wADmM5mNLtOv064mhMCS_CYE3Bc Just Dorothy: July 2012

DIY Magnetic Board

So I've been on Pinterest and seeing some really cool DIY stuff that I've been dying to try out.  One of them was a flat (no edges) cookie sheet from the dollar store, painted, papered, etc and used as a magnetic board.  Our nearest dollar store didn't have flat cookie sheets but they had pizza pans.  It's not really big or very thick.  In fact, I don't think I'd use it as a pizza pan at all.  Anyway...



Then I had hubby drill two holes so I could add ribbon to hang.  Spray painted it blue (school colors as it will be used in my new office at the school, natch)....


Added ribbon to the top to hang and rubber stamped in white "Bloom Where You're Planted near the ribbon.  Then add stamped flowers, again in white. 

I should have just stuck with a few flower stamps, got a little carried away.  But!  I can cover it with paper cut to size.  Or! Use it for it's intended purpose as a magnetic board and cover it with pictures and various notes/artwork, etc.  I bought two anyway so now I can just perfect it, right?!

Jewelry Cleaner

Saw this on Pinterest and tried it.  LOVE!

Jewelry Cleaner
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon baking soda
1 tablespoon dish detergent
1 cup water

1. Heat water in the microwave for a minute or two
2. Cut a small piece of aluminum foil to cover the bottom of a small bowl
3. Pour hot water into the bowl and add the salt, baking soda and detergent
4. Put jewelry onto top of foil and let sit for 5 to 10 minutes.  Rinse jewelry with water and dry. Throw the solution away, just make more as needed.

I used this on my diamond rings and they sparkle! 

Again, here's the LINK where I got the recipe from on Pinterest ~ http://www.food.com/recipe/jewelry-cleaner-180133?soc=pinterest

Good Chop, Bad Chop

Kids are naturally curious. "Why?" is a favorite question. So is "how?". Sometimes it's best to show "why" and "how" with hands-on training! Think outside the box and come up with something age appropriate and tasty for your kids to help you make. Keep in mind, attention spans are not very long for the very young; they prefer quick, easy jobs and like quick results. That's not to say you shouldn't try something that requires cooking time, but the job of "helping" should be quick and fairly easy. Children that have a hand in preparing food have a better chance of eating it, which is great if you have a picky eater.

Little hands need a few little tools. Popsicle or craft sticks become great knives for cutting soft foods such as bananas. They are also amazing little spreaders for cream cheese and peanut butter. Here are a few hands-on, fairly simple recipes to try:

Bean Dip: In a plastic baggie, put 1/4 cup canned beans, such as pinto or red. Close the bag and have your child push and mash and squish those beans until they have it pretty mushed. Open the bag, have them toss in a little cheese if they prefer and let them dip tortilla chips.

Fruit & Cheese Kabobs: Wash and cut strawberries (you will do this with a knife so you can hull) in chunks. Have kids peel and cut bananas with a plastic knife (with supervision, of course!) or a craft stick. Trust me, the tiny hands can manage! You might have to start the banana but they can peel it the rest of the way. Cut 1 inch squares of cheese. Wash red or green grapes. Have your child slide the fruit and cheese onto a skewer. We use coffee stir sticks. Have your child create a pattern and ask them what they like best about the kabob they just made!

Apple Wraps: Place a glob of peanut butter in a small bowl. Give your child a paper plate, a tortilla and small chunks of apple or banana. Using a craft stick, have your child smear peanut butter on the tortilla. Then have them sprinkle the tortilla with the fruit. You can even have them sprinkle on a little cinnamon if you'd like. Roll the tortilla up and enjoy!

These are super simple recipes that almost all children will enjoy. There are many, many more hands on experiments you can do with food with even the youngest, pickiest eaters. Don't be afraid to step outside the (cereal) box and try. It's good for kids! They learn a few things like early math skills (measuring, patterning) and a little bit of independence. And they get to spend time with YOU!

Help Us Cure Diabetes!

I've been a part of a lot of different teams over the course of my life. I've joined a new team recently that I want tell you about.  It's the Step Out team to end diabetes.  Diabetes sucks.  Type 1, Type 2, it doesn't matter, it still sucks.  It's scary, it's confusing, it's heart breaking.  It's sad. 

The ADA has started a walk to raise money for research and to find a cure for diabetes and I'm honored to participate.  We've started a team called No Moore Diabetes and we will walk a mile or run a 5k here in Phoenix in October.  We've pledged as a team to have 10 walkers and raise $1000 dollars.  We're at 45% of our goal and we only have 93 days left.  If you are in the Phoenix area and want to walk with us, please click on the link and we'd be happy to have you join.  If you aren't in the area or can't walk with us, please feel free to make a donation to the team.  Any amount would be appreciated!  If you have any questions, please, please feel free to contact me. 

Together, when we Step Out, we get one step closer to No Moore Diabetes!

Vegetarian Burritos

Yesterday I made vegetarian burritos from items I received in my Bountiful Basket.  My family, huge carnivors, devoured them and asked for more!  I should have taken pictures of the process and end results but I just never think to do that when I'm making stuff.  Anyway, here's the super delicious info:

Mexican gray squash
Grape tomatoes
Green chiles (roasted by me!)
Onion
Refried beans
Tortillas

First I added the roasted, diced green chiles in a non stick pan, topped with halved cherry tomatoes, diced squash and diced onion.  I added two packets of Swanson's Vegetable flavor packets and a little bit of water.  Add pepper and garlic powder to taste.  Simmer until squash is soft.  Heat refried beans.  Heat tortillas.  Spread a little bit of the beans on one end of the tortilla.  We added a little cheese, put the tortilla in the microwave for about 15 seconds to heat the cheese a little and then added our hot mess of veggies to the cheese and beans.  Wrap like a burrito and enjoy!  It was so good!!

Variations or additions:
Corn
Cilantro
Avocado
Black Beans (we LOVE black beans in a lot of our dishes but with 3 men in the house I figured one type of bean was enough)
Regular zuccini if you don't have Mexican gray squash

Use your imagination, you seriously can't go wrong with this!

Vegan Lip Butter ~ Nature's Garden Candles

Recently, I was one of the lucky blogs chosen to receive a kit from Nature's Garden Candles.  It was like Christmas opening that package, I had no idea what I was going to get.  Vegan Lip Butter is what I got!

The kit comes with the following:
Candelilla wax
Coconut oil
Cocoa butter
Vitamin E oil
Flavoring (mine came with Black Cherry Boom)
Stevia sweetener
Lip tint (mine came with Prissy Pink)
16 lip balm pots
Plastic tansfer Pipettes

I was a little worried when I first opened the package.  Due to the extreme Arizona heat, some of my oils were a little mushy and or flat out melted.  I waited for them to reconstitute a bit (the next day!) and got started melting them again.  I wanted to be sure to start out as close to how they were originally sent as possible.  Anyway...

I have never worked with some of these oils and I never used color.  I LOVE IT!  This is so smooth and silky with just a hint of color. 

The kit gives you everything you need and an instruction sheet.  Follow those directions and you get this:


A silky, smooth Vegan Lip Butter with a hint o' color and a bold Black Cherry Boom flavor.  If you are a novice and interested in creating wonderful, good smelling, useful products, definitely go with a kit from Nature's Garden Candles.  Even if you are experienced, you seriously can't go wrong with a kit.  It makes it super simple and gives you a wonderful product!