Lightly Coated Chocolate Covered Pretzels

We had left over Chocolate Almond Bark from making the Chocolate Covered Oreo Balls so we decided to make some Chocolate Covered Pretzels as well. Now I don't know about you, but I like to have my pretzels with a lighter covering of chocolate, so this was perfect for us. 

What You'll Need

1 bag Pretzels

1 Package Chocolate Almond Bark

Any type of pretzel you prefer is fine, I went with the mini twist style

Melt the Almond Bark in a small pot.

We actually just used the leftover Chocolate from our previous treat making of Chocolate Covered Oreo Balls, you can find that recipe here as well.

If you choose to go with strongly coated pretzels then you will need a good amount of Almond Bark, just dip the pretzels in the chocolate and remove. 

Since we only had a small amount of Almond Bark left over I poured a controllable number of pretzels into the pot and stirred them, getting a thin layer of chocolate on some and a thicker layer on others.

I then put the pretzels into a large bowl and repeated the step above until all the Almond Bark was gone.

Then in the large bowl I mixed all the pretzels for a few minutes. 

This caused all the pretzels to have a more even layer of chocolate.

Lay the pretzels on wax paper or as I did grease a baking sheet and lay them on that to dry.

If you use a thick layer of chocolate it is better to make sure that the pretzels have their own drying space so make sure to separate them a little. 

Since mine had a thin layer I was not worried about them sticking to each other so I just laid them out overlapping each other, then separated them as I put them on the serving tray. 

There were some that were stuck to each other pretty good, so I just left those doubled up.

This is a great treat of New Year's Eve, I especially like the thin layer of chocolate because then they are not as heavy or sweet. I also think it makes them a better finger food with the thin layer. But that's just my opinion.

Hope you all enjoy the treats!

Chocolate Covered Oreo Balls

Whether you're looking for a yummy, sweet treat for a holiday party, family gathering, pot luck or just to satisfy your sweet tooth at home, 

Chocolate Covered Oreo Balls will fit the bill.

These are also a fun treat to make with the kids.

 What You'll Need

1 package Oreo's (off brands are OK too)

1 package Cream Cheese

1 package Almond Bark Chocolate

I also tried using Peanut Butter Oreo's, they tasted good however they are a little greasy because of the extra oil from the peanut butter, I would suggest using less cream cheese.

Start by placing the entire package of Almond Bark Chocolate into a small pot and begin melting on the lowest heat setting. Make sure to stir frequently to avoid burning the chocolate.

Using 1 whole package of Oreo cookies,

I started by crushing the cookies in a bowl, I did it this way for a combination of reasons, 1 my food processor is fairly small so I couldn't fit many full cookies in at a time and 2 it was fun to let the kids try to smash them.
 Once the cookies are broken into manageable pieces, put them into a food processor. If you have a large enough food processor you can eliminate this step by using the processor from the onset.

Grind the cookie pieces up into a crumbly, powered consistency. Then put this into a large bowl for mixing.

Add 1, 8 oz package of Cream Cheese. Cream Cheese should be room temperature making it easier to work with.
Blend Cream Cheese and Cookie crumbs together, using either a spoon or hand mixer.
We used a spoon for the regular Oreo's but had a harder time mixing the Peanut Butter, so we used a hand mixer for those.

Once thoroughly mixed start making the mixture into little balls.
We choose to make them about the size of a quarter around.
They are very sweet so we choose to go a little smaller, however I have had them about the size of a silver dollar around and they were good that way as well.

After forming into a ball dip in the melted Almond Bark.
Once coated with chocolate place on wax paper.
We were out of wax paper so I coated a glass baking pan and placed them inside of that for drying.
 After they are dry removed the Chocolate Covered Oreo Balls from wax paper and place on serving tray of choice.

Update

I'm sorry that I have not posted anything new lately. I had a grandmother that passed on Dec. 13th, so I was not around for a while. After all that commotion was over, there was the excitement and busyness of Christmas. Again I would like to apologize to all my loyal followers for not being here to add anything new. However I am going to be adding a couple new things today, also if you didn't notice I did update the cross-stitch in progress post, and will be doing so again tomorrow/today(late evening). I am down to only a few colors left, then will start the outlines. I'm very excited to be done with it, even though I've loved working on it, long projects like that get very tedious after a while for me. If there's no new posts above this one check back in a few hours to see what's new.

Thanks and I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas, and will have an amazing New Year!

Teaching Kids to do Household Chores

It can be a difficult task to get children to help with household chores. The best advice I've ever gotten was to start sooner rather than later. How can you expect your teenager to do chores, if they have never had any responsibility before hand. Getting your kids involved in helping with chores around the house, not only helps to reduce some of your work load, but will also help them to keep a clean house when they are grown and on their own.

Personally I started all of my children when they were babies, before they were even able to actually crawl or do much of anything on their own. For instance, if it was tummy time and we had a few toys laying on the ground for them to try to scoot and reach for, when play time was over I would pick up the baby, take their hand in mine and pick up the toy. While doing this I would say "Okay, it's time to pick up your toys" or "Put your toys in the toy box". The combination of action and instruction helps children to understand not only what they are doing but why they are doing so.

Once your child is a little older you can start giving them more things to do. For instance my two year old helps his older brother take out the trash. The responsibility of the kitchen trash belongs to my older son, 11, he is to take the trash out of the can, tie it up, take it to the dumpster, then put a new bag in the can inside the house. My younger son is responsible for the bathroom trash, either myself or my older son will remove the bag, tie it up and replace it for him, when his big brother takes the kitchen trash out, he takes the little bag from the bathroom trash out. This helps him to learn how to take care of the trash and as he gets older he will then be responsible for removing and replacing the bag as well.

My daughter, 5, and my son, 2, will both help with dusting and cleaning up walls and tables. I personally do not like young children using cleaning products that are stock full of chemicals. To avoid that problem I have old cleaner bottles that I have thoroughly rinsed and cleaned, I then fill them with clean water, I will occasionally add a little bit of dish soap to the water as well. Just give them each a spray bottle and rag, tell them what to clean up and let them have fun.

I will also let the kids help with dishes, I have a dishwasher but they have fun washing dishes, so I allow them to practice washing dishes before putting them in the dishwasher. If you do not have a dishwasher you will most likely have to go over the dishes again yourself, but this is a good activity for children to do while you are busy cooking. Just give them a chair or stool to stand on and have them clean dishes as they get dirty from your cooking.

Laundry is another chore that kids can help with. I have found that towels are the easiest for children, so usually have the smaller children help with those. There are many times that I have to refold any towels or clothing that the kids help fold, but really it doesn't take any more time for me to refold than to fold from the beginning. This is a great chore for helping to develop small motor skills as well.

Another thing that young kids love to do is vacuum. This can be hard for very young kids as most vacuums are fairly large and heavy for little ones. The perfect solution is to get a small vacuum, such as a three-in-one. These are small, come with an extendable handle that can be left in the down, storage position and come in handy as a hand held dirt devil type of vac as well. With a small vacuum such as these your child can enjoy helping vacuum and you can enjoy having a cleaner floor without the hassle of pulling out the big vacuum everyday.

Patching Holes in Jeans

For years when my son had worn holes in his jeans, I would either discard them or restrict them to "play" jeans.  Strictly just for those days we were going  to have some outdoor activity that I knew he would just get filthy or wear holes into another pair of jeans.  With the addition of two more children and money being tighter than before, I decided it was time to try my hand at patching the kids' jeans.  I haven't used a sewing machine many times, and the only sewing machine I have is an old 1955 Singer.  It was one of my grandparents, I was given when they sold off some of their things before moving.

After many Google searches I discovered that most of the ideas were either for girls or very young boys.  My oldest son is 11 and would just refuse to wear most of what I was finding.  Then I stumbled upon one that I thought would work, so decided to give it a try.  (I can't remember the blog I found it on since I searched so many, sorry that I can't give credit where do)  

Step-by-step

First I turned the jeans inside out to reveal the inner seams.  One side is a very thick seam and is harder to sew back up, however the other is a normal seam and is fairly simple to resew.

Since I'm pretty much a beginner with the sewing machine I didn't want to have to hem the bottom back up. Instead I just cut away the stitching a few inches above and below the section I planned on sewing. Creating a large hole in the side of the pant leg.

I then cut a strip of material from an old pair of my sons shorts that no longer fit.

 Then cut the strip into smaller pieces, that were a little larger than the hole to be patched.
Note: I measured approximately 1 inch past the hole in all directions.

I then cut pieces from an old pair of jeans that was irreparable.

Sew these pieces together to use as your patch.

Note: This is to make the patch more durable.

I made these patches just a hair larger than the fabric pieces.  

Then I placed the patch in the desired location and just used a forward and backward stitch across the entire hole.  This gives it a bit of a rough look but is something that would fit right in with many high dollar jeans on the market today.  (My son actually received some compliments on his cool new jeans at school)

Once the patch is sewn in place stitch up the seam, flip them right side out and they are ready to go.

As I have plenty more jeans to patch I will be posting more patch jobs at I find other cute (oh wait cool) ways of patching.  I also want to add some patches to my daughters jeans just for some flare.

If anyone has any suggestions on great ways to patch jeans I'd love to hear them.

Halloween Decorating

Decorating on a low budget?  Only have a small space to decorate?  There's still so much you can do that looks great and adds a spooky feel to your front porch. 

 

Normally we don't decorate for Halloween, but this year the kids really wanted to.

We decided that there were lots of things laying around that we could use to make our own decorations.  So we made a day out of it.  Not only did we save a bunch of money making them ourselves rather than buying, but we had a ton of fun.

 

We cut headstones out of old cardboard, painted it black, then painted Names and Dates in white.

 

 

 

We also cut bats out of cardboard and painted them black.

 

 

We took old weathered boards and with white paint wrote "DO NOT ENTER" and "BEWARE".

 

 

 

We even made a spooky tree.

 

 

 

What you'll need to make your own spooky tree:

Tree branch (we used a branch left over from summer tree trimming)

Flower Pot (we used an old terricotta, whatever you have laying around will work)

Foam (we used some from an old craft project, spray foam works great too)

Rocks (to weigh down your pot)

Cotton Balls or Spiderweb

 

Just put your foam in your pot.  Stick your branch into the foam.  Place rocks around or on top

of foam to add decoration, and weigh down your pot.  Pull apart cotton balls or spiderweb, and hang on tree.

 

 

Jarett had a skull (since he loves them) so we put that next to the tree & gravestones.

 

 

Here's the porch as a whole.  We might add more but I think this is pretty darn good for one day.

Especially since we made most everything ourselves.

 

 

Homemade Household Cleaners

Like so many of you I have had it with spending so much money on Household Cleaners.  I also feel that there are enough chemicals in our every day environments without adding more to every surface of my house.  That being said I started doing some research to find different reciepes for Homemade Household Cleaners.  There's alot to love about making your own Household Cleaners, for one the money you save is always great and since your using all natural ingredients there's the benifet of a healthier house without lossing any of the cleaning power. 

Until recently I had always used store bought cleaners, and have tried many different products.  It seems like they are always coming up with something new, something that works better, or lasts longer.  Really though, What are we sacrificing?  It is my belief that our children are suffering for all the chemicals we use, literaly on everything.  So I decided to make a change.  For who else can make a difference in the lives of your children better than you yourself. 


Below is a list of different Homemade Cleaners I use.  I will update with new cleaner reciepes as I continue on this journey of removing chemicals from my household.



Homemade Solution for Steam Cleaners:

• 5 cups White Vinegar
• 4 tsp Dish Washing Soap
• a few drops of your favorite scented Essintial Oils (optional)

Mix ingredients in an old cleaner or milk jug for storage.  This is just the cleaning solution, you will need to add this to water just like you would with store bought carpet cleaning solutions.  Use according to manufacture's instructions.
Note: Test a small hidden area of your carpeting before trying on the whole floor.  As with all carpet cleaners you want to test that your carpet is colorfast, and that it will not be damaged by cleaners.



Homemade Carpet Spot Cleaner

Use equal parts White Vinegar and Baking Soda, these two products fizz when mixed together.  Mix into a paste and scrub into spot using a scrub brush or old toothbrush.  Let sit on stain until dry.  Vacuum up the baking soda.  Some stains may need to be treated twice.  Note: I use an old peanut butter jar so I can store extra mixture for later use.



Homemade Fabric Refresher (Febreeze)

You will need a bottle of Fabric Softener.  Any brand or scent is fine, just make sure it has the ingredient Cationic or Ionic (this is the active ingredient that romoves smells).  You will only be using a small amount so I suggest just getting a small bottle.

Use 1 tsp Fabric Softener to 16oz Water.  Put in spray bottle, Shake well.  You can use this on all your fabric surfaces.  It not only removes smells from your furniture but also leaves a pleasing aroma in the air.



Homemade Glass Cleaner

• 2 cups White Vinegar
• 2 cups Rubbing Alcohol
• 4 drops Dish Washing Soap (optional)

Add ingredients in a Spray bottle (I just used a old Glass Cleaner bottle).  Use this on all your glass surfaces.  Fast dry.  Can use on tile as well.  You can also use this to wipe up pet urine on tile or linoleum.  DO NOT USE ON CARPET, the Alcohol may cause color loss.



Homemade Soap Scum Remover

• Baking Soda
• Scruby rag/sponge

Wet shower and tub.  Sprinkle Baking Soda, Scrub and Rinse.  This should work in most cases.  If you have hard water or stubborn stains try this....

• 1/2 cup Baking Soda
• 1/2 cup Borax
• 1/2 cup Salt

Follow the directions above.  Use a toothbrush to get into small corners and grooves. 



Homemade Mildew Remover / Tile Cleaner

Mix equal parts White Vinegar and Water in Spray bottle.  Spray on area with mildew (Shower curtain, Tiles, Bathroom Fixtures, etc.)  Let sit for just a few minutes and wipe of with clean wet rag.  For tougher mildew spots use 3/4 part White Vinegar to 1/4 part Water.



Homemade Drain Cleaner

• 1 box Baking Soda
• White Vinegar

Pour 1/2 box of Baking Soda down drain.  Then Pour White Vinegar down drain.  It should be foaming well.  For exteremly clogged drains, wait till it stops foaming then add other 1/2 box Baking Soda and more Vinegar.  Let sit as long as possible (at least an hour but longer is better).  Rinse with HOT water.



Homemade Refrigerator Cleaner

• 2 cups Hot Water
• 2 cups White Vinegar
• 2 drops Dish Washing Soap

Mix together in large bucket (I use an old gallon Ice Cream bucket)  wipe down surfaces with rag.  I use a mircofiber rag.  These work great for catching little food debry.



Rags

I prefer to use store bought microfiber rags as they catch more dust and debry easily.  They also have a fairly scrubby texture to them so work well for scrubing.  However you can use old towels and/or shirts cut into manageable strips as cleaning rags.



Bathroom Floors/Cobwebs

In the past I used a Swiffer with either wet or dry cloths to clean my bathroom floor or to collect cobwebs around the house.  However I have found that it works just as well and costs a ton less to use Homemade Rags cut to fit my Swiffer wand and my own Homemade Cleaners. 

For Cobwebs just attach a rag to the end of your Swiffer wand (you can also drap a rag over the end of a broom).  Spritz with Vinegar (you can use Water as well, I like the Vinegar for a little extra freshening of the air).  Then simply wipe away your cobwebs.

For Bathroom Floors once again attach a rag to the end of your Swiffer wand.  Spray floor with your regular bathroom cleaner or your Homemade Tile/Linoleum Cleaner.  Wipe up.



I hope you enjoy these Homemade Household Cleaning Solutions and remember to check back as I will be adding more formulas as I continue to switch my household cleaning from store bought to homemade cleaning products. 

Cross-Stitch in Progress

I am currently working on a Baby Birth Record Cross-Stitch Pattern for my youngest son Cole.  I had been adding different blog posts with updates on my progress but have decided that it would be good to have them all together so that you all can veiw the progress in one look.  I hope you like the change and will check back periodically to see the status.  If you would like to see how to start a Cross-Stitch Pattern please refer to my post titled Starting a Cross-Stitch.



Here is the first color completed.  This is Dark Lime Green

Now I have added Light Lime Green.

I either misplaced a picture of one step here or forgot to take it. 

This is Light Dusty Green & Green.

 The Light Dusty Green is what filled in the grass on top and bottom.

Green is the darker shading around the Frog and Turtles.

Here is Dark Yellow.

Now you can see Fish starting to form with the completion of Orange.

Light Lavender was used to make up one of the Lilly Pads, part of a Teddy Bear (Frog is holding) and one of the Turtle shirts.

With the addition of Medium Blue it is really starting to come to life.

The swirl at the top will become a Snail.

I must have once again misplaced one of my pictures.  This also shows Yellow which completes one of the Turtle bellies, and the yellow flower.

Here is Light Pink.  The Small Hearts on the bottom will be Snails.

The Large Heart will stay a Heart.  I have also noted since completing this color that

I missed a spot.  There will be a larger Pink Heart at the top.

As I'm already working on another color I will come back to this a little later.

This is a close up so you can see the Light Blue.  It is around the Turtles Hat, and the specks on the Medium Blue Lilly Pad.

With the addition of Brown everything is starting to come together.  The spots at the bottom will become snails.

I had to add a close up of the top because I think it looks so cute lol.  The little Brown marks between the reeds will become dragonfly's.  Also I had previously missed the large Pink heart on the top but have now gone back and put it in.

Antique Gold fills in part of the turtle shell, around the hearts at the bottom and starts to fill in the centers of the reeds at the top.

Close up of Antique Gold

Pale Antique Gold completes the turtle shell, and the reeds on top.

Close up of completed turtle shell.

Close up of completed reeds.

Dark Lavender completes the shirt on the left turtle as well as the teddy bear in frogs arm and the snail shell on top.

Dark Aqua begins whirlpools in the water and dragonfly wings.

Light Aqua completes the whirlpools and dragonfly wings.

More updates will be added to this post as they are completed, so check back to see the progress.

Thanks.

Notice on Cross-Stitch in Progress

I am in the process of consolidating all of the existing updates on my current Cross-Stitch pattern into one blog.  I will be deleting all except the consolidated form once it is complete.  I am doing this so that you can see all the steps with one look, instead of needing to look up other posts if you want to see something further back.  I have 3 new colors completed but have delayed adding an update until I get the consolidation done.  I will definately have it completed by Wednesday afternoon, but if things go smoothly I should be able to have it finished by tomorrow evening.  Wish me luck.

Make Your Own Glasses From Old Bottles

Warning: This project involves Fire and breaking Glass. Use saftey equipment to prevent damage to property and injury to body i.e. Saftey Goggles, Thick Gloves, Fire Extinguisher.  Do not attempt under the age of 18.  I assume no liability for any damage or injury, all responsibility belongs soley to person attempting this project.  Also I do not promote use of alcoholic beverages, furthermore any and all persons must be at least 21 years of age to consume alcoholic beverages of any kind.

Have you ever thought "This bottle would make a really neat looking drinking glass" or wished you could find drinking glasses that had a design that's on a bottle of soda, wine, or beer?  Well here's just the thing you've been looking for......A tutorial on how to make drinking glasses at home using old bottles.

What you need:

String (thicker string seems to work better, like an old shoe string)
Lighter fluid
Small cup or dish
Lighter
Old Bottles (the thicker the glass the better it comes out, thinner glass cracks)
Water
Sand paper 

Once you have all your supplies find a safe place to work.  I suggest at the sink, and make sure that the area is cleared to prevent accidental fires. 

1.   Tie String around your chosen bottle.

 

2.  Put a small amount of Lighter Fluid in Cup or Dish.

 

3.  Dip String into Lighter Fluid (make sure to saturate it)

 

 

4.  Place String back onto the bottle

 

5.  Hold bottle over sink and Light String with Lighter.

Note: Hold bottle at a 45 degree angle with neck of bottle angling upwards

 

 

6.  Rotate the bottle while on fire and let String burn for between 10-12 seconds.

 

7.  With String still lite put under COLD running water.

 

 

Top of bottle should fall right off.  Beware of small glass fragments.

Glass will still be hot, so use caution when picking up pieces.

 

 

 

 

8.  Sand the inner and outer edges of glass with 100 grain Sand Paper until smooth.

Some areas of glass may need more sanding than others to even out the top.

 

 

 

9.  Clean glass and enjoy.

 

 

Note:  Results will vary.  As you can see in this picture the top of the C is not all intact.

 

It is trial and error, so make sure to have plenty of bottles to work with.

Works best to place String as far away from lettering or pictures as possible, but keep in mind that the neck of the bottle is thicker so may take a few more seconds to heat enough to break.

Also if the bottle does not break the first time you shock it with water you can always dry it and try again.

 

Have fun making your glasses out of old bottles but be sure to be safe and always use saftey precausions.