Loaf Bread and Spice Blueberry and Peach Jam recipes

Another bread blog has been LONG in the making.  I have purchased my last loaf of bread from the grocery store, and I am making it from here on out.  Why?  BECAUSE IT IS SO EASY!!!  Plus, it tastes better.  And it is cheaper.  What could be better than that?  Nothing.  Repeat after me.  Nothing.

Oh, and did I mention it is best with spice blueberry and peach jam?  Homemade, of course.

Sweet Cinnamon Sugar Braids

This week was the last week for the Farmers Market in my area.  It is kind of a sad moment, because I have been going to this particular market since 2008 and have not missed very many Tuesday afternoons.  I knew the names of the people we bought from and they knew us.  We always saw the same people.  We knew the honey lady, the milk lady, the bread lady, the soap lady, and the produce lady.  I would consider them my friends.  And this past Tuesday was the last one before we move, so we all went to say “good-bye.” 

While we were there, we bought a couple of sweet bread braids.  One was cinnamon and sugar and the other was cream cheese.  They were so good!  And it got me thinking…  Man, I sure am going to miss this.  As soon as we got home, I set out to learn how to make my own. 

DIY Chocolate and Peanut Butter Dipped Pretzels

I found on clearance at the store a few days ago, a double boiler!  So, of course, I HAVE to use it.  When I brought home the double boiler, I also brought home chocolate and pretzels...  do you see where this is going???  It is SO, SO easy to dip pretzels and you can make all kinds of delicious combinations. 

For this, I used the square pretzels that have a grid kind of thing in the center of them.  I dipped a whole bunch with just chocolate and then while the chocolate was still drying, I sprinkled them with festive Fall sprinkles.  I found the Fall sprinkles at Target in the dollar bins.

N'Awlins Red Beans and Rice recipe with Sweet Cornbread

When I was growing up, one of my family's most favorite meals was always red beans and rice.  My mom made it best!  Now, I get to make it for my own family and they love it just as much as I did growing up.  It has definitely become a family tradition.  In fact, this is exactly what I made during the Super Bowl several years ago when the New Orleans Saint won.  It is easy to make from scratch and once you try it like this, you will NEVER go back to that boxed crap.  It is so much healthier for you anyways.

Tony Chachere's Cajun Seasoning Recipe

I LOVE Tony Chachere's.  In fact, when we started anticipating our move, I started thinking about how much Tony Chachere's I needed to stock up on to last us like...  forever.  I. Can't. Live. Without. Cajun. Seasoning.  Just can't.  So, I found a recipe!  Score!  Now, no matter how far into Yankee country I am...  I just still have my Cajun seasoning. 

DIY Homemade Play-do

About the most fun any kid can have is playing with play-do.  But who really wants to buy that little tiny container from the store only to have to end up with a brownish-blackish-mucky color that only lasts for about a week or so before it dries out?  Growing up, my mom always made our own play-do.  I don't remember buying it from the store very often, and after having my own children, I started making my own play-do.  So simple!  And the kids love to help with it!

Banana Bread Recipe

We have a lot of favorite things at our house, but pretty close to the top of the list is banana bread.  My kids could eat this for breakfast, lunch, and dinner if I allowed it.  And it is even better (which is truly hard to imagine after cutting a slice while it is still warm) after it has sat in tin foil overnight to make the top sticky.  Nummy nummy! 

DIY Dishwasher Detergent

My family does not actually USE our dishwasher unless we are canning something.  And even then that is only because we do so much at one time that we do not have the space we need on the stove top to heat everything up like it needs to be.  So, we throw the mason jars in the dishwasher and it works just fine.  That is really the ONLY thing we use the dishwasher for.  The reason being is because when we started cutting out chemicals in our house, the dishwasher detergent was one that had to go.  But none of the “green” detergents really did the job.  They all left a film after they’d been washed.  We started hand washing and just haven’t gone back, even though I make a pretty good dishwasher detergent now that does work like it is supposed to.

Setting up a Sewing Machine

If you are not an avid seamstress…  sometimes pulling out the sewing machine can seem…  well, a bit intimidating.  It’s one of those humps, that unless you have someone helping you along, may seem impossible to get over.  Learning to sew on your own can be a lot of trial and error.  This is me, trying to help ease some of that sewing grief. 

Some of the biggest mistakes people make are also the most simple to remedy, but unless you know you are making them, then how can you remedy them?  There is only ONE way to set up a sewing machine.  If you do it wrong, it can mess up the whole project and leave you feeling very flustered. 

Setting up a Sewing Kit

I get all kinds of excited over my sewing box gadgets.  I can spend hours pouring over the little knick-knacks, buttons, and embellishments at the cloth stores.  I just find it fun.  Comparably, I am sure Keith, my husband, is the same way at the auto supply store.  I don’t get it, but I am sure he doesn’t really see what I see in sewing supplies either.  It is just one big way we are different (but kind of the same).  I also LOVE having everything I need organized and available.  I don't have to search for things in drawers anymore.  Making a sewing kit solved all those problems for me. 

DIY Laundry Detergent and Laundry tips

I have taken to making EVERYTHING I need to wash my family’s laundry.  So, I am typing this up because I would love to share it with everyone.  It has saved us a lot of money, and it is so simple that anybody can do it.  And if you are anything like me, I also feel a great sense of satisfaction knowing that I have made something myself.

DIY Wool Dryer Balls

Use up the last of your dryer sheets and then never go back!  I got a good alternative for you for the dryer.  Make wool dryer balls!  They take out the static, they keep the stuff in the dryer bouncing around so that they dry faster, plus your clothes aren’t exposed to any chemicals. 

DIY Fleece Blanket

Full size fleece blanket with travel size blanket. 

I have made so many of these blankets, that I have since lost count.  I love them because they are so versatile for people of any age.  When my kids are infants, I can lay one of these on the ground and put them on the floor.  As they get older, they snuggle up with them in bed.  During story time in the evenings, they wrap themselves up in them to stay warm.  And for a few of our kids, they have since taken to them as security blankets and have become inseparable.   I actually had to start making smaller sized blankets so that the younger kids who still insist on having “blankie” in the car with them, don’t have to take a full sized blanket.  Those have been a hit as well. 

They are really easy to make.  No sewing machine required, so anybody can do this.  It takes a little time, but they are definitely worth it.  It takes me about 45 minutes to get a full size one finished, and about 25 minutes to get a travel size blankie made.