Dear 25-year-old Self, Buy bigger belts! You will not be the same size around the middle - despite all of your best intentions and hard work. Child birth, fashion, and gravity will all conspire against you, and your beautiful belts won't fit any longer. With love, from your 45+-year-old Self ps buy Apple stock. If… Continue reading Remaking a Belt
Tag: make it or buy it
Gluten Free Soup Thickener
While most recipes suggest using flour or corn starch to thicken soups and stews, I have a secret ingredient for thickening soups that’s gluten free and vegan - and it’s super healthy, too. It’s beans! By using white beans in place of other thickeners, you’re getting a gluten free, vegan thickener that’s loaded with fiber.… Continue reading Gluten Free Soup Thickener
Delicious Olive Oil Garlic Bread
When I was growing up, we had garlic bread with dinner often. Dripping in butter and sprinkled with garlic salt; it tasted so good. When I began cooking for my own family, I wanted to continue the yummy garlic bread tradition but I wanted it to be healthier. This recipe combines the tasty garlic bread… Continue reading Delicious Olive Oil Garlic Bread
How to Make Liquid Hand Soap
I began making my own liquid hand soap because I was trying to avoid products with triclosan* in them, and after spending $20.00 on the equivalent of 1-gallon of liquid hand soap that was free of fragrances and nasty chemicals, I decided there had to be a less expensive alternative. The best part? This is… Continue reading How to Make Liquid Hand Soap
How to Cook with Dried Beans
I usually cook about 2-3 pounds of dried beans every week. That’s the equivalent to about 10-12 cans of beans a week but keep in mind, we’re a family of 4 BUT still - we eat a lot of beans! Whether we eat beans for breakfast, lunch, after school snacking, or dinner, they taste great,… Continue reading How to Cook with Dried Beans
You’ve Got Mail
Back before having children, both my husband and I traveled for our jobs and we met up at the airport every 2-weeks. Since we were both gone so often, we cut a hole in our front door and added a mail slot so that our neighbors didn’t have to become our mail collectors. Once I… Continue reading You’ve Got Mail
Square Foot Gardening
Do you have a DIY project that you never seem to get around to doing? I do. Or did. I have been wanting to do this gardening project for years and never got around to it. Then, this past Friday we had a beautiful spring like day. I must have spring fever because I was… Continue reading Square Foot Gardening
Homemade Vanilla Extract
Vanilla extract, which is in practically every baked good recipe on earth, should have 2 ingredients in it: alcohol and vanilla beans. If your vanilla extract has more than these 2 ingredients, consider how unnecessary the other ingredients are. Plus, this is so easy to make, you’re never going to buy vanilla extract again. Homemade… Continue reading Homemade Vanilla Extract
Personalizing a Wedding, Part Two
This is a follow-up guest post from my sweet sister, Mary, who just got married. She shared with us previously about personalizing a wedding.... Your wedding can be however simple or fancy you want it to be - it's your wedding. If you are in the midst of planning one or you know someone who… Continue reading Personalizing a Wedding, Part Two
Slipcover or Reupholster? Which to Choose?
When it comes to having chairs and sofas redone, there’s usually two choices: slipcover or reupholster. But, which to choose? Either will give you a lovely end result – a new outside garment for a piece of solid furniture - but slipcover or reupholster? Having this type of sewing work done for you can be… Continue reading Slipcover or Reupholster? Which to Choose?
Go Gingham 