Hard Boiled Eggs

I know it seems pointless to blog some hints about hard boiling an egg, after all, its not rocket science. How hard can it be??

Well, its not that hard but I find these tips helpful when boiling my eggs.

If you fill the pan with cold water then add the eggs and put on the stove, the eggs will be MUCH easier to peal once cooked.

And if you don't have a helpful egg timer of some sort and want to know if your egg is hard inside, remove and egg and lay it on its side like so


then spin it like a top. If it is hard inside, it will spin quickly, if it is still soft inside, it will wobble and not spin very well.

Happy Hard Boiling!

To be a Mother

As every mother knows, there are ups and downs with parenting. My friend directed me to this fabulous blog, of a wonderful woman named Jane who is a mother of 11. Other mothers write her with questions about parenting and then she replies on her blog. I have read only a few letter replies and I am hooked.
Have a problem with one of your kids and want advice from an expert? Drop Jane a line. :)

Free Internet Filter

For those of you who have children, there is no reason or excuse to not have an Internet filter if they use the computer. For those of you who don't have children, you should have certain things blocked while you use the Internet, because no matter what your age, some things are simply inappropriate.
K9 Web Protection is a FREE Internet filter. It is our favorite! You can block whole categories, like alternative s*xuality, gambling, pornography, adult/mature content, violence, nudity, etc.

After hearing a very sad story of a young 12 year old boy having problems that I'm sure could have been prevented or at least helped with an Internet filter, I encourage all of you to download the K9 filter. If not for your children, then for you!

Cleaning the Microwave

How many of you hate to scrub your microwave? I feel like there can be much time spent scrubbing with little result. THAT IS until I learned the easiest way to clean a microwave oven.

In a microwave safe bowl put some water and some lemon juice (a table spoon or two). Heat in your microwave to a boil, 2-3 minutes. The citric acid from the lemon juice will loosen the grease and residue. I tired this and just whipped the microwave clean with a warm wet wash cloth. This method works so well! Try it and you will see. :)

Great deal on Toy Story!

Alrighty, I found this info on another site, but since I don't have time to retype the info in my own words and want you all to get this information before the sale is over, I'll site where I got it... here. Everything that was on here site is here on this site.

Read below for the info and follow the directions. The sale ends today, March 27th.

As you may know, Toy Story and Toy Story 2 will be released on Tuesday, March 23rd! To get ready for this upcoming release you’ll want to print a couple great coupons. Just head on over to Disney Movie Rewards and login or register for an account. After doing so, enter this code 786936294507 in the orange box that states “Enter Code” in the middle of the right side of the page. You will then be able to click on a link to print a coupon valid for $10 off Toy Story Blu-ray / DVD Combo pack. After printing that coupon (you should be able to print twice by hitting you browser back button), enter this code 786936294521 to print a coupon valid for $10 off Toy Story 2 Blu-ray / DVD Combo pack!

..AND get this, not ONLY can you use these sweet coupons to score an awesome deal…. BUT each Toy Story Blu-ray / DVD Combo pack will contain a movie ticket (valued up to $8.50) to see Toy Story 3 in June!

So where’s the best place to snatch this movie up when it’s released on Tuesday?! Well, it appears to be Toys R Us. They will be offering up the Toy Story and Toy Story 2 Blu-Ray/DVD combo packs for just $16.99 each when you buy both in the same transaction.

Toys R Us Deal Scenario:
Toy Story Blu-Ray/DVD combo pack $16.99
Toy Story 2 Blu-Ray/DVD combo pack $16.99
Total = $33.98
Use two $10/1 coupons from above
Pay $13.98
PLUS, then you’ll have 2 FREE Movie Tickets (valued at up to $8.50 each)!!

Know that Walmart, Best Buy, and Target all price match if your Toys R Us is out of the movies, make a few calls before you leave to go buy them to find a store that still has them. I had to price match at Target.

Munchkin Snack Catcher

Have any of you seen these? They are Munchkin Snack Catchers. They are have completely changed the way we do snacking, especially in the car and during sacrament meeting. Notice the lid. They are cut so that a little hand can go into the lid, pull out a little snack but keep the rest of the snack still in the cup. You can turn the whole cup full of treats/snacks up side down and nothing will spill out. We love them!
I have not found them at Walmart or Target, but have had better luck with grocery stores and online. At the store, they are about $6 for a two pack, but they are cheaper online (before shipping.) I suggest that if you have small kids, or know someone with small kids, you look into them. They are oh so convenient and helpful!

Homemade Multipurpose Cleaning Solution

After many dollars spent on various cleaning products to scour my sinks, scrub my counters, table, to mop my floor, I decided I'd had enough.

Enter Homemade Multipurpose Cleaning Solution

About two years ago I on Studio 5 (a local morning show in Utah), they made a simple homemade cleaner in a spray bottle. I wrote it down, then made the marks on my spray bottle and got rid of the recipe. Do not despair, as the exact measurements are not key to this great solution. I decided I would make the recipe and write down what I put in it so that you the reader would know what I put in it, if you are one who is not comfortable with just pouring ingredients and like to measure.

What you will need:

spray bottle
borax
white vinegar
hot water
liquid dish soap

In the spray bottle put 3-4 tablespoons borax, 3/4-1 cup white distilled vinegar, and a squirt of dish soap (about 2-3 tablespoons). Fill the spray bottle to the top with hot tap water. Shake lightly to mix ingredients.
I am one who doesn't measure so if you are like me, just pour away and it should work out just fine. :)

Lets just say that I love this cleaner! It works so well. I use this homemade cleaning solution for most everything. It is a great disinfectant. I love that I can scour my sinks and not worry about the chemicals left behind because there are none. I can bleach my sink and not worry about us all dying from chemicals mixing if I didn't rinse the sink well enough. I love that there are no fumes left by this cleaner, less head aches and no danger while cleaning if you're pregnant. For those of you with pets and small children it is great to know that it is safe to use around them and economically friendly.

Just a pot scraper?

How many of you have a pot scraper? I didn't have one for a long time and decided to buy it when I got a baking stone. Let me tell you, they are amazing! They are great for scraping dry glue stick of table tops, dry, stuck food off of stoves, any random food that is stuck to your floor, etc. I have one for counters, table, and stove cleaning, one to scrape things off the floor when I mop, and one for dishes. This little gadgets are super helpful is all different kinds of ways. I payed $0.99 cents for each of mine. My favorite one I have found is from Bed, Bath, and Beyond. I couldn't find a picture of it but it comes with a little handle on one side that helps you grip it better. May I suggest that if you don't have one, that you pay the dollar and at least one, to see all the amazing ways you can use it for cleaning.

Programmable Thermostat

I must apologize for not posting in such a long time. Lets just say, morning sickness is not my favorite.

In December while at Costco, we picked up a new thermostat for our house. It is programmable by day and time. It was around $50. We came home and installed it and programed it.
I love that we set the temperature to go down to 62 degrees around 10pm every night. It gets cold, and gets us to bed sooner. :) We have it set to go up to 68 degrees at 7:30am. By then we are usually all awake and up and going. (Know that we have horrible windows in our house so you may be able to set your thermostat even lower than we do and be comfortable.)

I must say that the saving we have had on our bill are quite significant. I suggest that if you own a home, and don't already have a programmable thermostat that you look into one. They are definitely worth the investment.

Dish Washing Detergent

Because I have been struggling with morning sickness, things go unattended to and I've not made it to the store as often as I have needed. That being said, necessity is the mother of invention.

I ran out of dish washing detergent for our dish washer. I hopped on line and searched for a home made recipe.

Behold, the world's cheapest way to wash dishes!

What you will need:
washing soda
borax
white distilled vinegar

Mix equal parts washing soda and borax together (both two of the cheapest washing products under the sun). I did a half of a cup of each in a plastic Tupperware. Mix/shake ingredients together so they are mixed well. To wash a load of dishes dump 1 tsp of mixture, yes folks, only 1 teaspoon of the mixture into the bottom of your dish washer. Fill the compartment that is labeled for detergent, ( the one that pops open to release the stuff, not the one that has the holes for the detergent to leak out) use with distilled vinegar. (I put some vinegar into a squirt bottle and don't even measure this out just squirt until it is almost full. I can't imagine that i use fore than 1/4 C vinegar for each load.) Then run your dishes as you normally do.

Know that your dishes will NOT smell like vinegar after they are washed. Trust me, I currently have a pregnant nose and would know if they did. This has been wonderfully helpful and it took awhile for me to perfect. The measurement was not right on the recipe I found so I had to come up with what would work. If you use too much borax/washing soda mixture, your dishes will be covered in subtle white residue. I also poured my vinegar into the rinsing boost place in my dish washer and there was the same white residue. Be sure to follow the directions I outlined and your dishes should come out nice and clean!

Try it out. It will save you $$ and tips to the store. :)