The candyman cannn...well, er...

Today was the day that my little sister Tammy and I went over to my mother's house to make Christmas goodies for family and friends.  On my list to make was the following:  Honey Peanut Brittle, Rice Crispy Treats and Chex Muddy Buddies.  My sister Tammy was making:  Chocolate Fudge, Cookies for the kids to decorate and Peppermint Patties.

The day started off not-so-good.  I followed the Honey Peanut Brittle recipe to the letter and it apparently never reached hard crack stage.  Soooooo, it STUCK to the waxed paper, NOT to be pried off.  The little, tiny bits that one WAS able to peel off would stick to your teeth so bad you just had to wait for it to dissolve.  Ewwwwww!  So I had to toss the whole batch!  **sigh**

So then Tammy proceeds to start her Peppermint Patties.  She started with the mint filling.  She accidentally put in 3/4 cup (instead of the required 1/4 cup) evaporated milk.  Sooooo...we ended up with a TRIPLE batch!  LOL!  Then she had all kinds of trouble with the chocolate coating.  It was thick and grainy...really weird.  Finally she got it to work.  The peppermint patties are a time consuming delicacy anyway...but a TRIPLE batch made it downright daunting!!  She's a trooper...she finished making all of it!

My Muddy Buddies were the easiest BY FAR!  Simple, and YUMMY!  I would HIGHLY recommend them!

My next attempt at Peanut Brittle was a microwave recipe my mother had.  It worked WONDERFULLY and I was pleased.  I made 2 batches of it and then called it a day.

I didn't make the Rice Crispy Treats as Christmas will not be celebrated at my mother's house until Sunday and I didn't want them to go stale.  All in all it was a good day...just not quite what we had planned.

Making memories!!

Gluten Free ideas

My son, Luke, is sensitive to gluten.  So, that makes the holidays a challenge as you can imagine.  I plan on making some rice crispy treats, some candied nuts and some energy bars (peanut butter, honey, carob and nuts/seeds) (recipe from my sister Cherie).

Does anyone have any other ideas???

Luke's birthday bash

December 4th at 3:00pm we had Luke's 3rd birthday celebration with family and a couple of friends.  Luke had been talking about his party for well over a month and begged me daily to sing "Happy Birpy dear Lucas!".  Any other day of the year and he wants to be called Luke, but for his birthday serenade, he specifically requested we sing Lucas.  Too funny!

He was SOOOOO excited when the day had finally arrived.  I TRULY think his favorite part was when everyone gathered around, looked at him and sang happy birthday.  He was all smiles!  It was so cute.

He received lots of wonderful gifts and he is being sure to enjoy each and every one of them.  I know he is only 3, but it seemed to have happened so fast.  I just can't believe it!

The next day, of course, reality set back in and we were back to the old whining, contrary and sometimes cuddly Luke.  Ahhhhh, the seasons we go through.  ; )

A Jelly Ol' good time...

Yesterday my friend LaRee and I made pomegranate jelly and pomegranate/pepper jelly sweetened with honey and apple juice using this awesome recipe.  We have made jams/jellies with this recipe before and felt that this was going to be as successful as our past attempts...ummmmm, not so.

I woke up this morning and to my chagrin...the jelly did not set up.  NONE of it!  Oh well, I thought to myself...I guess we'll just have to use it as syrup or marinade or something like that.  Then LaRee calls me later in the morning, "Did your jelly set up?", she asks.  "No, it didn't.", I reply.  She then proceeds to tell me that she went looking around online and found a "fix it" recipe for jam/jelly that did not set up.

So I rush my happy little self over to her house, jelly and Luke in tow and we set about to re-do our jelly.  It was a funny experience (as all our endeavors together have been).  Now, we'll just have to wait until tomorrow morning to see if it worked...if not...does anyone need pomegranate syrup??  LOL!!

Wish me luck!

Just stuff

My friend Erin gave birth to twin boys last week.  They were in the NICU for a number of days and she was finally able to bring them home just a couple days ago.  I was sooooooo looking forward to getting to see her and the boys today.  Luke woke up with a 101 fever this morning.  Poor guy.  But that pretty much doomed my visit to see Erin and her family.  Oh well...later in the week will be just as fun.

Also, our church was having one service (all 3 services all together) today and announcing the church's new name.  I really wanted to go to that service as well...oh well.  I guess I can get the Cliff's Notes from some friends.

It definitely feels like fall here now in CA.  All the leaves are turning color and falling.  The weather has started to really cool off.  I love fall.  It is one of my favorite seasons here in CA.  But, with fall comes cold and flu season.  Yay?!?!?!?!?  All you moms and or medical staff out there know what I mean.  LOL!

My morning sickness has really subsided and now I only occasionally become nauseous.  I am so thankful for that!  I am now 14 weeks along.  I got to hear the baby's heart at my last Dr. appointment last week.  That is always the highlight of my Dr. visits.  I LOVE it!  Darren wasn't able to come with me to this last appointment...perhaps the next one.  It's nice when he is able to attend with me.

Luke's birthday is coming up quick.  His actual birthDAY is December 5th.  That falls on a Sunday and Darren works Sundays so we will be celebrating on Saturday.  I cannot believe he will be 3 in just a couple weeks.  Where oh where does the time go?  Will I wake up one morning and he is a teenager???  It feels like that sometimes.

I am so grateful for my friends and family here in blogland.  You have all been so supportive of me and whatever efforts or trials I seem to be going through.  Thank you.

May God bless you and yours this Thanksgiving.

Back to basics: Cleaning supplies

As most of you are aware, I am very active in ridding my house of as many toxins as possible.  In this day and age, this quest is proving to be daunting to say the least, but a quest worth endeavoring upon.  One of the ways I have chosen to prevent my house from becoming a dangerous toxic waste dump is to thin out my cleaning supplies.

Not only do I believe it is good for safety, (as most of the cleaning supplies I use are benign and would not harm my son if he were to ingest them) I also believe it is health promoting to limit the use of toxic chemicals as much as possible in day to day cleaning.  

Much of the toxins we have in our bodies have been absorbed by our skin by simply touching surfaces, believe it or not.  When you wipe off that Windex or Comet, it does not magically disappear.  It is still on the surface and being abosorbed by your (or your children's) body upon contact.  Scary...

Below is a list of cleaning supplies I keep on hand for day to day use:

Borax

Washing Soda (baking soda that has not been finely processed for consumption)

White Vinegar

Lemon juice

Olive Oil

Castille Soap

Tea Tree oil

I use a mixture of 1/2 water and 1/2 vinegar to clean most kitchen and dining room surfaces and appliances (including the floor) as well as clean my windows, mirrors and other glass surfaces.

For a "disinfectant" cleaning for the bathroom surfaces and kitchen surfaces when needed, I use a combination of water, castille soap and tea tree oil.  This also cleans polished brass and blinds or shutters.

For dusting my wood furniture I use olive oil I have scented with lemon essential oil (the essential oil is not necessary, it just makes it smell good).

For my bathtub, shower, kitchen and bathroom sinks, to shine my stainless steel pots and pans and to rid my coffee cups of stains I use Borax and/or washing soda.  

For laundry detergent, a mixture of a shredded bar of Fels Naptha soap, water and Borax can be used.  This will make about 5 gallons of laundry detergent for under $3.00.

Borax can also be substituted for 1/2 of your laundry detergent to minimize cost.

I use white vinegar in the rinse cycle of my washing machine for fabric softener.  No, my clothes do not smell like vinegar, the smell dissipates once your clothes are dry.  : P

It is not to be said that I do not use harsh chemicals on rare occasions.  When we moved into this house it needed some SERIOUS scrubbing attention and we found ourselves resorting to the more harsh cleansers.  However, once we dropped the chemical bomb (this statement used in jest) on our home to 'deep clean' we have maintained as much as possible the non-toxic cleaning route.

It's not only safer and healthier, it is also MUCH cheaper than purchasing the other cleaners and I can use one cleaner for multiple things.

It's not for everyone, I know.  But you could always pick one and give it a try.  In my opinion...it is worth the peace of mind to know that if my son got into my cleaning cabinet, a trip to the emergency room would not be necessary.

Do you have any additional suggestions?  I hope you have a happy and healthy Thanksgiving!!!

Homemade yummy smellies for the home

It's that time of the year again ladies and gents!   Time to start making the house smell yummy is what I mean of course!!  ; )

There are any number of store bought smellies you can purchase at the store, most all of which are toxic.  They smell REALLY yummy, I agree.  But the toxicity is not worth it to me.  I have a couple of simple and inexpensive ways to make your home smell pleasant and you can make them at home!

My favorite of the two I will be talking about today is taking orange or apple or tangarine or lime or lemon (you get the picture) peel and putting them in a small saucepan.  You can mix them up or just use one type of peel at a time...whatever tickles your fancy at the moment.  Then you fill up the pan about 3/4 of the way full of water.  You can then add some yummy spices if you'd like.  My personal favorites are cinnamon, nutmeg or ginger.  Then bring the mixture to a boil.  Once boiling, reduce heat and keep at a low simmer.  Be sure you watch for the water level in about an hour (depending on the size of your saucepan).  I LOVE the way it makes my house smell!!

My next suggestion is equally inexpensive and easy.  Purchase your favorite smelling flower or herb (dried).  Bruise about 1/2 cup of the dried flower or herb in a pestle and mortar, or just put them in a ziploc bag and rub between your hands for about 30 seconds.  Take the dried flowers/herbs and mix with 1 cup of baking soda.  Spread the mixture on your carpets.  Leave for 1/2 hour to 45 minutes.  Then vacuum.  It works!!  My favorite is lavender.  This mixture also looks nice in a glass container and can be given away as a gift!!

Do you have any additional suggestions?  I would love to hear them and try them out for myself!!