Who doesn’t love Marks and Spencer?

They’re one of those fantastic shops of your childhood aren’t they? My Gran would always buy her ‘bits’ from Marks and Spencer, and even after she had a stroke we would take her over to Taunton from Bridgwater every Saturday to stock up on rich tea fingers, ready to bake cauliflower cheese and other M&S essentials. Of course in the good old days you couldn’t buy things like Marmite – it was M&S brands only – but I guess as you get older you have to accept that things change.

*sigh*

win marks and spencer vouchers View Post

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Before Christmas I had dinner with a group of bloggers and some of the team from Voucher Codes. We were talking about children and family finances as Voucher Codes were doing some research to put together a white paper. It was an interesting discussion, but what I thought would be more interesting than just me telling you about it would be to get Bee to read the report and give her opinion from a grown up child perspective. I told her she could be as honest as she liked, I wouldn’t stop her pocket money.

Over to Bee…

Recently Voucher Codes put together a white paper on the relationship between children and family finances. The paper combines data, expert opinion and the informed judgements of parents to form a view of how children feel about family finances. After a survey of 1000 parents and 1000 5-16 year olds, some statistics came to light on the subject.

“So what if kids worry about money? It’s nothing to do with them.”  View Post

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Calling all bargain hunters! Today I want to tell you all about on of the newest voucher code kids on the block – www.myfavouritevouchercodes.co.uk! Bear with me, it is more exciting than it sounds…

Last weekend was Belle’s 11th birthday. Finding school friends for parties in the middle of the summer holidays is always tricky so this year we went for a bit of a family sleepover (yes I slept on the floor…) with Belle’s favourite food – delivered pizza.*

With delivered pizza I get to score twice – Belle thinks I am super cool and generous, but I get to save money, as we are voucher code fiends. It’s only been in the last few years that I have discovered the joy that is saving money simply by googling something, (thank you to Boyfriend for that – he really was made for a career in procurement), but now there is no going back. Why on earth would you pay full price for something if you could just tappety tap and get money off? It would be madness. View Post

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Following her very thorough Blackberry Curve 9320 review, I invited Bee back to talk about the joys of voucher codes…

In my house we are big on voucher codes.

I can’t go anywhere without someone saying “don’t forget to take this 2 for 1 offer/money off voucher/loyalty card with you”. In fact one of the highlights for the family this weekend (surprisingly I didn’t attend) was spending some vouchers in 99p Stores. They came back with all sorts of random things, the most obscure being the gift they got for me, which was a pack of 6 little tubs of tooth picks. I guess they could always be used as mini sticks for mini marshmallows around a Bunsen burner.

"mini marshmallows"

Anyway, this got me thinking, I could use voucher codes to my advantage, with Christmas just around the corner. Seventeen is an awkward age to be when it comes to buying Christmas presents, as people assume you are old enough to buy your own gifts, but you also don’t have as much disposable income as adults.

Also, truth be told, you’re just not as tuned in with the rest of your family as they are, meaning you’re never sure what they would actually like and what would be a waste of the £10 you had scraped together to get them a token present. So I thought going onto a voucher code website could kill two birds with one stone – (not literally. I would never throw a rock at a bird. I’m a vegetarian. And I don’t want an ASBO) – I could get some inspiration for good gift ideas and hopefully save some money too.

I had a browse through the discount vouchers at netvouchercodes.co.uk to see what I could find. Clicking onto the “popular vouchers” tab I found a code for £20 off when you spend £55 on Crocs. I didn’t think I’d be downloading that one. I may not have a passion for fashion but I do know where to draw the line.

Another awkward voucher I found was “20% off the Diamond Plus Service using this Divorce Online Voucher Code.” I don’t think I’d be invited to my Dad’s house for Christmas dinner again if I got him this. (Plus I wouldn’t want him to get divorced obviously).

One suitable voucher code did catch my eye though – “£20 off when you spend £100 or more on Premium Beauty using this Boots Discount Code.” Well there you go, I can get £100 worth of fancy moisturiser in a box for £80. That’s half of my Christmas list done. I didn’t even have to leave the comfort of my kitchen table; I could just use the Boots discount voucher, go straight to their website and order online!

Now that’s what I call Christmas shopping.

 

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Let’s face it, we all love pizza.

It doesn’t get much better than tucking into a crispy base, munching on the stringy cheese and getting your teeth stuck into a range of wonderful toppings – pure heaven!

Although takeaway pizzas and shop bought ones are always tasty, they can often be a bit costly, not to mention the damage they can do to your waistline. So how about putting the takeaway menu down for a night and making your very own? Not only will it be quick, easy and relatively healthy (depending on the topping) it’s sure to taste great too!

"Homemade Pitta Bread Pizza"

Firstly, don’t bother spending ages making the dough. A great idea is to use pitta bread as the base instead. This means the kids can have their own pitta bread and put whatever they like on it, which is always a lot of fun. It’s also great to get them involved in the kitchen. Here are the ingredients:

  • Pitta bread (white or whole wheat)
  • Tomato pizza sauce
  • Grated cheese (low fat depending on how healthy you want to be)
  • Dried herbs (oregano or basil)
  • Toppings of your choice

It’s always a good idea when cooking with younger children to get all the ingredients out ready in small tubs or on plates. This means they’ll be able to use the ingredients in front of them rather than searching around the whole kitchen! Here’s how to make it:

  1. Preheat oven to around 200˚C.
  2. Spoon pizza sauce all over the pitta bread and spread well.
  3. Sprinkle evenly with grated cheese.
  4. Scatter a few dried herbs.
  5. Add desired toppings.
  6. Place on a sheet of ovenproof paper and bake for 5-7 minutes or until cheese has melted.
  7. Slice evenly with a pizza cutter and tuck in!

Let the kids really have fun with this by encouraging them to make various patterns and designs with their toppings. Anyone on a budget should check out the various Tesco voucher codes available too to save some cash on their weekly shop. A good tip is to stock up on cans and tins that you can keep in the cupboard for a later date so you can make your favourite dishes time and time again. The little ones are sure to enjoy making (and eating) their own pizzas and will probably want to make them more often. Whether you want a quick snack or you’re planning the evening meal, these pitta bread pizzas are perfect for having some fun in the kitchen.

"Takeaway Pizza Boxes"

Alternatively, if you really must get that takeaway for a special treat, there’s no need to pay full price for it. Take a look at the range of discount vouchers at Pizza Hut on different days of the week and you’ll keep both the kids and your bank balance happy!

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