Football fans! Don’t let the recession keep you from celebrating that time-honored American tradition that is the Super Bowl – use this checklist, and you can keep costs down and still throw an awesome party. Here’s a few tips:
Ditch the pizza in favor of these – Slow-Cooker Barbecue-Beef Sandwiches from Cooking Light. They are fantastic, very easy to make, feed a crowd and up the sophistication factor of your party from dorm room to den. Insider Tip: Head to Costco for the required flank steak, where you can pick up two for around $16 - $18.
Are your friends too high-falootin’ for Bud Light? That’s cool – head to your local Binny’s, where their Winter clearance sale is sure to have a few bottles to your liking. Example? Fat Bastard chardonnay is just $5 – half off! Want to stay with the theme? “Da Coach” merlot is just $8.99 for members. (Psst…sign up – it’s free!)
Save your Sunday ads and do a little recon – between your local Target, Dominick’s or Jewel, you should be able to save BIG on chips, pop and beer. Insider Tip: Keep your eyes on the pop prices. It’s a big weekend, and you could see deals as good as “Buy One, Get One Free.”
Impress with dessert – Deerfield Bakery puts together the coolest cakes, cupcakes and cookies at a great price, starting at just over $1 for a designer cupcake.
Have a little retro fun – when you’re at Target picking up the chips and paper plates, swing by the game aisle and pick up a classic like Yahtzee or Twister. Better still, introduce your kids to Table Top Football! To make it, you should:
* Fold a sheet of paper (8×11) twice lengthwise.
* Place the paper lengthways and take the open-of-the-fold top corner and fold until flush against the opposite side. This forms a triangle.
* Keep folding the triangle until there is not enough paper left for it to be folded anymore.
* Take the remaining piece of paper at the bottom and fold it to conform with the football and tuck it into the gap between the folds.
Start a penny pool – Well, maybe not pennies, but if you like to run a numbers game, ehow.com has a great tutorial on how to set up a grid. Kids have fun collecting money and passing out winnings at the end of each quarter.
Have a great time! And don’t forget – it’s really all about the ads!
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