Christmas Tags

Sarah over at Thrifty Decor Chick posted her clever idea on how to make Christmas tags for next year out of this year's Christmas cards and boxes. She uses a rectangle-shaped punch (from a scrapbooking store) and punches out images, words, quotes and such from cards and decorative boxes and uses those for next year's gift tags. What a clever idea! See her post in its entirety by going to Cheap Gift Tags (FREE!).

** New Pricing for Chore Charts **

Okay, so after doing a set of Chore Charts and Kid Bucks for a "customer" I realize my pricing was a little skewed... I thought it would take me much longer to do these. So, check out my post on Pricing for Personalized Chore Charts and Kid Bucks to see my new prices.

Just a thought to pass along, but the New Year would be a GREAT time to start a new set of Chore Charts! :)

Save the Play Food!

Inexpensive play food sets (for play kitchens) come with 100+ pieces. Unfortunately, 1/4 of them are cheap cardboard boxes that typically last no more than a few days before the child tears, crushes, or otherwise mutilates them.

Take bits of newspaper and stuff those boxes till they're fairly rigid. Then take clear packing tape and seal them up all the way around. Seal the paper labels on the "cans" too by wrapping packing tape all the way around them.

Your child will get to make-believe to his/her heart's content!

Snow Ice Cream

I love this idea! I got the idea from the blog Feathering Our Nests. (The recipe is originally from about.com.) Sounds yummy! We're going to try it later today when we get some "fresh snow" -- like 8-12 inches of it just today!!

Ingredients:
1 cup of milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup sugar
CLEAN Snow

Preparation:
Go outside and get 4 - 5 cups of fresh, clean snow. Don't pack the snow! Mix together the milk, vanilla, and the sugar. Stir this mixture until the sugar is dissolved. Slowly add the snow to your mixture, stirring constantly, until it is as thick as ice cream! Eat up!

50 Health & Beauty Products You Can Make at Home

Check out 50 Heath and Beauty Products You Can Make at Home which includes:

• Spray Conditioner
• Clarifying Treatment
• Yogurt Facial Cleanser
• Astringent
• Salt Skin Smoother
• Hand Sanitizer
• Sweet Eye Makeup Remover
• Body Spray

One of My Favorite Things: Google Reader

Google Reader is a program that checks all the blogs that you tell it to and lets you know which have new posts. It will show you updates to anything with an RSS feed. If, for instance, a blog is private, it doesn't have a feed, so you have to check those manually. Otherwise, Google Reader is awesome!

You simply log in to Google Reader and you come to a page with a listing of your blogs, with highlights on the blogs with new posts. You can either read them in Google Reader, or go to the blog itself to read it. (Sometimes authors only allow a snippet of the blog post on readers, and you have to go to the actual blog to read the post in its entirety.)

Google offers a tour of Reader HERE. From the Google Reader tour:

Stay up to date
Google Reader constantly checks your favorite news sites and blogs for new content. Whether a site updates daily or monthly, you can be sure that you won't miss a thing.

Simplify your reading experience
Google Reader shows you all of your favorite sites in one convenient place. It's like a personalized inbox for the entire web.

Discover new content
Millions of sites publish feeds with their latest updates, and our integrated feed search makes it easy to find new content that interests you.

A basic explanation of a feed reader (like Google Reader) from Life Hack:

One of the core technologies behind the Web 2.0 “revolution” is RSS (Really Simple Syndication). Most websites that are updated with any sort of regularity have feeds of at least their headlines, and usually of full articles. Some sites also have secondary feeds listing their comments, videos, links, and other updates as well.

Because RSS is so common these days, keeping up with the rush of information that shapes our lives has become pretty easy (”really simple”, even). Instead of jumping from one site to another, you can keep track of all the content of the sites you visit regularly in one central place.

Why Google Reader?

While there are desktop applications that collect your syndicated content, reading RSS feeds is one task that justifies the buzz around “Web 2.0″. For reading news, keeping up with blogs, even tracking packages, little can compare with Google Reader — its easy to add feeds, easy to read them, and easy to organize them.

Google Reader offers several advantages over stand-alone desktop feed readers. First of all, it integrates tightly with both Firefox and IE7, making it simple to use. Second, you can access your feeds from any computer, and keep your reading in sync between them. Finally, you don’t have to worry about upgrades or performance issue — bug fixes and new features are added “behind the scenes” with no action on your part. And it’s free.

If you already use any of Google’s other services — Gmail, Docs and Spreadsheets, Google Groups, or whatever — you are already signed up for Google Reader; just log in with your existing account information. Otherwise, go to Google Reader and create a new account.

Read the rest of the article HERE.

One of My Favorite Things: Double-Sided Dish Cloths

I've always disliked sponges. I never feel like I can keep them clean. I have always used dish rags because they're so easy to toss in the washer when they get yucky.

A few months ago I found dish rags that are FABULOUS! They are regular dish rags, except one side is covered in a nylon mesh. These rags can scrub dried-on egg off the countertop, get splatters of spaghetti sauce off of the stovetop, and clean walls with ease.

I found mine at Wal-Mart, but I'm sure you can find them just about anywhere.

They are one of my favorite things!

Reusable Homemade Dryer Sheets

Need:

Flannel pieces
4 TBS liquid softener
10 TBS water

Instructions:

* Cut fabric sheets from old flannel pajamas or leftover flannel fabric from sewing and cut into 3x5" strips (approximately)

* Stack flannel strips in a cleaned margarine tub (large size) or plastic container (cleaned baby wipes container works well too). Mix the liquid softener and water together, then pour evenly over top of stacked flannel strips.

* Seal container and shake well. You can use several dozen strips with this mixture.

* Leave sealed for 2 or 3 days, then use one flannel strip per load. Squeeze out excess if necessary (it should be just damp). Keep container sealed at all times. Wash strips after use, then use again to make another batch when needed.

Holiday Gift-Giving

I have a love and talent for baking. This year, I decided to put that love/talent to work making gifts for teachers, bus drivers, neighbors, friends, and family. The cost? Almost nothing (within my budget, for sure!). I made loaves of banana bread with a gorgeous holiday ribbon for Matt's boss and my in-laws. I made little bags with stacks of cookies (oatmeal and snickerdoodles) and mini candy canes for neighbors, friends, and teachers. I got the bags and ribbon from my MIL, who was cleaning out her Christmas boxes and had more stuff than she wanted to keep. The only thing I bought was the mini candy canes (and the flour, sugar, etc).

I'd tell you what I'm giving my brothers-in-law (who I got in the gift exchange) and my brother, but there's just the slightest chance they'll read this and I don't want to spoil their gift. It's bigger and better than banana bread - trust me! But it still comes from my oven... I'll add it to the bottom of this post after Christmas. :)

Do you have a talent you could share with others as a gift this holiday season?

Oprah's Meaningful & Inexpensive Gift Ideas

I am not a huge Oprah fan, but today I watched her show because it was "How to Have the Thriftiest Holiday Ever!" I'm not one to pass up thrifty holiday ideas!

For the next 48 hours, you can download a CD worth of holiday songs from artists like Josh Groban (a personal fave of mine), Aretha Franklin, and Harry Connick Jr (another favorite) for FREE from the Oprah website HERE. From the same page you can download a CD cover for it! Cool, huh?

Also on her show she talked about an idea I simply LOVE. From her website: "Oprah has received many gifts over the years, but she says the gift that means the most to her is one that cost the least. 'A few years ago at my 50th Happy Birthday luncheon, my friends wrote me heartfelt notes that they then placed inside this silver box,' Oprah says. 'The words from your heart mean more to people than anything you can buy.' The tradition was carried on at Oprah's Legends Ball, when some of the younger women—like Alicia Keys, Debbie Allen and Halle Berry—wrote letters to Oprah. The letters were turned into a book, a keepsake that became the inspiration behind this thrifty idea: gratitude boxes." For more information on Gratitude Boxes and ideas on ways to use them, go to the Oprah website HERE. You can even download notecards with the sayings: "What I Love About You...", "Thank you for..." and "My Holiday Wish For You..." What a clever and thoughtful idea!!

And don't forget, you only have 48 hours to download your FREE HOLIDAY MUSIC CD!!

Stuffing Christmas Packages

Save all the scraps from your wrapping paper and put them through your shredder. Use this as cushioning/filler for packages you send out to loved ones through the mail. :)

Gifts for the Savior

We have started a new family tradition.

Christmas is severely commercialized. I don't know anyone who would argue to the contrary. We decided to try a new Christmas tradition to refocus our thoughts to the true meaning of Christmas this year -- and every year after.

For Family Home Evening tonight, we talked about things that the Savior would like to receive for Christmas. What would make Him happy? We came up with a list of things including being kind to others, keeping the Sabbath day holy, reading our scriptures & saying our prayers every day, sharing the gospel with others, and being worthy to attend the temple. Our list was actually most of a page after only a few minutes. Then I challenged each of us to choose one item from the list that they would like to give to the Savior this year for Christmas. We each chose one item that we could improve on, wrote it on a piece of paper, and signed it. We shared with each other what our goals were, then placed those papers in a decorative wood box. We tied a pretty gold ribbon around the box and placed it under our tree.

Next year, on the Monday before Christmas, we will untie that ribbon and review how we've done over the past year on the gifts we chose to give the Savior. We will then choose new gifts, and repeat the process.

Merry Christmas!!

p.s. We are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. For more information, please visit www.mormon.org.

One of My Favorite Things: Sinus Irrigation

Okay, so I hope I don't gross anyone out here, but I just HAVE to share my latest find with you.

First, a little background... I have suffered from hayfever and chronic sinus infections since I was a kid. My allergies bother me probably 7-9 months a year, and I seem to have at least 4 or 5 sinus infections a year. And the few months that I don't have allergies, I seem to get sinus infections from the colds I get in the winter. I am ALWAYS stuffy. Needless to say, I should probably buy stock in Sudafed and Kleenex.

Recently I was diagnosed with a sinus infection after suffering with a nasty cold for about two weeks. I took the antibiotics for ten days as prescribed, and felt better about 48 hours in. About 3-4 days after taking the last of the antibiotics, I either got another cold, or the sinus infection was back. Either way I was MISERABLE. I had read about sinus irrigation on a friend's blog and decided (since nothing else was working) to give it a try. I went out to my drugstore and purchased the NeilMed Sinus Rinse Nasal Wash starter kit. I followed the directions and within 48 hours I felt back to 100%. I went from being almost sure I had another sinus infection to feeling just fine! All without any drugs or antibiotics. I was convinced this was a miracle device, and I had to share it!

What it is (for those still reading...) is a little bottle with a cap that has a straw attached to a hole in the top. You fill the bottle with warm, distilled water and add a little packet of "pH balanced sodium chloride & sodium bicarbonate mixture" that comes with the kit. You gently shake it to mix it. Then you lean over your sink and put the hole in the cap against one nostril. You gently squeeze the bottle and the warm solution goes up one nostril and out the other. You use about half the bottle, then blow your nose gently and do the other side. You experience a split second of unpleasantness at the start, then it's not a big deal. It feels much like when you get water up your nose, but it only lasts for a second. It doesn't burn or hurt at all. It is WONDERFUL to get all the mucus, allergens, pollutants, bacteria, etc OUT of your nasal passages. And even Doctors applaud its usefulness.

The website says it helps with:
• Nasal Allergies & Dryness
• Sinusitis, Rhinitis
• Allergic Asthma
• Post Nasal Drip
• Sinus Pressure & Nasal Stuffiness
• Nasal Symptoms from Flu & Cold
• Nasal Irritation from Occupational Dust, Fumes, Animal Dander, Grass, Pollen, Smoke, & House Dust
• Nasal Congestion

No, this is not a paid endorsement. But I do "endorse" this product fully!

Lately I've been using my Nasal Wash every couple of days and I still love it. It helped me get through my last cold taking a LOT less medication. This one of my favorite things! Crazy, huh?

Have I grossed you out yet? :)

18 Uses for Petroleum Jelly

Yes, another link to more fabulous info on another blog! I've been sick lately with a super-nasty cold so sharing things is easier than writing my own stuff... You forgive me, right?

I subscribe to many blogs in my Google Reader and I LOVE it! If you aren't familiar with a Reader, you're missing out! (Maybe that's a post for another day.)

Anyway, one of the blogs I subscribe to is Life Hackery which is totally up my alley because the subtitle is: "Useful, Unusual, and (Sometimes) Ironic Tips and Tricks to Hack Your Life into Shape." I found their most recent post to be a great thing to link to here on Clever Homemaking, as it tells of 18 uses for that old staple, Petroleum Jelly. Among the list are a few you wouldn't expect:

• Shoe Shine Solution
• Nail Polish Canvas
• Prevention of Car Battery Corrosion

To read more, go to 18 of Petroleum Jelly's Wondrous Uses.

Which is your favorite or which surprised you the most?

Clicky Chic Photography by Rebecca

My dear friend Rebecca recently posted a link to my blog. The traffic on my blog increased dramatically! And so I return the favor and point you in her direction. :)

Rebecca is a fabulous photographer! She has a blog, Clicky Chic Portraits, and you can also view her work at her Shutterfly site as well. She does amazing work! So if you're in the Tacoma / Seattle / Kitsap areas, consider her for your photography needs!

Hair Spray Isn't Just For Your Hair!

I found a new blog that I simply LOVE. Check out Life Hackery's 18 Hair-Raising Uses for Hair Spray!

Among them...

• Preservative for Cut Flowers

• Means of Self-Defense

• Ink Remover

Check it out!!

Pricing for Personalized Chore Charts & Kid Bucks

I have had multiple inquiries about personalizing Chore Charts and Kid Bucks. You can read my post, Family Economic System: Chore Charts & Kid Bucks (11/10/08) for more info on them. Since I have had a few people ask, I thought it might be helpful to those interested if I posted my pricing structure.

PERSONALIZED, PRINTED, LAMINATED, & SHIPPED TO YOU!

Chore Charts

$10 for the first chart, $5 for additional charts in the same family/layout with two laminated, Velcro chore cards per chart

$10 for each AM/PM picture list; duplicates or nearly-the-same lists are $5 each

Kid Bucks

$2 per set of 8 green, double-sided bills covered in flexible, clear contact paper

Denominations available are $1, $5, $10, $20, $50 and $100

My suggestion per-child is:

1 set of 1's, 2 sets of 5's, 2 sets of 10's, 2 sets of 20's, 1 set of 50's, and 1 set of 100's. (Total cost for Kid Bucks per child: $18. Additional full sets in the same family: $9)

Pouches to hold Kid Bucks are $1 each (availability not guaranteed)

**Purchaser pays shipping costs (around $2-4)

PERSONALIZED AND EMAILED IN PDF FORMAT

Chore Charts

$5 for the first chart, $2.50 for additional charts in the same family/layout with two chore cards per chart

$5 for each AM/PM picture list; nearly-the-same lists are $2.50 each

Kid Bucks

$2.50 for each denomination (available in $1, $5, $10, $20, $50, and $100)

Thanks to all those who have left positive comments on my Chore Charts. It has been great to hear of families integrating something similar to our system and having great success with it! J Please email me at cleverhomemaking at gmail dot com if you have any questions, or leave me a comment on this post.

Hiding those Christmas Gifts...

Where do you hide your Christmas presents??

Under the bed?

In the trunk of your car?

We have a storage room where we have stuff stored, floor to ceiling. We hide all our Christmas gifts in empty suitcases on the top shelves of our storage room. The kids have NEVER (at least, to our knowledge) found them... We hide them in [nearly] plain sight! :)

So, where do YOU hide your Christmas gifts???

Email me at cleverhomemaking at gmail dot com and I'll post a list of your ideas... We can be super-sneaky and clever with the hiding of the gifts this year!

The Quickest, Easiest Chimichungas Recipe EVER!!

1 pkg flour tortillas
3 C. cooked, shredded chicken (or pork, or turkey, or beef)
1 C. (approx) shredded cheddar cheese
2/3 C. (approx) salsa

Heat chicken, cheese, and salsa in a frying pan till the cheese is mostly melted and it is heated through. Soften one tortilla at a time in the microwave for 8-10 seconds. Spoon a heaping spoonful of filling on each tortilla shell. Fold in edges. Place on cooking sheet sprayed with cooking spray. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Serve with tomatoes, guacamole, sour cream, etc on top.

Kudos to my friend Debbie P. for sharing this recipe in our church cookbook a couple of years ago. It has become a staple in our house!!

p.s. Whenever I make a roast of something I shred the leftover meat and put it in a baggie in the freezer to use for chimi's later. Just pull it out of the freezer the night before to thaw. You can also buy shredded, canned meat and drain it before using it. Yum, yum!!

17 Tips To Make Your Life Easier, via StumbleUpon

I found this great post HERE. Go to Alex's blog to read it in full. (I listed a few below to peak your interest...) GREAT ideas -- a couple of which I have shared here already. :)

p.s. Found this post using StumbleUpon. Have you tried it yet?

17 Tips To Make Your Life Easier

by Alex Juel

I received this as an email and instead of saving the email, I decided to post it here so that I know I always have these great tips on my site. I plan on trying every single one of them too. I actually just tried the dryer tip (#17) at the bottom, so we’ll see how that one works out. Oh yeah, I probably won’t be trying the hair conditioner on my legs for shaving either since, well…I’m a guy. A lot of these tips are things that I can actually use on a regular basis too.

1. Reheat Pizza

Heat up leftover pizza in a nonstick skillet on top of the stove , set heat to med-low and heat till warm. This keeps the crust crispy. No soggy micro pizza. I saw this on the cooking channel and it really works.

2. Easy Deviled Eggs

3. Expanding Frosting

When you buy a container of cake frosting from the store, whip it with your mixer for a few minutes. You can double it in size. You get to frost more cake/cupcakes with the same amount. You also eat less sugar and calories per serving.

4. Reheating Refrigerated Bread

5. Newspaper Weeds Away

6. Picking Up Broken Glass

7. No More Mosquitoes

Place a dryer sheet in your pocket. It will keep the mosquitoes away.

8. Squirrel Away!

9. Flexible Vacuum

To get something out of a heat register or under the fridge add an empty paper towel roll or empty gift wrap roll to your vacuum. It can be bent or flattened to get in narrow openings.

10. Reducing Static Cling

Pin a small safety pin to the seam of your slip and you will not have a clingy skirt or dress. Same thing works with slacks that cling when wearing panty hose. Place pin in seam of slacks and — ta da! — static is gone.

11. Unsticky Measuring Cups

12. Foggy Windshield?

Hate foggy windshields? Buy a chalkboard eraser and keep it in the glove box of your car. When the windows fog, rub with the eraser! Works better than a cloth!

13. Reopening Envelopes

14. Smoother Legs With Conditioner

Use your hair conditioner to shave your legs. It’s a lot cheaper than shaving cream and leaves your legs really smooth. It’s also a great way to use up the conditioner you bought but didn’t like when you tried it in your hair…

15. Goodbye Fruit Flies

16. Get Rid of Ants

Put small piles of cornmeal where you see ants. They eat it, take it “home”, can’t digest it so it kills them. It may take a week or so, especially if it rains , but it works & you don’t have the worry about pets or small children being harmed!

17. Info About Clothes Dryers

The heating unit went out on my dryer! The gentleman that fixes things around the house for us told us that he wanted to show us something and he went over to the dryer and pulled out the lint filter. It was clean. (I always clean the lint from the filter after every load clothes.) He told us that he wanted to show us something; he took the filter over to the sink, ran hot water over it. The lint filter is made of a mesh material - I’m sure you know what your dryer’s lint filter looks like.

WELL…the hot water just sat on top of the mesh! It didn’t go through it at all! He told us that dryer sheets cause a film over that mesh that’s what burns out the heating unit. You can’t SEE the film , but it’s there. It’s wha t is in the dryer sheets to make your clothes soft and static free - that nice fragrance too, you know how they can feel waxy when you take them out of the box, well this stuff builds up on your clothes and on your lint screen This is also what causes dryer units to catch fire & potentially burn your house down with it! He said the best way to keep your dryer working for a very long time (& to keep your electric bill lower) is to take that filter out & wash it with hot soapy water & an old toothbrush (or other brush) at least every six months. He said that makes the life of the dryer at least twice as long!

How about that!?! Learn something new every day! I certainly didn’t know dryer sheets would do that. So, I thought I’d share!

Note: I went to my dryer & tested my screen by running water on it. The water ran through a little bit but mostly collected all the water in the mesh screen. I washed it with warm soapy water & a nylon brush & I had it done in 30 seconds. Then when I rinsed it the water ran right thru the screen! There wasn’t any puddling at all! That repairman knew what he was talking about!