A place to take note of my fruitful finds....

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Old Fashioned Sore Throat Cure



Just heat 1 cup  of water
Add 1 Tbsp of lemon juice
2 Tbsp honey


Stir and enjoy! That was simple...now take it nice and easy (harder!)...and go get some rest (hardest!)!


Photo Source: http://www.homelife.com.au/life+ideas/wellbeing/how+to+treat+a+sore+throat,4955

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Sore Throat Cure




2-4 slices of lemon
2 cm piece of ginger, thinly sliced
A handful of mint sprigs
1-2 cinnamon sticks
Honey, to taste

Infuse the lemon, mint, ginger, and cinnamon in boiling water for 5 minutes.
Pour into mug and add honey to sweeten and soothe the throat.

Photo and Recipe Source: http://www.homelife.com.au/life+ideas/wellbeing/how+to+treat+a+sore+throat,4955

Monday, October 17, 2011

The B.R.A.T Diet



The B.R.A.T. diet is great for anyone with stomach upset, diarrhea, or vomiting. My Mom would have us eat this way of we were sick as kids and it works! I still use it for my kids today!

Bananas
Rice
Applesauce
&
Toast


Photo Source: www.carriessweetlife.com

Sunday, October 16, 2011

Three Great Feel-Better-Soon Tips



If you can get your kid to eat it, BLACK LICORICE will cure their constipation nine times out of ten!

Did you know that the chemical reaction between baking soda and vinegar creates a cooling effect that will soothe your child’s minor burns. Just pour equal amounts of the ingredients into a bowl to bathe your child’s hand till the burning stops.

 Ear infections are being treated less and less these days with antibiotics, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t painful. I like to use a hot pack big enough so they can lay their head down to relieve the “ache

Text and Photo Source:  http://www.howdoesshe.com/7-secret-home-remedies

Friday, October 14, 2011

Homemade Lip Gloss




1 cup petroleum jelly
1 pkg of kool-aid drink powder (Cherry or Strawberry)
labels printed out on sticker paper
scissors or 1 inch paper punch

1. put about 1 cup vaseline in a microwave safe bowl
2. heat the vaseline in the microwave in 30 second increments, stirring between each heating. It took me about 7-8 minutes to melt each batch of vaseline. It will be liquid when it is fully melted. It will be very hot! Make sure you wear gloves or oven mitts and make sure children are being supervised.
3. take out of microwave and stir in kool-aid drink crystals until desired colour is reached - I used the whole package for each batch. Stir until the crystals are completely dissolved.
4. if starting to solidify you can heat again for another 30 seconds - skip this step if it is still liquidy
5. pour into your lip gloss containers and leave to solidify - a couple hours
6. repeat this whole process if making more flavours
7. print out labels on sticker paper
8. using either a 1 inch punch, or scissors, cut out the circle labels and attach to your lip gloss container
9. give to all your favourite people, but remember to save a few for yourself too!


Photo and Text Source: http://meetthedubiens.blogspot.com/2011/01/make-your-own-lip-gloss.html

Thursday, October 13, 2011

Homemade Mosquito Repellent

Homemade Mosquito Repellent

Here’s what you’ll need: essential oils (citronella and lemongrass are musts, I also like lavender or you could use tea tree oil or geranium oil for tick protection), 14 oz. bottle of witch hazel (available in grocery stores & pharmacies usually close to the rubbing alcohol), a spray bottle (or two–one for home and one for the diaper bag/car), a jar for mixing, and a funnel.





We used these essential oils: citronella, lemongrass and lavender. You could also use peppermint or cedar wood essential oils as well.



I cleaned out an empty detangler spray bottle for our “on the go” spray.





1. Pour the witch hazel into the glass jar then add your essential oils. We put about 15 drops of both citronella and lemongrass, and about 10-12 drops of lavender.





2. Put the lid on the jar and shake vigorously until it is mixed.




It should be pretty cloudy.





3. Pour into your spray bottles using a funnel.





Make a label (or write in Sharpie). I used an old Scrapbook sticker to make it look “cuter”. :)






You can spray this on the exposed parts of your body: arms, legs, neck, ankles, feet, etc and then rub it in. Make sure you don’t spray it on your face or get it in your eyes. If you put this on your kids, be sure to try just a little bit first on one area of their skin to make sure they’re not allergic to any of the essential oils.
Or you can use it to spray the area around where your sitting outside.


Original Text and Photo Source: http://www.icanteachmychild.com/2011/06/make-it-natural-mosquito-spray/

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Honey Cuticle Cream




It's easy, fun & no chemicals added - you can whip up your own Honey Cuticle Cream in less than five minutes flat. And I love re-using metal Altoid tins! How perfect is that?

1.5 ounces beeswax
3 ounces apricot kernel oil
1 tablespoon honey

Melt the wax and oil in the microwave, stir in the honey, and pour into tins or other containers.

Photo and Text Source:  http://lepetithappy.blogspot.com/2010/06/diy-it-honey-cuticle-cream.html

Thursday, October 6, 2011

Homemade Body Scrub



"Homemade body scrub... It's easy, all-natural, and so inexpensive, you'll want to make enough for gifts.

Body oil, Burt's Bees
Epsom salt, sea salt, or organic cane sugar
12 oz. PET Jar with cap, sks-bottle.com
Lemon zest
 
Combine 1 cup of body oil with 2 cups of Epsom or sea salts or organic cane sugar, depending on how fine a grain you like. We added lemon zest for color and fragrance. Package in jars...plastic is safest by the tub."

Text and Photo Source: http://www.marthastewart.com/337727/homemade-body-scrub?backto=true&backtourl=/photogallery/mothers-day-gifts#slide_13

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Sewing Pajama Pants



I am LOVING Sewing Pants 101. By Natasha on June 18, 2010 in naptime crafting.  I have made each of my kids to sets of pajama bottoms this week!

"I thought I’d start with a good play by play on how to sew pants. I don’t care how little you know about sewing, if you have a machine & you know how to thread it give these a try.


This process will work for all sorts of pants…elastic waist, drawstring, sweats or pj’s. First off you’ll need to make a pattern. Best way to do that is find a pair of pants that fit the way you’d like & lay them out on your fabric (or paper if you want to make a copy you can use over & over) with the crotch pointed out like in the picture below. Trace the legs just to the outside (and therefore adding about a 1/4″ seam allowance) & extend your pattern 2 & 1/4″ at the top of the leg to account for the waistband you’ll be making. Cut out the fabric pieces so they’re folded in half like so. (that way when you open it up it’s an entire pantleg & not just the front, it’ll save you from sewing a side seam like a pair of jeans would have)

You’ll need two of these.

Now you’ll want to sew each pantleg from the crotch down to the bottom of the pant with the right sides facing together. Pin first, sew second. (you can see my stitches in blue)
*Also here’s a tip, if using a regular sewing machine (NOT a serger, been there, done that, no bueno) if you pin seams horizontally (perpendicular to the way your machine is stitching) then you can just sew right across the pins, no need to take them out as you go.

Next step is a neat trick. Lay your two legs next each other like the pic below. Turn the leg on the left right side out but leave the right one inside out. Slide the right-side out leg into the inside out leg. Line them up & pin the seams from the bottom of the crotch to the top of the waistband.
Stitch this seam being sure to stitch back & forth (reverse & forward) a bit at the beginning & end of the seam. This is sometimes called a “lockstitch” & just means you’re locking the seam into place so it won’t unravel later when it gets stressed. After stitching you can pull the leg back out & wah-lah!

They’re lookin’ a lot like pants, aren’t they? Last step is making the waistband. I’ll show you how to do both an elastic waist & also a drawstring…Measure the waistline of the intended pant-wearer & cut a piece of elastic that is that length + 1″. Set elastic aside.

Fold the waistband in one inch & pin in place. *Another trick, if you aren’t crazy about pinning or just want to make your stitching easier you should iron your seams first, then stitch. I rarely take the time to do this because it requires setting up the iron but whenever I do it really does make things easier. Stitch waistband down (therefore making a casing for the elastic) but don’t go all the way around, leave a 2″ opening so we can thread the elastic through it. Take a safety pin & attach it to one end of your elastic, use the safety pin as something to hold onto while you thread the elastic through the waistband casing & back out the 2″ opening. Being careful to make sure the elastic isn’t twisted anywhere inside the casing first, go ahead & stitch the two ends of your elastic together. Go back & forth several times to make sure that sucker’s not coming apart no matter what. Stitch the 2″ opening shut.


If you were just making elastic waist pants then congrats, you’re officially done!  That’s it! Lots of directions but it’s actually kind of easy, right? Once you make a few you’ll be able to make pants in 15 minutes, easy. Not to mention capris, shorts, bloomers…they’re all just slight variations.”


Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Braided Apple Strudel



The recipe below includes my adjustments.

For the Apple Filling
3 medium-size Granny Smith apples
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 teaspoons lemon juice

For the Bread
1 package puff pastry

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Peel, core, and slice the apples into thin slices, then cut the slices in half. Toss the apple pieces with the sugar, cinnamon, and lemon juice. Bake the apple filling in an 8-inch square baking pan (or 9-inch pie tin) for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside.Turn the oven up to 400. Spray a rolling pin with cooking spray and roll the puff pastry out into a large rectangle, about 12-inches by 16-inches in size. Lift onto a greased baking sheet. Using a pizza cutter or sharp knife, cut each side into strips about 1-inch wide down each side, leaving the center third of the dough uncut. Spread the apple filling down the middle third of the dough. Fold strips of dough into the center, crisscrossing the filling by alternating strips from each side. Lightly press ends to seal, and straighten out the braid with your hands, if necessary, to straighten. Bake the braid in the oven for 15 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from the oven and let the braid cool for several minutes. Slice and serve.

Original Recipe and Photo Source:  http://www.eatliverun.com/apple-braid/#more-24074

Sunday, October 2, 2011

Blueberry Lemonade

Photo Source: http://www.kellyoshiroevents.com/blog/2011/08/12/on-the-rocks-blueberry-lemonade/

My Blueberry Lemonade

1 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup sugar
2 quarts cold water
1 half pint blueberries
Ice

Stir gently to mix, chill and serve.



Saturday, October 1, 2011

Raspberry Lemonade

Raspberry Lemonade

My Raspberry Lemonade

1 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup sugar
2 quarts cold water
1 half pint raspberries
Ice

Stir gently to mix, chill and serve.