DIY Tupperware

When I had my first child some women in the area brought us dinner. It was of course greatly appreciated. One women brought her dinner in old plastic cool whip and cottage cheese containers.  She told me that she always has these on hand so that she can take food to people and not worry about getting her good Tupperware back. 

When I heard this I had one of those "D'OH" moments.  The kind of moment where something is so obvious that you can't believe you never thought of it before.

So my Tupperware cupboard is now full of old plastic containers and I have used them for many things but mostly for organizing the kids stuff like crayons or cars.

They work great, but the down side is I never know whats in them since my photographic memory is still in the shop (it broke during my first pregnancy.)  I saw a post about getting the ink off of the containers and was very excited about it.

Remove Ink From Plastic Containers
You will need
Acetone (found in the beauty section next to the nail polish remover)
Dishpan
Rag
Gloves

Directions
 Wear the gloves to protect your hands and saturate the rag with the acetone.  Make sure you are in a well ventilated area.  Wrap the rag around the container and let it sit in a dishpan for 3-5 minutes.  Check the container by rubbing the paint.  If it doesn't come easily off then keep soaking.

I had never heard of acetone but it was easy to find. It was right by the nail polish remover and it was around $3 or $4. I can't remember exactly.

I soaked my rags.... then passed out from the fumes.  Ok I really didn't, but I never knew there could be a smell that is worse then ammonia.  I put the rags over the containers then went outside to get some air, the whole time I was wondering if I had any brain cells left.

After about 5 minutes I went back to rub a little of the ink to see if it would come off.  I then had to run and shove my hand in ice water to warm it up.  Yes you read that right.  I have no idea what acetone is or what  is in it, but something that smells that bad and burns my gloved hand from being so cold should be banned.  It was like grabbing dry ice.  (yes I am exaggerating again, but the rag was freakishly cold and I had to keep taking breaks so my hands could warm up.)

The Verdict: After rubbing at the ink with the wet rags I was both surprised and disappointed.  The website said that some containers will work better then others.  I ended up doing about 6 of them to see how each one would work. 

This Greek yogurt worked great.  It took very little effort for the ink to come off the container and it's lid

You would think that this is a before photo, but it's not.  The acetone didn't even smudge the ink.

I had a couple of containers that looked like this.  I bet if I soaked them longer in acetone then I could have gotten all the ink off, but this would have required longer time with the fumes and freezing rags. 

It works, and I like that I can use dry erase markers on them so I know whats it in, but I won't do it again.  Save yourself the  headache (literally) and spend the money on cheap Ziploc Tupperware. 

Detox Bath

My little sister once said "the only thing worse about having sick kids, is being sick and still being needed by kids."

It's hard to have a sick child, to see them miserable and know that you can't take it away from them.  It's hard to watch a toddler vomit and then look at you, pleading with you to take away the pain because that's what mommy does, she kisses it better and takes away the pain. 

Sometimes it's even harder to be the one that is sick and to still crawl out of bed to make breakfast, clean the kitchen, find shoes, fight traffic on the way to school, convince a child that they really do need a nap, make lunch, play  dolls, play house, play play-doh, make dinner, step on Lego's, mop up the floor after bath time and do it all with a smile and without losing your temper. 

I saw a Pin about a detox bath and in the instructions it said, "This is especially beneficial if you are trying to rid the body of a bug of some sort, like the flu, or a cold."

Worth a shot.

How To Take A Detox Bath
Fill your tub with comfortable hot water
add epsom salt

• For children under 60 lbs, add 1/2 cup to a standard bath.
• For children 60 lbs to 100 lbs, add 1 cup to a standard bath.
• For people 100 lbs and up, add 2 cups or more to a standard bath.

add 1-2 cups of baking soda
add 1TBS to 1/3 cup of ground ginger

Soak in the tub for 40 minutes.  The first 20 minutes are said to help your body remove the toxins, while the second 20 minutes are for absorbing the minerals in the water

The ginger can make you sweat profusely so be sure to drink plenty of water during and after the bath. 

The website has a lot of great information on what each of the ingredients do and some tips to help make the bath more beneficial.

So I waited until I felt something come on.  I didn't have to wait to long, tis the season for bugs. The kids got some sort of strange bug that left them tired and with a low fever for a few days.  About 4 days into it I started feeling warm and tired.  After I put the kids in bed I got my ingredients and filled up the tub. 

The ginger made the water look pretty nasty and I was surprised at how much the scent of ginger filled the bathroom.  The epsom salt and baking soda dissolved immediately.

The website talked a lot about how ginger can make you sweat, so I started out with 1 Tbsp.  Ten minutes later I was actually getting cold and not sweating at all, so I added two more tablespoons.  I still didn't sweat but I sure did tingle.  My skin was really tingly for the rest of the bath.

Sitting in the tub for 40 minutes sounded like a long time, but I grabbed my ipad and a book and really enjoyed myself, despite the tingling. As I was soaking I kept thinking about how the website said that the first 20 minutes are for the toxins to be pulled from your body and the next 20 minutes are for your body to absorb the minerals in the water. Soooooo, the toxins come out..... where do they go?  Isn't your body going to soak them right back up? 

 The website also says that it's best to take the detox bath at night so you can immediately get into your bed and rest. During the 40 minutes in the tub I felt great, but as soon as I stood up I was surprised at how drained I felt.  I felt weak and tired and was more then happy to follow the websites instructions by getting into bed.  I was asleep in minutes and it was only 9pm

The Verdict: I woke up the next morning feeling fantastic.  I was energetic and happy and even had a Snow White moment when I was singing silly songs while making breakfast.  I never got the illness my kids had.

Of course there is no way to prove that the detox bath is responsible for keeping the illness at bay.  However, I have taken 3 more when I felt as though something was coming on and I always woke up the next morning feeling fantastic.

The last time I took one I purposely waited to see if something was really coming.  Sure enough i got a minor stomach bug.  Half way through my first day of worshiping the porcelain thrown I took a detox bath then took a nap.  I didn't feel any better and I was sick for another 24 hours.

So it's hard to say whether it works or not, but I do know that I enjoy them and I will probably be stocking up on more ground ginger

Window Blind Cleaner

Do you have a window in your kitchen?  Does that window have blinds?  On a scale of 1-5, how dirty are they?  Off the charts?  Yes I thought so.  Blinds are one of those things that tend to get really gross because you either a) don't think about cleaning them or b) know you should clean them but it's such a hassle you prefer to ignore the problem.

Recently I keep seeing Pinterest posts about cleaning blinds.  Most of the cleaning methods I have seen involve putting a sock over your hand.  While that is a great method for some blinds, it doesn't work well for the common metal blinds that are in most homes.

Let me share with you a trick that my mom taught me.

Window Blind Cleaner
1/2 cup Vinegar
1/2 cup baking soda
bathtub full of hot water

Take a look at the top of the blinds. Do you see that little box on the top right and left corner?  The front of the box opens and you can take the blinds out.  Amazing!!!

Now some blinds don't come out, if that is the case with yours then sit tight and we will address that later. 

 Fill a bathtub with enough water to cover the blinds.  Pour in the baking soda and vinegar and mix it all up.  Put the blinds in the bathtub then go enjoy an episode of Downton Abby

I usually leave it in the tub for at least an hour and some times up to 8.  It just depends on when I get to it again. Drain the tub then rinse the blinds with the shower head.  It's easiest with a detachable shower head but it will still work without one.  Basically you are blasting the blinds with water to take off all the gunk that was just softened during it's spa treatment. 

Let it air dry in the tub or on a towel before you hang it back up. 

The Verdict: This works so well and is so easy to do. The hardest part is cleaning the tub after your done. Here are some before and after photos of blinds I recently did.  You can see the the big blob of something, along with little blobs of who knows what else.

 Nothing is left but water. 

All the blob spots and a little fly ended up in the tub. 

Now for all you folks who have metal blinds that won't come down easily.  Fill a spray bottle with mostly water then some vinegar and baking soda.  It really doesn't matter what ratio you use.  Put a towel under the blinds then spray away.  Spray until the blinds are completely soaked.  Let it sit for awhile then wipe it clean.  You will probably have to do more scrubbing with this scenario, but it still works.

And there you go, you no longer have an excuse for not cleaning your blinds. 

Dishwasher Soap

Tomorrow is New Years Eve and we have friends staying with us, so you get another short and straight to the point post. Plus I don't know how to make a post about dishwasher soap interesting.

Homemade Dishwasher Detergent

• 2 c borax
• 2 c Arm & Hammer washing soda
• 2 c lemi shine*
• 1 c kosher salt

Mix all together and use 1 Tbsp per load. 

You can get the borax, washing soda and the lemi shine in the laundry aisle and the kosher salt in the baking aisle.

The Verdict:  This is a perfect example of why I like to try things for awhile before I give an opinion.  It started out great.  My dishes were very clean and sparkly.  But after about 2 weeks it stopped working.  (one batch lasted me about 6 weeks and that was doing a load a day) A lot of the dishes on the top rack would have a strange greasy film on them that I would have to scrub by hand to get off.

I was baffled by this.  Why would something work so great for 2 weeks and then stop?  I tried cleaning the dishes before I put them in the dishwasher. I tried cleaning the dishwasher itself with homemade products and store bought products.  I even had my mother in law do the dishes once and she is a perfectionist when it comes to clean dishes.  Nothing worked. For some reason the dishes came out with a greasy film on them.

Plus the mixture was very picky about where it needed to be stored.  I tried keeping it in an airtight container under the sink but after a few days it became rock solid from the humidity so I had to make another batch. I kept that batch on top of the fridge and that kept it from becoming a solid mass. 

So there you go.  Once again I have saved you time and money by testing something for you. Your welcome.
 Have a Happy New Year. 

Long Hair Part 2

I find it amusing how many people have asked about my hair after they read my post about using apple cider vinegar to make my hair grow faster.

My hair is something that I have always been a bit prideful about.  It's very thick and healthy and no matter what I do to it, it always bounces back.  I can soak it in lemon juice and let the sun fry it to a crisp and within 1 week it looks just as healthy as ever.

One day I may end up looking like Gollum because of my pride and for all the strange things I do to it, but for now it is just fine.

After the disaster with the apple cider vinegar I let my hair take a few weeks off then I started in on a potato mask.

Potato Mask For Hair
Just juice 3 potatoes, add in one egg yolk and some honey and you got yourself an awesome potato hair mask! This will absolutely help make your hair grow faster and it’s natural! 

Once again this website did not give any detailed instructions.  How often do I put it in?  How long do I leave it in? Do I put it on wet or dry hair?  These questions are essential when smearing vegetables in your hair!

After reading about different hair masks I decided to try this mask once a week.  My plan was to put it on dry hair then let it sit for at least 20 min before washing it out.

Since my hair is shorter I decided to juice one large potato instead of three.

I had a little less then two cups and it was enough to cover my hair.

 I leaned over the tub and soaked my hair.  I then wrapped my hair up into a shower cap and had to quickly grab a towel because nasty brown liquid starting running down my face.

 I wish I had grabbed an old towel instead of ruining my nice white bathroom towel. 

The Verdict: *insert gagging noises* This was just plain gross!!!! I only tried it twice because the thought of doing it two more times to finish out the month made me sick.  Even with the shower cap on, brown liquid ran down my neck and face the entire time I had it on.  This pretty much left me immobile because I didn't want to get brown spots on the floor.   I can deal with gross brown liquid, what made me sick was the smell.

As time went on, the smell got more and more disgusting.  It was as though the potato was very quickly rotting.  After 20 min I jumped into the shower as fast as I could and scrubbed my hair, using about 1/2 a bottle of shampoo.  But that smell lingered.  No matter how many times I scrubbed my hair, I smelled like a rotten potato for 4 days.  It was like that old Sienfeld episode where the smelly B.O car sticks to Elains hair.

It also left my hair feeling very strange.  It was like a dirty but clean feeling and I did not like it.

To top it off, I have no idea if it made my hair grow faster.  I didn't think it would because I only did it twice in a month, but I forgot to measure my hair before I got a trim at the end of the month and I'm not about to call the lady and say "hey, how much of my hair did you cut off?  I need to know if my potato mask worked."

So I am now 0-2.  Lets hope my next attempt isn't as disappointing as these last two. 

Homemade Cough Syrup

I got a text from my sister a couple weeks ago.  She told me she had made her own cough syrup and asked if I wanted to see pictures.  I was a little shocked at first.  Who makes their own cough syrup?  Then I remembered that it was my sister, a mother of 6 who can cure almost any illness using herbs and essential oils.  I bet she saves a fortune on doctor bills and medicine. 

 I said of course and was expecting to see 1-2 photos of what she had made.  I should have known that my very thorough sister wasn't going to send just one photo... she sent 12, and gave me detailed instructions of how she made it.

It didn't take long to figure out that what she had sent would be a great blog post. A blog post where I don't have to be the guinea pig?  I'll take it!

So all of the following information came from my oldest sister, and to protect the innocent lets name her Roberta from Swiss Family Robinson.  

Homemade Cough Medicine
You Will Need:
1 cup elderberry's
1/4 cup thyme leaf
1/4 cup marshmallow root
1/4 cup cinnamon chips
1 cup spearmint leafs
1 1/2 cup sugar or honey
3 cups of water
storage bottle
cheese cloth

Directions:
mix all the ingredients in a bowl.  Bring water to a boil and add all the herbs to the mixture.  Stir so the herbs aren't floating on the top.  Place the cheese cloth in a colander and strain the herb mixture through it.  Pour the liquid that you strained back into the pot. Add sugar.  Cook until the sugar is completely dissolved.  

The website has a video (on the bottom of the page, with a women in a pink shirt) that gives details about why each herb is good and how to make the cough medicine.

Roberta said she found all the ingredients at her local Health Food Store and it cost her about $11.  I tried to find the herbs here but was unsuccessful.  You can get them online but you have to buy them by the pound and it can be little bit pricey.  

Here are all  her ingredients ready to go.  when my sister sent the photos I will admit that the only thing I recognized was the cinnamon.  I googled the marshmallow root because I figured the image in my head of white fluffy marshmallow fields wasn't correct.

Instead of the cinnamon chips, Roberta just used regular ground cinnamon

The website doesn't say how long to cook the herbs, it just says to pour them into boiling water and then let it cool.  Roberta said she let it simmer for a little bit.

Once it looked like nasty swamp water that a crocodile would be hiding in, Roberta poured the herbs through her colander covered in cheese cloth to strain out all the herbs.

Roberta used honey instead of sugar.  While this cough syrup is safe for all kids of all ages, don't forget to use sugar instead of honey if you are giving it to a child under the age of 1.  

It looks kinda nasty to me but Roberta says her kids drink it right up and they love it. 

Roberta says she gives 1 tsp for children around 3 years old and 1 Tbsp for adults.  For all the in between ages she just adjusts accordingly. It can take up to 20 min for it to work and will last around 4 1/2 hours. 

The Verdict: Clearly I have none because I haven't tried it.  I plan on making it one day when I can find the herbs for a reasonable price but for now you will just have to take my sisters word for it that "it works so good"

Christmas Serving Tray

I saw some really cute serving trays made of peppermint candy on Pinterest.  I was really conflicted about trying to make one. On the one hand I am very curious and love to try out new things, but on the other hand I had no intention of using a serving tray.  On the third hand, I have a blog that always needs updating.  Looks like my imaginary third hand wins.

DIY Serving Tray

You’ll need:
Peppermints
a cookie sheet
parchment or wax paper {I used wax paper, but heard parchment paper works better!}
your oven

How To:
1. Heat oven to 350 degrees
2. Place wax paper on cookie sheet
3. Arrange mints in any design you wish on top of wax paper or parchment paper on a cookie sheet {allowing extra room on the sides}
4. Bake for approximately 8-10 minutes
5. Take out and allow to cool on cookie sheet {cools in approximately 5 minutes}
6. Remove wax paper from bottom {be careful, tray is fragile and breaks easily}

I bought 2 bags of generic store brand peppermints and spent the next 3 days unwrapping them all (ok I exaggerated, it was only 2 days) then placed them on my cookie sheet covered in wax paper

Knowing I was only going to make one, I decided to experiment with it and see what the edges would look like if placed on different areas of the tray. So I put two edges against the side of the cookie sheet and let the other two edges hang out all natural.

I put it in the oven and set the timer for 8 minutes.  Around the 7 minute mark the peppermints started smoking like crazy and the edges were bubbling so I quickly pulled it out.  Fortunately it looked fine and didn't have any scorch marks.

The first thing I noticed was the two edges that weren't against the cookie sheet.  They looked pretty pathetic, and thin. I quickly grabbed a knife and cut one edge to see if I could clean it up.  I was surprised at how quickly the peppermint had started to re-harden but I was able to cut through.

I didn't notice that the bottom part of my cut had melted back together so when I pulled the peppermint tray out of the cookie sheet there was a goofy hangnail left on the tray 

The verdict: It wasn't perfect looking but it was really cute.  The wax paper did not come off very well and it took a long time to tear off all the pieces from he back.  However, I later realized that it would have been better to leave the wax paper on. As I was holding it, the heat on my hands quickly made the peppermints sticky.  This isn't a walk around with type serving tray, it's more of a chill on the table with hor d'oeuvres (I have no idea if I spelled that right) on it or as a center piece.

There definitely was a big difference with all the edges.  The top part that was not against the cookie sheet and that I didn't cut was very sharp and brittle. 

 This is the edge that was against the tray.  It left a nice little lip and was very clean looking

Here is the edge where I cut.  I think if I had been more careful with how I was cutting it would had made a very clean and nice looking edge.

Life sure can have some funny coincidences some times.  I wrote this post and left it in my draft pile so I could come back and edit it before posting it.  Three hours after writing it my sons pre-school teacher gave him this cute ornament.

Obviously theirs didn't melt nearly as much as my tray did.  If I every make one again then I will probably start watching the peppermints around the 4-5 minute mark then pull them out as soon as they look melted enough.  Also, she put some type of finishing spray over the peppermints so they wouldn't stick to hands.  BRILLIANT!!!  If your going to use the peppermints as a serving tray then you probably don't want to put a sealant over the peppermints, you don't want any unwanted doctor trips during the holidays.  But if your using the peppermints as some sort of decor then the by all means, spray away.