mini tutorial: sure way to make your children cry

1.) make pumpkin soup
2.) tell your children they have to at least take three bites
3.)sit back and watch in amusement as they "try" to take three bites, and watch the tears fly with comments like "i caaaaaaan't!!!!" and "but it looks like, like, like...i DONT KNOW WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE!"


in other news:
i REALLY enjoyed the pumpkin soup.
mr v and co has been out and in bed with something nasty.
and we got good weather.
so i guess pumpkin pie works in regards to warding off ghost turds as well as cookies do. (to understand read comments on prior post)
;)

happy hallows eve

from our house to yours.

katie trying on her "sen sen" costume...the boys will be clone troopers...of course.

today i'm off to make some pumpkin soup (wish me luck), avoid the super cold weather, completely ignore the "hellish white fluffy stuff that has fallen out of the sky to bring on seasonal depression" also known as "snow", and gorge myself with some candy while the kids aren't looking.
here's to bringing on la-la land that winter is seriously not just around the corner and knocking on my door, by eating and crafting myself into happiness.
no seriously.

ps: someone sent me an email (which i lost, or deleted by accident...BIG SURPRISE..sorry!)
about my twig ball and where i got it that was in the third picture in this post. well the answer to that is they were in the garden section at walmart on clearance in a package for outside lighting (better homes and garden. I took them off the white (Christmas) lights. and use them through out my house.

there is a warning though: if you buy these i will not be held responsible for children (specifically boys) that will take one look at these and think "hmmm baseball? ooooooh yeeeeah" because believe me it will happen.

look at you guys go

yes it's true i've reduced my self to drinking...late at night. and not even Diet Dr. Pepper my first love.
between being "mom!" and "honey." i've been trying to create some cute new things (well i think they are cute) and doing it by trying to stay up late like i used to...
so yes very busy, super tired and not quite able to stop just yet.

but i'm not the only one who's been busy look at you guys with v and co tutorials!!:

my wonderful friend amy-lou-who made a little perfect flower using my perfect flower add on

brandy of the sew cute shop showing off her fabric bracelets she made with my tut found on etsy.
the bandana skirt sooo cutely done by simply modern mom.
this rice bag made in the most perfect fabric by with a needle and thread

miss amanda of busy little quilter made this lovely flag using my charm pack flag tutorial. love the spooky version.

so in love with this dish towel apron by the katie and abby show

haley (sorry no link!) made this cute little blanket using my vintage baby quilt pattern

look at these cute pumpkins that gorilla girl 5 did!

pinwheel quilt in cute pinks by amber...love how it turned out!

vivi made an awesome wreath for her awesome fire place
tricia anne made little mini versions of my rag run look how cute it is!


erin made my twine balls and took some great pictures of them too!

kelly o made my limited offered hanging dresses pattern

and jessica made the table cloth skirt using some pretty sweet fabric

there are more...and i'll do this again. it's been so fun looking at your finished products! i love the colors you use and the little interpretations you make on your own on them!

you can find all tutorials for these here.

KEEP IT UP!!!
;)

this, that. and a mini tutorial

as you can see, no big tutorial today.
we were hit hard last week with the flu.
we're out the other end of the tunnel with kids finally feeling better.
thank you for the well wishes!
currently you will find me still lysol-ing and opening up windows to air out our house "just in case".
this has also sparked the need to de-clutter and make more open space...this helps with my "mental flu"... the physical purging our house makes me feel healthier as well.
yes i'm crazy. i never claimed not to be.
welcome to my world.
so i've decided to use this post to blog about... well, just this and that with pictures of my house as we prepare for the upcoming day of the dead with pumpkins every where (i l-o-v-e pumpkins), and a little bit of planning for the upcoming weekend.
i've never really prepared a whole meal in celebration of this coming holiday. (remember i'm just getting into the love of cooking over here)
but this year i think i may give it a go.
though this holiday has crept up on me super fast and i can't believe halloween is THIS weekend, i've decided to celebrate with home made food to go with the theme.
on the menu for this halloween weekend:
PUMPKIN SOUP (because its so yummy)
SPAGHETTI (for intestines and guts, and because i'm pretty sure my kids will turn up their noses to the pumpkin soup)
FINGER BREADS (to look like fingers with nails)
and
APPLE DUMPLINGS for desert.
so i didn't get the original tutorial up and going... between sick kids, and projects for other places and being a part of this: i've been busy but not able to show you anything as of yet. i was approached a while ago and thought "nope, don't think i can." it was dana who convinced me to meet up to the challenge... me up against 9 other women who were hand picked for their craftiness...que in the stress diarrhea. just kidding, i'm going in with the idea that when if i lose, it will be to some fabulous crafter.
so yes, i've been busy, but nothing to show as of yet...
i did manage to make these images and have added them here so you can add a little last minute halloween decor to your house just as i have:



how to:
right click on image.
hit "save as"
save it to your pictures (or where ever you want)
print what ever size you want.
frame and enjoy the spookiness

see you soon.
i'm compiling flicker, emailed, and linked to pictures of what you guys have been doing with my tutorials. good stuff ladies...gooooood stuff.

things i'm crushing on: what's your virtue lip gloss

so i'm a lip gloss kind of girl.
these lip glosses are some of my fave.

check out their story and what i say about them here!

and psst if you enter in the code VandCo15 at checkout, you
to get a 15% off discount on your whole purchase!

cow stalkers

recent happenings around V and Co's stomping ground






that night we had what sounded like a stampede of cows mooing so loud we went out there with a flash light to see what was going on (and to make sure they hadn't plowed through our fence) what we found were 50+ cows all staring into our pasture and taunting our small pathetic cows into a corner peeing their pants.
two small pasture cows vs 50+ large pasture in a herd cows...not the best match up.
things died down after a while...but it was eery.
you would think the story ends here...i did too..
but
oh
no
it
didn't.
a few mornings later...after school had started and i was on the phone with a friend. i GASPED when i opened my shades. she asked what was wrong...
i said in a hushed voice "there's a cow in my front yard, it looks mad...and it's looking at me!" i turn to the cow and say "are you looking at me? seriously stop looking at me...
no really i'm just the wife of the guy who didn't give you the hay. he's at work just a few blocks away if you'd like i can give you the address...no? okay well i'll just go inside now. "
i close the door and peek out my window.
"oh my gosh he's going to break in to our back yard!" i yell into the phone.
the friend then told me to yell something that cowboys yell to get them moving in the direction they need them to go.
"HEEEEYAHHHHH!!!! GIT ON OUT OF ERE!!!!!please?"
i think she was laughing so hard she didn't hear me...except for when i started yelling at it
"oh yeah! that's right! who's in charge here! run away scared (scary) cow! see if you come back and bug us again! HA!"

i showed that cow. you don't mess with the wife of the guy who bought the hay.
but i still cant shake the eery feeling of eyes staring at me hooves getting closer and following me when my back is turned...
i think i'm being stalked.

winner of katie cupcake patterns

well my friends, can i call you that? yes i think i will.
thank you for supporting my sponsors and supporting my silliness. there isn't anything better than to hear complete strangers tell you they love your hotness and your legs. as well as all the love you guys left for her about her creative juices on her blog. so really thank you for playing and thank you for being so great.

the comments, including email entries and subtracting the "repeats" that blogger sometime does, came out to be 485. nicely done ladies.
the random integer came with up with this #:

113

Timestamp: 2009-10-22 16:16:55 UTC

113
jennifer from houston
congrats jennifer on the katie cupcake patterns (and on little baby on the way!)
if you'll email me your info at vanessa[dot]christenson[at]gmail[dot]com and i can get your info to amy so we can get you your new patterns.

thank you all again. ;)
stay tuned to hear about our "cow" of a week.

kati cupcake giveaway

giveaway has been closed
hope you all had a lovely weekend.
thank you so much for the lovely sentimental comments you gave me on my boys' quilts. you made snot drip out of my nose with the tears you created. thank you for being so lovely to me!
okay snot aside here's what we're doing today:
see full details here

alright park city girl

so it's been nagging me that i wasn't going to enter the blog quilt festival. i mean i have nothing that you havn't seen already. and well everything that i'm working on...is just that, things i'm still working on.
nothing finished.
but it kept eating at me.

amy said it didn't need to be fancy or new.
so here it is.

three super duper plain quilts i made a long time ago.
for my three boys.
they aren't fancy or new...but they are special.
my husband's old shirts make up part of each quilt.
back when i made the quilts i knew that one day their dad would be their hero.
it wasn't till just recently when my oldest son had to write a paper on his hero, and he picked his dad, who "fought for freedom in afghanistan and had the courage to stay there for a year even when my mom was sad" that i knew i made the right choice in adding those pieces of clothing that represent his dad.
i plan for those quilts to go with them when they get married.
so amy thanks for hosting a great idea and i'm so glad i was able to join up even if it was almost at the last second!

come back monday there's going to be a sponsored giveaway
i'm taking off so i can continue on one of my many started quilts.

on the 12th day of canning

my apple trees gave to me:


12 jars of apple pie filling (find recipe here)

11 jars of apple butter (find recipe here)
10 sticky fingers
9 cans of apple sauce (find recipe here)
8 new ways to use swear words
7 nights of hard sleeping

6 apple dumplings (find my sis in law HEATHER'S recipe here)
5 more apple fillings!
4 happy kids
3 apple turnovers
2 sore feet

and a wonderful home made apple pie!!!!

*****************************************************************************
after doing all of this i also got a box full of plums from a friend, i made plum raspberry jam, and plain plum jam...then another lady gave me a box full of peaches...where i accidentally left them behind at another friends' house.
i have caller id, i'm not answering my phone when it's her.
totally kidding.
i answered it and told her to do what she wants with them...
she gave them to another friend of ours.
i'm locking my doors and closing my blinds in hopes that i don't get any more fruit of ANY kind.

i'm so over canning...and so happy it only comes once a year.

i'm so ready to get back to sewing.
comments closed

hello fall

all things fall are happening over here.
this banner was made to add just a little more fall to the place.
my house smells like apple pie (oh i can't wait to show you all my canning! it's sooo pretty!)

as a matter of fact i was so in the fall mood this last weekend, that my 7 year old had to sternly remind me, while at the store, that last year when i bought pumpkins this early in the month, they rotted.
i stared at him, blinked a few times, and slowly unclutched the pumpkin, set it down, and walked away.
okay 7 year old, you are right.
you.are.right.
i'll wait one more week, maybe two. but i REALLY want pumpkins all over my front porch.
sigh.
when did my 7 year old become my reasoning voice?

remember that picture of my walk i showed you? well look! the trees are still holding on to the green, but the rest is starting to get that gold color...i'll keep my eye out for when it actually turns fall colors...i think it will be absolutely gorgeous.

this is my friend's house.

i wish mr v and co would put cute little flower baskets up for me so i could do pretty things like this to my windows. it would be so dreamy.

but he says no

because i wouldn't take care of them, and he would get stuck doing all the work.

weenie.

but oh so right.