Oh noooo, look what happened to our playroom (sponsored by Ashley HomeStore!!)

It happened last fall. We were eating family dinner in our new kitchen when Zoey started leaning back in her chair. I swear I’ve told her 9000 times not to do it, but this time guess what happened? SNAPPPP!!!! The leg to the chair cracked right in half and the entire chair crashed to the ground. Bwhahahahahah, uhhh, I mean, are you okay sweetie pie? I knew she was because she managed to jump up as it was happening.

But honestly, I was pisssssed. I had literally just bought these chairs. AGGGHHH, this is why we can’t have nice things!! And I was really angry and threatened that I was gonna make her pay me back for the chair. And she started bawling, and let’s just say it was not one of our finer moments. Either of us.

So I made a vow right then and there. I was not going to redo anything else in our house until the kids grow up and move out. So naturally guess what happened next? Just a few days later, I was walking in the playroom, when my socks went like this: SQUISHHHHH. Hmmm, that’s weird. I don’t remember spilling a giant bucket of water down here.

Nope, worse. Two GIANT cracks in our foundation. See?

You can probably guess what word came out of my mouth. I’ll give you a hint. It rhymes with puck. But imagine it in all caps with a lot of exclamation marks after it and repeated many MANY times.

The whole downstairs had to be redone. I mean luckily it kinda needed it. The carpet was covered in Pedialyte vomit stains…

…and the walls were plastered in stickers that wouldn’t peel off…

… and there was still the lingering odor from a four-year-old sippy cup of milk that had turned into cottage cheese that I found in there last year. But I was not ready to redo it AT ALL. The last thing I needed was another room to freak out in every time the kids do something to destroy it.

So it got me thinking. As much as this was my chance to make a big gorgeous family room that I can show off, there was something else I wanted more. I wanted a room that we could LIVE in. I didn’t want it to be a room that makes me freak out every time my kids act like kids. Or goats. Or orangutans.

So I made a list of things I want in the new room. Not things like a big sectional or a pretty fireplace or a beautiful paint color. A list of things I REALLY want.

• I want people to be able to eat down there without me standing below them picking up every crumb they drop.
• I want people to be able to drink what they want down there. Chocolate milk. Red wine. Even Hershey’s syrup. Whatta you mean that’s not a drink? I drink it all the time.
• I want the kids to be able to make a mess and leave it until we get around to cleaning it up.
• I want a place to display their Lego creations because I’m tired of hearing a tantrum every time one gets broken.
• I want carpet (PRAY it doesn’t flood again) so the kids can invite lots of friends to sleep over and they’re not limited by the number of beds we have.
• I want a room we can be loud in, whether my hubby is blaring an action movie or the kids are jamming out in a rock band (jamming out, I sound like I’m 900-years-old).
• I want a family room. Like a REAL family room that is comfortable for ALL of us.

I was almost done making my list when something crazy happened. My phone rang.

ME: Hello?

CALL: Hey Baby Sideburns, this is Ashley HomeStore. 

ME: Hey AH, what’s shakin’?

CALL: We’re wondering whether maybe you wanna work together and decorate a room in your house?

ME: (jaw drops) Holy crap.

I kid you not. This happened. The same week we discovered the flood. And Ashley HomeStore helped me turn this…

… into this:

Yes, that is the SAME room. Unbelievable, right?

I mean yeah it’s gorgeous, but more important than that, it’s FUNCTIONAL. Like here’s some of the stuff it has:

And so much more!!!!

And sometimes it looks like this…

But usually it looks like this…

And they’re both okay. Because it’s a family room. Not a museum. And it’s not supposed to make me constantly freak out. It’s supposed to make me happy. No wait, it’s supposed to make ALL OF US happy. Now THAT is a family room.

Hey you guyyyys, Ashley HomeStore doesn’t just want ME to have a new room. They want YOU to have one too!! So they’re giving one away! Woohooo, free furniture!!!! Just click here and vote on your favorite kid’s room and you’ll be entered to win the whole room from Ashley HomeStore!! How awesome would that be?!!! I hope you win!!!! And just click here if you want to check out any of the amazing things from my new family room!!

If you liked this, please don’t forget to like and share it!! Thank you!!

#sponsored #ionlypromoteproductsireallylike