B-Movie Star

So it's summer, and the insects are out in full swing - and that includes those pesky mosquitoes! Man, I hate those things! I know when you go out early in the morning or in the evening to do your gardening, watering, what-have-you, because you're trying to beat the heat - THAT'S when those little buggers are most active! Guess you can't win - you're either hot or bitten, take your pick!

I know there are plenty of insect repellents on the market, but most of them seem kinda "iffy" as far as the chemicals they are using. I hate when they leave you smelling so unpleasant and feeling greasy. If you don't shower right away the smell can get on your furniture or bed clothes . . . yuck! Here are a few ideas that I ran across at Re-nest to keep the mosquitoes away:

1. Make friends with bats. Some bat species can eat up to 1,000 mosquitoes in an hour! You can attract these beneficial bug eaters by installing a bat house in your yard. Visit Bat Conservation International for installation advice and to buy a shelter or get plans to build your own.

2. Grow catnip (and other plants). Plant some catnip (Nepeta cataria) in your garden; not only will it repel mosquitoes, but you'll get some pretty flowers, too. Other mosquito-repelling plants include rosemary, marigolds, citronella grass, and lemon balm.

3. Light a candle. If you're averse or allergic to citronella, or want something more beautiful (and, yes, more expensive) than the typical citronella candle bucket, you might like these mosquito repellent candles from Hillhouse Naturals. Made with soy and ingredients like eucalyptus, lemongrass, and mint, they come in concrete containers that can be reused as planters.

4. Buy a natural bug repellent. Conventional repellents contain the chemical DEET, which may be toxic and harmful to the environment. We've had good luck with the plant-based Repel Lemon Eucalyptus. For more alternatives, see the Daily Green's list of 7 Natural Insect Repellents.

5. Or blend your own. For a DIY mosquito repellent, you'll need essential oil and something to mix it with, like vodka, olive oil, or witch hazel. For best results, combine a few different essential oils such as lemon eucalyptus, citronella, cinnamon, cedarwood, and juniper.

They have a recipe at Mother Earth News if you feel like making your own repellent:

Herbal Insect Repellent

2 1/2 teaspoons total of any combination of the following essential oils: basil, cedarwood, citronella, juniper, lemon, myrrh, palmarosa, pine, rose geranium and/or rosemary (available at health food stores)

1 cup 190-proof grain alcohol (available in liquor stores)

Place ingredients in a jar with a tight-fitting lid and shake vigorously. Transfer to small bottles for storage. To use, rub a small amount on any exposed skin (test first to be sure your skin will not be adversely affected by the repellent) or dab it on clothing.

Experiment a little to find which essential oils work best with your body chemistry. If you’re lucky, you also will like the way they smell; otherwise, add a few drops of peppermint oil to fine-tune the fragrance.

And if you're feeling REALLY inspired and crafty here's a recipe from Positively Splendid, via  Tip Nut so you can make your own repellent candles (click on the image to go directly to the tutorial!)Good luck - I hope this helps keep you bite free this summer!

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I just happened to run across these two different ways to make your own flowers - they won't wilt and you can even give them as gifts!

The first one is no sew flowers from Made: A Creative Collection. These no sew flowers are so cute and I can think of a million variations of these that would be so cute. I'm putting them on my list to do this summer! Click on the link to get to the tutorial to make them yourself.

The other project - also going on my to do list - is this CUTE cork board with paper flower tacks. Oh. my. gosh. I find this so adorable! This idea and tutorial comes from Greenbean's Crafterole.  Both of these projects are soooo easy! What are you waiting for!? Go get the glue gun!

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A Very Special June Designing Duo (x2)

Tiger Lily's Digis, Tink's Trinkets, Fr Designs, lotte + line design, & Sugar Moon Designs have teamed up to create a fun and vibrant summer grab bag.

There are 4 mini kits, 2 alphas, and a pack of solid papers.
From now until June 6th it is on special for $3.50.
After the 6th the price will be $5.

Here are some close up images of what's inside the Grab Bag:

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I ran across this today, and I just love the idea. I love doing little kind annonymous things like this - it probably gives me way more happiness than the person who is on the recieving end - that is the great thing about kindness though, it comes back to you so quickly and is usually doubled in size.  If you want to download a free copy of the Kindness Lolli-Flowers head over to kind over matter and you can, as they say, "Leave them around town, on door steps, you or your children can pass them out to your neighbors, give them to your grocery store or post office clerks, teachers - & the list goes on! Just print, cut, insert your favorite lollipop -- & give!"

So simple and wonderful - head over there!!!!

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I love Kiwis, but everytime I peel them, they end up looking a little mangled.  Today I ran across this most ingenious technique to remove the fuzzy skin and I thought I would share it with you!

How do you go from this:

to this:

well, I can't give away the secret! You'll just have to click and zip over to Our Best Bites for the, so- simple -why -didn't- I- think- of- this, answer. Or maybe you already knew it and I'm the last to know. That's happened before. Well, it's still pretty cool! Go check it out!

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Here's a really sunny recipe that Gabby and I made the other day.  It turned out really good - better than we expected, and it didn't last very long around here. I found the recipe on the Taste of Home website, so you know it's good, right? Okay, so it's not the most health conscious recipe, but for a spring brunch, let's say, it's good!

Lemon Bar Trifle

Ingredients

* 2 cups all-purpose flour
* 1 cup chopped pecans
* 1 cup butter, melted

LEMON LAYER:
* 1-1/2 cups sugar
* 1/4 cup cornstarch
* 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
* 1-3/4 cups cold water
* 3 egg yolks, beaten
* 2/3 cup lemon juice
* 2 tablespoons butter
* 4 teaspoons grated lemon peel

CREAM CHEESE LAYER:
* 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
* 3 cups confectioners' sugar
* 1 carton (8 ounces) frozen whipped topping, thawed

Directions
* In a small bowl, combine flour and pecans; stir in butter. Press into an ungreased 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish. Bake at 350° for 18-20 minutes or until light golden brown. Cool on a wire rack.
* In a small heavy saucepan, combine the sugar, cornstarch and flour. Stir in water until smooth. Cook and stir over medium-high heat until thickened and bubbly. Reduce heat; cook and stir 2 minutes longer.
* Remove from the heat. Stir a small amount of hot mixture into egg yolks; return all to the pan, stirring constantly. Bring to a gentle boil; cook and stir 2 minutes longer. Remove from the heat. Gently stir in the lemon juice, butter and lemon peel.
* Transfer to a large bowl. Cool to room temperature without stirring. Cover surface with waxed paper; refrigerate until chilled.
* In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and confectioners' sugar until smooth. Fold in whipped topping. Crumble the baked pecan mixture; set aside 1/2 cup for topping.
* Just before serving, in a 3-qt. trifle bowl, layer 1 cup each pecan mixture, lemon mixture and cream cheese mixture. Repeat layers twice. Sprinkle with reserved pecan mixture. Refrigerate leftovers. Yield: 9 servings.

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They don't know what a road is yet, so they don't know why they would cross it.

You've heard of bats in your belfry right? Well have you heard of chickens in your laundry room? Well, that's what I have right now, and let me tell you I'm getting pretty tired of it! I told you that we had hens sitting on eggs and that one batch of eggs hatched - well that was exciting and everything - then we had a couple more eggs hatch but the hen wasn't taking care of the chicks and we lost some chicks. It was very stressful! It was really too cold for the hens to be hatching chicks - plus the cold forced all the chickens to be literally "cooped up" together and I think that was also a factor in losing a couple of the chicks. After  losing a couple chicks we finally went out and gathered up all the eggs that the hens were setting on, as well as the chicks, and brought them into the laundry room. We candled the eggs and put the ones we thought were fertile under a heat lamp. I know you're supposed to have an incubator but I was just going to try it the old fashioned way and if they didn't hatch, well, they didn't hatch.  Lo, and behold we've had eggs hatch in our primitive little set up!

And now, I am ready for the chicks to go back out to the coop.  They are cute when they're little, but then they start to go through that ugly stage and they start to smell pretty bad. It's also been a task to have to keep an eye on the eggs - they have to be turned three times a day. Luckily, the due date for the eggs has passed and the ones that didn't hatch are gone! It was pretty miraculous to watch a chick peck it's way out of an egg shell, I have to say, but next time any eggs hatch around here I want it to be during warm weather where the mama hen can raise her own babies. I've most certainly learned a lot from this experience!

We've ended up with seven chicks and right now they are in all stages of growth. The two largest ones are funny - one of them is a rooster (sigh) and he's already jumping up on the tops of the boxes and gates that we have him in. He looks so cute and funny perched there, trying to be all impressive and tough. The other ones are still too little to tell what they are. The smallest one was hatched on January 2nd. We thought he was going to die. Seriously, his little head just flopped around and when you put him down he would roll over and go "belly up". When I went to bed that night, I was sure that I would wake up and he would be dead.  Nathaniel had put a little crucifix next to the chicks - it has a Saint Benedict's medal in it, and in the morning the chick was up and looking like he could take on the world. It was astounding. We decided that we should name the little guy "Benechick,"  (yes, we are pretty crazy around here if you hadn't already surmised that).

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I love the smell of cinnamon and spices around Christmastime.  It's especially nice when the weather has been bad and every one's been cooped up in the house. My sister used to make these cinnamon-applesauce ornaments. They smell wonderful, and if the scent of them begins to fade, you can just add a bit of cinnamon oil to them and renew their fragrance. Another cool thing about them is that you can use them for so many things! My sister made wreaths out of them, tree ornaments, and swag decorations. You could also use them as scented drawer fresheners (with your kitchen towels might be nice) or you could even use paint pens and make gift tags with them! They are super easy to make so it would be a great project to do with kids - plus it's inexpensive! Wow, this could possibly be the perfect Christmas activity!

I think these decorations look great plain - they have that "rustic" feel, or you could decorate them to the hilt with glitter and paint, or use royal icing to make them look like storybook gingerbread decorations. Here is the basic recipe, and I've included a royal icing recipe - it dries hard and will last!

CINNAMON DOUGH ORNAMENTS

Ingredients:

* 1 1/2 cups ground cinnamon
* 1 cup applesauce
* 1/4 cup white school glue (like Elmer's)
* Plastic wrap
* Rolling pin
* Wax paper
* Cookie cutters or a knife
* Ribbon or yarn for hanging
* Straw

1. Mix cinnamon, applesauce, and glue together in a bowl. The dough should be as thick as cookie dough. Add a bit of water if the dough is too stiff.
2. Remove from bowl and knead until everything is mixed together well. Return dough to the bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let sit for about 30 minutes.
3. Knead again to make sure the dough is smooth. Flatten or roll the dough between waxed paper until it's roughly 1/4 to 1/8 inch thick.
4. With a cookie cutter, cut out desired shapes. Use a straw to punch a hole for the ribbon.
5. Carefully transfer the cookies to a piece of wax paper. They will take a couple of days to dry. You can speed up the drying by setting the ornaments in a 200 - 250 degree oven until dry. Just keep a close eye and don't let them burn!

ROYAL ICING

* 3 ounces egg whites (or 3 Tbsp. meringue powder plus 6 Tbsp. water)
* 1 tsp. vanilla
* 4 cups powdered sugar

1. In large bowl the egg whites (or meringue powder and water) and vanilla and beat until frothy.
2. Gradually add powdered sugar and mix on low speed until sugar is incorporated and mixture is shiny.
3. Turn speed up to high and beat until mixture forms stiff, glossy peaks. This should take approximately 5 to 7 minutes. Add food coloring, if desired.
4. Transfer icing to pastry bag or heavy duty ziploc bag and pipe as desired.

Here's a wreath that you could make - just use hot glue!

Or a nice garland - add oranges, cinnamon sticks, and bay leaves for a "scentsational" decoration

Here's one of those "gifts in jar" that are really popular around Christmas - I think it would be adorable to tie one of these cinnamon decorations to the lid as a gift tag.

I also saw this photo, now I'm not crazy about the actual arrangement, but it gave me the idea that you could use these cinnamon ornaments in a flower or plant arrangement - hot glue the ornament to a stake and insert.  This photo is cute because you could make a small arrangement in a large measuring cup, add some measuring spoons and maybe a hot pad, and a recipe for apple cinnamon crisp and VOILA - adorable gift for a neighbor! (Don't forget to add your cinnamon decoration gift tag!)

Lastly, don't forget the glitter, which really, makes everything much better. If you come up with some more ideas on how to use these, I'd love to hear them!

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I have seen some fabulous wreaths on the internet, and all of them you can make for yourself! Which one do you like best? I just can't decide!

This first wreath is made from paper - the tutorial to make it is at The Red Thread

Another really lovely paper wreath is from Razzle Dazzle Crafting - I love the texture on this one:

This charming rag wreath made from strips of fabric comes from Create Studio - this would look so cute with a rustic theme Christmas!

Instead of cloth, how about making a lovely wreath out of cranberries! So beautiful! There is a tutorial to make yourself one at The Idea Room

Another wreath that looks good enough to eat - BUT ISN"T! is this fun gumdrop wreath from A Pretty Cool life.

Here is another really fun and easy wreath from Better Homes and Gardening - this would be so easy to make, and it looks so adorable!

Lastly, one of my favorite ones - because my grandma used to have one of these and I always loved it, a Christmas bulb wreath. Eddie Ross shows you how to make this one and it's a lot more easy than it looks! His turned out just gorgeous!

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Every year in our area the Salvation Army has a Thanksgiving Dinner for anyone who wants to attend. Local businesses in the area donate the food and volunteers serve the meal. I'm sure in every area it's different. One year when I lived in a larger town, the dinner was held in a large auditorium and we worked on a "cafeteria style" line, serving food as people carried their tray along.  I live in a smaller area now and the Salvation Army Dinner is held at the local Applebees Restaurant. The Restaurant donates it's facility and many of it's staff members.  Not only can anyone come to the restaurant and eat Thanksgiving Dinner, there is also a delivery service. People call in and volunteers drive hot meals to their homes.

It's such a wonderful thing to be part of. Everyone is coming together -  you feel a happy sense of cammeraderie with all the volunteers and people who come to eat the meal. When we volunteer we all go as a family. I've noticed that  many people bring their children to volunteer too. The kids love to serve drinks or bus tables - whatever is needed for them to do.  It's such a great way to teach kids the wonderful message of sharing and caring for everyone in our world!

If you don't have anyone who wants to volunteer with you, don't let that stop you! I'm a pretty shy person (before you get to know me) but there was never time for that when I volunteered. You're so busy working and everyone was so friendly, it was easy to feel right at home. I think the thing that surprised me about working at the dinners is how many people are alone on the holidays. Many of them can afford to buy a dinner, they just don't have anyone to share it with. I think that's so sad, and I'm so happy that there is someplace for people to go where they won't be alone on a holiday. Many people who ate the dinners would donate to the Salvation Army, but of course this isn't necessary at all - they just wanted to help out too!

I highly recommend incorporating this tradition of  "Giving" into your own Thanksgiving Day. The Salvation Army website has lot of information about volunteering, and I'm sure that there are plenty of other organizations in your particular area that is working this holiday to share food, company and a bit of happiness with others in the community. Really - you will not regret it. We usually volunteer to work in the early morning or early afternoon and there's still plenty of time to go home and enjoy a Thanksgiving Dinner with your family!

There is nothing like volunteering to help others to make you clearly see how much you have to be thankful for in your own life!

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