Homemade Hand Sanitizer

We all know that uncomfortable stingy sensation we feel after using store bought hand sanitizer...

Well, after years of suffering from the pain and smell of the alcohol infused stuff, here's my recipe for clean hands on the run! (Or after shaking hands at church when there's something going round, lol)
It's SO Easy!!!
Rinse out any pump container you have on hand and get these 4 Ingredients:
Aloe Vera Gel (mine is trader Joe's)
Tea tree essential oil
Lavender Essen.oil
Lemon Essen.oil
How:
Simply fill 1/3 of your pump container with aloe gel.
Add about 8 drops tea tree
8 drops lavender oil
10 drops lemon (because it's wonderful)
Fill the rest with water!
.......if you have a marble from the kids hanging around, rinse and throw it in. You'll see what I mean, helps blend all the ingredients.
And there you go! You'll NEVER go back to the store bought AGAIN!
Enjoy!

Laundry Detergent: Joy in Homemaking

Quick & Easy Laundry Detergent

RECIPE:

1/3 bar of Fels Naptha soap (grated)
1/2 c. Arm & Hammer washing soda
6 c. water
1/2 c. Borax
Large pot

Blender

Heat water, soap, soda & borax on med-hi. Bring to boil stirring constantly-15 min.

Stay with it! It can foam & boil over. Remove from heat, should be consistency of honey.

Now here's what we do differently:

Pour equal amounts in 3 gal. jugs & add hot water to the top. Wait until cool before 

placing covers on.  Let set 24 hours.

Next, I have another additional gallon or 2 empty jugs set aside.  You'll notice the

detergents gel-like consistency.  This can cause a problem

(or at least it did for our machine) in your washer's filter & flood your basement :) 

So, pull the blender out & fill it half way with your

detergent and about 3/4 of the way up with water. Blend from low to med.

Depending on your blender until smooth. 

Pour this into a new jug & repeat until you've gone through all the

previously made detergent.  I get about 5-6 gallons of detergent from this method.

It lasts a long time for my size family.  It does not hurt or clog my machine,

it cleans & sure is inexpensive!

  

Ok, so it would be a lot quicker & a lot easier

to go to the market and purchase

laundry soap, right?.

Quick for me means something I can do

while waiting for something else getting done!

Easy means I don't need directions or a

recipe to get it done.

For our family of 6

I've had to adopt new mindsets of what easy & frugal are

and in the same sentence!

The key is, "finding JOY in it", as I teach my girls daily.

Being a wife, mother, homemaker, & everyother

hat we domestic engineers must wear, are merely subcategories

under what our real job is being a

Godly Woman in Christ 
This is what makes US significantly happier!




Every day has it's ups & downs,
any task has it's highs & lows.
But, I've found that
Starting my day in CHRIST
& in His Word
is THE only way to find true joy, self worth, & self-preservation
and makes our tasks even more than worthwhile!


I've taught and am continuing to teach my
daughters the significance of
an orderly "Homemakers" life:

The Lord first,
Husband second,
Children next,
and then everything else is after that.


I truly love my occupation-it's MY LIFE!
Thankyou Father for teaching me!
He can teach you too!  :)



My Husband:The Hunter

Peter taken in 2011


I didn't grow up in a "hunting" family.
Nor did I ever imagine I would marry a man who hunts.

One of the first times I went to my "to be" husband's for dinner,
he had his 2 children, Daniel & Sarah at home and was in the middle of
preparing a meal...


Peter asked me if I wouldn't mind going downstairs to his spare freezer to
see if he had any bread.
I of course, said, "Sure!" and headed on down.


I made my way to the basement thinking, "See, I am already
showing him what a wonderful & submissive wife I will be!"

I found the freezer and opened the door only then 
to let out a blood-curling scream....


I had only a a few seconds to unscramble what my eyes were
focusing on...
a very dead racoon perched on a shelf,
 waving his "hand" at me.
Soon after I practically had an asthema attack & went into convulsions,
I heard the pack of them upstairs roaring in laughter!
I seriously think the racoon was smiling at me too.


My husband-2011

Well, at least Peter showed me what a "comforter" he was,
holding my trembling body....telling me he was sorry.... and everything was going to be alright.

Although, I think he
was shaking even more than me!
Oh.....now I remember...
he was failing at a stifled chortle .


I have to admit, he does look handsome in his hunting apparel! :)
(Spoken like a true female, huh?)

  

Taken in NH-2011

He's definitely proved to be a keeper!

I am truly blessed! 

  

Meatloaf From the Heart

My heart-shaped meatloaf was made from the heart & done so frugally!

I prepared this dish for our 2011 Valentine Feast but, this can be made anytime you want to say,

"I love you!"

Ingredients:

-Family-size ground beef (or whatever ground meat you prefer)

-2 eggs

-italian bread crumbs

-seasonings to taste(salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, additional ital. seasonings)

-1/2 cup milk (check consistancy-depends on bread crumbs)

-prepared mashed potatos (box or real pot.)

-prepared vegies (I used brocolli, steamed in the microwave)

After mixing all these ingredients, I took enough for that evening's dinner and hand-shaped

it into a heart. The remaining was shaped into ordinary meatloaf for another meal (either for the freezer or for thru the week). Next place the heart-shaped meatloaf into a large enough cake pan.

Bake at 350 and check after 30 minutes.

While waiting for the meatloaf to cook, prepare mashed potatos and vegetables.

When meatloaf is ready, place in center of platter. "Frost" with mashed potatos & outline with vegetables.

I also "decorated" the top with a sprig of rosemary.

It was "Delicious!" Show your husband & family how much you love them tonight!!!

Afterall, they are a BLESSING!!!! :)



What is Romance?

What is Romance?

Not so distant memories bring me back to when I was little

And thought romance was simply getting married.

(Funny, because I really thought he would look just like my Daddy.)

Falling in love was a mystery.

All I knew was what was displayed by my parents.

(Prov.4:1 Hear, ye children, the instruction of a father, and attend to know understanding)

Was This Romance?

After I grew up & had watched countless movies

 & read many books on the subject,

All of which were of the secular mindset, I thought I had a grasp on how it all

Should be.

People, portrayed in and out of “love”, all searching…

looking in all the wrong places,(Rom.7:8 …but sin taking occasion by the commandment wrought  in me allmanner of concupiscence ( evil desire)

Hoping, dare I say, “praying” to find romance & “True Love”.

An earthly father's "true-love"

Does Romance Even Exist?

At some point I began to imagine there truly was no such thing

As “True Love”.  It had simply been fabricated by movie & book companies

Twisting & molding our hearts into something that wasn’t real.

A marketed emotion simply to make money.

It couldn’t be, because it wasn’t true for me.

Why believe something that just makes you upset with reality?

I was married with 2 children and divorced within 5 years.  I was left feeling

Hurt, untrusting, … empty..unworthy.        :/

(Gen.50:20 …but as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good)

Christ' Love shines through the darkness!
taken by my daughter Sarah :)

Was There Something More To Romance?

It wasn’t until I found “True Love” in Christ that I realized I couldn’t

“Truly Love” another or be “Loved Truly” by anyone but a believing husband!

Christ-filled love

Many years of growing in the Lord, studying His Word, and being

Married   for 14 years to a Christian husband has been such a blessing!

(Rom.5:5 And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us)

Ours is not the movie kind-of-love or what’s splashed in tabloids.

Our love is not a stagnant love, a burden, or like I’ve seen so

Often, a mere acceptance of a mediocre life with someone you’re

Stuck with.

Romance- A  Result  Of  Love

Our love has grown stronger & stronger through out

The  years.  Through our trials, our losses and triumphs

(2 Cor.7:4…I am filled with comfort. I am exceeding  joyful in all our tribulation)

 in Christ, we have a truer, deeper, and more lasting love than a human could

ever know.

Taken by my daughter Sarah

But, it’s something we work at and study on in His Word.

I’ve found that our romance is more alive for each other when

We are in Christ’s love, even when there is no mention of

Romance in my Bible’s Concordance!

Romance then, is truly a result of a “True Love” for each other

In Christ.

What is True Love’s Romance?

Romance for us is not just a desire for love or passion,

But rather a desire to put the other  first-  in everything!

Putting one’s self last can be more satisfying then what

The world teaches to, “Please yourself”.

 (Jn.12:25-He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal)

Romance is loving when you don’t feel like it.

Loving him or her when they’re “not lovable”.

Romance is actually looking for ways to say, "I love you"

and  saying , “I love you” when you’re not feeling well.

The aroma of home-cooking when he comes home from work.

Our Valentine's Day Meatloaf

His simple but sincere voice-mails or calling on his breaks.

The girls rushing to meet "Daddy" at the door & knowing it was me who put that desire there to do it!       :D

Romance is when he vacuums the living room & cleans toilets!

It can be a whisper of love or screaming & dancing around the house-

With the kids!

Watching my family thru the lens of a camera brings
warmth to my heart

Romance can just be a look of encouragement when words

Cannot be uttered- due to sufferings. (1 Cor.13:8 Charity never faileth:)

Romance for me is learned by loving “truly” through those hard times;

Looking back at them and knowing I’d do it all over again.

Dear Heavenly Father, forgive me my shortcomings & help ME

(1Jn.1:9  If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness)

To love You “Truly” so I can learn to always love my husband truly!

Keeping romance IN our marriages is so important in keeping

Our love alive,  but only 2^nd to keeping it alive in the LORD.

Loving the Lord brings us LIFE

Thank you Father for my husband, my family, but most

of all our Beautiful Life!

(Jn. 8:12 Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, “I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life)

True Love- "In Christ"

Making Valentine's Day Special (for the whole family)

Making Valentine's Special
is fun & can be exciting for the whole family.
Yes, I know some might say, "Ummmm, isn't that for me & my sweetheart?"
And of course it is & should be, but I started to take a different view now that my kids are getting older.

our valentine spread 2012



Last year my husband & I decided to start a new tradition for Valentine's.
Already trying to model how a husband & wife "should be" we thought,

"Let's take all our girls out on a date!"

Since we don't promote "dating" as a way of getting to "know" somebody with our our girl's training up,
we thought it important to show a date with your sweetheart
 as husband & wife and how it is special enough to share with them.
Not only did they get to see how to act & be lady-like (for the younger of the 4),but
this also demonstrated how important it is to be treasured & valued by their
future husbands.

flatware

place settings trimmed with hand-made napkins

Daddy is their "Prince Charming" & should be until

Daddy gives them away in marriage.  It's such a blessing

to have a husband who truly loves the Lord so much

that he knows how to love me and give the girls a model

to compare any other young man down the road.

decorations

x's & o's & pink sugar rimmed glasses

This year for 2012, we put on a Valentine's Day Banquet!

A conglomeration of everyone's hard work and creativity went into this

special evening. "Sissi", the oldest of the 4 girls, came home from work around 5pm

to help put the finishing touches on before Dad came home from a hard day.

heart-shaped meatloaf, frosted with mashed potatoes

To top everything off, this fantastic dessert with a cup of coffee &

the younger girls had "pink" raspberry leaf tea was served while...

heart-shaped brownie triple chocolate supreme

opening our special hand-crafted cards & gifts!

(Oh yes, and the girls had Dad & Mom dance 1 slow-dance together after dinner in the living room :)

I have to give thanks to my Father in Heaven for a blessed & beautiful

Valentine's!

valentine cards, gifts, & pink lemonaid - from the heart

Beautiful Valentine Treats-Chocolate Covered Heart-Shaped Mounds

(Taken Feb. 2012)

These little treasures are a true Labor of Love.

They're not difficult, they just take time.

Recipe:Disclaimer-I fudge any recipe I ever come into contact with and make it my own. I suggest you do the same! :)

1 stick butter or marg.

1 lb. confec. sugar + another 2 cups

14 ou. bag shredded sweetened coconut

1 can sweetened condensed milk

1/2 tsp. vanilla

12 ou. bag chocolate chips or choc. melts (I used almond bark)

1/8 tsp. shortening (as needed with melting choc.-not for use with choc. melts)

Melt butter in microwave-safe bowl.  Add sugar, coconut, condensed milk, and vanilla.

Mix well-should be stiff batter.  Shape into balls (bite-sized), or in this case, hearts by

forming ball then press pinky in on one side, then pinching the opposite side. 

Mold gently 'til you acquire the perfect little heart!

(Taken Feb. 2011)

Place on waxed paper and chill. 

While in fridge, in microwave-safe bowl (cereal-size)

I placed 3 large almond bark squares with an 1/8 tsp. shortening.

Melt 30 sec. 2x, then 15 sec. intervals until smooth.

Important!!! Don't over-cook! (If it does and gets chunky-don't throw it

away! Use to dip animal crackers or graham crackers.  At least it's still edible!)

(Taken Feb. 2012)

Now, the fun part! (It's all fun!)

(Taken Feb. 2012)

I used a tooth pick inserted on one side and a baby spoon in the other.

Carefully sweeping melted chocolate up & over the sides of

the molded heart.

Then I place a little on the waxed paper where it will rest.

(Taken Feb. 2012)

Gently lift choc. heart above the bowl with the toothpick while

using the spoon to scrape the running off chocolate from the bottom.

Next,  place your heart on the choc. spot on your waxed paper.

Turn them out in rows to harden.

(Taken Feb. 2012)

This can be a little messy 'til you get the hang of it.

But, "practice makes perfect", I always tell my girls!

(Taken Feb. 2012)

When cooled and hardened, I place them on a clean dish towel

then in an airtight container.

 (If making chocolates in the summer you don't want them on

top of one another-separate with waxed paper.)

Take your time and enjoy! You're family & friends will certainly

enjoy your efforts and that always makes it worthwhile!