Diaper Pail Deodorant Disk

I have a special needs child.  Even though she's 3 and 1/2, she's no where near ready to be potty trained.  With that comes an extended use of the diaper pail.  It reeks!!!!  I have tried the ones from Arm and Hammer and even 3 at a time with no luck!  So what could it hurt to make one and see what happens?

Website

http://zksim.blogspot.com/2012/01/stinky-diaper-pail-make-your-own.html

Directions

For baking soda disks, you will need:

• distilled or boiled water
•  2 cups of baking soda
• your choice of essential oils 
• a muffin pan
• paper muffin cups

Add a few drops of essential oil to a small amount of water. Mix the water with the baking soda. Mix well. Gradually add and mix more water until you have a thick paste.

 Press about ½" of paste into each muffin paper and let dry 24 hours. Tear the paper off. After you've used each disk for a month or so (however long you find it effective), crumble the disk into the diaper wash. Baking soda deodorizes and softens the diapers.

This recipe made me a year supply. Happy Diapering! :) 

My Thoughts

Our pail still reeks!!!  It's beyond repair I believe.  We should just invest in getting another since we don't know how long we will be using it anyways.  These disks might work in the fridge or something less potent, but not a diaper pail.  Luckily the only time we smell the pail is when we have to empty it and put in a new bag!!

Cleaning Cookie Sheets, Again?

You've all seen my dirty cookie sheets before, so I needed another cleaning method since the first didn't work.  This one seemed more practical.

Website

http://www.onegoodthingbyjillee.com/2012/05/new-life-for-old-cookie-sheets-again.html

Directions

After sprinkling the spot with baking soda, then hydrogen peroxide, then another layer of baking soda… I left it sitting there like that while we went to breakfast. When we got home I rubbed a little of the cleaner off and was actually quite astonished to see MOST of the gunk came right off! Minimal rubbing with my fingers (you could use a scrubbie too) was required.

Their Pictures

My Thoughts

Blah!  My cookie sheets are getting thrown out today and I'm buy new.  It's not like they are that expensive anyways.  I'm sick of trying to clean them.  This does not work like the pictures!!!  I will say that it didn't spell horrific like the other method, so that made this method a little better.

My Pictures

Before

During

And After

This cookie sheets should have been replaced a long time ago!  What was I thinking???

Oven Cleaner

I bought this oven cleaner and it got almost all of my oven clean.  There's these little specks on the window that I cannot get off.  Of course I'm going to try something from Pinterest to see if it will work on those specks.

Website

http://diyhshp.blogspot.com/2011/11/how-to-clean-oven-glass-it-seriously-is.html

Directions and Pictures

ant to clean your oven? I promise its super easy.

Ingredients:

Water

Baking Soda

Add about a 1/4 cup of baking soda in a dish and mix just enough water to make a slightly runny paste. 

Spread your mixture all over your glass (and the door if it needs it too. Mine did).

Wait 15-20 minutes (or if it is really, really bad like mine you can wait 30 minutes. Not sure if this is necessary but that's what I did.).

After 15, 20, or 30 minutes wipe off. If there are still spots left they should easily scrub off with a scour pad.

And Voila...

 

 

 

My Thoughts

 

Well my specks are still there and my oven looks the exact same as when I started.  I actually think this was harder to clean off of the oven because the baking soda is hard.  It took me several paper towels and cleaning wipes to get all of the cleaner off.  I wouldn't bother with this again.

 

My Pictures

(notice on the second picture that the specks are still there)

 

 

 

Don't waste your time!

Homemade Body Scrubs

I haven't been buying body scrubs for the past couple of years because I feel like they are such a rip off.  I love the way it makes my skin feel, but 20 bucks is a bit out of hand.  Ever since I lived at home as a teenager, someone was always stealing it from me and when I would go to use it, it would be gone.  How could I resist a homemade recipe? So how could I resist 24 recipes?

Warning: These recipes are sold for $3.99 (not from me)

Website

http://inbetweenlaundry.blogspot.com/search?q=scrub

My Thoughts

I've tried several, and it's worth the money to spend on the recipes.  They aren't just sugar and oil and scent.  They are full on mixtures but still keeping it at a cheap price.  The recipe makes a ton, so I cut it in half to make smaller portions.  I want to try all of the recipes and how can I do that if I keep the same one around for a long time.

One Thing I Changed

I like to use Grapeseed Oil because it's a lighter oil.  They have a large quantity of it at Target for about the same price as the cheap olive oil.  It's more expensive everywhere else and for half the quantity.

My Picture of Caramel Apple

(yes I keep them in tupperware)

 These will make great Christmas Gifts!  I will have to buy nicer containers though!

Greek Pasta Salad

I love pasta and Feta Cheese.  What a great combo.  I had to try this one!

Website

http://www.mybakingaddiction.com/greek-pasta-salad-recipe/

Picture

Man that's a great picture.  Looks like it's from a restaurant.

Directions

For the Dressing

1 cup olive oil
3/4 cup red wine vinegar
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons basil dried basil
2 teaspoons dried oregano
2 teaspoons Za'atar*
1-1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons granulated sugar

For the Salad

1 pound rotini pasta cooked according to package directions
1 pint cherry tomatoes, cut in half (you can also sub in grape tomatoes)
1 large cucumber, seeded and chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
4 green onions, thinly sliced
3/4 cup Kalamata olives
1-1/2 cups crumbled feta cheese
1 7-ounce pepperoni stick, sliced

Directions:

1. In a a large Mason jar or other sealable container, combine olive oil, vinegar, garlic powder, basil, oregano, Za'atar black pepper, and sugar. Shake well to combine.
2. In a large bowl, combine cooked pasta, tomatoes, cucumber, bell peppers, green onions, olives, feta cheese and pepperoni.
3. Separate and reserve ½ cup of dressing in the refrigerator.
4. Toss the pasta salad with the rest of the dressing until evenly coated. Cover, and chill overnight.
5. Right before serving, freshen the salad with the reserved dressing, tossing to coat.



My thoughts

 Great recipe and great dressing.  I couldn't find Za-atar so I worked without it.  I also don't like peppers or olives, so I skipped those too.  I added chicken to it to make it a meal instead of a side dish.

This is a pasta that I will make many more times!


My Picture

Crock Pot Applesauce

I've mentioned before that I want to go fresh.  Instead of buying applesauce, which is so easy, why not make it?  Might as well complicate things for myself, but at least it's fresh.

Website

http://mommymakesitbetter.blogspot.com/2012/04/crock-pot-applesauce.html

Their Picture

Directions

Ingredients:

8 medium apples (Use a combination of Golden Delicious, Honey Crisp, Fuji, Gala, etc.) (I filled the crockpot, using about 20 small apples)

1 strips of lemon peel - use a vegetable peeler

1 tsp fresh lemon juice

3 inch cinnamon stick

5 tsp light brown sugar (unpacked) - or agave


1.  Peel, core and chop the apples.

2.  Add the sugar, lemon peel, lemon juice and cinnamon stick.

3.  Set crock pot to low and cook for 6 hours. Stir apples occasionally, apples will slowly become a delicious applesauce. Remove cinnamon stick and use an immersion blender to blend until smooth or if you prefer a chunky sauce, leave sauce intact. (I used a whisk, which gave the sauce a nice chunky consistency.)

4.  Can and process as you would other recipes or keep refrigerated up to 3 weeks.

My Thoughts

I cut the recipe in half to see if I would like it and it didn't make a lot of sauce.  It's amazing how many apples put in to it and what comes out.  

It needed some sugar, so I will add some.  Other than that, I like the recipe.  It's nice to just put it and and forget about it for awhile.

My Picture

(I use a liner in my pot so I don't have to wash it)

It's a little hard to see.  Sorry about that.  Try it out!

 

Italian Chicken

I love an easy recipe.  Just throw it in the stove and forget about it for awhile, sign me up.

Website

http://tristanfamily.blogspot.com/2012/07/whats-for-dinner.html

Picture

Directions

 4-6 raw chicken breasts, new potatoes, green beans (fresh or canned-really any green veggie would work. Broccoli is good, too). Arrange in 9x13 dish. Sprinkle with a packet of Italian dressing mix and then top with a melted stick of butter. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour. 

 

 

My Thoughts

 

My butcher splits my chicken and pounds it for me, so it's thin.  I knew that the chicken would cook faster than the vegetables, so I put them in first and then added the chicken. 

This was a great dinner!  It was so easy and tasted great!  I used different veggies though.

My Picture

Yum!  Give it a try!