19 Years Blogging! Happy Blogoversary To Me!

 

It's my blogoversary!

It's hard to believe that 19 years ago I started this blog. I had no idea what to write about at first, sometimes I still don't. I'm just glad that my readers seem to still enjoy reading my posts. 

A lot of things have changed in the last 19 years. My daughter is all grown up and now I have an 11 year old grandson. I used to have hamsters, rats and gerbils and now have a very energetic Jack Russell Terrier/Chihuahua named Falcor who turned 10 years old this month.

My blog has changed as I've changed over the years. I've met a lot of really wonderful people and made quite a few friends along the way.  I've ranted, reviewed, shared my thoughts and advice. I don't think I ever really thought that I would still be blogging 19 years later or that anyone would read what I had to say, but many of you do and I thank you for sticking with me through so many years.

My husband of 30 years passed away in 2020 and I miss him dearly. I turned 54 years old this year and have seen quite a few gray hairs popping out. lol 

Back when I started my blog, several other friends started blogs too but I'm the only one still blogging. 

So for all of you followers that have been here a long time and for those of you that are fairly new I just want to say thank you for visiting, commenting and enjoying what I've been posting over the years. I hope we'll all be around and blogging for many years to come.

Book Review: Mating of Convenience by Lori Whyte

 

Book Description

TWO DRAGONS, ONE MISCALCULATING MATE

Calla has to protect herself. She doesn't have a choice. And the only way to survive a forced trip into dragon country is to go in with the scents of two powerful dragons on her already.

Her plan? Seduce Xander and Kolz, the hottest dragons she's ever met.

Easy peasy, right? What could possibly go wrong?

Ha!

The answer – EVERYTHING! Starting with the fact that the dragons don't want a woman for just one night… They want to take a mate. And they want that mate to be her.

About the Mannix Dragon Shifters Series

Over two decades ago, humans discovered dragons are real. They can take the shape of a man, but they are still beasts in their hearts. To survive and keep them sane, every dragon pair needs a mate… Two males for every woman. But what woman would willing join with two dragons?

My Review

When Calla thinks she found proof that women are being kidnapped and given to other dragon shifter clans to be mates, she goes to the dragons that she knows to get help. What they find proof of is even worse than she thought though. So the dragon shifters go about investigating things which puts Calla in danger. The council she's on votes for her to travel to another dragon clan where she could be kidnapped and forced to mate dragons if she isn't protected. But the two dragon shifters that she went to for help with the missing women want her for their own mate and aren't going to let her go anywhere near other dragons without their protection. 

As they travel together and spend more time together, she finds herself falling for both Kolz and Xander. There are some mistakes made by all and some miscommunication that leads to some hurt feelings but things are starting to look up for all three of them when tragedy strikes and it might be the end for all of them if Kolz and Xander can't find a way to help Calla. 

I liked Xander and Kolz a lot. They let Calla make up her mind if she wanted to be their mate and they weren't too pushy even though they were feeling things that made them crazy because of the mating bond beginning. This was a fun book. 

I give this book 4 out of 5 stars. 

Amazon

Favorite Picture of the Week

 

The sun behind the clouds on this day made for a nice picture. 

Book Review: Mortal Curse by Tia Didmon

 

Book Description

A shadow. A shifter. A curse.

When a reaper attack thrusts Dannika into the shadow shifter world and her transition results in her imprisonment, she turns to Raine, the sexy shadow who saved her.

As her attraction to Raine mounts, and dissension in the shadow shifter clan increases, she learns that being the only woman to survive the transition isn’t her only secret. Her new abilities come with a price, and if she doesn’t curb her killer instincts, she will end up as loathsome as the creature who attacked her.

My Review

When a reaper attacks Dannika, her whole world is about to change. Raine should have killed her and put her out of her misery because females who are bitten by reapers usually do not make it through the transition. But Raine took a chance and she did make it through the transition and is now a shadow shifter. But Maddock the alpha doesn't want her there, wants her gone and it causes a lot of trouble for everyone. Raine refuses to kill her and instead starts the trials she'll have to complete in order to become one of the shadow shifters. But that causes it's own problems since the other clans now know about her and want her to join them as well. It's been a long time since they've seen a female shadow shifter and all they can think about is how she'll be a good breeder for their kind, which made me sick. 

While Raine is trying to teach her their ways and make her see that she can never go back to her human life, there's a dangerous man trying to get to her and kidnap her which ramps the action and danger up. But this story ends before we really get to know why Killian is after her or why he thinks she is so special. There were a lot of unanswered questions left open at the end of this book. 

The premise was good and the action was great but this book was very wordy without being descriptive enough for me to be able to really imagine what was going on in their world. Plus some parts got very boring and didn't keep me engaged enough to want to keep reading. 

I give this book 2 out of 5 stars. 

Amazon

Happy Raturday!

 

*All pictures this week are courtesy of www.martymousehouse.com*

Apartment Life: #319

 

This is a weekly blog post that I'm calling Apartment Hell  Life. I've mentioned a few times some of the crazy things that have gone on in and around my apartment complex and in my neighborhood in the past 25 years that I'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 25 years here in a weekly blog post.  

I used my security cameras to get all of the pictures this week. This officer was going to an apartment 3 doors away. The new lady who just moved in has 2 little girls and this officer has come by twice to give the kids a soccer ball, school supplies and other stuff. I have no idea if they're part of an outreach program or are just friends. It's nice seeing police in my neighborhood for something nice for a change. 

The officers police car is towards the left of the picture. She brought the kids and the mother out to her car and gave them boxes of stuff. The kids were so excited. 

--- 

There was a crane in the alley behind the apartment complex across the street this week delivering a new air conditioning unit on the roof of the building.

I've seen that a few times. They have central air and get those monster units on the roof while we have smaller wall air conditioners in our units.  

It was pretty quiet this week.

The high this week was 94F/34C

The low this week was 62F/16C

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

Favorite Song of the Week

 

Stone Broken- The Devil You Know

I just found this band when I was scrolling Youtube and I really like some of their songs but I've been playing this one the most. I hope you enjoy.

Freebie Friday!

 

Welcome to another weekly Freebie Friday post, 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.

What Did I Receive This Week?

Several perfume samples from Macy's. 

Davines OI All In One Milk- Leave in conditioner. 

I won a phone ring from Hidden Valley Ranch Ranchology. 

And another perfume sample. 

The perfume samples are all so nice. Gucci Flora is really nice. I like flowery type scents. 

The leave in conditioner is nice. The phone ring is in the shape of a ranch bottle which made me laugh but it works great so I'm using it. lol 

Did you receive any freebies this week?

Book Review: The Night They Stole My Baby by Darren O'Sullivan

 

Book Description

My baby is due in two weeks. Hand on my bump, I swear to my little girl, I won’t be anything like my mother.

I’m walking home after the perfect baby shower, enjoying the cool summer evening breeze. I can’t wait to rest my aching feet. 

I’m almost at my door when the world goes black. 

I wake with a blinding pain in my head. Beeping of machines in background. I open my eyes to a white room. 

Panic jolts through me. I reach down to my bump, to where my baby should be. But she’s not there.  

Then my fingers find a rough line of stitches.  

Someone has taken my baby.  

Out of me. 

My Review

Emily has a big secret about her childhood that she's keeping from her friends. She's scared and excited to be about to give birth to her baby daughter even thought the father of the baby and she aren't going to be together, they should be able to raise the child without many problems if they co-parent well. But as Emily is about home from her baby shower someone runs up behind her, injects her with something and she loses consciousness. Waking up in the hospital in pain is bad enough but when she realizes that she's no longer pregnant, she's out of her mind. All of her friends tell her the baby is fine but is she? 

When her baby and the father of the baby go missing, Emily can only wait for the police to do their jobs and find her child. But things don't go as fast as they should and one disaster after another happens. Where is the baby? Who has her and why? Could this kidnapping have something to do with the big secret she's been keeping from everyone?

This story is told in alternate times lines, the present where the search for Emily's baby is ongoing and the story of what happened in her childhood when her sister was murdered. As the story unfolds about her childhood, it was absolutely heartbreaking reading what those kids went though. It was also sad to see Emily blame herself about what happened to her sister. 

I had so many thoughts about who could have taken her baby and why but the truth and the twist was one I didn't see coming. I thought I had this one figured out and I was so wrong. 

Waiting to see if the baby would be found alive or ever found at all had me on the edge of my seat. I think the story stalled a little because nothing was happening with the search, no new clues to keep us engaged enough to keep reading at times. But things do pick up towards the end of the book where we finally get to see what was actually going on and that was a good ending.

I give this book 4 out of 5 stars. 

Disclosure: I was given an e-ARC of this book via NetGalley but all thoughts and opinions are my own. 

Goodreads

Favorite Picture of the Week

 

Tiny yellow wild flowers. More popped up after maintenance weed whacked them all away.

I spotted a brown pigeon sitting on a dripping faucet getting a drink of water. 

And these pretty purple flowers are from some micro radishes that my daughter has growing in her garden.

Book Review: Heal Me: Club Surrender book 1 by A.C. Nixon

 

Book Description

Ryann All I wanted to do was get out of Chicago and away from my abusive ex, but one Versace clad assassin (and inspiration for my battery powered fantasies) had other ideas. One glance at Dorian Zuba, and I knew he was dangerous in a way that left a trail of mangled hearts and sated women, but it was too late. I was hooked, and there was no turning back. Had I known falling for this man could lead to my kidnapping and my inevitable undoing, I might not’ve let myself get so close to Dorian. But even I knew that was a lie. Dorian My job was simple: Find the person responsible for drugging women at Club Surrender and get rid of them. What I wasn’t counting on was her. Ryann wasn’t just sexy as hell, she challenged me in ways I didn’t believe were still possible. But caring for her meant she was a target. The people I was hunting would do anything to stop me, even if that meant hurting Ryann. How could I put the woman I cared for in danger? But more importantly, how could I let her go?

My Review

Ryann got away from her ex because the man was abusive, she's got a job as a waitress and Dorian comes in each week. Ryann isn't sure if he's coming there for her or because he likes the food but she's pretty sure he can afford better food so she's happy to see him each week even though she's pretty sure he's a mobster. Just got out of an abusive relationship but flirt with a mobster. Sure, why not.

When Dorian gets shot and Ryann saves him, they are now both in danger from whoever is trying to get rid of Dorian and Ryann spends some time with him at his place but it's against her will. He's trying to spend time with her but he's also trying to find out who's killing women from his club.

I didn't like Dorian at all, the way he thinks of her as nothing more than a piece of meat throughout the book was gross. Thinking about all the things he wants to do to her even though they don't know each other very well. He pretty much takes what he wants even though she's into him but it wasn't endearing at all. He's not a nice guy and it shows. After a couple of days she's starting to fall for him (falling for another jerk like her ex) and when he shows her a little more of the real him and tells her that she gets to choose whether or not he does something illegal, but is it really her choice when she decides not to tell him to do the illegal thing and he calls it quits with her because of it? Like I said, he's a jerk. 

She forgives him too easily. She should have taken her things and disappeared because this guy is controlling and bad news. This story was kinda all over the place and it ends with some questions not answered. Like, where is her ex now, what happened to him?

I give this book 1 out of 5 stars.

Amazon

Happy Raturday!

 

*All pictures this week are courtesy of www.martymousehouse.com*

Apartment Life: #318

 

This is a weekly blog post that I'm calling Apartment Hell  Life. I've mentioned a few times some of the crazy things that have gone on in and around my apartment complex and in my neighborhood in the past 25 years that I'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 25 years here in a weekly blog post. 

On Monday the police were in my courtyard at the apartment 2 doors away from mine. I didn't hear anything happening there before they showed up so I don't know what was going on. No one was arrested. 

---

The new guy who just moved in across from me works at the liquor store next door. So he knows a bunch of people from this neighborhood. After talking to a few of the women in my courtyard, I found out he's been flirting aggressively with some of them and won't leave them alone. So they are going to complain to management about him. He also plays his music really loud and disturbs the woman 2 doors from him when she works graveyard shift. So she's going to complain to management about that too. 

---

Monday night about 10PM, I was out walking Falcor for the last time that night and saw the ambulance driving up and down my street. There are 10 buildings in my apartment complex and ever since this place was painted a couple of months ago, they have never replaced the building numbers on the buildings. So delivery drivers are having a hard time finding the right address, postal carriers are having a hard time finding the right address and now the paramedics are having a hard time finding the right building numbers. 

They came to my door twice and said they were looking for building number 209 but that building was torn down years ago when they built the sound wall. I told them that. They continued to drive up and down the street and even got out of the ambulance at one point with their flashlights. They searched for almost an hour before coming back to my door and the other number 3 in my courtyard because they were looking for number 3. 

There is one of the paramedics approaching my door. As he was standing there they got the call that it wasn't building number 209 it was 109 and they went running off to that building. That poor person waited almost an hour for an ambulance. 

I caught one of the managers outside over a week ago and told them that delivery people were having a hard time finding the right address because the building numbers have not been painted back on the walls and he told me some lie about how they were waiting for the painters to come back out and do touch ups before they hung the building numbers back up. They do not care.

The high this week was 97F/36C

The low this week was 63F/17C

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

Favorite Song of the Week

 

Jelly Roll- Save Me

I recently heard of Jelly Roll and heard he had a great voice. They were not kidding. He really does have a great voice and this song is a bit sad though because of those lyrics. I hope you enjoy. 

Freebie Friday!

 

Welcome to another weekly Freebie Friday post, 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.

What I Received This Week

I received a perfume sample and a men's cologne sample. 

I also received a Peace Out Acne Dots sample. 

A Dedcool perfume sample. 

And a full size bottle of Joico Dry Shampoo from BzzAgent. 

3 soaps lavender, rose and tumeric scets from Try Products.

I like the dry shampoo, it doesn't leave a white powder in my hair and smells good. The Dedcool perfume doesn't have much scent to me but my daughter said she smelled it good so maybe it's just me. 

I'll try the acne dots if I get a pimple anytime soon. The perfume smelled good but the men's cologne was not good. 

If you'd like to sign up for BzzAgent and maybe get some free samples too, you can do that here.

I like the soaps, the rose one smells the best.

Did you receive any freebies this week? 

Book Review: A Mate's Denial by P. Jameson

 

Book Description

The prophecy says she'll reject him but this wolf shifter is about to make her an offer she can't refuse...

Trager was only a wolfling when a devastating foretelling by the pack elders made him an outcast, exiled from his home in the Ozark Mountains. Though he is destined to be denied by his mate, he’s spent the years planning, waiting . . . hunting her. Now that he’s found her, he decides to take fate into his own hands and win her heart. But when a rival wolf pack threatens to destroy the very shifters who cast him out, he’ll have to return to the Ozark Mountains to save them, and convince the woman he’s falling for, to help.

It's been a year since Kerrigan lost the love of her life in a tragic motorcycle accident, and she is finally ready to move on. Especially since she was never the love of his. But being with a man who couldn’t appreciate her curves has left her heart ragged. A roughened biker, who's hot enough to stop her breath, is the very last thing she's looking for. Except apparently he's been looking for her, and even though she doesn’t totally love herself, he stares at her like she sets his world on fire. To be accepted, wanted, as she is, is her deepest desire, and Trager seems to want every inch of her. But she’s not sure if she can risk her heart again with someone who could so easily crush it.

*** Book One of P. Jameson's Ozark Mountain Shifter series of stand-alone romances***

My Review

Trager is a wolf shifter who was kicked out of his pack when he was just 12 years old because the elders had a vision that he would be rejected by his mate and therefore he would be of no use to the pack. He was just a boy but he made it and then he meets Kerrigan years later. She is still hurting and mistrustful because of an ex-boyfriend and doesn't trust Trager at first. But he's was so sweet, attentive and persistent that Kerrigan ends up spending time with him and seeing that he is actually nothing like the rough biker type that he looks like. 

When Trager is told by someone that his old pack is in danger, he wants to help since his family is still there. The same family that turned their backs on him but he still wants to help them. But the alpha of the pack is a nasty piece of work. I didn't realize just how nasty this alpha was until the end of the book but yeah, he's not a nice guy. 

Watching Trager and Kerrigan get to know one another after she finds out he's a wolf shifter was fun even though there are some missteps on both of their parts. Like I've said before, you have to be able to communicate your concerns if you are going to be in a relationship otherwise there will be problems. 

My only problem with this book was that it ended on a cliffhanger. The story was great. The characters were really good and I want to read the next book, I just hope it doesn't end of a cliffhanger too. 

I give this book 3 out of 5 stars. 

Amazon

Product Review: Secret Whole Body Deodorant

 

I was seeing this product everywhere! So I decided to buy it and try it out. This post is not sponsored, I did not receive a free sample, I bought this myself. 

It's been a little while since I did a product review and since this is a new product and this is the first time I tried it, I figured, why not. 

Description from the Secret Deodorant Website

"Sweat happens everywhere, but with Secret, ​stink doesn’t have to.​  Say goodbye to multiple daily showers, with Secret Whole Body Creams, you can smell better everywhere from your pits, to your privates and more!  Our Secret Whole Body Deodorant was created to use on your underarms, underboobs, thighs, privates, feet and more! It's aluminum free, free of dyes, parabens, phthalates and is made to be gentle on skin.  

USE FOR PITS, PRIVATES, UNDERBOOBS AND FEET: Our Whole Body deodorant can be used on various areas of the body, including underarms, privates, underboobs, feet, and more

72 HR FRESHNESSS:  Enjoy 72 hr freshness with daily use.  An odor protection that keeps you feeling fresh and confident throughout the day from your pits to your bits.

PH BALANCING MINERALS:  Formulated with pH balancing minerals, our deodorants help maintain a healthy balance for your skin.  Gives you an all around protection that is gentle on skin

GOES ON CLEAR:  Goes on clear and leaves an invisible layer of protection, ensuring no residue

MULTIPLE SCENT OPTIONS: Choose from our enticing Peach & Vanilla scent or Unscented, allowing you to find your perfect match."

My Review

The only scent they had when I bought it was this Peach and Vanilla which is nice and not at all over powering. It says it works for 72 hours but took a shower after 24 hours but it was still working at that time. There was no bad odors coming from my underarms or anywhere else. The scent from the product was gone by that time though. The scent only lasted about 8 hours for me when I used it. 

It didn't give me a rash anywhere I used it, nor did it irritate my skin. It does go on clear and didn't stain my clothes. It washes off easily and washes out of clothes easily if you happen to get it on your clothes. 

It's a very thin lotion/cream, not a thick cream at all. More like the consistency of a thin body lotion. The price was $13.00 for a 3oz tube when I bought it from Amazon. There is quite a bit in the tube though because you only have to use a pea sized amount. This is not an anti-perspirant, it will not stop wetness or sweating. This will last me a long time so we'll see if my thoughts change as I use it longer. But for now, I think it's a pretty good product. 

I would give this a 3 out of 5 stars. 

Have you used this product before?

Book Review: Knights Of Stone: Mason by Lisa Carlisle

 

Book Description

Kayla, a curious witch, crosses into forbidden gargoyle territory. She’s intrigued by their unconventional rock concerts–and the dark-haired guitarist.

Mason, gargoyle shifter and guitarist for the Knights of Stone, has his eye on the woman in the audience. When she leaves the concert, he follows her into the island’s forest.

But he discovers she's an enemy to his kind and must resist the temptation.

Especially with the threat of the island wolves losing control.

And the full moon is coming...

My Review

Gargoyles, witches and wolf shifters all live on an island away from most human prying eyes. They have a very unsteady truce between their three peoples and they all keep to themselves. Each think that the other are responsible for the deaths of so many of their kind so many years ago and most aren't old enough to remember what actually happened. 

So when Kayla who is a witch, hears music coming from beyond her side of the island she travels to where it is and is excited and scared to see gargoyles playing. Mason is one of those gargoyles and each night be is released from his stone statue, he spots her watching him play music with the other gargoyles. He thinks she is one of the humans that know about the island and come to see them play but she's actually a witch and he's more than a little surprised by that when he finds out. 

They get to know one another and fall hard for each other. But the witches will never condone their relationship and he doesn't think the gargoyles will ever trust her. So when a wolf shifter comes to Kayla and Mason to tell some unsettling news, they have no choice but to enlist the help of all of their separate peoples. 

I loved this romance because Kayla and Mason were so different and didn't know how to react to one another at first. The drama that ensues after their meeting just added to the entirety of this story and made it very entertaining to read. 

I give this book 4 out of 5 stars. 

Amazon

Happy Raturday!

 

*All pictures this week are courtesy of www.martymousehouse.com*

Apartment Life #317

 

This is a weekly blog post that I'm calling Apartment Hell  Life. I've mentioned a few times some of the crazy things that have gone on in and around my apartment complex and in my neighborhood in the past 25 years that I'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 25 years here in a weekly blog post.  

Monday night around 10:30Pm I heard a bunch of sirens really close so I looked out the window and police cars were everywhere on my street. I told my daughter who went outside to get pictures. The police were blocking off my street, and all the side streets around my street. 

There were so many police cars that were parked and driving up and down my street. 

They were blocking off the end of my street.

And then a bunch of police officers were walking up and down my street. This was in my courtyard. My daughter was sitting in our chairs you can see right there and asked one of the officers if everything was alright around here. He told her they were looking for someone and asked her if she saw anyone running away from this street. She hadn't so she said no. They even brought out a K9 dog and had him walking up and down the street and into courtyards. 

They were parked at the end of this street and walking up and down here as well. They started stopping any cars that they saw on the streets and searching them.

My daughter was standing at the end of our courtyard and took this picture of the police out walking around. They stopped anyone outside and talked to them. They were nice about it though my daughter said. They just asked people if they saw anyone running away.

The police walking on the other side of the fence from my courtyard. At one point I saw the fire truck on my street too. I don't know if they ever caught the person they were looking for. 

----

Because of all the craziness that happens around here and on my street, I decided to get a second camera for my bedroom window. The top picture is from the bedroom camera and the bottom picture is from the living room camera. They were taken right after midnight so you can see that even at night I should be able to get better pictures at night than if I used my camera or tablet. 

The high this week was 93F/33C

The low this week was 57F/13C

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

Favorite Song of the Week

 

Hollywood Undead- Alright

You've probably seen Hollywood Undead on here before because I really like them. Here's another song that I've been playing on repeat lately. I hope you enjoy. 

Freebie Friday!

 

Welcome to another weekly Freebie Friday post, 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 cashed out points on Inbox Dollars and American Consumer Opinion for a total of $30.24 in Amazon Gift Cards. 

I also cashed out points on e-Rewards for a $50 Macy's Gift Card. 

With my Macy's gift card I bought an Air Fryer. It only cost me $23 after applying the gift card. That's more than big enough for me. I'm excited to start trying out some foods in the air fryer now. Do any of you have one? What do you like cooking in it? Got any good recipes?

Did you get any freebies this week?