Christmas Bazaar at Vineyard Christian Fellowship

This weekend I'm participating in my first ever Craft Bazaar at the Vineyard Christian Fellowship! There will be Live Music, Warm Food, and Beautiful Handmade Gifts from over 60 vendors.

November 16th, 2012 12pm-8pm
November 17th, 2012 9am-4pm

Vineyard Christian Fellowship
4950 N. Bradley Ln.
Garden City, ID 83714

There will be over 60 vendors offering a wide variety of handmade items including crocheting, photography, woodwork, scrapbooking  jewelry, home decor and so much more! There will be live music and delicious food available both days.

{Copied almost identically from the Vineyard Christian Fellowship Invitation card: created by Kim Collingham}

I'm bringing cute little crocheted owls! Hope you'll come and enjoy the festivities with us!

Update (11/18/2012): The bazaar was a lot of fun. We had moderate traffic. I think it was too hard to compete with a Boise state game weekend. I sold one owl and use a few others to trade for things around the bazaar that I wanted to buy. Looking forward to new crochet projects and planning different things for next year. 

Nutiva Coconut Oil

Just want to let everyone know that we got a great deal on Nutiva Coconut Oil yesterday at the Boise Costco. 1 (78 oz) jar for $21.99. The closest comparison I could find on Amazon was 2 (54oz) jars for $51.97 if you signed up for subscribe and save. So if your local Costco doesn't carry it, I'd ask for it and tell all your friends to ask for it. Since Costco supplies it to certain stores you just might get it at your local store.

How To: Fall Gardening with the Gardenieres

This post brought to you by Miracle-Gro. All opinions are 100% mine.
                     
Watch the Gardenieres!
My two favorite videos are on Harvesting Rain Water. Part 1 and Part 2.
I've been curious about rain water harvesting for a while now. Not sure where I first heard of it. But when I did I was living in Las Vegas, Nevada. Not really much rain to harvest. And we get most of our rain in the summer-time when the monsoons come through. Any water collected would either evaporate or be so hot I'd risk burning plants. So needless to say there really wasn't much reason to learn about it.
Another, thing I think that has kept me from doing Fall Gardening is that to me, Fall holds the conotation of Harvest time. So in my mind we're harvesting not planting. Granted I knew there were crops for all seasons I just never really thought about it all at the same time.
Now we live in Idaho and since we got here in the begining of October it's rained about as much as we would get all year in Nevada (not sure if this is an actual fact, but it sure seems that way). So now it's definately something to learn more about. The videos have helped me do just that. While I save up for an actual water havesting system, I think I'm just going to use some old trash cans we have around here.
Also check out this video on how to Create a Potted Herb Garden:


And "Like" the Miracle-Gro Facebook page

I Just Signed Up for oDesk!

I just signed up for oDesk to do administrative assistant work from home. And I just passed my first test! If your interested in working from home you should check it out!
 

Stay Strong and Carry On!

So thee other day on Facebook, I saw this image posted there: 

and I got to thinking, 'hey, I do that'. I know there have been days when I'm totally down on myself after blog/pinterest surfing. Some days I'm lucky enough to snap out of it and go 'hey that lady sends her kids to school all day so that she can do those fancy craft projects or make sure her house is sparkling or hey maybe she cleaned it and took a picture before it got dirty again. I have to make an effort to not let people's pretty internet life, make me feel any less about my life.

So in an effort to remind people that blog life may look pretty, but that real life is always messy. 

Here is a general overview of my messy life.

*I was born to alcoholic/smoker parents; have managed 

not to become a smoker or drinker myself!

*Some creepy son of a babysitter, showed me his wee - knee when  

I was four while we played with a boat in the Jacuzzi. 

*In kindergarten, the junior high kids who rode the same bus as me, 

would steal my hair clips, 

tear up my homework, spit in my hair and who knows what else.

*I was picked on throughout elementary school, 

possibly bullied but I'm not sure if its the same as today's bullying. 

*When I was 11 my mom was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. 

I spent a lot of time caring for my home, mom, family.

*Became a hard-@$$ in junior high since I'd had enough of being picked on.

* High school was alright except my mom died about 

two and a half months before I graduated.

*No one explained grief, my dad was of the belief that 

counseling was for the weak. I never went.

*Spent the next two years away at college, 

failing classes every spring, holding grief inside.

*Since I turned 18 I've moved: 10 times. Stressful!

*And according to the Holmes and Rahe stress scale 

I've experienced 19 major stressful life events. 

And when you consider some of them happened 

more than once, were talking nearly one a year.

*All that stress has caused me a liver that's on the fritz 

and adrenal fatigue, go figure right!

Anyway, the point is that even with all that has gone on in my life, I've continued on. Many people would turn to substances, 

or take their life in their own hands. 

You have to stay strong and carry on!

Idaho Potato Chip Cookies {Recipe}

Since we are getting ready to move to Idaho, I thought this would be a good time to post this recipe. I'm also  making it as we speak because it is a good get rid of leftovers recipe. And when your moving long distance you don't want to move food... you want to use it up.

{Ingredients}
* 2 sticks butter    (1 cup)
* 1 cup sugar and 1 cup brown sugar (or 2 cups sugar and 1 T molasses)
* 2 eggs
* 1 tsp almond           extract              (or vanilla)
* 2 cups flour       (I used 1 of white whole wheat and 1 of red whole wheat)
* 1/2 t salt
* 1 t baking soda
* 2 cups potato chips, crushed

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly crush potato chips until you reach 2 cups. Cream together: butter and sugars. Add eggs 1 at a time beat well, add extract. Add flour, salt, and baking soda. Mix well. Add potato chips, mix until incorporated. Drop cookies on cookie sheet 2" apart for 9-11 mins.

How To Make Homemade Honey Wheat Bread {Recipe}

This recipe comes from combining a few of my favorite recipes.

Ingredients:
1 1/4 cups milk
1/4 cup honey
2 T coconut oil/olive oil/butter (do not use margarine, or canola oil)
1 t vinegar
1/4 cup flax meal
3 T wheat bran
3 cups whole white wheat flour
2 1/4 t active dry yeast

In a small saucepan over low heat, warm milk, honey, oil and vinegar to about 115 degrees. Add to the pan for the bread machine. Then add flour, flax meal, and wheat bran. Make a hole for yeast. Add in the yeast. Put the pan in the machine if its not there already and select the dough cycle. Grease the loaf pan. When the dough cycle is done, remove dough from machine and form into a loaf shape (you may need to flour or oil your hands to keep the bread from sticking), place in the loaf pan. Cover with a damp towel and let rise. If its too cool for the bread to rise heat your oven to 200 degrees, turn it off and place the bread inside until its risen. Then remove bread from oven and preheat to 350 degrees. When oven is hot, place bread inside and bake for 25-30 minutes. Bread is done when its golden brown and sounds hollow when tapped.

Some extra tips:

• Let your ingredients come to room temperature before beginning.
• The temperature of the liquid allows you time to measure and add your dry ingredients without it getting too cold. You don't need to rush, if you do it will likely be too hot and kill the yeast. Work at your usual pace. 
• Don't scoop or pack the floor, spoon it in.
• Cool slightly, then remove from pan to cool the rest of the way, then place in a bag to keep it from drying out. 
• Canola oil will cause it to get moldy faster.

A Poem

courtesy: drsuessart.com

Since reading Dr. Suess all of the time,

all of my thoughts are beginning to rhyme.

That cute little cat,

in his cute little hat, 

is driving me CRAZY,

what do you know about that?

All this hop, pop, top,

someone, oh someone, please make it stop!

How to Keep the Cost of Things Down ~ A Rant!

So today I'm trying to clear out my email, I ran across an email for a class action lawsuit against Netflix. So I open it up and start reading what they are being sued for and here is what the email said:

Our records show that you were a current or former Netflix subscriber as of July 5, 2012. We are emailing to tell you about a Settlement that may affect your legal rights. Please read this email carefully. Go to www.VideoPrivacyClass.com for more information.

A Settlement has been reached in a class action lawsuit that claims Netflix unlawfully kept and disclosed information, including records on the movies and TV shows its customers viewed. Netflix denies that it has done anything wrong.

What does the Settlement provide?

Netflix has agreed to change its data retention practices so that it separates (known as “decoupling”) Entertainment Content Viewing History (that is, movies and TV shows that someone watched) from identification information for those subscribers who have not been a Netflix subscriber for at least 365 days, with some exceptions.

In addition, Netflix will pay $9 million into a Settlement Fund to:
• Make donations to Court-approved not-for-profit organizations, institutions, or programs.
• Pay notice and settlement administration expenses.
• Pay attorneys’ fees of up to 25% or $2.25 million of the Settlement Fund, plus up to $25,000 in expenses.
• Pay a total incentive award of $30,000 to the Named Plaintiffs.

Proposals from potential donation recipients will be sought, and, after consideration, recommendations will be made to the Court. A list of the proposed donation recipients will be posted on the website.

 So I'm looking it over, go to the website read some more things and realized, this is the kind of crap that makes the price of things go up. I'm not sure people understand this, so I'm going to explain it.

In plain terms, Netflix is being sued for keeping track of what kind of shows you watch. This is how they "recommend" things you'll like. If you like this feature, you shouldn't join the lawsuit because that would mean you don't think they've done anything wrong. Also, if you have the time available you should object to the lawsuit and this is why. If this happens and it likely will: The 6 plaintiffs (people who started the lawsuit) will each get $5,000 a piece. The lawyers will get $2,250,000 dollars plus $25,000 in expenses for a total of $2,275,000. Netflix will also get to pay all the court/filing fees. The the courts will determine where to send the rest of the $9,000,000 (9 million). If you join the lawsuit you will get nothing! I repeat NOTHING! And as a bonus, eventually, Netflix will be required to raise there rates for their services and you will get to pay more money for the same exact things. Businesses never lose when it comes to lawsuits. The only real winners are the lawyers. Even the folks who sued only got a measly $5,000 of the total. Hardly enough to buy a used car. Half a year of college. Doesn't seem worth it, overall to me. So once again if you have the time to object you should do so!

I recently got one for Groupon, too. It seems people are trying to get rich quick by trying to sue large companies, but I doubt there getting much and then the rest of us have to pay higher prices. So don't jump on the band wagon for the peanuts that these lawsuits give out, because for the amount of money you receive, if any, you will pay a lot more down the line in fee increases, and so will the rest of us.

Please, understand I don't think anyone should get away with true injustice. But read what the lawsuits are and decide for yourself if you agree they are in the wrong. And a better way to show you don't like a companies practices is to take your dollars to their competitor.

Update: Happy New Year! Looking Forward to a New Year 2012!

Typically, you could hear me say, "I don't make resolutions because no one ever keeps them." It totally seemed like a waste of time to me. This year though I've written out a list of things I'd like to accomplish and so I'm sharing that with you.

{In no particular order}

Updates in italics June 2012

~Read 1 Psalm and 1 Proverb each morning at breakfast
        So far have not been consistent with this one.

~Begin Homeschooling Preschool
        Have done some but not consistently.

~Research and Understand more about health and wellness
       Have done some of this but have not found a great method for keeping track of what I find.

~Blog at least once a week
       This one is terribly hard for me. My little one hates it when I'm on the computer and I feel like the computer robs my time so I try to stay away if I can.

~Empty email in-boxes and unsubscribe from junk
        I have cleared a lot of email, still have a lot to go and I have unsubscribed from somethings.

~Create and follow a schedule/routine
        Off and on I do, just can't make it habit.

~Make Christmas gifts and Decorations
        Just got out the idea books to get started on this one.

~Finish Unpacking
        Glad I didn't really get this one done. Since we've decided to move again so soon.

~Throw a Birthday Party for each member of my family, including myself
        Just felt weird trying to get a party planned for myself and my husband just isn't interested. So that leaves my daughter who won't stop talking about her birthday, at least that party will happen.

~Try 1 new recipe per week
        I have tried some new recipes this year but nowhere close to one a week. 

~Drink 3 liters of water per day, make it a habit
        I try but it's still not a habit.

What do you hope to accomplish in 2012?

Get your Garden Started with a Coupon

This post brought to you by Whitney Farms. All opinions are 100% mine.

The more I read about health and nutrition the more I want to farm my own food. With all the talk of GMO's (Genetically Modified Organism) and processing that takes our food farther away from the way nature made it, causes me to want a garden of my own. I've been thinking about a garden of my own for a long time. The main reason I haven't started yet, is because I've heard over and over that the soil isn't very good. And determining if the organic potting soil at the garden center is really organic and true to its packaging just seemed like another headache.

I don't just want my home grown food to be grown at home, I want it to be full of nutrients that heal and keep my family healthy. Whitney Farms®   organic plant food is just the thing I need. Made from: Feather Meal, Fish Meal, Blood Meal, Meat and Bone Meal, Calcium Carbonate and Sulfate of Potash which will provide plenty of minerals which have been so depleted from our farmlands soils. I'm excited to try it! They are offering a $3 off organic soil if your interested in trying it too! 

In my garden planning notebook I've pasted this as a representation of what I'd like to grow. 
I'd also include some herbs. I really love cilantro and will devour any recipe its in. Along with cilantro, I'd grow mints, for baking & tea, as well as, herbs for medicinal purposes like echinacea, garlic, chamomile, horseradish, ginger, and cayenne peppers. I'm going to go get my Whitney Farms® $3 off coupon now.

Easy Apple Coleslaw {Recipe}

It feels like summer here in Nevada already, so for us that already means picnics and potlucks. So I thought I'd share my favorite Coleslaw recipe. I typically don't like coleslaw, potato, or macaroni salads. But this one is so good and simple.

Ingredients: 
3/4 c mayonnaise
1-2 T honey
Dash or two of seasoned salt
1 bag coleslaw mix (about 10 oz.)
2 apples (any kind you like), chopped small

Mix the mayo with the honey (to taste), add the seasoned salt to taste. Chop the apple and add it to the dressing mix. If you do this right away it will keep the apples from browning. Mix in the coleslaw. This will not last overnight, so please don't try to make it ahead.

Find more Homemaking Hints at Heavenly Homemakers.

My Favorite Salad {Recipe} Link

I really have to share this recipe I found searching one day. It is so delicious, it has become my favorite salad. Check out Erin's Food Files and her BBQ Chicken Salad with Creamy Cilantro Lime BBQ Dressing. You'll be so glad you did.

Homemade Seasoned Salt {Recipe}

This is great on fries, chicken, and is a key ingredient in my Easy Apple Coleslaw. I hope you like it.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 t dried thyme
1 1/2 t marjoram
1 1/2 t garlic powder
2 T plus 3/4 t paprika
3/4 t curry powder
3 t dried mustard
3/4 t onion salt
1/2 t plus 1/8 t dill weed
1/2 t celery salt

Blend together in a mini food processor.

Children are a Blessing!

Video available for free viewing online until the 30th of April. Such a sweet movie. Children are a Blessing!

Fiesta Lime Corn {Recipe}

The other day I was making tostadas and got this idea for corn with butter and lime juice and Mrs. Dash's fiesta lime seasoning. Here's the recipe. I thought it was so delicious!

Ingredients:

1 bag frozen corn
2 T butter
garlic power
pepper
lime juice ~ 1 lime
Mrs. Dash Fiesta Lime Seasoning
Salt

Cook the corn according to the pack or your usual way til hot. Add the butter and stir til melted. Squeeze on the lime juice. Sprinkle each spice over the corn. The fiesta lime seasoning can be spicy, use more if you want it hot, less if you don't. I did the salt last after mixing in all the other spices and tasting. Salt to taste. I hope you enjoy this, I sure did!

Weeds, Tears & Flowers

A couple Friday's ago we received an HOA violation notice stating that we needed to get rid of the weeds. So last weekend my husband pulled all the weeds. My daughter had thought the weeds in the back were flowers and was in love with them. She's 3 1/2. But it wasn't until yesterday that she noticed that all the "flowers" were gone. She asked me where they were and I told her Daddy picked them. She said what did he do with them? I tried to think quick and find an answer that wasn't a lie that wouldn't upset her, but I couldn't. So I told her the truth. Daddy threw them in the trash. Out came the tears! She was so upset. Then after she gets done crying. She says, "I'm gonna tell my Daddy why he threw away my flowers." In the most outraged 3 year old voice you can imagine. I had to hide my face I was trying so hard not to laugh. Later, I text my husband and told him what happened and suggested he bring her some flowers. He brought us both flowers. Here's a pic of my little one with the flowers he brought us! She is so funny and emotional! I just love it!

Great things I learned from my Dad (RIP)!

October 18th, 2011

He's been gone over a year now & for a while I've had trouble recalling good memories. I just thought of one while making my husband sandwiches for work. And so here I will jot down things I remember about my dad.

~As a child, I was going on a school field trip and was required to bring a lunch. However, the students or teachers, I'm not sure which, scared me about the mayo spoiling. This is what Dad had to say about it: "Put mayo on your sandwich if you want to. Then tomorrow when you go to have lunch, take a bite. If it doesn't taste good, don't eat it." That simple! I use this advice still to this day. I first look at and smell something before eating it. If it passes those tests, then I taste it. If it doesn't taste good I don't eat it!~

~Growing up we would sit around the patio table and sing songs. Old Hyms like 'The Battle Hymn of the Republic' or 'The Old Rugged Cross' or along with the country songs on the radio.~

October 23rd, 2011

~How to balance my checkbook. The old fashioned way.~

~How to change my oil, a tire, and work on cars.~

~How to season a cast iron skillet, and how to clean one.~

~How to make great french toast.~

October 26th, 2011

~How to ripen avocados.~

~How to make fabulous guacamole.~

November 7th, 2011
~Today on the radio, there was news of an applesauce supplier providing school cafeterias with moldy applesauce. They were talking about the weirdest things anyone had ever seen in a cafeteria. It reminded me of a time growing up when my Dad took a look at the school lunch menu and said, "I wouldn't feed half this stuff to the dog." I promptly remarked, "Yet you make us eat it everyday." He laughed but I still think we had to eat it.~

November 17th, 2011

~He taught me to love life. Here's two songs that remind me of him and his love for life. I Love by Tom T. Hall. And Chicken Fried by the Zac Brown Band. Enjoy!

January 30th, 2012

~How to snap.~

~How to whistle.~

February 28th, 2012

~How to wink ;) !~

~How to use a charcoal BBQ.~

Check out the similar post I wrote about my mom.

{Thought Provoking Quote}

The paradox is that the more one attempts to be who one is not, the more one remains the same. Put another way, change comes about as a result of "full acceptance of what is, rather than a striving to be different". ~Arnold Beisser

Garlic Parmesan Sauce {Recipe}

My favorite sauce on pizza is white sauce and when I make pizza at home I usually use Ragu's Garlic Parmesan Sauce. But as I try to improve my diet, I don't like what I read on the label, plus I was out the other night. So a quick internet search helped me find a fabulous recipe. I couldn't help but share with you.

~2 T butter
~1 T garlic powder
~2 T flour
~1 c chicken broth
~1/2 c milk {I used leftover cream from making whipped cream from scratch for the how to click here}
~salt and pepper to taste {I used about an 1/8th of a teaspoon each}

Place butter in sauce pan, melt. Add garlic powder, mix. Add flour, cook for 1 minute. Add broth and milk, whisking frequently. Cook until thickened. Add Parmesan cheese and salt n pepper. {The original recipe says it takes 5 minutes. That was not true for me. Even if it only took 2 minutes for most of the assembly, it took a long time to thicken.}You can see the original here.

Looking for a great pizza crust recipe, check out this one.

Garlic Herb Pizza Crusts {Recipe}

~3 c Whole Wheat Flour (Hard White Wheat preferably)
~1 (.25oz) pkg or 2 1/4 t active dry yeast
~2 tsp salt
~2 T Italian Seasoning
~2 1/2 T Garlic Powder
~1/4 c honey (can substitute for sugar)
~8 oz. milk
~4 oz. water

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease pizza pan. Combine dry ingredients in large mixing bowl.{See note below} Warm milk, water and honey to 110 degrees. {If using sugar add to dry ingredients}Add liquids to dry ingredients. Stir until well mixed. Remove the dough, oil the bowl, replace dough, and cover with a towel. Let rise for 20-25 minutes. Knead dough on clean floured surface 6-8 times. Add flour as necessary to keep from sticking. Roll into the desire shape and thickness. Place on pan, add sauce and toppings. Bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes, depending on thickness.

{Note} You may want to start with 2 to 2 1/2 cups flour, then add other dry ingredients and then wet. Continue to add the last half cup flour until the dough is not longer to sticky. This saves flour and prevents the dough from becoming too dry.

{Modified from a recipe on EasyPizzaCrusts.com}

Check out my favorite pizza sauce recipe.