June Nature Box Review

Nature Box sends you 5 full-sized, healthy snacks each month. To find out more about them, check out my Subscription Box List. They now let you choose between getting a random mix of snacks for the month or choosing which snacks you'd like to get. Of course, what fun would it be for me if I knew what was coming. So I left it at random. I never sneak a peek at any previews for any of my boxes.

Their box is probably one of the biggest boxes I get. That is probably how you know you get a full-size for each snack. They have such a nice box too. This came really late though. I got it the first week of July and this was supposed to be my June box.

I love the new packaging! It looks so unique and natural yet stylish. Forgive my total inability to explain it with fancy words. I just love the new packaging. Only problem with it is that it was a pain in the butt to open. The information card has all the info on each snack as well as tips on how to eat it. I decided to let Bee and his co-worker test them out for me since I originally got this so Bee would have snacks he could take to work.

Tart & Tangy Fruit Medley: This one has dried cranberries and apple bits. It was definitely tart! They also said it had a very rich flavor to it. The cranberries and apple bits are easy to distinguish when eating. Definitely a hit and a healthy snack that Bee can eat instead of all those salty pretzels that they buy in bulk. I personally love dried apples too so I ended up snacking on some before giving it to him.Yummy!

South Pacific Plantains: I was kind of excited to try this one because I had those amazing sweet plantain chips from my Love With Food box last month. These were a salty variety with sea salt. I didn't really care for these, probably because I'm more of a sweets type of person. Bee and his co-worker really enjoyed it though! They said it had just the right amount of salt. Good, because they will be the ones eating it.

Mango Almond Bites: Bee loves mango so this is great for him. They said that it was really crunchy, which I figured. The bag says they are crispy rice squares. His co-worker mentioned that it tasted really fresh too. I'm not a huge almond fan, since I don't eat nuts, so I didn't try this one.

Cherry Crumble Granola: The first thing I did when I opened this bag was smell it. There is a strong coconut scent to it. Checked the back, yep, there is definitely coconut in there. It's easy to taste too. They did say that there wasn't enough of a cherry flavor. More cherries please? Other than that, they loved it. They said the granola was really good. Bee loved it.

Tuscan Summer Mix: So this one, Bee's co-worker tried first. When they say that it's Italian-spiced, they mean it. The smell of it made me think I was in a restaurant waiting for some yummy pizza or something Italian. His co-worker said that the flavor goes from a real nutty flavor into something that tastes like pizza. He really enjoyed it and said it's interesting. I didn't try it but it does sound interesting and smells amazing.

Overall, I really loved this mix of snacks. I didn't put in the value because they send full-sized snacks. So basically, I paid $4 for each snack which I say isn't that bad considering that they are healthy and all natural. Bee is gonna love snacking on these at work. I'm so glad I got it for him. However, there is some sad news. I did cancel this because I'm rotating through my list of boxes. I don't think I'll renew though just because of the process that I had to go through just to cancel. I had to call their call center which is not open 24 hours and talk to someone asking me why I'm canceling. Not pleasant for me at all. Despite that, I totally recommend this box. If you don't think you're gonna cancel and will love getting this box for a long time, it's worth it.

Did you get a Nature Box? What was in it? Want to get one? Check out Nature Box and subscribe!

Don't forget to enter my giveaway for a June Bulu Box!

Disclosure: I paid for this box. I was not compensated for this review. All opinions expressed belong to me, Bee, or his unnamed co-worker.

Happy Birthday Bee!

I bet you're wondering why there was no post at all or even a peep from me on Sunday. Well, it's because I was exhausted and busy celebrating Bee's birthday! His birthday was actually yesterday, Monday, June 15th. He is now 30 years old. He looks younger than that doesn't he? Here is all the fun stuff we did for his birthday!

I loved this! We went to Genius Lounge and they had this as wall decoration. It's basically big shot glasses with little cactus growing in them. Super cute, innovative, and ideal for Hawaii weather. I totally want to do this now. The atmosphere was very quiet, relaxing, and felt more private then one would think on a balcony filled with other tables.

This is the before shot of what Bee looked like before the drinking. We went out Saturday night and didn't come home till Sunday morning around 5 am. His friend came out with us already drunk, if you can't tell by the picture.

They took a wasabi shot. So basically, they scoop some fresh wasabi onto your hand, you slurp that up and then take the shot. Bee really enjoyed it. He said the flavor of the wasabi was really good and the alcohol kept it from burning his whole face.

Next we went to hostess bar. If you don't know what that is, I'm sorry to say that I won't explain what it is. In any case, we didn't have any hostesses join us because we didn't need any. The night was filled with more drinking, discussing some not so serious issues in life, and french fries. Did I also mention that there was a drunk older asian guy dancing around singing Michael Jackson songs like nobodies business?

Sunday, we woke up around 2 in the afternoon because we were exhausted from the night before. All Bee really wanted to do for his birthday was go skating. So that is what we did. Here he is! He's gotten so much better from the last time I posted pictures of them skating. It was super fun. There was this one guy who was pulling some crazy tricks like hand plants and holding a manual for a long time before dropping back in. It was great to watch up close.

And that concludes his birthday weekend! He says he doesn't feel different and he shouldn't. Age is just a number. I hope you had a fabulous weekend too! So happy birthday to the man that loves me.

If you have any birthday wishes for Bee, I'll gladly pass them on!

Don't forget to enter my Bulu Box Giveaway!

June Bulu Box Review + Giveaway

About: Bulu Box is supposed to be a box that sends you 4-5 health, weight loss, and nutritional samples each month. It only costs $10/month. You can choose between the regular Bulu Box or the Weight Loss Bulu Box. You can earn over 50 points a month just for being a subscriber and sharing your thoughts on the products that were sent to you. Shipping is free for Bulu Box. If you want to sign up for Bulu Box, please go through my referral link. Thanks!

    

Here is what the box looks like. It has all kinds of stuff on top of it. I'm actually surprised at the condition of the box. Just so you know, this box took almost a month from when they shipped it to get to me. I don't blame Bulu Box though, it was definitely USPS that was to blame. It ended up in Richmond, CA and after that I got no tracking information at all. Then one day, it was delivered to me.

Here is what was included in my June box. This one is definitely not stuffed to the maximum like other boxes are but that's alright. It does say 4-5 products and I got 5. I must say that this is my first time that I've ever tried supplements or anything that has to do with helping me be healthy and in shape. If you ask anyone in my family, I hate taking medicines or pills of any kind.

Probiotic Antioxident Blend (about $1.27): I'm getting all the prices off their website. So I tried this one myself. I almost choked on this, not kidding. Like I said, I don't like pills. The second time around, I had no problems with it so it must have been an error on my part. This is supposed to improve digestion and nutrient absorption, recognize good bacteria and restore proper balance, and strengthen your immune system. Well, I could not tell if it was doing anything at all. It had no negative or positive effects on me that I could tell.

BluCetin (about $2.33): This is supposed to help alcohol pass through your system faster so you don't get hungover and lessen the negative side effects of drinking. Unfortunately, we didn't get to test this. I don't drink alcohol, so only Bee could actually use it. Every time he had the opportunity to try it, he passed because his stomach wasn't feeling well. I'm pretty sure that this would not affect his stomach anymore than alcohol but I wasn't gonna force him. Hopefully this works! If it does, then we'll be buying more.

Burn Blend (about $6.22):  Out of all the products that I got, this one I was the most worried about. I've heard some bad things about pills that are supposed to help with weight loss. But I had to test it. I really don't like posting up these reviews without first testing the products. I actually had to toss one of the pills because their was way too much cotton stuck to it from the puff they put in the bottle. One thing you should also know, it was that time of the month for me when I tested this. I love it! It works great! I could totally tell my metabolism had sped up because I was more hungry throughout the day. Not only that, but it kept me from being bloated all day. So no, I won't use this for weight loss any time soon. Will I use it to keep myself from being bloated during that time of the month? Yes!

Flap Jacked Protein Pancake Mix Buttermilk (about $1): I normally love pancakes but I tested this one on Bee. He is always looking for good protein snacks and foods that he can eat before or after he works out. I was quite happy we got this in the box. It is super simple to make. You just add water and cook like a normal pancake. Bee said that it was a little bland but probably because he only put butter on it and not real butter. He is sure that if I put syrup on it, that it would taste better.

EatGreenTea (about $0.87): This is supposed to contain as much antioxidants as 30 cups of brewed green tea. As you all know, I am not a fan of green tea. I was going to test it on Bee but every time the opportunity popped up, I had forgotten to bring it with me. So I had to test it. I'm sure Bee would enjoy this but I don't. On first bite, you don't really taste anything and then the more you chew it, the more the strong green tea flavor comes out. I had it with oatmeal with bananas mixed in. If you don't like the flavor of tea, you should definitely mix it with something that will overpower it. If you do, then you should have no problem with eating this.

Overall, the value of the samples equaled to around $11.69. So it was worth more than the cost of the box. What really gives Bulu Box it's value, in my opinion, is the fact that you get to try different supplements and products. The great thing about it is that if it doesn't work, you really didn't waste any money because it's not a full size product. If it does work, then a lot of the products are at a cheaper price on their website. The true value is in their customer service. Some of the best customer service I've ever gotten, which leads me to the giveaway.

 image source

Since my box took forever to get to me, I actually contacted them about it. They said that my box had gotten lost and that they'd send me a replacement box. The replacement box came fast! I felt bad because the original one had actually made it to me. So I contacted them again to let them know what happened. Guess what? They are so awesome that they are letting me give the replacement box away to one of my readers! So a big thank you to Bulu Box for being so awesome!

Rules
1. This is open only to U.S. residents who are 18 years or older.
2. Starts at 1:30 pm on June 15th and ends June 22nd at 11:59 pm. (All times are HST or GMT -10)
3. Winner will be generated randomly via Rafflecopter.
4. I will e-mail the winner when they are chosen.
5. This giveaway is in no way affiliated with facebook.
6. Tashaplusboxes is responsible for sending the prize.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclosure: I was not compensated for this post. I paid for my original box. The box being given away was supposed to be a replacement box and was not given to me for review or to giveaway. Some links may be referral links. 

Win This Saturday

I'm sure a lot of you are wondering why it's called that instead of Link-Up Saturday. After a lot of thought, some banana cream pie, and an episode of Nikita, I decided that this title would suit it better. Link-Up sounded too deceiving to me. Nobody was sharing their links, it was just little ole me sharing my favorite giveaways and sweepstakes for the week. So now it will be called Win This Saturday because I'll be featuring stuff that you can win. Check out the links this week and good luck!

So there you have it! My favorite giveaways and sweepstakes going on right now. Be sure to enter! You never know if you might win. Coming soon will be a box review and a giveaway so keep an eye out for that.

Do you host any giveaways? If you want me to add your giveaway to my Win This Saturday, just let me know!

Disclosure: I am not affiliated with any of these giveaways or sweepstakes. I was not compensated for featuring them on my blog. This post is purely to share giveaways and sweepstakes that I think are awesome.

Meet a Kook

Today's post will be about a cat that is very special to Bee. You all know that I have two cats that we call our babies, Junior and Jongy. I bet you didn't know that Bee had a cat at his house that has been with him since he was a kid. You could say that Kook raised him. Without further ado, meet a Kook.

The first thing you should know about Kook is that he is very, very old. He's like 21 years old now in human years. I call him Old Man Kook sometimes. His whiskers also add to his elderly look. They are long, white, and hang down like the long whiskers of an old Chinese man. The second thing you should know about him is that he is crazy loud. He doesn't meow. He mahs, where the 'a' is pronounced the same way you say it in hat. It sounds more like yelling than any kind of meowing. Sometimes I think even other cats can't understand what he's saying.

This is his kitty chair. Bee actually found this one day while we were shopping for chairs and bought a mini one for Kook. Doesn't he look so regal? He does think that he is a god. Unfortunately, we don't really help clear his illusions because we respond to his screaming. Kook also believes he is human. I kid you not that it seems like he understands us when we talk to him. Then again, now he is so old that he can't hear us 75% of the time. Poor Kook! We might also have to get him diapers soon.

We don't know how much longer we have with Kook. I honestly believe that Kook is Bee's soul mate. They were meant to be together and I'm sure Kook will wait for him when he passes on. Don't be sad though. I try not to be. I'm just glad that Kook found a great family that loves him and cares for him. That's the best thing any cat can have in it's lifetime. To Kook, my boyfriend's loud elderly cat.

Have any advice on how to care for an elderly cat like him? I would love any tips that could make Kook's like more comfortable.