DIY Heat Buddies

I've been home all weekend with a daughter that's recovering from a tonsillectomy. Let me just say, She's 22 and the older you are, the worst these things can be.

Its day 5 and the pain continues to get stronger every day. She has tried to eat the best she can. Everyone tells us, "ice cream, Ice, and popsicles!" Well with this girl, that's not the solution. She has discovered warm feels better than cold. However, we are trying to make sure she gets cold stuff on that throat so she does not suffer bleeding during the healing process. That's our biggest fear and concern right now.

Her ears are giving her a lot of pain and again, ice is not working. So I thought fast and went to my all time favorite solution for discomfort pain...."heat buddies".

They are really simple to do and work perfect in a rush. If you have a sewing machine, you can make all kinds of cute shapes but I have yet to learn how to thread my machine so sewing aint gonna happen any time soon. {I need my Mom for that}. So, I ran to the single convention that my socks were having in the laundry area and grabbed a couple lonely footies. I filled them with rice and tied a knot in the end. I put them in the microwave for one minute and they were ready to use.

She held them against her ears and fell asleep. The rice produces a nice moist heat that is very comforting. These nifty little things will stay warm for about an hour. They are also great in the winter, to throw in your pockets to keep your hands warm when you are going to be outside for a period of time.

They can be reheated several times until the rice just gives up.

Warning: These may be too hot at first. Please let them cool for a couple minutes if you are sensitive to heat. Heat factor depends on the thickness of the sock as well as the microwave wattage.


Ive shared this at:
inspire-me-monday at create-with-joy
amaze-me-Monday at dwellings-theheartofyourhome
nifty-thrifty-tuesday at coastalcharm
Handmade tuesdays at ladybug-blessings
create-link-inspire at thecraftyblogstalker
made-by-me-121-linky-party-and-features at jaqsstudio
something-fabulous-wednesday at roubinek

Rapunzel Project

"Rapunzel Rapunzel, Let down your hair"

That quote is all I know from the fairy tail. To be honest, I haven't even see the movie "Tangled".

The other day, one of my customers from my Etsy shop sent me a request. She asked if I could make a hat for a friend of hers whose daughter was a patient at St. Judes Hospital. She said the little girl was starting to loose her hair and wanted to give her something special. She showed me a photo example of the hat that was in her mind. I had to do some searching around. I needed to see some pictures of Rapunzel. At first I was hesitant because I wasn't sure I could do the whole hair braid thing. It wasn't but within a couple hours, I decided I could do this and I was going to make one for this precious child. Somehow I would figure it out.

I began crocheting a hat. That was the easiest part for me. My daughter likes to craft so I asked her if she would make some felt flowers for the hat. Neither one of us knew how this would turn out. I just crocheted and she cut.
Then with a little glue and ribbon, we pulled it off. I think it turned out lovely.

 

 

I ended up giving her the hat. I really hope it fits her. I can only imagine what it would be like to have a sick child. I do not know who this person is but I wish her and her family the best and sending out prayers for them all. And to my customer who requested this gift, you are a very thoughtful and generous person. People like you are few.

I do not plan to make another hat but I have made a couple Rapunzel headbands by request.

Want one? Right now, you can purchase a Rapunzel head band from my Etsy shop.

Blessings


Ive shared this at:
ladybug-blessings
your-whims-wednesday at mygirlishwhims
made-by-me-120-linky-party-and-features at jaqsstudio
whatd-you-do-this-weekend at tumbleweedcontessa
under-100-link-party at beyondthepicketfence
create-link-inspire at thecraftyblogstalker
freedom-fridays-with-all-my-bloggy at myturnforus
Think Pink Sunday at flamingotoes
inspire-me-monday at create-with-joy Featured
hookin-on-hump-day at mymerrymessylife
yarn-party-time-excellent at bugaboominimrme

Crochet Dish Cloths

Winter is about over and frankly, I'm tired of making crochet beanies. I still receive special request to make different baby hats but I plan to create more spring items until the fall.

One of my favorite things to make and just in time for spring cleaning are these nifty little dish cloths.

They are also perfect to use as wash cloths, car washer, dust rags and window cleaners. They are so versatile, you can use them for any thing from baby butts to mechanic rags.

I create them using my newly found crochet stitch called the "up-down stitch". This same stitch has other names for it too such as "lemon stitch" and "seed stitch".
Unlike nasty germ collecting sponges, you can toss these in the washer and use over and over. They will shrink a little since I used 100% cotton. Actually, they work and look better after they are washed.

If you do not crochet and want some of these nice little cleaner uppers, I will have some in my Etsy shop soon. If you do crochet and want to make some for yourself, here is the instructions how I make them.

CROCHET DISH/WASH CLOTHS
chain stitch an odd number (I chained 25 using an H hook)
Mine turned out 7 inches by 7 inches. You can make it any size you want.

Ch 25, turn
Row 1- sc in 2nd ch from hook, sc in each st across, ch 1 turn,
Row 2- sc in first st, dc in next st, sc in next- repeat sc,dc to end, ch 1 turn
Repeat row 2 until you have a square.
(you will notice you are sc in the dc from previous row and dc in sc from previous row).

Hope I didn't confuse you to much.
You are welcome to make and sale what you make with my pattern. I just hope you will link your project back to me. But if not, well that's ok too. You can find similar patterns all over the web. You also may be interested in my swiffer pad pattern as well.


Ive Shared this at:
whats-on-my-needles-wednesday at ababyssmile  featured
made-by-me-119-linky-party-and-features at jaqsstudio Featured
create_link_inspire_linky_party at thecraftyblogstalker
freedom-fridays at myturnforus
under-100-link-party at beyondthepicketfence 
kitchen-fun-crafty-friday-link-party at kitchenfunwithmy3sons
submarine-sunday at usscrafty

Cilantro Lime Rice

This past weekend has been busy with a trip to the beach. The weather was a nice 70 degrees but a little windy. I walked into the ocean but the water was freezing cold as usual for this time of year. We had a great time. I really hated having to leave and get back to work.

With that being said, I totally forgot about getting my traditional St. Patrick's Day Corn beef brisket. I was pretty bummed about it. I always look forward to that each year. We had pork chops instead. The pork chops were delicious too.

I had to make something green to celebrate so I decided to make this Cilantro lime rice.

It was not a big hit with my husband but me and my daughter really liked it. I love anything with cilantro. I think it will go great with fish or tacos.

It was so easy to make.
All you do is cook two cups rice then mix about a 1/4 cup or more of chopped cilantro and the juice of one lime.

That's it. This dish explodes with flavor!

Now I hear my brother in law is making a corn beef brisket. I may have to make a trip across the neighborhood soon.

HAPPY ST. PATRICKS DAY !

Ive shared this at:

Handmade Tuesdays at ladybug-blessings
your-whims-wednesday at mygirlishwhims
made-by-me at jaqsstudio 
raisiebay.com
whatd-you-do-this-weekend at tumbleweedcontessa
full-platethursday at mizhelenscountrycottage
 

No Ice Cream Banana Split

Who says you cant break rules and enjoy a banana split without the ice cream?
Ok all of you out there wanting to eat healthy and still have a sweet treat without the guilt. Your going to love this.

I just created a banana split using all good stuff. I can call it a banana split because I DID split the bananas right?

• Get a banana and split it in half long ways.
• Drizzle a teaspoon of melted peanut butter onto it.
• Add a mixture of fresh fruit such as strawberries, apples, blueberries, pineapple, etc....
• Add a scoop of sugar free cool whip on top of that and sprinkles with nuts or almonds.
• Now enjoy!

Perfectly healthy and the peanut butter adds protein. You can even add your favorite yogurt in there somewhere.

This is a great way to enjoy a snack without the fat and calories of Ice cream. Not saying its better, but that its better for you if your on a diet. My favorite part is the sugar free cool whip ( not "fat free" its just nasty).You will never know the sugar is not in there. I love that stuff.

Ive shared this at:
ladybug-blessings 
whatd-you-do-this-weekend at tumbleweedcontessa  
made-by-me-118-linky-party-and-features at jaqsstudio
your-whims-wednesday at mygirlishwhims  
full-plate-thursday at mizhelenscountrycottage  Featured
showcase-talent-thursday at whatscookinglove

Phlebotomy Certified!

I cant hold it in any longer. I am now a certified phlebotomist! I am so excited. Call me weird but I have always wanted to be a phlebotomist. I am so thankful for my friend Tammy for telling me where to find this opportunity.

It was quite a challenge for me. I kept this achievement secret for a couple reasons. Only a handful of people knew I was going for this certification. I did not want to take a chance on hearing any negative remarks to interfere with what I wanted to do. I studied like crazy and never got bored of it. I'm just not a good test taker. I was so nervous about the final exam. The National Exam was not too easy and two weeks waiting on the results were agonizing. I lost sleep. I mean after all, I had put a lot of "sweat and blood" into this. Literally!

Class was fun. It was a small class of only eight women and two instructors. It lasted ten weeks. In those ten weeks, I took challenging test which some were perfect and some were below average (go figure). I was interested in the studies the whole time and could not wait for the next class so I could learn more things.

We were already doing capillary sticks within the first 3 weeks. That was painfully easy.

Here I am doing my first finger stick and trying to get the blood in the tube.

Then we moved on to venipuncture. We had to have so many successful sticks to pass the class. We started with an orange. This is where we got comfortable holding the needle steady.

  You can see who the sympathetic one in the class was, now cant we?

The next week we moved on to dummy arms. After one stick to the dummy, I was ready, and the instructors let us practice on each other. We did half our sticks using class mates.

 Here I am doing my very first blood draw.

I was some body's first stick! eeesh. It was perfect. Everyone of was good at it. I think it came natural. My arms looked like a drug user so I had to keep them covered. Eventually I had to tell a few friends what I was up to because I knew I could no longer do this on my own. We had a stick-a-thon, where we had to ask friends and family to come in and let us use them to get our stick quota. That was fun.

Whats Next for me? 
I'm going to continue to learn all I can about phlebotomy and study more the order of draw. I do not plan to leave my current full time job any time soon. However, Id love to do phlebotomy on an "as needed" bases or some weekends for a while until I get some experience. This will gives me a direction to head towards one day. Id love to be in a more professional environment. Its scary but exciting to think about what my future holds.

Special thanks to my daughter and those that offered themselves to be my guinea pig. Also a special thanks to my husband and the ones that continued to keep my confidence on high. They have no idea how much they all helped me and how much I appreciate them.

Chicken Avocado Salad

I normally will make chicken salad with chicken, celery, almonds, and mayonaize. In celebration of St.Patricks Day. I like to find green things to make all month. One thing I discovered was this awsome chicken salad. Its made with all things green.

I love avacodo and cilantro so I knew this would be a hit.


Once all the ingredients are mixed together, its makes a pretty green chicken salad and the taste is out of this world. The lime and cilantro are the perfect combination. You can taste it all in there.

You make this using as much or as little of each indigents you like but I'm going to share how I actually made it.

Chicken Avocado Salad
3 boiled and chopped boneless chicken breast.
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
2 ripe peeled and smashed avacados
juice from 1/2 a lime
1/4 cup mayonaise.
salt / pepper

mix together.
Serve on crackers, bread, on a salad or rolled in a romain lettuce leaf (which was my favorite choice).

This may just be my new way of making chicken salad.

Original recipe can be found at  all my good things blog 

Add Social Link Buttons on your Blogger

I have found an easy way to add social buttons to my blog. I'm going to try and spell out the way to do it. Its such an easy way of adding buttons to your blogger page without any fancy mapping or html code locating. Its easier than the other way I shared before using a mapping site. I would have probably used the mapping site if my computer was working right at the time, but it worked out in my favor because if it weren't for the fail, I would have not figure this way out.
I still need to do some work on mine. The ones I'm using now were just a first shot at it. Now that I know it works, I plan to make some prettier one soon.

Here goes.

Find some buttons you like. There are many sites where you can download fancy icons or just create your own and save them in your photo file or where ever.

 (example)

1.  In Blogger, open a new post ( you will not be publishing this, you will just be using it only for this task)
2.  Now, choose "HTML" (this is so there are no gaps between your icons)
3.  Click "insert image" and add your images. (make sure you choose each one then click add)
4.  Now, Choose "Compose"
5.  On each icon, click once and then click "Link" icon and paste the correct link you want the button to go too. (your face book address, Twitter address, etc...).
6.  Now that each one is linked, Click again on "HTML' and copy that whole code.
7.  You can save this now but like I said, do not publish it.
8.  On blogger, go to "layouts"
9.  Click on "add a gadget"
10.  Choose "HTML/JavaScript"
11.  Paste the code you just copied and, Boom! There you have it.

Hope that was simple enough for ya.