The Internet is full of neat ideas...too many in fact.  At times I feel like my head will implode and honestly, I spend more time filing and organizing than actually doing.  For many, I only remember them when it comes to cleaning, purging and organizing my online files.  Still, I continue to bookmark, save, print off and file so many cool tips hoping that a few will be put into practice.   So I am bringing forward some of these projects for next Christmas.  If this year is any indication of ideas accomplished it may be carried over several years after that. 

Here's Niki's "to try some Christmas" list:

Check out this post on numerous nifty homemade ornaments.  Surely to goodness I can find time between now and next December to whip out, better yet, find my glue gun to make at least one of these .

Since my kids already love to make a mess with paint, why not redirect them from recreating one of Picasso's masterpieces on my walls to an an actual craft.  What a concept, I know.  Look what sticky hand prints can tu ... Read More »

I still had some peach baskets left over from the summer's harvest.  I kept them knowing I could do something with them, and I did.

First I used them to carry over a loaf of sweet bread to my best friend.

 

I recently filled them with a batch of applesauce muffins for my healthy snack at Moms' club.  I always like to make a tag so people actually know what they are about to eat.

 

I am a little nervous posting this recipe.  I have made it so many times before and never had a problem but recently I have had two flops ... Read More »

We do the real tree thing, complete from picking it out and cutting it down from a local tree farm.  I like the fact that no pesticides are needed to cultivate most evergreens and what trees are cut are replaced every year with a new crop of seedlings.  Once the season is over they are gathered and mulched which can be obtained for groundcover the following spring.  I have nothing against fake trees and confess I nearly fell to the temptation many times.  Gathering up the family to cut down a tree is supposedly a fun filled afternoon with hot chocolate, carols and most of all an overall joyous mood.

I personally find the event rather stressful. 

The kids are cold, cran ... Read More »

One of my all time favourite shops to browse in would be a fabric store.  So many beautiful materials in various textures, rich colours and patterns beckon me to create something decorative and unique for my home.  One small problem... I haven't a bloody clue how to sew.  For some reason, I was either absent for the whole 12 weeks of Home Ec class or mentally I blacked out for a quarter of that year. 

Once, I tackled these "so called" easy swag panels and after 2 months of cursing, bloody fingers, 2 miles of stitches that needed to to be removed, I swore that was the end to my seamstress days.  I marvel at the work some women create and the use of such terms on patterns as easy, beginner, idiot proof and seriously! you can't be that stupid, taunt me into thinking that I may have the mental capacity to tackle this some day.

For now, I will resort to browsing the aisles of bold colourful fabrics, putting on an air to other shoppers that I actually have the foggiest idea what to do with them and fabric gluing every piece of material I come within a 5 mile radius with.  

For some strange reason I kept these wonderful links in m ... Read More »

In addition to the creative gift my husband gave me,  I also received a new coffee maker from my parents.  This machine is different because it does not have a glass carafe, rather a simple dispensing spout. I have had numerous machines over the course of my life and not one was totally leak proof.  No matter how careful I was or how I held my tongue, coffee somehow pooled under the spout.  This eliminates all of the mess plus the need to constantly clean the pot. 

With this new little gadget I finally decided to put some of these great tips I got via Momadvice.  Every Thursday she posts her notebook entries, from this compiled list there are dozens of neat ideas that would appeal to everyone.   Recently she started to ask her readers to post about a particular entry after trying to out.  The hardest part was picking one but finally Read More »

Several weeks ago I reluctantly celebrated my 32rd birthday.  Normally we don't go all out for birthdays, rather a small token or  gesture is enough to commemorate the day. 

Some time ago I mentioned to my hubby how I would love to get some new perfume.  For 16 years I have been working in an office environment which normally would implement a "no scent" policy.  I have relied on my surf scented deodorant for over a decade and now that I am home with the kids I would love nothing more than something other than eau de baby powder.  When I started to look at the different fragrances I was overwhelmed at the sheer volume of brands that lined the shelves and you can only squirt so many on before your nasal passages shut down.  

Read More »

Normally my muffins barely make it out of the oven before they are devoured by the vulchers, otherwise referred to as my family.  No matter how quickly they are eaten you are still left with the large dirty pans after the fun part of consuming them is over.  As most of you know, muffin liners stick to warm baked goods and must be thoroughly cooled before attempting to peel and that is exactly where the problem arises.  My kids...Ok, OK! and myself cannot wait for that to happen, so I have been avoiding this practice.  Honestly making muffins means a messy pan and that in turn means I am stuck having to soak and scrub them.  That alone is enough to discourage me from making a batch on a regular basis so I was hoping liners would give me the much needed break without resorting to muffin strike.

Recently I ran across these silicone muffin liners at the local dollar store.  They are inexpensive and best of all reusable and result in minimal mess for mom to contend with.  Downfall (of course there has to be one) I am sure there must be something in these to make it unsafe to bake muffins in.  Lately, it seems everything has a toxin in it and although nothing was listed I can bet my bottom it's not good.&n ... Read More »

I wrote on this topic some time ago but I feel the need to revisit this because of what I witnessed several times over the past week.

I was grocery shopping and I saw several people with brand name pancake syrup sitting in their cart.  I wanted to jump in front of them, take off running with the jar and never look back.  These people need an intervention of the Aunt Jemima kind.

If you are buying 100% pure maple syrup I can see some advantages but the artificial kind is no different than making your own and adding some maple flavouring.  Not only is in simple and easy it is very cheap, I am talking pennies. 

Check out this link for the whole journey to fooling my dad into thinking he was eating the "real" stuff all along.

I would love to have chickens. We have a farm with horses, a neurotic Great Dane, a guinea pig called Sheldon and numerous mice in the barn. 

But no chickens.

 

Why you ask? My Mother is dead set against them.  I no more get "Why can't we get Chick......" before I get the evil eye and the subsequent zip your lip.  There is no negotiations on this one and despite my slow picking away (pardon the pun) she is not caving.  No chickens for me which means no eggs either.  I currently purchase our supply from a fellow co-worker of my husband and I am not joking when I say th ... Read More »