Thursday Health tip

                        

Insect Bites Mix water with cornstarch into a paste and apply. This is effective in drawing out the poisons of most insect bites and is also an effective remedy for diaper rash. 

*I've used this for diaper rash, however I found that just sprinkling dry cornstarch worked best with Rylie's rash.

Have a wonderful day.  May you all be appreciated and loved for all that you are and do for those in your life.  May you never be disrespected with hate by someone who claims to love you.  Sometimes people do and/or say things that they can never take back and that changes the whole relationship forever and ever as they can never undo the hurt they've inflicted.

Hugs & love!  Jill Marie

Friday Primetime episode update

Hey thanks for the link Sascha!  And thank goodness that there is going to be an investigation and someone will be checking into the safety and welfare of the other children.

            USA Today Article about the investigation

Tuesday Cleaning Tip

                    

Here is another laundry related tip.

Burn / Scorch Marks: If the fabric is washable, brush it gently with a soft brush or dry sponge to remove loose carbon particles. Then, wash the fabric with regular detergent and color-safe bleach. This will permanently weaken the fabric even more than the scorch has, but the scorch may no longer be noticeable.

 

Okay, how many are amazed to see that I made it in here for my Monday entry?  Yeah, me too.  For some reason this day always seems to slip my mind.  Oh well, here is a dinner menu idea.

Spaghetti Casserole

1/2 lb spaghetti
1 lb ground beef
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup chopped green pepper
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
1 can (10 1/2 oz) cream of mushroom soup
1 can (10 3/4 oz) condensed tomato soup
1 soup can of water
1 clove garlic, minced
1 cup shredded processed cheese

Cook spaghetti in 4 quarts boiling water 7-8 minutes.  Drain and rinse.  Brown beef and cook onion and pepper in butter until tender; stir to seperate meat particles.  Add soups, water and garlic; heat.  Blend with 1/2 cup cheese and cooked spaghetti in a 3 quart casserole; top with remaining cheese.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until bubbling and hot.  Serves 4-6.

*I will sometimes sneak veggies into my sauce.  That way the family is getting those essential vitamins and things that they don't like.  I put the veggies in the food processor along with the sauce and they family never even knows they are eating them.

I also make some of those cheap-o biscuits when I serve spaghetti.  Except I spray them with a butter flavor non-stick spray and then sprinkle garlic salt on them.  I can get the biscuits for 25 cents a roll...way cheaper than a loaf of garlic bread, and the family really seems to like the rolls fixed this way.

Eclair Pie  (Thanks for the recipe Shawna!)

1 Pkg. french vanilla instant pudding
1 Container cool whip
1 Container Chocolate frosting
1 Box Graham crackers

Prepare pudding as directed, fold in cool whip.
Layer graham crackers (whole crackers, no need to crumble) with pudding mixture in a rectangular pan, keep layering until mixture is gone, ending with crackers on top.  Meltfrosting (in microwave) and pour over top.  Refridgerate for 2 hours or until chilled, cut and serve.

Have a wonderful week!  Hugs!  Jill Marie

Quick thought

RE: My previous entry...I was just thinking, these people were behaving like this when they KNEW the cameras were in the house and recording them.  What would they have done if the cameras weren't there?!  That is a scary thought.

Primetime

I am sitting here watching the ABC show Primetime called Family Minefields.  It is about step-families.  There is this one family with these (stupid, ignorant and outright abusive) parents, Joe the father and Lynn the step-mother. 

I am absolutely disgusted with the way these people are treating this girl, Kyle.  They are mentally AND physically abusive to this teen girl who suffers from ADD and depression.  There is one scene where they are once again tag teaming this girl.  This time it is about her grades.  Not surprising that she has trouble in school considering that she has ADD, but they can't seem to wrap their tiny little IQ challenged minds around that fact.  They curse at her, call her a F-ing little B-tch...I feel sick.  I'm not surprised she said she felt like throwing up...I freaking feel like throwing up.

When the evil, wicked, ugly freaking step mother is shown portions of the tape where she is obviously abusing the girl, she actually has the nerve to laugh.  I just want to smack the chit out of that woman! 

Oh, they just said that Kyle is 16 now and still living with her grandparents.  Thank God, for her own safety.  My Lord, my heart is just breaking for this young girl.  I fear for the safety and mental health of their other children. 

Practically every time they show a scene that the cameras caught in their house with the girl, Kyle, you can see the evil, wicked, fugly step-mother in the background glaring at her.  Even when Kyle is just being loving with the little kids or helping out.  I swear you can just see the hatred in that woman's face.

I mean, I know first hand that being the parent in a step-family is not easy.  Especially when it seems like they sometimes just push you and push you, trying to see what they can get away with.  But these people were just ridiculous! 

As far as I can see this people need to grow up and take responsibility for their actions and abusive behavior.  And they seriously need to take some parenting classes to help them raise their other children.  I wonder if they even realize howabusive their words are and the damage that they can do.  Not only were they abusing Kyle when they ATTACKED her the way they did, but in essence they were abusing the other children in the house who watched and listened to it all!

My wish is that tonight all children will sleep in peace and none will come to any harm.

Hugs and Peace to ya'll.  Jill Marie

Summer is quickly approaching!

Okay, okay...if I am going to be completely honest (honest-schmonest...these people don't know...shhhh,lol)  Nah...I'll be honest, I went off my low carb life-style.  Yep, one little trip and I went azz over tea kettle back to my addiction...carbs!  I have had ice cream, Easter candy, bread...all kinds of crap.  I even gained back 4 of the 24lbs that I lost.  But I am here to say I am getting my chit together.  Sascha sent me a link and I am going to post it on here. 

It is suppose to offer the same type of support and what-not that e-diet offers, except at no cost to you.  Yep, it's totally free.  So I went and signed up.  Anyone else wanna try to drop another 20 lbs with me? 

Go here...

Get a Free Online Diet

Have a great weekend! 

Hugs & love!  Jill Marie

Thursday Home Remedy

                   

Todays remedy might be one we all could have used when we were teenagers, or we might still be able to use it after a romantic weekend with the ol' man, lol.

Hickey: Coat area liberally with lotion. Rub with the back of a cold spoon (chilled in the freezer) vigorously for as long as you can stand to, changing out spoon for new cold one every 10 minutes. Recommended time for this treatment is 45-60 minutes.

Have a wonderful Thursday!

Hugs!  Jill Marie

"Homework"

Okay, I know I have been a bit forgetful with this journal and have been downright lazy with my graphics journal (Coloring Inside the Lines) and I apologize about that.  However, I've been having a bit of a creative overflow in another area lately.

After getting started with the graphics thing, I started doing some things that I could print out.  I did one little thing with a baby poem and picture of a baby, personalized with the childs name and gave it as a baby shower gift.  Another woman liked it and asked me to make one for her grandchild.  So I got to thinking..."Could I make some extra money doing this?"

So now I've got some templates ready to be personalized and some samples printed up.  I'm also working on something for parents with adopted children.  I just have to figure out how to go about doing this.  I thought of taking some samples into a local childrens re-sale shop along with some business cards and seeing if they would let me display them there.  Then people could call me with their orders. 

So I have to come up for a name for this little venture.  I was thinking about "Personally Yours!"...does that sound lame?  Anyone have a good suggestion?  Anyone have any ideas on this whole idea?  Good idea or just plain lame? 

Well, that is what I have been up to lately.  I start working on one of these projects, decide I don't like the way it looks and start all over.  I have one solid template for a baby boy and one for a baby girl.  Eventually I want to do something for weddings, anniversary's, graduation, etc. 

Someone suggested doing it on E-bay, but I think I want to stick to just doing this locally to begin with.  I want to see what kind of response I get, and what I (as a stay at home mom) and able to do with my time.

Have a great evening!

Hugs!  Jill Marie

Tuesday Tip

                

Blood on Clothes: Pour hydrogen peroxide on blood and rinse with cold water. If some blood remains, repeat.

Also...I think in an earlier entry I had a tip about using alcohol for ink stains.  Well, I recently had a little artist who decided to decorate one of the throw pillows in her room with a black pen.  See picture below of the artist with her masterpiece...

Here is a close up of the artwork...Just lovely, huh?

Okay, this is the pillow after trying to clean it with the alcohol...Not perfectly clean, but a little better.

This is the pillow after I washed it with some bleach...The picture is a bit dark, but the ink did all come out.  Not that I was extremely worried about it.  I bought the pillow at Big Lots after Christmas.  It was marked down to 50 cents.

So here are some recent pictures of our little monkey.  In this one she found one of my old hats and was playing dress-up.

Last year I couldn't get her to wear sunglasses at all and now she insists on wearing them ALL the time.  For example...

Here she is hamming it up with the bunny my Mom got her for Easter.  We call this her "cheesy" smile...

Yeah, that is "Babee's" rear end facing the camera.  She still carries him with her everywhere.  Amazing that he used to be as white as that bunny.

Well, once again I forgot to get my Monday meal idea posted.  Hopefully I will get around to it on Wednesday. 

I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter holiday.  We had Ray's family over for a cookout.  It just seemed crazy to turn on the oven and get this house all hot and then have everyone in here.  Plus, we've been working outside and were really ready to have a cook-out.  There were hot dogs, hamburgers and I marinated chicken breasts overnight in Italian dressing and BBQ sauce.  I made potatoe salad, pasta salad, cupcakes and a cherry dump cake.  There was also baked beans, macaroni salad and a strawberry cake thanks to Ray's sister in law, Ludivia.

The Easter bunny left an Easter basket for Tyler (nephew) and Rylie got a new pair of sunglasses (which she makes her father and I wear), a little stuffed duckie and a hula hoop.  LOL, she is too funny.  She holds it around her waist and turns around in circles.  It is too cute, and she just giggles and giggles.

Well, have a wonderful day!

Hugs!  Jill Marie

Late Home Remedy Tip

                        

Hiccups

• Drink 1/2 glass water, slowly.
• Keep a tsp. of sugar in your month and suck slowly.
• Suck 2-3 small pieces of fresh ginger. This helps in hiccups which keep occurring again and again.
• Take a large mouthful of water with out swallowing, plug both ears, and slowly begin to swallow the water. Unplug your ears and you're hiccup free!

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Rylie personality is just blossoming...she is too cute.  I love when she stands there with her hands on her little hips and just looks around, or stares at me while I am talking to her.  Or she will cross her little arms over her chest when someone is talking and get this look on her face like she is thinking "yeah, whatever", lol. 

Her lack of patience continues to try our patience.  When she gets fed up or just plain old angry she will sweep her arm across the coffee table and knock whatever toys (or her snack) onto the floor while screaming bloody murder.

The other day she had a pile of pillow and blankets on the floor.  She was told no or not to do something, so she proceeded to grab each pillow and blanket and whatever toys where nearby and toss them about 2 feet away.  Each time she grabbed another one she looked to make sure her dad and Aimee were watching her.  It was kind of like "Oh yeah?  Well take this!"  LOL, not that anyone cared.  It was her pile of pillows and blankets.

We still have a problem with her banging her head on the wall when she gets really mad.  Or if someone leaves the house and she doesn't want them to, she will bang her head and/or hands on the door.

She is definately a strong willed and defiant little thing.  Although it makes parenting her more of a challenge, I'm kind of glad that, even at this young of an age, she realizes what she wants and tries to stand up for herself.  As her parents, however, I realize that it is our job to teach her how to stand up for herself in a more acceptable and productive manner. 

I was reading one of the local parenting newspapers and saw an ad for a dancing class.  They allow you to enroll children as young as 2 and 1/2 years old.  Rylie will still be too young for the June classes.  However, if we can afford to, I would love to enroll her in the classes starting in August.  She absolutely looooves to dance.  Whether it is a Disney show or a commercial, if she hears some music that she likes she will jump up, grab my hand and start dancing around the living room.

Yesterday we were working in the garden and had the radio on.  She loved being outdoors, but when she started fussing about something I grabbed her hand and started dancing with her in the yard.  She was laughing and "singing", it was a blast. 

For the most part, she was in the shade, which is a good thing.  When I came in at the end of the day, and started to cool off, I realized that I had gotten sunburned on my back.  Hmm, I can't remember the last time I got sunburned in April, lol.  Oh, I am not complaing, I love this weather!  Today we are supposed to get as high as 81.  YEA!!!

Well, have beautiful Good Friday and an absolutely wonderful Easter weekend.  God bless ya'll.

Hugs.  Jill Marie

Tuesday Cleaning Tip

                      

Good Morning!  Well, I am in the laundry section in my list of Cleaning Tips, so here we go...

Bleeding of Colors: Your red shirt got mixed in with other clothes and ruined them? First off, DON'T DRY THEM! Wash again with regular detergent and color-safe bleach. If that didn't work, Rit®, the makers of clothes dye, makes a color remover that works wonders and doesn't cost much. To prevent bleeding in the first place, wash in cold water; you can also use a cup of salt OR a scoop of Oxi Clean® with every load.

 

Have a great day!

 

Hugs!  Jill Marie

Monday Meal Idea

I don't remember if I've already put this one up here or not, but here it is...

BEEF NOODLE CASSEROLE

1/2 of a 1 lb. pkg. egg noodles, uncooked

1 lb. lean ground beef

1/2 cup chopped red or green bell pepper

1/2 cup chopped onion

2 (10 3/4 oz) cans condensed cream of mushroom soup

1 (10 oz) pkg. frozen peas and carrots, thawed

1 1/2 cup milk

1 (8 oz) container sour cream

1 cup (4oz) shredder cheddar cheese

Cook noodles as pkg. directs; drain. In dutch oven, over medium heat, brown ground beef; pour off fat. Add peppers and onion; cook and stir till tender. Stir in noodles, then remaining ingredients, except cheese. Cook and stir till heated through; top with cheese. Serve immediatly. Refrigerate leftovers.

For added crunch, add 1 (8 oz) can sliced water chestnuts, drained.

Make some mashed potatoes, another vegetable if you want (although you may have enough trouble to get the kids to eat the carrots and peas in this), and some dinner rolls and your ready to go.

For dessert, here is a recipe my friend Sascha sent me...

Almost Fat Free Cheese cake

One 8 oz pkg Fat Free Cream Cheese – well softened

One 14oz can (I think that’s the normal small size) fat free Sweetened Condensed Milk

1/3 c. Lemon Juice

1 tsp. Vanilla

1 cup sugar (optional, but does make it a bit sweeter)

1 graham cracker crust

In large bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth & creamy (thus the instruction "cream", duh). Add condensed milk, lemon juice & vanilla (& sugar if you’re using it) & mix well, until good & creamy (creamy, you may have noticed, is the key here). Pour into crust & refrigerate several hours. May still be a bit gooey even after 4 or 5 hours, but still good!

Is especially yummy w/ fresh berries or fruit on it!

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By the way, who sent me the recipe for the Eclair pie?  Let me know, because I was going to put that one up here, but I have a question first.

Have a wonderful week everyone!

Hugs!  Jill Marie

RE: My entry earlier today

Comment Added
A comment has been posted to the Journal:
This simple housewifes contribution to the world
Weekend Assignment
Comment from: monponsett
"Your husband taking you to Perrysburg, Ohio is grounds for anullment in all places except the suburbs of Perrysburg, Ohio."

 

Wow, I guess I won't mention the fact that I am from Bowling Green, God only knows how I would get slammed for that.

I guess, "poor stupid me", because frankly I would absolutely looove to stay at the French Quarter!  It's just not something that a budget like ours allows.  I guess where you seemed to focus on the Perrysburg part of that statement I was focusing more on a nice hotel, with the indoor pool, the hot tub, nice restaurant and all that.  Perhaps you would want to look for to some sporting event in P-burg (which you probably wouldn't find much of), whereas I was thinking more about spending sometime in the hot tub with a drink and then a sporting event of my own in the hotel room ; ) 

Although if I were really lucky, we would finish in a tie, over and over again, and have to keep playing until a winner was declared!  LOL

Oh well...maybe the honey will read this and get an idea for Mothers Day.  No Baby!  That does not mean that I want to go to some stupid basketball game, or watch golf or bowling.  Oh, maybe tickets to Nascar...now that we could talk about, lol.

Weekend Assignment

Well, I usually don't do these things because I don't have time the time.  But I felt sorry for...well, actually I don't know if I was feeling sorry for the poor fella or his poor wife, lol.  So here is my answer to John's weekend assignment.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Dear John,

Well, your located not far from me, here in Toledo.  I am thinking of this from what I would really, really love to have.  A quiet weekend alone with my honey. 

Make all the arrangements so she doesn't have to do anything.  Set up to have someone take care of your daughter for the whole weekend.  Make reservations, someplace like the French Quarter in Perrysburg.  Also pack a special bag, maybe a new one you buy for her, with a new PRETTY (nothing cheap or sleezy looking) silky nightgown, maybe some candles, and some pretty smelling massage lotion---and give her an honest to goodness great back massage.  (Don't be cheap and after 2 minutes say something crude like "wanna?" lol)

Now if you can still afford to after paying for a weekend at a place like the French Quarter...a nice little piece of jewelry would be the icing on the cake.  It doesn't have to be diamonds...just go look around and whatever "speaks" to you and feels like her...thats what you get.

That would just be the perfect weekend for me."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I can't wait to hear what he gets for her in the end.  Have a wonderful Sunday everyone!

Hugs!  Jill Marie

Mommy's Brag Book

No matter how many pictures I take of Rylie I could never capture her spirit and beauty like a professional can.  The following are pictures I had taken of Rylie for her 2nd birthday about 3 weeks ago.  I know I am her mamma, but dang this child is just so dang adorable! 

 

Don't worry Grandmothers...we have plenty of pictures for ya both! 

 

Oh, and I almost forgot the best part.  In one of the pictures, the Easter Bunny one, the photographers arm other arm showed up in the picture.  But that turned out to be a good thing, because we only ordered 4 of the poses, even though I wanted to get all, sometimes the budget just doesn't allow us to do everything we want to.  Anyway, since his arm showed up, they GAVE us a copy of all the poses.  That is a $40 value and we got it for free, plus he also took $5 off the total price.  Cool, huh?  All I have to do is cut the other arm out of the picture, no problem, you can see what it will look like in the cropped version I put on here.

 

Rylie getting an egg from the "Easter Bunny"

The cropped version

 

Isn't she just beautiful?!  I am so blessed...if she was just as sweet and well-behaved as she can appear, lol.  I'm kidding, she is just the average two year with the temper of the average 13 year old female, lol.

 

Have a great Saturday!

 

Hugs!  Jill Marie

Looking for decorating inspiration?

Okay, as spring makes its glorious arrival how many of us are starting to think of redecorating?  Need a few ideas?  Well try going to Better Homes and Gardens House and Home Index.  They have many categories and lots of suggestions for each one.  The only thing I don't like about their site is the fact that each time you click a link, before it brings up the page, they have their little "want to subscribe?" box pop up.  However if you wait a few seconds you will see the little "close" button on the box and you can go about your reading.

Of course another great place to go to is HGTV's-decorating section.  I just love that website.  Plus they usually have some sort of sweepstakes/contest going on, so be sure to sign up for their contest newsletter while you are there.  Umm, one thing...if you win a house or something really cool like that...keep a guest room ready for me, lol.

If you know of any really great websites about interior decorating or whatnot, please leave a comment with the link so we can all go check it out.  Thanks!

Hey everyone...it's finally Friday!  :D  YEA!  Have a great weekend ya'll!

Hugs!  Jill Marie

Home remedy

                         

Heartburn

Almonds- can relieve hearburn. Eat several almonds when heartburn symptoms persist
Lemons- can prevent hearburn. Cut a lemon into thin strips and dip in salt. Eat before meals to prevent heartburn.
Lemon rind can also be eaten to prevent heartburn.

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So it has only been a few months and I am reaching the end of my list of cleaning tips.  I wonder if I should just go through the list again and keep re-posting them, or if I should try to think of something new to do.  I mean I guess it wouldn't be so awful to re-post them, occassionally I come across new tips that I can add.  But would that be just terribly boring and repetitive for people who have been reading for awhile?

Well have a great Thursday everyone!

Hugs!  Jill Marie

Easter Tree

When we were kids Mom always put up an Easter tree.  She would get a branch and then get the eggs out of storage.  She had some real pretty eggs.  I think we even decorated a few when we were little.  I seem to have a vague memory of sitting there blowing the egg out of the shell.

I wonder how many people these days create these type of memories and traditions for their kids.  I think I did it a few times when the kids were little and I was still married to their dad.  But I haven't done one in years.  Maybe this year it is time to start that tradition again.

If you are interested in making an Easter tree you can read more about it at HGTV.

Have a nice evening.

Hugs!  Jill Marie

Tuesday Cleaning Tip

                        

White Heat Marks and Water Rings on Wood Furniture: If the wood has a good finish (don't try on bare wood), mix equal parts of baking soda and regular white, non-gel toothpaste. Lightly dampen corner of a clean, soft white cloth with water and dip into the paste. With circular motion gently buff the marks for a few minutes. Wipe area clean, and buff to a shine. Follow with furniture polish. (If rings remain after buffing five minutes or so, they may have penetrated the wood; you might have to refinish the piece.  Or you could do what I would do...put a pretty lace table runner or doilie over it.).

If that doesn't work, dip a cloth in vegetable oil, then in cigarette ashes, then rub it over the mark.

Another method is to rub real mayonnaise onto the stain, allow to sit overnight, then wipe with a dry towel.

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Happy Tuesday...we are one day closer to Friday :D

Hugs!  Jill Marie

Meal Idea

Okay, does anyone know what "lemon curd" is?  Is it available at most grocery stores, and what aisle would I find it in?  I saw this recipe on the Food Network and really want to try it.  It looks absolutely delicious and pretty easy to make. 

Lemony Chicken
1 quart buttermilk
1 tablespoon lemon zest (from 1 lemon)
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, tenders removed, cut in strips
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup cornstarch
Vegetable oil, for frying

For Sauce:
1 (11-ounce) jar lemon curd
1/4 cup chicken broth
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon soy sauce

Add enough oil to cover the bottom of a large frying pan by 1/4 to 1/2-inch depth. Heat oil to 365 degrees F.
Meanwhile, whisk buttermilk and zest together in a medium bowl. Add chicken and set aside. Sift together flour and cornstarch into a shallow dish. Remove chicken from buttermilk mixture and dredge in flour mixture. Fry chicken strips until golden brown, about 4 to 5 minutes. Carefully flip chicken and continue cooking another 3 to 4 minutes. Drain on paper towels.
While chicken is frying, make the sauce. In a small saucepan over low heat, melt lemon curd, stirring constantly. Add remaining ingredients and heat through. Drizzle sauce over chicken and serve.

Serve with Almond Rice Pilaf
1 tablespoon butter
1/4 onion, finely chopped
1/4 Golden Delicious apple, finely chopped
2 cups apple juice
2 cups enriched long-grain instant rice
1/4 cup slivered almonds, toasted
In a medium saucepan, melt butter and saute onion and apples over medium heat until soft. Add apple juice, increase heat to high, and bring to a boil. Stir in rice. Cover and remove from heat. Let stand for 5 minutes. Remove cover and stir in toasted almonds. Serve.

Mmm, I bet that rice cooked in apple juice is just delicious!  Oh and then for dessert what about a yummy lemon merangue pie?  Well, I have to go pull some meat out of the freezer for dinner.  Have a great Monday, and may your week be beautiful!

Hugs!  Jill Marie