Dr Seuss Party

We've always been fans of Dr Seuss--who doesn't love The Cat in the Hat?  Rory has enjoyed those books ever since he could pick out his own book for us to read.  I'm fairly certain Josh and I could both recite from memory The Lorax or Hop on Pop!  So, a Dr Seuss party seemed perfect!

We had green eggs and ham (sandwiches), one fish two fish (goldfish) and red fish blue fish (Swedish fish).  Most of our theme leaned more towards The Lorax so I made marshmallow pops because everyone loves a good marshmallow!

"Plant a seed inside the Earth-there's just one way to know it's worth!"

                                    

For dessert we had Trufella Tree cupcakes and they were really cute--until the humidity zapped them.  Lesson learned-if you use cotton candy for anything you must assemble last minute because it will turn to rock candy in a matter of an hour or so!  Whoops!

We were blessed to have family from all corners of our little world come and visit.  We've also made some great new friends in our new corner and they came to celebrate too!

Rory loves to sing people Happy Birthday and sometimes at home we sing it just because.  It has to be someones birthday somewhere!  As I was holding him I could hear him singing softly, "Happy Birthday to me!"  

I still scratch my head when I think about my little guy being 3!  I feel like just yesterday I was waddling around waiting to meet this amazing person-and now here he is.  I can't imagine what our life would be like without him.  We are truly blessed beyond measure.  I think being a parent has shed light on what love really is.

"It's not about what it is.  It's about what it can become.  Just like...you're not just a boy." -The Oncler

He's our boy and I can't wait to see what a wonderful and amazing person he will become!  I am hoping that time does slow down just a bit though!

Homemade Laundry Soap

I've had this on my to do list every time I run out of laundry soap.  I never got around to it though because it seemed like I could always get store bought on sale or even buy one get one free.  I usually buy generic because national brands are just way too expensive!  I've never really had a need for homemade until recently.

Josh has sensitive skin and so does Rory.  I always buy the "free and clear" and up until now that has worked really well.   The last couple weeks Rory has complained of being itchy and has little bumps on his trunk.  Don't worry though I've checked it out and it just skin irritiation.  When Rory was a baby I remember someone held him that had on too much perfume and his little face was all red and splotchy.  Recently, though I've been an itchy mess...my arms, scalp, shoulders, chin, neck and even my calves.  I've never had this problem before and always just bought whatever shampoo, body wash, etc for myself. 

Since we are all an itchy mess I'm having to back track and re-evaluate the products that we are using.  While my initial plan for making homemade detergent blossomed out of saving money it's now become more urgent.  This was so easy that I wished that I had made this long before now.

My initial inspiration came from various pinterest boards and blogs.  This is what I used:

-1 box of Borax

-1 box of Arm & Hammer Washing Soda

-1 box of baking soda (the big box)

-1 container of Oxy Clean (I used the free and clear)

-2 bars of Dove Sensitive Skin

Recipes that I have seen called for Fels Naptha or Pure Castille Soap, neither of which I could find so Dove it is!

The first step is to grate the soap--I used my cheese grater.



Then, find a cute little helper and a bucket to mix everything in!  I always have one of these on hand.

I poured half of everything in, then stirred and then poured in the rest and stirred again so everything would be nice and mixed up.  This was a perfect project for a busy yet helpful toddler!  He loved pouring and stirring.

From my research on Pinterest and the blogosphere it looks like each load of laundry only requires about 2 tablespoons of homemade detergent so that is what I'm sticking with.  The supplies cost about $20 total and I can't qutie tell how long this will last but I estimate it will either save a little money or be the same cost as store bought.  I'm keeping my fingers crossed that this will also be easier on our skin.

It may be weird to say but now I'm anxious to do some laundry with my new soap!  Clearly, it's the little things in life that please me.

Using What I Have: Saving the Soap Pump

So, now that Rory is nearly 3, he like any toddler, can be somewhat destructive.  Pages get ripped out of books, toys thrown across the room and stuffed animals tossed down the stairs.  I've been trying to instill in him that it's important to take care of the things we have so they will last.  I try to mend, tape, or sew what I can back together because toys are expensive and let's face it-he has plenty!

I know this seems like a long stretch but this lead me to an internal dilemma of my new soap pump.  After buying our house, I splurged and bought a fancy smancy soap pump at Home Goods.  It was $12.99 and had all the colors from my kitchen.  It was a bronze base and then a coat of plaster with pieces of colored pottery all around it.  Rory, being the helpful toddler that he is decided to wash it along with his hands a month after I purchased it.  Well-I now realize why this cute pump was at Home Goods.  When plaster gets wet it falls apart...literally.  After it's proper washing pieces kept falling off and it looked ridiculous.  So, I got out a knife and finally pried the rest of the plaster and pottery off so it looked like this....

It was still very useful but certainly lacked the original beauty that influenced my purchase.  I was "this close" to throwing it in the trash but then felt like a hypocritical mother--how can I tell Rory to take care of his things if I just toss this in the trash and don't make it work?  Especially, since I just bought it?  (A stretch I know)  I didn't want to spend anymore money on it but I did want to jazz it up--insert my love for a hot glue gun here.

I have glass beads in a jar that sits on the tub upstairs so I grabbed that and dumped out the blues/greens that I liked, plugged the hot glue gun in and some twine. 

The twine that I had was too thin so I did break down and buy a roll of jute for $2.50 from JoAnn Fabrics.  After some glue gun magic and burnt fingers this is what I came up with...

I think I like my version better than the original one I bought-which leads me to think maybe I could have done this project much cheaper than the original price I paid.  At this point Josh would tell me I'm thinking too hard about it!

This mini project has me dreaming now of other wonderful things to hot glue together!

Berry Gummy Hearts

Rory and I love doing crafts together and he LOVES to help me in the kitchen.  Whenever I cook he will run to to me and say, "I see too! I see too!"  He needs to know what I'm cooking and what his helping job will be. He has excellent stirring skills.

Although, we aren't huge on celebrating Valentine's Day I saw this recipe and I thought it would be a fun way to celebrate.  The original recipe is posted here.  I prepped all the ingredients the night before so Rory could do the work of "cutting" out the gummies the next day. 

You will need:

1 12 ounce bag of frozen raspberries, thawed

1 cup apple juice

5 envelopes of unflavored gelatin

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup light corn syrup

2 tablespoons lemon juice

Puree the raspberries and run through a strainer to separate the seeds.  Throw the seeds away.  Mix apple juice and gelatin in a microwaveable bowl.  Stir in sugar and corn syrup.  I microwaved in 3-30 second intervals stirring well in between each set.  Let stand for about 5 minutes.  Then stir in raspberry puree and lemon juice.  Pour into a square baking pan lined with plastic wrap.  Cover with wax paper and chill.  I prepped mine the night before so it chilled all night.  It will look like this when you take it out of the refrigerator.

                                 

Flip out of the pan and onto a cutting board.

Since it's a V-day craft I was supposed to use small heart shaped cutters.  I had all intention of stopping at Hobby Lobby to pick up a couple but it started snowing a couple hours before rush hour so I skipped that step.  On this particular day I was happy to get us both home in one piece!  This did leave me in a bit of a pickle because I didn't have any small cookie cutters.  I was going to use the plastic medicine cups that come with children's liquid medicine but those still seemed big for a gummy.

We ended up using the big end of a cake decorating tip.  It was the perfect size for Rory to maneuver and created a gummy the perfect size for popping right in your mouth!

Rory took his work very seriously.  And of course he had to taste test as he went!

It ended up taking about 20 minutes to cut everything out.  We both had a lot of fun with this project!  I just love that precious face!

Boys love the messy part just as much as the fun, eating part!

Edit: The gummies should be stored in the refrigerator once you are done cutting them out...and if there is any leftover for you to store!

Homemade Gifts

I meant to get this post up right after Christmas...I couldn't do it before without people guessing what they were receiving as gifts.  Better late than never I suppose.  So--I love making homemade gifts.  Don't get me wrong-I also love shopping for gifts but there is something heartfelt about a homemade gift.  Last year I only did one homemade gift and this year I ramped it up and wanted to do more.  Next year will be even better!

I took a sewing class this summer and had a blast.  I would have rocked the 50's era....I love cooking, baking and sewing.  Gardening will be added to that list as soon as we get in our house.  (56 days and counting!).  Anyway, taking that class kind of lit this sewing fire and I wanted to sew more. 

Two of my gifts this year were on the sewing docket....I made this pillow for my Mom.  She is 100% hoosier and technically I'm 50% so I thought this would be a really fun idea.  This used to be a t-shirt but I thought it would make an awfully cute pillow.  I cut the shirt down into a pillow pattern and whipped this out.

An apron was the first thing I really ever attempted by myself...although my Mom really helped me during some tricky parts.  After that I was ready to tackle one on my own.  My mother-in-law doesn't use aprons...instead she shoves a dishtowel down the front of her shirt.  Although a viable option, I wanted to make her a pretty apron.  Here is the final outcome!  What do you think?

My Dad love protein bars so Rory and I made him a fresh batch!  Remember these?  So yummy and I know you can cut them up, freeze and pull out a bar anytime!

My mom received a photo book of the highlights of our year.  This is maybe not technically homemade but I did upload the pictures. :) 

Can't wait to show you what is in store for next year!  My wheels have already been spinning about what I can make.

Homemade Bread Crumbs

If you are like me, I've bought countless canisters of bread crumbs at the grocery store.  Bread crumbs are great for so many things...meatloaf, homemade chicken nuggets, meatballs, hamburgers...the list could go on and on.  The last time I used store bought crumbs I realized that I've been using them but they didn't really taste like much and it seemed so odd to me that they lasted for months on end in the pantry.  Bread molds so shouldn't the crumbs?

Here begins my bread crumb endeavor.  I've used multiple types of bread to make crumbs, leftover stale bread or buns.  This is great way to use up the heels that no one wants to eat.  If you are like us we almost always bring home leftover rolls or bread loaves from restaurants.  I can't bear to waste.  This particular batch came from an Amish (maybe Mennonite restaurant) and I knew the bread was homemade and I couldn't let it go to waste.  Because it was homemade it went stale very quickly....the only downside to not using preservatives.  I'll show you how easy it is to make homemade bread crumbs!

If your bread isn't already stale let it sit out all day to get good and stale.

Once it's stale cut or tear in chunks and run it through your food processor.

Make sure the crumbs are pretty small otherwise you'll have chunks that are too big to be useful as "crumbs."

Spread out the bread on a baking sheet.

I bake mine at 350 for about 10 minutes or so.  You have to check often and flip the crumbs there is a fine line between toasted and burnt...it happens fast.

At this point you could be done but personally, I prefer the seasoned crumbs.  You could season either right before you use but I'd rather get it done since I am already working in the kitchen.  These are some of the spices that I like.  Parmesan cheese is also a yummy one but I didn't use that this time.

Once cooled divide the crumbs up in plastic baggies.  I put about a cup in each and toss in the freezer.

Really, it's that easy!  I have to tell you this will make your house smell like you are making homemade bread!  Not only does it smell great but I can tell a huge difference in dishes that I've used homemade crumbs rather than store bought.

I usually only make them when my oven is already fired up for dinner.  If you don't have enough bread to make a whole batch toss the bread in the freezer as you collect it and then make one big batch!

Happy Baking!

Homemade Child's Neck Pillow

All too often my little man falls asleep in the car.  We travel a fair amount and try to do it at nap time so Rory can sleep in the car.  Our family is about 120 miles away and we make the drive about times a month.  Rory is a great traveler!  I always feel bad though when he falls asleep and his little head bobs back and forth.  You can easily find neck pillows for adults but I wanted a child size one.  With my new motto of being homemade and using what I have on hand I decided to try and make one.  It was such an easy project and worth the effort!

I started by making a "U" shape pattern out of tissue paper and pinning it to my fabric.  Make sure the fabric is layered so you are cutting out 2 pieces at the same time.

Once the pieces are cut, pin the right sides together.  In other words, you will see the wrong side of the fabric.

Then sew the pieces together leaving a small opening for stuffing.

Start stuffing!  This was the only part of the project that I had to buy.  A small bag of stuffing cost $3 and I still have plenty left!

 Once the pillow is stuffed, sew up the small opening my hand...and that, my friends, is it!

This pillow was VERY worth the effort...it probably took about an hour from start to finish.  No more head bobbing here!

Don't worry--I took the picture at a stop light!  I think this pillow is going to get plenty of use.

Homemade Charlie Brown

One thing I really enjoyed about Halloween this year was making Rory's costume.  I've always been a fan of the homemade costumes, especially as the kids get older and can make things themselves. 

The first year Rory was a cow.  He had pajamas with cow print and a cow hat.  It was all given to us as a gift and worked perfectly for a costume.  Last year Rory was a farmer.  I used a plaid shirt and overalls from his closet and topped it off with a John Deere hat that was also a gift.  This year got a little trickier because I was out of things already in his closet to use as an entire costume. 

The idea for Charlie Brown started last year at Christmas because we watched A Charlie Brown Christmas over and over and over....I have it memorized.  This year he has loved watching Charlie Brown and the Great Pumpkin so I knew he just had to be Charlie Brown. 

I started with a plain yellow shirt that my friend found at the craft shop.  This was the hardest part of the process.  It was so hard to find a plain yellow shirt that didn't have writing, a truck or football plastered across the front.  I also used 2 felt squares to make the stripes.

I wanted the stripes to match up on the sides so it looked like one continuous stripe around and for that I had to whip up some math skills.  I started by measuring across the shirt to determine how long the strip needed to be.  I knew I wanted 3 "peaks" so I divided the length by 3 and marked on the felt with a white sewing pencil.  I also made the stripe 2 inches in width...made the marks and then draw the lines together.  It was kind of like putting a puzzle together that had no pieces to begin with.

After that I cut out the felt strip and pinned it to the shirt.  It was easier to hand stitch this than use the sewing machine...at least for me.  I had a hard time getting the two different types of fabric to not wiggle around on the machine.  It only took about 30 minutes of hand sewing...which I completed while we watch Charlie Brown and the Great Pumpkin.  How appropriate!



I completed the look with black pants and brown shoes that came right from Rory's wardrobe.  In the end it turned out just as I had envisioned and was an awesome costume.  It did take some time but cost less than $5 to make.  I look forward to more homemade costume making in the future.

Homemade Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

In my effort to not waste anything that could be used, this is the first year I roasted the seeds harvested from carving pumpkins.  I have to admit this task was harder than I thought it would be. 

I started by sorting the pumpkin insides from the seeds.  I rinsed and laid flat to dry on a dish towel.  Originally, I tried a strainer to rinse the seeds but neither the seeds or the pumpkin would pass through the holes.  Then I found it hard to rinse the seeds without at least 1/2 cup of my precious harvest being washed down the drain.  I ended up doing this part my hand which took longer than I prefer.  If you have any tips on this step I'm all ears!

Then, I searched for recipes on what to do and really none of them sounded good.  I didn't want to do salty and the ones that were sweet had way too much sugar!  So, I did my own thing.  Here is what you need:

2 cups of pumpkin seeds
2 Tablespoons butter
1/8 cup sugar
1 tsp of cinnamon
1/2 tsp of pumpkin pie spice

I started by tossing about 2 cups of seeds in 2 tablespoons of melted butter.  Then I mixed the sugar and spices together.

Lay out the pumpkin seeds on a cookie sheet or bar pan.  I prefer the pans that have an edge for this kind of thing.  It keeps seeds from slipping off into the overn and burning.

Sprinkle about a 1/3 of the mixture on the seeds and put in the oven at 350 for 5 minutes.  Sprinkle another 1/3 of the sugar mixture on and bake for 5 more minutes.  It's ok to toss the seeds in between baking sets, just make sure they are laying flat when they go back in the even.  Then sprinkle the remaining sugar mixture on and cook for an addtional 10 minutes. 

Once they cool put into a bowl and serve!  Enjoy!

Homemade Cooking Spray

On my quest of being more "homemade" one of the first things I've discovered is homemade cooking spray.  I feel like I went though my last bottle of store bought spray within a very short time.  It costs almost $3 per bottle, it mists all over other things and I recently looked at the ingredients list and there are a few things I couldn't pronounce.

I got to thinking...it is just oil right?  Except it's put in a pressurized can for convenience.  Why can't I just put regular oil in a spray bottle and call it a day?  I began my research and found all sorts of "recipes" online and how you should and should not make homemade cooking spray. 

So far I've only tried one receipe but it's working great and I love it!  I only needed 3 things and they all were things that I already had on hand, which in my mind is the same as free.

Spray Bottle
Distilled Water (I just bought a few gallons for the humidifier)
Olive Oil

Important tip--I wanted to use tap water but after further investigation not such a great idea.  It can harbor and grow bacteria if not used quickly...so, it's best to use distilled water.

I started by washing the spray bottle using hot soapy water and took all the pieces apart to get it good and clean...BUT, then decided to go a step further and sterilize it.  I occasionally did this with Rory's bottles and pacifiers after he was sick....it's super easy!  Just boil water, throw in what you want to sterilize and let boil for 5 minutes. 

Remove the pieces from the water and once cool, reassemble the spray bottle. 

The next step is getting the oil to water ratio correct and I think this depends on how much/what you bake and how oily you want your surface.  My mix was 2 parts oil and 1 part water. 

Seriously, that is all you do.  Give the bottle a shake each time before you use it since naturally oil and water separate.

I've used this so far for everything I would have used store bought spray for and can not tell the difference...and I have to say I will not go back to store bought spray now that I know how easy this is.

Homemade Graham Cracker Crust

Josh's birthday is coming up and one of his favorite things is cheesecake.  This year I decided to make a cheesecake from scratch....but to start I needed a graham cracker crust.  You can buy these at the store for $3 or so but everytime I buy one it's always cracked by the time I get it home, very powdery and limited on taste.  I'm not sure when I started using this recipe from Betty Crocker but it's very easy and I bet you have all the ingredients that you need.

1 sleeve of graham crackers
3 tablespoons of sugar
3 tablespoons of butter

I like a thicker crust so I use more graham crackers and butter; but that it the beauty of it!  If you want a thinner crust just use less.  The recipe above will give you the same consistency as the store bought.

I love to get Rory helping in the kitchen any chance I get and this is a perfect recipe for little hands to help with.  We started by breaking down the crackers and putting them in a larger plastic bag.

Then we mash up those crackers!

...and mash and mash and mash!

Next scoop your sugar in.

Give the bag a good shake so the sugar is mixed in.

Then add in your butter and mix with a fork.  Once the all the grahams are coated in butter press down with wax paper or a spatula. 

Then bake at 350 degrees for at least 10 minutes. My crust was thick so I baked it about 20 minutes. You will know it's done with the graham starts to brown and your kitchen smells amazing!

I'm so thankful I have boys that don't mind the cleaning up process!