So I was getting antsy and emailed the company asking about the shipping. They responded with the gist of there are delays for this reason and that reason yada, yada, yada, and said they asked the shipping company to expedite and update the shipping info as soon as possible. Today I check on it, and it’s still in Los Angeles, but it has moved, folks! It has gone from the airport to the USPS Regional Origin Facility. Moving along is good, right? There’s no package details available, so I don’t know dimensions or weight to try to determine if it is what we ordered. So I guess we just continue to wait and see if we are surprised when it arrives.
Author: artsycre8ive
Update on Tik Tok Item
So there is a slight update on the electronic game table. I checked the shipping status this morning. Originally, the tracking showed it was at the Hong Kong airport awaiting to take a long trip across the ocean to New York. Well change of plans as it have now arrived in Los Angeles. I’m still unsure of the final destination zip code that’s listed, but I’m hoping all goes well. We’ll see as the week goes on and more updates are made.
Tik Tok Made Me Buy It
So this is a great way to start off the new year, right? Let’s go back a few days. Hubster and I were chillin’, relaxin’, and scrollin’ through Tik Tok as one does. There was an ad (of course). It was for an electronic gaming table. Well since we are both curious AF, we clicked on the link to learn more. There were 3 sizes listed, the largest being 55″. One would think that a 55″ electronic gaming table with a ton of preloaded games would come with a pretty hefty price tag. Mind you that Hubster did google the product and a 32″ at Best Buy was $899. Lo’ and behold, what does this price reflect for the 55″, but $19.99. (Yes that decimal is in the right place.) Plus shipping made is just under $27.
Now tell me something. Who, I repeat, WHO would not jump at this opportunity? I mean if it’s a scam, then you are out less than $30. And if it’s not a scam, then you have a $900+ product for less than $30. Of course we clicked the Buy Now button. Not even 5 minutes after purchasing, we both received a call from our lovely financial institution confirming the purchase. We confirmed (may have been stupid, may not – I have been watching the bank account and nothing more than the allotted less than $27 was processed).
Fast forward a few days, and I have a tracking number. Granted, I am not able to track with the number on the link provided by the company, but if I google global tracking and use the number, I can see that a package originated in China and is scheduled to leave Hong Kong today for New York. My only concern is that the To zip code is not mine. Maybe it’s going to the US warehouse for the company and then they will ship it to me? I don’t know, but I’d like to be optimistic.
So right now, all I know is that there is an international package that I can track using the tracking number provided, but not with the link the company provided. I can also see that the package may be going to another zip code than my own, maybe the warehouse. So I urge you to stay tuned to see where this package goes, and if I do receive it, what I actually get for the $27 I have invested. Will it arrive? If so, will it be the gaming table, or will it be accessories for it, or will it be something totally unexpected? I can’t wait to find out.
100 Days Project
Have you heard of the 100 Days Project? If not, you can find out more here. Basically, you choose something to practice for 100 days. It can be anything relating to any passion you have. You are held accountable for your actions by posting updates on instagram. Unfortunately, I don’t have an instagram, but I think any social media should do. The Project starts today and ends Tuesday, July 14th. I guess I have to choose something quickly. Will you participate? If so, what will you practice? Will it be seeing beauty in the ordinary, or writing everyday in a journal, or working on a piece of artwork or technique everyday, or will it be to bring a smile to one person’s face each day? The possibilities are endless, so make the most of this opportunity and practice! Don’t forget to use the hashtags #The100DayProject and another one personalizing your project #100Daysof______.
Coffee Mate 2 Go French Vanilla Creamer – Review
So Hubster picked me up some Coffee mate 2 Go French Vanilla Creamer last night at the store because I hadn’t had coffee in 4 days due to having no creamer. The description on Coffee Mate’s website is “Deliciously creamy, with classic vanilla taste that’s perfect anytime. Its rich, smooth flavor makes it the ideal cup to share with your perfect mate, or enjoy all to yourself. Try New COFFEE-MATE® 2 Go. This conveniently sized, concentrated creamer never requires refrigeration and makes it possible to take this delicious flavor with you, wherever your day takes you.”
The size is convenient. It will fit in a pocket or purse to be carried around to add flavor to any cup of coffee you may pick up. That’s where the satisfaction for me ends. It is supposed to be concentrated. I made my first morning cup of coffee from my Keurig, and flipped the top on the tiny container. The bottle says 18 servings, and since it’s concentrated, I squeezed in two squirts. I tasted my coffee, and added another squirt. Now I’m a fan of creamer. I like my coffee to have flavor. That cup of coffee disappointed me. For some reason the creamer made the coffee taste watered down.
I decided that maybe it was just a fluke and tried a second cup. Mind you, the coffee was not as strong as it was a second run through the Keurig. Again, started off with two squirts and had to add a third after tasting. This cup had a less watered down flavor, but not the flavor I expected from a concentrated product.
I didn’t want to continue to feel disappointed, so I gave it a third try on a new round of coffee – full strength. I went with 3 squirts right off the bat. The third squirt echoed with the emptiness of the container. Wow, were my 9 squirts equivalent to the 18 servings??? This go around, the coffee had a bit more flavor, but still not to my expectations. I finished my cup, still not impressed.
Hubster came home and asked how it was, commenting on that I used half of the bottle. I handed it to him to let him see that the bottle was empty, yet the bottle still had some heft. He shook it and squirted a smidgen out. He made the comment that it’s not to be refrigerated, which we had not done, and that maybe it was just too cold inside for it, or maybe all of the concentrated flavoring settled to the bottom, even though I did attempt to give it a few shakes after experiencing the watered down flavor in my first cup. I don’t know what happened, but I think I’ll stick to the refrigerated liquid version he also brought home in case the 2 Go version was a dud.
If you try it and have a different experience, please share. Let me know if you shake it before hand, or just squirt and go, and how many squirts you find to reach your flavor haven.
Working on Myself
So my word of the year is Myself. I’ve been thinking how I can work on myself. I spent part of January and February working on organizing myself. I got a family style planner from Plum Paper, and I have actually been using it. I don’t decorate it all out like I’ve seen others doing when I peruse forums and Facebook pages online, but I think that’s not for me. I’ve kept it simple with color coding for everyone, and using minimal washi tape. There are some parts of it that I haven’t been using as I want, but that’s for me to work on in the future. Always evolving.
I also won an Inner Guide planner in a giveaway, and unfortunately, I haven’t made time to begin with it, but it is in my intentions for the coming months to work in it. I expect to be determining and setting some goals and using it to work on and focus on those goals.
One last thing that I’ve done in terms of helping myself to get organized was make my own Traveler’s Notebook. At first, I must admit that I just made it to carry something pretty that I made, but as I’ve been using it this last week, I’m finding it very useful. I’ve got a notebook in it for bullet journaling. Keeping track of my tasks and events in this way has helped me see how I allot my time during the week. I can see what things I do weekly and what I do daily and what I need to work on including in my schedule.
What I’d like to do it eventually figure out is finding something that I like to do for myself. I’d like to find my creative spark, my niche, my dream. If I can profit financially from it in any way, that would be even better. Now don’t get me wrong, I love my full time job and don’t plan on leaving it any time soon. It would just be nice to have something I do for myself that I enjoy on the side. I thought about attending Marie Forleo’s B-School to help me try to decipher this dream, but I have 2 issues: 1 – I don’t have the funds at this time to register, and 2 – I have no idea what I would even do. I’ve read testimonials where people who’ve attended the course didn’t have any ideas prior to the course starting, but to me, I think I should at least have some sort of idea before looking at investing that much.
I do have Danielle LaPorte’s Firestarter Sessions book and workbook, but I would love to try to engage myself more in her Desire Map series, so that’s another thing I hope to look into. For those of you who are ready, and would like to join B-School, you can get bonuses from Danielle LaPorte by registering through her here. For those of you who haven’t heard of these two women or their products, please check them out. Danielle LaPorte and Marie Forleo. Even if their full programs aren’t your cup of tea, you might find a bit of wisdom, or something to jump start your thought process on their sites.
So I hope you’ll join me on my journey of working on improving myself. If you have any of your own stories how you bettered yourself, it could be organizing your closet or your life, or getting in shape, or making a life altering decision, I’d love to hear them to have some inspiration. So please feel free to share. Wish me luck, and off we go!!!!
Thank you, Pinterest App
OK. So I’ve just noticed this, and I have to say thank you. Some of you may have seen this happening for quiet some time and are wondering how I’m so late to the party, but others of you may not realize it yet, so I’m going to share. On the Pinterest App on my iPad, when I pin something, on the left hand side it brings up the last board to which I’ve pinned, but then it also gives me two more options. In the past, this used to be the last 3 boards to which I had pinned, but lately I’ve noticed that the system tries to guess on which board I want to put that pin, and populates 2 possible choices under my last pinned board. Can I just say I LOVE THIS! Now it may not be 100% accurate, but for the most part, I see it having a high rate of accuracy, so it cuts down on my pinning time. Before, I was having to scroll through all my boards. Granted, it only saves seconds, but hey, that’s more seconds to drown in a sea of pins and fight my way back to shore, right? So thank you Pinterest App, for anticipating my board and making it that much easier for me to get lost in the ever expanding Pinterest world.
Volleyball
So Kiddo likes volleyball. I’m glad she likes it because she’s good at it, and it’s fun for her. She plays at the rec center because she can’t play in school until next year. There’s no teams for her grade level at her school. So we went and signed her up. This past week we had the parent/coaches meeting to get the list of teams and find out who the coaches are. Well, Kiddo’s team looked so sad because on the roster there was no coach. She kept telling me, “Mom, you played before, and you were good.” Key word there is were. I haven’t played in a long time, but then she gave me the puppy dog eyes. So when we went to change her requested shirt size, I put my name down as coach. Luckily, another mom did, too, so we’re not going at this alone.
Fast forward to this weekend when we had our first practice. The girls are great. They all hustle and move toward the ball instead of running from it. We need to work with some of them on overhand serves, but that’s expected at this level. We also need to work with them on getting under the ball. We started doing that, and I came away with some lessons learned.
1. Remember how old you are
2. Remember how long it’s been since you played a sport
3. Remember that muscles that haven’t been overexerted in a while will send you 911 calls when you overexert them.
4. If you don’t heed those 911 calls, said muscles will refuse to work.
So, yes, my thigh muscles and I are not friends at the moment due to squatting down so much at practice. Hopefully, we’ll have mended our relationship before next week’s practice, or can at least be amicable enough in front of the team.
Do any of you play sports? Do any of you have any tips on drills and such we can work on with the team? Remember these are only 5th and 6th grade girls playing recreationally. (Yea, spell check is telling me that’s not a word, but I’m making it one today. My blog, my rules.) Share in the comments!!!
Yesterday…
Yesterday started out as a normal day. I woke up and took my over the mug picture to upload to facebook. I drove Kiddo to school, and once back home, logged into my computer as I do every weekday for work. I worked all day, and didn’t even go out for lunch. I just had some yummy ham and greens from the fridge. The end of the day was when it started getting better.
Kiddo and I have been waiting for what seems like ages for bluetooth headphones we ordered to arrive (it’s only been like a week, but when you want something and you are waiting for it, the waiting is the hardest part). She went down to get the mail and VIOLA! not only brought in the headphones, which had obviously arrived, but another package as well. The Inner Guide Planner I won arrived! I have cracked it open and started making notes for an intro video that I plan to do (so stay tuned for that for those of you who want to know what the guts of this planner look like).
Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaannnnnnnnnd, when I went to bed, I checked my email one last time. What did I find????? A notification that my Plum Paper Family Planner has begun the shipping process! That means it will be here soon, and my planner bliss can be complete. Well, we’ll see. I have to get in the habit of using both of them to their potential, and not let them sit idle with blank pages. Wish me luck!
How do you keep track of your goals? Do you use a planner or organizer? Share your methods!
Pin Test
So I was browsing Pinterest *gasp* (who does that, right? No one simply browses, but gets lost for hours in the see of interests.) Well, like I was saying, I was browsing, and I came across a recipe for making your own creamer. Since I got a Keurig for Christmas and have been drinking more coffee, I decided to give it a go.
I found the recipe here. Being the bland, boring person I am, I decided to go for the French Vanilla flavor. I had some sweetened condensed milk in the pantry, some vanilla in the cupboaard, and Hubster had just picked up a half gallon of milk at the store. I also had some mason jars just itching to be used.
The recipe called for one can of sweetened condensed milk, milk and flavoring. Here’s what I used.
I poured all the ingredients into the mason jar and shook it up.
Once it was all melded together, I decided to try it out in a cup of Pike’s Place Medium Roast. I have to say that this creamer disappointed. In the medium roast, I barely found any vanilla flavor. I decided to try it in a Donut Place Light Roast to see if the roast type would change how much of the flavor I was able to sense. There was a slight vanilla flavor with the light roast, but not an exorbitant amount. I have to say that I like the flavor that comes from a more concentrated, commercial creamer. I’m not counting this recipe out, though. I may try it again, but next time use a more commercial grade flavoring to make it stronger. There are several suggestions to make it creamier or different flavorings.
What have you tried off Pinterest? Has it been a win or a bust?
Fanciful Randomness 