I LOVE a great deal, and I love to eat out. And CiCi's pizza offers GREAT deals on family meals. So, I love to go there (and I love to blog for them). TODAY in the local Sunday Papers, CiCi's will have coupons offering deals for $5, $10, and $15-be on the look out for those coupons!!
There are a few other fun things they have going on so let me share with you the info I was sent:

School is back in session, if not yet, soon!
CiCi’s Pizza knows all too well how expensive it can be to get everyone suited up and ready to put on their best thinking caps.
CiCi’s Pizza, known for exceptional value and variety with its endless pizza, pasta, salad, soup and dessert buffet and family friendly atmosphere, knows this time of year can be a strain on your budget.
To help ease the burden a bit, CiCi’s Pizza is offering special deals and coupons to make feeding your family more affordable. In addition to the $5 faves currently taking place at participating locations, CiCi’s is introducing the next round of savings. Be on the lookout in this Sunday’s local paper for a special CiCi’s Pizza coupon offering deals for $5, $10 and $15.

Also coming up at CiCi's is National Guest Appreciation Day on September 6, where all participating CiCi’s will host a day to say “Thanks” with $2.99 endless buffet from open to close.

CiCi's got some great advice from other bloggers about starting the school year on the right foot (and saving money of course! Check out that post here.

Enjoy!

Following is my original explaination of what the Weekend Warrior series was intended to be:

As a reminder, I intend for this series of posts to give suggestions of good day trips you can make in and around Omaha with your family. Hopefully it will give some good ideas of things to do close to home for local readers (and for those of you visiting Omaha, it might give you some ideas of what to do while you are here).

The Weekend Warrior Spots I wrote about near Omaha are:

• The Henry Doorly Zoo here
• Adventureland in Iowa here
• Eugene T Mahoney State Park here
• Shenandoah, Iowa here
• Lake Zorinsky here

I will probably continue to write about places around Omaha as I think of them, but since I have moved to Scottsdale, AZ now, I will also write about Daycations/Weekend Warrior Spots near here. I have not been to many (really only to Wet N Wild, Tombstone and the first part of the Apache Trail so far), but I have a list of places I want to write about. Here is my goal list:

• Tombstone
• Bizbee
• Apache Trail
• Tuscon
• Phoenix Zoo
• Wet N Wild
• Sonoran Desert near Tuscon
• Tonto National Forest (including Three Bar wildlife enclosure)
• Grand Canyon!

If you have any suggestions of places I should research and add to this list, I WELCOME (cough cough BEG FOR cough cough) suggestions!!!!

One of the weekly items I used to do that I want to bring back is my Friday feature called Weekend Warriors. It is where I share a bunch of info on one of my favorite places to visit in a day or weekend. I thought I would start out by reposting my very most often viewed blog post EVER! The original Weekend Warriors: Lake Zorinsky post can be seen here, or just keep reading because I am posting it below as well! Enjoy!
As a reminder, I intend for this series of posts to give suggestions of good day trips you can make in and around Omaha with your family. Hopefully it will give some good ideas of things to do close to home for local readers (and for those of you visiting Omaha, it might give you some ideas of what to do while you are here). So far I have talked about the following:

• The Henry Doorly Zoo here
• Adventureland in Iowa here
• Eugene T Mahoney State Park here
• Shenandoah, Iowa here

Today, I want to talk about a favorite place for our family to visit any day of the week: Zorinsky Lake.  Check out the pictures I took of the sunset over the beautiful lake (this is from up on the trail):

Zorinsky Lake is located at 156th and F streets in West Omaha. There is a HUGE lake with about 7 miles of walking trails around it, a couple playgrounds, lots of picnic shelters, and now a brand new swimming area with water slides (opening tomorrow!!).

We LOVE to walk around the lake as a family and could easily spend all day there. If we were to spend the day there, here is what I would do:
Pack up a cooler for lunch (or the makings of a BBQ), then  choose which of the following activities I wanted to fit in:

• The new pool (This does cost money, but not bad for a daycation)
• Walk around the lake
• Play at the playground
• If I had a boat (or a friend with one) I would happily just go boating all day!
• Fishing
• BBQ

Now, just as an FYI, you can reserve some of the covered shelters if you want to make sure you have a place to eat and hang out. You can find more infor about Shelter rentals here.

AND I will add a few things: The water Park is AWESOME and inexpensive for what it is. You could spend all day there if you wanted to! Or spend part of the day there and enjoy the rest the Lake has to offer as well.

Also, many of you in Omaha are likely aware of the fact that the lake was drained to get rid of Zebra Mussels and was empty and frankly really ugly for the last year (ish). Well, I can happily report that when we last went to the lake in June right before moving, it was almost totally full agian and lookig BEAUTIFUL as usual!!

So, head on over to Lake Zorinsky and ENJOY!!!

I just finished the Grocery Round Up for Scottsdale, but there are a couple deals I need to Mention in their own post. One is ONLY GOOD TODAY! Here they are:

• At Safeway TODAY: As part of $5 Friday there is ONE deal I think is AWESOME and worth mention. Today only you can get Lucerne Chunk Cheese 32 oz for $5!!!

• At Bashas this week, Beech Nut Fruities On the Go select Varieties 4 oz only $.69 each!!! (If you have a baby/toddler that eats baby food, there are the best EVER and I have never seen them this cheap!!! Also a quick easy fruit snack to send with older kids to school!!)

Here are my favorite deals in Scottsdale grocery this week:

Albertsons Market

• 7Up 12 packs 4/$10 (with minimum $25 purchase)
• Albertsons Gallon Milk $1.67
• Fritos or Cheetos 9-10.5 oz $1.99
• Snow Crab 8Up, Previously Frozen $4.99/lb
• Blueberries (local grown) 18 oz 2/$4 (limit 2)
• London Broil, Cross Rib or Bottom Round Roast or Steak (family pack, boneless) $2.99/lb
• Toufayan Pita Bread 12 oz 10/$10
• Plums $1/lb
• Gourmet Mini Carrots 1 lb bag $1 each

In addition to their regular week long special, HyVee also has a 4 Days of Savings Sale Friday 7/22-Sunday 7/24 that includes the following:

• 7U

Bashas

• Bashas Homwtown Grocer Split Chicken Breasts ot leg Quarters $.97lb (first 4)
• Farmer John's Bacom 12 oz $1.99 (first 3)
• 7-Up, RC Cola or Canada Dry Products 4/$10
• Fresh California Peaches or Nectarines $.59/lb (first 5 lbs)
• Bananas $.35/lb (first 6 lbs)
• Beech Nut Fruities on the Go 4 oz $.69 (this is an AWESOME price-I will be stocking up on this one!!!)
• Roma Tomatoes $.98/lb
• Haas Avocados 2/$1 each
• Organic Avocados $.99 each

Fresh & Easy

• Kitchens Best Mushrooms 5 oz $.98
• f&e whole chicken (fresh never frozen) $.77/lb
• Blue Diamond Almond Milk 64 fl oz $2.99
• Farmer's Gems eggs 18 ct 2/$4

Fry's (Remember their sales are almost always WITH card)

• Fry's Water 24 pack 16.9 oz bottles $2.79
• Frys Sandwich Bread 24 oz 10/$10

The following items are part of a buy 10 get $5 off deal. You can mix and match the items, but the price shown is AFTER the reward (meaning you have to buy 10 qualifying items to get this price) AND you must use your shopper card to get these prices as well:

• Kroger Peanut Butter 16-18 oz $1.99
• Pepperidge Farms Goldfish 6.6-8 oz $.99

In addition to their regular week long special, Frys also has a 3 Day Sale Friday 8/17-Sunday 8/19 that includes the following:

• Shamrock Dairy Sale 50% off!!
• Kroger Skinless Boneless Chicken Breast, frozen 3 lb bag $4.77 (That is only $1.59lb!, Limit 2 bags)
• Korger Bratwurst or Italian Sausage 18 oz, limit 2 $1.99

The following items on the 3 day sale are part of a buy 10 get $5 off deal. You can mix and match the items, but the price shown is AFTER the reward (meaning you have to buy 10 qualifying items to get this price) AND you must use your shopper card to get these prices as well:

• Doritos $1.88 (after D Back rewards)
• Pepsi 2 L $.99 (after D Back rewards)
• American Beauty Pasta $.39 (16 oz, After D Back Rewards)
• Blue Almond Almond Breeze Beverage $1.99 After D Back Rewards)

Safeway (Remember their sales are almost always WITH card)

• Navel Oranges or Pears $.88
• Pantry Essentials Milk $1.67

As part of $5 Friday there is ONE deal I think is AWESOME and worth mention. Today only you can get Lucerne Chunk Cheese 32 oz for $5!!!

Sprouts

• Whole Cantaloupe 3/$1
• Red Bell Peppers 3/$1

***Remember that I generally just price match at Walmart as much as I can rather than go to all the stores separately! I LOVE being able to do that. You can also pricematch at Target, but I find it easier to pricematch at Walmart.

I know I have mentioned before how much I love Carmex. And I am so happy to be a member of the Carmex Blog Squad because it means I get to try out and giveaway a lot of different Carmex products! I have a fun SUMMER prize to giveaway and review, but I have to have a winner by the 20th so this will be a fast giveaway! But first my review:

What is it?

I was sent a package with the following products to try (The winner of this giveaway will get the same items):

• 1 Carmex Summer Bag (pretty big)
• 6 Carmex lip balms including the NEW Pomegranate (other flavors are Everyday Protecting Strawberry, Cherry, Lime, Vanilla, or Original)

What did I think?

I have told you over and over again how much I like Carmex-it is great! I use a lot of chap stick so Carmex is one of my favorite companies to review! (Now that we have moved into the intense dry heat of the desert in AZ, I use even more!!)

I LOVE to try the new flavors. I have tried the Cherry, Lime, Vanilla, Everyday Protecting Strawberry and Original before, but the Pomegranate is a new flavor so this is the first I have tried it. It has a fruitier smell than others and is a little similar to the cherry in the fruitiness. But I actually liked it better than the Cherry. It was a stronger flavor smell. For those that like Carmex but do not like the intensity of the smell or feel of the Original, this would be a PERFECT option for you!
Oh, and can I take a minute to mention how much I LOVE the bag! It is well made, sturdy and nice. I have been taking it to the water park all summer and it is still as good as new! LOVE the bag!

What Can You win?

One Lucky Beckee's Deals reader will win the same product package I was sent for this review:

• 1 Carmex Summer Bag (pretty big)
• 6 Carmex lip balms including the NEW Pomegranate (other flavors are Everyday Protecting Strawberry, Cherry, Lime, Vanilla, or Original)

How to Enter to Win?
To enter use the Rafflecopter form. You can access it on the blog in this post below, or on my Facebook Page here.

a Rafflecopter giveaway Please note, as the Rafflecopter form states, the giveaway will end on 8/19 at 12:01 AM EASTERN time. That means you have until 11:01 PM on 8/18 Central time to get in entries (here in AZ that is only 9:01pm) .  Please note that winner will be picked at random by Rafflecopter after the giveaway ends and winner for this one has only 24 hours to get back to me. I have to get winner info to Carmex BY the 20th!!!  Also, Facebook is not affiliated with this giveaway and cannot be help responsible for it in any way. Sorry, but this one is for US only.

One of my favorite things to do during school in Omaha is back at SkateDaze! Check it out (I am using their email verbatim):

Tricycles, Scooters and Skates...oh my! Mom's Club is coming to SkateDaze!

When your big kids go back to school, let your little kids burn off their pent up energy by bouncing, playing and skating! $5 per person lets you play, bounce and skate *skate rental is FREE!

Parents can participate, or choose to do our $2 coffee time, where you get a cup of coffee and a pastry!

Punch cards are available too! To play: $40 for 10 punches Coffee Time: $15 for 10 punches

Your little one may also bring in their favorite wheeled toy! All wheels must be free of rocks.

Don't let the change in weather slow your family down!

Tuesdays-Fridays Starting August 21st 10am-3pm *rink time subject to change

Wow! I got a fun little flyer in my mail today! Apparently, Tomorrow, Thursday August 16th is Customer Appreciation Day at Paradise Bakery.

For those that cannot see the picture (ok, so no one can see the picture since it won't work-I will try to add it later), it says that if you go in tomorrow, you can enjoy a free cup of coffee all day and sample some of their menu items as well. From 7-9am sample Bagels and Breakfast items, 11am-2pm sample salads, Sandwiches, & Panini (though Panini are not available at mall cafes), and from 2-4pm Low-Fat Fruit Smoothies.

(If you were lucky enough to get this same flyer-make sure to check out the back of it for a sweet coupon!!!) Guess I know where Kindle, Everest and I will be for our field trip tomorrow...

Here are my favorite deals in Scottsdale grocery this week:

Albertsons Market

• Chicken Breast or Thighs boneless skinless $1.67/lb
• Dole Bananas $.39/lb
• Albertsons Gallon Milk 2/$3 
• Albertsons Purified Drinking water 24 pk, 16. oz $1.99 (limit 4)
• Doritos 10.5-11.5 oz, Fritos or Cheetos 9-10.5 oz $1.99 (when you buy 3 in one transaction)
• Bartlett Pears or Navel Oranges $.99/lb
• Tropical Kiwi Fruit 3/$1

In addition to their regular week long special, Albertson's also has Mix and Match Sale all week. If you buy ANY 8 Participating items, you save $4 meaning it is $.50 off each item. Below are some of the items that are part of that sale and the price listed the at price AFTER the $.50 comes off meaning if you don't buy 8 participating items the price will actually be $.50 more):

• Pepsi Product 2 L $.75
• Jiff Peanut Butter 17.3-18 oz $1.49
• Capri Sun or Kool Aid Jammers $1.79
• Nabisco Crackers 5.5-10 oz, Ritz or Chips Ahoy .5-16 oz $1.99
• Pillsbury Frosting 12-16 oz $.99
• Pillsbury Moist Supreme Cake 15.25 oz or Brownie Classics Mix 19.5oz Family Size $.79
• Kellogg's Cereal 12-18 oz, Pop Tarts 12 ct, Rice Krispie Treats, Nutri Grains, Special K, Fiber Plus, Cinnabon, of Keebler Granola Fudge Bars 5-8 ct $1.99

Bashas

• Bashas' Hometown  Grocer Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast $1.59/lb first 4 please
• Colorado Olathe Sweet Corn $.15 each (first 8)
• Russet Potatoes 10 lb bag $2.99 each
• Kellogg's Cereal 12-18 oz, Pop Tarts 12 ct,  Keebler Cookies 4.24-14.8 oz, Cheez-It Crackers 4.4-14.6 oz $1.99 (this is a buy 8 get $4 deal just like the one described at Albertsons above)

Fresh & Easy

• Cantaloupe $.98 each
• Plums $.75/lb (sold in 2 lb pack for $1.50 each)

Fry's (Remember their sales are almost always WITH card)

• Red Seedless Grapes $.59/lb
• Bar-S Franks 16 oz 2/$1 (with in ad coupon, excludes beef, limit 2)
• Kroger Ketchup 24 oz 2/$1 (with in ad coupon, limit 2)
• Pepsi Product 12 packs 4/$10 ($2.50 each)

Safeway (Remember their sales are almost always WITH card)

• Strawberries 1 lb package $.88
• Hormel Black Label Bacon 16 oz B1G1 (Buy One Get One Free)
• Kiwi 3/$1

Sprouts

• Yellow Nectarines or Peaches $.49/lb
• Asparagus $1.99/lb
• Avocados Haas $.88
• Roma Tomatoes $.88/lb

***Remember that I generally just price match at Walmart as much as I can rather than go to all the stores separately! I LOVE being able to do that. You can also pricematch at Target, but I find it easier to pricematch at Walmart.

Here are my favorite deals in Scottsdale grocery this week:

Albertsons Market

• Extra Lean Ground Beef 83% (3 lb or more) $2.49/lb
• Blueberries 11 oz. $.97 (limit 4)
• California Pizza Kitchen 11.5-14.3 oz or DiGiorno Pizza 12.6-34.2 oz $3.88 (with in ad coupon, limit 2 each)
• Blue Bell 64 oz (1/2 gallon) ice cream $3.77 (with in ad coupon limit 2)
• Bush's Baked or Grillin beans 21.5-28 oz $.99 (with in ad coupon, limit 4)
• Ken's Salad Dressing 16 oz $.99 (with in ad coupon , limit 6)
• Albertsons Milk gallons 2/$3
• Doritos 10.5-11.5 oz or Ruffles chips 8.5-9.5 oz $1.99 each when you buy 3
• General Mills Cereal 8.9 oz-12.2 oz, Betty Crocker, Mott's or Ocean Spray Fruit Snacks 6-18 count $1.99 each when you buy 4 (limit 2 Rewards per transaction)
• Ocean Spray Cranberry Juice cocktail 64 oz $1.88 (with in ad coupon, limit 4)
• Smucker's Uncrustables 4 pk $.99 each with in ad coupon, limit 2
• American Beauty Pasta 12-16 oz $.79 each with in ad coupon, limit 4
• Essential Everyday or Albertsons Shredded Cheese 2 lb $4.99 (with in ad coupon, limit 2)
• M&M or Mars Single candy Bars 1.1-2.13 oz $.35 each with in ad coupon, limit 8
• Keebler Crackers 8 ct, Cookies 12.8-14.6 oz, Kellogg's Fruit Snacks 10 ct, or Cheez-It Crackers 7.5-9 oz $1.69 each (with in ad coupon, limit 6. Additional $1.99)
• Pork Sirloin Chops $1.99/lb
• Farmer John Smoked Bacon 12 oz Regular or thick cut 2/$5
• Polar Treats Novelties 6-12 count 10/$10
• Large Navel Oranges or Minneola Tangelos $1.49/lb
• Broccoli Crowns or Cauliflower $.99/lb

Bashas (Remember their sales are almost always WITH Thank You card)

• Sweet Red Seedless Grapes $.69/lb (first 6 lbs)
• Roma Tomatoes $.88/lb
• Red or Black Plums $.99/lb
• Food Club Butter 1 lb quarters $1.99
• Food Club Cheese 6-8 oz 5/$10
• Farmland Bacon Hickory or Thick Cut 12 oz $2.88

In addition to their regular week long special, Bashas' also has a 10/$10 Sale that includes the following:

• Jennie-O Turkey Franks 12 oz
• Banquet Brown N Serve Links 6.4 oz
• Popsicle Novelties 8 ct

Fresh & Easy

• f&e Strawberries $.98/lb (sold in 4 lb pack for $3.92)
• Farmer's Gems eggs 18 ct 2/$4
• Tomatoes on the Vine $.98 for 20 oz

Fry's (Remember their sales are almost always WITH card)

• Kroger Tomato Sauce 8 oz, 4/$.99
• Kellogg's Cereal 8-20 oz $1.99
• Armour Lunch Makers $.99
• Yellow Peaches or Nectarines $.75/lb
• Kroger Skinless Boneless Chicken Breasts $1.67/lb
• Lean Ground Beef 80% lean $2.19/lb (Sold in 3 lb bag, limit 4)
• Cantaloupe $.97
• Haas Avocados $.88 each

Safeway (Remember their sales are almost always WITH card)

• Olathe Sweet Corn fron Colorado 4/$1
• Fresh Express Salads 8-16 oz $.99
• Lucerne Chunk or Shredded Cheese 16 oz $2.99
• Farmer John Breakfast links 8 oz $.99
• Lucerne Large Eggs 18 ct $1.99 with in ad coupon
• Eggo Frozen Breakfast 10.7-16.4 oz $1.99

Sprouts

• Whole Cashews $5.99/lb
• Red Cherries $.99/lb
• Haas Avocados $.88
• Cluster Tomatoes $.88/lb
• Green Beans, Italian Yellow or Grey Squash $.99/lb
• Gummy Candy $1.99/lb
• Dark Chocolate Nut and Fruit Mix $4.99/lb
• Sprouts Fresh Baguette $.99
• Sprouts Almond Milk 2/$5

***Remember that I generally just price match at Walmart as much as I can rather than go to all the stores separately! I LOVE being able to do that. You can also pricematch at Target, but I find it easier to pricematch at Walmart.