A perfect storm of crap. (And good friends who are helping with clean up.)

I'm sorry that I haven't shared this before, but things have been pretty stressful around here.  I have a perfect storm of emotional trials going on.  There are several critical family issues all happening at once, the most serious being that my ex-husband is in end stage colon cancer.

I recently posted about how proud I am of my two oldest boys as they stay by their father's side in these last days.

One of my favorite photos of Mike.

The doctors have told us that there isn't much time left for him, so posting will be pretty light around here for a bit.

However, I have some fabulous blogger friends who will be dropping by with recipes, craft tutorials,activities to do with your kids... and I will be republishing some of my favorite Grant Stories, because we can use a little levity around here.

There is never a good time/age to lose a parent, so thank you to everyone who has left words of encouragement and offered up prayers for Devin and Conner.  They are appreciated more than you can imagine.

What's been your most meaningful moment during the past year?

  

When the folks at Meaningful Beauty asked me to share what has been The Most meaningful moment  for me over the past year, I have to admit that I was a little stumped.  I mean, I've experienced lots of moments that have been meaningful... but to pick just one?

Should I pick Devin's graduation day?

That's a big day, right?  My first born graduating from high school... yep. A big deal, but not the moment.

How about any number of the times where I am reminded that I have been fortunate enough to have married my best friend...?

There have been so many good moments that are meaningful. Good, happy times that are filled with gratitude for all of our blessings...  but I realized that my most meaningful moment has come as the result of sadness, not happiness.

Let me explain.

I'm usually pretty happy and easy-go-lucky on my blog, but there's lots of "real life" going on over here at The V Spot.  Many of you may know that Handsome Hubby and I were high school sweeties that reconnected later in life, and that Devin and Conner are my children from my first marriage.

What most of you don't know is that my ex-husband, Devin and Conner's dad, is in end stage colon cancer.

Since 2008 Devin and Conner have been coming to terms with all of the brutal reality that cancer often brings.  They spend every weekend visiting their dad.  They have watched him go through chemotherapy, multiple surgeries and countless hospital stays.  You may be asking, "What's meaningful about that?"

In this past year, I have realized that my boys are stronger than I ever could have imagined...
They stay next to their dad's bedside just to simply be with him...  They talk to him when he's awake, or they sit while he sleeps so that he knows they're there when he wakes up.
They have realized there is a level of role-reversal that has taken place and that they are up to the challenge of "taking care" of their dad.

Not only are they being compassionate and loving to their father, they are open with me and with Handsome Hubby about what is going on, emotionally.  They talk through their feelings and sort through complicated emotions.  They come to us during the week to vent and receive some comfort, and in so doing, they are equipped to return to their dad's beside on the weekends and bring comfort to him.

They have also been searching spiritually and finding comfort in a relationship with the Lord and trusting that He has a plan and that even sadness is perfect if it is serving His plan.

So the moment that has become the most meaningful to me this year, is the moment that I realized these two sweet little boys...

...have grown into strong, resilient young men of great character.

As a parent, that's pretty darn meaningful.

Tell me what your most meaningful moment was in the last year for a chance to win one of 10 complete skin care Anti-Age Systems from Meaningful Beauty.

Keep your skin looking great in every moment with Meaningful Beauty- Cindy Crawford's break through secret for younger looking skin.
This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Meaningful Beauty. The opinions and text are all mine. Contest Rules.

Thinking about spring... and inexpensive ways to decorate for it.

In the spirit of blog unpreparedness, I would like to invite you to revisit a post from last spring.

Please click here to see how to make a DIY bird's nest out of things you already have on hand.  (In other words, it's practically free.)

The one where I'm thinking about Halloween in February.

I always keep my eye out for seasonal decor.  Even when it's the wrong season.  It is always a good thing if you can snap up a bargain.

I've never quite understood why they start selling toy bugs and spiders come spring time.  Ladybugs and butterflies?  OK.  That kind of makes sense.... but tarantulas? Um, no.

So when I spied all of these big bugs in Target's Dollar Spot....

please excuse the crummy cell phone picture

 I knew immediately that I needed a big tarantula or two.

Yes, I know that Easter is right around the corner, but think for a minute.... Here is a ginormous tarantula for $1.  A dollar, people!!!

How cool would he be around Halloween time, spray painted a shiny metallic silver and put under a cloche or on a shelf?    It's never too early to plan ahead.

Click here to see what I bought for Halloween last June....

Upcycling a plain terra cotta flower pot

The other week I showed you how to upcycle a boring, everyday, can't swing a dead cat with out hitting one, terra cotta flower pot into a shabby chic, chippy pot by using spray paint and candle wax.  Click here to see the full tutorial.

The upcycled pot for today uses many of the same materials and techniques, but we're going to break some spray painting rules in order to get the look of glazed ceramic.

Your supplies are pretty simple:

Grab an old flower pot, good craft glue (NOT hot glue), modeling clay, clear gloss spray paint, white gloss spray paint, and some pink acrylic paint. (Or whatever color you choose.)

Making the Clay Roses:

No cracks about my desperate need for a manicure, OK?

1. Knead your modeling clay until it's nice and pliable.
2. Pinch off a small piece of clay and flatten it into a long, thin piece.
3. Start rolling at one end, sort of pinching at the bottom as you go along.  That's the center of your rose.
4. Pinch off another piece of clay and flatten it into a long oval shape to make more petals..
5. Begin overlapping where the last  piece of clay ended, wrapping more "petals" as you see fit.
6. As you create more petals, you will be pinching at the bottom of your rose and will end up with a clay "stem"

Once you've made your rose, it's time to Bake It.

1. Cut the excess clay "stem" off of the bottom of your rose.
2. Score the bottom of the rose.  The score marks help to create a stronger hold when gluing to your flower pot.
3. Put your roses on an oven safe plate and bake according to package directions.

When your roses are done baking (doesn't that sound funny?) you can start gluing them to your flower pot.  I propped mine on its side and glued a few at a time, allowing them to dry before turning the pot and doing a few more.

When all the roses are glued where you want them, take the pot outside for a few good coats of glossy white spray paint.

No matter what I am painting, I always start with it upside down... you get all the nooks and crannies that way.

Once my pot was painted white, I wanted a hint of color.

1. I added a small drop of red to some pearl acrylic paint.
2. Mix it up (it doesn't have to be perfectly blended.)
3. You aren't painting, so much as swiping at the roses with the pink paint.  Flip the pot upside down, balanced on an empty can of spray paint, or something that will elevate it a little.  You want to work very quickly, because...
4. You are going to liberally spray the wet roses with a clear gloss spray.

Step #4 is the part of the project where you need to throw all the spray-painting rules you ever learned right out the window.  You are going to spray clear gloss on wet paint... you are going to spray on big, thick globs of it... not several light coats.

The more the colors run, the more they are thick, shiny and look like glazed ceramic.  If you are a regular reader, you've seen me use this technique before.  It will need to sit for quite a while to really "cure."

I'm happy with how it turned out.  I popped some cilantro in there and it sits on my kitchen window sill.

This is cute enough to give as a gift and easy enough to do for no reason at all. And isn't that why we like crafts?  Not because they are necessary, but because they let us create.

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Share the wealth.

Last week on Valentine's Day, Grant's class had a party.  He came home from school with a bag full of cards and candy, and also with his best buddy, Jake, who was going to play for a while after school.

He asked if he could have a piece of his candy, and also asked if he could give one to Jake.

Me: "Of course you may give a piece to Jake.  That is very thoughtful of you.  Good job sharing."
Grant: (who looked at me as if I had two heads) "Of course I would give him some. He's my best friend..." (The "duh" was implicit in his tone.)

I am so proud of the person he is becoming!  It's his birthday today.
Happy birthday Grant... it's been 8 exciting and very entertaining years with you, buddy!

Be sure to check out the Grant Stories page for some funny reading...

Time to shop for wheat grass...

Wheat grass... I know you can grow it, but I think it's faster and easier to buy it.

These were my thoughts on wheat grass last year....  I haven't gotten more time in my schedule, so I am on the lookout for a cute container or two and wheat grass in the produce department.   Spring is coming!

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The answer to the burning questions about my nail polish.

So this is kind of funny...  Sometimes I get as many comments/questions about my nails or nail polish as I do on my projects or tutorials.  That's been the case recently, so I thought I'd answer here.

This is my current favorite:

I rarely, if ever get professional manicures, so I like quick dry polish.  (That way I don't have time to jack it up before it dries.)  And yes, my nails just grow in that shape. I don't file them that way.

This Sally Hanson Insta-Dri covers in one coat and really does dry fast and it stays shiny.  There are lots of colors (this is Rapid Red) and it's about $4.
Bargain!

This is not a sponsored post.  I am not being compensated.  I just really like this product.

Happy weekend, and don't forget to enter the Dunkin' Donuts Coffee at Home Giveaway.

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Vinegar makes my coffee taste better. (For reals.)

Clean your coffee maker using vinegar.

Yesterday I reviewed Dunkin' Donuts coffee (I'm also giving some away: click here to enter) and it dawned on me that I don't clean my coffee maker as often as I should.  Without a good cleaning every now and again, your coffee maker won't operate efficiently and you just aren't going to get the best cup of joe that you can.

You don't need fancy-schmancy coffee maker cleaning tablets.  You don't need a special filtering system.  You can clean your coffee maker for less than a buck.  You ready...?

Regular ole' white vinegar.  You can pick up a big bottle of it for about $2.

Even running the carafe and the filter basket through the dishwasher regularly, there still seems to be a build up of, well, crud.   (Don't you judge me!!!)

Simply pour about 2 cups of white vinegar into the machine instead of water and start the brewing cycle.  (Be sure there are no filters or old coffee grounds sitting around.  Hot vinegar smells bad enough... hot vinegar and old coffee grounds will make you head for the hills.  ew.

You'll see flakey looking particles or floaties in the hot vinegar.  Pour out the hot vinegar and repeat this process two or three times, until there are no more floaties in the pot.  

Run a cycle or two with clean water to rinse out the machine and you'll be amazed by how much better your coffee maker will work.

I also have a great tip on a no-scrub way to clean your stove burners using just a little bit of ammonia.

Thanks for stopping by!

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Dunkin' Donuts Coffee - get it at home (& a chance to win some!)

I love coffee.  Love it!  I can't start my day without it.  For reasons that I won't go into here, I am only allowed to have 2 cups a day, so I want to make sure that the 2 cups that I get to have are darn good cups of coffee. 

Coffee isn't just a beverage.  It's part of a routine... it's social... it's ritual.  It's important and I take my coffee seriously!  That's why I jumped at the chance to review Dunkin' Donuts Dunkin' Donuts Coffee at Grocery products. 

They sent me a bag of Dunkin' Donuts Original Blend to try.  I have previously tried their Dunkin' Dark blend and I loved it.  

I like my coffee to come out of the pot pretty much snarling with dark roasted attitude.  

So as I brewed myself a cup of the Original Blend I have to say that I was a little worried that it wouldn't be strong enough for me.  You know what?  It wasn't strong enough for me, but it was perfect for some family members who do not like their coffee to be quite as strong as I like mine.  (For me, the Dunkin' Dark is perfect!)

Although not as dark as I'd like, it had a wonderful smooth flavor and no hint of bitterness.  It has a great aroma (which is part of the coffee drinking experience as far as I'm concerned...)

We entertain a lot, so I want to be able to give my guests something that's delicious and is a quality product.  The Original Blend fits the bill for that, and the Dunkin' Dark is all mine!

One of the things that I really do like about this coffee is that you can pick it up at your local grocery store.  You can visit  www.dunkinathome.com  to get more information, and you can even go HERE and get coffee promotions, coupons, special offers and more.

Want to win some of this yummy coffee?

How about a Dunkin' Donuts Coffee At Home Prize Pack?  

One lucky winner will receive one bag of Original Blend, one bag of Decaf, and two Dunkin’ Donuts mugs. 

Enter by leaving a comment and telling me if you are a "light" or a "dark" coffee person.  Extra entries for tweeting or sharing on facebook and then letting me know that you did so in the comments.  

(Each comment = 1 entry.  Please make sure to leave your email so I can contact you if you win.)  Open for entries until 2/18/12 at noon PST.  Winner to be notified by 2/20/12.

Dunkin’ Donuts Coffee at Grocery compensated me for participation in this campaign. However, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

Have a nuclear Valentine's Day!

Grant has been drawing lots of little Valentines for me.  Lots and lots of drawings.   To mix it up a bit, he has begun making heart shapes around the house for me.  Sometimes they're out of Legos, sometimes out of blocks or Crayons.  

He often will arrange the heart shape while I watch.  That was the case for these two hearts.

Grant: "Two hearts for you, Mom!  One is me and one is you!"
Me: "Oh, Grant!  That is so sweet! I love it. Thank you."
Grant: "Wait! I have something else for you!"

He dismantled the two hearts, created one big loop and made this:

"Here you go Mom!  For you!  It's a mushroom cloud!"

There's nothing quite like a Valentine from an 8 year old boy.

Waste not, want not: Making breadcrumbs.

Last week I lamented the horrible state of my house.  In addition to having lost my Housekeeping Mojo, I hadn't been to the store and we were low on all sorts of groceries, especially bread.

What is it about the heels on a loaf of bread?  (Or as they are sometimes referred to here: the butts.)  No one will eat them, not even for toast.

You know what I do with all of those bread butts...?

I make bread crumbs.  (I even throw in crackers when some of the people in this house don't close up the box properly.)

Toss in the crackers into a food processor, along with the heels of bread....

Pulse until you have crumbs.

I store them in a bag, in the freezer.  You can toast them on a cookie sheet in a low temperature oven if you want, but I rarely end up doing that.

Someone suggested that you can make bread pudding out of them too, and I may have to give that a try.  Anyone have a good bread pudding recipe to share?

***Updated:  Suzan, who writes My Little Nest and The Reluctant Quilter  shared this bread pudding recipe in the comments: Best bread pudding ever! 5 c. bread cubes, 1 can sweetened condensed milk, 3 eggs, 3 c. hot water, 2 T. melted butter, 2 tsp. vanilla, 1 tsp of cinnamon. Cut up bread and place in a buttered casserole dish. In a large bowl whisk the rest of the ingredients. Pour over the bread cubes and let the bread absorb. Bake at 35o for 50 to 55 min. If the top starts getting dark, throw a piece of foil over it. Done when a knife in center comes out damp but not sloggy! 

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Happy Valentine's Day. NOT.

It's going on 3 weeks of colds and people feeling crummy around here.  I'm finally feeling better and thought I'd take you on a tour of my house, just in time for the romantic 14th of February...

Welcome! Love is in the air, come on in.  (But be warned, the cold and flu bug is in the air too, so enter at your own risk...)

The front door is as far as I've gotten for my Valentine's decor.  
Does the storage bin for my Valentine's stuff count as a decoration?

Make weathered, shabby chic flower pots using spray paint & candle wax.

I'm on a faux-finishing kick at the moment.  Last week I showed you how to make a faux rust effect using spray paint and salt.  
Today I wanted to show you how to create the look of those chippy, weathered, shabby chic flower pots and other garden items.  Have you priced them?  Crazy!  I am not going to pay those prices, especially when I can make them myself.

This flower pot...

...was once a boring, plain terracotta flower pot.

Besides an old flower pot, you'll need a good adhesive, some modeling clay, some wax and an old paintbrush and 2 colors of spray paint.

Take the modeling clay and knead it and work it until it's pliable.  Take a wad of it and flatten it out on a cutting board.  I trimmed the edged of mine to make a rectangle.  (Mine didn't need to be perfect because I knew I would cover it with the clay roses.)

Next use a stamp or a toothpick to write in the clay.  I used one of the Martha Stewart Stamp sets.  (If it'll work with ink, it'll work with clay... just be sure to clean it afterwards.)

When done, carefully form it to the pot where you want it.  Put it in the oven right on the pot.  That way it hardens in the exact shape you want.  Bake according to package directions.

Once it has hardened in the oven, glue it in place on the pot.

How to make the Clay Roses:

No cracks about my desperate need for a manicure, OK?

1. Break off a piece of modeling clay and knead it until it's nice and pliable.
2. Take a small bit of the clay and flatten it into a long, thin piece.
3. Start rolling at one end, sort of pinching at the bottom as you go along.  That's the center of your rose.
4. Pinch off another piece of clay and flatten it into a long oval shape to make more petals..
5. Begin overlapping where the last  piece of clay ended, wrapping more "petals" as you see fit.  Go ahead and form them into whatever shape most looks like a rose as you go along.
6. As you create more petals, you will be pinching at the bottom of your rose and will end up with a clay "stem"

Once you've made your rose, it's time to Bake It.

1. Cut the excess clay "stem" off of the bottom of your rose.
2. Score the bottom of the rose.  The score marks help to create a stronger hold when gluing to your flower pot.
3. Put your roses on an oven safe plate and bake according to package directions.

When your roses are done, you can begin to glue them around your decorative quotation.  I recommend that you turn the pot on its side and glue them that way.  You will probably end up gluing one half of the pot, letting the glue dry, then rotating it to do the other half.

When finished it will look like this.  I wasn't happy with the finished product because there were gaps in some places.

To fix that problem, I made a few individual "petals" and shoved them in to cover the gaps.  I then put the whole pot in the oven at a really low temperature to set the petals.

 Because they were wedged in there and hardened that way, they are secure and there was no need to glue them.  (If you try this you may find that yours need extra glue.  Just do whatever works for you.

Because I am going to do a wax-resist effect on the pot, I needed to coat it with my base color first.

Rustoleum's Satin in Putty

Here's where the wax comes in.  This technique is called Wax Resist and the idea is that the wax prevents the second coat of color from adhering to the pot.  When you remove the wax, the base color should show through underneath.

Click photo to see a close up of the wax on the edges of the petals.

You can take the wick and little metal dish from a tea-light and melt it in the microwave (or just burn a white candle and carefully use that melted wax.)  Take an old ratty paintbrush that you won't mind ruining, dip it in the wax and paint wax all along the edges of the petals.  You can smear some in various places on the pot too.

Spray paint your top coat.  I chose a gloss white.

Let the paint dry thoroughly.  You may even want to wait a day for this next step.  (For the purposes of making this tutorial, I rushed the process a bit and I am not as happy as i could be with the end result... Learn from my mistakes, people.)

Once the paint is dry, put a strainer over the drain in your sink, run tap water as hot as you can get it and let the water wash over the wax.

The hot water melts the wax away (which takes the top layer of paint with it) and the strainer catches the paint so it doesn't go down the drain.

The end result looks like and old, chippy pot.

Pretty cool, huh?  You could do this with just about any design and on lots of different surfaces too.
Have fun!

Check the bottom of the blog for where I link this up.
Also linking here:  My Repurposed Life  Tatertots & Jello


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