March 30, 2010

Creamy Cajun Chicken PastaThis is a quick and easy dish that satisfies my cravings for Alfredo-ish creaminess and not-too-hot spiciness. I usually have the ingredients to make this on hand, except for the heavy whipping cream.

 

Painted ToastGrand kids love this! Place 2 tablespoons milk in 4 separate glass containers. Add a few drops of food coloring to each, making a different color in each cup.

 

Grilled Cheese and Tomato SandwichWhen making a grilled cheese and tomato sandwich, start the heat under the skillet. Put the bread in the toaster for a minute or so to heat, now lightly butter one side and put it in the hot skillet.

 

Bread SoupThis is an old recipe, but it's kind of fun and different! Cube bread. Put into large bowl. Add milk and desired amount of sugar. Let stand at least 15 minutes before serving. Each person adds the amount of berries he so chooses.

 

Hungry Jack Beef CasserolePreheat oven to 375 degrees F. Brown beef; drain. Stir in next 5 ingredients. Boil until bubbly. Pour into 2 qt. casserole. Cut biscuits in half to form 20 half circles.

 

Chocolate CalzoneMix last five ingredients together. Put on half of pizza dough. Fold over and pinch to seal. Bake 500 degrees F for 10 minutes. Cool 10 minutes. Sprinkle with powdered sugar, drizzle with melted chocolate if desired.

 

Money TreeThis is a money tree created for a 50th surprise birthday party. It is constructed of a sassafras branch (dogwood works good as well), curling ribbon in various lengths tied onto the branches. I used a vase as tall as the branch and added sand and rocks for stability.

 

Rising Costs of 3D MoviesDue to a recent a raise in the price of 3D movies you now are paying nearly $15 to see a movie in 3D in most areas. That's $5 more than seeing the non-3D version of the same movies. A family of four can save $20 by opting for the non-3D alternative.

 

Carrot Hand TowelSurprise Easter guests with this large carrot-shaped towel duo. Sure to lure and bamboozle Peter Rabbit.

 

Molly (Pitbull/Boston Terrier Mix)Molly is a 3 year old Pitbull/Boston Terrier Mix. I Found her as a stray. She likes to lick the heck out of us! She needs a home! We are fostering her!

 

Make Photo Albums for Your ChildrenWith the computer age, many people now store their pictures on discs. But for those of us who still like standard photo albums, here's an idea.

 

Turn Your Refrigerator into an IceboxMy old refrigerator was running almost constantly so I decided to turn it into an icebox. I pulled the plug and put duct tape over the vents in the freezer section. I filled some containers two thirds full with water and froze them in my small chest freezer.

 

Freeze Leftover Bread As CubesI always have a couple of pieces of a loaf of bread left over that are getting dried up. I cut them into 3/4 inch cubes and store them in a zip-loc bag in the freezer.

 

Cat Playhouse From Recycled BoxesMy Mom has a cat and she loves to crawl into boxes and other things to hide. I have this idea in my head about making her a cat condo or playhouse. I have some large boxes that I will be using.

 

Antique Curtain Rod EndI found this unusual item in a collection of items left from the passing of my mother's aunt. It may look odd, but actually serves a purpose. The slim end slides easily into the end of an ordinary curtain rod and the larger, smooth end helps the rod slide easily through the curtains to hang.

 

Phoebe (Cat)Phoebe is 7. I got her when she was about 1, we adopted her from someone who was moving. Phoebe loves to pole dance, she has a video on youtube. She is the sweetest, most loving cat ever.

 

Easter Scene Wooden FenceSimply interlock craft sticks, to form a zigzag fence to frame a nice little Easter village scene! You can snap off the ends of other craft sticks to interlock the open ends together, as seen in the picture.

 

Plastic Easter Egg AnimalsCreate pig, mouse, cat, dog, or other animal from those inexpensive plastic Easter eggs. Great for children's Easter baskets.

 

Making Your Own BowsWhen finishing making a bow, twist the bow instead of the wire. Doing it this way makes a much tighter bow and is easier on your fingers.

 

Use Vodka for DisinfectantI read in this book on cancer years ago that the best why to disinfect your house is with vodka. It was found to be the only disinfectant that wasn't toxic to cancer patients. You use 4 parts water, one part full strength vodka.

 

Fill Out Important Dates on a New CalendarNever miss an important date again. At the beginning of each year when the new calendars come out, I get two; one for my husband and one for myself. We each copy birthdays and other important recurring dates to our calendars.

 

Water Acid Loving Herbs With Leftover CoffeeI planted my acid loving herbs near my kitchen door, and in the morning when my morning coffee finishes brewing, I put the used grounds directly onto the soil, instead of having to walk them to the compost bin or throw them away!

 

Enhance Your Gravy With VeggiesWhen you roast meats and use onions, celery, garlic and carrots to enhance the flavor, be sure to save all those veggies for when you make gravy.

 

Packing for Traveling FamiliesWhen my children were small, I would put together an entire outfit for each of them for every day we planned to be gone. I would include panties or undershorts as well as socks for every outfit.

 

Use an Electric Pants Press for Wrinkled PantsHubby found an electric pants presser for $20 at a thrift store. I am learning to use it to "press" his khaki work pants, which come out of the wash all wrinkled. The press is not supposed to DO that. I find I can more or less iron out pants with it while watching TV.

 

Growing Sunflowers in ContainersSunflowers do great in containers. In fact, container gardening has gotten so popular in the past few years that there are now literally dozens of varieties of sunflowers available that have been developed specifically for growing in containers.

 

Newspaper DustpanWhen I sweep the floor, I take a saved newspaper (just one page ). Fold it over gently lengthwise (do not crease), it should be about four inches folded. Dip quickly into a basin of water and unfold gently on floor behind swept up trash.

 

Inexpensive Activity Ideas?I am a college student so of course we are always broke. I don't like bars and in a small town, even with money, there's not much to do Do you have any ideas?

 

Best Cleaner for Leather Furniture?What is the best cleaning solution for leather furniture?

 

Growing Lemon Grass?Have any of you ever grown lemon grass? If so,? did you grow it from seed or from a plant? If from a plant, where did you purchase it?

 

Is Envirotex Safe to Use Near a Range Top?I'm considering painting my countertops and either using Envirotex or polyurethane as a top coat. My concern is that I have a cook-top, not a free-standing unit, and was wondering if the heat emitted from that would have any affect on the counter-top?

 

Honey Is Turning To Sugar?How do you keep honey from turning to sugar?

 

Plastic Storage Bin Greenhouse?I'm thinking of trying to make a small indoor greenhouse for next winter. I have an odd-ball idea for one and would like to get some feedback on what people think.

 

Paint Color Ideas for Room with Light Carpet?I'm putting in new Oyster colored carpet. What color should I paint my walls?

 

DVD Tray Will Not Open?We have a Sylvania TV with built-in VCR and DVD. Several months ago the DVD quit working. It simply will not open either by using the controls or pushing the buttons on the unit.

 

Sharing Living Expenses With Boyfriend?My boyfriend of three years moved in with me a little over a year ago. He buys groceries from week to week and spends about $300 - $400 a month but has not offered to pay any rent or utilities. How should I approach him to share in these expenses?

 

Removing Ink from a Table?I am looking for information for removing permanent ink mark from wood/finish coffee table.

 

Recipe Book for Hitachi HB B102 Bread Machine?I just bought a used Hitachi HB B102 bread machine. It came with French and English manuals, but only the French recipe book. Could anyone tell me where to find the PDF English recipe book?

 

How Do You Play with These Wooden Rings?As kids we had these wooden rings and recently I ran across some of them again. I wonder if anyone out there knows how they were played with? Seems like wooden sticks may have been part of the game?

 

Olive Oil Stain on Brick Walkway?How do I get olive oil off of my red brick walkway? The bottle accidentally broke and spilled. It left a large oil stain which is really noticeable.

 

Washing Clothes in Well Water with Iron?We have bad well water, and have yellow gray, white clothes. I use hot water with bleach. They still look bad. What can I use to get them white again?

 

Rooting Christmas Cactus?How do I root cuttings from a Christmas Cactus? I tried just sticking them in the soil, but they just rot.

 

Crafts Using Pop Can Tabs?I want to know if anyone has instructions on how to make leis and bolo ties with the pop can tabs?

 

Making Moist Pound Cake from Mixes?If I have a pound cake box mix, what can I add to make it moist?

 

Removing Sharpie from Grout?How do you remove Sharpie marker from grout?

 

Sticker Residue on Leather?I need help with the removal of sticker residue on a black leather couch.

 

Refreezing Raw Hamburger?Can I freeze raw meat, let it thaw and then refreeze the raw hamburger meat?

 

Coffee Filters Lose Their Shape?Does anyone have any advice on how to keep coffee filters in their original shape; space efficient? My filters have already lost their shape within a week, in the bag, making coffee grounds spill over. Any great ideas?Thank you.

 

Keeping an LCD TV Dust Free?How can I get and keep my new LCD TV screen free from dust? It seems to be a magnet for all dust in the house.

 

Sharpening Riding Lawn Mower Blades?How do you sharpen the blades on a riding mower?