Getting Frugal: Making a Birthday Cake Instead of Buying One

We do our best every year to make a special cake for the children on their birthdays.  My youngest daughters birthday was last week, and we wanted to make her a Barbie cake it turned out really well.  I can walk you through what we did.


Recipe for the frosting:
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup Crisco
4 cups confectionary sugar
2 tsp. vanilla
Milk in small increments ( Tbsps.) until it is a spreadable consistency.
Mix all ingredients.








This was another one of the birthday cakes we made, when our son turned 4 years old.

Technorati Tags: Cake,Wilton Cake Molds,Birthday Cake,Recipe,Barbie,Cars

Online Tools: Fly Lady Control Journal

About 3 years ago, I was so disorganized and I was depressed.  I did a search online for tips on organizing my home.  I found a lot of things, but the Flylady stood out to me.  I couldn’t believe this lady wanted to walk me through every step, she wanted to encourage me as much as I wanted to be encouraged.  I was amazed!
I started my Flylady Control Journal about 2 1/2 years ago.  I have had to modify it from time to time, but that is the beauty of it.  It doesn’t have to be perfect, extravagant or expensive.  It can be as simple as a notebook.  I use an address book that had 3 rings.  It works great for me, but it might not be right for you and that’s ok too.  Here is where you can find out how to start your own.
I will show you my Control Journal and how I made it.








I chose to have a control journal that I could change in my word processor, because I can simply make a few changes when necessary and print it out with no trouble.  I have the tendency to write things in my journal, cross things out, use arrows, needless to say it gets messy sometimes.  Its comforting to know that I can easily make a new one, from a file I had started before.
I cannot express enough how much using my control journal has changed my life.  I am able to keep up with my family's schedules, and make sure that I have the right attitude about doing the jobs that don’t always seem so fulfilling.  I sometimes fall off the wagon with my daily tasks, but this journal and the flylady.net team really pick me up throw me in and keep me from feeling like I have failed.  Check her out she is really a God send.

Technorati Tags: Flylady,Control Journal,Organizing,Planning Ahead,Home,Family,Being prepared,Computer

Planning Ahead: Buttoning Up Checklist for Autumn

Autumn is the time to get everything prepared for winter.  It is our last chance to plan ahead and make the seasonal transition run smoothly.
We have compiled a list of our own.  Martha Stewart also has a nice and list as well.  I hope this helps make your fall season a little easier. 
If you have any problems connecting to my link, please let me know.

Technorati Tags: Checklist,.pdf,Autumn,Preparing for winter

Flavors of Autumn- Making Apple Cider

About 7 years ago, my mother and I started a tradition.  She had this enormous apple tree in her front yard, that she never really utilized, and we wanted to start using the apples from it.  So we started catching the apples that fell from it to make cider, and when the tree was full of apples we would pick them and make apple pies.  My mothers pies were so good! 
I am continuing that tradition this year by doing the same.  My stepfather brought a basket of apples to me that he collected and I made my cider once again.
 
I wash them and run them through our juicer. 

Then I boil the juice and strain it through a fine cloth.




The juice turns out so wonderful, and what is strained off I make into apple butter for toast, by adding cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves  and sugar.  Yummmmm!         
It is a lot of work, but well worth the trouble.  Our entire family loves apple cider and apple butter.  It makes enough for a little over a gallon of cider and maybe 4 cups of apple butter and it goes fast.
Traditions are so wonderful, the best ones are the ones you fall into.  Ours came about because we wanted to make great use of something that was already blessing us. 
The feelings and memories this annual job gave us are priceless.  Having those memories has made our lives more fulfilling.  Creating traditions with this in mind will make the effort that goes into these jobs more worth the effort.

del.icio.us Tags: Apples,Cider,Butter,Family,Traditions,Autumn,Memories,Warm Up,Juicer,Straining

Getting it Together: Scheduling Tips

Last fall at this very same time, I ordered the Flylady calendar from flylady.net.  I tried using a different calendar the year before and I wasn’t really that impressed with it.  It was too small and it was supposed to stick to the refrigerator, yet the magnet kept falling off.  Not really helpful for busy people like us.
Ok so anyway… the flylady calendar is simple, large and she does have a sticker kit that you can get also to help with some of the days you might want to add to you schedule.  It has a spot for notes, that I use monthly to create checklists of things I need to do and it helps me stay organized. 
I started a household notebook this summer.  This is so I can keep all of my important papers together, organized and within easy reach.  The free printouts to create your own can be found here.  I love this tool, it has really helped with the paper clutter at home.
I have a section in my household notebook for school calendars and notices.  I keep sports schedules, after school activities, the school calendar, and my sons Pre-K events dates all filed here. 
When I do my weekly planning on the weekend, I take my flylady calendar and add the upcoming weeks events using the school calendars section of my household notebook.  I also list on the calendar if the kids will be catching the late bus to get home, or other notes like, needs money for lunch out on an away game.  This way I can make a reminder for it and be prepared. 
I have a habit in place to look at the calendar every night before going to bed, and again each morning while we are all eating breakfast.  This helps us stay on top of our busy schedule, and never forget important events.  The kids also know that if I am expecting them to come home, and they need to stay after school, they will have to call and let me know any changes.
Having everyone on the same page keeps things running smoothly.  Making habits incorporating these tools is what makes everything run on auto pilot.  When implementing these habits it may seem like a bit of prep work, but it is instantly gratifying when you see things running smoothly.  It is well worth any trouble that it may take, trust me.
I   look forward to hearing any comments that you might have.

Technorati Tags: Scheduling,Calendars,Back to School,Planning ahead,Events,Organize,Online Tools,Family,Busy