A Few Weekend Highlights

We had a really good weekend. Austin was in a wedding so that took up a lot of our time. However, I managed to do a little garage saleing with my friend, Lynette. I scored this wicker furniture set for only $20.00. I plan to spray paint it and fix it up a bit. I still can't believe it was all for $20.00. I almost felt bad for the people selling it so cheaply. I probably would have paid more. That's the nature of garage sales though!

Despite my glorious find, a problem I have run into with the furniture is this: Chauncey likes to chew on it. He's a fan of sticks and branches so I think he thinks the wicker is a huge chew toy just for him. Dang dog. I'm trying to think of something I can spray on the legs that will taste nasty. Any ideas?

 I made these a few weeks ago but realized I never blogged about them. Recognize that fabric? I might have used it on a previous project. Here's a hint... 

 

I just used the extra fabric from the chair to make some pillows for the room that the chair is in. I LOVE the way they turned out. They were super easy to do, too!

 Saturday night, was Noelle and Kyle's reception.
 Here's a shot of us at the wedding reception at the Missouri Theater. The food was awesome!

I spent a lot of time with this gal, Molly, this weekend. Since both our hubbies were in the wedding party we were partners in crime throughout all the festivities.

I think that wraps it up. Happy Monday!

The Ultrasonic Scaler

Nobody really LOVES to go to the dentist, right? Some actually fear their bi-annual visit. I can say, I've never been one of those people who dreads the appointment. I've never really had any strong emotion about my dentist visit...until this morning that is.

I entered the building with a pleasant attitude confident that I would be in and out without any troubles.

I plopped down in the comfy chair and the nice dental hygienist informed me that they had a new tool that she was going to begin cleaning with.

It was called the ultrasonic scaler- or something like that.
I wasn't quite sure what she meant by that. I would soon find out.

She pulled out the little utensil and went to work.
I immediately did NOT like it. It felt like a small drill that produced a high pitch drilling sound that vibrated my teeth as she traced it around my gum line. It resembled a metal on metal screeching coming from my mouth. I was on edge.

At one point, I felt it get hot on my tooth and a bit of pain shot through my mouth. Being on edge, I jumped, which only caused the drill to hit my tooth deeper. I apologized as the sweet hygienist became stone faced (at least that's what I imaged behind her mask). She told me me jumping only made it worse. I leaned back determined to remain calm.

As she continued, I felt a lump rise in my throat. The dialogue in my head began:

"Polly, you can't cry...You are 27 years old- you can't cry at the dentist...Pull yourself together."

The drill has now made it way to the other side of my mouth.

"Just ignore it...Think about something else...Think about heaven...There will be no screechy tooth drilling in heaven...That will be nice." (Not sure why I decided to think about heaven at that moment)

I felt another hot spot on my tooth, but this time pulled away from the drill rather than jumping into it.

The hygienist showed no reaction to my response.

"Focus. Pretend you aren't here. Polly, you are so lucky to have dental care. Think about all the people who don't have dental care... Yes... This is a good thing. Think of all the yucky plaque she is getting off your teeth..."

The drill has now made it's way to the inner side of my teeth.

"I wonder if I can just tell her to stop... Would that be ridiculous? Maybe next time I have an appointment I can request that they don't use the ultrasonic, scaler, vibrating thing..."

Finally, after what seems like hours, she was done.
I felt my hands and toes unclench. Relief.

After she finished the exam and cleaning, my dentist came in, did a 15 second look at my teeth and gums, then said I was good to go.

I think I hid the fact that I was emotionally traumatized pretty well. 
My bi-annual visit might become an annual visit from now on. I am going to avoid the ultrasonic scaler as much as I possible can.

More Garage Sale Goodies

I'm sulking right now. Once again, my sewing machine is being fussy. The tension is all wacky and because I got it at an estate sale, I have no manual on how to fix it. My mood is telling me to throw it out to the curb and never sew again but experience tells me I will be back on the machine within a week.

In order to relieve my frustrations, I'll share a few garage sale finds I made last week. 

Buttons. Lots of buttons. All of these for $2.00. 

At least I can hand sew these on. Take THAT, sewing machine.

I probably would have passed up this button collection if I hadn't seen this idea on Curbly. I also find myself hunting around for buttons for crafts so I think this new collection will be quite handy. 

Found these two vases. $.25 each. I loved their shape and saw loads of potential. 

In a 5 minute project, I crammed some craft paper into one of them and tied some of this tweed around it. Turned out cute, huh?! I'm waiting for some inspiration for the second one now. One thing is for sure- it will not involve fabric or sewing of any kind. 

I stumbled upon these kleenex box covers. I plan to mod podge some cool fabric or paper on them. Austin had a hard time understanding the purpose of a kleenex box cover. I beg to differ.  He's a visual creature- he'll understand once I get them decorated. Maybe. Well, lets be honest- he probably won't even notice them until months after they've been placed around the house.

Just a few days ago, he was so excited to find out we had a blender. (That we've had since we've been married). Bless his heart.

Lastly, since we've been here, our silverware drawer had been unstable. The wire rack is way too small for the drawer so any time we open or shut it, the rack slides around resembling the sound of a car wreck. 

I found some wire baskets that fit perfectly in the drawer. Only $.25!!

It makes an amazing difference. 

Well, that's all I got for now. 

I'll be honest. I'm still sulking. 

My next attempt at medicating my sewing frustrations:

 Hope your evening is a bit more cheery than mine.

Naps: One of My Favorite Things

Nap

noun
a short sleep, esp. during the day

 
I love to nap. Sometimes it's all I want to do. Turns out, this isn't a bad thing. Read on my skeptical friends...

 Research shows that the majority of people suffer from tiredness twice in every 24 hour period. We are what's called Bi-phasic; we need two periods of sleep; a long one at night and a shorter one during the day. 

And even more important, body temperature dips into a sleep zone in the late afternoon. It seems that we’re naturally programmed to nap about twelve hours after we wake up from our nighttime rest.

 Afternoon naps tend to be made up largely of the most restful type of sleep, making them an effective way to catch up on the sleep you didn’t get the night before. A short slumber in the afternoon can make you more alert and improve your mood, memory, and ability to make decisions.

The human sleep-wake cycle causes a drop in alertness between about 2 and 5 pm in the afternoon and more dramatically in the early morning between 2 and 5 am.  This suggests we need two sleep periods a day, as in siesta cultures.

 A brief nap can improve your mood and productivity, alleviate tiredness, increase alertness and reduce errors made at work.  A nap as brief as 10 minutes will produce these results.

 Many experts advise to keep the nap between 15 and 30 minutes, as sleeping longer gets you into deeper stages of sleep, from which it’s more difficult to awaken. Also, longer naps can make it more difficult to fall asleep at night, especially if your sleep deficit is relatively small. However, research has shown that a 1-hour nap has many more restorative effects than a 30-minute nap, including a much greater improvement in cognitive functioning.

Famous people who napped:

- Bill Clinton napped while President of the United States to help him cope with the pressures of office.

- Brahms napped at the piano while he composed his famous lullaby.

- Napoleon napped between battles while sitting on his horse.

- Churchill maintained that he had to nap in order to cope with his wartime responsibilities.

- Geniuses such as Edison and da Vinci napped.

- Margaret Thatcher napped in order to be at her best.

- Einstein napped frequently during the day to help him think more clearly. He would sit in his favourite armchair with a pencil in his hand and purposefully doze off. He would wake when the pencil dropped, ensuring he did not enter a deep sleep from which it would be difficult to wake up.

 

I'm convinced. Are you?

I Got Another Shout-Out!

Remember the post about my turquoise mirror?

Well, another blogger saw it an featured it on her website.

Click HERE to see the blog at All Things Thrifty.

Front Porch Gets Some TLC

I'm coming up on owning this house for a year now. Wow!

In all my decorating, I have ignored my front porch entirely.

Until today that is! 

 While helping a friend set up for a garage sale, I ended up buying these plant stands from her. They look like a bunch of junk together but I had a vision. The front porch was finally going to get some attention.

I liked all the different shapes and styles. Especially the plant stand in the front. All this for $7.00!

 Prime Time

I used my handy-dandy spray primer. It was quite the process because a storm was blowing in while I was spraying. I think I ended up with more on myself than on the stands and planters.

 Next, I sprayed all the planters red. After they dried, I decided they were way TOO red. So I used a charcoal spray paint to tone the color down. I kinda liked the dirty look that the charcoal gave them.

After giving them a chance to dry, I was so excited about the way they turned out. I plan to plant some flowers in them soon.

 

 Before and After Shots

BEFORE

AFTER

Oh, and see that chair? I got it from the same garage sale for $5.00. Wahoo!

It's a small start, but at least it's something!