Loosing of Half of our Income: The Journey Back Begins

With all of the financial issues people are having these days I decided to share our story.

For almost 16 years my husband dedicated himself to building a career in a big box store.  He gave, and gave, and gave and never got anything back from them.  They put us through more hardships than you can shake a stick at including not giving him time off when his dad died, forced relocations without compensation, always having to work the overnight remodels, a forced commute when we couldn't sell the house, bankruptcy, foreclosure, and they turned him down for a promotion because of their own stupid rules even though.  He really deserved it, was requested, he would have done well at it too and they were ready to give it to him before they realized his store hadn't made profit sharing 11 months before that. You didn't dare say anything to them because of a fear of losing your job, they fired people for really stupid reasons.  (And then they wonder why they can't find employees willing to do into management with them?)  Talk about stress!

His job paid well and he doesn't like to start over all the time.  He liked the job for the most part until the latest boss arrived and made his life a living hell.  After several years of the same treatment and no changes occurring even when he told their untrained personnel manager (who didn't report this to corporate), he couldn't take it anymore and he quit without having another job in place.  It was such a hostile work environment I really couldn't blame him, though it would have been nice to have a plan in place before it happened.

Since it was ruled that he quit (even though we tried for hostile work environment) there was no unemployment either. Because his job paid well I didn't need to have a job prior to this happening.  (Except for when they made our tenant move from the home he was renting from us, or the time they made us pay hundreds more in commuting when he was "promoted" with no pay raise, or the time they didn't make profit sharing so we had no way to pay off the credit cards we had been relying on to pay for his commuting expenses.)  That made it really hard to struggle through several months of having no income at all.  Thankfully, we had finally gotten enough of a handle on our budget because of our past trials that we had been able to save some money which got us through the jobless period.  I applied for food stamps and badge care right away even though they had treated me extremely rudely the last time I had been in the office.  Our mortgage company set us up on a forebearance plan that allowed us to pay $25 each for both our first and our second mortgages so our main expenses were paying for gas (to see his mom who was failing in health as well as driving for interviews and such) and my car payment.

Now, we need to adjust to living on less than half of what he made last year.  This is where the real struggle begins.  With a couple of months of work at his new employer in place we are really hitting the budget juggle hard.  We have a brand new car that I bought a little over a year ago, a house payment, 2 kids, 2 cats, and we live in the country about 12 miles from town.

So far his new employers have agreed to pay for his gas, we have applied for a loan modification, and are getting the food stamps and medical assistance that we were getting over the summer though we get much less in food this month and now have to pay a monthly payment for our insurance.  We have many more changes to try to do too in order to come up with a balanced budget as well.  Hopefully we will be able to refinance the car to bring that payment down, I am praying that our mortgage company works with us so we can keep our home with a much more affordable payment, we found a less expensive phone plan, and I will be looking around for cheaper insurance.  I also applied for energy assistance though I have yet to hear back about that.

We have already cut WAY back on energy usage, we rarely ever eat out, we don't exchange gifts with adults so we only have the 2 kids to buy for, we don't attend away sporting events unless we can hitch a ride with someone else who is going, we never go anywhere except to buy groceries or the occassional splurge allowed because we sold something, we never buy anything unless it is either used, practically free (those mail in rebates can come in handy sometimes!), or off the 90% off clearance rack (Man, I have had to wear some very ugly clothes because of that one!).

I will fill you in on some other changes we do as time progresses.  Right now I guess we are still on the forebearance program at the bank until they tell me what my loan modification payment is going to be.  I have been through this process before.  You have to pay EXACTLY what they tell you to (not a penny more or a penny less) by the due date or they will kick you right off the program.  It can be extremely stressful for sure!

Wish us luck and prayers for us would be greatly appreciated!

Thank you for stopping by to chat with me. Please leave me a message. I'd love to hear your thoughts! Cindy

Why try Gluten Free?

Earlier I wrote a post about doing a gluten free trial and some of my thoughts as well as a few things I have read about gluten from various sources that all had a very similar message.  Cut the wheat to improve your health.  It will allow your body to do what it was built to do which is to heal itself when things go wrong with it.  I told you I would discuss with you the reasons for our gluten free trial later this week, so here it is.

We actually have many contributing factors that I think reflect much of what is going on in the rest of America as well.  Brain fog, inability to loose weight, joint pain, hypothyroidism, prediabetic, IBS, low energy levels, bladder issues, ADD, headaches, acid reflux, depression, I could go on and on.

I have been trying to lose weight for years, but I haven't successfully been able to do so since 13 years ago before my daughter was born.  Did I suddenly forget how to exercise and eat healthy?  Well, if you listen to the medical community that is the obvious fact.  I have been told to quit eating so many cookies, to be more active, eat healthier foods, and on and on.  I don't know about you, but I hate being lectured about things I already know.  It's even worse when you are trying to do these things but no one believes you and judges you to be a fat, lazy slob.  They have looked at my food journals and basically said I was lying and I must have forgotten to write down a bunch of food.  Seriously.  Then the medical community wonders why WE have so little faith in THEM?

My son has been a 3 sport athlete for 4 years.  At first the weight just fell off.  Being so active and lifting weights brought about a bit transformation in him.  But he totally stalled out when it came to weight loss for wrestling season this year.  None of our prior weight loss ideas has helped him a bit this year either.  What happened?

I could go on and on giving the back stories behind all of the symptoms listed above, but I think you get the point here.  I have been thinking and thinking about this and it just doesn't add up.  Is it the chemicals and preservatives in processed foods?  Overuse of prescription medications?  What gives?

Several years ago I began by cutting out the ready to eat processed foods that we used to buy from the store.  I began canning, dehydrating, and freezing foods that I grew myself or bought on sale and in season from farmers and grocery stores alike.  It does make more work for me, but it has helped some with things like ADD, but it hasn't completely solved all of our issues.  I continued to search for answers to our health dilemmas.

While studying natural remedies to replace some of the prescription and OTC medications we have been taking I kept coming up with the same information.  Our bodies have natural abilities to heal themselves.  Not that we will ever be able to stop everything completely, but it is a nice goal to wish for.  I began to wonder though, what was stopping my body from reaching it's full potential to heal itself?  The search continued.  I began seeing a chiropractor which has helped to increase my energy levels and clear the brain fog, but I still haven't been able to achieve much in the way of weight loss.

Now comes in the gluten free option.  I read the book Wheat Belly which I saw both on Dr. Oz and a few of my friends were trying it and seeing great results.  That book dealt with EVERYTHING on our list, plus others that weren't even on there.  Wow.  I think it's worth a try.  I mean, after examining our regular diet I noticed that we ate ALL of the no-no foods on a regular basis.  ESPECIALLY wheat.  Really.  Wow.  I never imagined that could cause so many issues, but it really does make sense.  When you overload so much on one particular category of foods, I suppose that is what you get.  I just can't help but wonder why wheat is in everything we eat.  I guess I'll be making MORE of our own stuff.

So, what did we like to eat before going gluten free?  Well, some of our favorite meals include burgers, chicken dumpling soup with a loaf of bread, grilled cheese and tomato soup, spaghetti, pizza, brats, breaded chicken baked in the oven, battered fish, ...  Notice what they all have in common?  Yup.  Wheat in every item there.  Guess who's in for a total meal make over?  Yup.  That's my next post.  So far we have tried a few items that I want to share with you.  I did manage to lose a couple of pounds so far so things are moving in the right direction for me.  Once I can get the rest of the family to jump on the bandwagon it won't be so hard to resist the temptations they keep presenting.

Thank you for stopping by to chat with me. Please leave me a message, I'd love to hear your thoughts! Cindy

Making your own Extracts

Last fall I made some killer vanilla extract.  Not only was it easy, but way cheaper than the pure vanilla extract.  $9.08 for 2 oz of Watkins pure vanilla extract?  Are you kidding me?

I know what you're saying, the materials needed costs more than the extract does, but really it's just barely more expensive.  My bottle of vodka was $9.99.  Those materials can be used to make so many things as well, like more extracts.  As an added bonus, I knew what was in it too.

After my easy success how could I not try to make other extracts?  After all, I already had the vodka and so many other ones can be made with stuff you already have in your home.  Some of which most people even consider trash!

I did several different experiments using this so called garbage.  I used lemon peels to make lemon extract, grapefruit peels to make grapefruit extract, orange peels to make orange extract, and the pineapple skin to make pineapple extract.  I also made walnut and coconut extracts.  Following are the procedures I used to make them.

For my citrus extracts I placed about 1/4 cup of peels (minus the bitter white pith) into a half pint canning jar.  Added a 1/2 cup of 80 proof vodka and let sit in a dark place (in my kitchen cabinet) for a couple of months.  Don't forget to shake daily.

I had WAY more pineapple than I needed so I just filled the jar loosely with pineapple skin scraps and topped with vodka and followed the same procedure.

The nuts I used 1/4 cup of nuts cut finely chopped and 1/2 cup vodka.  Same procedure as above.

I think my next experiments are going to be almond and mint extract!

My friends have also asked me how I use these extracts.  I use them mostly in baked goods such as pies, cakes, pudding, flavoring frosting and ice cream, etc.  I bet they would also be great in a drink like coffee, tea, cocoa, or home made soda or in jellies.

Thank you for stopping by to chat with me. Please leave me a message, I'd love to hear your thoughts! Cindy

Dressing your Family for Less

As hard as the times are these days, the kids seem to just keep on growing.  How is a family supposed to stay clothed when you can barely afford to put food on your table every day?  I have a few ideas I thought I might share with you that maybe you never thought about before.

Fancy hem add a touch of flair

Shop the clearance racks.  I often shop off the clearance racks these days.  You can find lots of great clothes at Walmart on the $1 rack. That is where I have gotten most on my clothes recently.  While they may not be the most stylish clothes, they will give you something to wear that is not ripped, worn, too small, and will keep you warm.

I'm usually not to discriminating when it comes to sizes.  Most things can be altered fairly easily.  Like the plain jeans that were way too long.  I added a designer touch at the hem.  One of a kind!
 Use gift cards. I just recently received a $10 gift card to our local Kohl's.  What a blessing!   If only we had still lived in MN I wouldn't have even had to pay the sales tax.  I got these 4 great shirts for my daughter for exactly $10 off the 90% off rack.  3 shirts were $1.60, and one was $5.20.  I think they're rather cute.  Hopefully the preteen daughter won't be too choosy to wear them!








Don't be afraid of accepting hand-me-downs.  Seriously that is all  I really seemed to wear when I was a kid and I survived.  Pass the ones your kids won't wear on to other kids.  Share the love, we can all use a little help these days!


Reuse old clothes.  Quit throwing them away, you can make them into something new!  Stained clothes can be dyed, drawn on, disguised, remade, or otherwise altered.  (But that is a post for another time!)  Pants that are too short can be made into capris, shorts, or even skirts. Shirts that fit well around, but show a bit more skin than you would like can be lengthened by adding some fabric to the bottom, the layered look is in these days anyway.

Shop thrift stores and garage sales.  I have shopped these for years.  They have clearance racks as well!  They also do 50% off certain color tickets each week at Goodwill.  I don't know if the Salvation Army still does it, but they always ran great back to school sales back when I lived in MN.  Despite what you may know about these places, they do get new clothing donations that have never been worn.  My husband does not like these stores because he claims they have a musty smell.  Apparently he hasn't discovered that these clothes can get washed and so they don't smell like that anymore.

Make your own clothes.  Yeah, I know, I know.  This one requires a lot more skill than any other idea, but if you have a pattern and some fabric you are good to go.  You would not believe all of the patterns and fabric I have seen at these places.  It isn't as hard as you might think, really.  (Seems I have all kinds of new post ideas today, huh???)



Thank you for stopping by to chat with me. Please leave me a message, I'd love to hear your thoughts! Cindy

Storing up For the Winter

All summer our gardens are usually bursting with more produce than we can keep up with.  It is easy to imagine being wrapped in a warm celestial embrace in the bright summer sunshine.   I can almost hear whispered voices blowing through the pine trees surrounding my house when the breeze is blowing.  Abundant flowers, fruits and vegetables adorn the plants in my yard providing all of the senses with more stimulation than my favorite scented lotions and candles.  All summer long it is easy to feel loved and appreciated in my imagination because I am surrounded by so many wonderful things.

Rather than letting that overflowing of God's blessings spoil, we can, dehydrate, and freeze the excess in our household.  I know that some of these things may sound scary to the inexperienced readers, especially the canning, but it really isn't as scary as it may seem if you follow all of the instructions and precautions I promise!  When we still have more left we give them to friends and neighbors because that is one great way to show His love for us in how He takes care of us.

Canning and preserving His goodness from the summer helps to remind me of His love daily while the winds are angrily howling and the cold biting winds bite you to the core.  It makes me feel so not alone.  It has helped me to climb from the depression I had sunk into when the times got tough.  I got a sense of empowerment because I was more in control of our expenses, the only thing that limited me was my creativity.

This summer was not as kind as past seasons have been so we were forced to buy more produce than usual which ends up being more expensive.  It's not the end of the world of course, you can still live frugally if you have to buy the items you can stock up when the items are on sale.  Not everyone has the time or ability to garden anyway, God gifted each of us with different talents.

Thank you for stopping by to chat with me. Please leave me a message, I'd love to hear your thoughts! Cindy

Our New Tomato Hangers

One stack of buckets

Over the past several years I have been growing tomatoes in those topsy turvy planters that I've been hanging on my grape arbor for the last several years with mixed results for various reasons.  They have done well for the most part, they do well enough for me to keep wanting to do more.  I mean they do take up less room and they don't require cages or stakes when they're in those planters so I keep coming back for more.  I guess the biggest problem I have though is the flimsy material they are made from, it doesn't last very long, rips easily once it has aged a bit and has been exposed to the elements, not to mention the ugly color they fade to when they have been exposed to sunlight.  Usually I can squeak out up the 3 years from each planter, but I don't like living a disposable lifestyle so I thought I'd look into a more permanent solutions.    I am tired of replacing and/or repairing them as the material ripped when handled.  Worry not, I have plans for the "trash".

We made our own containers this year.  (Note to self, remember to come back and share results.)

During my search for a solution to the never ending parade of garbage, I considered many different things. It has taken some time to find the right container.  I thought about using some of those car washing buckets, but the plastic was flimsy and I wasn't so sure that the handles would hold up.  Most of them ended up holding less soil too, so I didn't want my containers to dry out.  The largest size I found in those was a 2 gallon bucket anyway.  In years past, I have also used 2 liter bottle planters wrapped with duct tape to block out the sunlight, but those would be WAY too small for tomatoes anyway.  We finally settled on the 5 gallon buckets.

Drilled buckets 

 I found most internet resources recommend a container that is 5 gallon or larger for tomatoes.  That got the wheels turning.  Usually those containers are pretty sturdy, weather well, can handle heavy use and they are inexpensive.  They are already set up to hang because they have a heavy duty handle.  I could even set them on the ground if I wanted to (unless of course there is a plant coming out the hole in the bottom), unlike the topsy turvy which has no wall or floor structure built into it.  The larger buckets will hold more soil which will hopefully help to keep it more evenly moist.  They will also allow for deeper roots.  These buckets are also inexpensive, costing basically half as much as the other planters I used to use cost.  I am excited to see how this turns out!

We drilled a larger central hole that the plant could be placed into as well as several drainage holes.   Personally, I would  have loved to have had more holes around the edges and I would have also drilled them smaller, but please don't tell hubby.  I was happy to have the help so the planting process could be much quicker.  I was filling these almost as fast as he could go hang them up.

The planting hole needs to be smaller than the root ball of the plant you are putting in there or it may fall out.  I added more support by placing several layers of newspaper in between the bottom of the planter.  This also helps to prevent the soil from washing out of the container.  The entire bottom of the bucket was covered with newspaper with only a small hole ripped into the center to put the root ball through.

Planting the tomato

Once the plant was placed in the bucket, it was time to add soil.  Some of them I planted deeper to allow more roots to grow along the buried stem.  I did not mark them, so it will be too hard to track which ones I did that way, but I suspect those may produce better than the ones that have a smaller root system.   Maybe I will keep track of which ones I get the most tomatoes from and check their roots when I pull them later.  Pack the soil firmly and continue filling until the roots are completely covered by dirt by at least a couple inches.  I didn't want to completely fill the containers until they are put in place, because seriously 5 gallons of dirt can get very heavy.

 At that point, hubby toted my planters to their home for the summer.  Once they were all hung, I threw in a hand full of shredded leaves and grass into each bucket, then filled the container to within a couple of inches from the top with finished compost.

We put the same tomato type (Box Car Willie) into each of these hanging planters, so there won't be a variation other than which side of the arbor they were on or how deep they were planted.

I have also planted some tomatoes in the ground, in our garden, and in containers that will be firmly planted on the ground so we can compare those factors as well.  We planted  over 30 tomato plants in various locations.  I can't wait until I get to start picking fresh tomatoes off the vine!

Thank you for stopping by to chat with me. Please leave me a message, I'd love to hear your thoughts! Cindy

Practical Container Plants

Onions replaced the spikes in
my whiskey barrel

If you've known me for any amount of time, you would know that I just love to have containers of flowers everywhere you look.   Flowers attract beneficial insects to the garden needed for pollination, I view them as an essential part of any garden.  You can also eat many of the flowers or use them for craft projects or medicines

In the past I have used spikes, sweet potato vine, and other items as accent pieces in my flower pots.  The foliage is striking and interesting and it gives a nice contrast to the flowers.  It can be rather expensive to buy these though.  6 packs are much more reasonably priced, but they don't seem to sell these accent plants in 6 packs. Over the last couple of years I have replaced those items with other, more useful items.

Over the last several years I have used many items such as mint, rosemary, onions, fennel, basil, and parsley, but this year I am expanding my repetoire into more new and different things such as cucumbers, mustard and collard greens, and kale.

Shed planter

 My husband built these great boxes for me that sit in front of our shed.  In the past they have been filled with 3 rows of different kinds of flowers.  Last year the back row was made of curly leaf parsley, but I had more parsley than I knew what to do with so this year I am doing something different.  This box shows an alernated back row of both basil and parsley.  The middle row of flowers has been replaces with flowering kale of varying colors.  I asked at the garden store since I have never raised kale before and she told me that this would be a great idea and should last all summer as long as I kept them well watered.

Hanging baskets

My hanging baskets have held strawberries in the past.  Since they have been taken and planted in our berry patch, I will be trying come cucumbers in them.  Of course I will still have the ones out front as well, but they will hold a wildly varied bunch of plants.  Next year I will plant more varieties of basil such as red ruffles because of the interesting looking foliage.  When you limit yourself to what the garden centers grow and have available it makes the selections a bit boring.  One can never have too much basil.

You may recall my hanging tomato planters that I have had in years past.  I have done it with a plant in the top and the bottom.  This won't change, but those bags are rather cheaply made and are falling apart and getting filled with holes.  This year I will be making my own out of 5 gallon buckets.  More on that in a future post.

Ground planter

Planters also abound on the ground around here.  I have grown spinach, lettuce, and herbs in these.  It actually worked really well for me to put the cool season crops into planters last year because when the sun got too hot for them it was easy to move them to a shadier location.

My stevia and patchouli plants did well in containers all summer last year, until they came inside for the winter and my cats mutilated them...  Most of the time you can overwinter tender plants indoors to ensure they come back again next year.  If they are tropicals they would need a warm location, but I think next winter I may try my luck at sheltering them in my garage instead.

This year more tomatoes and peppers followed me home than I have room for in the veggie gardens out back, so some of those will also find homes in those giant pots that you buy trees in from the nursery.

A word of caution about container plants:  They do dry out faster than plants would in they were in the ground because of the added air circulation around the soil, so check them regularly.  That is one reason I won't buy the hanging baskets from the nurseries, they use inferior soils with no water retaining ingredients mixed in.  I like to make my own potting mix and top it off with mulch so the plants stay evenly moist.  This is especially true for the hanging baskets because air circulates all around them.

There, now you can combine both beauty AND utility all around your garden.  Don't be afraid to experiment, just because you've never heard of anyone else trying it out doesn't mean it won't work!

Thank you for stopping by to chat with me. Please leave me a message, I'd love to hear your thoughts! Cindy

Wart Removal

Aspirin I bought for $1

Have you ever had an unsightly wart that you wanted to remove?  Well, no more doctor visits to burn them off.  I found a great solution on the Internet.  Yeah, I know you can't trust everything you find on the Internet but sometimes it's worth a shot, right?  Nothing ventured, nothing gained and all.  I had all of the ingredients, so why not?

Ingredients: Aspirin, water (or any liquid containing water really), band-aids or duct tape, and a container to keep your paste in.

I used koumbacha tea and  aloe vera gel also in mine.

One aspirin in oil in a baggie

In my searches you crushed the aspirin then added a liquid.  Well, crushing pills is a pain if you ask me, so I decided to take a short cut and just dissolve the aspirin in the liquid.  It can be difficult to cover the aspirin in liquid in a regular container, so I used a baggie.  I didn't want large amounts of paste  I had recently started brewing my own koumbacha tea, so I used that.  I think I had originally used about 5 aspirin, but this shows the techniques used.  This was an experiment.  Note the picture shows the aspirin in oil.  Yeah, that didn't work.  It needs to be water based liquid.  I just thought I'd try oil because my original mix started drying out.

Paste in container

Once the aspirin are dissolved, place in a container and mix well.  I added a little aloe-vera gel to thicken my paste a bit and added goodness that aloe is known for (skin healing and restoration).  I mixed it with a plastic knife and used it to apply the paste to the wart.  Once it is covered with paste you cover it up to keep the it from washing off.

A couple of additional pointers:  Don't leave the band-aid in place for several days though, I did once and it didn't look so great.

It doesn't need to be applied daily in order for it to work.  I think I only remembered 5 or 6 times or so over the course of treatment and it still worked

The wart will discolor,  that is normal and means it is dying.

 The skin around the wart may dry out a bit from being in contact with the solution.  I am wondering if that is one reason people add oil to theirs.  I think next time I will add vitamin E oil to mine.

The paste will separate a bit, just mix it back together before using it.

This totally worked for me.  I tried to take a picture of my finger after the wart fell off, but you couldn't see it in the pictures so you'll just have to take my word for it.

Thank you for stopping by to chat with me. Please leave me a message, I'd love to hear your thoughts! Cindy

Starting your Own Seeds

It is amazing how many people there are out there that think starting your own seeds at home is hard or takes a lot of time.  It does require a small time commitment every day as well as the time to fill seed starting trays with growing medium, but it frees you from so many concerns!  (And don't forget about all of the money you will save!)

What are the benefits?  You pick the kind of seeds you grow so you won't have to worry about the nursery running out of the ones you want,  since you choose your own soil, fertilizer, and water source you don't need to worry about what has been added to your plants (especially if you'll be eating them), you will know when they were planted (IF you remembered to keep track...), you will know what was planted since you picked your own seeds,  not to mention the cost and...  I could go on and on of course, but that was not the intent of this post.


Let's get started!  You will need some basic equipment to start out with.  Containers, soil, seeds, water, a source of light, and heat are all that you will need for a successful operation.

Seed tray prior to sprouting

Any clean container will do.  I used the trays you can buy at the store for maximum usage of my little table top green house.  I have seen others use egg cartons, old cool whip containers, etc as well.  The containers need drainage though, if they get waterlogged you will get mold growth as well as other problems.  It is also a good idea to have your container in something else to catch the water that drains out of your container if you over-water to cut down on the mess creation factor.  To reduce the risk of fungi and bacteria being present on your containers and in your soil you may wish to sanitize them.  Soil can be sanitized by baking it in the oven.

Spouted cucumber seeds

Once you have your container ready, it is time to put some growing medium into it.  I have heard of people using plain sand, perilite, sphagnum peat moss, regular soil, or any combination of these things.  The important thing to remember is that it should be able to retain moisture.  If a seed isn't kept moist, it's not going to sprout!  Pack the soil into the container thoroughly, if you don't the soil will settle and there won't be enough room for the roots to grow.

Next, plant the seeds.  Read the directions on your seed packet to know when to plant your seeds, how close to plant them together, etc.  Some seeds need to be started indoors in order to give you the longest growing season possible while others can be planted outside prior to the last frost or after the last frost.   If you don't want to forget which seeds are planted where you may also want to consider marking them, especially if you aren't good at identifying young seedlings. Generally seeds are covered with about as much soil as they are big.  Covering them with the recommended amount of soil can mean a difference between a successful sprout or a failure.  Too little soil will allow the seedling to dry out and it will also be visible to seed eating birds if you are outside, too much soil may cause your seedling to run out of stored energy before it hits the daylight.  Once you get the hang of growing your own seedlings you can also collect and store your own seeds for an even bigger cost savings, but that's a post for another time.  You don't need to plant every seed in the packet either, save some for next year or the year after that....  The date on the package indicates when the best germination period will be for them, they don't automatically go sterile after that date.

Reaching for daylight

Make sure to keep the soil evenly moist, but if there is standing water in the water catching tray, dump it out. Standing water invites mold.  I should know, I had some starting to grow.  In the past, that has killed my seedlings so I stood watch.  If you do get mold it can be defeated if you catch it early enough.  I simply mixed a tiny bit of hydrogen peroxide into my spray bottle that I mist the soil with.  It kills the mold, but won't harm the plant.  I also dried out the seedlings with some air circulation from a fan, either of those on it's own *should* work by itself, but I wasn't taking any chances.

I had to put my containers into a protective greenhouse to keep the cats away from the tender sprouts, but you can keep them in any sunny location to give them the light they need.  If you don't have a sunny location many people also use grow lights with the full UV spectrum in them.  Technically they don't need light until you see the green leaves though.  See how the seedlings grow toward the light?  You may want to rotate your trays if you're using the sun for your light source.

Provide some heat.  Seedlings need different amounts of heat for different types for optimal growth but not providing optimal temps will just slow down the germination and growth of the plant, it won't stop it.  There are optional heating mats that people have used to warm their soil faster, but they aren't necessary.

Now, we wait for the seedlings to grow their true leaves and grow bigger and stronger.  At this point if your seedlings are growing outside you need to beware of cut worms that will cut the seedlings off at soil level.  Cut up pieces of toilet paper holders have worked for me in the past.

Keep watering and watch them grow!

Thank you for stopping by to chat with me. Please leave me a message, I'd love to hear your thoughts! Cindy

Home Made Lip Care Recipes

Ingredients assembled

      Have you ever been annoyed by the high prices of organic products?  Why not make your own?  It just takes a little time and some products many of us already have in our kitchen!
      I will talk about products you can use to take care of your lips first since many of us are suffering with chapped lips in this cold, dry season we call winter.  I found several different recipes on the Internet from lip balm to salve, to chap stick.  I even found some recipes for lip glosses and lip color, though this post will focus on taking care of you lips not making them pretty.  Well, unless you think they are pretty when they are smooth and supple with no added colors and no red skin surrounding them.
       I found many variations of recipes out there, many of them contained several key ingredients: Sweet almond oil, beeswax, honey, aloe vera gel, coconut oil, and olive oil.  These each have their own health benefits so knowing their properties will help you to decide which one to use in your own products.

Wax Melting in Hot Oil

       I can discuss a few of them briefly here, but please do not rely on one source to get all of your information.  Sweet almond oil is, of course, made from almonds so do not use it if you have an allergy to them.  Another note of caution, if you have a condition that involves low blood sugar levels please consult your doctor prior to trying any product containing sao because it is known to help lower blood sugar levels.  It lubricates the skin without giving it a greasy feel, acts as an emulsifier (which binds oil and water together when they normally do not like to be mixed together), and is readily absorbed into the skin.  For more information please google sweet almond oil.  This is a good starting point.  Beeswax is used in place of petroleum products in order to thicken the healthy oils you are using, but it does help the skin to absorb them more readily has some anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory properties, and helps wounds to heal more quickly.  Honey helps skin to heal more quickly and helps to protect skin among other things.  Aloe Vera gel has a great many benefits  as well, but for our purposes here I will just say that it will relieve dry itchy skin.  I can't say enough about the benefits of coconut oil, in fact I REALLY need to remember to use it much more frequently but for skin care purposes used outside the body it is known to help with inflammation.  Olive oil was know to the ancient Greeks as liquid gold, and for good reason apparently.  It has a greasy feel to it though, but it is moisturizing, cleansing, and protects from sun damage.

Added Ingredients
Once Waxes Were Melted

                              Lip Balm
      The first recipe I have to share with you is a wonderful lip balm that makes over a cup, though it would be easy to cut this recipe in half.  It made enough to fill 3 half jelly jars full of lip balm.  I know it's a lot, but lip balm can be used all year round so I am sure it will get used.  You can infuse the oil with beneficial herbs or flower petals prior to using it in this recipe if desired.  If you don't like the tingly feeling of the stronger store brands of lip balms, this is a great one to try.

Ingredients:1 cup of sweet almond oil, 2 Tablespoons of beeswax, 1 Tablespoon of food quality paraffin wax (optional, the original recipe says 2-3 T beeswax I just got tired of trying to chisel pieces of beeswax off my block), 1 teaspoon of honey, 1 teaspoon of vitamin e oil, and 2 teaspoons full of aloe vera gel.  Flavoring or essential oils if desired such as vanilla extract or mint.

Finished Lip Balm

Procedure:   Heat oil, I used a small crock pot that will be reserved for this purpose.  You don't have this, use a non-reactive pan that is large enough to accommodate all of the ingredients and still leaves room to vigorously stir it all together.  If using a stove as your heat source please make sure to monitor your lip balm and keep the temperatures on the lower end of the heating scale.   Add small chunks of beeswax to the oil once it is heated.  (Word to the wise, if anyplace around you sells it is pellet or small chunks you may want to invest in those rather than a large chunks because they tend to like to fly all over the place and it's hardness makes it difficult to shave just a few shreds off).  Okay, really I only threw in the paraffin wax was because it came off the block much easier and I wanted to add more wax to make sure the final product was pretty solid.
     Once the wax is completely melted, remove from heat and stir in the remaining ingredients quickly, then pour into containers to cool.  Cover once it is completely cooled down.
     In retrospect I am wondering if I should have tried pouring some of this mixture into some old chap stick tubes or an old Carmex jar to make a more portable lip balm.  It doesn't add a lot of gloss or glamour but your lips will thank you.

Note:  Make sure to label the containers clearly, I bet you would just hate to put your home make vapor rub on your lips.

Chapped Lips Salve

      Okay, so I called this salve on the container that I put it in though upon reflection it is really more of a gel.  It works great and adds some shine, well, provided you don't lick it off.  The aloe makes it taste not so great though so that shouldn't be a huge problem.   This one is super easy and doesn't require any heat or equipment really, um mm, other than the jar you are storing it in and something to stir it with...  In fact, you just put some aloe gel into the container, add a tiny bit of honey and mix.  You may add a couple of drops of vitamin E oil to act as a preservative if you wish.  Alright, I mixed mine in a measuring cup because I wanted enough to fill one little "pot" for each bathroom then I poured it out into the containers once they were equally full.

Home Made Vaseline

      Vaseline aka petroleum jelly is wonderful to soothe dry lips, but who wants an oil byproduct on your lips?  I haven't technically made this yet; but judging by the ingredients in it, I would say that it should turn out exactly like the lip balm listed first following the same procedure of melting wax in heated oil.
      Use 1/2 c of oil and 1 ounce beeswax.  The recipes I saw online suggested olive oil though I would guess you can use others as well such as jojoba, coconut, flax seed, olive, or sweet almond oil.

Chap stick

    You can bet I plan on making some of these as well, but I've got a busy day ahead so I thought I'd just talk about proportions here.  I believe these will be a stiffer blend than the balm above since the online sources seem to recommend a 1 to 1 ratio of oil to wax for this type of recipe.  I'm thinking these may be a better candidate for my portable home made blends in the old chap stick tubes?
     Use 1 T oil to 1 T wax, melt wax in hot oil.  Once wax is melted remove from heat and add scents if desired.  1-2 drops should do it, there are many great essential oils out there to try.









Thank you for stopping by to chat with me. Please leave me a message, I'd love to hear your thoughts! Cindy

Our Home Spun Christmas, Part 3 Frugal Ornaments Requiring Time and a bit of Talent

      While these ornaments are just almost as inexpensive as the ornaments I discussed last time, they are more time consuming and require more skill to assemble and create.  This is not to say that they are "hard" to do per-se, but novice crafters may get discouraged based on the preparation and shear amount of time you may invest.

Prepared ornament hung on our tree

Red Felt Poinsettia Ornament

Materials needed:  red felt
sharp sewing scissors
fine-tipped black permanent marker
red thread (to match the felt)
golden beads
a sewing needle that is small enough to fit through the holes on the beads
straight pins
yarn, thread, or ribbon to act as an ornament hanger
patterns you would like to trace for the petals.   

     The first ornament we will discuss this week is the felt poinsettia.  Gather together all of the materials for the project before beginning.  I used a basic a fall leaf shape that reminded me of a poinsettia petal, making 3 sizes of the same petal shape to allow for varied flowers.  These will take over an hour from start to finish.

Assembled supplies

     Plan your pattern layout in order to get as much use from the piece of felt as possible.  I alternated the positions of petals to utilize any extra spaces available.  Save the scraps between the petals for other projects whenever possible, these are what I have used for Rudolph's nose, Christmas ornaments on felt trees, etc.  Let your imagination run wild.  I try to have a roughly equal number of each petal size.
      In order to save some time, two pieces of felt together can be pinned together with straight pins.  More can be used, but I have found that cutting more than 2 felt shapes at a time results in an unsatisfactory product.  I pin each leaf that I traced individually to avoid as much fabric shifting as possible when cutting out your pattern.  This will also help your leaves stay more organized when you go to assemble your ornaments later.
     As you cut out your petals, stack each different size into a pile with other petals of equal size.  This will create less sorting work to do later as well.

      Once the entire sheet of petals (or bracts if you are being scientific) is cut out, it is time to begin to assemble your flower.  This is an artistic arrangement only the ornament creator can decide (scientifically correct just doesn't look as interesting, sorry).  I have used anywhere from 3-8 of the same sized petals per layer. Anywhere from 1 to 3 layers can be used for your ornament depending on how full you would like for it to look.  It may take several dry runs to get your flower petals arranged in a pleasing manner.  Once it is set up, use straight pins to prevent petal shifting while you get them stitched together.  Small, short stitches will make the petals secure, yet will be less noticeable.
        After the petals are securely stitched together, it is time to add some detail.  I use a variety of gold plastic beads to add interest to the middle and gives it a more realistic look.  I have also stitched down the center of the petals to add a bit of a design.  To make the design stand out, use a contrasting color.
        Don't forget to sew a hanger onto the back!
Bread-Glue Dough Ornaments

Materials needed: 3 slices of day old white bread

Beginning the crust removal

2 Tablespoons of glue
1/2 teaspoon of hand lotion
plus optional ingredients food coloring and water if desired.

        This ornament uses up your day old bread!  Say what?  Yup.  It's called Bread-Glue Dough!  The ingredients are simple, inexpensive, and they are items that are probably laying around your house.

Dough, ready for shaping

        Remove the crusts from 3 bread (to keep a consistent dough color) and break into pea sized pieces.  Drizzle the glue and lotion over the bread crumbs, then knead together until it has a consistency like dough.  This could take about 8-10 minutes or so.
        Once it has the consistency of dough, you may separate different portions and die the dough with food coloring.  Work with one portion at a time keeping the rest of the dough covered to prevent it from drying out.

Cut out dough

         I rolled out the dough and cut into shapes with cookie cutters and I also formed it into charms with a silicone mold container.  Be aware that the dough likes to hang on and may need to be cut away with a butter knife to prevent rough edges.
        Allow to air dry for at least a week.  I allowed mine to dry on a sheet of wax paper on a cookie sheet so they could quickly and easily be moved at a moment's notice.  The wax paper will not only prevent the ornaments from sticking to the cookie sheet, but it also kept them from getting stained by the rust spots on my old cookie sheets.  Rather than use food coloring to dye the dough, I will paint these with acrylic paint.  The small ones seemed to be dry already after just a couple of days, but I want to make sure they are completely dry both inside and out prior to decorating and finishing.  I am afraid that finishing them too soon would trap moisture inside which could destroy them.

Ornaments drying on wax paper

      For  a porcelain-like finish mix equal parts of glue and water together, brush on several coats allowing time for them to dry in between coats.  This will act as a glaze for your ornaments.

Hand painted tree

      I have included a picture of a hand painted ornament here that I painted previously.  While this is not an ornament I did this year with this recipe, it is an example of what a hand painted ornament can look like upon completion.  It is a plaster ornament that I bought from a large chain discount store.  Sadly, they do not sell these any more so I am currently looking for a way to create my own.  For many years my children painted one of these ornaments for each of their grand parents.
      When painting your ornament, use one color at a time and allow to dry completely before adding the next color.  If you use many colors while they are still wet, this will promote a mixing of colors on your ornament.  I paint the base coat first and add details when the base coat is dry.

The foundation row 

Foam Sequined Ornament

Materials needed:
Styrofoam ball, any size
sequins, any size
pins
ribbon
glue, beads, and permanent marker or paint, if desired

     One of my all time favorite ornaments is the Styrofoam balls with sequins pinned to them with either straight pins or sequin pins.  Where else can you add so much bling to your tree for so little money?  Buying a variety pack of sequins incurs less up-front expense if you would like a variety of colors, but then you will need to sort the sequins into colors and sizes.  This project will probably take at least an hour to complete if you are planning to completely cover the ball with sequins, more if you layer the sequins.  You may also choose to leave spaces open in between the sequins, your choice.

An overlapping pattern

     The glue is not needed, but it will help to keep the sequins secure.  This is especially helpful if you have little ones or animals.  My cats like to play with anything they can reach on our tree, so I like to be extra careful.  It also helps to hold the sequin in place while you line up the pin with hole.  This is especially useful if you intend to layer sequins with other sequins.  Coloring the foam is also unnecessary but may be desired  since it is difficult to cover the entire surface of the ball with sequins.
      A quick note here: please check the size of the holes in your sequins against the size of the heads of your pins.  If the heads are too small they will slip right through the sequin and will therefore serve no purpose.  If that is the case, smaller sequins or beads may be used to assist the pins in doing their job.

A variety of patterned balls

      If you are coloring your foam ball as a foundation color make sure to color it in advance and allow to dry prior to beginning the rest of the project.  Brush on glue if you are choosing to use this.  Only glue small areas at a time to ensure the glue does not dry before you are able to place your sequins on it.

Glue coated ornaments

     Begin a foundation row.  Alternatively, you may also begin at the top and work outward in circles depending on the pattern you would like your ornament to have.  Overlapping the edges of the sequins will give you a different look compared to others.  It also creates a shell that makes pin penetration difficult.  Please make sure to leave some room for you hanger pins to be pushed in somewhere on the ornament if you are using an overlapping pattern.  Sequins do not need to overlap and can also stand on their own as close to each other or as far away from each other as you would like.
     Place your sequin on the foam ball and secure with a pin.  Larger foam balls allow for use of longer pins, while smaller pins will need to be used on smaller foam balls.  Using long pins may cause problems if the pins reach other and may prevent a tight, secure fit.

Finished ornament on our tree

     Continue placing sequins and pins all over the surface of the foam ball until it is covered.  You may use different patterns, designs, words, or pictures though this will cause more difficulty, extra planning, and a longer crafting time.
      Once my foam balls were completed, I coated the sequins with a coat of glue. This is not needed and there have been a great many ornaments of this type made without this step.
      If you are planning on hanging these on your Christmas tree, you will need a hanger for your ornament.  I like to use one that coordinates with the sequins on the ornament.  Tie the ribbon tightly, secure with several pins by pushing them into spaces between the sequins.  Varying the angle of pin penetration will help to more securely anchor the hanger to your ornament.

glue dots

 Rhinestone Studded Balls

Materials: plain colored or glass ornaments
gemstone glue
rhinestones
sequins
ornament hangers
space to set ornaments or hang to dry

Layered ornament

      These ornaments are really quick and easy to make.  I'm not sure why I didn't think to share them in my last post, but I couldn't pass by the opportunity to share them!  What a great way to make inexpensive ornaments look sophisticated and beautiful.
     I squeezed some glue into a little painter's palette tray in order to be able to apply glue to specific areas of the ornament and applied the glue to the ornament with a paint brush.

Finished

      You may need to be creative with where you hang your ornaments to dry.  Mine dried on areas ranging from unused jars (think spaghetti sauce jars, etc) to hanging from table centerpieces.  The location of drying will give you an idea of how these will be finished.  If they are able to hang unobstructed with nothing to cause the gemstones to be moved it can be completely finished in one sitting.  If they are to dry while sitting on open jars, you will need to allow areas to dry before continuing on to other areas.
         Layering rhinestones on top of sequins adds a truly gorgeous look as does varying the colors of rhinestones used in your picture.  Other ideas for these ornaments includes painting them, gluing designs covered on glitter or epsom salts, gluing strips of tinsel, or filling the glass balls a variety of interesting materials.
         Happy crafting!

Thank you for stopping by to chat with me. Please leave me a message, I'd love to hear your thoughts!  Cindy

Our Home Spun Christmas, Part 2. Easy, Frugal Christmas Ornaments

          Most of us like to mix a variety into our lives, you know, to spice things up a bit.  What better way to not only add a variety to your Christmas decor, but also create memories with your loved ones than to sit down and make decorations with them?  These all cost less than $5 each, most of them cost less than $1 per project!  They may even be free if you have the right "junk" laying around your house.  They can be for your own tree, or even a gift for someone you love.


 The first project involves a whole lot of buttons in a variety of sizes.  I had bought a giant can of buttons to make a garland with, and even after 3 projects it is still half full.  These trees each used about 8 buttons or so.  I looked for a variety of colors too in order to make them pop.  Simply stack and string.  I ran a piece of green embroidery floss through 2 of each button's holes to add a little stability.  You may tie between each button to make your tree more secure, but it makes the tree look a bit lopsided when set on a flat surface.  Tie the thread at the top of the button tree, and top with a star bead.  Tie again to secure the bead in place.  Mine were free because I had them laying around the house from other projects.
Same idea for this tree.  I used a brown pipe cleaner as a trunk, in place of the sting in the previous project.  It also anchors the tree in the pot, I simply folded up a bit of the leftover pipe cleaner to fit the container. The wooden pot was a 30 cent find in a clearance bin at one of the local craft stores.  String buttons on pipe cleaner and line up the buttons.  It may be trickier to find buttons for this project since the button holes need to be big enough to fit the pipe cleaner.


        Speaking of pipe cleaners, aren't these adorable?  Each pipe cleaner comes in a 12  inch length.  You can buy variety packs of these with several different colors in them and they sell for less than $1 for the whole bag.  If you snip a pipe cleaner into 3 equal lengths at 4 inches each, you can get a dozen ornaments out of 6 pipe cleaners.  These literally took me about 2 minutes to make from cutting to twisting.  Pipe cleaners can be snipped with scissors if you must, but it will be much harder to cut with them than if you use a tool meant for the job.
        I measured each length with a ruler and snipped right at the 4 inch mark.  Begin twisting the red and white piper cleaners equally or you will have a leftover section of pipe cleaner at the end.  They can be tightly twisted like this one or loosely twisted.  I think they would also be cute if a bow was tied on these.  Bend over the top inch or so into a hook shape.  The great thing is they are already ready to hang on the tree too, no hanger needed!
        Buttons and twine are inexpensive crafting materials that many people already have laying around their house.  I made a garland for our Christmas tree with these materials.
         I cut the twine to measure a 9 foot length (a standard measure for many garlands it seems).  Every 6 inches, I tied a button onto the twine, first making a knot around the twine to secure the string to the twine, then tying the button on.  I used a crisscross pattern to secure the buttons to the twine making my knots on the back side of the button.  It should be noted that if you use a finer stringing material you may not need to use two different materials, but that would make a flimsier garland.  I also want to note, that if you will not be using this garland right away please securely wrap it around an empty paper towel tube or section of newspaper as it tangles easily.  Buttons tend to be a bit heavy, so you may want to tie one onto both sides of the garland.
  

        Doll pins come in packs with multiple pins in them.  They may also be labeled old fashioned clothes pins.  No matter what you call them, they make the cutest ornaments ever.  I got my pack of these MANY years ago at a garage sale or something so I can't accurately quote you a price on these, but I made these with my Sunday School kids when my son was in first grade as part of the Christmas story.  That was 8 years ago...  If I recall correctly they took about 10-15 minutes to make.
        Anyway, you need scraps of felt, yarn, tag board, and twine, hot glue, paint or permanent markers, and some doll pins.  If desired, you may also choose a material you would like to use for a halo for the angel.  I used a gold metallic pipe cleaner.  The felt scraps, angel winds, and halos were pre-made for this project because of the time constraints of our crafting time, so those may affect the amount of time this project takes you to make.
     First, measure a scrap of felt to fit the bottom length of the doll pin and cut it out.  If you don't have felt scraps, a 8x10 piece of felt costs about 20 cents.  Hot glue the clothing on your pin, pressing firmly onto the glue immediately.  This will be hot, so if you have youngsters working with you an adult may want to fill this function.  Tie on a belt if desired.  Add wings if desired, securing with hot glue.
        Next, select your hair.  This may be either yarn or a head covering like my Shepard is wearing.  Secure with hot glue.  Add your halo also securing with hot glue at this time, if desired.
        Hot glue your ornament hanger onto the back of the head of your  ornament.
       Draw or paint your face last unless it can sit quite some time prior to gluing the hanger onto the back of the head, as it may smudge otherwise.


            Another fun use for old fashioned pins is the reindeer.  This one is a really quick and easy project that even the littlest kids can make.  I made these with the toddlers I did daycare with about 12 or 13 years ago.  I had the children paint the clothes pin.  If you have time constraints you can always just use markers, though I would never advise giving a permanent marker to a toddler, they do work well to color wooden pieces.
        Let it dry, then gave them the pieces to glue onto it.  Some of them had noses and eyes in very interesting locations.   This was a one on one project so I could make sure the eyes and noses did not get swallowed.  I told them what it was, "this is the reindeer's nose", let them place it, then glued it myself with regular school glue.  All of my pieces were made out of felt for safety purposes, though tiny pompoms, google eyes, or paint with small paint brushes would work well for older individuals.  The hangers were added by myself while the children were having nap time and placed in small paper bags that the children had decorated as gifts to their parents for Christmas.
          The last item is a gift I made for each of the toddlers when my daughter was in the toddler room as their Christmas gift.  I had 25 toddlers (though never more than 21 at any given time)
          I cut tree shapes out of green felt, hot glued strips of rickrack on in bright colors, and placed sequins and bows as the ornaments also securing with hot glue.  The hanger was also hot glued on.  I used a small strip if metallic thread.  I placed one into a card that I gave to each family.  I am sure a toddler would easily dismantle these if allowed to, so I am hoping the parents just took care of them.
         I hope I gave you some fun, inexpensive project ideas to make with the children in your life!  Enjoy, and have a very Merry Christmas!

        Thank you for stopping by to chat with me. Please leave me a message, I'd love to hear your thoughts! Cindy