Hey is that me?!

I often get asked where my skin comes from, or where my shape is from. More often I get asked where an outfit I'm wearing in an ad is from, or the jewelry. I never have any problem answering those questions.

Going through notecards, I find one of those, send back the reply that the skin is from Adam n Eve, Pandora tone 3 (on the particular ad they referenced) and the shape is mine and it's not for sale.

And I get a reply back "I'm glad your shape isn't for sale."

Okay, so I know I'm not all that to look at, but wow. I ask them (only half jokingly) "Why, is it that bad?"

Turns out, this person has been hired to duplicate the shape on the Gloxinia Ad. Me. My shape. I started out as Ruth, just like everyone did back when there was no other pre-made options with prim hair or CSI fabulous shoes and designer clothes. I had that purple sweater, that fugly pair of jeans and those hideous flip flop things. The hair, we won't even discuss.

This person won't tell me who hired them to do this. I understand using someone or something for inspiration. Like taking J-Lo and making an avie look like her. It's going to be similar, but an avatar can only look so much like a real person. I often use pictures to create a style. Again, prims only look so much like hair. But to take an avatar and duplicate it? You can make an identical avatar, it's the same medium.

I'm just really bothered that someone would pay someone else to create me. And even more bothered that said person is accepting payment and taking the job to create me. And then has the nerve to ask me about it, including asking me how tall my avie is, and then making a comment that they would "never make those breasts." Which obviously shows they're obviously doing this at their customer's request and not because they personally like it.

Where's Swirly when you need her? I wanna be able to say "Darlings you will never be able to recreate such perfection, so don't waste your time. And have another hot dog, you look like you could use one."

The Pumpkins Packs!

It seems our lucky chairs have been tampered with. They're doing things they've never done before. The good news is they are giving away hair, only hair, and in the Pumpkins Packs! Bad news....it's a bit dangerous. We are not responsible for any damages done should you decide to sit in the chair. We are warning you! THE CHAIRS HAVE BEEN TAMPERED WITH!

If you don't feel like braving the chairs, take a walk around the island. You never know what you'll find lurking in shadows. (Be sure to have your Calla group tag on!)

Nine more in all 175!

All of the following have gone out in all 175 colors. You can find them in their respective style sections!

Supporting Pink Ribbon - Breast Cancer Awareness Fashion Week

In 2007, approximately 240,510 new cases of breast cancer will be diagnosed among women.

In 2007, approximately 40,460 women are expected to die from breast cancer. Only lung cancer accounts for more cancer deaths in women.

(source: www.cancer.org)

We are proud to be supporting the Breast Cancer Awareness Fashion Week. As women, we feel it is very important to contribute to this cause that can impact so many lives.

For the Fashion Week - October 15 - 22, we are offering an incentive to all of you to donate to this important organization.

For every 200L you contribute to the Pink Ribbon EWING Fashion Agency - Second Style Kiosk located at the front of our store, we will give you a 200L Calla Gift Certificate.

You *must* copy the payment from your transaction history onto a notecard. Rename the notecard "Pink Ribbon Donation - YOUR NAME" and drop it to Tigerlily Koi. You will receive a Calla Gift Certificate(s) equal to the amount you donated, in 200L increments.

Please open your hearts and donate with us this week. Also take this as a reminder to schedule your mammogram, or see your health care professional to discuss your risks and ways you can detect breast cancer early.

To read more about the agency and the efa foundation, please go to http://ewingfashionagency.wordpress.com and http://efafoundation.wordpress.com

Sale Extended!

All I can say is "Wow! What a weekend!" We never expected the kind of response that we received this weekend. The island was packed full and people in our group chat were talking and having a great time while they waited to get in.

We've decided to extend the sale until Tuesday, because so many people were unable to get in.

We'd like to thank all of you for a fabulous weekend. We had a lot of fun and hope that you did, too. Group members, check the Calla Update Group info Notices tab. There's a special gift for all of you!

Ten new - here they are!

Angelica - In a word, Farrah. Flexi, flippy, full on Farrah Fawcett.




Cyclamen - Cute headband, shoulder length style with flexi. The headband is color change! I saw someone who'd added a really awesome texture to it to match her outfit. Since it's mod, you can do that too!




Foxglove - This is a barely at the jawline bob. If you run into Amelia Book, make her put it on for you, it looks like it was made for her. Maybe it's her glasses that just complete it, I don't know, but it's fabulous.




Larch - This was actually a request for a "beehive-like" 'do. It's...sorta, kinda, a little. Okay, not so much. But it's really pretty! Celebrity said it has a very "pin up model" look to it, and it really does. I hadn't thought about it until she pointed it out. Eolande made a fabulous accessory to go with it. You can see detailed pictures on her blog, as I haven't had time to redo the ad with them yet.




Lucerne - One of Haedon's and the most fabulous updo. Eolande also worked with us to create a hair piece for it, and oooooh my gosh, it is fabulous. You must see this one. She actually went above and beyond and made two!




Mallos - Another one from Haedon, this side-pulled knot is very chic, and can be dressed up or dressed down. It's perfect with an evening gown or a pair of sweats. The headband is also color change!




Morning Glory - Also one of Hae's, this side pulled pony has the most fabulous bangs! There are no bands on this one, it's twisted in place with hair.




Niphredil - This is the first style that Haedon and I actually made together. We often help each other, move pieces around, give suggestions, that kind of thing. But this was the first truly joint-made style, and we had a lot of fun doing it! Parts of it were made by both of us. Hae rocked the awesome color change sculpty hat and the bangs are all her. The vision of this one was completely hers, and together we brought it to life.




Spanish Jasmine - This one has been in my inventory forever, named "Flexi - don't like." I decided to pull it out and see if I could do anything to it, or if it was hitting the trash pile. It's out so obviously it didn't go in the trash!




Turnsol - Last but not least is Haedon's fabulous swept-up style. It has an almost vintage feel, I think, and is so elegant. To add to it, Eolande made the most beautiful headdress.

That's it for the new stuff! We also put out quite a few (I didn't count but I'm guessing probably 12 or so) old styles in all new 175 colors, and some of them are on sale 50% off!

Treasure hunt, Pajama party and FREE TOE SOCKS!

We are having a Treasure hunt for our group members. There are 25 presents hidden throughout the island - some inside the store, some outside. Each box contains a hairstyle in 8 colors that we've never used before. So, 25 hair styles times 8 new colors equals 200 wigs! FREE! And some of them are the NEW styles we just put out yesterday! Just be sure to have your Callatropian tag on so you can get the goodies. There is also a bonus gift box with fabulous bracelets from Woo's near the other gifts. That is what the box looks like, same size, same color. So get to hunting!

Look at what Betty Barracuda of Total Betty has done.



Your eyes do not deceive you. Those are toe socks! And they are just for us! They have sculptie toes! How cool is that?! Look at these!!!



We are having a PJ party tonight starting at 6pm SLT, and this fantastic PJ set and the adorable toe socks are FREE! They're in a gift bag near the front with the other gifts, so there's no excuse not to have PJ's. These socks are the best thing ever and you have to have them.

Calla Celebration Weekend!

We closed this morning to put out all the new stuff. We have 10 brand new styles in the main lobby. We also have 24 other styles on sale for 50% off throughout the store. There is also a special Limited Edition of Bramble with a Calla baseball cap available in all 175 colors for $L 50.

We are open to Calla Update Group members only until 3:00 pm SLT today. At that time the island will reopen to the public.

A very special Calla Anniversary Gift Box is available, featuring goodies from:

Rebel Hope
Bubblefish ~ Soda Domela
Nicky Ree
Pushbutton Industries ~ Pushbutton Skolnick
*PERSONA* ~ Myllie Writer
Casa del Shai ~ Shai Delacroix
Marlys ~ Marleen Vaughan
OPIUM ~ Alaska Metropolitan
Style Your Destiny ~ Teagan Blackthorne
Eolande's Accessories ~ Eolande Elvehjem
Kallista Kreations ~ Kallista Olivier
Lemon ~ Haver Cole & Amelia Case
Loft3 ~ Colleen Desmoulins
Musician's Paradise ~ Griptape Pro
TRUTH ~ Truth Hawks
Vitamin Ci ~ Ciera Bergman
ZHAO Shoes ~ Melanie Zhao
Ivalde ~ Neferia Abel
Alienbear Designs ~ Alienbear Gupte

and of course, Calla!

We have lots planned over the next 3 days and hope that you will come join us for some of the fun!

The festivities over the weekend will be:

Friday 5:00 pm SLT - Happy hour! Come spend some time with your fellow Callatropians. Lucky Jack o' lanterns will be out and giving away a special prize. DJ Kittyn Fuhr will be spinning some tunes and taking your requests.

Saturday 12:00 pm SLT - Treasure Hunt Begins! Styles in Limited Edition colors will be hidden around the sim in Calla gift boxes. Can you find them all? You must have your Calla Update Group tag on! We also have some gift certificates from Coconut Ice to be given away!

Saturday 6:00 pm SLT - Pajama party! PJ's required! No jammies, no partay! Come hang with us while we stay up all night (which will only be unusual for Lily – if she drools on the keyboard you can stick her hand in ice water) and gab with our girls! Wear your favorite PJ's and your slippers. Be prepared for a night of laughs and fun. Our very own Callatropian, Kittyn Fuhr will be DJ'ing live! Boys, yes, we're having an all-girl orgy. No, you can't watch. Okay you can watch, but stay out of the way. And put your pants back on, nobody wants to see that!!!

Sunday 11:00 am SLT Brunch 'n' Bob - Get ready for Halloween and bob for apples! There's hair in there, in special Pumpkin Packs colors. But watch out, you might get a wormy apple! Trick or treat? Bob and find out!

Sunday 6:00 pm SLT - Procrastinator's Paradise – This is your last chance to come get the weekend Anniversary goodies, and take advantage of the 50% off sale. Pull out your beach wear one more time and sip Mai Tai's while you watch the last hours of the weekend slip away into the eternal sunset. Come join the Calla girls as we bring the weekend celebrations to a close with DJ Kittyn Fuhr.

A special thanks to everyone who has made this weekend possible. Most especially, you our customers!

Calla - A History

Calla is a year old! We started with a sky box, a handful of styles, little funds, enough knowledge to be dangerous, and a whole lot of determination.

Calla actually began as TLC - Tigerlily Creations - in a tiny sky box in Enceladus.



The first purchase, July 6, 2006 - a hideous pair of shoes by Tigerlily Koi, mercifully purchased by Haedon Quine.

Haedon was the land owner and the creator of our build, and furnishings. I was the poor furniture maker - turned jewelry designer - turned hair stylist, ever-determined to make a go at this Second Life. We graduated from a tiny sky box, to a bigger sky box.



Haedon Quine, July 23, 2006 standing on the ramp to the dance floor.

Haedon built a dance floor off the front and we had a party planned. I can't remember now if that party ever happened. The thing I remember most about that build is it was the first time Hae returned all my stuff by accident. We learned a lot about auto-return in those days.

We quickly ran out of prim space, and with several styles, Hae decided it was time to move. We ended up buying a little plot of land in Philereme just outside the entrance of the old club, The Angry Ant. Some of you oldies might remember it.



Tigerlily Koi Aug 2, 2006 at the store in Philereme, wearing Buttercup, originally named "UGH."

We had the cutest little shop, and it was so much bigger than the sky box. We went to black, white and red patterns with zebra stripe accents. We had a whopping 25 colors and horrific ads.

It was great for a while. We were right outside a popular club. And then...the lag hit. We'd only been there a few weeks. It was mainland, with a club, lots of gigantic XXX spinning, flashing, blinging signs all around us. Those of you who remember the lag in Kappa, trust me, this was worse. People were coming, and if they stayed the requisite 15 minutes for anything to rez, they usually bought something. Either because they liked it, or because we jumped them and kept talking to them so they wouldn't leave, who knows? But at that point we realized we might get somewhere if we could just get rid of the lag.

I finally convinced Haedon to try making hair, she excelled at everything else she'd tried. There was no doubt in my mind that she'd be able to do it. After a lot of cussing (on her part) and pep talking (on my part) and working and talking it through, she had her first style. She did awesome, just like I knew she would.

The lag was killing us, we couldn't move, we couldn't work. The hunt for a new place began. I found a little plot in a quiet low-lag sim, and then fell in love with the piece on the other side that was three times the size. It had water on two sides, no sims attaching to either side, and a beautiful canal on the third side. It was huge. It was expensive, way over our budget. It was perfect. There was plenty of room to grow and expand and make lots of new things. So we took the plunge, spent more money (you should have seen me trying to explain to my husband why I had to spend real money on virtual land) and jumped in with both feet.

We weren't well established as TLC and by this point I really felt that we needed to change the name to something that reflected both of us in some way. In our ever so awesome ability of coming up with names for stuff, we brainstormed and kicked things around for a week or two, finally decided that we had to pick something before it was too late to change and Calla was born.

Haedon finished our fantastic build, complete with columns and a front overhang, glass ceiling panels and three entrances, the front with a red carpet rolled out to welcome our customers.

We had a fabulous Grand Opening party on September 29, 2006, complete with DJ, flashing dance floor, a zebra striped disco ball, a "best in Calla demo" contest and a money 'sploder. We had a fabulous time, and were so excited that we had to have a Post Grand Opening party the following night.



Tigerlily Koi and Haedon Quine dancing the Charleston at the Grand Opening of Calla, September 29, 2006, in Plush Kappa.



Customers wearing "Demo" hair and dancing at the Grand Opening of Calla. The bright yellow galoshes are worn by Marleen Vaughan.



The "money 'sploder" raining on the Grand Opening attendees.



Tigerlily Koi wearing a "Pink Rose" demo and dancing like a fool.



Haedon Quine playing air guitar and wearing a "Barberry" demo.


We kept making hair, we spent Saturday mornings on the couch with coffee talking to customers as they came in. We'd sit and go through the painfully long process of coloring hair by hand. Eventually, our walls got more full and we needed more room. Haedon rebuilt the store.



Unknown noob boy desperately trying to pick up an obviously uninterested Haedon Quine in the newly rebuilt Calla, circa November, 2006.


The classified ad image used after the new build was completed.

We had fabulous wood floors, gigantic walls (that eventually got us into some trouble) with plenty of space. The Plush sims grew up around us. Our two sides that previously looked out into the open seas were now bordered by the back of a mall and another sim that was in development. The lag kept getting worse, we kept filling up those huge walls, we gained more customers, the lag was near impossible to deal with. We knew we had to move out, not only for our own benefit, but for our customer's. To an island.

That was scary. I think I asked Hae about 50 times if we really needed to do it. She was right. She usually is.



Haedon Quine and Tigerlily Koi enjoying the serenity of their new home, Callatropia, February 1, 2007.



Haedon welcoming the first unsuspecting visitor to Callatropia.

And now, Callatropia is our home and I wouldn't trade it for anything. The island is beautiful, with little coves and nooks to relax in, or dance with your sweetheart in, or just sit and meditate.



Calla's new build on Callatropia, prior to moving in.

I look around at all we've done, at how far we've come. When looking at it now, it's hard to believe we started out in a sky box with just a few things. Our hard work and determination, and our ability to work together through it all has been the key. I am proud of what we've accomplished in the last year. I'm so proud of Haedon, for so many reasons. I'm grateful to her for seeing the potential we had and for continuing to give me that little shove (or big kick in the rear) when I need it. I'm thankful for her support, her understanding, and her insistence on perfection that pushes me to be better. I love my job. My business partner is my best friend and my rock - the single person I know I can count on no matter what happens. It doesn't get much better, and I am so blessed. (Sorry, Hae, I tried not to get teary and emotional, that obviously didn't work.)

We love our customers, "our girls" are among the best people I've had the pleasure to meet. I speak for myself and Haedon when I say that we truly appreciate all the support, the advice, the criticism, the suggestions and the friendships that all of you have brought into our lives. You help us make Calla a better place. This weekend's for you!

Calla.. one year later

I suppose since other people have already blogged that they've made gifts for the Calla anniversary weekend.. maybe we should blog that we're actually having one! Sorry for the slacking!! (I can't guarantee it won't happen again.)

Sooo... without further adieu, Calla is having a one year anniversary weekend. Over this past year Calla has grown larger than we ever imagined. Way larger than we imagined. It's all thanks to you! So, we'd like to kick off the weekend with a 50% off sale. Sale items will be marked with a bright red 50% off sign so it's easy to see which styles are on sale. We will also be releasing *10 new styles* this weekend! (We're hording them right now, and we feel really bad about it... so, we can't wait to get them out.)

We have also had many designers and friends who have offered up some very generous gifts for you. I honestly cannot believe the awesome things they have made and given to us for all of you. We've got gifts from Nicky Ree, Alaska Metropolitan of Opium, Shai Delacroix of Casa Del Shai, Pushbutton Skolnick of Pushbutton Industries, Marleen Vaughan of Marlys, Truth Hawks of Truth, Rebel Hope, Haver Cole & Aemilia Case of Lemon, Colleen Desmoulins of The Loft 3, Eolande Elvehjem of Accessories by Eolande, Soda Domela of Bubblefish, and more! These gifts will *only* be available this weekend, so be sure and drop by to pick yours up.

So lets recap.
Calla Anniversary weekend
50% off many selected styles
Loads of Free gifts
Random Giveaways
Cookies (We baked them ourselves!)
TEN NEW STYLES
and of course... YOU!!

The sale will start Friday at 3pm SLT. We will be opening up a few hours earlier for group members only. We'll be closing open enrollment on group memberships sometime on Thursday, so if you want in, get in while you can. Sale ends on Sunday.

Really hope to see you there, and special thanks to our update group. We have never met a more enjoyable, wacky, fun group of people. We thank you from the bottom of our pixel hearts.

Love,
Haedon & Tigerlily

Oh yeah, more hair!

I completely forgot to blog it! Bad me. What a week this has been.

Calla Catalogue Call Backs!

My goodness we have a lot of hair. And we have a LOT of pretty girls! I must say that I have been no less than impressed with the individual beauty of every one who is participating thus far. I have loved getting to spend one-on-one time with each of you, and every one of you has your own unique look and personalities. It has really been a fun thing for me, and I hope that we are able to capture that unique beauty for the world to see!

Sadly, our men don't seem to be anywhere to be found. We don't have a single entry for any of our men's styles. We would LOVE to have some men in the catalogue.

We are looking for call backs for the following styles.

Acacia
Anemone
Begonia
Buttercup
Candytuft
Carnation
Carolina Jasmine
Crabapple Blossom
Clove
Crocus
Daisy
Gillyflower
Iris
Lily of the Valley
Nasturtium
Phlox
Pink Rose
Primrose
White Camellia
Zinnia

Any Calla men's style

If you wear one of these styles as your "main" style (ie you have that on your head about 75% of the time) and would like to model for the Calla Catalogue, please drop me a notecard. Name it "Calla Catalogue - STYLE NAME - YOUR NAME"

On the notecard, please write a few sentences about why you like Calla, and your favorite style(s). For example: What makes this particular style unique to you? Or why does that style fit your personality? What is your favorite thing about Calla/Calla hair?

Also, please include a snapshot of yourself wearing that style. It needs to be full permissions in order to drag it onto the notecard.

By submitting the above, you agree to give full rights to images, quotes, etc. and allow Calla to use the information provided for any current or future advertising/marketing. All quotes will be credited to their source, and your name will be published with the image(s) of you in the catalogue.

The fine print:

There is no pay/reward/etc for doing this. You'll get nothing but your pretty face and your name in our catalogue. No one is getting paid. This is not a modeling job. This is strictly voluntary. We will choose people at our discretion, and at whatever whims we're feeling that particular day.

Lily & Hae

Prim lash challenged

Most of you know I'm into the "prim torture" thing. I enjoy twisting and shaping and cutting and forcing them into submission.

I love prim lashes. I think they are the most fabulous idea ever! I have no idea how I ever lived without them. I see people without pretty prim lashes and I wish that I had a pair of transfer lashes that I could give them.

But give me a pair of prim lashes and ask me to fit them and I quake in fear. I can literally spend hours trying to fit a pair of lashes.

My favorite lashes are the "Bedroom Lashes" by Cake. They've been a staple in my wardrobe since I found them back in May.



They're my ideal of the perfect lash. They're long, fluttery, soft and yet dramatic without looking like your mascara did that clumpy-gloppy-spider-leg thing. I've just spent an hour fitting this pair. The left eye (stage right) I'm pretty happy with finally. As long as I'm looking straight on at my eyes.

Then I turn my head and see this.



Still beautiful, no doubt. But see that space between the lower lashes (stage left) and my eye? Drives me crazy. You can see it some on the inner corner of the other eye. It's probably not so bad that the average person would notice it in regular conversation. But when I hop on a posing stand to start shooting ads, I see it. And then I go from "just going to shoot a quick ad" to "gotta make these lashes fit better first" and it the "quick" ad turns into a 3 hour ordeal.



Bird's eye view. I'm sparing you the up-the-nose view. I've tried every way I can think of to get that curve more tight fitting to my eyelid so there isn't that funky space. It's probably me being super picky, because I know that most people don't look at me from that angle, even though most of the grid is taller than I am. But usually you look straight on at someone, right?

I can get them closer to my eye, but then the ends of the lashes are up in my little avie's brain someplace. Hae never has this problem, her lashes always look perfect from every angle whenever I shoot her for ads. I've never really noticed anyone else having these issues. Is it my eyes? Are they funky? Are they too far into my head? Are they a funny shape that refuses to take prim lashes? Is there some trick to fitting these that I just haven't been made aware of?

I am not going without them, that's just not a viable solution. If anyone wants to start up a prim lash fitting business, call me. I'll be your first customer. I've got probably some 50 pairs of lashes from different people and in different styles and colors that you can fit to me.

The fun never ends

Things happen in threes, right? Please tell me yes, cause this would be number 3 and I'm pretty much needing a break.

Oh, and if Catero is reading this, this might top the period saga, so get ready.

I have this stupid choking problem. I can choke on about anything. Stupid things. Macaroni and cheese - stuck. Soup - stuck. Rice - really stuck. Eggs - mega stuck. Good news, it doesn't get stuck in my airway so I can breathe. Bad news, it gets stuck in my esophagus and won't go up or down. If I try to drink, I feel like I'm drowning because it just sits in my throat and won't go down all the way. I do this fairly often, a few times a week. I've done it my whole life. Eventually, I gag enough and can get whatever it is that's stuck back up.

Until last night. My hubby was late coming home from work, so he stopped and picked up KFC. Mmmmm! Honey barbeque sandwich heaven. I got about 3 bites and choked. It wouldn't go down, wouldn't come up, I was hugging the bathroom sink trying to get it out. After half an hour (and quite a few threats of doing it) my husband called 911. Apparently half our town (it's a little town) is on the rescue squad because they all showed up at our house. They brought a stretcher into our bathroom and took me out. Fifteen minutes to the hospital, trying to give me oxygen because I wasn't breathing so much because I was gagging constantly.

I got a shot of some Glucogen stuff that hurt like crap and is still making me feel really sick today. It's supposed to relax the smooth muscles. After two+ hours, I finally got up a piece of chicken - which they saved for me. How nice. I get to take it to my Dr today. He'll be so happy, I'm sure. They were about to start getting me ready to go via helicopter to one of the bigger hospitals 2 hours away - like came in with the IV bag and all that hoopla, when it finally came up.

The ER doc was glad, he was starting to get really worried, and said there was no reason at all that I should have choked on a piece of sandwich that small. So now I have to let them stick a camera in my throat to see what's going on. (I'd had a barium/swallow study a few months ago and that was normal.) ER doc is thinking surgery. Yay. After 31 years of choking on the dumbest things for seemingly no reason, I'm really hoping they can figure it out and fix it. I'd like to be able to eat a waffle without fearing for my life.

On the SL side of things, I've got seven styles newly colored in all the new colors. I've just got to get them boxed up and my little trip to the ER last night set me behind. I was hoping to get them out today, but it looks like it will be tomorrow - possibly Sunday. Something to look forward to: Water Willow is coming! YEEEHAW!

Seeing red

I swear I am not a bad parent. I am not neglectful. They eat many times a day, they don't get too much sugar and junk food, they have beds to sleep in, clothes to wear, and (way too many) toys to play with. I do not let my kids run unsupervised. They are disciplined and I'm not afraid to spank them when necessary. They know the rules, they know they have to be followed. They know right from wrong.

And then there is my four-year old.

She's like a bull in a china shop. Except she's the bull and the china. She flat out does whatever the hell she wants to do come hell or high water. Gee, I wonder where she gets it. Though she usually gets hurt in the process.

Yesterday, the grid was down, there wasn't a whole lot I could do so I decided I'd go outside and we'd continue painting the barn, because I was pretty sure even though it looked like it might rain, it wouldn't until later and I could get something accomplished. (More on the barn later, but long story short we're building one out back.)

We're painting the inside white, to make it less dark and dreary inside. The kids each have their own little paint roller and they both paint to their heart's content and I just go behind them. Works pretty well. The 19-month old painted a tree in the back yard. And the big beach blanket I had in the grass for them to lay on. And my shorts - which had been black. And himself, and lord knows what else we'll find a year from now. Some of it managed to get on the walls, and he was happy and everyone had fun.

I'd gone to Lowe's and gotten paint for the outside because that's gotta be done, too. I decided on this really pretty brownish-reddish kinda barn color and white trim. So I paid 20 bucks each for these two gallons of paint for the outside, exterior paint, resists mold/mildew/etc etc. Not cheap, but hopefully it'll hold up a good 5 years or so, right?

Enter four-year old darling offspring.

We were still working on the inside walls, so the red paint was just sitting in the living room waiting to be used. I went to the dryer to get the now clean, but covered in paint clothes from the day before. She came in with a gallon of the outside paint. "Go put it back, we're not using that one. You have to get dressed, go get panties on!" ("Go get panties on" is the most used phrase in our house. I'm sure she's going to be a stripper when she grows up.)

I get the clothes, round up the toddler to get him dressed. Head towards the kitchen to grab some water to take out and there's this really strange smell.

Four-year old says, "I made a mess." Like this is something new. My life is a series of going from one mess she's made to the next. I turned around. Then I saw where the smell was coming from.

An entire gallon of barn red paint, upside down and puddled on the living room carpet. Apparently the girl at Lowe's didn't put the lid on very well.

After taking a very deep breath, I told her to go to her room. Then I did what any self-respecting parent would do. I called my mom and asked her how in the world would I ever get that off my carpet.

I then spent the next 2+ hours with the steam cleaner (I'm having an affair with Mr. Hoover) and got most of it up. I managed to save 3/4 of the gallon by scooping it off the floor with a dustpan and pouring it back into the can.

Good news, I still really like that color. Bad news, my carpet now has a beautiful blush-tone right in by the front door.

I figure it goes pretty well with the chocolate milk stain that won't come up, the really expensive Lancome mascara carpet drawing, and the Trix hot-pink and turquoise yogurt stain that is just now starting to fade. All courtesy of the same child. When she grows up, I'm saving that piece of carpet to show her every time her kids make a mess on her floor.

My mom says I'm speshul!!

So it's 4:30 in the morning and this medication I'm on has me all tweaked out and jittery... What better to do than shop? So, I find these awesome boot/shoe/heel things. I really don't know what they are, but I think they're adorable. Look!


Cute, right? You can get them at.. um... Next Step in Envy.

And THEN I'm thinking, what do I have that would look good with these? So, I'm bouncing through my inventory, popping on anything and everything that I own. My most awesome friend and secret wife, Pushbutton Skolnick has just given me a pair of goggles to try on. May as well throw them on, too. (They're really cute by the way!) Suddenly I had to stop. I caught a glimpse of myself...



I look like I fell off the short bus. It made me giggle quite a bit. That's Pushy behind me. Ain't she pretty! And she makes fab clothes too. Which... of course you can also get at Pushbutton Industries in Envy. Links are fun! She also has fun things like these little signs. You click em and you get to pick what it says :D



My inner dork is VERY happy right now.
Loves!
Hae

Busy bees! Pretty as you please!

We've been super busy this week trying to get all these older styles up in all the new colors. I'm dying to make something new! These went out today and you can find them in the lobby or in their style sections.