Apartment Life #94

This is a new weekly blog post that I'm calling Apartment Hell  Life. I've mentioned a few times some of the crazy things that go on in and around my apartment complex in the past 20 years that we've lived here and people keep telling me I should write a book. But instead of a book, I've decided to share the crazy things that have happened in and around my apartment complex in the last 20 years here in a weekly blog post.

I heard the ambulance pull up at the end of the street so I went out to the front to see if it was at our apartment complex but it wasn't. It was at the end of the street at the next apartment complex down. I have't heard from anyone what happened down there but they have the police and ambulances down at their apartment complex almost as much as we do at ours. 

Our place was actually quiet this week.

So that's it for this week's Apartment Hell  Life! Be sure to come back next week for more.

Favorite Video of the Week!

If you haven't seen the latest Lucas The Spider video, check it out. Cutest spider ever.

Freebie Friday!

Welcome to another edition of Freebie Friday, where I tell you what free samples and full sized products I received in the mail and how you can get them too. Someone asked me why I do a "Freebie Friday" each week, so I'll tell you.

A while back I listed all the free samples and wins that I had received that previous year and so many people didn't believe that I could have gotten so many free things. So I decided to prove it by taking a picture every week and sharing the sites that I found the links to the freebies at. So now you too can get great free samples coming to your mailbox each week.

  You can find links to great samples at Hey It's Free and Freebie Shark.

This week I received:

I won a book from a Goodreads Giveaway.

I received a full size Benefit Cosmetics Boi-ing cakeless concealer via Influenster.

A review of the concealer will be posted in a few days.

Did you receive any freebies this week?

Review: Lure of Obsession by Lisa Kessler

Book Description

Fated Mates meets Clash of the Titans!

Melanie Jacoby is the human vessel for the Muse of Tragic Poetry, but she isn't prepared for the tragedy of finding her roommate dead at the bottom of the stairs.

Nate Malone is the detective assigned to the case, but as the evidence points to an accidental fall, the visions begin. He sees a killer in a gold Kronos mask.

Mel is the next target, but Nate's determination to protect her is almost as strong as his desire for her. 

And tragedy isn't part of his plan.

The Prophecy - "Every generation the nine daughters of Zeus are reborn, and with their rebirth are also nine Guardians. They will be marked by the gods, and given gifts to protect his treasure. Their abilities will only be unlocked when they find their muse." 

My Review

This is the first book in the Muse Chronicles series. From the blurb I could tell this would have a little Greek Mythology thrown into this paranormal romance story and I love that kind of story. 

Melanie is the holder of the muse for tragic poetry and I didn't understand exactly what that meant for a while but right from the beginning of this story bad things seem to happen around her. Which is how she meets Nate. He's her guardian and he has visions to help protect her. 

Melanie and eight other women found each other, each with a different muse and they were trying to open and theatre. There's also evil people who are trying to kill all the muse's off in the name of the Titans. When the danger gets really close to Melanie, Nate has no choice but to make sure that she and the other women are safe. They aren't sure who is after them but they know someone is. 

The action, danger and mystery surrounding the people who are out to get the muses, goes on for most of the book. I just knew that more tragedy would strike and Nate wouldn't be there to stop it like he had before but there are some crazy twists in this story that really ramped up the need to know what would happen. 

I really liked how this ended and am looking forward to reading the other books in this series. 

I give this book 4 out of 5 stars. 

Favorite Picture of the Week

In the middle of last month my daughter's AC went out in the evening and with temperatures being around 100F (37C) at midnight, she and her cat came to spend the night at our place. We weren't sure that Falcor would get along with Lucifer but Lucifer is such a chill cat and didn't care about the dog at all, they got along great.  Lucifer decided that this chair was his bed and spent a lot of time there. 

Falcor looked a bit crazy when Lucifer was checking out the dog bed but he didn't stay in it for long. While they didn't cuddle up together, they did fall asleep about 2 feet apart on the floor. Falcor followed him around, sniffing him for a while and Lucifer pretty much ignored Falcor. lol 

We watched Lucifer the next day while my daughter went to work and she called her apartment manager and had her AC fixed that day. But now we know they get along if the need ever arises again. 

Review: Daily Goodie Box- August

The Daily Goodie Box has been around since about July of 2016. I signed up for an account right after I heard about them. They are 100% free, you don't even have to pay for shipping. And for a free box it's a nice sampler box of products.

What did I get in this box?

DRY Soda Company - Culinary-Inspired Sparkling Sodas - I'm not a big fan of sparkling water but this actually had a great cherry flavor. I poured a little for me, my husband and our adult daughter and we all enjoyed it.

Bubba’s Fine Foods - Grand Garlic Parm ‘Nana Chips - So this is funny because I do not like garlic at all but hubby loves it so he got these chips and though they were great.

Foods Alive - Nutritional Yeast - I've never tried nutritional yeast before and wasn't sure what to do with it. But the website says you can sprinkle it on salads, put it in soups or gravy and add it to other things. So I tried it on my salad first and It wasn't bad at all. I made chili and added some to that but I think it got lost in it but it blended in well.

Evo Hemp - Mocha Chip Hemp Bar- I don't care for any kind of bar like these but Hubby does so he ate it and enjoyed it. He said it did have a strange taste though. Not bad just a little weird or unlike anything he's tasted before.

Aqua Biome™ - Fish Oil Classic Strength- Fish oil is supposed to be helpful for those with high cholesterol and while mine is not at the 'high' mark yet, my doctor did tell me that it was getting higher. So I've already been told to start taking fish oil, I just hadn't gotten around to getting any yet. So I'll be taking this and see if the numbers come down when my next blood draw comes due.

Natralia - Heel Balm - You have no idea how much I needed something like this. I wear sandals and flip flops pretty much year round so my heels get cracked and dry. I started putting this on at night and it does a good job at softening the skin on my heels. I have one of those electric foot files so I'll have to wait and see if this helps long term but so far so good.

SolarDerm - After Sun Facial Moisturizer- It was 113F here for a couple of days last week so anytime out walking the dog is too much sun as far as I'm concerned. I used this moisturizer in the morning and afternoon after walking my dog and it did seem to soothe my red face.

Flathau's Fine Foods- All Natural Shortbread Cookies - I love shortbread cookies and this are so good! Definitely my favorite thing from this box. They have a crunchy texture but are crumbly at the same time. They have such a great taste.

All they ask you to do is try the products and leave reviews for the products you got in order to be eligible for more Free Goodie Boxes. As you guys already know, I'm a fan of all these types of boxes. I love all the different subscription boxes and it's really nice to be able to try new to me products for free. This is a great box to try for.

 Oh and one more thing, if you visit their FB Page, they give away Goodie Boxes to people who interact with their posts. So if you've tried before and weren't able to get a Goodie Box, there's even more ways to get one now.

Daily Goodie Box. It's more than just Free Samples!

Have you signed up? Have you received one of these boxes?

I'm a fan of subscription boxes and love trying new products for free so this was a huge hit with me. New products+free box = Fabulous!

Disclosure: I was given and free box in exchange for a review but all opinions are my own. 

Happy Raturday!

*Picture courtesy of martymousehouse.com*

"Erm, it stinks in here. Pass the air freshener."

*Picture courtesy of martymousehouse.com*

*Picture courtesy of me, Mary Kirkland*

"Rawr, I'm a big scary dinosaur."

Apartment Life #93

This is a new weekly blog post that I'm calling Apartment Hell  Life. I've mentioned a few times some of the crazy things that go on in and around my apartment complex in the past 20 years that we've lived here and people keep telling me I should write a book. But instead of a book, I've decided to share the crazy things that have happened in and around my apartment complex in the last 20 years here in a weekly blog post.

On Friday around 5pm, Ken heard a police siren outside so he looked out the bedroom window and called me in there. He saw a cop running around this corner. By the time I got in there two more police cars showed up and they were bringing out a handcuffed man to a police car around the corner.

I don't know who the guy is, never saw him before. But all I can think is, "Pull up your pants." Looks like he's about to lose the pants any second. 

4 police cars showed up for this one but I have no idea who he was or why he ran. They caught him though. Ken was talking to the people across the street and none of them seem to know him so I have no idea. There's a lot of drug sales going on across the street so it could of had something to do with that but it's just speculation on my part at this time. 

Oh and for those of you who haven't seen the huge wall in the background, that's the sound wall that separates the public street and sidewalk from the freeway right on the other side. It's a very tall wall. That sidewalk over there is where I walk Falcor.

So that's it for this week's Apartment Hell  Life! Be sure to come back next week for more.

Review: Birchbox Subscription Box- August

I signed up for a Birchbox subscription box. It's only $15 a month and this month's box came with 6 products. 

In my box was....

IPKN Moist & Firm Beauty Balm SPF 45- Light. 

Living Proof Perfect Hair Day 5 in 1 styling treatment. 

ModelCo Lip Plumper. 

Oribe Cote d'Azue Eau de Parfum. 

Purlisse Coconut Oil+Orange Blossom Silky Body Butter. 

Ursa Major Golden Hour Recovery Cream. 

The first thing I want to say is the Lip Plumper did nothing. When I put it on I felt a slight tingle for a moment and then it was gone. It did nothing to plump my lips. That's why the cosmetic surgeons get the big bucks because these over the counter 'plumping' products do nothing. It is a nice lip gloss though, so not a total fail. lol 

The perfume sample smells really good. It's nice to gets these little samples that let us try the expensive brands because I wouldn't be trying it otherwise. 

The styling cream did leave my hair soft but it didn't add volume or do anything else but it does smell good. The body butter smells good. I love these because they always leave my skin soft and are great if you have dry skin. 

The BB Cream is great under my foundation. It's too light for me to use on its own though. The recovery cream is an ok moisturizer but it's a little greasy. 

This month's box was not too bad. I do like trying new to me products and this is a good way to do that. 

Did you get this box?

Freebie Friday!

Welcome to another edition of Freebie Friday, where I tell you what free samples and full sized products I received in the mail and how you can get them too. Someone asked me why I do a "Freebie Friday" each week, so I'll tell you.

A while back I listed all the free samples and wins that I had received that previous year and so many people didn't believe that I could have gotten so many free things. So I decided to prove it by taking a picture every week and sharing the sites that I found the links to the freebies at. So now you too can get great free samples coming to your mailbox each week.

  You can find links to great samples at Hey It's Free and Freebie Shark.

This week I received:

A couple for a free Sabra Hummus product.
A coupon for a free Twisted Ranch product via PinchMe.
A sample of snuggle Scent Booster.
A sample of Elemis facial moisturizer.

For those wondering where to find the Twisted Ranch if you get the coupon, I found it at Walmart.

I still don't like Hummus. lol It's just not gonna happen. I tried several different kinds, brands ect and nope. I don't like it. My curiosity is now satisfied and I won't be trying anymore.

I've used the Snuggle scent booster before and I like it.

Elemis is a good moisturizer and it's a nice size sample.

Did you receive any freebies this week?