The dark side of Pinterest

As the world knows there isn't a website that isn't untouched by evil spam, or adult (Rated XXX) content. However I thought it was different on a website called Pinterest. I thought that this was a website that limit their access to it so that real content could get through and not be subjected to porn or "toys" in a category that once held images and links to "How to make home made Play-Doh" or other craft ideas for young children.

This morning I was feeding my youngest daughter and was looking through some of the categories to get some ideas about possible crafts and tips for my eldest daughter (who turns 3 this year) in the Education category of their website. However instead of this category being chalked full of educational crafts, websites for teachers and the random infogram, which I am use to, I found this:



I am not trying to cause an anti-Pinterest movement nor am I canceling my account over this image and link, I am however surprised at the lack of thought that Pinterest does not have a "Mark as Adult" or a flag of some kind for people to click to say that they do not want this kind of image in a particular category. I also do not want to "re-pin" this image and place it in my Pinterest stream for other people to see that may have different ideas. Also give the person whom pinned this in the first place more attention.

Please Pinterest place an Adult category and a flag of some kind for people to tell your company to move questionable content to a more appropriate space after a review of the image and link so that parents and teachers a like can share their crafts in a safe environment.

Woman VS the Sewing Machine

I really have a hard time with getting motivated with sewing. I have a craft box full of material that hasn't seen the light of day in a few years.

My husband a few years ago bought two sewing machines. One a Sears $50 dollar blue one that was for light weight things and a $200 dollar Singer heavy duty almost industrial one that according to my husband costs $300 to replace.

This is the machine. It looks easy, right?

Recently I asked to use one of them to do a few projects that I thought I could complete myself. He pulled out the Singer. I was very scared when I saw it on the table for me to use. So I had him help me start one project was the tutu I made for my youngest. Though it didn't quite make it to being a tutu, it was still very motivating for me to make something that wasn't just a test swatch.

Now I am on to my second project, which doesn't seem to hard, is driving both me and my husband nuts. I really would like to stitch two pieces of material together. However its not working out for me. I have the same problem no matter how much I run the machine. The bobbin thread gets bunched up and gets stuck in one place. I almost want to give up each and every time. Even when I just run a piece of fabric it does the same.

The
Machine
HATES
ME!

Any suggestions on how to fix the problem would be great. I don't want to give it up, and the many times when I asked my husband for help, he tells me he will, then he falls asleep or totally forgets and it doesn't seem to get done any faster than if I do it myself. I feel like a domestic failure.

What am I doing that is wrong? Please help!

This year is an important year

This year will mark the fourth year I have had this blog. Combined I have probably blogged one third of a year's worth of material. However I have had a few other blogs that would probably make up the loss. This year I hope to do many more things like Reviews, Giveaways and invite you into my life a little more. I have several things I'd like to say and do so stay tuned!

It also marks the fourth year of my marriage! Go figure!

Review - Lighting-Fast Chinese for Kids and Families by Carolyn Woods

Learning a language can be tough, whether it be your second or third and in my case filth! With a full time job, two kids, and a husband to look after I though the possibilities of learning a language was remote. Only when my two year old was watching Ni-Hao Kai-lan on the television was it possible to engage her and my husband in another language. So when this book review opportunity came I really wanted to give it a shot.

Having the sayings from Kai-lan, the small amount of Chinese food words and random words I picked up from my husband, I was totally lost and overwhelmed to start learning one of the oldest languages in the world.

Taken from Amazon.com

The book Lighting-Fast Chinese for Kids and Families by Carolyn Woods makes it easy. She creates prompts and guides in the 60 pages (in paper back or on the Kindle) that made it easy for me to ask my two year old basic questions in real life situations like getting dressed, going to the Zoo, and going to the store. How easy is that? Immersion is one of the best ways to learn a new language and by taking this book with us as we went walking to see the shī zi (lions), lǎo hǔ (tigers) and the xióng (bears) at the Zoo made it more interesting because we were having fun learning Chinese. And that is when real learning takes place.

A small video I made to show you how fun and easy the lesson are!

More by Carolyn Woods

Lightning-fast Spanish For Kids and Families 
 Lightning-fast Spanish Vocabulary Building Crossword Puzzles 

Lightning-fast French For Kids and Families

Lightning-fast German For Kids and Families

Lightning-fast Italian For Kids and Families

Make Money From Home With A Children’s eBay Business

And just published 

Lightning-fast Japanese For Kids and Families

There are only 2 cons I could see about the book. One was the lack of clarity of what dialect I was about to learn. In China there are two main branches Mandarin and Cantonese, then there are the smaller regional subsets. I had to ask my husband, who has a few years of the language, tell me it was Mandarin. The second was the word Pinyin, not until the end of the book is it defined, in the book, {as} the Chinese phonetic language, rather than characters. I would have liked to see that in the beginning as I thought it was the actual dialect of Chinese! 

I give this book 4 out of 5 stars (Amazon Rating system), because of the ease of use that my family enjoyed learning from the book, but lost a star because of the confusion of the dialect and definition as I pointed out above.

Please Note: I was given a copy of the book to review ($14.99 value), however was not told in any way how to write or do a video for the author or received anything other than the copy mentioned above to influence my review.

Wordless Wednesday

Dear sixteen year old self,

Can you believe you are now 32? Have two daughters, a husband, a house, and the VW?

Me at 16 with my friend Winston

I know it seems far fetched because you are in the mist of a melt down. You will get help and medication for what you are finding out from your biological father about a chemical imbalance in your brain called Bi-Polar Mania. The medication will make things better, but our mom will not.

When you are 18, she will call the cops and have them place you under a 5150, though its hard for the doctors to find out what is wrong with you after the first 12 hours of being there. Some of them think our mom should be in here, not you. When you get back to your home, your mother is there with a restraining order not to go near her or your childhood home. All of this at the start of your last year in high school, how rude right?

You do graduate from Skyline High School with top honors. Both the Future Teachers and Preforming Arts magnate completions and honor roll cords. I think we were the first person to do such a thing in the schools history. I doubt that few will remember, but we will!

It took us a few more years to complete college than we had hoped. 1 year in City College and 5 years in San Francisco State University. You met a few friends, laughed and tried so hard to shed the awkwardness about you by reinventing yourself a few times. However it seemed not to work and the self doubt haunts you even to this day. 

You did get a job at the PlayStation Store San Francisco in the Metreon. Yup you get into video games. You actually meet your husband there, however don't know it yet, and meet another guy that will break your heart into a million pieces and runs back to Michigan. So when you see a tall handsome, blond hair, blue eyed guy that is just as shy, RUN AWAY! 

A few years later when you're about to turn 27, our mother dies and you lose your childhood home to fore-closer. You have days from when you find out that she has died to when they take it away, to prioritize the things that you want to take with you and the things you will never see again. And those decisions still haunt you till this day.

A year latter you get married and another year after that your first daughter is born. Bella is a great little girl and brings mountains of joy. So in 2011 you try once again and you have another daughter Grace and you decide to give her our mother's middle name as hers. 

Please do not be scared as this is even over whelming to your 32 year old self. Just know that you do not become what your mother has told you, however the bit about the girls were right. 

You are not crazy, you do become loved by yourself, and you are loved by others.

Working or Not Working - this is the reality

In my previous post Stunning absolute I talked about the real possibility of me quitting my job to stay home with my two year old and my newborn. I felt that I can totally quit my job as long as I can get some extra income by a part time job on the weekends.

I talked to my husband about this and he feels in order for me to complete the quitting my job part, I would have to stay at my job till at least my husband feels like he's in the black or if Grandma once faced with the day to day routine of baby G, doesn't feel like she can handle it anymore give my two weeks notice.

I still feel like I am going to get fired before that happens however we need to get one foot out of the debt that maternity leave leaves me in and I think I could do fine. How come I feel a sense of dread coming on then??