My kids are amazing. Sure, I know, you think ALL moms say that, but when I say it, it is true. Let me tell you why,
Today my father in law came over and helped my husband spray paint the exterior of the house. We've been here for almost 10.5 years now (we thought we'd be in the house about 5 years ha ha) and the house was painted in February. Now, February is often a beautiful month here in the PNW, but....not housepainting ideal beautiful. It is amazing the paint has lasted this long. I digress. FIL and Big Guy were busy painting the house, and I wanted to be outside so I could do whatever running they need (like the 2 trips to 2 different stores I did today) So my kids, my amazing wonderful small people...were essentially taped into a house alone, all day.....and my house is still standing....in fact, it was even pick up able....See, amazing....I didn't lie.
They did have an escape route, as we left the garage and I DID let them watch WAY more TV than is normally healthy...but still, they stayed inside, for the most part, kept each other entertained, and didn't totally wreck my house.
We'll see how the rest of the week goes...trim is needing to be white and it is calling my name.
Saturday, July 28, 2012
Monday, July 2, 2012
Things I don't buy anymore
Yeah, I know, strange title, right. Today I got my vanilla beans in, I"ve been thinking about making vanilla extract for 2 years and I finally did it In part I finally did it as a celebration of more readily available high test alcohol in stores in WA, and because I just like making weird stuff. So, in honor of the weird stuff idea, here are my list of things I don't buy at a store anymore, because I make them myself....things I never thought I would, and without the internet I couldn't have....see, it doesn't just suck all of our time into a vortex of uselessness, it helps us.
I will list them in order.
First, jam. Ever since I was first handed a brown bag of plums by my in-laws 10 years ago....I have not had store bought jam in my house. I have made plum, mint, blackberry, strawberry, blueberry, mixed berry, and peach. I made several of them several times....so yummy, and stupid easy, which is why I make it. Blackberry is the cheapest for me to make, because I have a ton in my backyard....growing for free (and if I am not careful, could easily move us out of our house)
Then, Pickles. I started with dill, and they are SOOOO good.... garlicky, spicy, sour, yummm. They again are easy, but they do have cure time....3 long months of waiting for THIS seasons pickles. I also do sweets, dill and sweet relish, pickled beets, and I have done dilly beans, but I don't think I'll do them again.
Then, the really weird one, I made (and make) laundry soap. So nice to pass up those smelly bottles of laundry soap that are WAY overpriced. I have 2 types in buckets in my garage, regular and delicate, and I spend about 5 bucks a batch, which makes 10 gallons of detergent....can't beat the price.
Then, my hubby got me a stick blender, and one of the recipes was mayonnaise. So I tried it....it was BLAND.....it NEEDED salt, so the second batch I added a pinch of salt....problem solved.....so I have not bought it since. I make it weekly (roughly) and not only is it cheaper, but it doesn't have all the preservatives.
Next hardware purchase equaled a new homemade project, and that is, I use my vita-mix (fantastic, can't beat it really) to make our peanut butter. I was buying Adams, because I like the more natural, but now, we just buy peanuts, and I grind it up myself. It is truly healthy (Skippy and Jiff are NOT) and yummy. I don't think it is THAT much cheaper, but I like making it myself.
So now, I am making vanilla extract, and my next project is liquid soap and hand sanitizer We don't use it at home, because I like bar soap, but I always have the slivers that are too small to use anymore, and was throwing them out. This spring when getting the motorhome ready for summer, I realized I needed liquid soap for the bathroom out there, so my google fingers got moving, and I realized I could turn my useless slivers of bar soap into liquid soap for the motorhome. Two birds, one stone is the name of the game. The hand sanitizer too, I want to put some in the sewer compartment of the motorhome (for obvious reasons) and have some around the house, and I like making stuff at home....it is my hobby.
I will list them in order.
First, jam. Ever since I was first handed a brown bag of plums by my in-laws 10 years ago....I have not had store bought jam in my house. I have made plum, mint, blackberry, strawberry, blueberry, mixed berry, and peach. I made several of them several times....so yummy, and stupid easy, which is why I make it. Blackberry is the cheapest for me to make, because I have a ton in my backyard....growing for free (and if I am not careful, could easily move us out of our house)
Then, Pickles. I started with dill, and they are SOOOO good.... garlicky, spicy, sour, yummm. They again are easy, but they do have cure time....3 long months of waiting for THIS seasons pickles. I also do sweets, dill and sweet relish, pickled beets, and I have done dilly beans, but I don't think I'll do them again.
Then, the really weird one, I made (and make) laundry soap. So nice to pass up those smelly bottles of laundry soap that are WAY overpriced. I have 2 types in buckets in my garage, regular and delicate, and I spend about 5 bucks a batch, which makes 10 gallons of detergent....can't beat the price.
Then, my hubby got me a stick blender, and one of the recipes was mayonnaise. So I tried it....it was BLAND.....it NEEDED salt, so the second batch I added a pinch of salt....problem solved.....so I have not bought it since. I make it weekly (roughly) and not only is it cheaper, but it doesn't have all the preservatives.
Next hardware purchase equaled a new homemade project, and that is, I use my vita-mix (fantastic, can't beat it really) to make our peanut butter. I was buying Adams, because I like the more natural, but now, we just buy peanuts, and I grind it up myself. It is truly healthy (Skippy and Jiff are NOT) and yummy. I don't think it is THAT much cheaper, but I like making it myself.
So now, I am making vanilla extract, and my next project is liquid soap and hand sanitizer We don't use it at home, because I like bar soap, but I always have the slivers that are too small to use anymore, and was throwing them out. This spring when getting the motorhome ready for summer, I realized I needed liquid soap for the bathroom out there, so my google fingers got moving, and I realized I could turn my useless slivers of bar soap into liquid soap for the motorhome. Two birds, one stone is the name of the game. The hand sanitizer too, I want to put some in the sewer compartment of the motorhome (for obvious reasons) and have some around the house, and I like making stuff at home....it is my hobby.
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