Where this recipe came from I’m not sure, but it sure is tasty. My friend has been selling it at the local farmer’s market, and it’s been going over really well. You’ll need a bread machine to make this recipe, but they are well worth it. I’ve had mine for several years and use it a LOT. Jalapeno Cheese Bread 3/4 cup Sour Cream 1/8 cup Water 1 Egg 3 cups Flour 1 1/2 teaspoons Salt 1/4 teaspoon Baking Soda 1 cup Sharp Cheddar Cheese (shredded) 3 tablespoons Fresh Jalapeno (I use frozen sometimes if they are out of season) 1 1/2 teaspoons Yeast Put all the ingredients into your bread machine in the order shown above. Regular setting, light crust. YUM! See more Bread Machine Recipes on Idea Queen. Read More →
It’s easy to rack up a list of various memberships. No matter what it may be, all those “really cheap” memberships start to add up after awhile. A few dollars a month here, another few there……..before you know it your memberships are costing you more than some of your regular bills! This week I challenge you to take a look at your budge and all those monthly memberships. How often do you REALLY use half of them? Are you going to the YMCA, gym, or an online site as much as you told yourself you would? Are you using your membership several times every single month, or just “once in awhile”? Run the numbers in your head really quick – if your gym membership is costing you $15/mo (hypothetically – I have no idea what it really costs, we don’t have them near here), and you only go once...
Since the upstairs is a disaster area right now because of the remodeling, I gladly accepted the kids idea of camping out in my son’s room (which is downstairs) last night. It’s a large room, so easily fit a homemade “tent” made out of blankets and chairs. Because they were doing their camping thing, I was able to take my son’s bed with mine being buried again. *GRIN* Everyone’s happy! Their tent was simple and they put it together without any help. Just a few chairs and a blanket is all it took, with their old rocking horse in the middle to hold it up. The rocking horse was also their “divider” between them. They took in popcorn and a flashlight, reading books and telling scary stories. Plus of course pretending they were on a real camping trip with a campfire. I didn’t interrupt them...
If you are in need of a few activities to do with the kids over summer vacation, why not spend a little time in the kitchen? I know this week we are suppose to be cleaning up the kitchen, but the promise of making something fun once the job if finished might be an incentive for the kids to help you out. At Free Kids Crafts there is an entire page dedicated to craft recipes. You’ll find both edible and non-edible recipes like peanut butter play dough, bubble recipe, clay jewelry, and a whole lot more. The clay jewelry recipe we’ve got our eye on for today, since that project can be done over several days (painting and all). Read More →
With all the remodeling and rearranging we’ve had to do the last few weeks, the kitchen has been a little neglected. The laundry too, but that’s never ending. For as little as we’ve cooked the past few weeks, it sure is a mess! This week while my bedroom is still in pieces (I did manage to find my bed last night though – another night on the couch was not a pleasant thought!), I’ll be working on the kitchen. This includes all of the following: - Doing the dishes - Cleaning off counters (are you guilty like me of leaving out things like flour?) - Scrubbing counter tops, cupboards, and appliances (don’t forget inside the microwave!) - Cleaning out the fridge - Sweeping and mopping the floor (when was the last time YOU mopped?) - Cleaning under/behind the stove and fridge, time permitting The chances of me...
The goal of any remodeling is to make your house more comfortable and nicer looking than before. But I’m quickly remembering the royal pain it can be while it’s being done. You see we started on my bedroom yesterday. Not only is there a huge mess right now, but I also don’t have use of my bed. My nice, cozy bed. *Sigh*. Already having sleeping issues, a night on the couch was not pleasant. I sit here hardly able to form coherent thoughts. I woke up a few times, as if my body was trying to tell me “hey you fell asleep on the couch – go upstairs and go to bed”. Well that would have been great if my room wasn’t in pieces and my bed buried under clothes and plastic. So a word to the wise. When you remodel and hire someone, make sure there’s backup plans in place just in case they don’t...
Frugal Friday Tip When summer hits we tend to feel like we need to do as much as possible with our kids, regardless of the cost. Museums, amusement parks, the zoo, swimming, and other attractions get put on a list of things to accomplish. While we should do certain activities with our kids, they don’t all have to cost money. Here are 5 free activities you can do with your kids that won’t cost you a dime (or won’t cost you much anyway). 1. Visit Local Parks How many parks are in your area? Not just the one within your town, but bigger parks outside of town as well. Make a list of all of them and what there is to do there. For example, one park in our area has an observatory along with nature trails. 2. Play in the Backyard Yes, this is allowed! It’s what backyards are for of course. Grab some toys and play some games...
Since we are remodeling the house right now, I thought I would share a source I found for lighting, both indoor and outdoor. Willow Glen has a very organized website, and a huge selection on just about any kind of lighting you can think of. They really stress the fact their items are high quality, so it’s worth checking out the site if are like me and tired of the junk at Walmart. I want something that’s going to last more than a year, so it’s time to look at more high quality products like these. The indoor lighting on the site includes floor lamps (like for bedrooms – there are some REALLY nice styles there) as well as wall figures (which there are a few places are needing some of those as well). The outdoor lighting includes not just exterior wall fixtures (which both our front and back lights need replacing), but...
When we think of candles, we tend to think of that warm glow on a cold winter’s day. Just burning a candle near by can make us feel warmer, especially if the scent is something “warm” like a bakery scent or something with cinnamon. In the summer though, the last thing we want to do is think warm. It’s hot enough outside! Which is exactly why you find me with soy melts instead of burning actual candles. The scents I chose are usually “cool” scents like florals and clean air, summer scents like strawberry, and others that don’t give off the “warm” feeling. What about you? Do you burn candles or do you use melts instead? Read More →
You may have read in previous weeks that we are getting ready to remodel the house. I’m excited we’ll be starting this weekend with the upstairs bedrooms. Now the first room isn’t so difficult – it’s mine. I spend little time in my room, so there’s hardly anything but a bed and a few dressers in there. There’s not much that needs to be moved. In fact, since we’re just doing the walls right now, everything will just need to be moved into the middle of the room. That is, except for what’s in the closet. That I’m going to have to clean out. It’s not a large closet, but large enough to have tons of clothes shoved into it. Like most women (I suspect), it’s shoved full of clothes I will never be able to wear again. I’ve been hanging on to them in hopes maybe some day...
