Fudgesicles

All time kids friendly dessert....

Fudgesicles

1 package 4 oz instant chocolate pudding

2 cups milk

1/4 cup sugar

1 can evaporated milk

Combine pudding and 2 cups milk in large bowl. Mix for 2 minutes. Add 1/4 cup sugar and 1 can evaporated milk.

Pour into popsicle container. Allow to freeze.

Enjoy!!

Amanda

Amazing Lemons!

We all know that lemons make great lemonade, but did you know there are numerous other uses for them? Try these ideas the next time you have any extra lemons!

1. Remove ink spots from clothing. While ink is still wet, apply lemon juice liberally to the spot. Wash the garment in normal cycle with regular laundry detergent in cold water.

2. Get rid of dandruff. Shampoo hair, then rinse with water. Mix two tablespoons of lemon juice and 2 cups of water; pour through hair. Repeat every other day until dandruff disappears.

3. Deodorize a cutting board. Wash with lemon juice to rid a cutting board of the smell of garlic, onions, or fish.

4. Remove berry stains from hands. Rinse hands in the juice of fresh lemons.

5. Remove rust and mineral discolorations on cotton clothing. Use one cup of lemon juice in the washer.

6. Clean your microwave. Add 4 tablespoons of lemon juice to one cup water in a microwave-safe four cup bowl. Boil for five minutes in the microwave, allowing the steam to condense on the inside walls of the over. Then wipe clean.

7. Relieve a cough. Mix 4 tablespoons of lemon juice, one cup honey, and 1/2 cup olive oil. Heat 5 minutes then stir vigorously. Take one teaspoon every 2 hours.

8. Help soothe poison ivy. Applying lemon juice over the affected areas should soothe itching and alleviate the rash.

9. Train a dog to stop barking. Squirt a little lemon juice in the dog’s mouth and say “Quiet.”

10. Relieve rough hands or sore feet. Apply lemon juice, rinse, then massage with olive oil. Put on socks so you won’t slip on the floor.

11. Clean brass, copper, and stainless steel sinks. Make a paste with lemon juice and salt, scrub gently, then rinse well with water

Tips for Safer Housekeeping

Steps to "Safer" Housekeeping

* Spray all doorknobs, light switches and knobs and wipe down. I used straight
vinegar in a spray bottle with several drops of lavender shaken in. You can use
alcohol, peroxide (more below) or a spray of tea tree oil and distilled water.

* Use peroxide on faucets, kitchen and bathroom sinks, counters, worktables,
tubs nad toilets.

* Dissolve Borax in clean water and wipe down doorways, appliance handles, wipe
down surfaces, and mop the floors.

* Adding tea tree oil, lavender, or eucalyptus oil in my laundry. I add a few to
several drops as the machine is filling with water.

I'm sure there is lots more but these are some basics I am doing around here.

Another thing:
I already wash my hands so much I have to keep lotion around and now that I'm
doing that even more, I need more. I've started rubbing a small piece of coconut
oil on my hands and between my fingers. Instant softness!

Blessings,

Amanda

The Making of a Homemaker

tips from the experts

General
~
"The relations of woman to home and society have for generations been clearly defined. Her duty to herself and her relations to the community, the state, and the government, are later developments, peculiar to our era, and still in progress"
-Mary Gay Humphreys, The Woman's Book (1894)
~
"The first, most essential, and most practical part of female education is a thorough and personal knowledge of household duties."
-Mrs. L.G. Abell, Woman in her various relations (1853)
~
"Whatever may have been the cares of the day, greet your husband with a smile when he returns. Make your personal appearance just as beautiful as possible. Your dress may be made of calico, but neat. Let him enter rooms so attractive and sunny that all the recollections of his home, when away from the same, shall attract him back"
-Thomas E. Hill, Hill's Manual of Social and Business Forms (1881)
~
Dining
~
Graham Gems
One egg, one tablespoon molasses, two cups buttermilk, one teaspoon soda, a little salt, Graham enough to make a stiff batter. Bake in hot gem pans.
-Mrs. E. Stevens Tilton, Home Dissertations (1873)
~
Carolina Cake
One pound of sugar, quarter of a pound of butter, one pound of flour, half a pint of cream, one teaspoon of soda. Cream the sugar and buttter, work the flour smoothly in, next the cream, and lastely the soda, stir lightly and rapidly together, and bake quickly, in small patty-pans. Eat while fresh.
-Mrs. E. Stevens Tilton, Home Dissertations (1873)
~
Custard Pudding
Six eggs, one quart milk, six teaspoons sugar, heaped, salt and nutmeg to taste. Bake thirty minutes.
-Mrs. E. Stevens Tilton, Home Dissertations (1873)
~
"There are few things on which health and happiness depend more than on the manner in which food is cooked"
-Catharine Beecher and Harriet Beecher Stowe, American Woman's Home
(1869)
~
Etiquette
~
"A lady and gentleman should avoid evidences of undue familiarity in the presence of strangers. Couples who may evince a silly affection by overfondling of each other in public make themselves appear extremely ridiculous to all who may see them."
-Thomas E. Hill, Hill's Manual of Social and Business Forms (1881)
~
"Who does not delight in fine manners? Their charm cannot be predicted or over-stated"
-Mrs. E. Stevens Tilton, Home Dissertations (1873)
~
"Ladies can not make direct moves, but they use infinite tact in giving men occasions to make them"
-Ladies' parlor book and domestic keepsake (1853)
~
"For a love letter, good paper is indespensable. When it can be procured, that of a costly, gold-edged, perfumed, or ornamented in the French style, may be properly used . . . As all persons are more or less governed by first impressions and externals, the whole affair should be as neat and elegant as possible"
-Ladies' parlor book and domestic keepsake (1853)
~
Health
~
"Rise early. Eat simple food. Take plenty of exercise. Never fear a little fatigue."
-Mrs. Child, The American Frugal Housewife (1833)
~
"A raw onion is an excellent remedy for the sting of a wasp."
-Mrs. Child, The American Frugal Housewife (1833)
~
For Freckles: Scrape a teaspoon of horseradish into a cup of sour milk; let stand six hours before using. Apply to the freckles twice a day.
-The Woman's Book (1894)
~
"When a cold affects the head and eyes, and also impedes breathing through the nose, great relief is gained by a wet napkin spread over the upper part of the face, covering the nose, except an opening for breathing"
-Catharine Beecher and Harriet Beecher Stowe, American Woman's Home (1869)
~
Children
~
"One of the first things that the child should understand is that it should implicitly obey. The parent should therefore be very careful to give only such commands as should be observed, and then the order should be firmly but kindly enforced."
-Thomas E. Hill, Hill's Manual of Social and Business Forms (1881)
~
"Let not children be dressed in tight clothes; it is necessary their limbs and muscles should have full play, if you wish for either health or beauty"
-Mrs. Child, The American Frugal Housewife (1833)
~
"Try to keep children in a happy state of mind. Every one knows, by experience, that it is easier to do right and submit to rule when cheerful and happy, than when irritated"
-Catharine Beecher and Harriet Beecher Stowe, American Woman's Home (1869)
~
House and Home
~
"Ink spots: If soaked in warm milk before the ink has a chance to dry, the spot may usually be removed. If it has dried in, rub table-salt upon it, and drop lemon-juice upon the salt."
-Mrs. Child, The American Frugal Housewife (1833)
~
"A piece of stale bread will often remove finger-marks from wall-paper. Rub with the inside of the crust."
-The Woman's Book (1894)
~
To Clean Carpets: "If it needs cleaning all over, spread it on a clean floor, and rub on with a new broom, pared and grated raw potatoes. Dry perfectly"
-Ladies' parlor book and domestic keepsake (1853)
~
Décor and Fashion
~
"With your own work you can embellish at a cheap price, and yet very handsomely, if you have taste. Let the adorning of your private rooms be largely the work of your own hands."
-Thomas E. Hill, Hill's Manual of Social and Business Forms (1881)
~
"There is nothing more cheerless than a parlor in which no sign of habitation greets the visitor"
-Lida Rose McCabe, The Woman's Book (1894)
~
"Best taste will dictate an observance of fashion, avoiding extremes"
-Thomas E. Hill, Hill's Manual of Social and Business Forms (1881)
~
"Style of Bonnet: A person of a delicate pale complexion should wear a hat with a pink lining. A person of dark complexion should have white lining with rose trim"
-Ladies' parlor book and domestic keepsake (1853)

Being Frugal

Here are some various tips for saving:

• Do not do any impulse buying, and save for what you want instead of using credit cards.
  
• Shop thrift stores for clothes. You will be surprised at the bargains you can find. Or, make your own dresses/skirts. Patters are good investments since they can be used over and over.
  
• Use a clothes line to dry your clothes. Electric dryers can be costly. I cut my electric costs in half by hanging our clothes out.
  
  
• Always make a shopping list for the grocery store, and do not shop when you are hungry.
  
• Buy clothing that does not need drycleaning. Many items that are "dry-clean only" can be washed with Woolite.
  
• Use what what our grandmothers used to clean with: vinegar and baking soda. This will save you a bundle.
  
• Save leftover scraps of soap and put them in a jar with a little water for a handcleaner.
  
• Turn your thermostat down at night. Better yet, open the windows and leave it off until you can't stand the heat.
  
• Buy your husband a home repair book so he can learn to do those repairs himself. We just remodeled our rotten floor in the back bathroom and ended up having to do the biggest part of the work ourselves. :) We learned ALOT!!

There is great satisfaction and many rewards for spending less and using less, the most important being a stay-at-home wife and/or mother.You may even find that, instead of having less, you actually save money by working at home.

Dinner Under $.75 a plate

Chicken & Dumplings (chicken on sale) --------------4.00
Beans------------------------------------------------.25
Mac & Cheese---------------------------------------1.39
cornbread--------------------------------------------.25
*Potatoes* (free from seed potatoes)-----------------.00
Tea--------------------------------------------------.25
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Total cost -------------------------------------------$5.99

Oh, by the way....there is enough food left for me to send Jeff a plate to work and for us to have for lunch tomorrow. So, I will figure the cost on how many plates I can get out of this one meal (with everyone getting a small second helping.)

Grand Total of ------------------------------------- $.62 per plate

*We bought 20 lbs. of seed potatoes for the garden. After cutting off the eyes, I ended up salvaging 2 gallon jugs of peeled potatoes. We can get three meal per gallon. That is what you call frugal.

I challenge you to find ways of saving!!

Blessings,
Amanda

Fresh Baked White Bread

The third loaf had not gotten buttered yet.

Look how fluffy and aerated the center is.

This recipe makes two loaves of bread, however I made three out of it. The big loaf for Daddy's sandwiches and the smaller loaves for our sandwiches.

After giving away one loaf and eating a half of a loaf while it was fresh out of the oven, this is what we are left with.

Easy Access to Favorite Recipes

Tape your favorite recipes to the inside of your cupboards. I have my favorite baking recipes inside the cupboard next to where I bake and my favorite stovetop recipes inside that cupboard for easy access.

When I need to look at one on the bottom of the stack, I simply use a clothespin to hold the others up.