It’s BACK!  FREE SeaWorld Passes!!!  If you are a teacher or are active in the military (or know anyone who is) check these out.

Teachers

Register now for a FREE FunCard to SeaWorld San Antonio before June 30, 2012 and you can get a free FunCard.  FunCards get you in the door FREE ALL YEAR LONG – as many trips as you want (parking not included)!!!  What an awesome way to reward those who give their everything to our children every day!  All you need is a valid Texas Teacher certification, valid Texas ID, a copy of your pay-stub from the last 30 days, and the eVoucher that you get when you register online.  Once you get your eVoucher you must redeem by August 31, 2012.

Active Military

As a thank you for service to our country, all active military (all five service branches, active members of a reserve or National Guard unit), and up to three direct dependants can receive FREE admission to SeaWorld one time per year (parking not included)!  Once you register bring your voucher along with a valid, active-duty Military/Service ID (dependents ages 10 and over must present valid Dependent ID also).  This is valid all year long.

Both groups deserve so much more, but I am happy that places like SeaWorld are offering these passes.  Please pass along to any teachers or military personnel you know.

The busiest shopping day of the year is a week away but many stores have already released their black Friday sales circulars.  This means, you should be preparing your plan of action NOW!  Below are a few tips to keep in mind and get ready for your big day.

1) Make a list.  Think about what you want to purchase for yourself and others and write it down.  I tend to do this BEFORE looking at the sales so I’m not persuaded.

2) Scope out the sales NOW.  Cross check your list with the sales and find the best prices.  You will also want to prioritize your purchases.  You will not be able to visit every store and get everything on  your list so stick with the big ticket items and largest group of like products.  For example, if you have a lot of teenagers, you will probably want to hit up an electronics store for TVs, gaming consoles, games, cameras, phones, electronic accessories, etc.  If you’re mainly looking for clothes, hit the mall.  Check here to find all the Black Friday sales.  Also, check your ad prices against online stores.  Many are meeting those prices now.

3) Avoid impulse purchases.  There will be so many sales pushed in your face at the store and just because something is 75% off, doesn’t mean you need (or even want) it.  Stick to your list.

4) Get a partner (or two).  You will spend lots of time waiting in lines and let’s face it, four hands are better than two when trying to snag all your items.  You guys will be able to tag-team in the stores and if you can get a big group together, you can divide stores among your friends.

5) Dress comfortably.  You will spend many hours waiting in lines, some outside.  So dress warm and comfy!

6) Charge your cell phone.  You will need it and it will be dead if you don’t do this.

7) Don’t fret.  You still have Cyber Monday!  If you don’t want to battle the crowds, stay home and do your shopping online.  Many online retailers will have Black Friday sales in addition to great deals on Cyber Monday.  Competition is just as fierce, so have your credit card number ready and your internet up to speed.  You can check out some of the Cyber Monday deals now.

All month long, SeaLife Aquarium and LegoLand in Grapevine Mall are collecting canned goods for local area food banks.  Bring in 3 canned goods and get $3 off your ticket.  Bringing the whole family?  Be sure to bring 3 cans per person to get your discount on everyone.  One thing to note, discounts are only available when walk-up tickets are available which means you probably won’t snag this deal on the weekends for LegoLand since it remains packed.  I’d recommend calling the day of and asking if tickets are still available for the time you were wanting to go before you make the trip out there.  Great way to have some major fun with the family while helping another family receive some food for their pantry.

Some other posts you might be interested in:

LegoLand

SeaLife Aquarium

Day of Fun at Grapevine Mills

I am so excited the State Fair is almost here.  The fair opens September 30 and runs through October 23, 2011.  We try to go every year as a family but with five people, that gets to be pretty expensive so I’m always on the lookout for discounts to help fit this experience in our budget.  Here is a list of ways you can save this year too, if you’re flexible on when you can go, they have some pretty good weekday discounts.  If you have school-aged children and weekends are your only option, shoot for Sundays, Frisco and Dallas ISDs (and probably everyone else too) give free student tickets.  The trick is making sure your student keeps track of it until it makes it into your hands.  The free tickets are valid Sundays only and also come with a dollar off coupon that you can use on the adult tickets.

Advance Ticket Sales on-line
Get a ticket on-line now, for $13.95. Kids and Seniors are $10.95 advance. You can even order sheets of food coupons in advance too!

Opening Day Sept. 30
Bring a 20 oz. bottle of Dasani water (or any Coca-Cola product) for donation to the North Texas Food Bank containers at Fair admission gates and get in for $5 per (per donation) per person.

DART Combo Ticket
Available at Kroger Food Stores. $17 buys 1 general admission to 2011 State Fair of Texas & round-trip transportation on DART the day of your visit. The Green Line drops off at front gate and a second station is located within easy walking distance to the MLK entrance. Advance ticket is $14.50 at Kroger without the DART pass.

DART Fair Pass (transportation only)
You can also pre-purchase just a DART pass for $4 to use on either Saturday October 1 or Saturday October 8 here.

Kroger/Cinemark Season Pass
Get a season pass at Kroger for $29.95, and it includes unlimited visits for the pass holder, one buddy pass for one visit Monday thru Friday only, and a Cinemark Movie pass good Sunday thru Thursday that must be used by October 31st.

Dr Pepper $4 Tuesdays
Every Tuesday, bring an empty Dr Pepper can and enter for $4. Most rides on those Tuesdays (excluding the Thrillway, Texas Star & selected other attractions) are 5 coupons.

Dr Pepper $5 after 5 p.m.
Bring an empty Dr Pepper can to any State Fair admission gate after 5 p.m. and enter for $5.

Kroger “Three for $2″ Wednesdays
Admission is $2 for each visitor bringing 3 cans of food on Wednesday only, for area food banks.

Coke $5 Thursdays
Bring an empty 20 oz. bottle of a Coca-Cola product and enter the Fair for $5 admission on Thursdays.

Seniors Day sponsored by DRIVE4COPD
FREE Thursdays for Senior Citizens 60 years and older.

Dickies Day
Thursday, October 6th, wear and show your Dickies logo clothing item at the staffed tent outside the gate and receive a voucher. The voucher is for FREE admission on Thursday October 6th only.

Any Day McDonald’s Deal
McDonald’s offers $4 off General Admission with one of their State Fair coupons (available on tray liner or bag stuffers) any day of the Fair. A free child ticket (with purchase of general admission) coupon is also distributed by McDonald’s. Offer may not be combined with any other offer.

Museum of Nature & Science Members
FREE Admission for you! Members receive a voucher this week (I got mine last week) good for free admission for two adults and up to 4 children. Voucher is good on any week day of the fair. You’re not a member? Join now silly and get your voucher!

West Side Story at the Music Hall
If you buy a ticket to the West Side Story performance at the Music Hall at Fair Park, it will include a same-day fair admission.

I can taste the funnel cake and corn dogs now.  Yummy!

Our Dirk Shirts

We truly are beaming with Texas pride in our household with the recent Mavericks win and parade. What better way to showcase our pride than with cute t-shirts? I purchased all four of our licensed shirts on the corner of our local gas station. They were a bit pricier (about $20 each) than what I was comfortable paying for, but they were so darn cute and we were really rooting for the Mavs (this was before their NBA win).

Since purchasing our shirts, I discovered these shirts are also sold via the internet and can be found on www.amazon.com.

- Cool Playground Mommy

Save money with these deals!

Just a few more weeks of summer vacation for the kiddos, but there are some great deals out there, if you can stand outside activities in the triple digit weather! Check out these “cool” deals for August:

Fairy Tale Castles on display at the Dallas Arboretum

Dallas Arboretum Dollar admission to the end of August. Don’t forget about the water area called Toad Corners and the Fairy Tale Castles on display.

Dollar Days at the Trinity River Audubon Center Another dollar admission. In addition to the walking trails, TRAC has an air-conditioned exhibit hall (Yeah for AC!!) and will be showing the movie Rio on August 18th!

Dallas Zoo  Children half-price through August 21st! Don’t forget to check out the deals for DART riders, as well! the SOAR! Bird Show ends Labor Day weekend, so don’t miss it!

Dallas Museum of Art Half-price Thursdays from 11 am until 9 pm through the month of August.

Fort Worth Museum of Science and History Every Tuesday through August 30th, 2011, guests who purchase a general admission ticket will receive a second of equal or lesser value for free. This offer does not include the Omni theater or Noble planetarium.

Come watch the Pigs Race!

Early Bird Specials for the State Fair of Texas Buying online in advance can save a dollar off of general admission tickets, $10 off of a season pass and even a little on tickets! Less than 50 days to go! The fair opens September 30th and ends October 23rd.

Playing Football on the Field

Now that the Super Bowl crowd has come and gone, we felt safe to venture to the Cowboys Stadium for a self guided tour. It was a bit chilly, so we huddled to stay warm while waiting in line to redeem our tickets from the box office as we had purchased ours through Groupon (love the discounts!). As soon as we got in, we felt like lottery ticket winners because we were finally allowed into their facilities while others waited in line and watched.

The wait was definitely worth it! As soon as we walked in, we were in for a magical experience (not bad for $8) though we were first ushered thru their gift shop. We were then allowed to visit the Cowboys’ locker room, the Cowboy Cheerleaders’ locker room (a real treat for my girly girls since we were told it was closed for the day due to the cheer auditions being held onsite), the interview room, and the coveted field. We purchased a football (a small price to pay in exchange for playing on the field) to throw around to the girls and paid $20 for our family picture.

Overall it was such a great day. There was no time limit as to how long we could stay, but I’d say two hours would be sufficient for the tour. Unfortunately for us, we forgot that the Rangers also had a game so we faced heavy traffic on the way home.

- Cool Playground Mommy

Did you know July is Cheesecake History month?  Neither did I, but thank goodness the folks at The Cheesecake Factory did!  On July 30th you can get any slice of cheesecake half off!  This is for dine-in only and since it’s a Saturday the place will be packed but sneak in around 3 or 4 for a great mid-afternoon snack with the kids, or with the girls.  They will also be debuting their all new Hershey’s Chocolate Bar Cheesecake for all those die-hard chocolate lovers out there.  No coupon needed, check out their facebook page for all the details.

It’s the middle of July and that means its time to start shopping the sales for back to school supplies and clothes.  One sale you definitely want to check out this weekend is the Kid2Kid Semi-Annual Clearance Sale in McKinney and Allen (hopefully the other locations will jump on this too).  The sale runs Friday, Aug 15 – Sunday, Aug 17 with an additional 15% – 25% off all clearance.  Regular priced merchandise will be an additional 10% off.  Hurry and join their mailing list and you can snag a 25% off coupon to use on top of all the other discounts this weekend!  I love this time of year and I love walking out of a store with outfits costing $1-$2 each!!

If you need to make room in your closet for these fabulous new clothes, be sure to get on the mailing lists for Divine Consign and Rhea Lana’s to be one of the first to hear when registration begins.  They are getting ready to gear up for their fall consignment sales in August/September which means registration will happen very soon, but you have to be quick to consign with the guys, space fills up FAST!

Gatti Town (not to be confused with Gatti’s Pizza) IS awesome! I was literally blown away how perfect this restaurant suits a family.

Not only was Gatti Town in a great location (close to Frisco’s Stonebriar mall and adjoining shopping plazas along the freeway), but it was new, clean, and the employees were helpful and courteous to us, newbies.

After paying an admission price, it was easy to spot the centrally located buffet. The menu consisted of pizza (of course!), pasta, salads, and dessert. Once done with grabbing food, we were faced with choosing a place to sit (there were three areas with varying themes).  We chose to sit in their movie theater which was showing “The Incredibles.”

One of the Three Seating Options - a movie theater

You’d think we had taken the girls to Disney World by their grins on their face and I have to admit, I couldn’t wait for them to finish their food so we could check out their midway (which by the way, didn’t disappoint!). There was a carousel, bumper carts and games galore. I loved how there was ample room to move about and how easy it was to spot kids.

Enjoying the Midway With Daddy!

All in all, we had another great time at Gatti Town. The next time we visit, we’ll have to ride along their train which was stationed outside of the restaurant.

-  Cool Playground Mommy