Oops, I'm a dork...what's new?

So, for some reason I tend to doubt my husband....
ie: he says there are a lot of mosquitoes out and he's getting eaten alive..
yeah, right.
I haven't seen any skeeters, and i haven't had any bites!
He runs inside, getting attacked,. apparently...
Afterward, he shows me all his new mosquitoes bites,
ok, now i believe him!


well, he's he went a few weeks ago to a opthamologist {or optometrist, what's the difference?} and he had a hard time getting fitted for contact lenses in his left eye.  His right eye was fine, left eye astigmatism or something...
well, the dr. gave him a lens to try but it didn't seem to fit right.  and then it went missing.  Jeremy thought that maybe it had gone behind his eye ball and was kind of worried...i insisted it had fallen out after all that rubbing he was doing to it.


so, he went back to the dr. to try a different lens.  once again it was ill-fitting and uncomfortable.  once again he lost this one.  I keep thinking, how does he not notice when these contacts drop out of his eyes?! so, he goes back into the dr. and comments to the guy that he's afraid the contacts might be behind his eyeball...no comment from the dr.  i'm sorta thinking the doctor might think jeremy's crazy :)


so, he has a third lens to try...he puts it in and it automatically starts drifting toward the upper white part of his eye.  I'm assisting him in locating his contact that's drifting and OH EM GEE what the heck? he pulls out three contacts!  I'm in shock! seriously shocked!  he had those two extra contacts floating around back there for WEEKS!  That could be a health hazard, don'tcha think?! {especially because he's an artist!he needs eyeballs that work!}
He threw away all 3 contacts in disgust!
He's going to get glasses.
I'm a dork.

how I got my kids scrubbing the floors...

so, I was on the hunt online for a chore chart for my kiddos (ages 3, 5, and almost 7 {yikes!}) I wanted something simple and with pictures so the kids could "read" it even if they can't read.  I stumbled upon Handipoints.com which looked like a website where you could customize chore charts and print 'em up...

but, it turned out to be more than that.  First off, you sign up to become a member (it's freeee) Then,  each kid gets to pick a cat avatar, and cat name {we used such creative names like "snowball" and "catty" haha}  The kids can mark off their charts after they're printed OR they can mark off their charts online.  When they mark off their charts online they get "bonus points" which they can use to buy furniture to decorate an online room for their cat avatar {think: webkinz or barbie.com}

I don't know about your kids, but my kids are crazy about decorating their pretend houses.  So, my kids had marked off their charts with all the stuff they had done the day before and still didn't have enough bonus points to snatch up the furniture they wanted...so, I informed them they could mop the kitchen floor or clean the bathroom to earn more points.  And VOILA! they went for it!  They all did several chores that they wouldn't normally be thrilled about doing.  But they earned bonus points! and they loved it!  we'll see how long this lasts!

Here's an example of what the kids are excited about earning :)

PROS:
-kids are excited to earn points
-they're not complaining about some things that they normally would be (because they get points)
-I can endlessly customize the lists (ie: go potty on the potty chair, be nice to your sisters)
-I can easily add points when the kids do something I think is good (my 6 yr. old filled up her own water bottle before dance class without asking so I gave her some bonus points :)
-It's free, and the kids aren't bugging me for any tangible rewards
-the kids are cleaning the house and keeping it clean :)

CONS:
-you have to log in seperately for each child (they make it easy enough, just kind of a hassle)
-I don't know how long they'll be excited about decorating the rooms
-there are pages dedicated to buying dress-ups for your cat avatar- but apparently, these are for the paying customers only (5 yr. old a little sad about that)
-there's a whole bunch of social interaction parts of the site (we just skip that part entirely, though)
-the kids want to be on the computer during their free time now :/



There are also a bunch of games that the kids can play on the site, we haven't ventured into that very much (nor do i plan to)  There are different places on the map that we are just beginning to explore which the kids think are fun...but are mostly a waste of time, haha :)

I don't know what you're supposed to do here...get back to work! ;)

Overall, I think it's pretty great...the kids are trying to figure out what they can do to earn bonus points, they're making their beds, picking up their toys, sorting laundry and putting their dirty clothes in the dirty clothes basket (hallelujah!)  we'll see how long it lasts! :)

Come in, have a seat....

This chair was given to my family from one of our loveliest neighbors... she was re-decorating her teenage daughter's bedroom and this just didn't quite fit

It looks like a cast-off from a baby boys 1990's nursery...the baby blue fabric is littered with little yellow, white and navy polka dots....very 90's...very...ugly...nice.
But, I thought it had potential and took the thing apart and remade it step by step.
First of all:

 I updated the paint color with this lovely almost brown/almost gray concoction that my husband made up..he's cool like that, he's an artist, he can mix up colors like a pro :)  {more on my hubby HERE}

I took off the baby blue fabric...{sad to see it go, right?} and replaced it with a fun turquoise canvas-like fabric (I think it may have come from the outdoor fabric section at Joann's)

 I recovered the bolster pillow (is that what it's called??) with this cute fabric.   I just love turquoise and chartreuse together!  I tied it off with a black ribbon.  I wanted a little bit of a black accent because I'm putting this chair next to a black leather couch/loveseat combo.

So, the final project looks like this :) I sorta kinda love it....it's a far cry from this....

and it has a super bouncy, springy seat that's fun :)

do YOU have a refurnished furniture project?. I'd love to see it :)  Send me a link below,  I look forward to hearing from you :)

A Flurry of Treasuries

I'm grateful each time I'm put in someone's treasury...even though it doesn't mean much;)  Maybe, one day one of these treasuries will end up on the front page, eh? you never know :)

Fashion Eclectic, A Truly Unique Women's Wardrobe

I've always thought of my items as unique :) I'm glad someone agrees!  Check out this hip, fun treasury...

Tuquoise Way

I thought this treasury was cute :) Check out that baby in the bottom right corner! ADORABLE!

Go ahead and click on it to check out all the fun TURQUOISE things ;)