Apartment Life! #8

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. 

This week I thought I'd share a video I took of my neighbors. I don't take many videos of these crazy people because...they're crazy and I don't want that anger turned towards me. I even filmed this craziness through my screen door so they wouldn't see me doing it. You'll see why. Some of you that have been reading my blog for a while might remember this one.

Thankfully those people have since moved out.

Oh and one of the kids was back to standing in front of my screen door this week. lol 

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

I've always liked this band but was so excited when this lead singer joined the band again I think it was last year and then they came out with new music. This is one of their newest songs and it's my favorite of the week so I wanted to share it. Hope you like it too.

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 managed to get two Amazon gift cards.
First one was from Crowdtap and the second I won on a blog.
I also received a piece of Bourbon Fruitcake, pen and fridge magnet from a giveaway I entered 2 years ago from Author Kallypso Masters. She had so many entries on that giveaway and wanted everyone to get a piece that she got through the last of the entries this year.

Did you get any freebies this week?

Favorite Picture of the Week!

A few days ago I received this dog bandanna for free and I put it on Falcor to take a few pictures. Well, He was less than thrilled with me. lol 

I can only imagine what this dog was thinking.

"I'm so done. One more picture and this bandanna is getting ripped to shreds." lol 

Merry Christmas to those who celebrate. 

Apartment Life! #7

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. 

This week I thought I'd share what could happen when you try to help a neighbor. 

A few years ago I saw and heard the couple directly across from me were fighting and the guy was hitting his pregnant girlfriend and she was yelling for help, so I called the police. 

The police came out, saw her bruises and talked to Ken and I and asked if we'd sign voluntary statements, we did. I didn't realize at the time when you do that, they can then subpoena you as a witness, which they did. He was arrested and said he didn't do anything so there was a trial in which we were called to testify. This guys father who was a security guard somewhere came to our apartment a week before we were to testify and said he was a cop and told us that we didn't have to testify even though we were subpoenaed if we didn't want to. He essentially lied about being a cop and tried to get us not to testify. We could have brought charges against him for intimidation but after his son got a 3 month jail sentence we decided not to pursue it. 

That was also the last time we have gotten involved in anything with the neighbors around here. 

You aren't allowed to take pictures inside the courtroom of course but I took this picture of the front of the courthouse. 

And pictures of the signs that were on the wall next to the doors to the courtroom we were in that day. It took 6 hours sitting in the court room for our case to be called and for the trial to be over. I've never testified in court before so it was an interesting experience. But it was all for nothing since 3 months later he was right back in the apartment with the girlfriend.  They moved out soon after. 

So last week was interesting...

The maintenance man told us last week that he was called by the big boss of the company and was told to go into the office and screw shut the door that leads into the manager's apartment so she can't get into the office from her apartment anymore. The last time that happened the manager had been fired and had 30 days to move out.

No one was in the office at all last week so it sure looks like our apartment manager was fired. LOL

We had a couple of people tell us that 2 nights prior to the maintenance man being called to screw the door shut,  the manager was in the office courtyard in front of her apartment and she was yelling and screaming at someone. There was a big argument and no one has seen her since.

I've actually lost count but in the 20 years we've been here I think we've gone through 11 apartment managers.

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

I cannot stop watching these videos. Yes, I've shared several of them over the past few weeks and this one might be the funniest.

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 free 2018 calendar
samples of Zing and Splenda sugar substitute
Dog Bandanna from Nulo *pictured below*

Falcor modeling his new bandanna.

Did you receive any freebies this week?

Review: Target Beauty Box -December

This month's box was only $7 but I can tell you from experience that if bought separately, this would have been quite a bit more. Not a bad value. Each month Target releases a new Target Beauty Box but supplies are limited and it's first come first serve until they run out. These boxes go fast so I try to grab one as soon as I see it being talked about on Twitter or fb. I let you guys know on my blog when this one was released earlier this month so I hope some of you were able to get it.

What was in this month's box?

Hask Coconut Oil Deep Conditioner- 1.75 oz.

Hydrates and protects hair with rich monoi oil, Tahitian gardenias & coconut oil.

Rimmel London Shake It Fresh Mascara- Full size

Special formula and tube designed to keep mascara fresh for ultra-smooth, voluminous lashes from first to last use.

imPRESS Press-on manicure- 1 set

Breakthrough press-on nails for a beautiful, glossy gel-finish manicure in minutes.

Nexxus Comb Thru Finishing Mist- 1.5 oz.

Micro-fine mist gives hair an effortless, long-lasting hold with fullness & shine.

Vera Wang Embrace Fragrance- 0.04 oz.

Dreamy notes of mango, melon & cardamom, marigold & gardenia, sandalwood & soft musk.

My Beauty Diary Black Pearl Mask- 10 ct.

Helps repair complexion with Tahitian black pearl essence, lemon extract, red algae & yeast proteins.

Chapstick Red Lip Tint- Full size

This Target-exclusive tint instantly moisturizes and enhances natural lip color.

That mascara made this box worth it for me because I priced it on several sites and it goes anywhere from $7 to $12 all by itself and I love it. So this box was well worth the value.

I tried the hair and face mask and I liked both of them. The perfume sample smells so good but every sample of Vera Wang I've had has smelled really good. I had one of those chapstick's in Blood Orange scent but it wasn't tinted so I really like that I have a tinted one now. The only thing I haven't tried are the fake nails. But that's because I'm not sure they will work with my thumbs. When I was a kid I had a car door slammed on both of my thumbs and my nails fell off and never grew back right. I have huge bumps in them so I'll probably end up giving those to my daughter.

Were you able to snag one of these boxes?

Favorite Picture of the Week

My brother and sister in law came for a visit earlier this month and they took my dad and step mother out to Lake Mead and the Hoover Dam. This is my step mom, my dad and my brother.

Product Review: It's A 10 Miracle Leave in Product

Product Details 

It's a 10 Miracle Leave-in product repairs dry damaged hair, adds shine, smoothes & controls frizz, seals & protects hair color, detangles, prevents split ends, stops hair breakage, creates silkiness, enhances natural body, flat iron & thermal protector. An excellent nourishing treatment that can be used alone and/or as a restorative styling product that leaves hair soft and bouncy. Works on all hair types to bring out natural luster and manageability while also making hair stronger and healthier with every use. Can be used on wet hair for extra shine or dry hair in place of a styling cream.

Key Ingredients: Panthenol, sunflower seed extract, green tea leaf extract, silk amino acids, citric acid vitamin C.

My Review

So first off let me apologize for the photo of my hair I'm about to share below. I asked my husband for help taking a couple of pictures and he took about 10 of them for me but each one was worst than the last one. I asked him to make sure my hair was all together and straight and I even gave him my brush to use. It's hard to get it all down straight when it's long if you're wanting a good picture of it so I asked him for help. After looking at the pictures this was the best one. My hair isn't all brushed down the way I wanted but it's the best of the bunch and you get the idea. lol 

As you can see, I have long hair. It's not as thick as it used to be and it's fine so it's prone to being static ridden and fly away especially after I brush it. I've used a lot of different leave in conditioners to try and cut down on the static and fly aways but not all of them work well. I got a sample of It's A 10 Miracle Leave in Product in the mail and have used it for 5 days in a row. I've been putting it in my damp hair after shampooing it. I didn't use a rinse out conditioner while I've been using this and I didn't need to. I just spray a little in my damp hair and work it through the length with my fingers and let it air dry. 

My hair feel silky, it's shiny, easy to brush and best of all there are less tangles and it's easy to brush out. I don't need an extra conditioner when I use this and I don't have to use another product to get rid of the static in my hair because when I use this, there's no static and no fly aways. It also keeps my hair from frizzing up. 

I would definitely recommend this product especially if you have thin hair.

Disclaimer: I received a free sample in the mail but all thoughts and opinions are my own.

Happy Raturday!

*Picture courtesy of Jin Wicked*

*Picture courtesy of Jin Wicked*

*Picture courtesy of Cindy Rogers*

"Dude, I love your coat. Where can I get one?" 

*Picture courtesy of Cindy Rogers*

"I has a nap now, you come back later with flashy thing."

*"Picture courtesy of martymousehouse.com*

Apartment Life! #6

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 and people keep telling me I should write a book. But instead of a book, I've decided to share the crazy things that happen in and around my apartment complex here in a weekly blog post. 

A few weeks ago I talked about fire so this week I thought I'd talk about water. Water and fire are both very destructible when you live in an apartment. 

This is my courtyard after one of the flash floods we had. We live in Las Vegas and from July through September is flash flood season. Any thunderstorm can produce a flash flood if it produces enough rain. We don't get a lot of rain each year but if it comes down really fast our clay soil doesn't allow the rain to soak through so it ends up on the surface and just ends up getting deep until it slowly seeps into the ground. 

Our courtyard floods during the downpours and it can get deep. This time it was all the way up on the walk ways and started to get into the apartment but thankfully the rain stopped and the water slowly went away. But this happens every year and if the gutters aren't cleaned, the water stays on the over hangs and once they got soaked and actually started to fall down. It's dangerous if the roofs, overhangs and gutters aren't maintained the way they're supposed to be. 

That's all for this week's Apartment hell  Life! Be sure to come back next week for more.

Favorite Video of the Week

I love watching people from other places try different foods that we Americans love to eat. This is hilarious.

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:

Good Earth Tea sample.
A free valve stem flashing bike light.
A sample of It's A 10 Miracle Leave in Product.

Did you receive any freebies this week?

Craft: Scented Water Beads

I heard about Water Beads on FB last month and since I'd never heard of them and had no idea what they were, I looked them up. I found a few articles that said you could make things with them including gel air fresheners and that sounded really interesting to me. So I bought the stuff and did it.

You'll need a packet of Water Beads. I found this at Amazon and it was just under $7 for 20,000 beads.

A glass jar.

3 cups of water.

Essential Oil. I bought a jar of Cinnamon Essential oil for this. 

I added 1 tsp. of water beads to the jar. Then added 20 drops of Cinnamon Essential oil and 3 cups of water. They had grown this much after just 2 hours.

After 6 hours I drained off the remaining water and this is what they looked like and they smelled so good!

I love the colors and they feel so neat to play with. After the first bowl of them was such a great success, I made a 2nd container of water beads with some Christmas Garland Essential Oil that I had and that smelled so good too. 

I found that this works best in small rooms like a bathroom or bedroom and I had to stir the beads ever other day and add 1-2 more drops of the essential oil in order to get more scent. The scent doesn't last long though. If you don't stir the beads and add more essential oil every other day there's no scent that you can smell unless your face is right over the bowl of beads. I'm actually really surprised this doesn't work well because there are so many articles, videos and posts about it but for me it's a fail. You're better off buying one of those .99 Renuzit air fresheners. lol 

I plan on making another big bowl of these beads with no scent so the scent doesn't get all over my hands when I play with them. lol They are quite fun to play with and handle and I love how they feel when I squish them in my hand. If you've never seen these before and like doing crafts, you might like this one. It was easy, fun and there are other things to do with them like make pretty colored beads filled glass jars. 

Review: DegustaBox- December

DegustaBox is a monthly subscription box filled with food and drink products. The price for the box is $19.99 a month.  

You do not get to pick any of the products you get, it's a surprise each month. But they say each box contains 10-15 items and each box is worth at least $30. I like trying boxes like this because they usually contain products that I've never tried or haven't seen before. 

This month's box came with...

A bottle of Barilla Sun Dried Tomato and Basil Pesto Sauce

Barilla Ready Pasta

Mulino Bianco Breadsticks

Mulino Bianco Sandwich Cookies

 SuckerPunch Gourmet Garlic Spicy Pickles

Briannas Balsamic Viniagrette

Carrington Farms Quinoa

Good Thins Beet Chips- Balsamic Vinegar and sea salt flavor

Cauli Rice *Cauliflower Rice*

Most of the products in this months box were new to me. I have had the breadsticks before and I do like them. I wasn't fond of the pickles because they were sweet pickles and I don't care for those. I also didn't care for that pasta that all you had to do was heat for 60 seconds. It wasn't as good as the pasta that you cook for a regular amount of time. 

I have to say that the surprise for me were those beet chips. I liked those. My daughter liked those as well and the Cauli Rice was also good. I wasn't sure it would be but I liked it. Not sure I would have ever tried most of these products without this box but I'm glad I did. I've tried a few flavors of quinoa and I like it. If you flavor it well it's pretty good. 

If you don't live in the US, they now have a Great Britain Website. Now here's a treat for you. If this box looks like something you'd like, you can use code MARYK-ACB and get your first box half off. That's a big box of food for only $10! and you can cancel anytime. So if you're interested, go to the DegustaBox site and sign up and don't forget to use my code to get your first box for just $10.

Have you tried any of these products?

Review: Bought (Highest Bidder #1) by Lauren Landish and Willow Winters

Book Description

Everything has a price … and I’m willing to pay.

I trust no one. I thrive with control and I’ve learned to be ruthless and coldhearted. A love life? I’m not interested.

But I still have desires.

That’s where Dahlia came in; my treasure. She had never been a submissive before and I was eager to train her.

The dusting of sparkles on her dress barely hid her tempting curves. I wanted to see all of her. My d*ck was already hard at the thought of my hand leaving a bright red print across her lush ass.

When I saw her on stage at the auction, dressed in gold, I knew I had to have her.

She’s mine for an entire month. I own her. But one lie changed everything.

She’s going to be punished for it. But I’m doing this for her own good. She needs this.

I’m going to make this right. I’m going to heal her.

If it’s the last thing I do.

My Review 

This book had a lot of potential to be a great story but for me it just didn't work for a few reasons. First was the fact that Dahlia is new to BDSM but goes from being a beginner to letting herself be auctioned off to a Dom for an entire month because she needs some money. That just didn't seem plausible to me and I really didn't care for that fact at all. 

Another thing that bothered me was that Lucian was so cold emotionally. Sure some of the time he showed Dahlia with his words that he cared but some of his actions at the same time didn't make what he was saying very believable. He came off as cold, wounded because of his ex wife and emotionally detached. 

The other thing that bothered me was the fact that the BDSM club held the auction and the submissives would get paid, quite a lot at the end of their contract. But only if they did what the Dom's wanted them too. In the contract it stated that if the submissives didn't live up to their ends of the deal, they wouldn't get the money. To me that sounded like a sub would bend over backwards to make sure the Dom was happy even if that meant doing something they didn't want to do in order to get the money at the end of the contract. Plus wouldn't it be illegal for an exchange of money to be taking place for sex?

That's the other thing I had a problem with. By the end of the book it's pretty obvious that Lucian is used to getting whatever he wants, even if that thing happens to be completely illegal. What he did in the name of justice for Dahlia actually shocked me and while I can understand wanting to do that, it's not alright. 

I had high hopes for this book and almost didn't finish it but I pushed through and read it until the end but I can't recommend this one. 

I give this book 2 out of 5 stars. 

Happy Raturday!

Picture courtesy of Jin Wicked*

*Picture courtesy of Jin Wicked*

*Picture courtesy of Jin Wicked*

*Picture courtesy of Jin Wicked*

Apartment Life! #5

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 and people keep telling me I should write a book. But instead of a book, I've decided to share the crazy things that happen in and around my apartment complex here in a weekly blog post. 

This week I'm going to share what I'e been dealing with for a few weeks. 

Kids! Or as I like to call them...snot gremlins. 

2 different apartments moved in 3 months ago and they have 2 small kids each. Well this is what the kids do. They stand directly in front of my door and tease/bark/scream and my dog. They also like to bang on my door and run away. Most people around here don't leave their doors open during the day because the kids are so loud and if you don't have a metal screen door like mine, the kids just walk into your apartment. I've seen them do it to the poor old guy next door. I've talked to the parents, talked to the manager and told the kids to stay away. Nothing is working and the parents don't care. 

There were two kids at my door in this picture but you can only see the green toy the 1 year old girl was standing in front of in this picture. They started to run away when they saw that I was starting to take a picture of them. I don't even care about the noise they make at this point. I just wish their parents would supervise them when they are outside or the manager would do something to make them watch their kids. If I was the manager and so many people were complaining all the time I'd evict them. We're hoping they get tired of people constantly complaining and they just move.

So that's all for this week's Apartment Hell  Life! Come back next week for more.

Favorite Video of the Week

You know how we Americans love our casseroles, well I think it's fun to watch people from other places try casseroles. lol

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 Delicate Wash Laundry Soap sample from The Laundress.
A Charmin Extender Roll for the larger toilet paper rolls.
An Emoji Wall decal from Fathead.
A $5 Amazon gift card from Crowdtap.

I think everyone can use a backup toilet paper roll hanger in case the one you have breaks or something. I'll probably give the wall decal to my grandson and the laundry soap worked well for hand washing delicate items.

Did you receive any freebies this week?

Recipe: Vegetable Fajita Bowl

You'll Need

1 carrot, sliced 

1 stalk of celery, sliced

1/2 zucchini, sliced

1 large cauliflower floret, chopped

1/2 red bell pepper, chopped

4 black olives, sliced

1 green onion, chopped

1 TBSP chopped cilantro

1 TBSP shredded pepper jack cheese

2 TBSP chicken broth

1 tsp. Fajita seasoning

2 TBSP olive oil

What to do

Add olive oil to pan and heat. Add carrot, celery, zucchini, cauliflower, and bell pepper to pan. Saute over medium heat until soft but still crunchy. Add chicken broth and fajita seasoning, stir well and keep cooking until most of the broth is absorbed. Add to a bowl and top with black olives, green onion, cilantro and cheese. 

This makes about 1 serving or bowl. If you want to make two, just double the recipe. Ken wouldn't even try it. He said it needed some sausage or chicken or something. So he had something else for dinner that night. lol But I loved it. It needs some avocado but with their prices being $2.99 for just one of them, I'll do without that for now. 

Favorite Picture of the Week

My daughter was holding Falcor and she snapped this picture of him sleeping. He just fell right to sleep in her arms. I guess he was comfy.

December Target Beauty Box Available Now!

I've told you guys about the Target Beauty Boxes and December's Box is available right now. These usually go fast and they're only $7 this month. So if you're interested in trying one, this looks like a good one to get. You can find it here.

What you'll find in this box *From their website*

Hello Holidays

The rush is here. Inside this box, you’ll find a few of our beauty faves that’ll keep you calm, cool and collected all season long. Try ‘em out, and if you love them as much as we do, find the full-size version at Target.com/BeautyBox.

Hask Coconut Oil Deep Conditioner- 1.75 oz.

Hydrates and protects hair with rich monoi oil, Tahitian gardenias & coconut oil.

Rimmel London Shake It Fresh Mascara- Full size

Special formula and tube designed to keep mascara fresh for ultra-smooth, voluminous lashes from first to last use.

imPRESS Press-on manicure- 1 set

Breakthrough press-on nails for a beautiful, glossy gel-finish manicure in minutes.

Nexxus Comb Thru Finishing Mist- 1.5 oz.

Micro-fine mist gives hair an effortless, long-lasting hold with fullness & shine.

Vera Wang Embrace Fragrance- 0.04 oz.

Dreamy notes of mango, melon & cardamom, marigold & gardenia, sandalwood & soft musk.

My Beauty Diary Black Pearl Mask- 10 ct.

Helps repair complexion with Tahitian black pearl essence, lemon extract, red algae & yeast proteins.

Chapstick Red Lip Tint- Full size

This Target-exclusive tint instantly moisturizes and enhances natural lip color.

Target Beauty Coupon 

$3 off your purchase of $15 or more. See coupon for details.

Happy Raturday!

*Picture courtesy of Jin Wicked*

*Picture courtesy of martymousehouse.com*

*Picture courtesy of martymousehouse.com*

*Picture courtesy of Jin Wicked*

Apartment Life! #4

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 and people keep telling me I should write a book. But instead of a book, I've decided to share the crazy things that happen in and around my apartment complex here in a weekly blog post. 

This week I'm going to show you a couple of the strange things I've seen. 

That's a bouncy house in my courtyard. There are 16 apartments in this courtyard and the mother set this up every day for a month. The kids were crazy loud and to me this was just rude as hell. You don't do stuff like this right in front of other people's doors. After people complained to the manager a lot, it was finally taken down and not set up again. 

Then there was the guy who set up a tent in front of his apartment door. He and his 3 dogs slept out there a couple of nights. I have no idea why. Maybe he wanted to go camping.

Then there was the time that a little bunny hopped over to Ken while he was standing in the alley. We would have kept him because he was super sweet but my daughter was very allergic to him. So we found him a home with a couple who had other rabbits and had big rabbit hutches set up for them in their back yard. Ken said the rabbits were running around in their back yard and then at night they were put in the hutches to keep them safe and so sleep. 

We loved the bunny, especially my daughter because he always wanted to be held but she was so allergic. Poor thing.

We don't have a lot of tree's around here besides the Pine tree's since we live in the desert but on the bike path that is right next door to my apartment complex there are some metal tree's. lol 

That's my apartment complex and the bike path from the previous picture is literally 5 feet to the left in this picture. 

So a few years ago I was out taking the dog for a walk and saw these two guys pulling a fully loaded shopping cart up the bike path. One guy has a bicycle hooked to the front of it and is trying to pull it along. 

Most of those bags on the cart are filled with cans and he stopped along the bike path, emptied out a bunch of the bags and stomped on them and put them back in the bags so that the bags are smaller. We found out later that they are room mates and lived in the apartment complex down the street from us. They were taking the cans down to the recycling center. I hope they got a good chunk of money for all their work. 

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