Great Wolf Lodge in Williamsburg is offering up to 20% off an overnight stay which include free waterpark passes and a free pair of wolf ears for kids ages 12 and under.

Splash around outside or have a great time without the sunburn in their indoor water park, then play a game of MagiQuest, go bowling and other great activities!

The details
Available dates
Now – August 31st, 2014
Must book by July 22nd 2014
Use Code: HCOUNT
Click here to book your stay!

But too many experiences with cardboard crackers and bad generic brands has me shy away from store brands and going for the old faithful national brands most of the time.

I love the idea of the MARTIN’S Buy Theirs, Get Ours Free Challenge.
This week you can buy your favorite brand and get the MARTIN’S brand free (that’s double the groceries!).

I ran a little test in my own house with MARTIN’S products vs. the national brand:

Item 1: 8 pack of Quaker Chewy Bars vs. 10 pack MARTIN’s Own Brands Chewy Bars:

Look:  The MARTIN’S brand is slightly bigger than it’s Quaker counter part but they are mostly identical. You do get 2 more in the package so boom, you saved money right there.

Taste test:  In a regular taste test my 7 year old preferred the Quaker version to the MARTIN’S brand.  But then when I started replacing the Quaker with the MARTIN’S there were no complaints.  The MARTIN’S bars just a little bit chewier than the Quaker.

Verdict: Close enough.  If you start replacing the Quaker with MARTIN’S there won’t be any complaints.  Side by side Quaker has the edge.

Item 2: Campbell’s Chunky Soup vs. MARTIN’S Own Brand Chunky Soup

Chicken Corn Chowder

Look: MARTIN’S is slightly yellower but they are pretty similar in look

Taste test: While pretty similar, MARTIN’S has more corn in the soup and slightly less other stuff. What it lacks in chunks it makes up for in bacon-y flavor.  Campbells lists bacon as an ingredient but the flavor isn’t prominent and has larger chunks of carrots and celery in the soup.  In my small sample bowl I had 2 pieces of chicken in the Campbells bowl vs. 1 in the MARTIN’S bowl.

Nutritional Value: MARTIN’S brand has 10 more calories per serving than it’s national counter part, but 1 less gram of saturated fat, 2 more grams of protein and 100mg less sodium. Nutritionally, MARTIN’S wins out.

Verdict: MARTIN’S Chunky Soup is a definite winner when it comes to a bacon flavor and Campbells when it comes to veggies.

Item 3 :  Charmin Bath Tissue Vs.  MARTIN’S Own Brand Bath Tissue

This is, ahem, a sensitive subject.  There were a few people in house that said “no way no how” to testing a store brand of TP.

Look: MARTIN’S once again is slightly larger than the national brand.  Not enough in this case to make a difference.

Softness: In a blind test my snobbiest family member actually chose the MARTIN’S brand.  After leaving both rolls in the bathroom for a week, the MARTIN’S roll was used more often than the national counterpart.

Verdict: If you normally purchase Charmin, make the switch. MARTIN’S wins this round.

Item 4: Bounty Paper Towels vs MARTIN’S Own Brand Paper towels.

Look: Not much difference in either roll.  The Bounty roll was a little bit messier where the MARTIN’s brand was more tightly rolled.

Performance: Identical.

Verdict: Make the switch. The fact that these are identical is a clear winner for MARTIN’S.  This is an easy way to save a little money without making any notable changes.

Item 5: Ball Park Hotdogs vs. MARTIN’S Own Beef Hotdogs
(Sorry, no photos due to lower light)

I’m not a big hotdog eater, and 16 hotdogs seemed like a lot for one family, so I thought I’d enlist a little help from my friends with a hot dog tasting party.

Appearance: Uncooked, both looked about the same. Ball Park did plump up a little more than MARTIN’S when cooked.

Nutritional Value: I know corn syrup is in everything, but this one surprised me.  Ball Park hotdogs listed corn syrup as the third ingredient (which must have accounted for the 1 gram of sugar which Ball Park had but MARTIN’S did not)!  Ball Park also had 20 more calories per frank, 10 more of which were from fat.

Taste: Our taste test results pulled a perfect Tie, three people liked both the same one person preferred Ball Park and one preferred MARTIN’S.

Verdict: There will be no complaints if you pick up the MARTIN’S hotdogs for the next time you grill out.

Item 6: Coke vs MARTIN’S Own Cola
(Sorry, no photos due to lower light)

According to a GALLUP poll in 2012, nearly half of Americans drink soda daily. At $1.99 a pop (pun intended) if you purchase one two liter soda each week that’s just over $103 yearly switching to MARTIN’S could save you about $57 a year.  I had my hot dog party friends give this one a test too.

In the interest of full disclosure none of us actually drink Coke, so we didn’t have a strong preference to the brand to begin with.

Look: Not much difference here.

Taste:  Coke was sweeter than the MARTIN’S cola ( Coke also had that sugary coating after taste which bothers me so much)

Verdict: MARTIN’S Wins!! Two people picked the MARTIN’S brand over Coke and the rest found no difference.  Not one person preferred Coke.

You can try the Buy Theirs, Get Ours Free Challenge yourself!
This contest has ended. Check back for more great contests!

March 16 – 22, 2014
Buy Ball Park Franks, Coke, Charmin, and Claritin get the MARTIN’S brand free!

March 23 – 29
Buy Bounty Paper Towels, Quaker Chewy Bars, Campbells Chunky Soup, and Ben & Jerry’s Pints get the MARTIN’S brand free!

Disclosure: No compensation was received for this article. MARTIN’S did supply me with the products tested.

Tickle and Giggles is a twice a year consignment sale in Hanover where you can get clothes in like new condition at amazingly low prices!

It’s a one stop shop for all you need for spring and summer (and at these prices you can actually shop it all).

The sale is open to the public at 2pm on March 21 and runs through the weekend.

No strollers are allowed in the consignment sale so please plan accordingly.

In addition to shopping for great things you’ll also be doing great things because this year Tickles and Giggles have partnered with Hanover Safe Place:

Believing that all children should grow and develop in a happy, healthy and safe environment, we have partnered with Hanover Safe Place to donate a portion of our proceeds and any unclaimed items at the end of the sale to this important program.

 

For more information and FAQ’s visit the Tickles and Giggles website.

Cute kid’s clothes for spring & summer are available March 14-17 at the Weecycled Wardrobe Kid’s Consignment Sale for 60-75% off retail!

Clothing, books, games, shoes, outdoor, infant, toddler, girls and boys toys, strollers, high chairs and lots more baby gear all under one roof for 4 days. 800 sellers selling 60,000 items!

Sorry, $50 Gift Certificate contest has ended.

Visit the Weecycled Wardrobe website details or like the Weecyled Facebook page to read more about our sale.  This is the biggest sale of the season in Fredericksburg!

Three football fields filled with bargains!  Play zone for kids for a small fee with inflatable slides and mazes as well as a concession stand. You don’t want to miss this sale!!!!

Weecycled Wardrobe

Dates:    March 14-17, 2014
Time: 10 am – 8 pm
Volunteer and Consignor 50% Shop – 9:30 am on March 16th and 17th
*On March 16th, most everything will be 25% OFF, and on March 17th, most everything will be 50% OFF!

Location:    Fredericksburg Field House
Take exit 130 A to Route 3 east. Drive approximately 3 miles, then take Rt 2/17 South to Bowling green. At the 5th stoplight, turn right on Shannon Park Drive (WaWa is on the corner). The Field House is the large building in the back.

Local maternity boutique Hip to be Round is opening it’s second location in the Mosaic District in Northern Virginia on March 1, 2014.

Hip to be Round has been offering Richmond moms and moms-to-be with stylish clothing to fit at any stage of pregnancy, including nursing clothes and accessories for the breastfeeding mom.

In addition to the latest fashion, Hip To Be Round offers it’s customers one-on-one advice on dressing during your pregnancy and how to shop for your growing shape. Other items sold include everything from compression hose, back supports and other “doctor recommended” pregnancy accessories, to the best diaper bags, baby carriers, lotions, oils and teas for every need.  Hip To Be Round has become a primary resource for maternity in the Richmond Metro area and their Mosaic storefront is the boutique’s second location.

The Richmond location will be celebrating the opening with a store wide sale on Saturday.

Hip to be Round has been giving it’s fans on Instagram a preview of the Mosaic store in it’s countdown to opening.

Here are some highlights from the countdown:

I found a great deal and I thought Richmondmom.com readers would want to know about it, but it expires January 31, 2014.

BJ’s is running a promotion for 50% off a year long membership (normally $50).  In order to access the deal you will be asked to sign up for a free membership to Zulily, but you can unsubscribe to the emails if you are too bombarded.

I like that BJ’s allows you to use any major form of payment and sends out monthly coupons and with three kids running around I seem in the constant need for bulk toilet paper, laundry detergent, coffee… you know the drill.

From the website:

 BJ’s Members enjoy wholesale club prices. You’ll save big on leading name brands, from groceries to health and beauty to home goods. PLUS, BJ’s Services save you money on vacations, home improvements and much more.

FREE Household Card — BJ’s Members receive a second card for a household member at no extra charge. You can also add up to three (3) Supplemental Memberships for just $25* each.

BJ’s Wholesale is located at 1320 Starling Dr. Richmond, VA 23229

This is not a paid advertisement, just a great deal we wanted to pass along to you!