Yes, it’s true – it is Talk Like a Pirate Day. A little something special for the day:
Me little matey be hooked since he met Jake, Mr. Smee, Sharky, and Bones in March. TechyDad has a great video for this special celebration.
It is no secret that I really like making, baking, decorating, and even buying cupcakes. The unfortunate part for my waistline is that there are a bunch of amazing cupcakeries in the area. One of them was even featured on Cupcake Wars on Food Network the other day.
On the night that we should have been dining at Disney World, TechyDad and I went out to dinner while the kids stayed with Nana and Papa. After our amazing meal, we both wanted something special for dessert. So we went to try some sweet treats from Bettie’s Cakes at the local mall. Yes, there is actually a cupcake stand in the food court. Insert drool here:
In the end, TechyDad and I were eyeballing the monster cookies. Of course, we HAD to try a cupcake. We agreed to get a Rasberry Zinger to split between us. Check out the amazing packaging that gets the cupcakes home safe and sound:
Are you hungry yet? No? Well, I think we need to remedy that with some more cupcake photos when the Rasberry Zinger and cookies made it home.
Although the cupcake was moist, delicious, and the frosting really great – my heart skipped a beat for the cookie. It was ooey, gooey, and amazing. My only complaint (which others will scoff at), is that it had a bit too much chocolate in it for my taste. I know the horrors – right?
On Sunday, we took the boys to Hoffman’s Playland for what will likely be the last time this season. In front of Hoffman’s is a new location for Bettie’s Cakes. Yes, there are three locations, plus two cupcakery vehicles including their double decker pink bus. After going on some rides, we went in to check out Bettie’s ice cream or baked goods for a treat.
The three boys opted to have a small ice cream (which was rather large). Each ice cream comes with a topping of your choice.
JSL picked Death By Chocolate with gummy worms.
NHL picked Bettie’s Three-Ring Circus – which was cotton candy flavored. He added marshmallows on top.
TechyDad had Cookie Bookie and topped it with Reece’s Pieces.
I was not too enthused with the ice cream choices. The cupcakes looked interesting, but well there was something else that really caught my eye. Here she is:
The boys loved their ice cream, and I took half of my cookie home even after sharing with everyone. Check the boys out. I think you can tell they were very happy:
It was not something we do often, but well worth it for some delicious family fun and together time. Thank you Bettie for this experience that we will always remember.
Do you have cupcake places by you? Do any of them deliver or have special flavors like Blueberry Pancake, Chocolate Covered Pretzel, Chocolate Covered Cherry, or Boston Cream (all coming later this week)? Would love to hear about them since I really do adore cupcakes. The weekly flavors at Bettie’s are always listen online – which is a great perk.
Disclosure: I wrote this post as a customer of Bettie’s Cakes. We went there and bought our items both times. I wanted to share our experience and toot the horn of a great local business. I reserve the right to drool upon reading this and wishing for another visit soon.
Social media is my new world. It is not shocking that when something happens, I turn to that part of my life. Whether it is to celebrate something big, question an item aloud with friends, or look for someone to help me through a tough time.
Twitter, Facebook, and my blog are a part of ME. They are extensions of the person I have become since I stepped into the wild and amazing adventure. I have always said there is good use and bad use of this powerful tool. The truth is that you have to know how to balance what is in front of you before you let your fingers fly on your keyboard, phone, or other electronic device.
On the Saturday that I had to cancel my 10th Anniversary trip to Walt Disney World, I had to call Southwest Airlines. As I mentioned before, the woman on the phone was super friendly and compassionate since she heard me crying. Once I was off the phone with her, I realized that the money coming back to me was not what I had spent. You see it was short $40 for my Early Bird Check ins. Rather than call back, I sent a simple Tweet out to Southwest Air (@SouthwestAir) and their Customer Relations Specialist account (@SouthwestWhit). I asked if there was a way to get my money back since it was not included after I had called and canceled my trip. That’s all I asked and left it at that. I did not want to get in the way of other people and I knew that after a week or so, the mess of the storm would ease up and I could call to find out about this other money.
Monday, as towns near us were cleaning up from the destruction that was Tropical Storm Irene, SouthwestWhit messaged me back on Twitter. She asked for my flight information via DM. After a small glitch in the DM process, she had everything in front of her and said she would take care of the $40 and then said a few magical words. She wanted to know if the rest of my money had already been refunded. I did a double take since I was given vouchers to use by a certain date. I asked if that was possible since I had been given vouchers. She told me yes. In the spirit of good will and the airport I was flying out of (Long Island), they would. I was shaking from shock. I could not believe that, in a simple Tweet, this part of Southwest Air was fixing everything for me. Better yet, Whitney contacted me the next day to confirm that it was refunded in the full amount and to watch my statement. Yes, this is a social medial success story.
A HUGE thank you to Whitney and Southwest Airlines for making this sad event a little brighter. I know we will be trying to rebook our trip and fly with you in the future.
Of course, this was not the only time social media has worked really well. In fact this was quite different because I did not actively seek them out. In the Spring, I sent out a simple Tweet. I mentioned to my husband that I did not think that our dehumidifier that we had purchased ever worked. My husband tried to call the local store, but it was endless cycle of never getting a person. Since it was a fairly new machine, I sent him another Tweet and this time mentioned that we should look into something else and not Sears.
I was not complaining, looking for attention, or expecting anything aside from TechyDad to start helping me to research options. Shortly after this, Sears sent a Tweet back to me. They clearly had a search looking for Tweets that mentioned their company. This is a company that is clearly invested in using their tools and helping consumers. The @MySears account with Rhonda R became a lifeline with this issue.
To make a long story short, Sears went out of their way calling us to find why the local store changed stories on us, were estimating long waits on fixing the machine, and eventually replacing the machine because of a major factory defect. More impressive yet, they recalled me. When I sent a Tweet thanking a Sears associate for helping us to fix our lawnmower (simply needed new sparkplugs), the Twitter team recalled us and said they were so glad it was quick and not like the dehumidifier. Class act all around. Thank you Rhonda for making us believe in Sears!
Is this the norm? I don’t think so, but I do think more companies are starting to get the importance of really interacting and communicating with consumers via social media – whether on their Twitter accounts, Facebook pages, or blogs. Of course, there are still some that never reply to compliments, complaints, or anything. Their Twitter and Facebook accounts appear to be more of a method of advertising to the masses and not a tool to learn and grow with the people that matter.
What companies have you had dealings with that really GET social media? Would love to know how they helped you via Twitter, Facebook, blogging, or some other means. I could ask the flip side, but why dwell on the negative and give them any attention.
For weeks, I have been writing up posts to schedule. At one point I had two weeks set and would not need anything until after Labor Day. Two guest posts are set for this week alone. I was on a roll, things were flying onto my computer from my fingertips. Then things changed. Our world became obsessed with watching the news, checking on weather reports, and debating what to do.
I should be on the road to Long Island, NY right now (writing this Sunday afternoon). Instead, I am home watching record amounts of water fall outside my home. I am numb. Worry for family, friends, and our own home is not letting all of the reality set in. All I can do is sit here and wait on my bed with power (for now), but no internet or cable
You see, Tuesday morning I should be getting on an airplane. TechyDad and I decided in late July that we were going to just do something crazy. We were going to figure out a way to do a 10th Anniversary trip. We looked at several different options. In the end, we wanted something magical, something that would remind us of our honeymoon. Of course, that was a trip to Walt Disney World.
My in-laws agreed to watch the boys for the first time ever. I was nervous about a quick trip (we booked in the end of July) and leaving the kids to only get back home the day before school started, but they would be fine and we needed this.
Then something happened. Hurricane Irene decided to slam everyone up and down the east coast. My in-laws asked us to try to go on Saturday. I could not do it. The storm appeared like it was going to be so much more in the NYC/Long Island area that I wanted to be at home to keep an eye on things here. Friday night, I was so restless. I tossed and turned. The what if aspect of everything was killing me. Sure, perhaps we would have a flight, but could we guarantee being able to travel from here to there? Right now, TechyDad’s parents have no power. There was no way I could leave two young kids with them for five nights without power. That was not fair.
So, just before noon on Saturday, I made a tough call. It was time to call our airlines and travel agent to cancel our trip. We needed to focus on getting ready for the storm and not worry about how/if/when we could get to our flight. Our airline was fantastic. We are not reimbursed, but have credit that must be used with us back home by a certain date. We can handle that.
When I tried to call Disney to cancel on my own, the woman asked how she could help make my day magical. With tears in my eyes and obvious sadness, I told her she could make Hurricane Irene go away. She immediately got serious and said she was so sorry. In the end, our agent called and we were reimbursed for the package we purchased.
Now, as the storm is likely at the worst. How will this week be? I know I should be thrilled that my family and friends are safe. I am, do not get me wrong. Still, with each passing day from Tuesday to Sunday it will sting. I will think about the meal we are missing. I will morn the special trip that should have been. I will be ok, but it hurts. I shouldn’t complain since the last six weeks of dreaming of the trip helped make the summer bearable. The weeks went by as we planned to meet friends, eat special meals, and more. This last week of summer vacation for the boys is going to be hard. We will be picking up the pieces from the storm, assessing damage in our basement, and wondering how and when we can reschedule the trip that we needed. Yes, I really am ready for 2011 to be over since she has been so very evil in too many ways.
Update from Monday morning: Sunday was a long day here. The rain intense and the wind got worse into the dark evening. We were SO lucky here. Some issues in our basement that we now have to look into, but no major damage. Unfortunately, others within our area were not so lucky. Irene may have only been a tropical storm when she came into our area, but she packed one hell of a punch. Mud slides, dams bursting, lakes in front of houses at the base of mountains – a massive mess. We never lost our power here, but across the street they have none right now. Sheer exhaustion from no sleep for days caught up. I went to a room where I could not hear the howling wind and fell asleep on TechyDad’s chest. Today, he managed to get to work after closed roads leading to Vermont were just reopened. Now to see what we can do around the area to keep our minds busy.
One other thing, I really wish people would stop talking about the over-hyped nature of this storm. Should more people have died? Perhaps they have not seen some of the damage and more that is coming NOW thanks to all of the flooding that is still not at the worst level. I think a lot of people living inland and in parts of South Carolina and Virginia would beg to differ. No, NYC was not destroyed, but lives were forever changed up and down the east coast. The fact that people were safe is not a fail, but something we should celebrate after the mistakes from Hurricane Katrina. We need to remember that less is more in the case of a hurricane – especially when it is not as much damage in some very populated areas. To those with damage and picking up the pieces – my heart goes out to you.
