I have nothing of importance to say, yet here I am, starting a blog post.
Lucky you.
First off, I must share with you a few more of the Christmas gifts that were given to me. Because you care. I just know it!
1) New silverware.
This is exciting on so many levels. Something strange has happened to our forks.
?
They are all twisted-like.
Turns out our loved ones have had enough of us serving them my delicious cooking with those poky forks.
Oh, sure. There were a couple of good ones in there. David and I always used them and gave the poky forks to the kids.
It’s good for them. They are hearty, rural folk.
But now, I am all fancy-like with forks that have straight prongs. I am getting a bit “highfalutin” for ruralville, if you ask me.
2) I got a new purse!
Remember my ginormous mom purse?
Justin loves it when I post that picture of him.
Anyways, my mom got me a new purse. Handsome Dude really wanted to model it for you all. For he is all that is boy.
It is much more reasonable, don’t you think? It is called The Sak. My mother also has the same one in brown-ish. I feel it is cute. If I am wrong and this purse is only for those persons closer to my mother’s age, please to do not tell me. I want this purse to work out for me. Thank you.
We got the kids Super Mario for the Wii for Christmas. Last night we decided to give it a whirl.
We were stuck on this screen for 30 minutes and I am not exaggerating one bit.
We couldn’t do anything. But all the mushroom trees were moving, causing to Little Dude to furiously shout:
“Why are the TREES dancing?! Why!?” every fourteen seconds. It was a blessed family memory.
Eventually, after 30 minutes of trial and error, Sweet Pea finally discovered that if you push the button bearing the letter “A”, the Mario character-type peoples finally start their adventure.
Unfortunately by that point, it was time for dinner.
That was money well spent.
I am greatly enjoying my Christmas break and not teaching the home school. I mean, don’t get me wrong, home school is a barrel of laughs, but sometimes it is nice to take a break, you know?
Today, I was putting Handsome Dude down for his nap.
Which is a glorious moment if there ever was one.
HD (short for Handsome Dude . . . keep up!): Mom. Did you fix your hair?
Me: Yes! Do you like it.
(I had curled it)
HD: Um. It looks like you died.
Me: What?
HD: I mean, I think it’s not done. You should do it more. Good night!
That boy is lucky he is so cute.
He is pretty precious these days. He loves helping around the house and vacuuming. He is the world’s worst vacuumer, but I do not want to crush his spirit, you know? Lately, he has also taken to organizing the pantry for me.
He insists on doing this and it totally messes me up. He puts everything in different places and I pretend to not notice the stash of marshmallows he has hidden for himself.
Sneaky, sneaky.
Saturday is the last day of the year, and also Sweet Pea’s birthday. She is going to be nine, if you can believe it. I sure can’t.
I saw this post on Money Saving Mom about things some new homemade things she wants to try and make. I was thinking of trying to make some new homemade things, since I am a 30 year old, rural, home school mom and all.
I already make my own laundry soap. My dad makes fun of it.
If you can believe that.
Anyways, here are some new things I am considering trying:
Baking my own bread (we go through a lot)
Homemade Face Soap
Homemade OxiClean
Homemade Hand Soap.
I know, right? Could I be any weirder?
I think not.
Anyways, I think one of my New Year’s Resolutions is going to be to do more homemade things to save money and cook healthier-more cooking from scratch and exciting stuff like that.
What about you?
Have you made your own face soap? And if so, does your face look weird?
Do you have orange whites like I do? Darn well water.
Does your son tell you your hair looks like you died?
Did your husband fall asleep on the couch at 6:53pm?
Are you able-minded enough to play Super Mario on the Wii?
Is my purse cute?
Darn. I should probably exercise more next year, too.
Boo.
Do your forks bend all weird after a few years?
Talk to me! Chat with me!
My husband did fall asleep before 7pm. It’s the least you can do.
Or not. The choice is yours.
Happy Thursday!
Hahaha….yes, we can play super mario but we are cool almost living in the city type people so maybe that’s why?
Yes. We did decide that perhaps we were too hillbilly-ish for things such as Super Mario.
Oh my- the Mario story just cracked.me.up.. Also the dead hair thing.. Thank for continuing to provide me humerous posts even when my recovery time is past. I owe you!
Glad you have recovered!
Ok, so I had to link to the laundry soap post. You REALLY make your own soap? Even though ruralville is not far from my ‘hood, I fear it is a much different world than I live in. I’m amazed at your ingenuity and brilliance.
I have for over a year now!
Purse is appropriate and cute for a just barely 30 year old. Ask MindyLou. Or not. She is a bit klepto in the purse department.
Whites no longer orange, but I moved to town. Why not a water softener or some such device?
MAKE YOUR OWN BREAD. It’s not really that hard, and once you get going it becomes quick and easy. And you will be getting $4 per loaf bread for mere pennies! Makes hubbies happy! Plan for a full loaf just for dinner on baking day, put soup in the crock pot at lunch time, your children will rise and call you blessed.
Not me, but a friend uses honey and baking soda for a face wash. It’s ok.
Expensive forks last longer – hence signing up for wedding gifts at Macy’s vs. Target.
warning: Super Mario = addictive behavior, now and forevermore.
Happy Birthday Sweet Pea!
Yes, you could get weirder. Way. Do you own a denim jumper? Do you wear other standard homeschool mom attire? Have you ever shot an animal from the kitchen window while your baby plays happily in the high chair? It can get way worse. But Super Mario and that cute purse will save you.
Ha!
you’re crazy
Oh yeah. Well you are . . . a non-texter. So there.
Hilarious! Super Mario perplexes me, but my husband and kids seem to do okay. I have not tried any homemade cleaning products at all, but I did buy some white vinegar today to attempt something, just not sure what. Happy Thursday!!
I found this on the Pinterest. It’s a whole big list of what to do with vinegar around the house. I’m going to start using it. My mother-in-love uses it all the time and her house sparkles. Of course, she doesn’t have little kids running around making messes all the time… but the bathrooms are shiny.
http://www.chicagonow.com/gardening-nude/2010/02/10-money-saving-and-eco-friendly-cleaning-tips-that-cost-less-than-1-00/
I do use vinegar a lot already!
I found this link on the Pinterest about how to use vinegar around the house. http://www.chicagonow.com/gardening-nude/2010/02/10-money-saving-and-eco-friendly-cleaning-tips-that-cost-less-than-1-00/
I tried commenting a few minutes ago and it never appeared. Hope this one shows up.
My whites are orangey-beige. I only buy white clothings if they are $3 and therefore basically disposable. Darn well water. Do you get cloudy build up on your drinking glasses? And do you have a dishwasher? We wash by hand.
And don’t bake your own bread. You eat it faster that way, both because it’s yummier and because the slices are thicker. The up side is, the more often you make it, the less-enormous of a task it seems. Though my 82 year old grandma still tells me in a surprised voice, “I made buns today. And they actually turned out!” She’s been baking bread and buns for sixty years.
Yes our dishes are getting cloudy white, but I have not given up on the dishwasher.
I do not need a reason to eat more bread . . .
That’s funny about your grandma!
I don’t make new year resolutions…why? Because I never keep them. So why bother! My forks just plan vanish! I tell you I have all the spoons, knives etc but the forks..just ppffffsss! I had to get a new set of silverware just so we would have more than three forks. I think my significant other tosses the fork in the trash with the paper plate when he is done eating…Maybe I should stop using paper plates. Or not.
I don’t keep them either. I don’t know why I bother. 🙂
Used to have orange whites (live on the east coast.) High iron content in the water-tried a filter system–the filter would stop up so often, we gave it up. Filtered the kitchen faucet only & resigned ourselves to wearing orange whites. We moved about 10-15 miles closer to civilization a few years ago & now have hard water–no more orange whites, but teal stains in the sinks & tubs. With the orange whites I did throw a cup of ammonia in with the loads of whites & it seemed to help a bit.
Rural living–gotta love it!
Ammonia, huh? Hmmm . . . . I never would of thought of it . . . .
I think we are going to give up on whites.
My husband and I played through super Mario together a couple years ago, our marriage barely made it through the game. My husband thought it was best for the game for me to stay in a bubble and when I wouldn’t go in one on my own, he would throw me off the edge and kill me so I would have no choice. Our 5 year old just asked about a month ago if we would play it with him. He is on my side and always asks why dad has to be so mean during the game. Every now and then he will put his remote down and yell, “I will not play anymore if you keep being mean”. We will see if our family makes it through this game in one piece.
Your husband is quirky, isn’t he? With the fake vomit and the mario bullying? 🙂
My forks have never bent.
Is that at all helpful?
Sorry. It’s all I’ve got.
Ok, but why do MY forks bend? Thoughts?
I’d start with the bread baking and would completely skip the make your own face soap. Your purse is cute but I think I’m your mother’s age so maybe my answer doesn’t count. I got Wii Fit for Christmas. I haven’t taken it out of the box yet because I’m saving all my exercising for the New Year. I still have chocolate fondue to eat on NY Eve.
Daughter2 is home for another week plus. I’ve told her NY Eve she’ll likely be sitting on the couch with two sleeping parents but she can wake us up if she wants. Happy 2012!
I have the wii fit, too. I have used it thrice.
I am getting some negative feedback on the homemade face soap. Perhaps I will abandon that idea.
Bake your own bread! Easy peasy! It’s one of those things that sounds so impressive but alas, when you really do it, you know the truth. We have a Bosch mixer and I’m able to make 5 loaves at a time. Totally worth it and you can sneak in all kinds of healthy business like leftover oatmeal, mashed sweet potato or squash, flax and whatnot.
I go through Oxyclean like water . . . how in the world do you make your own? I’m totally interested in that!
I tried making my own dishwashing soap and was hated it. My glasses started to come out foggy and other stuff had a gritty film on it. Yuck. My sister makes her own laundry soap but I’m into Charlie Soap. I’m always interested in making my own things, but I have tried some ideas and realized it wasn’t working very well and when you put it against the time to make it, it REALLY wasn’t worth it. I do however, make my own mayo and more recently, ketchup. All in the name of getting away from added preservatives and high fructose corn syrup. Those are two things to make that are so easy it’s embarrassing and they’re good! ~ A bonus for sure!
Cute purse! Wanted to see a picture of your new boots all tucked in stylish-like to your jeans. YAY for updates from our cool Mommies!
I need skinny jeans first I think before I can wear the boots. The laundry soap is super easy-hardly takes any time at all. I have heard that homemade dish detergent never works out.
I got a cute pair at the Goodwill (because I’m THAT late for new styles) and I can’t afford to buy jeans only for boots and shirts that come down past the bum. For that is the ONLY way I should wear skinny jeans. Amen.
That is my favorite Super Mario story ever.
Well, thank you!
My siblings and I somehow managed to dent my Mom’s forks, too, I’m really not sure how.
We live in rural Iowa and yes, I know just what you mean about orange whites. At work, we have well water that is full of sulphur and smells like rotten eggs. I’m just glad I don’t have to do my laundry in it 🙂
Happy New Year to you and your family!
I think I would rather have orange whites than smelly whites . . .
Happy New Year to you as well 🙂
Oh my goodness. I have to comment simply because you’re responding to everyone’s comments and I long for your attention. No pressure, of course.
Our children also received Super Mario Bros. for Christmas, and I have not tried it. I am scary enough of a driver in Mario Kart–careening off cliffs and whatnot–that I can’t imagine I would be any more coordinated in this game. Anything more than an Atari joystick totally throws me.
P.S. I don’t make my own face soap, but I started using the oil cleansing method (which I guess is kind of like making my own facial cleanser after all) and highly recommend it. http://www.crunchybetty.com/nitty-gritty-on-the-oil-cleansing-method
I just read this week that Serena from The Farm Chicks soaks her whites twice a year in Rit Whitener and Brightener to take care of the yellowing that can happen from bleach use. Maybe it will work with your orange-ing.
Thanks for the tip on the RIT, I think I will try it. I don’t use bleach anymore because I was told that the bleach makes it worse with the iron.
So I use nothing. Sometimes I use something called White Brite, but it STINKS.
The homemade face soap is some sort of oil thing.
I am too young for to know of this Atari you speak of 😉
oh my goodness, I have to respond to your post so you can respond to my response 🙂
I make my own laundry detergent too!! so much cheaper and we go thru SO much laundry, so cheaper detergent is a must! haven’t tried anything else for homemade soaps. willing to try the oxi clean stuff. let me know how it works out for you.
bent forks? my loverly Pack tend to smash the forks in the drawer… wala!! bent forks!! now, if only I could find my spoons. I have a sneaky suspision that my Pack sneak spoons down to the cellar and eat the ice cream, and dispose of the spoons somewhere down there. Not thinking I want to find those spoons now. yuck 😛 what do you think?
me and video games do NOT get along. HH and The Pack love video games. I got a Kindle for Christmas and I am loving to play “Angry Birds”, but no one is allowed to touch my Kindle, and no one can watch me when I play Angry Birds, cuz they laugh at me, and look at each and roll their eyes. I guess this super cool mom of 5 that lives in nowheresville and homeschools said 5 children, is utterly hopeless at video games. even Angry Birds. who knew? 😉
I am wondering if Oxiclean will help with the orange whites? And we are poor, because we have four kids and one income, so I am always looking for ways to save money.
I have never played Angry Birds. My kids play it on my phone though.
I hate an absurd amount of ice cream last night. It was pathetic. And today I am searching WW recipes. Such is life.
ha! *ate*
Yep, buy more expensive silverware so the fork tines don’t bend! I trust the rugrats don’t use them to dig up dirt and hence the bent tines, right?
Handsome Dude really meant you have such fancy hair that only a dead person would look so good and spiffy! (I’m sure! Yes!)
I am NO GOOD at video games. They seem pointless to me. But then most electronics seem pointless to me.
Today my husband and I had another argument over cordless phones with answering machines in them. He claims I just get mad at the current answering machine because it gets turned on when (ONLY) someone calls and lets it ring 11 times. Who lets the phone ring 11 times hoping someone will pick up?!?!?!?
I said the button gets accidentally pushed on the answering machine and That is why it gets turned on and then I get mad. So we lowered our voices in Best Buy and agreed to put that part of the cordless phone in the bedroom where we seldom use the phone and would not therefore touch the answering machine button. Which we don’t use anyway and I only HOPE that no one actually calls and leaves messages for us because we will not get them for about 2 months.
Homemade bread is SO good! I make six loaves at a time with my Bosch. But not now that I am the only one here all day to eat them. Just to give away.
I don’t make cleaners because I don’t want to clean all that much. But if it uses vinegar and baking soda, then I can do it.
Ok. Have a fun break from all schooling and Christmasing!
Checking messages isn’t scary at all. I encourage you to try it! Your friends and loved ones will thank you.
🙂
I just can’t stop laughing at the idea of you “hating an absurd amount of ice cream last night”!! If it helps any, I’ll hate an absurd amount of ice cream too! Will that make you feel better? Course, if we also EAT the ice cream that is different…
Oh, I ATE ice cream. Darn typo! If only I hated it . . .
I laugh at your forks. No, my forks do not bend. However, to compensate for their nicety, my spoons walk away. Yes, they really truly disappear. Who takes them? My children are homeschooled and go nowhere without me ( not that I’d have a problem with them going somewhere without me but no one wants them. Sigh). And yet, I have half as many spoons as I did when I started. ‘Tis a mystery. Maybe the dishwasher eats spoons like the dryer eats socks.
On the bread note, DO make your own. If I, with my yeast phobia, can learn, anyone can. It took me awhile to adapt my mom and sister’s baking brilliance to my low-level skills, but except for getting it to just fall out of the pan like theirs, I have done it. You will love the taste and the price. :). And that comment about plan a loaf for dinner that night with soup in a crockpot? Brilliant.
Curious about the homemade Oxyclean. I make my own laundry detergent and just realized a few days ago that oxyclean only has one extra ingredient. Hmm. Am I doubling up or is that sodium polyblahblah absolutely crucial? I do not even know where to look to find out. :). So please share your experiences with such things.
Ok, I found a recipe for homemade oxiclean (or oxyclean?) on Pinterest. Which is a surprise because I am never on Pinterest.
http://moneysavingmom.com/2011/09/homemade-oxiclean-recipe.html
But I don’t like it because it looks like it is just for one load and I would rather make a whole bunch at once. Plus this looks like more of a stain remover thing, I was thinking of using it as more of a laundry booster?
I read MSM too and saw that same recipe but I too, want it for a laundry booster, not a stain remover. I will keep searching–surely there has to be something out there. On Pinterest.
Thank you so much! Your Mario story made me laugh. A lot. And I REALLY needed a laugh today. It’s been a rough one. Becca
I am sorry you had a rough day 🙁
I got a little obsessed with Super Mario on the Wii last Christmas. Thing is, I am terrible at it and never got past the second level. However, you not being able to start it does make me feel a little better! 😉
My parents used to have well water that made their whites orange. They did not, however, have the pointy forks. That’s special. Congrats on the new silverware!
I always did think we were special 😉
We barely have enough spoons left for us to all eat at once. I think my kids throw them away. …and Bill is always asleep by 7.
And I’m not smart enough for video games. They stress me out.