Tips from Cherry Doll Face

I really have been looking for a new way to "be me" and have a different look. I have always loved the 50's styles and now! Thanks to The Cherry Doll Face, i am going to start transform myself using her tips and videos. 

I have a wedding coming up this weekend and i went to Kohl's got this beautiful "Vintage Dream" dress by Lauren Conrad. I want to do my hair like this! 

This is a great tutorial on how to do your hair!

I will not be doing my make up EXACTLY this way. but this is the general idea i am going to be going for! I want to have more of a Vintage Glam, and less of a Pin up.

Okay soo i forgot to take a picture! Stinks... once i find one or do it again i will be sure to update it!!!

22 Rainy Day Activities :Updated!

ITS RAINING TODAY and I love rainy days. Not only does it water my yard and garden but I love the way it sounds, smells and how it seems to clean everything. Love it! The only thing I don't like about rainy days is that now that I have my son, who is now 3 1/2 years old seems the TV gets turned on. we have some pop corn and just have a lazy day... Well NOT TODAY! I feel like I need to turn off that TV - Turn off that computer and make a fort. Play, dance and be silly with my little man. He has so much at his fingertips and the TV isn't going to let him grow, learn and eventually not just reach for the stars but be a STAR!

- I threw this Blog together in about 45 mins. in between playing with my son and cleaning up the house, don't make excuses on why things cant get done. They will get done if you want them to. there's always options!!-- 

So if you haven't showered mom, do it now... or wait, BUT Get yourself ready to have some fun. 

Activity #1 : Singing in the Rain 
- Since it is already raining. go get your boots on... or take them off and go play in the puddles and mud with your kids! The temp. needs to be no cooler than 38 degrees F outside, So they don't freeze!!! Puddles and mud every kid likes. Don't let them not be silly and themselves just because you don't want them to get dirty. Join in the FUN! Sing, Dance, and play in the rain!

Activity #2: FORT
Its time to get your dinning room tables, pillows and blankets out for an amazing tent! Boys love it, Girls love it, moms and dads love it... so make it! Leave it up the entire day... clean it up when its dinner or bed time. FUN FUN. Do I really need to go into a tutorial?

Activity #3: Make a play city!
Grab some tape and tape roads and places onto the floor. Use your Cars and Blocks to build a city. Have a cool car rack you could pretend play. Super fun, Easy Clean up!

our Blocks :)

Activity #4: BLOCKS! 
Grab your kids blocks and build! This little "Game" catches my sons eye for about 45 mins. Longer if i play along. You can even make A play city with the blocks and put your match box cars in. It is fun and time consuming either way!

Activity #5 : Finger Painting
Finger painting on Paper Plates!

Activity #6: Coloring
Grab a coloring book and go to town, make one for every one you know and place it in a folder. When you see them, give it to them. Make your 3 year old very proud of his work.

Activity #7: Baking 
Make your own packages (recipe here) and Mix up some cookies with your kiddo. They love seeing and tasting the results (so does daddy). Again, this will  make your child very proud of his/her work that he has accomplished!

Activity #8: Cloud Dough
Cloud dough is so much fun! there are so many cool things about cloud dough, it feels cool. Smells cool. And if you keep it in a Gallon Zip lock baggie it lasts you a long time to use over and over! This will keep my son busy for about 30 minutes. Click this link here to get recipe. 

Activity #9:Play Dough
Making play dough is not only cheaper but it is a lot more fun to do at home! Making play dough is something your kids will love! they get to make the coolest thing in the world right in their kitchen! Click this link to get recipe. 

Activity #10: Cleaning games & fun
Okay. Fun cleaning games are not hard to find. Its all about mamma or baby sitters attitude towards the game. Grab a kitchen timer. set it for 3 minutes. Grab some cookies or some candy. Less that 10 more than 5. When the timer goes off and the floor is picked up give them all of the candies! If not subtract the candy to the amount of toys left on the floor. This will help motivate them to get their toys picked up and their room cleaned. My son really loves this game. 

Activity #11: Make Stamps!

Making stamps is really easy. All you need are some bottle tops, Foam sticky figures and shapes, stick them on the top of the bottle top and dip in paint. Super easy, super fun! Here for tutorial.

Activity #12: Dance PARTY!
Go to www.aol.com or www.klove.com and click the radio on the top right corner. Turn on some awesome free music! Turn off TV's put your hair all crazy and get them dancing! Moms always say "no running in the house" but in this case, chase each other and tickle. Even do a tango dance with your kiddo in your hands. 

Activity #13: Rice Play
Rice is a great sensory play for kids. It is okay to eat, not always suggested but its obviously non toxic. Poor your rice into a cake pan with measuring cups and spoons. Make sure the kiddos know the rules but it is a cool fun game and it will really get their attention! 

Activity #14: Mommy gets a make over 
Since i have a boy, i don't always like it when he puts make up on. He LOVES my make up so... today I'm letting him put make up on me! Its a fun thing for him and a cool bonding experience for us and Maybe ill let him put some on too!  ... MAYBE

Activity #15: STORY TIME
Grab your books, get in your fort and start reading! 

Activity #16: Grocery Store
Make a trip the the dollar or grocery store. Make a short list. Make sure you have your deals from. www.couponmom.com and your coupons from www.coupons.com and go! But SAVE YOUR MONEY! don't just go and spend $50 on junk you don't need! Be smart moms!

Activity #17: Zip lock Painting
Fill a Gallon Zip lock bag with finger paint, let them go to town! Just no scratching the bag, it will break. Tape it to a sliding door or window. Let them play! Mess FREE! Tutorial Here

Activity #18: Car ride 
If the sun does or does not come out. GO FOR A DRIVE! These are fun to do. go down dirt roads, ways you have never taken before. Doesn't have to be long but just make a fun time!

Activity #19: Make a book!
Make up a story, write it down. have your kid draw pictures or scribble. Have them tell you what to put in the story.  Bind it together or staple it, give it to daddy and for others to see! 

Activity #20: Movie and Nap Time
 If all else fails, or you have done a few games/ projects on here, Cuddle up, pop in a movie, and take a NAP! 

WE HAD SO MUCH FUN! Rainy Days ROCK! SO EXCITED!

My son is now 4 years old. Its the rainy season again and I have a few NEW ideas!!!

Activity #21: Memory cards and puzzles! I have deifnately noticed as my son has gotten older i am not longer trying to push games on him that he is unable to do. He is chalk full of energy and everyone knows it! We need to chanel the energy into something positive. When your child is ready, start doing puzzles and memory cards with them! Sit down, set the timer for 5 mins see how many matchs you can get in that amount of time. Try to let your child be more independent as hes learning how to memorize. Just make life fun for them! No sence of them growing up when they are preschoolers and toddlers!

Activity #22: Let them make lunch!  Teach them how to make popcorn in the microwave and put peanut butter and jelly on their bread! They may not do it perfect but independence comes with responsibility and makng sure their momma eats is definately somewhere to start! 

Pumpkin Muffins

With fall around the corner I LOVE getting ready for it, I Love new recipes and things that remind me of fall. This recipe has been floating around pinterest for a while so I decided to try it! I love making and trying new things out all the time! Its a fun way to spice up your breakfasts for your kids and for every one else as well!

I call them pumpkin cupcakes because I don't think my 3 year old would eat them if I called them "muffins" but they technically are Muffins :)

The amazing thing I loved about this recipe is that there are only 2 ingredients!
- no egg
-no oil
-no butter

And for people who are looking to cut back on things like that, this is PERFECT! This is amazing for kids as well! Yumm. I guess this is a WEIGHT WATCHERS recipe! SUPER COOL!

VERY SIMPLE. Mix the two together. If you are using a mixer add your pumpkin first. But i did it by hand. You could also use - Vanilla cake, Chocolate Cake or Spice Cake

Put in muffin tins- Bake for 350 10-15 mins. Until they are golden brown-


REVIEW: My son loved them! He actually ate a entire muffin which is rare for him! Hes a very picky eater but he definitely loved this!!! I think it was very good, I could of added some cinnamon or spice and it would have made it taste like pumpkin pie. All in all, the pumpkin muffins/cupcakes  were a HIT and very healthy as well!!! It also got me thinking... hrm... I can do this with apple sauce, mashed banana's, maybe even pears or peach's, the possibilities are endless! 

The total price was $4.15   :/ I don't like that price, I did not use any of my coupons and I kind of made it last minute. So definitely wait till there is a 10 for 10 sale and get the items at a CHEEP PRICE - but if you look at it like- "I spend $7.00 on a breakfast for each person when we go out on Sunday mornings then this... is nothing for ya!" - Super easy, super yummy and great now that school has started. make these the night before, or if your up early enough the morning of, and send your kids off to school with these yummy muffins!

ENJOY

Play Dough $.17

There are SEVERAL Ways to make home made Play dough. For right now i am going to choose one and go with it. I saw this recipe here. Truth be told. I stay up late. Making crazy things so when we do it again tomorrow and my son is all excited, I make sure I do it right and DON'T disappoint him. So get a pen and paper. Your going to want to write this down! 

1 cup flour -1/2 cup salt -1/2 cut water - Cream of Tar Tar (optional, just for elasticity) food coloring

grab a medium size bowl. Add your Salt & Flour & Water

Mix Salt, Flour and water together and it will be a little crumbly but this is exactly what you want!

Add in your food coloring a little bit at a time and Kneed to mix. And to make sure its the right color you want keep adding a little bit at a time.

Add in your Cream of TAR TAR a little bit at a time. this helps to make it pliable.

Repeat and make more colors! Super fun! Super Easy!!! 

Add your food coloring and kneed your dough to mix the coloring in. Add more to make it more vibrant or less to make a subtle color.  It takes about 10 minutes and about $.17 WOW.. . only 17 cents compared to how much you pay to buy it at the store... No more store bought! Im sticking with this!

Bonding & Learning

As most of you all know, I have one little rambunctious 3 1/2 year old Boy. He is my WORLD! Sometimes I think that I am too nice on him, but one thing I have noticed is we aren't spending time together like we did when he was littler. So what can i do to fix that? Well hrm... I have had a few ideas but i needed to take action. We dont know eachother like i want. I dont always know what he likes, wants or feels. Why hes acting the way he is, thats because im not spending time with him! 

 Fun Ideas for you and your kids

Every morning in the ride to school I make up a story, a silly story and ask him questions

"Christopher?" -Yes momma?- "I don't think i can drive anymore.Can you drive yourself to school?" -NOOOOO... I cant do that- "WHAT!?!!?! WHY NOT! YOUR A BIG BOY!" - No momma, im to little!- "NOO WAY! What do you mean YOUR TOO LITTLE!?!?!" - Come one momma, YOU NUTS!- "hahahahaha yess momma is crazy! Hey do you see that farm there?" - Yes momma- "What if we lived on a farm with all of the pigs and cows?" - NOO... they smell!- "doesnt daddy smell?"- hehehehe-- --- By that time we are at school and we start to talk about all the fun we are going to have and how i cant wait to pick him up!

Let him help you with dinner. If i am making waffles or pancakes, noodles, or anything simple. I ALWAYS let him help, Especially Pizza! No matter what i let him help. He feels a sense of pride to know that i made dinner. and I Blame it all on him, good or bad :) hehehe  

Some kids have a hard time brushing their teeth and honestly he was one of those kids. It used to be a fight. Now "MOMMA DENTIST to the RESCUE!" After i brush his teeth, hes dentist Christopher and brushes mine! hehehe I always have to do it again but thats not the point. It makes him feel special. 

Play Dough. My son loves play dough. We have a few rules. None on the couches or Recliner but we can play in the kitchen. We roll it out and use our cookie cutters and mix them all together. We play for around 45 minutes + just with play dough. There is a recipe for home made play dough here 

Cloud Dough- Cloud do is an awesome activity to do with your little one. One thing you will ave to learn is "ITS OKAY IF THEY MAKE A MESS!"  Set the rules but when they are having fun don't ruin the time by yelling at them. Just clean it up later. Use my recipe to make your own Cloud Dough

Rice- Let them play with rice! Get out your measuring cups and poor it from cup to cup. Bowl to bowl. Play WITH THEM, laugh, giggle, and be silly. Make up stories, get their imagination going! Get them wondering about answers that they answer.

On a nice night after dinner. Grab some blankets and go out side in your back yard. Bring some pillows as well. Lay out on the grass and watch the stars, moon, clouds, planes and birds go by. Ask him what he sees, What he hears, make it a fun game. Bring some cool books for you two to read and just have fun. Nothing serious or strict and make him "dissapear" under the blanket, like you lost him. Laying out in the grass is FREE, Simple and my son loves it! We make up songs about what we see or hear and just laugh. Great bonding experience.

Make and play with the Toddler Sun Catchers Its is fun... SO do it!

If you do these simple little things, you will start to notice the difference in you and your child. Most of the time when kids wont "shut up" and wont stop screaming or hanging on to you, they want to spend time with you. they long for it.. So do it! Its your job not to raise a snot nose brat. TV doesn't teach that. People do. All of these Crafts and activities will help you not only bond but will help them learn! Learn how to pour, learn how to build and be creative, keep them thinking, keep them smart! When kids are bored is when they get in trouble the most.

If that doesnt look like fun i don't know what is!

Make Shake 'N Bake

I LOVE Kraft's Shake 'N Bake. It is easy, Fun to do but Truth is I think I have used it a handful of times. The reason why I don't use it because it is just to expensive. So there is a way to get AWAY from the Boxed foods and Make it Yourself!

There are a few ways you can substitute Shake 'N Bake. 

Keep in mind with these recipes you can substitute "Crackers" with anything Crunchy, Such as; Corn Flakes, Doritos, Potato Chips, Gold Fish, Cheeze-It (any Flavor)

#1. Is Italian Bread Crumbs.

#2. Original Chicken

• 4 cups flour
• 4 cups finely crushed saltine crackers
• 1/4 cup salt
• 2 Tbsp. sugar
• 1 Tbsp. garlic powder
• 1 Tbsp. onion powder
• 1 Tbsp. pepper
• 3 Tbsp. paprika

Same Baking instructions as below. 

#3. Cheeze-It/ Gold Fish Mix

• 4 cups Flour
• 4 cups Crushed Cheeze-It/ Gold Fish Crackers
• 1/4 cup salt
• 2 TBSP Sugar
• 1 1/2 tbsp. Garlic Powder
• 1 1/2 tbsp. Onion Powder
• 1 tbsp. pepper
• 3 tbsp. Paprika

#4 My Favorite
       -Italian Parmesan Chicken

• 1 cup Parmesan Cheese
• 1 Packet dry Italian seasoning

             =  AMAZING! Happy Making!

Mix all ingredients together. This is going to be a large batch so it lasts a long time. Store in an air tight container. Container is better so it lessons the Spills. 

-Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 
-Place 1 cup Homemade Shake and Bake Coating Mix in a shallow bowl. When placed in bowl Drizzle vegetable oil over mixture and mix in. (oil optional)

-Rinse chicken/fish/pork pat dry. 
-Dip chicken/fish/pork into beaten egg, buttermilk, milk, or salad dressing to coat, then dip into Homemade Shake and Bake Coating Mix.
- #4 only needs to be washed with water and dipped into mixture.
-Place on baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees. Bake 20-30 minutes for boneless chicken/fish/pork strips. 
-Bake 30-50 mins for bone-in chicken pieces or until meat thermometer reads 160 degrees. 

Enjoy! Experiment. No kids or husband likes a boring "same old" dinner! Spice it up!!!!

Powdered Laundry Detergent

This is amazing. I have been searching around for NEW Laundry Detergent recipes.. I stumbled onto this pretty cool website, Being Creative. I really Loved my other one but this has trumped any and all laundry detergents I have ever used!

It smells amazing! WORKS AMAZING! My cloths are coming out cleaner and softer.
It is a powdered laundry detergent but that just means its EASIER! Im sticking to this and not going back to liquid. No more Melting down my soap and keeping it in my 5 gallon bucket. Powdered laundry detergent all the way!

So lets start with whats in it...

1 - 4lb box Arm & Hammer Washing Soda
1 - 3lb box Arm & Hammer Baking Soda
1 - 4lb Box 20 mule Team Borax
2 small oxy clean OR 1/2 a container big bucket (optional)
3 bars fels-Naptha or 3 bars Ivory

For 5-7 months your Laundry Soap will Cost you Less than $15.00

Grate your Soap Bars.

It was pretty easy to mix it all together. Open every box and put it in a container. Add the grated soap. And mix it with a spoon, then put it into my container. and mixed it again.

I went to Wal-Mart and i got this cool container. It was about $5.00 (one time buy) -- Not to shabby- I used the scooper from my Oxy Clean Bucket .

-This detergent is safe for HE washers!

-This detergent is safe to use on sensitive skin/babies/children. (my husband, son and I all have allergies to detergents, we have not had ONE Problem with this! We can not use, cheer, gain, or tide due to itching and rashes)
-It does not have a strong scent, but it is very clean/fresh smelling! You can add laundry crystals to the batch to add fragrance.
-Some of my followers have used other bar soap instead of Zote or Fels-Naptha or Ivory
-Use 1 Tablespoons(TBSP) per load.
-This is fully effective for cloth diapers because it contains baking soda which affects how the diaper is able to soak up liquid. Remove the baking soda, your good to go!
- Great for towels! Leaves them soft with out using fabric softener!
-I am not sure if this detergent is safe for a septic tank or not, you may have to research it and do what you feel comfortable with.

DID YOU KNOW?
Companies add chemicals to your store/name brand detergents to make them "SUD." Just because something suds does not mean it cleans! The HE detergents they make that are "so good for your washer machine" is just the same detergent with the chemical taken out! So we are paying them to TAKE OUT chemicals they originally put in to SUD! This is just crazy to me. YES! It is good for your washer, but not good for your wallet. Just remember something I learned from a friend.

CLEAN SMELLS LIKE NOTHING!

Also, come to find out this is the SAME Exact (minus the oxy clean) Detergent my grandmother used as a kid in the 1940's! She said she rememberd making this as a kid and shes glad its making a come back! Great for the enviornment, great for fabrics, and great for your wallet!

UPDATE: It is now January 22, 2013. This batch of laundry detergent has lasted me 5 months with some left over, I was scared I was getting low so I made more two days ago. It probably would have lasted me another month. We used to go through one 150oz All 2x ultra free and clear every month! In one year that would cost me $144.00. This powdered detergent lasted me 5 months! Putting my savings on HE Kid freindly Detergent at (Walmart) All 2X Ultra Free Clear Liquid Laundry Detergent, 150 oz, $11.97 (96 loads) or Dreft, 100 fl oz, $15.97.(64 Loads) I have saved my family any where from  $114.00- $150.00 Thats AMAZING! Just on laundry detergent? How awesome is that?

Need a cool quick gift for a new mom or a house warming gift??
Pick up for Quart Size Ball Jars and put your laundry detergent in your jar. Make a cute label. Even add ribbon or fabric. Its an amazing GIFT & maybe even great to sell!

If using IVORY soap try not to GRATE it! Here is a Fun way of Making your laundry detergent and having a science experiment for your kids at the same time! Its easier and fun! Make it a family thing! http://www.stevespanglerscience.com/experiment/soap-souffle

Turn Flat-Rate Postage Boxes into Storage!

What a cool idea this is! I would LOVE to say that I came up with this but Sadly I did not. I put my own twist and creative mark on it. We are going to turn FREE LARGE Flat Rate Boxes from the US Postal Service into magazine decor holders. Bon Temps Beignet 

A lot like the woman who wrote this blog I too have an IKEA Book shelf turned into a TV Stand and for a long time I had no idea what to do with it. I was even thinking of giving it away! Now that we are in our new house and a LOW budget, that is not an option. I don't have enough Books to fill the darn shelf's and as you can see its a little cluttered. Everyone who knows me knows I HATE clutter but something I kinda give up on and I live with the clutter until I am seriously sick of it! Well I'm to that point. So I have found a solution! YAY! Lets get started!!! 

Seriously I am a little embarrassed, Its all bad!! 

Nothing about this picture is good... Lets fix it!

Large Flat Rate boxes. Box them up and tape them, inside and out.
Cut a piece out of the box and then tape or glue Scrap booking paper onto the front of the box

You may also... Spray paint the boxes, but in the end, i found it to be ALOT more work then just leaving it how it was taped.

Total i believe all 7 boxes were about .50 cents! Yahoo! An amazing savings right there!

Make Soap Scum Shower cleaner

I used Dawn Dish liquid in an empty bottle

Equal Parts White vinegar 9oz, Dish soap 9oz, And water in a spray bottle. Shake and spray.

NOT only does this amazing stuff work on my shower for soap scum. It works for my Fridge, Toilets, Sinks, Stove top. (DO NOT USE ON FLOOR) Microwave. I have yet to use in the inside oven.  

Make Jiffy Corn Bread Mix $.30

Since I have done cookies and brownies pre made mixes, I thought it would be great to do one on Jiffy. I don't know if you noticed but I did, and the price of Jiffy has gone up a lot! I remember it being $.25 it is now in my stores any were from $.60 up to a $1.00! And I am not willing to pay that anymore. They don't really have coupons for Jiffy, just the "deals" the store is having. So Lets make it our self's shall we?

What your going to need: (Recipe from Food.com)
2/3 Cup Flour
1/2 Cup Yellow Cornmeal
3 Tablespoons Sugar
1 Tablespoon Baking Powder
1/4 teaspoon Salt

Get the quart size bags. Write on them"

Bake 400F  15-20 minutes
Add 1 egg
1/3 cup milk
2 tb veg oil

Add your ingredients. Shake it up and there ya go!

You can make your corn bread mix from anywhere to $.25 - $.35 - Way cheaper than anything I have found on the shelf.

Make OxyClean

I have to admit Oxy Clean has to be one of the best products around, but it is very pricy. So here is how I made my own oxy clean! I found the recipe not to long ago on "The grocerie cart Challenge" Blog- If my laundry is really bad I will soak it but If I have a load of Colored that need a good cleaning, I throw this in! 

                                                                         Make It Yourself OxyClean

1 cup hot water

1/2 cup hydrogen peroxide

1/2 cup washing soda

Mix together and soak laundry in it for 20 minutes to overnight and then wash as usual. Or you can just skip the water and pour the peroxide and baking soda directly into the wash with your laundry soap and wash as usual.

Make Buttermilk $.15

A lot of recipes call for Buttermilk. For a very long time i had no idea what that even was! I never used it in my baking but since I have I cant go back! You can use buttermilk in almost anything! You can use it with any baking that calls for water or regular milk. You can make butter milk the hard way and make butter, Click here for the recipe Butter.

Butter milk
1 cup whole milk
1 table spoon White Vinegar or Lemon Juice

Let it sit for 10 minutes then add what you need into your recipe.

Vawala! You have Make it Yourself Butter milk! Never to buy it agian!

Butter milk Break down:
Meijer Gallon of milk is $2.50  - There are 16 cups per Gallon  - $2.50/16=$.15

My New Waffle Iron

Okay not to brag or anything but my husband is amazing! He got us a "Free" Waffle Iron through American Express (amex) that I have been begging for for 3 years! Our old one broke because his was15 years old. LOL Brand new waffle iron I cant wait to use it!!! 

There is so much you can do with a waffle iron. Of course make waffles, There are many many recipes but i will just give you one. 

First steps first i need to coat my waffle iron with oil, butter, or pam. Soo i coat it, Let the nasty factory stuff wear off. Turn it off. let it cool and wipe it down. The next day it is ready to be used.. This is called "seasoning"

This came off the Bisquick box. 

2 cups Bisquick 

1 1/2 cups milk 

2 TBSP veg. oil 

1 egg

 Directions:

1 HEAT- waffle maker

2 Stir all ingredients untill blened. 

3 Pour onto the center of the hot greased waffle maker, close lid.

4 Bake about 5 minuetes or untill steaming stops. 

makes 12(4inch) waffles  

 I was searching on the World Wide Web and i came across this website Waffleizer

Here are some ideas on what you can make with your waffle iron:

Waffleburgers 

Ingredients:

beef, ground

Salt 

Pepper

Directions:Season the beef and form it into a very thin patty. Place in the waffle iron and cook about four minutes. When your patty has cooked, remove it from the waffle iron. If you would like a waffleburger with cheese, top the patty with cheese, place it in the waffle iron and allow to waffle very briefly — about five seconds.

Garnish with the condiments of your choice. Revel in the triumph of the ridiculous.

Credit Goes to Waffleizer.com

Check out the webiste to make Waffle Burger Buns

more to come!!! 

Re-Grow Green Onions

I don't know about you all, but I LOVE green onions. I use them almost with everything. You can put them in scrambled eggs or make a quiche. Anything that calls for Garlic & white or yellow onion and even spinach, you can throw in some Green Onion. I went to Meijer and they aren't very expensive. About .50 or 2/$1.00 for 5 or 6 in a bundle BUT! what if there was a way to recycle your green onions and grow them again!! Well there is a way!!

You use as much as you need, I cut them down till they are getting yellow. Place them in a small cup with water and let them sit in the sun. Day by day they will grow! You can only grow the onions one time from the original but it is a fun thing for the kids to watch!  It takes about 2 weeks for them to be fully grown. Another cool thing is, I don't use all of them at once, so one by one as I use them I stick them in the water so they are matured at different times! You can definitely turn this into a money saving trick and a science project!

Day 5 - you can see were it was originally cut and how much is grown!

Day 7.

                                            Change the water about every 3 days.

Make Stamps

I grew up recycling. My grandma did it and when i was a kid we always had our red bin out a the road. When we moved up to the country, i soon realized that they don't recycle. Everyone threw everything out.. Not only did this make me up set because i was thinking out about my grandchildren, what type of world will it be if everyone threw everything out knowing it would be there 2 million years later...Our country would turn into the movies WALL-E or Idiocracy But it had also made me think of more ways to spend money one it once. And reuse it 20 times, Thus completely getting my money back 

I had it all worked out that when i went down to my parents, an hour away, i would put all my stuff in their recycling bin. LOL Luckily! My grandma did some searching and found out that my city has a program that i just bring all my things and throw them in a big recycling container that they haled away once was full. I LOVE THIS! This is were i go to get all of my empty laundry detergent containers.

There are so many things in this world that we all use day to day that do not have to be thrown away. I here are some fun and creative new ways to use the empty containers for anything under the sun! Here are some ideas for you and your family!


Make it Yourself Stamps!

I have been saving almost all of my lids/caps from milk containers, juice containers, and many more for about 3 weeks. I had more but in all honestly i don't need that many stamps yet.

I went to Target and went to the $1 bin sale and they had foam stickers. I stuck them onto my cap. They come with many different kids. Stick them on an ink pad and then on some paper. Its a great thing for kids to play with! Each one probably cost me about $.03-$.05 since there are so many that are in the foam stickers.

Have fun and enjoy!
Use washable finger paints with the kids, this way you can wash your stamps off and reuse them! 


The Make it Yourself Break Down:
i got 50 sticker foam cut outs for $1.00 at target

$.02 (censt) per foam sticker

I used 4 = so my project to make my own stamps was a whopping $.08!
You can get many different kinds of foam stickers. Price also varies. from $1.00 to $5.00 for packages.

Note: I have no affiliation with any TM names, stores or websites listed above.

Make Betty Crocker Cookie Mixes

I started buying Betty Crocker Cookie Mixes once I started couponing. I do have to admit they are great! Seriously expensive considering what they actually are. I love making cookies from scratch! They are awesome! Since we have moved I love the convenience of MANY things. My sister came over one day and we were talking about cookies, and making some for her friend. I told her "lets whipp some up!" and she looked at me, went into my pantry, and said "Okay were is the box? If it doesn't come in a box, I have no idea what I am doing!" 

I thought this was kinda funny... I said "You buy those? They are super expensive, regular price is $2.50 or more!" and she laughed "Oh that's right, you use your 'coupons' and its cheaper, I'm not into all that, you know that." Well, I do know that but I wont accept it, i needed to find a way to Make Them Myself in a way that I can give them to others, Like "Cookies in a Jar" but without the $5.00 Jar... So i Googled it. I typed in "Make it Yourself Cookie Mixes Blog" and one thing came up Fake-It-Frugal

Here are some recipes off Fake-It-Frugal website:

Betty Crocker Chocolate Chip Cookies:
1 Cup Flour
1/4 Cup White Sugar
1/2 Cup Brown Sugar
1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
1/2 teaspoon Salt
3/4 Cup Chocolate Chips

Mix together and store in a quart size ziplock bag.  Write instructions on the bag to add:  1 Stick Softened Butter, 1 Large Egg, 1/2 teaspoon Vanilla Extract.  Mix & Bake at 350°F for 9-11 minutes.

Betty Crocker Sugar Cookies:

1 1/2 Cups Flour
3/4 Cup White Sugar
1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
1/2 teaspoon Salt

Mix together and store in a quart size ziplock bag.  Write instructions on the bag to add:  1 Stick Softened Butter, 1 Large Egg, 1/2 teaspoon Vanilla Extract.  Mix & Bake at 350°F for 9-11 minutes. 

Betty Crocker Oatmeal Cookies:

1 Cup Flour
1/2 Cup White Sugar
1/2 Cup Brown Sugar
1 1/2 Cup Rolled Oats
1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
Optional: 1/2 Cup Raisins and/or Nuts

Mix together and store in a quart size ziplock bag.  Write instructions on the bag to add:  1 Stick Melted Butter, 1 Large Egg, 1/2 teaspoon Vanilla Extract.  Mix, Refrigerate for 30 Minutes & Bake at 350°F for 9-11 minutes. 

Betty Crocker Gingerbread Cookies:

1 3/4 Cup Flour

3/4 Cup Dark Brown Sugar

3/4 teaspoon Baking Soda

1/2 teaspoon Salt

1/2 Tablespoon Ground Ginger

1 1/2 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon Ground Nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon Ground Cloves

Mix together and store in a quart size ziplock bag.  Write instructions on the bag to add:  1/2 Stick Softened Butter, 1 Large Egg, 1/8 Cup Molasses.  Mix & Bake at 350°F for 9-11 minutes. 

Peanut Butter Cookies

Make a few extra sugar cookie mixes.

1 1/2 Cups Flour

3/4 Cup White Sugar

1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder

1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda

1/2 teaspoon Salt

Write on them "Peanut butter cookies" Add 1/2 Cup Butter, 1 large egg, 1/2 teaspoon Vanilla Extract and 1/2 Cup Peanut butter.

Credit

Snicker Doodle Cookies

1 1/2 cup sugar

2 3/4 cups flour

2 teaspoons cream of tartar 

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 salt 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

3 tablespoons sugar

3 tablespoons cinnamon

Mix together and store in a quart size ziplock bag. Write instructions on the bag to add: 2 Large eggs and 1 cup Butter - Mix in this order: Sugar and Butter untill Fluffy, Eggs and Vanilla. On low speed, beat in flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt until well combined, scraping bowl occasionally. In small bowl, mix 2 tablespoons sugar and the cinnamon. Shape dough into 1-inch balls; roll in sugar-cinnamon mixture and place 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets. Chill cookie mix for 15 minutes before putting on sheet. Bake at 400°F for 8-10 minutes, remove from pan immediately after baking. 

Okay, So is it really worth "Making It Yourself" and putting in a little effort now to save money later. Lets do the math!

The Make-It Yourself Breakdown: Make It Yourself Betty Crocker Cookie Mixes (Pantry Ingredients, Between $0.30-$0.40 each mix)

Total Fake-It Cost:  $3.20 (probably less) for 8 Cookie Mixes

Compare to Real Betty Crocker Cookie Mixes ($2.50+ each)

Total "Make It Yourself" Savings:  $16.80