Up in the Air

It's nice to be featured!

My "Up in the Air " bib was featured this week on the EtsyKids blog.

I am among some really sweet airplane inspired items for children.

Take a closer look at my bib here!

Mandarin Orange Salad

It's a light and tasty salad for the spring!

Mandarin Orange Salad

1 Cup Almonds, sliced

1 Tablespoon Butter

2 Tablespoon Dijon Mustard

1/2 Teaspoon Sugar

1/2 Teaspoon Salt

1/4 Teaspoon White pepper

1/2 Cup Vegetable Oil

1 Head Romaine Lettuce or Mixed Greens

1 Can (11 ounces) Mandarin Oranges

1 Small Red Onion, thinly sliced

Saute' the almonds in the butter until golden; set aside .

Combine the Dijon mustard, sugar, salt, white pepper;
whisk in the oil.

Combine in the lettuce, oranges and almonds and toss well.

Spring Cleaning

With the winter months finally behind us and spring already making its presents known , the warmer weather has inspired me to do a thorough cleaning of my home. Having had the house closed up for the cooler months it feels as if the dirt has settled into all the nooks and crannies, even though I clean every week. This is also the time of year that has my family slaves to our allergies. With allergies and a very low tolerance for the cleaning supplies our local market has on their shelves, I had to find another way to attempt my planned spring cleaning. Then it hit me. "What did my mother and grandmother use when they cleaned?" Then I remember our home smelling like Easter and homemade lemonade. They used products that were readily available at the market, and still are today, and used them to make their own cleaning products. This is not a new concept by any means, but we are used to a "take it off the shelf and go" mentality that we don't think about the harmful things we do to ourselves every time we use these products that are suppose to be better, faster, easier. Today the madness stops!

Today I commit myself to take the time to make the same homemade solutions that were good enough for my mother and good enough for my grandmother. I will no longer use the brand products to clean my home in the past and in return I will have a healthier home and a healthier me! My pocket book will also thank me later.

Window Cleaner

2 Teaspoons Vinegar

1 Quart Water

Sink Tub Tile

1/2 Cup Baking Soda

2-3 Tablespoons Liquid Soap

Toilet Bowls

1/4 Cup Baking Soda, sprinkled into the bowl

Drizzle the bowl with vinegar and let sit for 1/2 hour, then scrub and flush

Add Borax for the harder stains

Mildew Remover

Dissolve 1/2 Cup Vinegar, 1/2 Cups Borax in Warm Water

Apply with a sponge or spray bottle

Disinfectant

1/4 Cup Borax

1/2 Gallon Hot Water

Garbage Disposal

Grind ice to sharpen the blades

Add Orange Juice or Lemonade in the disposal for smells

Refrigerator

1 Cup Apple Vinegar in the fridge will remove the smell in 2 days

Happy Spring Cleaning!

*With anything; use caution while handling cleaning products of any kind and be safe while doing it.

Corned Beef and Vegetables

The Perfect St. Patrick's Day Dinner in the Crockpot!

3 Pounds Corned Beef

2 Tablespoons Pepper Corns

1 Bay Leaf

Water

1 Medium Onion, cut

3 - 4 Cups Baby Carrots

5-8 Small Potatoes, washed and cut into 1" cubes

Place the corned beef into the crockpot and cover the top with the pepper corns and bay leaf.

Cut up the onion and place into the crockpot. Pour enough water into the crockpot to cover the corned beef for cooking. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high for 4-5 hours.

The last hour to hour and a half of the cooking process place the carrots and potatoes into the crockpot to cook.

Pull the corned beef out of the crockpot and allow it to cool on a wooden cutting board for 5-10 minutes before cutting into slices. Serve with the carrots and potatoes.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

What Do You Get... Lady Bug

Lady Bug!


1 Toilet Paper Roll
1 Paper Plate
Red Paint
Black Paint
White Paint
2 Q-Tips
Scissors
Hot Glue Gun and Glue

Paint the paper plate red and set aside to dry.

Paint the toilet paper roll black and set aside to dry.

Cut the paper plate into a small circle about 5" round and then cut the circle in halve.

Take a Q-tip and dip it into the black paint and make dots on the two half circles; creating spots on the back of the lady bugs wings. Set this aside to dry.

Cut a lady bug face from the left over paper plate and paint it black and set it aside to dry.

Take the remaining Q-Tip and dip it in the white paint and create two eyes and a mouth on the lady bugs face and set aside to dry.

While the face is drying glue the two wings together, over lapping them at the top and then glue them onto the black toilet paper roll.

Glue the face onto the top of the lady bug wings.

You have created a beautiful lady bug!

What Do You Get... Bumble Bee

Bzzzzzz... Bumble Bee!



1 Toilet Paper Roll
1 Paper Plate
Black Paint
Yellow Paint
Scissors
Hot Glue Gun and Glue

Paint the paper plate yellow and set aside to dry.

Paint the toilet paper roll black and set aside to dry.

Cut the paper plate in the shape of a dog bone measuring the length of the paper plate.

With the left over paper plate pieces; cut three yellow bee stripes out about 5" long and hot glue them around the body of the toilet paper roll, centering the first one in the middle and the other two remaining piece 1" apart from the top and bottom of the middle stripe.

Hot glue the wings around the body of the toilet paper roll bending in the side to the body.

Cut out a bumble bee face with antennae, creating the face of the bumble bee. You can hole punch the eyes out of paint or draw the eyes and nose on the bee. Glue the face on the body of the bumble bee.


You have the beginnings of a beautiful garden to be built around a bucket full of toilet paper rolls!

What Do You Get...

What do you get...

with a bucket full of toilet paper rolls?


Find out this week!