Share your Sparkling Truth and win $200 Spa gift card
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You may remember a few weeks ago when I shared how a big thunder storm rolled in while I was grilling dinner for my family. I wasn’t about to abandon our plans for a fabulous meal, I managed to rescue the steaks from the rain and finished them up in the oven…….and dinner carried on as planned!! Some times things just happen and you have to “sparkle through unexpected challenges”.
Click over to get the full story and the recipe to one of my family’s all time favorite dinners!
Sometimes life throws you a lemon, and you have to make lemonade!! The people at fruitwater ® are encouraging all of us to reflect at those moments, whether you had to be resourceful or maybe just plane old embarrassing. They want to hear YOUR “Sparkling Truths”!
Let’s hear how you turned an awkward situation into something fabulous.
Win it!
One lucky TidyMom reader will win a $200 gift gift card to BlissSpa (nationwide locations or use it online for product)! Bliss Spa specializes in top quality services for those looking to get “their spa fix in a flash”. Experience the spa at home with products designed to make you look and feel healthy, beautiful and happy every day.
How to enter:
- leave a comment on this post sharing your sparkling truth story!
- Then simply complete the steps in the giveaway widget below. Personal information will not be shared or used for any kind of mailing list, it’s simply used by me to select and contact the winner.
If you don’t see the widget, be patient because it might take a minute to load (especially with Internet Explorer 9). Or you can click here to for the entry form if you have any questions, you can contact me via email
*Disclosure: this post is sponsored by Glaceau fruitwater ®
Hi there, I'm Cheryl!
As a wife, mom, and caffeine enthusiast, my journey has taken me from bustling mornings with my family to sharing delicious recipes, home care tips, and heartfelt decorating insights with wonderful readers like you. My love for baking, photography, and tidiness shines through every post I craft. Dive into my world and discover the art of homemaking, one tidy moment at a time. Read more...
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I hate pedicures, the lady always gives me looks at gross coming out of my feet!
I’m not sure I’ve turned an embarrassing situation into a good one…but .I’ve had *plenty* of embarrassing moments. 😉 And “lemony” moments too. One that stands out it is- when I was in high school I was a part of a talent show at a summer camp. We were doing a medley to the Jackson 5. We had to run out and get into place. Well, my foot got caught in my bell bottoms (yes) and I completely tumbled and did a somersault. I was horrified in front of all of those people but jumped up and yelled “TADA!” 🙂
I feel as though I have a “sparkle” moment everyday! I have 3 young children and each day bring a new adventure. Lately my “sparkle” moments have included cleaning up crafts made with items that perhaps should have been used for their intended purposes…a chopped up giftcard that was to be a gift made into sparkles on a pictures, a birthday present unwrapped and the paper made into “snowflakes,” and lots of glitter spilled ceremoniously all over the floors, couches, and tables.
I have actually done something similar to the BBQ steak sparkle in your post. I went to grill chicken and everything was fine and the gas went out on the grill meanwhile it started to rain too! I pulled them off and threw them into the toaster oven. The dinner party went along as planned! Rain I would have stood in but the gas went out on me so that was a no go!
Lately I have been having problems with some of the girls I work with. They would complain about everything and anything. I was finally getting fed up with it. I was talking to another upper level managment worker about it and a client overheard me just feeling bad about it. Well, he offered me a job to come work at his office as his secretary and I gladly accepted. No matter what happens there is always a cloud with a silver lining.
Celebrating a special occasion with another couple, I planned an exquisite meal complete with beef tenderloins done on the grill. I had the candles lit, my husband had gone out to preheat the grill, the blue cheese sauce for the steaks was warming, the side dishes ready to be plated, and the dessert ready for the oven. My husband came in and announced that we had run out of gas (because he had forgotten to turn it off a couple of nights before). Well, I quickly seared the steaks and finished them in the oven. Dinner was a bit later (time enough for another glass of wine), but all turned out well!
I had packed my son up to spend a few days camping with grandparents in a cabin in WV. I had remembered everything he needed except his ipod wall charger. Well, after my husband’s very disgruntled realization that that was the one thing I forgot, i just took a very deep breath and walked away to “think” about this “problem”. My text to my parents was that he could charge it in the car on the way and remember to charge it while out and about or he could plug the USB into my dad’s lap top. Problem solved and no tears from my little guy :)!
well…i’m have a lemon moment (day) right now – i opened the dryer this morning & husband left a pin in his clothes. i happened to throw in some of the kids new school uniforms in with the load. good news, some of it is coming out with hair spray! so 3 cheers for some aqua net! 😉
i would LOVE to win this! i don’t think we have one near us, but i can always use fun products!!!
I shared my Sparkling Truth and the giveaway linking back to you on my post at:
http://cindybrickleyblog.wordpress.com/2013/08/22/my-sparkling-truth/
Nice!
Lemon moment- planning a destination photo shoot w/ my family- setting out with my camera & extra lens. Then realizing once we were out there that I forgot my extra battery & my current one was dying after capturing all the kids- except one. Left my phone in the car- so no pics with that either. Had to keep turning the camera on & off & I was able to get one or two shots with each time I turned it on again. Was able to at least not mess up the whole day.
My cat was dying (didn’t think he’d make it through the night);I texxted a friend I’d not spoken to in ages to tell her about my cat. We ended up talking by phone and reconnecting. A few months later … the cat is still alive (he weighed 11.5 lbs when well and is under 8 lbs. but doing wonderful) and my friend has moved to my state (from several states away). When I thought things were hopeless, I was wrong – cat miraculously survived and a friendship that was broken has been restored.
Sparkling moment(s): Pitching magazine articles about traveling with kids so I could indeed travel with kids 🙂
Driving two hours to deliver a birthday present and yes you guessed it left the gift at home! Mom was just as happy that we came gift or not 😉
Signing my girls up for ballet and forgetting that they actually need special clothing to attend.
…I have a tendency to buy gifts for all occasions ahead of time, and then finding such a good hiding spot for them that when the occasion arises I have to buy another gift because I can’t find the first one… 🙁
Oh it would have to be the camping trip nightmare. Everything went wrong from start to finish. Got half way there only to think we left the oven on…turned around and it wasn’t. Once we finally drove the 4 hours there there were hardly any camping spots once we found one down a steep hill we set up camp next to the river and then came the rain. Like monsoon rain!! We then could find no dry firewood…had to drive to a station and buy some. Fell down the hill carrying the wood. It finally stopped raining and the came officer Barney fife. Telling us our camp had to be 100 ft from the road…but he decided to let us stay the night. So once we all went to sleep…we were woken up in the middle of the night to find the river rose and was about 5 ft from our tent. So we load everything up and run out of gas…and it’s the middle of the night with no gas stations open. We all slept in the car until the my opened got gas and started heading home. The end….oh wait then the car broke down about an hour away and we had to sit on the curb at a gas station and wait for someone to get us. Needless to say we haven’t been camping since.
Well, just before I read this blog post, I was making a stir fry chicken meal. I accidentally read 2 tsp’s as 2 Tbsp’s soy sauce. I made up my sauce recipe and just trippled everything. I then divided the entire concoction into 1/3’s to use at a later time. I even labeled it so I won’t forget. In the end, I’ll be happy when I can just pull out my sauce ready to go!! Thanks for a chance to win.
When I am shopping and find something that I know my sister or friends would ;ike, I’ll buy it and save it for BD’s or christmas. Then when the time comes, I find out they bought it for themselves after I did.
My worst one was falling asleep at a lake and then realized I was dehydrated. I walked into the bathroom cutting everyone because I was going to get water from the faucets. Only to realize they were doing maintenance so the water was shut off. I then proceed to pass out, luckily I sat down first so I didn’t hurt myself. I woke up with the life guards who has CARRIED me out of the bathroom. I did however get free gatorade ;p
I love your Sparkling Truth story on how you save those gorgeous steaks from the storm! 🙂 My Sparkling Truth story starts with my passion of baking. I love to try new things and experiment with different things. But baking is like science, when a “formula” goes wrong, the end result would came out….inedible. I was playing with different ingredients the other day and tried to make a chocolate orange chiffon cake. Sounds good right? Well, the cake didn’t came out as the way I have anticipated. The edges were a little bit burnt and I can’t taste the orange in there. But it was such a large cake to waste. So, I cut out those that are still good in the middle into cubes, layer the cake cubes in small cups, top with some fresh whipped cream infused with orange zest, chocolate shavings and made some trifles out of the cake. The trifles turned out excellent and now, we can taste the wonderful orange and chocolate together. 🙂 And my family asked for this trifle again the day after. I guess they really love this treat.
Sparkle Sparkle
I think my latest sparkle moment I grilled on Memorial day and dropped all of the food in the ashes. At first I cried because all the good meat I had was on the grill. I just started over and made a nice meal in the kitchen with odds and ends and things turned out fine.
A few years ago I was visiting a large city and while in a convenience store, a young woman kept looking at her car that she parked right at the front entrance I looked also and noticed she had left her toddler in the car with the motor running. The child was not buckled into the car seat that was in the car I become a very angry mom when I witness children not buckled! I spoke to my friends and they told me to calm down and just let it go because this woman could have a gun or freak out on me if I confronted her on it They convinced me and I walked away for about five steps, then the Lord told me to tell her in love that her baby’s life is on line. So I told her that and gracefully pleaded for her to buckle her child into the carseat. She came to me in the parking lot and thanked me and said “you’re right, he could have been hurt tonight”. Sparkle truth
Hate when I bring my camera somewhere and realize I forgot the memory card!
My Hubby and I in the last 3 yrs became disabled. I severed my back at work and Type 1 diabetes started to take over after 37 yrs having it , And My Hubby was diagnosed with Parkinson . We have a saying everything happens for a reason . We now in our early 40’s can spend all of our time together Its like early retirement 😀 .
As a college student I was headed for the campus bus on a very snowy day wearing slick doc Martin boots. I headed up a hill and slipped…over and over and over. I finally made it to the door covered in snow as the driver and every student on there looked at me with a smirk on their face. I laughed and said I was ok and went on my way 🙂
My sparkle moments are when the door bell rings and I find a winning from a sweepstakes entry.
Well..if you want embarrassing moments, I can fill a book. Most that stands out is the one time (won’t happen again) I came into the church sanctuary from the ladies’ room with my skirt hung in my panties. Luckily a very good friend’s husband informed me before anyone else saw. I thanked him graciously and old him I hope my big granny pantied rear didn’t blind him for life. Pulled my skirt down, smiled and walked away.
When my girlfriends and I plan a girl’s night, so many things try to spoil our fun. Bad weather, sickness, canceled babysitters, etc. But when we persevere and finally get all together, those are the most fun and hilarious nights. Made more precious by the “annoyances” of life that always pop up. Thanks!
I try to sparkle when waiting in line for some type of customer service. Even if I’m in a hurry I know there is no reason to to get huffy and upset with the person that’s working. It makes them uncomfortable and everyone around you picks up on the anxious feelings of anger. Smile, thank them for their help and appreciate that they’re just trying to do a job and sometimes things don’t go quickly.
Got stuck on a mountain once, at the top – it was after dark and I didn’t have a flashlight! My boyfriend at the time used my watch with Indiglo to guide us all the way down. It took four hours to go four miles!
Packing your umbrella and leaving it on the table to be met ny a storm 15 mins. later, sparkle time
Noise making neighbors who live in the back, either blasting their TV or radio, having very LOUD discussions/arguments or singing horribly off key. I just put my earphones on, listen to my music, and sparkle through the moment.
A sparkeling truth? That’s a hard one. I guess I could use today’s example. My husband came home with an organic chicken from the farmer’s market, he said it was a soup chicken. Well, I know why because the longer I cooked it the tougher it got. So all wasn’t lost I still made the soup, sans chicken and just added some brown rice. It was delicous.
Just last week, we were returning to Florida (home) from our family trip to Seattle and on our first flight, my 2 1/2 year old made us a poopy diaper. The beverage service cart was in the aisle at the time and blocking the restroom at the back of the plane so I went up to the first class bathroom. We got in there and I pulled down the ridiculously made (but thankfully still there) changing table in the tiny bathroom. I put my 34″, 32-lb toddler up there and reassured him that he was going to be ok, just a little uncomfortable. I pulled down his shorts only to find that his stinky diaper was also his stinky shorts and legs! I pulled out the almost all used up package of wipes and attempted to clean things up. After he was poopy free, I put his stinky diaper in one of the little bags I have in a carrier attached to his changing pad and threw it away. I went back the the bag holder to retrieve a bag for his poopy shorts and one poopy sock, but realized we were all out! After my mini panic attack, I placed the stinky (really stinky) clothes in a air-sickness bag and packed up the little guy, sans pants and socks to do the walk of stinky shame down the aisle, right through first class. When we exited the restroom, the beverage cart had now finished its service at the back of the plane and was blocking our seat. So, we waited with our small, overstuffed bag of stinky and my pants less little guy. By the time we got back to the seat, the whole plane smelled of stinky poopy shorts, but I had an clean pair of shorts in my purse (thanks to our first flight to Seattle and my child getting off e plane pants less) and the sweet lady sitting across from us had a plastic bad we could use to contain the stinky for the rest of the flight!
I missed the running board getting out of my pickup in front of 11 teenage boys and some parents. I told everyone I wanted to make the boys laugh after losing their ball game! 🙂
I went to a yoga class a few weeks ago. I signed up online and didn’t realize it was an advanced yoga class. A few “poses” in the instructor was looking at me funny along with the other members. I turned bright red and excused myself. The instructor offered me a free class for somewhat beginners.
Returning home from a funeral several hundred miles from home, I really needed a bathroom stop. No gas stations. Finally we came to very crowded road side rest with really icky porta johns. Very, smelly and very dirty, but I was desperate. Being careful to not ruin my dress or shoes I finally was able to empty my bladder. When I came out I had the back of my skirt completely tucked into my pantyhose. No one bothered to tell me. The sparkle moment was that I never wore panty hose again, and have never missed them.
One time on a saturday I thought it was friday and went to work when I was suppose to have the day off. But I ended up getting over time hours so it worked out.
I recently purchased a TV stand from Target – aka you have to build it yourself. Not being the handiest of builders, I was embarrassed but called my boyfriend to help. He helped…while I made lunch!
sparkling truth…well recently I was meeting a new friend of my daughters ( a boy) and as I went to say hello…I tripped. I just laughed it off, my daughter however is finding it funny to mention is about once a week. Apparently said boy and her joke about it still!
Camping a few years ago with some friends we were totally flooded out of our tents after three days of non-stop raining. We decided to pack up and leave a few days early . Our camp site was so muddy that I slipped and fell as we were loading our cars and at first I wanted to cry but before we knew it we were having a mud fight and playing slip and slide through the mess! The sparkling truth…. a trip that went sour quickly became one of our best memories!
Had a water balloon birthday party over the weekend for my son. Soaking wet kids all over and one of mine ( who is 7 mind you) walked half down my street and was standing alone. All of a sudden he had a stream coming down the middle of his legs. Just as I realized what was going on and hoping no one else noticed then boom I hear my name being called from about 10 people “”Teri do you see Caleb?!” Although we all laughed and When he walked back we all applauded it was horrifying… I’m still scarred lol! But I am also still laughing too 🙂
I made smores cookies for an event and almost burnt the heck out of them. Thankfully I caught them just in time and although they were ugly and slightly charred, my friends loved them!!
It doesn’t matter which cashier’s line I choose, it doesn’t matter how many more people are in the lines next to me, my line ALWAYS takes the longest, for various reasons (the cashier is relieved to take a break, the person ahead of me has an issue of some sort, a person in front of me with just a couple of items is suddenly joined at checkout by their companion with 100 more items…). About a week ago I was in just such a line, and when the delays started the person behind me started to get quite upset. I was able to deflect her anger by taking the blame to myself. I apologized for hold-up, advised her it was all my fault as I am a line jinx, and advised her if she ever saw me at any store again to flee to a different line. She chuckled and forgot her anger, Mission accomplished!
I use a flat iron to iron my clothes in the morning before work….
I was in the middle of making a quick dinner the other night and realized I was out of cream of mushroom soup, which was definitely needed and couldn’t be left out. I did some improvising and came up with a from-scratch substitute and it tasted even better than the soup! Totally didn’t think I could do that, but it will definitely be used in that dish from now on! Who needs canned soup??!! 🙂
Sparkle truth- I’m going back to school and am so excited- 8 years later!
I like “my own” projects — do my own pedicures and wax my own legs. I was recently trying to color my own hair, go really light for the summer. The result was such a horror, i had to wear hat for 2 days before i could get in my hair-appointment. Really need a spa experience and stop doing “my own” proejects 🙂