Bath Pouf: $1.00

Mom’s Day Card: 4.97

Total: $21.90 + 7% tax= $23.43

I already had a cute basket at home, and tissue paper to wrap with, so it worked out perfectly!

You can put together a gift basket just as easily for your mom, and it’s great because you personalize it to her likes! You can a gardening gift basket with some seeds, gloves, and gardening tools, or even an art basket with whatever art supplies she usually uses. The possibilities are pretty much endless!

Have fun shopping for Mom, and Happy Mother’s Day to all of you wonderful Moms out there!

The dangers of swallowing batteries are all too real when it comes to young children and their common habit of putting small items into their mouths. That’s why Rayovac®, a worldwide leader in battery power and innovation, has created new robust packaging for its coin-sized batteries. This innovative packaging can deter children from accessing the batteries entirely.

Numerous packaging initiatives have been started by Rayovac but none more important than creating new battery packaging that makes child-safety a top priority. Extensive research has been conducted showcasing the prevalence of lithium coin-cells being consumed by children. According to this research, there are approximately 500 cases of coin cells being swallowed each year¹. While only 6% of these cases involve batteries that came directly from the packaging¹, Rayovac continues to increase awareness by implementing further changes to the packaging of its specialty batteries.

Tangible changes include updated warnings on the front and back side of the battery pack. An updated warning icon and improved warning copy inform the consumer of the hazards associated with coin cell batteries. Later in 2013, Rayovac will start shipping coin-cell sized batteries that are physically imprinted with a child safety warning so awareness and education continues after the packaging is discarded.

Further enhancements include an improved packaging structure that helps to prevent accidental ingestions. The new coin cell package has been newly created to trap the plastic blister that holds the battery between two cards. Now, to access the battery, a pair of scissors is required. For multi-packs, each cell is individually sealed requiring the consumer to cut out each battery. This update has proven to be substantial because individual dispensing is now encouraged.

“Efforts to enhance our packaging structure have made it far less likely that our coin cell batteries will end up in the hands of children,” said Jim Heidenreich, Rayovac General Manager, North American Batteries. “Taking the time to increase safety measures and raise awareness of the hazards of lithium coin cells is something we take pride in.”

Also available to consumers is the new Rayovac Specialty Battery webpage that was launched in the Spring of 2012. This page is dedicated to providing consumers with important facts and relevant information regarding coin cell batteries.

Please visit http://www.rayovac.com/Learning/Coin-Cell-Safety.aspx, to learn more about lithium coin cell safety.

*This post is sponsored by Rayovac. I am a part of the Rayovac Power Bloggers. Participation in this program is voluntary, and as always, opinions are my own.

We’ve all see the really expensive robotic floor cleaners that cost hundreds of dollars. The O-Duster Robotic Floor Cleaner is available at your local Walmart and online at Walmart.com for just $39.98.. which makes it way more affordable.. but how well does it work?

The new O-Duster Robotic Floor Cleaner has an auto-navigation feature that helps it cover all your hard floor surfaces with faster and simpler floor dusting. Its flexible base is designed to reach into corners and along edges while the compact design slips under sofas, beds and other furniture to grab dust and pet hair.

I figured I’d give it a shot in my entry way to see how well it does. It’s a high traffic area, and we recently had a friend’s dog over, that sheds a lot… so I figured it would be a good thing to see how well it picks up pet hair. I charged up the O-Duster Cleaner for 24 hours, and got ready to set it up for some work.

The entry way was definitely in need of a cleaning, so I took out one of the disposable dust cloths, and put it on the cleaner. Easy enough. I set it down and pushed the power button. There are two buttons. One is a short cleaning program, approximately 30 minutes, and the other is the long cleaning program, approximately 120 minutes. I stood in the entry way to watch it, and it didn’t take long before I was a little bit disappointed. We have carpet in the rooms off of the hardwoods, and have a wooden trim between the wood and carpet. Every time the O-Duster got close to it, it would get stuck and have to be moved off of the trim. It happened often as it bumped from wall to wall, thus gave me the feeling it needed to be watched constantly, rather than left to do it’s work alone. It also didn’t take but a few minutes before I noticed it was doing more pushing of dust than it was picking up. It would move little pieces of pet hair or grass out of the way instead of grab it.

Update: Here’s a quick video that I did, showing the issue with catching on my floor trim, and a shot of the dust cloth after about 20 mins of running around my entry way.. It did pick up quite a bit, but I probably could’ve swept it in a shorter amount of time, especially since I had to watch it to make sure it wouldn’t get stopped.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KPVgwlgEO5g

If you’d like to check it out, you can find it at your local Walmart store. I’d love to know what you think of it!

First, we had to build our garden beds. We framed up some wood boards that we had, and got some enriched top soil from our local outdoor store. We bought a bunch of our plants from the farmer’s market and even got a few from Walmart! We knew there would be a lot of work to do, so we also got a few nice gardening tools, and gloves from Walmart as well. Once all the hard work was done, you know, shoveling soil into the garden boxes, we got to sit down and have some fun!

The girls were able to each pick out some fruits and veggies that they really wanted to grow this year. Some of those were watermelon, zucchini, tomatoes, and basil. Mommy and Daddy picked up the peppers, both sweet and hot, a few kinds of tomatoes, cilantro, yellow squash, and broccoli. We even got a hanging strawberry planter, that is taking it’s time growing. I’m pretty sure I’m missing a couple of items, but you get the idea :).

We got an awesome set of Fiskars gardening tools for a great price at Walmart, and these tools really helped us make the process go a lot faster. One of my girls dug the holes while the other put the plant in, and then covered them back up. It worked out well! The most difficult part was figuring out where all of the plants would go!

Starting a garden is not difficult. Keeping it alive.. Well, I’ll leave that up to my kids. I will probably forget to water it here and there… We really can’t wait to see how well everything grows this year. We eat a lot of fruits and veggies, and are really excited about eating produce that we grow ourselves rather than buy from the grocery store!

Walmart had most of what we needed, and if you are looking to start a garden, now is a great time to do it (unless you are still under snow, which is crazy!)

Check it out! You can get a lot for around $25!

To see what we did and how we did it, click on the photos below to enlarge them!

[Show as slideshow]

They are currently running a sweepstakes, which aims to discover which types of people America believes to have the biggest headaches. Is it rush hour commuters? First time parents? Tax filing citizens? Our theory is that although headaches are no joke, the situations that cause headaches can be quite humorous, and in this spirit, we believe this sweepstakes will be a fun way for America to engage with the brand and gain insight on personal headache triggers.

This sweepstakes, which is on  on Excedrin’s Facebook page, runs through May 14th, and you have the chance to enter to win daily prizes! They’ve posted a series of humorous video vignettes that bring to life 16 headache-inducing situations that many of you can undoubtedly relate to. Facebook fans of Excedrin can enter the sweepstakes and vote for which of the 16 situations they believe is life’s biggest headache. Folks who enter the sweepstakes will also have the opportunity to win the grand prize of a trip for two to Jamaica. The grand prize winner will be announced at the beginning of June.

I’ve entered the sweepstakes myself, voting for anyone from the Parents raising Toddlers to the Dental Patients. It’s actually kind of funny seeing all of those pictures, and knowing that I’m at least a few of them!

Excedrin® is a trusted brand with more than 50 years’ experience providing effective headache relief. Excedrin® Extra Strength is a combination pain reliever – acetaminophen/aspirin/caffeine – that provides temporary relief of minor pains and aches due to headaches.  Use only as directed. Excedrin® Extra Strength ends headaches fast, and is available in caplet form in the following counts: 24, 100, 200 and 300 at food, drug, mass and club stores across the U.S. I use it when I feel a headache coming on, just to keep it from turning into one of my nasty migraines, and it usually works!

Excedrin knows that many of you fall in to  some of those categories too, and while we’re not giving out Excedrin here, we are giving away a mini stress relief gift pack to help you relieve some of the day to day stress that anything you do. This gift pack includes the following items:

§  Foam roller

§  Anti-stress microwaveable neck pillow

§  Yoga mat

Want to win it? Just enter via the Rafflecopter widget below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

This post sponsored by Excedrin. I am being paid for my time on this post and giveaway. Any opinions, as always, are my own.

I was just there looking through the Garden Center at Walmart the other day, and found some really nice furniture, that would look awesome in my back yard! Now, to just convince the hubby that we need it… Hee hee..

What do you think?  It’s similar to the set I currently have, but nicer. Yes, I think I need this set! This Azalea Ridge 4 piece conversation set, by Better Homes & Gardens runs $598.

There is something for everyone’s budget at the Walmart Outdoor Living/Garden Center too! From Bistro sets, to dining sets, they have a great selection, and of course, their Every Day Low Prices!

Apparently, my eye is drawn to this brick/reddish/orange color this year… I saw this, not realizing they were piecing together less expensive options with the Azalea Coffee Table and Love Seat.

If you’re looking for things to brighten up the outdoor areas, They have lots of really fun and cute light kits, or hanging potted plants available too!

I just loved the Angry Birds Solar Lights! Too cute!

I did find some items that I needed for our yard, including a solar lighted butterfly and dragonfly. Those are in my front yard now.

So.. Walmart has lots of great things, at some really great prices. They’re ready for Spring, are you?

The good news is that whether you knit, or crochet, you can make this scarf easily, and fairly quickly, and for the cost of one skein of yarn! I can’t knit, but when I found the crochet pattern, I was really excited!

Here is the first scarf that I made. Yes, my daughter has already claimed it. I now have to make a purple one for my other daughter. At some point, I’ll be making one for me too!

To make this particular scarf, all you have to do is 4
single crochets back and forth until you’ve finished the length of the skein. I’m not kidding! It’s that easy!

Sashay Yarn is a unique kind of yarn with a touch of metallic that creates beautiful ruffle scarves and accessories with just one ball. It looks like a long ribbon while it’s all balled up, but once you really take a look at it, you’ll see that there’s more to it. The fun part is that it comes in a bunch of different colors, so you can make something that goes with just about any outfit.. and for only $4.67 for one skein of yarn, it’s a great price! I’ve seen similar scarves sold in stores for $25 or more!

Here’s a quick video on how to crochet using Sashay Yarn:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oi3r7FlCvtM

After perusing the Red Heart website, I found several other really cute patterns that can be made using the Sashay Yarn.

A Ruffle Pillow

Rose Parade Wrap

Nanette Knit Scarf- I can’t knit to save my life, but I know some of you can :)

Just search around, and you’ll find all kinds of really cute ideas! I have already purchased some extra skeins of the Sashay and have several projects in the works! I can’t wait to work even more with this yarn! It’s so much fun, and they make great gifts! Just think.. Mother’s Day is coming up soon, and if you plan ahead, Christmas would be a great time to give these as gifts too!

If you’d like to purchase some Sashay Yarn to give any of these, or other projects a try, you find it online at Walmart.com or in your local Walmart store’s craft section!

I recently watched Drew Barrymore on “The View”.. I know.. I don’t usually watch  daytime TV, but I happened to be sitting down to lunch at the time, and I have always loved Drew, so I kept it on. I saw her talking about the product and was actually surprised when she said it would be available exclusively at Walmart stores! Just a couple of days later, the Walmart Moms were asked if some of us would like to try it.. Um. YES!  So here I am..

Drew Barrymore’s new premium cosmetics line, FLOWER, is custom formulated with the same quality ingredients found in department store luxury brands, but sold for a fraction of the price. FLOWER encompasses Drew’s favorite cosmetics that she’s used throughout her career. The portfolio consists of more than 181 eye, face, lip and nail products ranging from $4.98 to $13.98, and is available in more than 1,500 Walmart stores and on Walmart.com/Flower.

We were sent a gift bag with several of the makeup items to try out. I received the Zoom-in Ultimate Mascara, On Your Mark Liquid Eyeliner, Long Wear Eyeliner pencil, About Face Foundation/Base, Powder Trip Powder Foundation, Color Play Creme Eyeshadow, Win Some Rouge Some Creme Blush, Lip Service Lip Butter, and Shine On Lip Gloss.

So what do you think?

I’ve tried everything but the eyeliner pencil and the blush, and so far, I really like the makeup! The Foundation blends very nicely, and I really like the foundation powder too. The liquid eyeliner is awesome. The tip is soft, not stiff, so it glides very nicely. The lip gloss and lip butter are cute, but my two most favorite pieces so far are the Mascara and the Creme Eye liner. The eye liner is pretty cool. I can put it on thin for a lighter look, blending with my eyeshadow brush, or I can put it on a little thicker for a darker, more dramatic look. The Mascara is fun too! You can actually TWIST the applicator brush. Each of the settings does something a little different. Straight brush lengthens, one click twist curls, and two clicks volumizes lashes. It’s fun to play with the different settings! Check it out!

All in all, I look forward to shopping for more of this brand!

You can check it out too, only at your local Walmart stores!