Buttons and Earrings - Who Knew?!?

There have been a rapid succession of long, albeit good, days interspersed with days I am too sick to be out of bed for more than a few minutes.  I promise I am still here and in a different way am still counting my blessings but I am also looking forward to getting back into a routine and finding health again and writing about all of that here.  

For today, here is something I saw on fb that I wanted to pin.  It's a brilliant idea really and in addition to keeping pairs together while traveling or even in a jewelry box, it would make picking up small earrings easier for fingers that aren't quite as nimble as they once were.  

Random Ideas To Pin

A beautiful braided bun.  I might like to do this with Angelica for a competition or formal.  

A less messy way to enjoy caramel apples.  Cut apples in half, core them, balance on a muffin tin, pour in melted caramel, let cool, slice and serve.  YUM!

Handy pocket to place small electronics in while charging.  It wouldn't take up much space while traveling. 

How to check eggs.  I know this works as I've tested eggs this way before.  

Cute penguin snack. 

Fun idea for serving snacks for toddlers that eliminates the concern of giving them too much food.

Things to Pin

Frickles

1 pkg egg roll wrappers

1 jar pickle spears

1 pkg thin sliced ham, beef or turkey

1 pkg cream cheese

Heat oil in a shallow pan.

Layer an egg roll wrap diagonally with slice of meat, cream cheese and a pickle spear. Roll as you would an egg roll (from the diagonal, tucking in the sides as you roll.) Lay in pan, seam down then turning till cooked golden brown. 

A plan to garden in a small yard.  

A simple and neat(er) way to cut and serve watermelon.   

Kitchen Hacks

Here are a couple of easy life hacks I came across on fb today and wanted to be able to pin so I can find them when I want them.  

Fruit Palm Trees and Teddy Bear Toast

Just a couple of things I saw on fb and wanted to be able to pin.

Easter Garden

It's good to be home. (#299) I am thankful that the cough I had on Friday didn't turn into anything more. (#300) For Miracle and I, today was calm. (#301) Miracle didn't leave the house at all and I only went out to see my favorite chiropractor.  (#302) Angelica had to go to class and was a bit stressed because the events of the weekend didn't allow her time to complete an assignment.  Thankfully, she was given a reprieve from the professor and will turn it in on Thursday. (#303) I look around at my house and it looks worse than it did this morning rather than better.  What I see completely contradicts what I know to be true; namely that I accomplished quite a bit today. (#304)

And then there's this that I saw on fb and wanted to pin... 

Lent: bookcase, storage boxes, bandana

Make Shift Diapers and Other Things :)

Today was good. (#257) There's nothing that stands out as making it good, but it was.  I was productive again, getting some paperwork done. (#258) Angelica was able to go to church and she took Doc with her. (#259) Doc is reading much faster and doing math without as much struggle. (#260) She also had to list as many words she could think of in 5 minutes for one assignment.  She came up with a sizable list and only misspelled one! (#261) I am so proud of her and how hard she is working to catch up!

Now for some comic relief...

Around 3, Miracle came upstairs with Busy Bee to get something and accidentally locked them out of their apartment so we all stayed upstairs this evening.  We had fun figuring out how to fashion a diaper from what we had on hand.  In the end, we used a t-shirt like they describe in this tutorial.  Ours didn't turn out quite so perfectly, but being as it has been 18 years since I last tried to "create" a diaper from things around the house, I think it turned out pretty good.  At least it did the job.  ;)

Lent: clothes

This and That - #200-204

Today is one of those hard days to find what I am thankful for.  I am tired and achy and realized today that by the very nature of the words degenerative disease, I am likely never going to be better than I am today.  That is a hard thing to swallow.  On Friday, I received word that the government has finally decided I am disabled.  This news was initially received with enthusiasm but it has begun to sink in that I am truly disabled.  It's not like I needed someone to tell me this.  I already knew it, but there is something about being told this by someone else that makes it more real.  

Today I had an appointment and then sat downstairs while M watched the little girls. I am thankful for that although I don't know how to put into words exactly what I am thankful for. (#200) Then I enjoyed a quiet evening dozing on the couch while I was home alone. (#201) M came home excited about Mary Kay possibilities. (#202) A came home talking about skating and other things. (#203) I am so very thankful that both my girls still value my opinion and just like to tell me about the moments in their days. (#204)

Here are a few things I saw on fb in the past few days...

How to dye eggs naturally.

I followed this one all the way back to the fb page it was originally posted on, Real Food Whole Health, but since I can't pin from fb, I am sharing it here.

While I was looking for the eggs, I stumbled across this.  

Lent: shoes

Rainbow Fan

I think I might do this.

Today I am thankful for sleep. (#198) I woke up at 9, went back to bed at 10, woke up at 1:30, went back to bed at 2:30, woke up at 7, dozed until the girls got home at 9 and am headed back to bed in a few minutes.  Obviously my body is fighting something.  I am also thankful for friendship, (#199) even if I have been banned from bringing gifts to future birthday parties. Apparently giving toy swords to a three year old who has two older brothers is a bad idea.  LOL

Lent: play swords

Dolphin Snack

I saw this on fb and it was too cute not to pin and share!

Lent: envelope and stamp

Candy Baskets and My Day - #150-154

Another cute idea I saw on fb that I want to pin....

Today I was able to sleep in a bit. (#150) The sun was shining and even though it was quite windy, I was able to spend some time outdoors. (#151) I am also thankful that I have a wheelchair to make getting around a bit less painful. (#152) I am thankful that my girls are both willing (#153) and able (#154) to make dinner and help out around the house.

Lent: Play-doh

Vegetable Skeleton

Cute idea I saw on fb.  It's funny though that when I look at a picture like this I am immediately aware of whatever A is allergic to (mushrooms, tomatoes, black olives, peas, and ingredients in dressing) and then make substitutions in my mind.  ;)

Lent:  a skirt and a pair of pants, a vase and some marbles

Garden Mailbox

Another idea from fb to pin... not sure if it would be big enough to do any good but it's a cute idea anyway.  :)

Pallet Garden

Here's another one that I saw on fb and wanted to pin....

Got Pallets? Hate weeding? Don't feel like turning up a bunch of grass? Use a pallet as a garden bed - staple garden cloth on the backside of the pallet fill with dirt and start growing!

Randomness

I saw this on fb and tried to pin it, but apparently fb doesn't play well with others... you can post to fb from pinterest but not the other way around.  I want to remember it, so here it is.  Pin away!

HOW TO CLEAN YOUR MATTRESS:

Pour about 1 cup of baking soda into a Mason jar & drop in 4 drops of lavender essential oil. Put on lid & shake jar. Using a kitchen strainer, sprinkle the baking soda mixture all over the mattress & let it sit for an hour or more. Thoroughly vacuum the mattress. Bye, bye dust mites, & other nasty things. The baking soda helps draw up any moisture & deep dirtiness. It deodorizes & leaves the mattress smelling fresh & clean.  

And then I saw this.

Solar light attached to upside down clay pot adds inexpensive lighting to your porch and yard! Great for camping!!

I haven't tried either one, but they seem straight forward enough.  If any of you try them out and find they do or don't work, please let me know.  :)

In other news, Angelica's skates came in the mail today. (#109) To say that she is excited is a HUGE understatement!  She has been itching to get back on the ice.  She made the decision last spring, got a job as soon as we were home from Our Grand Adventure, and saved all of her earnings until she had the money to buy the skates.  I am thankful that she has learned money management and the value of hard work. (#110)

Also, she took me in to the city for physical therapy today and while I was there, she went to buy a pair of shoes she had been wanting for prom.  They had been on clearance so she was concerned that they wouldn't be there.  Not only were they still there, she got an extra 20% off because of the generosity of a stranger!  (#111) A few weeks ago, we bought her dress for $25 through a fund raising event for a local homeless shelter.  What a blessing!  Both to be blessed and get such a beautiful dress for so little money (#112) and to be a part of a bigger picture that contributes to the care of the homeless in our community.  (#113)

And just because it made me smile... the humidity between the glass in our living room windows created the shape of a ghost.  It made me think of Busy Bee's newest English word.  She will say "pookeee" and act scared before bursting into giggles.  Anything that makes me smile is something to be thankful for.  (#114)

It Worked For Me Wednesday!

Angelica here.  Mom's not  feeling well, so I'm doing the It Worked For Me Wednesday. I'm going to highlight a recipe from my Pinterest.  A few days ago, I had a friend over and we really wanted some cookie dough.  So, we Googled and found this recipe.  Today, we decided to make it again, seeing as how it was so good. One recipe of chocolate chip and one of sugar cookie.   

It Worked For Me! Wednesday - glitter shoes

Do you remember my post about homecoming?   As I said there, Miracle wanted to make a pair of glittered shoes for the event. 

So, I looked on Pinterest and found a tutorial.

Step 1:  Gather shoes, glitter, tacky glue, and paintbrushes.  Either go outside or find a way to protect the area and contain the mess.  

Step 2: Paint a section of the shoe with glue and cover in glitter.  

Admire and wear the finished product!

Things we learned:

1. Actual glue works better than the spray kind.
2. Use both the glue and the glitter generously.   
3. Work in small sections so the glue doesn't dry before the glitter is applied.  
4. A spoon is helpful when sprinkling the glitter on the shoes.
5. The texture of dress shoes hold the glitter better than canvas in the end.  The canvas shoes lose glitter every time they are worn.  
6. Fine textured glitter makes a more formal looking product.  We used regular size glitter found at Hobby Lobby.  They also carry fine glitter.  Next time we do this, I will buy the other glitter.
7. Everyone will comment.  Be prepared to graciously explain how you made the shoes when you wear them.  

It Worked For Me! Wednesday

Last time Angelica was in the hospital, a friend couldn't get in our apartment to get some things we needed.  I wished that there was an easy way to tell her which key to use.  So, when I found this on Pinterest, I knew the idea was for me.  Now I don't have to remember which shape a key is.  All I have to do is look down at my keys and tell someone what color key to use.  LOVE IT!!

It Worked For Me! Wednesday

I have actually used this site several times.  A few weeks ago, I rearranged the girls' room twice in as many days.  Then, a few weeks later, someone gave the girls a really nice king size bed so we had to rearrange their room again and find space for the twin bed that was being displaced until their bunk beds sold.  So... we opted to use the bed like a day bed and increase seating space in the living room.  

I love this site!  It makes rearranging so much easier.  Even if you are moving into a new house, so long as you know the dimensions of the rooms and furniture, you can plan the arrangement of rooms ahead of time and print out the diagrams to make moving day easier.  No guesswork, no mistakes, and no need for re-dos.  (Unless of course, you happen to have a teenage daughter who can't make up her mind!)

It Worked For Me! Wednesday

I clicked on this link on Pinterest because I expected to find a new, prettier way to fold sheet sets that keeps them together neatly no matter how many times the closet gets rummaged through. What I found was a bit of encouragement. You see, when I was in my twenties, I figured out that it would be smart to fold the sheets inside the matching pillow case so that sets were easy to find. This site gave four different ways of folding sheet sets and one of those was the way I already do.

So I felt smart because I had already come up with that idea on my own. They give a whole tutorial of how to fold sheets. If that's what you're looking for, head on over. What I got, though, was better than a tutorial. It was a healthy dose of self-esteem.