Get rid of the wall paper!

Some of you know that I am in the midst of a "Repainting the kitchen!" project. For this to happen, I first had to take down wall paper the covered the upper half of my kitchen walls. (The bottom half was paneling which is a different story entirely.) This has near been the death of me! I spent roughly 6 hours scraping a 6x4 foot area, after puncturing the paper with the hole gadget ("the paper tiger", but lets face it, hole gadget sounds cooler), before hand, then using the special gel/non-drip wall paper remover that I bought at the Home Depot, ). Needless to say after hours of work, and little result, I was not the happiest of campers. Thankfully a dear friend came to the rescue and told me this tip. The results were almost instant and it gave me the courage to continue scraping the wall paper. I am happy to report the walls of my kitchen are near paperless!
Here's what to do:
Pull the top layer of paper off the walls (this shouldn't be difficult). Put some dish soap in a spray bottle with hot water and spray down the walls. Let it set for a few minutes (3-7). Using a putty knife, scrape the glue gunk wall paper right off!!
Why this bit of information isn't in every do-it-yourself book and web site proclaiming to have tips for removing wall paper, is beyond me. But you found it here!

Sour Cream

You take a spoonful of sour cream out of the container and return it to the fridge. Time passes, and later you return for more sour cream and there is liquid separated and pooled in the bottom of the concavity.
Next time, take your spoon and level out the sour cream. This will prevent the liquid separation.

Easy Chocolate Mousse

Folks, chocolate mousse is delicious. And here's an easy way to make it.

What you'll need:
Chocolate pudding mix
Heavy whipping cream
Yes, that is it.

Make the pudding mix with whipping cream rather than the milk it asks for.
This will make super thick, rich chocolate mousse. If you want to get fancy garnish with shaved chocolate or drizzle with chocolate or caramel syrup. So yummy!

Trimming Roses

I love roses! I remember caring for the rose bushes in our front yard with my grandma, while I was growing up. I never got much farther than holding the hose to water and pulling weeds, before she passed away and we moved from those roses. Now with my own house I have a few rose bushes and I just LOVE them! Last summer, after the first buds bloomed, no more really grew. I was totally bummed. Later in the season, I learned how to properly trim the roses so that you will maximize the production of blooming buds. I have been doing it this summer and they keep coming!

7 leaf cluster

Here is what you do. Once the rose petals fall off and you are left with the empty center, follow the stem down to the nearest 5 leaf cluster ( I couldn't find a picture of a 5 leaf cluster, but you can get the idea from the 7 leaf cluster seen above). Trim to just above that 5 leaf cluster. I love that it is so simple and yet I had no idea that is how you do it. I used to just trim off the ugly-looking-empty-what-used-to-be-a-rose part. Trimming to that 5 leaf cluster has made such a HUGE difference. Now you know. :)

Want to learn a 2nd language?

I learned from a blog that I read (Thanks Karla!) that you can learn a second language for free through many libraries websites and Mango Languages.

You can go to mangolanguages.com, type in your zip code and it will tell you what libraries in your area offer their card holder's the ability to take lessons for free. It is great! I have been wanting to learn German but have not had resources available.

Mango Languages offer lessons in:
Russian
Spanish
Greek
Mandarin Chinese
French
Portuguese
Italian
and German

Now with my Orem City Library card, I can log on to their web site, lib.orem.org, and take lessons free of charge. For more info on using Mango Languages with your Orem library card, go here.

Like Tucanos?

Did you know that you can sign up to get a free meal from Tucanos the month of your birthday? Sign up with Club Tucanos. A postcard coupon will show up in the mail at the end of the month before your birthday month. Sign yourself and your spouse up! Happy Birthday eating!

Permanent Marker on Dry Erase Board

If you ever get permanent marker on the dry eraser by mistake, there is a simple solution. Take a dry erase marker and draw over the permanent marker, and wipe away. It will be gone!