Tea Time (featuring Mr.)

Hi Foxy Friends! Sips by reached out to me last month and asked if I would review their tea box subscription. I told them that I don't drink tea, but Mr. drinks it daily and would love to review it for them. He was so stinkin' excited when I told him about it, like waited by the mailbox kind of excited. I told him he could drink any till he took pictures, he gave me a look, but complied, then took these awesome pictures. Funny enough, the last time Mr. guest posted, he also did a drink review. It was hilarious, you should go read his experience drinking his first ever Pumpkin Spice Latte.  Okay so take it away Mr.

OK!
Mr. here.
I am "stinkin' excited".

I am an enthusiast of all manner of caffeine delivery systems including tea (I also have a hoarder's amount of coffee K-cups, but that is a topic for another day).

On to Sips by:

The first step in the Sips by process is to fill out a flavor profile:

• Caffeine = yes
• Black tea = yes
• Random funky stuff = yes
• Green tea = hard pass 

After I filled that out, this Sips by box arrived on my doorstep:

The box features a lid which can be opened:

Inside is a magical assortment of teas (no, they do not automatically pop up like this... that was all me):

A closer look at the teas... The Sips by people were listening, because I got an array of teas that hold up to having some cream added (that's my jam) and also they sent me mostly caffeinated stuff:

So let's see what's up. First is Harney and Sons Organic Assam in a single silken sachet. Is it really silken, I thought as I opened it... yep. The darn thing is silken. Good tea time must be ahead...

This is what it looks like after you make tea:

I always double up the bags and make an XL cup. This one was a winner. Nice flavor. You don't want to leave this bad boy in there steeping too long... about 7 minutes was right for me. If you get distracted by an injured child or other life event, it can go bitter on you. Don't let that happen. The kid will be fine.

Next up is Dandelion Red Chai, decaf edition. Also has chicory. Had to look that one up... then I lost interest in looking it up and got back to making tea.

Dandelion and chicory... that's a man's tea right there:

This is still what it looks like after you make tea... notice the subtle differences between the Assam and the Dandelion*

*For real? It's the same picture.

I have to admit. I wasn't expecting much from this one, but it was really good. It's tough to find a decaf tea that will hold up to having some milk added. This one did. It's a nice night-time option. Whatever chicory is (still haven't read the Wikipedia) it's a good thing they put it in there because I don't think the dandelion would have gotten the job done by itself.

So... Sips by. Overall really good! If you like tea and like trying new things, I recommend it. I've bought random funky teas in the past and they are expensive... especially if you wind up not liking something and then you're stuck with a bunch of tea you don't like. This is a great way to try out a bunch of new things and they bring it right to your doorstep. I like that.

Sarah here, if you want to try it out for yourself or give it to someone as a gift, use code FOXY5 for $5 off your first order! I know you're going to love it as much as Mr. does.

Happy Birthday Mr.

Happy Birthday Mr.! Today is Mr.'s 41st birthday....I feel like it was just yesterday that we were celebrating 40. Although today is just a normal day of work, and baseball  practice, I wouldn't want to do life with anyone else. Okay enough about the mushy stuff. Last time I shared things I love about Mr. this time I thought I would share some random facts about him.

• He is a huge tea drinker and drinks at least a cup a day. But also really likes coffee and we just recently got a coffee machine, because he thought his addiction would be too great if he could make his own coffee at will. It didn't and he's pretty good to making one cup in the morning and then drinking tea for the rest of the afternoon.

• Speaking of tea and coffee, he has a whole coffee/tea station in our kitchen.

• He can only drink tea from a ceramic cup (minus paper ones), but will not drink it from a plastic or steel cup as he thinks he can taste the plastic/tin in his tea. His tea cups are ginormous!

• Makes a point to drive his "fun" car to work once a week and drive with the top down. I call it the yellow car...well because it's yellow, but it's a 1998 Mercedes...something or other.

Man that took longer than expect to find a picture of the yellow car.

• His next fun car he wants a Porsche of some sort. (mine is going to be a Maserati)

• Has lived on his own since he was 18.

• Bought his first condo (the one I moved into when we got married), when he was 22.

•  Plays several instruments and went to a performing arts school for high school. 

•  Was in the California All State Band and was first chair (for those that know music that's a big deal)

• Self taught guitar and piano

• Writes songs in his spare time (like he has spare time!)

• Got his MBA last year and is now working on a second masters. 

• Really wants a 100 inch TV

• He really likes being organized, see his tea cabinet above. Our garage cabinets looks similar

I think that's enough random stuff for Mr....hopefully he's not too embarrassed by it all.

Happy Birthday Mr.! Here is to many more years of birthday celebrations. Sorry I didn't have time to make cheesecake like you requested, but I will make one in the near future for you!

Mr’s PSL (Pumpkin Spice Latte) Adventure

Hello everyone! Remember that list of questions I asked Mr. last week? And one of them was what he thought about Pumpkin Spice Latte's...well you asked and he went and got himself one. Here's his PSL review!

 

Take it away Mr.

 

There’s a first time for everything. Since I was unable to answer Sarah’s question about the PSL, I decided to try one… with my free Starbucks reward. I’m only willing to go so far for science.

The Purchasing Experience

Starbucks wasn’t busy for once. A disinterested barista asked for my order. When I responded with “Venti Pumpkin Spice Latte”, he responded an internal eye roll that said “Oh… it’s one of you”.  What he said out loud was “Do you want whipped cream?” The odds of this experiment being worth the calories to begin with are substantially low, so I said, “Yes… however you normally make it”.

Visual Impressions

I got this thing back to the lab (my desk) for a closer look. Visually, this is a pumpkin drink purchased from a store decked out in full Thanksgiving regalia and served in a Christmas cup. I think it’s fair to say this thing is suffering from a bit of an identity crisis.

 

But I’m not shallow. It’s what’s on the inside that counts, right?

 

This is somehow even less promising than the outside. I’ve seen things this color before. I have not purposefully ingested anything this color before.

That’s a solid D-minus in the looks category.

Bouquet (a fancy word for smell)

Not as pumpkiny or spicy as I expected. It does smell very latte. So half credit for that one. Not bad though.

Taste

First sip: The first word that comes to mind is “why?” I could have had my regular unsweetened Cold Brew.

Second sip: It seems a little buttery if that’s possible.

Third – Sixth sip: What the heck does this taste like anyway?

Seventh sip:  I’m not hating this. Probably the best part about it is that it’s not too sweet, too pumpkiny, or too spicy. I was advised to get the extra pump of pumpkin spice, but I’m sure that would have been a mistake. That second pump would have crossed the line…

Conclusion

This experience reminds me of a business trip I took to San Antonio. I went there. I walked on the river walk. I had fun. I didn’t pay for it. And I’m never going back. I don’t hate San Antonio or the PSL, we had an okay time. It’s me, not you. We should keep in touch. I’ll totally text you sometime…

Also linking up with Amanda, for Thinking Out Loud, Vanessa and Penny for Thinking out Loud, Lulia, Stephanie and Sarah for The Ladies Collective, Annie and Natalie for Thoughts for Thursday and Joey and Kristin for Stuff and Things

Best Birthday Gift a Husband Can Get a Picture Obsessed Wife

Guess what Mr. got me for my birthday? Remember when I told you guys that my hard drive ran out of room? Ever since then, I've been struggling to get pictures and things off of my computer and backed up to other places (which I should have been doing anyway, so it forced me to do it, which is good). Anyway last night my computer (laptop) is on the coffee table upstairs and I ask Mr. what he was doing with my computer. He said I bought you a new hard drive that has 4 times the available space for your birthday! I am so freakin' excited! That being said, I don't have access to my computer, so what I was going to post today, isn't actually going to happen, till who knows when. Not even sure if I'll get anything up tomorrow, might have to take some outfit pictures with my iphone...

Anyway, yesterday Baby Fox went to Disneyland with some friends and I think he just might have had the time of his life! They sent us pictures throughout the day, and I think EVERY SINGLE picture he cannot smile any bigger.

In case you guys were wondering, we took Baby Fox to Disneyland for the first time a year ago May, so it's been about 15 months, and yes, he's wearing the same exact outfit.

Olaf Cake Pop

Driving the Utopia car, we got a video and he was smiling from ear to ear and saying on no traffic jam over there!  When my computer is up and running, I'll post it for you, it's super cute.

Mean while...I didn't really have anything planned for dinner and since we only had one kid we decided to try out the new sandwich place that just opened up. So easy with just one kid that doesn't walk yet. If Baby Fox was there, we probably would have just found something at home. It's nice to get to spend time with just Mini Fox. She's still in her carrier because the high chairs they had there were made for way older kids and I felt like she would fall out of it.

When was the last time you were at Disneyland or Disney World?

Last time I went was in December with both kids, for some reason I didn't blog about it, bad blogger. But I do have the pictures. Mini Fox was only 3.5 months old, she spent most of the time sleeping.

Mr. Suggests

Last night I was telling Mr. I don't have a blog post for tomorrow, what should I write about? He says, tell them how awesome a husband you have. So here it is, reasons why Mr. is awesome.

• I'll start with my birthday (which is in 11 days, in case you wanted to know), he decorates for my birthday.

okay he had some help here, but he did buy everything

• Makes me homemade chocolate covered strawberries (my food allergies prevent me from eating store boughts ones) and then documents it, because he knows I like documenting everything.

• He indulges me in my costume ideas - I made these bear costumes, and he wore it with excitment and actually went to JC Penny to get professional photos done. Now that's love.

 

• Takes yearly family photos, even though he dislikes taking pictures...actually I should just say lets me take picture of him whenever I want, cause he knows how much I love picture taking, and when we go to weddings, always secures an isle seat so I can get good pictures. And he lets me dress him however I want...this year we're taking pictures at the beach...So excited, I have no idea what we're going to wear!

2011

Picture we used for our Christmas Card

2012

Picture we used for our Christmas Card

2013

Picture we used for our Christmas Card

• He loves our kids something fierce. He says he's not a big sucker for them but if you ask Baby Fox who the biggest sucker is Mommy or Daddy 100% of the time he says Daddy. He's a big softie for the kids, they adore him and I couldn't ask for a better Daddy for our children. Okay sappy part over. Here are some silly pictures.

Play "bump" where they literally race around the house and bump into each other

 

Showing us their mean guy look

 

Letting Baby Fox show him how to walk under water

 

Water balloon "fight"

They brought a gun to a sword fight and they are playing "Save Mini Fox" - this is where Daddy is the bad guy keeping Mini Fox captive and Baby Fox is saving her.

Being silly

Love these guys...and turns out Mr. doesn't have too many silly faces, they all sort of look the same, hehe

So there you go Mr. - 5 reasons you are an awesome husband. Oh did I mention he does the dishes almost every night too? And ALWAYS takes out the trash because it's the job I hate the absolute most...I would rather do anything than take out the trash. Oh and he takes all of my outfit pictures for me and likes doing it :)

Come Climb With Me

Hey did I tell you guys that we joined a new gym? It sort of makes me excited to start working out gain. Some pictures of the awesomeness of the new gym:

I am one that didn't love cycle class, but have been taking it the past two weeks and sort of loving it - picture found via their website

Seriously this is actually a picture of the pool area. Baby Fox is too short to go on the slides but in 4 inches he'll be ready to go! There are is also an indoor and outdoor lap pools.

taken by a fellow member, found via Yelp

This is the locker room, love that I don't have to bring my own towel and they have all of the necessary toiletries too, even razors and shaving cream (sidenote: I've never actually used shaving cream before, weird I know)

Image found on their website

Anyway, the main reason we really joined the club was for this:

Image found on their Facebook page

Back when we first got married Mr. and I took a rock climbing class at our local rock gym. We loved it so much that we started going to Joshua Tree to rock climb with friends

along with going to our local rock gym

But then we bought a house, had kids and haven't been back since Baby Fox was born...actually before that since pregnancy and rock climbing don't mix well. Plus there isn't really a rock gym close to use any more.

Now that this gym has a rock gym, Mr. and I are trying to do a rock climbing date once a week, we're loving it!

Join me on a climb:

Here we are all set and ready to go

Not that far off the ground, I found a good footing and hold, yep he's the only one keeping me from "hitting the ground"

A little further up

 

Almost there...just a little further, but gotta stop to take a picture

Made it to the top

 

I am no longer on the wall, Mr. is holding me up so that I could take this picture. Note to self: Don't wear dark colored shirt for climbing...chalk is everywhere!

My view from up there - this is actually a different climb than the one from above

Had to take this one over my shoulder. I was actually on a self belay (mechanical, no Mr. down below holding me up) and if you fall there is no stopping, it takes you back to the ground, so I took the picture over my shoulder so I won't fall, Mr. and I were racing up the wall. I won.

At the Top

Doesn't it make you want to go find a rock wall? Trust me I am scared of heights, so if I can do it, you can do it too! I actually was really scared of the self belay and had a tough time trusting some mechanism to lower me down...

I did take a video on my way down, but it wasn't very good, I'll try again next week.

So now that you've seen it, want to try it? It's a great workout and fun too!

Hope you guys have a great weekend!