Me and My Kin

My family on the Ferry Boat - Seattle Washington 2012

~ By Samantha ~


Here is our family. Me (Samantha), The Hubby, JJ, Liam and Baby Ashley. 

They make my life complete...and maybe a little crazier too.

Shopping with Promotion Codes

~ By Samantha ~

I find that life with three small children 5 years and under, "going out" to shop can be nearly impossible. Unless my husband who has a full time job and is going to school twice a week comes with us, getting out to the store rarely happens. Here is the deal, I love going out to retail shops and picking through the clothes and actually touching a tangible item. I love the thrill of making the purchase and leaving the store with my items. But I also like my sanity and going into a store like Old Navy with these three small kids, will make me loose it for sure!

I have found that shopping on line is the way to go for me right now. The pressure is off. I don't have to hurry up and pick something out before one of them starts crying. I don't have to worry who is where and if my 5 and almost 2 year old are playing inside the clothing racks. I don't have to lug my items around while carrying my 5 month old in her "baby wearing" pack. Oh the list goes on about how much easier it is to just sit in front of my computer, browse ALL of the times that I want to, when I want to, all while my babies are tucked in for the night. I can make my purchase stress free with just the click of a few buttons. And don't get me started on the thrill of waiting for it to come in the mail! Around here we call them "special deliveries" and they are a big deal. When the door bell rings, we don't know who it is for (Mom, Dad the kids) or where it is coming from until you open it (we don't look at the shipping label, that makes it more fun). So when you shop on line not only do you get the thrill once when you make the initial purchase, you get it again when it shows up on your door step. Nice. Shopping on line is a convenience that we didn't have years ago. Thank goodness that was before I had 3 small children :)

Another great thing about shopping on line is that you can use all kinds of coupons and codes that are not available for use in the retail store. I found that promotion codes are the way to go. There are hundreds and hundreds of coupon codes for more stores than I can count. The list of retailers goes on and on. This is great for me because with a family of 5 we are always in need of things like new pants, shoes, toys, games, entertainment items and much more. I am all about saving money on items that you buy anyways, so I am always checking sites to see what kind of a deal I can get for the day. If you like online shopping and you like saving money this something you might want to look into. Coupons nowadays are not like they used to be, you don't have to buy the Sunday paper and cut them out, file them and take them with you to the store. They are just a click away, it doesn't get any faster or easier than that. And for this busy Mom it doesn't get any better than saving time and money!

*This is a sponsored post. All opinions are my own and may vary from your experience. 

What I Wore Wednesday - Lunch Date

~ By Samantha ~

Here on Popcorn and Pearls (or P&P as we like to call it) we would love to do a "What I Wore Wednesday" post with my little sister Megan. Every Wednesday she will post a picture of what she is wearing for the day with the place she bought it at and how much each item costs. With a variety of new, and affordable and not-so-affordable pieces from her enormous closet. There is a shopping gene in 2 out of the 3 of my Mother's daughters (me being the other) and Megan has it bad. She loves all things "vintage" and second hand! But the gal also knows when to buy new, and that quality lasts. She is all style all the time. Every time we see Megan she is dressed so stylish and her outfit always has a "great find" story from a second hand store she purchased it at. Which goes to show that if you look hard enough, you really can dress great on any budget. And it helps that she can hit up all of those thrifty shops in Seattle!

• Shirt- Goodwill- 99 cents
• Skirt- Forever 21- $10
• Tights- Rite Aid- Buy one get one $5
• Boots- Value Village- $9
• Corduroy Jacket- Goodwill- $6
• J3LL Watch- Barrowed
• Big Turquoise Ring- Thrifted- $5

Hoping Everybody Had A Great 3 Day Weekend

~ By Patricia ~

We love long weekends here at Popcorn and Pearls, who doesn't, right?
I spent a few quiet days reading, doing some thrift store shopping, and eating some really yummy sushi from Trader Joe's. I am not a sushi snob, and for the price, Trader Joe's can't be beat. The weather was beautiful in Seattle, so many people and their dogs were out enjoying it.
Of course I hit up one of my favorite places, Starbucks, for a vanilla latte a couple of times. Rain or shine, I definitely love my coffee.
Don't forget to enter our first giveaway to win a $25 gift card to Starbucks.
Hope you all have a terrific Tuesday.

Olympic Game Farm or Jurassic Park?

~ By Samantha ~


Everyone remembers the Jurassic Park movies right? You know where they are in the vehicles and they drive around on the outlined path where they can view all of the roaming dinosaurs. Where you have to stay in your vehicle so the wild animals don't attack you. Well we have our own version of that right here in Washington, at least that is what it feels like to me. It is called the Olympic Game Farm and it is a blast! You drive your own vehicle (at your own risk, you have to sigh a waiver!) around the Game Farm feeding the animals from Elk, Zebras, Llamas, Bison, BEARS and more!!! There is a strict "Wheat Bread" only policy for the animals that you must uphold to keep the animals healthy. They give you a map and send you on your way...

JJ "reading" the map

About to approach the wild!

They come right up to your windows!

Liam and the hubby feeding the llama, they are so brave!

Tons of bears with just a short little fence between you and the beast!

See the sighs? Stay in your car or else!

Liam and I hiding hanging out in the back seat, I get a little nervous!

 It is so much fun for the kids and adults, if you are not chicken like I am. We have been there several times and I am getting more comfortable. The animals are just so invasive and stick their heads right in your windows if you let them! There are even sweet little bunnies throughout your tour to see and feed. Seriously fun for the whole family.

*And in case you are appalled that they are not wearing any seat belts and JJ is riding in the front seat, you go like 5-10 MPH inside the farm and it is considered OK. As soon as we pull back out of the exit and into the parking lot, they go right back into their car seats :)

Popcorn and Pearls $25 Starbucks Giveaway

In celebration of launching our blog, Popcorn and Pearls, we are hosting our first giveaway!

In honor of the Great Northwest, and the place we call home, we wanted to offer a giveaway that has ties to our great state of Washington. Despite the fact that Starbucks is everywhere these days, Seattle's very own Pike Place Market is the birthplace of the very first Starbucks!

We love our coffee, and we know you do too, so we would like to give you the opportunity to win a $25.00 gift card to Starbucks.

 GIVEAWAY

Win a $25 Starbucks Gift Card

To Enter This Giveaway:

Follow Popcorn and Pearls in any of the following ways:

*Leave a comment with the way your following and be sure to leave your email address if its not public in your Google account* Be sure to leave a separate comment for each of the ways you follow us.


-Add Popcorn and Pearls to your Google+ Circle +1
-Follow Popcorn and Pearls on GFC (right hand side) +1
-Follow PopcornNPearls on Twitter +1

-Be a friend of Popcorn and Pearls on Facebook +1

-Like Popcorn and Pearls Facebook Fan Page +1

-Follow Popcorn and Pearls on Pinterest +1

-Share this giveaway on Facebook ONLY, using the Share Button at the bottom on this post. +1 for each share you do. (can be done once a day)

-Copy and Paste This Tweet on Twitter and leave us the link (to find the link click on the time stamp under your tweet. Can be done once a day for the duration of the giveaway)

#Win a $25 Starbucks Gift Card to @Starbucks from @PopcornNPearls #Giveaway ends 6/15 http://www.popcornandpearls.com/2012/05/in-celebration-of-launching-our-blog.html




*Limited to US residents 18 years old and above. Giveaway starts May 25, 2012 and ends on June 15th, 2012 at midnight PST. Winner will be emailed and has 48 hours to respond before another winner is selected. This is a self sponsored giveaway from Popcorn and Pearls. We will be providing the prize and will mail it directly to the winner. The opinions on this item are 100% mine and may vary from others.

New Beginnings

A view of my dresser with some old family photos, a daily reminder of my wonderful family.

~ By Patricia ~

I think beginnings are so exciting. Weather it's a new home, a new baby, or a new love, new beginnings are so sweet.

Starting a new blog doesn't quite fall into the earth shattering moments of life, but here at Popcorn and Pearls we are pretty excited. We hope to be open and honest about our thoughts and feelings about ourselves and the things we talk about. We love to laugh, but realize sometimes life throws you a curve ball and it's up to you how you respond to it.

Until this last year, my life revolved around my marriage and family. Anyone who knows me, knows that I think my kids are absolutely fabulous, all five of them. Throw in the grand kids and some terrific in-laws, and these are the people I adore. Sadly, my marriage of thirty five years ended. The best way of explaining it is that the children grew up and we grew apart. It happens to the best of us.

So, I am having to start a new life, a new beginning. I couldn't be more excited, or scared, or lost. And sometimes that's all in the same moment!

Blogging is all about sharing, and I am excited to add my voice here and share with you all the things I love, be it books, vintage shopping, reviews, giveaways, and much more.

I feel extremely lucky to live here in the Seattle area, rain and all. I'm hoping to show you some of my favorite places and things, and what makes Seattle so special. There's way more to us than coffee and Microsoft.

I'm also thrilled to be sharing this blog with my daughters. I hope you'll come along with us as we try to be our best selves as mothers, daughters, sisters and friends.

Welcome to Popcorn and Pearls

So here we are launching a new blog...

Magazine Rack in Pike Place Market, Seattle

~ By Samantha ~

I wouldn't say that Popcorn and Pearls is a spinoff of Frugal Family Tree but we are an extension of it. You may be wondering why we are creating this new blog so I am here to tell you - 

We love to blog. We love having readers. We love putting our thoughts out into this great big world. We love connecting with people. We love to share great things and get great things in return.

Laura, Patricia and I were talking about blogging and where we wanted to go with it. We were talking about how we live in two different states (Sam and Patricia in Washington and Laura in California) with different weather, people, shops and all around lifestyles. We also realized that when we did a blog post most of the time it was hard to figure out who was writing what and where or where we were even at, Washington or California. Sometimes it took reading the entire post and scrolling to the bottom to realize who was "talking". We did not like that. We also recently added my little sister Megan as a guest blogger (she too lives in Washington). Megan gives us a peek into beauty, fashion and her "thrifting with style" ways. So we thought it would be a great idea for Patricia (Nana) and I (Sam) to start a new blog. One about life in Seattle and the surrounding areas. A more personal one from Patricia and Samantha's point of view and daily living. After all isn't that why we read blogs, to see into the lives of others? To learn from others, to be inspired by others? I know that's why I love them!

The reason we chose the name Popcorn and Pearls is because we enjoy sitting down to a nice quiet movie with a bag of cheap popcorn but we also love to splurge on something as beautiful as a pearl necklace and head to the city. We would love to talk more about our lives and well as the people in it. We really want to get to know our readers and have you get to know us. We will highlight other blogs and great things we see on the web, there are so many great finds out there just waiting to be in the spotlight. We will also continue to do the reviews and giveaway, after all we all love great products!! We hope you enjoy our new blog and continue to be a loyal follower, thanks for reading!!

Patricia (Nana), Samantha (Me) and baby Ashley