A Day at the Lake

July 18, 2016July 17, 201610 Comments

Hi everyone! My post is a little different this time. No DIY! Just a few pictures from our day at a nearby lake! I finally got to go somewhere and just relax!

I took this picture on the way to the lake. Ezzy looks so excited, but Zoe, not so much!! This just makes me laugh every time. We haven’t taken Zoe anywhere yet, so this was her first major trip and she did so good!

Here are the nice brown foothills surrounding the lake. We are going through drought here in Ca., so while the lake is pretty full, the hills are very dry. This is just in the foothills, not too far up.

Lake Kaweah is actually a reservoir and is used to control flood waters when there is a lot of snow and is also used for irrigation for the surrounding farmland. It is usually full during May and June when the snow melts, but since we did have a little extra rain this year, it is still pretty full even in July.

We arrived around 11:00 and it was pretty quiet. Just a few other people and some boats and jet skis out on the water. By 2:00, it was pretty busy and we called it a day. Having all the dogs there and lots of people can get a little stressful. But the dogs really did quite well.

It was so nice to get out for awhile, even if it was just a few hours. We played a little frisbee in the water and I got to spend my time reading a book I have trying to get to all summer! We are hoping to get to another lake a little higher up in a couple of weeks and then hopefully to the beach before school starts. We all need a few of these breaks!

I will see you again on Wednesday! Hope you have a great week!

Corner News-I AM ADDICTED!

July 16, 2016July 15, 2016Leave a comment

So, unless you have to be living under a rock for the past week, many of you have heard of the new app called Pokemon Go.

Now, I will start off by saying that I didn’t understand why people liked the app so much. I was never one who got into Pokemon when I was younger, so I didn’t really feel the need to download the app.

And honestly, I was making a little bit of fun of my friends who had downloaded the app. I thought it was a silly concept for people to have to leave their houses to go and collect Pokemon. Wouldn’t it be easier to find Pokemon on a virtual map and not leave my house?

Unfortunately, my coworker and really good friend Elise told me to download the game and try it because a bunch of coworkers were going to a local park to hunt for Pokemon. And since I love my coworkers I decided to try it out.

And now I regret it because I AM ADDICTED.

Yes, that’s right. I went through 6 levels in 3 hours with my coworkers. And, because you have to walk certain distances to hatch the eggs, I took a 30 minute walk to try to hatch 2 eggs. Yeah…

Now, my two highest Pokemon are my Arbok and my Growlithe. And my coworkers and I have planned to go Pokemon hunting once a week. Addicted? Probably. How long will it last? I don’t know. But I know that for now, everyone loves it and I might as well join the trend.

Side Note: I originally typed up this blog on Wednesday the 13th. Since then, I went on another Pokemon hunt with my coworkers and found just a few more Pokemon.

These are my current highest Pokemon.

And…I hatched two Magikarps in my eggs. They are some of the hardest Pokemon to find and you need a lot of them to level up one. And I hatched two. My coworker Dean was not happy.

HELP ME I’M ADDICTED!

I Moved to a New Apartment

July 15, 2016July 13, 20166 Comments

Well everyone. It has been a wonderful two years at my last apartment, but on Monday I moved to a new place.

It was a hard decision, but when I thought I would be moving in with some friends and that fell through, I had to find something else that worked. So I looked at apartments to live by myself, but I didn’t think that I could afford it on how much I make a month.

So I turned to Craigslist where I found an ad for someone looking for another roommate. I would have my own room, but share a bathroom with one other roommate. And after meeting the girls and signing the lease, I moved all of my stuff in on Monday.

And here is what my new room looks like!

Okay, so that’s what my bed and wall looks like. I put my bed in the corner of the room because I wanted the most room to add my other furniture. My room is a lot smaller than my last room, so I had to really work to get everything to fit. One of those things, is all of the artwork that I have. So, mom told me that I needed to create a gallery wall.

Now, it’s not completely done, but here is what I have so far.

Yeah, so I still have a few things left to hang on my wall, like a chalkboard and two mirrors that fit in nicely with my other art. I might also buy a S to go with the L on the wall. Who knows?

On the other side of the room is where the rest of my furniture is. I have this dresser that is filled to the brim with stuff.

Doesn’t it look familiar? If not, I’ll leave a link at the end of the post for the original blog post about this dresser. But, I was finally able to use it and it fits all of the clothes. Hooray!

I also have my bookshelf that was brought over from the other apartment. And it is already filled with decor and books.

And yes, that is an unopened box of Cards Against Humanity on the bottom shelf. I just need to find some people who would want to play it with me… But yeah, I have I ever mentioned that I like Paris and the Eiffel Tower and pink? I think you can definitely tell just by looking at my room.

Finally for furniture, I have this TV stand that I had painted blue a few weeks ago when I still thought that I was moving in with my friends, not people on Craigslist. Well, mom surprised me by painting it black, adding pink and white knobs on the front, and decorative paper on the bottom of the drawer and inside the doors. Imagine my surprise when I saw that pull up to the new apartment instead of the blue one.

I also hung my bow board up behind my bedroom door because I am sharing a bathroom and there isn’t space in the bathroom to hang it. So, it is by my door so that way I can just grab a bow before I head out to work!

And finally the closet… Is it any bigger than the closet at my last apartment? The answer is yes. Not much, but yes it is bigger. I don’t have a walk in closet anymore, but I have a lot more hanging room and storage for my tee shirts and work clothes. So, I guess that I have a bigger closet?

So, yeah. That’s my new space. I really like it. It makes me really think before I buy something big because I have to think about where I am going to put it. Since I don’t have as large of a space like my last apartment, I have to be really careful. But, I like it a lot and I am very grateful for not having to climb so many stairs.

Check out some of my other blogs!

Lauren’s Apartment A New Dresser Teen to Adult TV Stand

Finds and Fashions-Pink Edition

July 13, 2016July 10, 20166 Comments

Happy Wednesday! I had to think about that a bit! Since I am not in school, I tend to lose track of my days! I thought I would go with a little pink today, just to lighten things up!

I have shown this Kimono before, with blue, but it looks good with so many different things! I bought it from GroopDealz.com and I just saw it again a few weeks ago. This time I added a pink/coral top underneath, which I paired with white jeans. I think I have shown white jeans almost every time too. They just look good with everything! I added a white, coral and gold necklace, white hoop earrings, a brown and gold tote and white sandals.

I just love how flowy this is. It sure is cooler on a hot day!

This next top is one of my favorites. It has a French Bulldog on the front in pink and silver! I paired it with a white knit skirt to give it a more casual feel. Silver sandals and earrings were also added. The pink tote I feel like I have had forever! I think I got it at a thrift store and I pull it out every summer. It’s great for taking down to the beach or lake too!

Here is a close up of the cute doggy!

Here’s the bag, sandals and earrings.

The last outfit is a basic white tee with a pink 3/4 sleeve sweater over the top. Now, we don’t need sweaters here too often in the summertime, but Haley and I went to see Finding Dory a couple of weeks ago, and I sure wish I had this sweater in the theater. It was freezing! I paired it with both a grey pair of jeans and a grey skirt, so it could be more casual or dressy. I also showed it with a couple of different pairs of shoes.

A pretty beaded pink necklace and the same pink tote finish it off.

I enjoy playing around with different combinations of outfits from my closet. It helps me to see what might work together and give me more of an idea what to grab if I am in a hurry. It can also help to see some of the basics you might need. There are always some new combinations to put together!

I hope you have a fantastic week and I will see you next time!

Rent a Toy with Pley, an Online Toy Library

July 11, 2016July 10, 20164 Comments

Hey everyone! I’m off today helping Lauren with the final moving stuff. Hopefully she will have most of it done, since she needs to be out by noon. She is moving into a really cute apartment complex. There are lots of large and shady trees, a couple of pools, volleyball courts and rec room. I hope all goes well with her roommates.

About a month ago, we received an email from a company called Pley, an online toy rental service out of Silicon Valley. With Pley, your kids get to play with the coolest toys and you can save money, reduce clutter and help the environment. For a monthly fee, members receive the toys they picked delivered directly to their door. Once they’ve finished playing with their toy, they can simply swap it out for a different toy. No more wasting money on toys that are left gathering dust on your shelves. Pley asked if I would like to try out a toy and possibly write a review about the toy and the service. (I did get to try out the toy at no charge and then sent the toy back). Well, of course, I was happy to do so. Now, I don’t have any small children at home, but I have my two great-nieces. Perfect!

I went online to the Pley website and picked out which toy I wanted to try out. They have so much to choose from! You can choose an age group, boy or girl, and then pick toys ranging from Star Wars, Marvel, Fisher Price, Disney Jr., Lego, American Girl, Barbie, Leap Frog, Hot Wheels, and K’nex. After I picked the toy I wanted, I placed the order and waited for my toy to arrive. It came after just a few days.

My 3 year old niece happened to be visiting at my Mom’s house, so I went over for a visit and to bring the toy. I had picked out a Preschool Store Set which included people, animals, a store set-up, food and many other pieces. My niece and I played with it for quite awhile, setting up the store and helping the people to shop.

She especially liked loading thing into the little car. She’s a little shopper already!

I really like the idea of playing with a toy for awhile and then trading it in for something else. We know how kids get tired of the same thing and this way you don’t have to go out and spend a lot of money on toys, plus find a place to store them. If my kids were still small, it would definitely be something I would consider! I think this is a great service for all parents!

Would this be something you would try out? I would love to hear other opinions about this kind of service! Let me know in the comments!

ps. I would like to wish a Happy Birthday to my daughter Haley!!!