Tips For Kids On Holiday From School

The school holidays are coming up which for me means cooking the whole day and every day for these kids of mine. My daughter usually has all her friends staying over and if you have to start making a meal then by the time you are done with lunch it’s time to start over again with dinner. I am going to be organized this time by making quick easy meals so I have been searching the internet for nutritious quick easy meals and what I have come up with is crock pot meals. With one meal I can include vegetables, carbohydrates and proteins. I also found some some easy crock pot recipes which means I am all set up to go come the 27th March 2009.One meal should keep them going the whole day at least. Where do they get the appetite from? I suppose I should consider myself lucky that she does not have an eating disorder. In this day and age it seems to be the fashion to have one of those.

Another option for quick easy meals would be to make sandwiches but I am not too impressed with the nutritional value of these but again I found good recipes for making nutritious sandwiches. The good thing about these is you can prepare all the fillings and they will make the sandwiches themselves which at least will give me more time to myself considering I become a full time taxi during the holidays as opposed to an afternoon one when school is on.

And another tip for the holidays is to enroll your kids on holiday courses. I found an art course which she is going to attend the first week. Of course I had to speak to the other parents to get some of her friends on the same course which I succeeded in doing so all systems go for now. I just have to find other courses now. I am looking into a pottery one but have not received any dates from them yet and what I am really going to concentrate on is sending her on a cooking course. That’s going to take some convincing because she has already informed me that she is getting herself a rich husband so she does not need to know how to cook because he is going to be able to afford a cook in their home. So you will notice that you won’t see many tips from me on how to bring up your children responsibly because I seem to be missing out on that one.

Home Tip:Earn A Little Extra Money

This is going to seem off topic but really if we want to do home improvements,buy new gadgets and generally invest in our home we are going to need money.With this global recession everyone is trying to make some extra money on the side if possible.

Just bear with me here.If you have a blog of your own then you have to know the hard work that goes into SEO for your blog.First of all you make a lot of posts and in the beginning it seems as if no one is reading or visiting your site.If you have Google Analytics then you know exactly how many people are visiting your site and in the beginning it is very little.Then to get some search engine rankings you have to build backlinks and that is the most time consuming.In the meantime you are earning nothing.Of course this way any income you make from Adsense is yours but really you have to absolutely be committed and passionate and there are just too many demands....

I just discovered Today Com which is a blogging platform where you have to do none of the SEO involved above.You already have the link juice as supplied by Today Com and their Alexa ranking is about 8000.This is for free and you apply to blog for them.You get paid from day one for every traffic view you get and you can also use some of their affiliate links in your blogposts and you earn commission on that.It is very little but the way I see it is it is at least something.I applied for a normal blog but the topic I suggested must have been just what they were looking for because they ignored the name I chose and they gave me their own and also made it a VIP blog so I guess I was lucky.Or not,I will find out.If you get your own blog where you can post whatever you want you can obviously target celebrities which will get you loads of traffic and you can earn money from each viewer.I really think that if you are trying to make a little money on the side that this is the way to go as a first step.As you learn then you can venture off on your own but SEO is a real pain,take it from me..

Just go see for yourself and then decide.This is free and you have nothing to lose.They do ask for a sample of your writing but I only submitted about 10 lines and I was approved within 2 hours.So try it and Good Luck!!!

Ivy Plant as Ground Cover in Your Garden

This tip came unexpectedly.I took my little one year old in 2006 for his first visit to the plant nursery and this ivy was the one plant he chose.I placed it in a corner(with my toddler's help all in the interests of mom and son bonding)and did not expect much.This one ivy plant has proven itself to be an absolute treasure in that one ugly corner.I refuse to place another ivy plant there because I can see the progress of this one plant by just checking out the corner.Also everytime I look at this corner it takes me down memory lane as to my son's first visit and his first purchase.



By the way this is not a poisonous ivy at all and one more thing she just had 2 miserable looking leaves when we got her.

Lemon Tree in the Garden

I planted this lemon tree in 2006 and initially it lost all its leaves and after about 6 months started to grow but I have yet to pluck a single lemon.I also think it has not grown quick enough.Anyone have any ideas how to boost a lemon tree?



She does get enough sunlight and there is no way that I am going to move her somewhere else anyway because she has proven herself to be quite finicky.I just want one lemon!!!!

Planting With Seeds-My Garden Tips

About three months I ago I decided to be patient and chose a patch in my garden that I would spread a few seeds and see what happens.This patch is now looking much more beautiful than the areas where I placed grown plants.I used a mixed packet of seeds and was quite lucky that soon after that it rained quite a bit.I also mixed some compost before spreading the seeds but I am really pleased with the result.









Now I just have to fill up the blank spots with some pebbles and more just to round off and that spot is now done and complete.

Some Tips From My Flower Garden

We all know we cant plant a bunch of small plants really close together because those same plants are going to get bigger and then they are all going to be squashed up and look terrible.But in the meantime while we wait for them to grow,the problem is the garden does not look good with all the empty spaces.I deal with this problem by filling up with rocks making a design which is nice to look at and helps the garden still look nice until the plants have grown bigger.This is the task I dealt with today with an empty patch I have just under my clothes line area.
This is what the patch looked like yesterday.



These are the materials I used.Two bags of terracota coloured stones,two bags of white and grey stones,2 bags of compost,2 small ornate square paving stones,and 9 small plants.



And after 30 minutes of light gardening work I was finished.I mixed the compost with the soil,then placed the pavers,then dug the holes and placed the plants,laid the terracota stones around the pavers and laid the grey and white stones in a circle around the new plants.






The good thing about using these stones is that after the plants have grown you can remove them and use them somewhere else.I also completed another patch using these same materials and planted the remaining plants into some empty areas.

A new home tip:The Sponge Glove

I bought these this morning and you might be wondering what the big deal is.You will see later why these gloves are a big deal.First of all they are really pretty.See the part that goes over your arm with the nice kitsch design.But to be more practical they are really long so that helps with not getting water running down your arms.What I did was use two of my daughter's elesticated hair bands(the fluffy ones)and strapped them around the gloves on my upper forearms.This keeps the gloves from moving and slipping off and also the fluffy bands absorb any water which might run down the gloves.Clever,hey??

Now for the best part



From what I can see of this amazing kitchen gadget the sponge is glued onto the gloves and it looks really strong so far.I have washed my car and my front windows and the pictures show them as they look after I have used them for these chores.I will keep you updated as we progress along.The thing is I could not find any of these sponge gloves with a scouring sponge so I am going to make one of my own.Keep watching this space as I am going to post pictures of my new new invention and see if it works.

Also I was so excited about these sponge gloves that I cleaned and washed my car again even though it had been cleaned on Monday by the repair center.That's a whole other story but if you want to hear about my bid to conquer Monday morning stressors via car troubles then you know where to go.

Organize Your Pantry

Okay now you're confused.Bear with me here.Just imagine all these shoes are not in this organiser.Now place this at the back of your pantry door so it is on the inside of the pantry.Now just imagine how much stuff you could store in there.Just make sure it is the see through pockets otherwise that would defeat the objective.

So the aim of the story is buy a shoe organizer and organize your pantry with it.

Some More Home Tips

It is a lazy Sunday and I thought I would just post on some more home tips.

The first tip is that when you have a birthday party EVERY member of your home should take part and enjoy this birthday party



This is Sasha,a valued member of our family not only because we love her so but also because although there have been many housebreakings in our suburb the thieves have completely bypassed our house on multiple occasions because she looks so fierce.Maybe not in above picture but she was off duty then due to family commitments.And by the way the thieves enter our suburb via an empty piece of property bordering the highway which is just opposite our house.So we carry on thanking God for our good fortune and our wonderful home security guard.

Tip 2
Make sure you have a good guard dog

Tip 3
When planning a little one's birthday party consider having an ice cream cake.The kids love it and they come in all shapes and sizes with themes that you can choose from



Tip 4
Put concrete blocks on a frequently used path in the garden.You can these for a reasonable price at your local nursery and once the grass grows in between it looks really nice.







Watch this space because I will be adding some more as I think of more

Toilet Brush And Caddy-Disposable Or Not?

These toilet brush and caddy versions are truly beautiful and cost a fortune.If you have the money to spare then this is the way to go.As the whole world seems to be on the brink of collapse and I need to save money where I can I will only look at these pictures and hope that one day I might have one of them.In the meantime I need to consider the looks of the toilet brush,the health benefits and getting the best price possible.You get simple toilet brushes in plastic that work really well and they are also well priced.My problem is that I dont like the idea because I dont think you can ever clean them properly.So I like the disposable toilet brush and caddy.See how they work:

1. Assemble grip securely onto handle

2. Place handle tip into slot in scrubber.

3. Briefly dip scrubber into the water to get scrubber wet.Scrub stains above water line first (may take a few seconds to activate scrubbing foam with pumice). Continue to scrub until stain disappears or foam diminishes.

4. Hold handle with scrubber end over trash can. Use thumb to slide button forward until scrubber releases. Store handle.

I like this especially because my hands do not come into contact with the brush at all.The clip to drop off feature is really excellent.There are quite a few companies selling disposable toilet brushes and I would definitely recommend these especially if you have toddlers running around and the last thing you want is for them to get into the bathroom and start playing with the toilet brush which has been sitting around for years.
I personally like the scotch brite disposable toilet brush versions.Here are some more good tips:
It is the Only One with Bleach!The head is shaped to be able to clean under the rim while the special pumice formula works to wipe out rust and hard water stains.The best part with the No-Touch Toss!With the touch of a button, it simply releases the scrubber head into the trash and you then can store the handle and the re fill options which are really well priced.

Choosing the best refrigerator for you

Before you leave to go shopping for a fridge you need to measure the space where you intend fitting the refrigerator.Once you start shopping for one make sure that the size is ok to fit into your kitchen or the space where you intend keeping the fridge.

Next check out the shelving.Is it the wire racks or solid shelves.I prefer solid shelves as they are easier to clean.PLUS when you mess on one of the solid ones it stays on that shelf and does not drip all the way down to the bottom of the fridge,never mind if it drips on other foodstuffs on below shelves you will be cleaning from now till Sunday.

Also consider plastic shelves or glass shelves.I prefer the glass ones as you can see immediately if they are dirty and they are much easier to clean and they look better PLUS you can see everything in your fridge at one glance as opposed to solid non see through shelves where you physically have to move up and down to find stuff.

Another point to consider is the height of the handle.Too low means your toddler is going to be inside the fridge at the first opportunity.Also check whether the handles are easier to install child safety gadgets on to prevent small kids from accessing.

Depending on how much time you have on your hands for defrosting try and get a self defrost fridge.But as I sais in an earlier post that does not guarantee that you wont have to manually defrost but you will need to defrost less often than a fridge which does not self defrost.

Also if you have small children try and get a refrigerator fitted with an alarm that sounds when the door has been open too long.Apart from this helping in energy consumption where your fridge needs more energy to maintain its temperature it will also alert you to the fact that little hands are in the fridge and most probably getting up to mischief.

It is also very important to ensure that the outside of the fridge itself does not have many grooves which are difficult to clean and which will collect dirt over time and then just look plain ugly.I know you can probably use a toothe brush to clean out the grooves but the problem is the scratches you can make while doing this.So the best is to really try and avoid buying a fridge which will require a lof of groove cleaning.No matter how great and arty it looks when you buy it it is likely not to remain that way for very long and just end up being a headache.

Other things to consider are where the egg holder is situated.Make sure it is in an enclosed space where it cannot be bumped easily.You have to break a few eggs on the floor to realise the smell that stays there for ever and a day, never mind the wastage.

Also make sure that the instructions on temperature control are easy to use and manipulate.If you live in an area or country with a big temperature range between the seasons then you would need to regulate your fridge temperature accordingly.Also make sure this temperature regulator is fairly out of the way,easy for you to access but more difficult for children to fiddle with.

Enquire about the ease with which you can access spare parts for your fridge.I had a beautiful fridge that spent years in complete darkness because we could never find a globe to put in it for the light.If possible I would suggest asking for some spare globes just in case they decide to discontinue production.Also enquire about technical support and the guarantee period.

Concerning the guarantee period please make sure that technicians would come to your home to fix up whatever is wrong.You do not want to be without a fridge while they take yours away and then take forever to fix it up.The best thing is to find out if your fridge would be replaced should something go wrong with your one.And also how long it would take to replace.I have a car radio which is under guarantee which broke and I was told it would have to be shipped overseas and I could only expect it back after two months.To avoid this get everything in writing so you are completely covered if anything goes wrong.

And last but not least make sure that the legs are adjustable and preferably wheels.This makes it easy to move around should you wish to clean behind the fridge which you do have to as the temperature and darkness behind a fridge attracts many insects and others.Having adjustable legs ensure that should you move you would be able to adjust according to the new floor surface.Again the adjustable legs are things which you should try and get a few spares to keep just in case.

Remove Refrigerator Stains

Most stains inside the fridge can be removed by using bicarbonate of soda.Make a paste from bicarbonate of soda by mixing with a bit of water.Depending on your own fridge you can decide how thick to make the paste.The thicker the paste the stronger it is but it will cause more scratches.Be very careful when wiping off as exerting more pressure than necessary is going to cause scratches.I would suggest this paste for the inside.The inside stains are usually food based and if stubborn this paste works really well.

The outside stains are more from grimy hands and so forth.The paste works just as well but mix using bleach instead of water.You wont have to exert a lot of pressure when wiping off and it will do the job just as well.I dont recommend using the bleach mixed paste inside the fridge as there is food there and you dont want to risk contamination.

Always Thaw Chicken In Your Refrigerator

Raw chicken should never be thawed at room temperature by leaving it out on the counter.Rahter thaw out chicken slowly by leaving on a shelf in the non freezing side of your refrigerator.By the way you can even cook chicken from frozen and it even cooks faster this way.Obviously you need to remember that if you are following a recipe that asks for a certain amount of water that you should decrease this water content as the frozen chicken has a lot of water in it in the form of ice which will then melt.Do not use chicken which has been thawing for more than 24 hours in your refrigerator.

Some more tips on keeping chicken in your fridge:

Cooked chicken (regardless of how it is prepared) shouldn't be eaten after 48 hours in the fridge.

Make sure that cooked hot chicken is cooled down before putting into your fridge.This is so your fridge does not have to work harder to maintain its chosen temperator and also so you dont have to defrost your fridge any more than necessary.

It is not true that cooking raw chicken which has been in your fridge for more than 24 hours will kill the bacteria so dont do it.

You can have your raw chicken in the fridge in a bowl of water with some salt added.This makes your chicken more tender for when you do cook it and also helps in browning the chicken.

Read the package label to see the "sell-by" date which is 7 to 10 days after the chicken was slaughtered and if properly refrigerated it should remain fresh 2 to 3 days after that date. If it is a "used-by" date, the chicken should be cooked or frozen by that date.

Be sure the chicken, particularly a large whole bird, is defrosted thoroughly to ensure proper cooking. Place a hand inside the cavity of the chicken to check for ice crystals. If any crystals are present, more thawing time is needed. Thawed chicken should be cooked as soon as possible.Remove the giblets from the cavity of a whole chicken as soon as thawing allows. While the chicken is thawing, be sure drippings do not contaminate other food or preparation surfaces.

Prevent freezer burn by wrapping chicken in foil before freezing.

The faster you cook chicken after it has been frozen for the first time the better tasting it will be.So the secret is not to freeze fro long periods of time.

Basically follow the rules of freezing meat

White meat can be frozen for 365 days and red meat for 180 days.The difference is due to the fat content which is higher in red meat.

Defrost Tips

This is what I do when I defrost my fridge.And yes I know that you get some fridges which defrost themselves.I also have one which apparently does that and yet every few months I still have to do it the manual way.Apparently this is due to keeping the fridge door open for too long which interferes with the self defrost system.And the fact that my fridge sounds an alarm that the door has been open too long has also been no help in this family of mine.So here goes...

Try and plan to do this in the evening just before bedtime.

Switch off your fridge.

Put a lot of newspapers under and around the fridge.

Remove everything out of the fridge.If you have a separate chest freezer then put the perishables in there especially if you are doing this in summer.I like to take everything out because some items get so full of the melted water that it takes a really long time to clean and dry out the items.Make sure the items you are going to need tomorrow morning are within easy reach like the milk and the stuff to make sandwiches for the kids.

Go to sleep.Next morning wake up,get kids to school.Get back to kitchen,take a look around and climb into bed.Just joking!!

Get rid of big chunks of ice which should have loosened through the night.Put in bucket.If you have plants in your garden that love the cold put the ice directly next to them.Otherwise wait for water to melt by putting bucket out in the sun and then use the water to water your garden.

Remove the by now soggy newspapers and either throw away or dry out and then recycle.Mop up the area well and make sure all is dry.

Take a dry cloth and wipe the fridge.Use this opportunity to give the fridge a good clean.Put in fresheners if you can.

Put items back in and also use this opportunity to get organised.Frequently used items at the front and so forth.

Switch fridge back on and hey presto you are good for a couple more months.

Best Muffin Baking Tray

Have you noticed how your baking tray gets warped after while?And how scrubbing and cleaning ends up scratching off the original coating?It is not really healthy to carry on using baking trays with the coating flaking off as some of those loose flakes end up in your baked goodies which we then eat.I know tha I have in the past bought baking trays based on low pricing and after a while had to throw it away because of the coating coming off and my muffins being a strange shape due to the warped tray.If you do a lot of baking it is really worth buying a good quality baking tray which will last for years.If you add up all the trays which you end up throwing away I am sure that the combined money spent is more than if you buy just one really good quality one.I made that decision after a while and I have never been sorry.No more ruined goodies because they keep on getting stuck to the pan and no more throwing away useless trays.

To buy this muffin tray

Getting Rid Of Rats

I have no ethical problem with getting rid of rats.Or rodents but that name just makes them sound better and they are just rats.I know they are very cute when they are small and as a youngster I used to keep them and look after them until one of my parents would find out and that would be the end of them.I have tried not to repeat the mistakes my parents made with me but this one I have to agree with them.They were right.Rats needs to be destroyed.

Okay your kids might have them in a nice cage and those ones are apparently clean and safe.But I dont have the time to adopt rats and clean them up and make them safe and then feed them and keep them in a cage.My going green exercise does not include rats.I do not see the ecological need to keep them on this earth.Very harsh but I really dont expect the world is going to be sorry if they ever go extinct.We will have done our children a favor to rid their future world of these disease carrying creatures.

I could go into a long description on how to recognise the different types of rats but really a rat is a rat is a rat.No need to introduce yourself just get them out.

If you have rats in your home you will hear them in your roof.If you do not get rid of them they will eat through your wiring and you will end up with a massive cost of replacing your electrical wiring system.

Prevention is better than cure so dont leave food lying around.Empty out your house dustbin as often as possible and call a pest exterminator NOW TODAY.
I had to do this and I was worried about the pesticide used as this was sprayed in the roof.I was terrified about the idea of 100s of rats dying in my roof that I would have to go and remove.This pesticide apparently takes 4 days to take effect.The GOOD NEWS is that this pesticide causes them to get very thirsty so they come out of your roof in search of water and they actually die outside.So you will not have to remove them from inside your house but you will have to pick them up from your garden and then throw away.The best thing that I did was to burn them in a sort of bonfire.Also be careful with your pets who will try to eat the dying rats.Check your garden as much as possible and try and keep your pets close by.You only need to do this for about a week and then they are all gone.

Getting Rid Of Crickets

I do not have a problem with crickets but oh,the noise they make.That constant chirping is enough to drive me mad.And I dont care what people say but they are extremely intelligent and the powers that be need to look into their intelligence system and enough already with the oh so clever dolphins.

A cricket has entered my house and started singing which I am sure that is what they are doing or maybe calling for re inforcements in a bid to drive me crazy.The paranoia is real and this conspiracy theory needs to be looked into as well.Possibly they want to take over the world by driving us out.Sent by aliens maybe?So I walk slowly towards the sound so I can gently remove the gentle cricket and put it outside.Easier said than done.As soon as you are 1 meter away it will stop chirping.You walk away and go sit down and it starts again.The trick is to put on socks so they dont feel your vibrations as you get closer.I have tried this and it works.Make as little noise as possible and catch it.Of course its ultimate fate depends on how long it took you to catch the dang thing.If it was quick I put the gentle cricket in a nice safe place in the garden.If it took me an hour I throw it out of the window.

Again I am trying very hard to not destroy everything around me as my contribution to going green.So prevention is again better then cure.

A control option is to close up their entry points. This creates a problem in that they creep in through tiny cracks in the flooring and wall junctions. A crack looks to an insect like a wide-open door looks to us. Finding and plugging every little crack makes for an enormous job, even when you eventually succeed.

If you have dogs for pets then that is a control option.They do the job for you.What you dont see cant hurt you.

If all else fails then drastic action is required.

For more information on taking drastic action(and spending money) on cricket extermination

Getting Rid Of Ants

I hate ants but after watching the movie Ant Bully with my kids I have mixed views on destroying ants.After seeing all their hard work and what friendly creatures they seem to be I do not want to add to the bad impression they have of us humans as being evil exterminators with no regard for their survival.I now instead try to focus on making sure my home does not seem like a wonderful place for them to set up home.Prevention is better than cure and I definitely dont want to be one of those people who by mistake get made smaller and end up living in an ant colony.

PREVENTION:
As with all pests, the best prevention is home maintenance. Keeping crumbs of food off the floor is always a good habit to get into, but this will not guarantee to keep ants out of your home. Make a regular check around your home looking for ant trails going into your home. Regular checks around the home and a few landscaping recommendations will keep you home pest free.

If however you still have ants and have no misgiving about destroying them then a trick of the trade is boric acid.(I hope they cant read because I will probably still be in trouble for suggesting this) When thinly mixed with water and sprayed on the ground, not on plants, on the ground around your home, will help eliminate ant populations. Boric Acid is safe and mixing it thinly in a water solution make for ease spraying. The acid dissolves the waxy film on the ants exo-skeleton and the ant dehydrates. Don't spray on your siding as it leaves a whitish residue, but up on the foundation works OK.

If you find the large black ants, these are bad for your home. They are carpenter ants. If you find these... call your local pest control guy. The money is well worth it.
Sugar ants,the red ones... call the Pest Control guy... they have very large colonies and can spread multiple colonies throughout your home.

For other informative tricks on pest control

Natural Spider Repellant

There are many kinds of spiders and although generally most spiders are harmless just the idea of spiders,harmless or not, can make our skin crawl.We definitely do not like the idea of a bunch of spiders living in our home no matter how friendly they are.

Now you have to decide which creatures you can abide living with you because spiders are insect repellants themselves.They do insect control by having them for dinner so it is up to you to choose.Maybe adopt a few spiders that you allow to live in your home and get rid of the rest.

Anyway an important thing to remember is that when choosing a spider repellant make sure to choose a natural repellant that is safe for children and pets.

There is an insecticide on the market whose only active ingredients are mint oil mixed with a bit of detergent. The detergent is used to penetrate the skin of the spider and a bit of oil is also added to make the spray last much longer. You can find this product at most hardware stores. It is a natural spider repellent that does work. This can work outside as well as inside and gives off a lovely minty smell. This is one way of getting rid of annoying spiders and to make sure your home stays free of them.

To find out more on how to eliminate spiders by choosing a natural safe product

Getting rid of bed bugs

Bed bugs multiply and can move throughout a whole apartment building reaching other residents homes.They also can leave your body with bed bug bites as they suck your blood. Bed bugs are brown, thin and able to get in between cracks in the home. Bed bugs can get into bed, waterbeds, sleeping bags, dressers and so many spots. They can be picked up in hotels and brought home or accompany the purchase of mattresses or used furniture.

Getting rid of bed bugs takes a lot of work but can be done. If you are renting, you need to contact your landlord so he can get pest control involved. After pest control comes in and examines the situation you will get a set of instructions regarding what you can do for home preparation yourself. It is important to follow these to facilitate the extermination. You'll get advice about your clothing, bed sheets, linen and materials in your bedroom. If they don't discuss this with you then consider a different company.

Re-infestation can start the whole process again. Some say that a bed bug can produce over 500 eggs a year.Though many people want a natural remedy , it is suggested by experts that a pest control operator is the way to truly eradicate the problem. They will spray and may use steam cleaning as well to let heat kill.

Putting a good vinyl cover on both the mattress and the box springs is recommended by many people.They cannot get through this unlike sheets and if there are no holes, they will eventually die. This can be a serious problem and needs to be addressed. Some people may not get bites so you cannot go by that as the only symptom.

For more information on how to get rid of bed bugs