…and Blue Sky

 

1. This particular Friday, I’m thankful for a busy work week. Freelancer life is awesome, given that I can work at home with no pants surrounded by cats, but sometimes it is NOT awesome and you have a couple of slow weeks in a row and things get super stressful financially. The past two weeks have been busy, so… yay dollars.

 

2. The S’mores frappuccino is back and I have zero shame about loving it.

“I’d like one giant cup of caffeinated sugar, please!”

 

3. I tried on these two dresses at Target earlier this week and fell in love with both.

left * right

The current JULY4 20% off code makes them $24 each! (reg. $29.99) My only hesitation is that I don’t have a bra that would work with either. (The boob struggle is real, y’all.)

 

4. Chewy.com is like Santa or the Easter Bunny or something but better, because they send me cat food to review every month, and that’s any cat lady’s dream.

The meow faces were treated to this Evo 95 grain-free chicken and turkey cat food this month, and it was a hit. Some of them are picky about pates, but this one was really moist (sorry to those who hate that word) and had a noticeable chicken-y scent (technical term) that seemed to draw them in. the “95” in the name comes from it being composed of 95% animal proteins – chicken and turkey in the case of the variety they tried, but it’s also available in a duck flavor.

Pretty sure that’s the first time I’ve ever written the phrase “duck flavor”, so hey, life throws you fascinating new experiences every day, doesn’t it?

 

5. I finally ordered another Graze box and have been snacking on its healthy goodness all week while I work.

This is just the top level of an 8 snack box. They always pick the perfect mix of sweet and savory!

These little bars are always my favorite! They come in a bunch of different flavors and I love every one I’ve tried so far. (Although the pumpkin spice ones are admittedly the best.)

Bonus: I finally signed up to give Rocksbox a try so I can have cute jewelry to wear for my Dallas trip next weekend. They gave me this handy link that will let you try it out for a month for free, too! Here’s a peek at my wishlist:

I tried picked earrings that will go with the dresses I’m planning to pack, so I really hope they send some of my wishlist pieces!

Hope you guys have a great weekend! I’ll basically be glued to my laptop to try to get enough writing work done that I’ll actually be able to take a couple of days  OFF next week while I’m in Texas! Wish me luck – it’s a HUGE to-do list!

This post contains affiliate links because delicious coffee and spoiling my cats is expensive, yo. And because getting credit to spend at cool subscription services I share with you guys makes me happy in my heart. (and stomach.)

 

Happy Friday, everyone! I’m about to head to the library to focus on writing, since I have a ton to finish up for a deadline today! Here’s what I’ve loved this week:

 

1. I had a visitor! (Actually 2, but only one can be seen here:)

 

I blame my years at Disney for this. pic.twitter.com/bXpnQpKjMc

— Crystal Ward (@Crystal11) June 13, 2017

 

2. I’ve done the daily LA Times crossword on mensa.com for ages now, but I recently started playing the jigsaw puzzle thing in their game room, and it’s my new way to de-stress.

You can select how many pieces you want (it ranges from 40-something to 104) and there’s a handy button that hides everything except the edge pieces to save your sanity towards the beginning.

 

3. I’m still working on posts about my recent visits to the crazy, quirky small town of Eureka Springs, and the more I write about it the more I can’t wait to go back. If you haven’t already seen them, I’d love for you to check out my posts about the Crescent Hotel Ghost Tour and Cabin Fever Resort!

 

4. My beloved Rachel is on the cover of Rolling Stone! What a rock star! 

 

5. More of a confession than a fav, but I can’t think of another #5 –

I am rocking the shirt that Sweet Earth Foods sent me as part of a gift pack last year because I tweet about my love for them so damn much. (Those Curry Tiger burritos, though! Nom.) Is this because I felt like spreading the word about their awesome organic food for lazy people? Nope. It’s because I haven’t done laundry in a million years and it was the only non-wintery top I could find. Also, it is now covered in black cat fur because I cuddled Bear before leaving the house. I am winning at adulting.

I’m planning a trip to Dallas early next month, so I’d love your suggestions on what to see, eat, do, and where to stay!

Have a great weekend, everyone! I’m really hoping to finish up as much work as possible today & tomorrow so I can actually relax with some books and the new season of OITNB on Sunday!

Happy Friday, Friends! It’s been a few weeks since I’ve had time to do a Friday Favs post. It’s funny how something that takes you guys 5 minutes to read can take ages to put together!

Here’s what I’m loving this week!

1. My kitty Jasper is usually pretty brave about noise (he grew up hearing the Epcot fireworks every night) but recent storms have worried him a little, and he’s taken to hiding under the covers.

I like to refer to these as “Jasper is a Fancy Lady”.

2. This ice cream:

I never buy ice cream, but I randomly spotted this a couple of weeks ago and couldn’t resist. IT’S AMAZING.

 

3. I’ve taken 2 quick overnight trips to Eureka Springs, Arkanas in the past couple of weeks, and had all kinds of adventures. (I’ve already posted about meeting the ghosts of the 1886 Crescent Hotel there!) As I was leaving to head home last week, I stopped by the “city park” on a whim. Like the rest of the town, it’s not quite what you’d expect. Instead of some swings and benches and whatever else comes to mind when you think city park, you get over 20 miles of hiking trails, and scenery that looks like this:

Whaaat? I was short on time when I stopped so I only got to hang out for about half an hour, but now I can’t wait to go back. If the forecast wasn’t calling for almost 90 degree temps this weekend, it would be impossible to resist. SOON, though!

4. My current bullet journal is just a few pages away from being full, so I’m getting ready to set up a new one. Came across this post of 15 Bullet Journal Ideas, and picked up some great inspiration!

 

5. I’m part of chewy.com’s influenster program, which means the cats get to try out and “review” new food and treats every month. This month, they received Ziwi Peak Beef Recipe cat food, and it’s been getting rave reviews!

I just wanted a pic of the food, not your adorable pink tongue, you nerd.

I love that it comes in larger (6.5 oz) cans so I don’t have to open a billion just to feed everyone, and that the meat comes from sustainably run farms with free range, grass fed animals. The cats like that it’s yummy food and they get to eat it. (They’re not very tough critics.)

Be sure to check out yesterday’s post about the gorgeous Chihuly exhibition at Crystal Bridges Museum if you missed it! The Friday Favs graphic at the top of the post is made from a pic of one of the beautiful blown glass pieces there.

Happy weekending!

How is it already Friday? I’m so far behind on ALL THE THINGS that I need at least six more days in this week to catch up. I had an early alarm set this morning because I have like 4,000 words to write for a work project plus a billion other things to do, but tornado sirens woke me up before 1 am and I didn’t get back  to sleep until around 3, so I’m basically the zzzz-face emoji today! 

I didn’t do a Friday Favs post last week because by Friday I was really sad and nothing seemed worth celebrating as a “favorite” that week. My 14 year old kitty had a tumor removed from her mouth last year, and at the beginning of the week she started kind of smacking her mouth and not wanting to eat again. I took her to the vet on Weds and they ran tests then had me bring her back to on Friday to stay overnight and get IV fluids. By the time I got her home on Saturday, I was pretty sure I knew what was about to happen, so I tried to keep her as comfortable and happy as possible until Sunday afternoon, when she was gone. She went from being as spry and playful as a kitten to weak and not really “there” so fast it was head-spinning. In a way I’m glad it was only a week and not months of gradual decline but man is it weird not to have her asleep next to me at night.

It’s weird to follow that depressing news with a list of good things but that’s kind of how life goes isn’t it? Ups and downs and the occasional weird  kaleidoscope-y spiral.

Things that have made this week a little bit brighter include…

 

1. On Tuesday,  had been at the library all of half an hour (I sometimes go there to write so I can focus – not in this case) when I decided that I was so freaking hungry that I had to take a break. Just as I was packing up to leave, a notification popped up from the McDonalds app (because I’m a fancy person and have both that AND the Taco Bell app. This blog is super aspirational.) with a coupon for a free McCafe “beverage” with any purchase. Free coffee-ish things? DONE. (I put beverage in quotes because let’s be honest, most of them are actually desserts, not drinks. Especially what I got.)

I ordered a Happy Meal because I am a responsible adult, waited a few minutes for my order, and then headed out to the car. As soon a I got there I realized they hadn’t given me my frappe! GIMMIE MY SUGAR IN A CUP!

So I went back in and told the girl at the counter, and she made me a large instead of a medium to make up for it. It was such a small act of kindness, but after the weekend I’d just had, it meant a lot more than it normally would.

 

2. I kept hearing about the Great British Baking Show and finally gave in and Netflixed it up. It’ now my favorite thing to have on in the background while I work! It’s so diferent from American reality shows – no crazy made-up drama and the contestants are nice to each other! (Looks like you can also watch full episodes on the PBS website if you don’t have Netflix!)

 

3. I feel like I really need a palm print dress in my life this summer. I came across these two on Old Navy and am seriously considering. The one on the left is $32, and the one on the right is $25, but you can get an extra $30% off if you sign up for their email newsletter, so that comes out to basically free, right? (Math is not my thing. This is why I’m a writer. And don’t have an awesome credit score.)

4. Great tweet or the very best tweet?

 

Remember when we had Obama’s scandals to deal with? pic.twitter.com/P5aA8lGniA

— Jay Kuo (@nycjayjay) May 17, 2017

5. Y’all know I love planning any kind of travel, and I’m pretty happy right now because I have 3 or 4 upcoming mini trips in just the next couple of weeks! I’m planning to finally fit in a quick trip down to Eureka Springs, Arkansas early next week, the lake resort I wrote about a couple of months ago has invited me to come back, I have a media trip to the art museum in Bentonville, AR the first week of June, and I just discovered last night that there’s a Pow Wow coming up in Jefferson City the end of this month, and I really want to go. (I’ve been wanting to visit the capitol building again, too, so it can be a dual purpose trip!) Unfortunately, my bank account is in the single digits after the crazy vet bills of last week, so I may have to skip the last one unless I can pic up an extra writing gig before then. Cross your fingers that I can figure out a way to go! The dude who played Cloud Dancing on Dr. Quinn is going to be there, and as a human who was a teen in the 90s, that is very important.

 

Hope your upcoming weekend is awesome! I’m about to dive into a very long work day, but it will be worth it when payday comes!

 

 

Happy Friday! This week’s post is going up pretty late in the day, but better late than never, right? I had the headache of doom yesterday, so I spent today just struggling to catch up. I have a crazy weekend full of work ahead now, but such is life when you’re self employed. Sure, take all the sick days you need! And then enjoy your 32 hour work weekend!

Anyway here’s what I’m loving this week!

1. It looks like the crazy rain might finally be (mostly) over! It’s sunny and almost 70 today, and I can’t wait to get outside to soak it up. I finally looked up the actual rainfall, and it looks like we got over 15 inches in the past month. Our usual annual rainfall is 45 inches so that’s a LOT!

 

 

I’m mostly excited that I should be able to resume my walks by the lake soon! I tried to go check out how flooded it was a few days ago and actually got kicked out because the marina was bringing in heavy construction equipment to get the dock ramps out from under the water. (They did at least kick me out nicely, with suggestions that I head over to the campground to take pics instead.)

The photo above was taken from a parking spot along the road that’s part o my usual walk. So yeah, the entire two lane road s underwater, plus the parking, plus whats usually a pretty good sized chunk of land between the water and the road. I’ve often said that my afternoon/evening walks by the lake are the only thing that keep me sane, so as you can imagine I’m dying to get back to normal after an entire week away!

(Note- I wrote the above on Friday morning and stopped by the lake around 7pm Friday evening, and everything was closed off with security blocking the entrances. Still no lake for me! But hopefully soon!)

2. Making my own corn cakes makes me feel badass.

I’m a pretty decent cook, but I pretty much never do it because I live alone and I’ve never understood spending an hour making a meal that I’ll eat in like 15 minutes. I wanted to try out some recipes from One Part Plant before I write about it for the book review link-up next week, and decided to try the one pictured above first. I didn’t have corn on hand, so I decided to experiment mixing other stuff with the masa harina (a kind of corn-based flour… I’d never heard of it, either.)  and then became obsessed with mixing ALL THE THINGS with it to make different kinds of corn cakes. My current favorite is to mix it with the black bean and red quinoa flavor of Well Yes soup.

I still haven’t gotten around to actually making the recipe the way it’s intended to be made. I keep putting black beans in to soak and then forgetting about them.

So yeah masa harina gets my 2nd favorite spot this week. I bought a one pound bag and have made at least a dozen different experiment recipes, and I’ve only used maybe 1/4 of the bag. You can get it from Amazon for way cheaper than I found it in any grocery store here.

 

3. I’m planning to write up a whole post about it, but I just became an ambassador for Maven and if you use the code CRYSTALWVIP, you can get $25 off your first video medical appointment! Consultations with nutritionists and physical therapists are $25, so you could get either of those totally free, and I’ve seen some such as consulting with a midwife for as little as $18. You don’t even have to enter payment info unless you’re booking a more expensive appointment. (Most general doctors and nurse practitioners are $35, and mental health specialists are generally $70. Some other specialists include career and pediatric sleep coaches, which are $50 each for a half hour appointment.)

I’ll be sharing more info in the full post soon, but so far I LOVE that Maven provides access to great practitioners that can otherwise be hard to access if you live in a rural area or work hours that make it tough to make an appointment during regular office hours. And sometimes you just plain want to talk to a doctor without having to like, put on pants and leave the house, you know?

4. A little PSA about befriending the clerks at whatever store you visit most often. (This probably won’t work in major cities, but definitely in small towns!)

I stopped by the Dollar General by my house today because I knew their clearance stuff was an extra 50% off and I wanted really cheap Easter candy. One of the ladies that works there informed me that although the sign said half off, the clearance clothes were ringing up as 13 cents. I was able to get a cute floral top for my mom, and a plaid tunic (above – it’s supposed to be a short dress, but I’m tall) and charcoal grey hoodie for me, all for a total of 39 cents including tax. Whaaaa?

5. This is a thing that recently happened to me: (I know, I know, I shouldn’t give him food. But he does the little washing motion thing with his paws before he eats each one! And I really need to get out more!)

 

This is how we party at Casa Crystal at 4 am. I’ve really been in Missouri too long.

A post shared by Crystal Ward (@crystalward11) on May 2, 2017 at 2:37am PDT

ICYMI, I have a Target/Amazon/Walmart/BN gift card giveaway going on – Enter here!

Are we friends on Instagram yet? Come follow my adventures! ➡️