From $1.25 to $90 - Things Making Life Easier |- May 2026

Good morning and happy Sunday. Today I am filming this a little earlier, but I these are things that have really made a difference in our lives during this season. Just things that have brought comfort and made life a little easier. But before I begin what the the things I want to talk about is I want you to know talk about Jim for a moment. So many of you have known Jim throughout my videos, throughout watching him sing and ask about him. And Jim is in hospice right now. He's receiving hospice care. He has he's had COPD since 2016. And he has done really well really until 2026 and he's had a lot of challenges. He is home, he is sleeping a lot and he's comfortable. And we just are enjoying this time together. So the things I'm going to talk about are just things that have helped. But before I get started with what my favorites, I do want to go ahead and announce the winners of my last video. And by the way, this my last video was on the 17th of this month and it was my hair update at 36 weeks. And I just want to address a few questions. If you haven't seen it, I'll link it above and below. But the growth, the thickness that you see in my hair at that time and probably now is all due to the the uh the RevitaLash in the part on this side and then here and here I use the minoxidil 5% the men's just a few drops in each part. And that's what you're seeing now. The Anyway, that video is there, but I wanted to address the question. And I hope I can make myself clear. I know what I want to say, but I'm just going to wing it. Back to the giveaway. I had three winners, $100 apiece, and I provide those e-gift cards or deposits to their Venmo accounts or PayPal. And I went to I they changed the random comment picker and I couldn't figure it out. So, I went to a different random comment picker, loaded the comments, and I want to congratulate these three winners. The first winner is Jane Craft 1395. Congratulations, Jane. The second winner is Joyful Danae. Congratulations, Joyful. And the third winner is Nancy King 5263. And just leave a comment below if you are any of if if your name was mentioned, make sure you leave a comment below, and then I will reply to you and tell you how to get in touch with me. And it'll be your choice of either a e-gift card, anywhere I can get it, or PayPal or Venmo. The first thing I want to talk about is something that cost a dollar and a quarter, and it is was is a French cucumber. Jim loves cucumbers cut up with onions and tomatoes and some vinegar, a little bit of sugar or honey is what it really what we use, and salt and pepper. Well, I would make it for him, but I couldn't eat it because that that of all the food in the world, the only thing that slightly bothers me is a cucumber. And it doesn't hurt me, but I can just taste cucumber all day long. I did a grocery delivery, and there was a French cucumber, and it was a dollar and a quarter, and I thought, "Well, I'm just going to eat a little bit of that." And I did, and it didn't bother me. So, I chopped it up, put it in salads. I think Jim calls it thunder and lightning, but anyway, I was very happy that I can now enjoy a cucumber if I buy a French cucumber. Now, this may not be the healthiest choice, and I only do what's good for me, and everybody needs to do what's good for themselves. But, I need occasionally a protein bar. And I have purchased so many Built bars, and now I only like the Built Puffs, and they remind me of a candy bar. I know this is a much better choice than a candy bar, and I really like it. This bar, I have a 10% discount code that I will link below. But, my son was talking about a David bar. So, I bought a box of David bars. They're a protein bar, and I really liked them. They are that they don't taste like a candy bar, but they're substantial, and also, they won't melt like a Built bar if you have it in your purse and it's in the summer. So, this would be a choice that I will continue purchasing, and I just need it if I'm out and about, or can't cook something right away. I want something that I can grab, and I do like the David bars. And I had also seen the Stars and Honey bars, and I ordered them. I got 12. I think I did 12 a box of the David, and then a box of these. And they're good. I will eat them. I will not probably repurchase them because I like the David bars and the Built bars better, and I don't have any discount codes for David or David bars or the Stars and Honey. There are two things that I have done that I had never seen purchased or done that I never seen on YouTube before. And these measuring spoons are one of them. They're stackable. I think I bought these in 2019 and I cannot tell you how many more that I've purchased. There's uh I use that for dry and that for liquids. But I've been making pro- protein drinks and I need a scoop of this and a scoop of that and I just wanted to have something that was really easy for me that when I got into a container that I could just get what I needed. I don't know when I was the last time I was in a dollar store or a like a Dollar Tree spot. We have both here in town and I went in to get something and I just happened to see some measuring spoons and they were a dollar and a quarter. I bought four different sets because I wanted four tablespoons that I that because I wanted to put the tablespoon into the protein powder, the everything that I used and I and I just put in what I think Jim needs or what I need, like chia seeds or, you know, yogurt. And I just like wanted to scoop in with the chia seeds and with the the protein powder and with the collagen. Just, you know, I I it made it a lot easier. I was making the protein drinks using my Silver Bullet. Well, it died completely and I had a I had cuz I I passed it on down a small little chopper blender that I used that I knew I needed more space in it. I didn't want I got a I didn't want to use a full-size food processor. So, I wanted to find something that was about a 16-cup and I found a really good one. It is not a name brand but I tell you I've been using it probably since about February and here it is. It is so easy. I'll put a link below. Here is the motor. It has All you have to do is There's a blade. And this has a rubber little rubber bottom, so it doesn't scoot around. You put your stuff in and close that and stick that on just the way they want you to. And I can do ice cubes. I can do like four ice cubes or five. I It can put fruit. I can put frozen fruit or frozen vegetables. I can make chicken salad in it. It It does all sorts of things. And I I know it was less than $35. And I'm not sure how many stars it had. But it it also comes with an extra container and a lid, so you can seal it. But it has been wonderful. And it's I've made some decent drinks with it. Some aren't so mine I mine I don't really care what they taste like, but I'm real happy with this. I've used honey for a long time for a sweetener. And Jim always liked sugar. Well, I started substituting honey for sugar for some time ago in the drinks and things I made for him or the um salads or anything. And it's just kind of frustrating, you know, that you always buy it in a glass jar. You want to buy local. And you know, you get your spoon in there and it's just messy. So, probably about a year ago I went hunting for a honey dispenser and I found one. But this isn't the one that I'd recommend, but I still use it and I'll show you exactly what it looks like. I use this now to keep my I like spicy honey. I like to drizzle it on some vegetables. And it it's it's like that. But I knew I wanted something different and better. I just knew there was something better. And I keep my hot honey in here. And the nice thing with this glass, if it starts to get a little thick, you can just set it in hot water and it'll thin out again. But this is the one that made me really, really happy, and it is just a honey dispenser. And you just lift it up, and you put push this, and it just does a drizzle. It has a stand that holds it, and I found out you do need to save the little cap because when you refill it after, you know, you can wash it and dry it and refill it. If you don't, it'll drip through. But, it doesn't drip after you just put a drizzle on something. It'll it's it keeps all the honey in. But, I really liked that a lot. It's it's it's no spoons, no mess, get just exactly what you want, and and it's good. And something that has made my life easier and is my GE washer-dryer combo. It is amazing. It has helped me so much. Uh it was made my 2025 favorites. You know, I thought it was a real extravagance. I got mine on sale. I It was a good deal, but when I looked for the kind of washer and dryer I wanted, it wasn't as as It wasn't as pricey compared to what some of the others were. But, it if you the what I did before I bought it, I had watched all the negative comments about it, videos. I just wanted to be prepared. So, when my e-washer or dryer went out, I knew what I wanted to have. So, everything that was negative, I could deal with. It wouldn't affect me. And then Melissa 55, she's a good friend of mine, and she's more beautiful in person than she is on screen. She had bought one, and she and Doug made a video, and they sent it to me. You know, I felt very secure about buying it. But, there's some little things you have to know about it. But, it has just been wonderful. It'll keep tumbling. You You set it. It'll tumble until you can get to it. You can just do wash. You can do wash or dry, but it is a jewel and it's really helped me a lot. And I've always said, anything that makes me happy or makes my life easier is a beauty product. I first heard about these from Carol from the O Carol Show and they're called XyliMelts dry mouth stick on melts. And how they come, they come in a packet like this and you can tear them off and and they're just little tablets and they have on one side it's a little bit kind of brown looking and you they will stick on your teeth at night. You kind of you kind of get them wet and then you put them wherever you want to. They will stick on gums. They will stick on teeth and you just leave it there and it does keep your mouth comfortable all night long. I have tried them. Jim's tried them and it's kind of amazing. It really is. I don't know exactly how it works. Don't know if it's healthy or not, but these have been very very helpful. And when I was ordering those, I thought I saw something that was even a better deal. For the XyliMelts, I think I spent around 12 $9, I think for 40 of them. I'm not positive, but I'll put a link below. But at the same time I thought, well, I'm going to try these ACT dry I all I saw was ACT dry mouth and the price of these you got 72 of them for $12 at the time. So I ordered them. So I thought what I was ordering was another thing to stick on. These were honey lemon, but they weren't. They're lozenges and they are good. I have used them when I couldn't get a drink. They don't take the place of water cuz I'm a big proponent of drinking as much water as is healthy for you. When Jim's mouth gets dry, these really come in handy. Uh I don't know how healthy they are again, but they work and I've tried them and I like them. I mean, they do what they're supposed to do. They keep your mouth feeling good and moist and comfortable. I have been buying personal fans for I don't know how long. Not like personal fans for YouTube. Yeah, I should buy a few of those. Um but this one was one I got last year and I I don't think I talked about it. It comes like this. It has a charger in the back for two different ports, uh USB and USC, I think is or USB-C, but it opens up like that and it's a fan and it doesn't have a cover. It doesn't cover it, but the but you can just turn it on like that. And it really does have a nice breeze. And this has been very helpful. But if you touch it, it stops. You can also set it up like this and just have it and and it's nice. I don't remember how much this cost, but I know it was not $20. And it has a few It has a few speeds. They'll always tell you if you use it on the low They'll tell you it's like a 12-hour fan or how many hour that is if you use it on the lowest. And I got another one last year and here it is and I absolutely love it. Now, that's on the high speed right there. It has five speeds just like the other. You can put it like that and have a personal fan, but I This has been a godsend cuz sometimes if you kind of feel like you're short of breath, just a little bit of fan in the face will make you feel a lot better. And of course, those are both rechargeable. I've always talked about my love for pajamas. I hang my pajamas up, take as good care of them as I do my clothes. And I had heard about Cozy Earth and I'd found some like nightshirts that were made of bamboo and spandex or viscose and spandex that I really loved the way they felt. But when I They had a sale around Christmas and it was buy one get one free and I ordered two sets of pajamas and I wore this in one of my videos and they are wonderful. They are so soft. I can I usually cannot sleep in the bottoms, but I could sleep in these pajama bottoms. And I got them in the blue and I got them in black and was very pleased, but it was still expensive, you know, I mean if they're they're like $168 for one pair and I I just personally could not I could, but I don't want to do that. But two pairs alone for the price of one, they're still really expensive. So I I would guess by the time I got it home with tax and everything. Of course I'm or mail ordered it. It was probably about $90 a pair, which is high for me, but if to me it's worth it. We all have different things that are worth it, don't we? I was looking I just looked at that. I put 95% viscose and 5% spandex uh pajamas and then uh I did a search for 95% bamboo bam viscose and bamboo are made from a from bamboo. And this popped up on Amazon and I ordered them and I'm going to put in a picture cuz I cannot do them justice. They are made of 95% viscose and 5% spandex and they are every bit as soft. In fact, when I was in my dressing room I put both I've got this in navy and I have this and I have it in black and I put them you know, in the closet and I just kind of went in and was feeling cuz I they'd been hanging up for a couple days. I really can't tell the difference in the way they feel, but what I can tell a difference in is the price. And they I got my first pair for 35. You know how Amazon will do like the different colors less expensive or a different size may be more expensive. But these I believe run true to size and they wash and they dry real well. When I do these, I get them out before they dry thoroughly cuz that's just how I've always done it. Any of my clothes or pajamas, I just want them to be a little damp when I get them out. I'll put a picture of them in here. And what's really been nice is like sometimes I haven't really had the time to get dressed in the morning. I just can throw on a bra and look fine in my pajamas if anybody's coming by for any reason. And the same with the others. I feel comfortable if I haven't been had the time to change my clothes. But I just want to give you a heads-up. Some And they were both made in China. That surprised me. The Cozy Earths were made in China and so were these. So, I could not be more pleased. I think on the Cozy Earth, you'd be best to either do your true size or a size down. I wouldn't go up. These to me were true size and I'd rather have my pajamas be a little bit big than a little bit small. And I got an extra large and I really am happy with them. It is all good with God in our lives for it is all good and I want to thank you for being here for all your prayers, your compassion, your kindness, and just kind of hanging in with me. Every time somebody mentions Jim in a comment, I I read it to him and uh yeah, how's your songbird doing? They will they'll say. It is all good and I will see you in my next video and take care. Again, may be a little rattled. I may be, but that's okay. And I only like the And I also bought for like uh I don't I I do not Well, I was making the protein anything that makes me healthy. I think those are like