Search results

A few years back I decided to give a dozen or so gifts of small jams that I had made as Christmas gifts to various colleagues in my school where I work. Not ONE of them said a word about it, except an older lady who a month later said casually, "Hey, I guess you want your empty jar back, huh?"...

I wish I could figure out who said it, but I have always loved the quote: "You can tell the amount of decay in a society by the rate at which luxuries become necessities." I think it is very apt in this country right now.

I've been in this position. Once when my ex left me when I was 5 months pregnant and had a 1-year-old. Then when my beloved husband died suddenly when our son was 6 months old (and my older two kids were 13 and 14). So while I may not be in exactly the same situation, I can certainly relate...

Way to go!!!:)

Sigh. Yeah. I just found that out the hard way. Drat.

Interesting. I'm pretty sure that my breast cancer came more from things I ate plus heredity than it did from deodorant, but I've heard that, too. I don't know how you could test the theory, though. I admit I'm really jealous of those of you who can go without deodorant/antipersperant! I sweat...

I was scanning the web looking for info about tapping maple trees and came across this...Who knew that you could tap palm trees?! "You CAN tap palms for sap, but, you do it in a different manner than a maple. Sap is collected usually by cutting off the flower stalk, but in some palms like...

How much exercise do you get? I know that sounds like a dumb question (especially when people have exercise-induced asthma), but I found out years ago that exercise really makes a difference with me. I hate to exercise!! But my ex and I were talking once and he said that since I was so...

Late last summer, I planted a bunch of broccoli in the hopes that it would produce before first frost. Well, we had an early frost, so I made a mini-greenhouse on my back deck by covering the empty frame of a porch swing with some plastic, and I shoved the broccoli in there. Then the real cold...

Howdy, Besos! I just saw your post. My husband was from Wellington. New Zealand is such a beautiful place!

So how do you know if the sap is boiled down enough? Just guess based on the ratio that it should be? Dip your finger in it and see if it's syrupy-looking?!

My youngest is 9, and I still have diaper liners because they were so hard to find that I can't just toss them. I'd be happy to send them to anyone who wants them. I loved using them once my kids were big enough that their poop was solid. You just take the 4 cornes of the liner and lift and...

I used to do a lot of for-profit sewing. I made and sold Barbie clothes. Nobody likes to sew tiny stuff like that, but I loved it. People are willing to pay more for doll clothes that are washable, sturdy, and not sleazy! I also did bridesmaids dresses and wedding dresses. I tell you, though...

Neko-chan, I totally understand where you're coming from. I never realized how impersonal most American airlines were until I traveled Air New Zealand. What a difference. I know there are wonderful areas around this (US) country where neighbors still look out for each other, but my...

Watermelon! I'm not kidding. You cut them maybe 1/2 inch thick, and they take forever, but you end up with chewy, candy-like pieces that kids love. :)

I made all my kids' clothes long before I was ever pregnant! I discovered pretty quickly that some things were useless. I loved the nightgowns that had a zipper (great for middle-of-the-night changes, and babies never keep blankets on!) or else elastic at the bottom. I made a pile of cloth...

I did medical transcription for several years and loved it. But the industry is giving way to voice recognition software, etc. so it doesn't pay as much as it used to. But I've heard that medical coding/billing is something you could do from home. I remember the place that trained me for medical...

Remember those cheap plastic looms that we used to make potholders on as kids? They're square, about 10 inches or so, and they came with all these stretchy loops that you hook on, weave, then take off and voila, you have a potholder...Well, those stretchy loops are exactly the size of strips of...

I'm surprised nobody has mentioned Biotene. They gave it to me (in both toothpaste and mouthwash form) when I was doing chemotherapy. Chemo causes major mouth sores! I felt like my mouth was shredded. Biotene helped me hugely. The toothpaste doesn't foam at all, and there's no alcohol in the...

I second Dacjohns. I have tried peaches for years here in VA, and the insects that go after them are just horrid. I've tried half a dozen different apples, though, and they've done fine. Pears have been so-so. All of mine were semi-dwarf. And my one plum tree usually does fabulously every other...