Tuesday, March 31, 2009

Last-minute Conficker survival guide

Again since this one is also copyrighted I can't put it on here but it gives you things to do to survive this worm attack. Go here to see what you can do if you haven't already.

The smartest thing to do it BACK UP (make a full data backup today) your computer on a disc in case you do get hit.
Make sure you are up to date with all the windows updates. Have IE8 installed.
For those of you who us Firefox get Firefox3 put on your computer.
Make sure your anti-virus is up to date and ready to go.

Here Comes Your Stimulus Bonus

Since this story is copyrighted I can't publish it here but you can go here to read it in it's entirety.
It is well worth reading.

Jamie Lee Curtis Turns 50



On a chilly afternoon in a rustic canyon in Los Angeles, Jamie Lee Curtis’s house buzzes with activity. As she makes a pot of tea in the kitchen, 12-year-old son Tommy whizzes by. Upstairs, electric-guitar sounds throb as husband Christopher Guest, the “mockumentary” film director (Best in Show, A Mighty Wind), helps daughter Annie, 21, sing and record a song as a gift for her mother.

“It’s a surprise,” says Curtis, carrying the tea tray into the living room. “I’m going to have to pretend I haven’t heard it.” In black slacks, sweater, and high-heeled boots, and wearing a wedding band of tiny diamonds, Curtis is a picture of understated elegance. In Hollywood, where middle-aged actresses are expected to resort to extreme measures to look younger, her short, naturally silver hair is subversive. By local standards Jamie Lee is letting her freak flag fly.

The straight-talking actress and author is embracing her upcoming 50th birthday (November 22) with characteristic zest. “I have not one second of anxiety about turning 50,” she says.

Radiantly healthy and easy in her own skin, Curtis is gifted with a trenchant wit and self-awareness, which she deploys when sharing her own life struggles. The daughter of movie stars Janet Leigh and Tony Curtis, she was born a Hollywood princess. Fame came at 20, when she starred in a spate of horror movies, including Halloween. Later she came to be known as “the body,” displaying her voluptuous figure in such fare as Perfect. Eventually her skill with a well-timed wisecrack became her claim to fame in comedies such as Trading Places. In her biggest success, True Lies, she played a mousy wife who transforms into a sexy action heroine.


In her early 40s, addicted to prescription drugs and alcohol, Curtis entered a sobriety program. Self-searching led to transformation, as she deepened her commitment to what meant most to her. She scaled down her acting career to raise her kids. “Jamie always wanted a regular, serene home life,” says her friend the author Lisa Birnbach. “I remember visiting her when Annie was little, and they were making heart-shaped pancakes with Annie’s initial in jam, and I thought, ‘I don’t do this for my kids.’ She sets a very high bar for herself as a mother, a wife, and a friend, and she’s totally sincere about it.”

In 1993 Curtis began to publish children’s books, including Today I Feel Silly & Other Moods That Make My Day (HarperCollins Children’s Books, 1998), a New York Times bestseller.

While Curtis costars with a dog this fall in a comedy called Beverly Hills Chihuahua, she is limiting her acting to roles that don’t require long hours. She has a new gig as a spokesperson for Dannon Activia yogurt, she volunteers at her son’s school and for several children’s charities, and this September she will publish her eighth book—Big Words for Little People.

An accomplished photographer, Curtis collaborated conceptually with the photos on these pages, asking that they represent her quest to “shed skin,” to jettison what no longer serves her. She says she aspires to “essential being. Nothing extraneous.”

A few days after the photo shoot, Curtis e-mails an eerie photo she took of a pet reptile’s discarded skin. “It happened today,” she writes. Oh, and another thing—remember those black boots she was wearing on the day of the interview? “I’m giving them away,” she reports. “No more high heels. Too uncomfortable. Don’t need ’em. Gone.”

Jamie Lee Curtis—growing older, becoming new again.

“I want to be older. I actually think there’s an incredible amount of self-knowledge that comes with getting older. I feel way better now than I did when I was 20. I’m stronger, I’m smarter in every way, I’m so much less crazy than I was then.

“Years ago my husband and I were at the Golden Globes. I was wearing some borrowed dress that wasn’t me, my hair was done in a way that I never wear my hair, and I had earrings on. And my husband said, ‘You know who is the most beautiful woman in the room?’ And I was hoping he was going to say me. And he pointed across the room at Jessica Tandy. She was sitting at a table wearing a cream-colored silk-shantung pantsuit. Single strand of pearls, short white hair, a little lipstick—nothing else. And I thought, ‘He’s totally right.’ There was none of the pretense, none of the trying so hard.

“My style is a distillation. I’ve etched out who I am through myriad haircut attempts, outfit attempts, beauty attempts, diet attempts. It’s been an evolution. I’ve let my hair go gray. I wear only black and white. Every year I buy three or four black dresses that I just keep in rotation. I own one pair of blue jeans. I’ve given away all my jewelry, because I don’t wear it.

“The same way that midcentury modern architecture was in the ’50s, I want to be as a human being. New. Different. Challenging the old. Function over frivolity. Clean living. Clean lines.

“If I can challenge old ideas about aging, I will feel more and more invigorated. I want to represent this new way. I want to be a new version of the 70-year-old woman. Vital, strong, very physical, very agile. I think that the older I get, the more yoga I’m going to do.

“I saw a picture of me in a tabloid, where they had actually given my weight. I was like, ‘How dare you—I’m not 161 pounds!’ I was indignant. I got home and I went on a scale and I was 161 pounds. There’s a lot of Lycra in clothing, so I didn’t notice the weight gain. I was in denial about it. This was two years ago.

“Then I went to the doctor. And my blood pressure had risen a lot, and my cholesterol was crazy. I had gotten lethargic. But I wanted to play tennis again. So I started a really healthy way of eating, just avoiding things that I had been shoving in my mouth. Over the course of a year, I dropped about 20 pounds.

“Now, I get up at five o’clock in the morning every day, filled with energy. I play tennis three times a week, and I do yoga. I’m never going to be an athlete, never going to be running triathlons—I’m not that person. But I walk with girlfriends, and walking is incredibly good for you.

“That was a moment of truth and a big shift, taking care of my physiological life.

“My biggest concern is that I will calcify as I get older. I am a creature of habit: I wear the same clothes; I eat the same food; I am very regular in all of my activities. I can get lulled into complacency. Decalcification means constant evolution, where I’m constantly trying to shed skins and shed ideas.

“I look at my relationships all the time. If a relationship is really negative on an ongoing basis, what am I doing in it? What am I protecting? Am I protecting someone from the hurt and sting of losing me? Because that’s not healthy. It’s not good.

“The one benefit of being around fame my whole life is I’ve seen the façade of it. I know what people look like before they get all duded up. I see these people duded up and they’re talking differently, as if they’re titled aristocracy. They’re a girl from New Jersey, and it’s just hilarious. What are you doing in the gown, with the fake English accent?

“I’ve been an inconsistent parent at times, and it’s my greatest regret. When my daughter was small, I worked too much. I was replicating what my own mother did. A woman I admire tremendously named Dr. Susan Williams has a great phrase. She says, ‘Children are paparazzi. They take your picture when you don’t want them to, and then they show it to you.’ My daughter showed me pictures, aspects of myself that I didn’t like. It was Annie who went, ‘Hello, this isn’t working.’ And I made adjustments, and then she did it again, and I made more adjustments. An unflattering picture of you is incredibly helpful.

“My mother was just freaking beautiful. That was her burden, to keep that going. She had two kids, and then naturally life took over, and there was a lot of alcohol, and other things took their toll. [Janet Leigh and Tony Curtis divorced in 1962; she married stockbroker Robert Brandt later that year.] I respect that she survived all that, with no real help. She had a couple of good friends, but this was a generation of women that didn’t trust a lot of other people. I feel badly for her that she didn’t have any of the support I have. At the end of her life she was miserable, miserable. But coming where she came from and achieving what she achieved was a huge accomplishment.

“My daughter is in college. Annie is a beautiful dancer and choreographer; her real talent, I think, is her ability to create a feeling from movement. She’s a talented girl and really bright.

“My son has some learning issues, and we’re in a [specialized] environment educationally. So that’s a whole new learning curve for all of us. And it’s been fascinating. I work hard with his school, helping and learning and fighting on behalf of these kids.

“When my kids leave I would like to go back to school. To me, a great boomer fantasy would be creating courses of study, like book clubs, where people come together in small groups, for lectures, reading, movies, music, art, and then travel to that place. We would do Italy, we would do the Netherlands, we would do Russia. We would study Nazi Germany, then watch Schindler’s List and The Diary of Anne Frank, then see my girlfriend Deborah Oppenheimer’s documentary, Into the Arms of Strangers, and hear about stories of the Kindertransport, then read four or five historical fiction books and then travel there.

“As we get older, we say goodbye to a lot of people. We say goodbye to our friends, to our family, and discover our capacity to love and communicate and have intimacy—real intimacy, not the superficial intimacy we had in our youth. Strip away the bulls---; be done with that. Ask yourself these two questions: Did I learn to live wisely? Did I love well?

“Service is another way to get out of the calcification of your life. I am the spokesperson for two children’s charities—the Children Affected by AIDS Foundation and Starlight Starbright, which does wish-granting for ill children. I host a lot of charity events. There’s a lot of personal satisfaction in being of service to other people. It’s the complete opposite of being for sale.

“If I get the chance, I would like to evolve as a public voice, to find a way to talk about making better choices. It is very difficult to talk about people’s personal choices, and the addiction to having what we want when we want it. For instance, diabetes is an Armageddon. Where did this come from? It came from us. We need to live the example more. Giving up something that makes us feel good in order to keep us alive as a species. We need a surgeon general who challenges the way people eat. I don’t know why doctors don’t say, ‘Oh, you smoke? I’m not going to treat you. It’s clear that you’re not interested in being alive.’

“I’m going to give myself a breakfast birthday party. I’ll serve my favorite meal of the day: cereal and waffles and bacon and pancakes and scrambled-egg-white omelets and protein shakes and cappuccinos. My friends will come with their kids. The little children can get their hands dipped in wax, and they can watch the wonderfully talented candy carver swirl the liquid candy into dragons, and they can leave with a dragon lollipop.

“To celebrate, I’m making a book of 50 of my photographs and giving it to each of my friends. It’s not for public consumption. People have been very complimentary over the years, and many have said, ‘Oh, you should have a show.’ I thought about it, and I thought, no. I don’t need more attention. I don’t ever want to make taking pictures into another way of saying ‘Here I am.’ Because I’m as here as I want to be.”

About the Breezy Bags Giveaway on 3-25-09

I just wanted to tell everyone I WON. Samantha just emailed me the good news tonight. I am so surprised. Like I told her, I enter so many contests but never win. Now I can say I have won something.
I chose the color VIOLET in the bags and she will forward my mailing info onto the company and I should see my bags in the mail soon. Now I can hardly wait for them to come. I will be waiting for the mailman to arrive everyday now with anticipation.

Breezy Bags

Making Fun Dough

Making Fun Dough

Materials
Four cups white flour
One cup table salt
Water
Mixing Bowl
Food color(s)

Instruction
Combine flour and salt in bowl and add water slowly until desired consistency.
Let the kids knead dough until it's ready for play. Separate the dough into smaller batches and add a different food color to each. Then let them make animals or twist the dough into colorful patterns and bake their creations in the oven at 300°F for about 20 minutes.

Saturday, March 28, 2009

RV Cooking Show: Oh Boy! Doughboys Recipe

RV Cooking Show: Oh Boy! Doughboys Recipe

RV Cooking Show: RV Pet Food Recipe

RV Cooking Show: RV Pet Food Recipe

For anyone who goes RVing

You just have to go check out this site. For recipes, and all sorts of info.

Southern Corn Casserole

1 large egg

1 can (15 oz) whole kernel corn

1 can (15 oz) creamed corn

1 box Jiffy Corn Muffin mix

1/2 c reduced fat sour cream

1 stick (1/2 c) butter - melted (I use Smart Balance - better for you than butter)

Preheat electric skillet to 300 degrees.

Beat egg in large mixing bowl. Add all other ingredients and mix well to combine. Pour into skillet,

cover and cook until edges pull away from side of pan and are slightly brown - 20 to 30 minutes.

Oven cooking instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x13 pan (preferably glass). Prepare as noted above.

Bake for 1 hour.

Corn casserole is excellent warm or cold. In my house we've also referred to it as corn pudding.

For a twist on the taste add a can of green chilies and make it a Mexican dish!

1 Corinthians 13:4

"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud."

1 Corinthians 13:4

NEW EYES FOR THE NEEDY

New Eyes for the Needy purchases new eyeglasses
for poor children and adults in the United States

**See site for all details**

Do you need to know how to apply long lasting nail polish---

1. Prepare your nails properly before polishing. Nail polish won’t adhere well to nails that are dirty or oily. Wash your hands thoroughly to remove any lotions, dirt or oils, and then brush each nail with a bit of nail polish remover. This will remove all oils from the nail itself and prepare it for accepting polish.

2. Lightly buff your nails and file off any rough edges. Polish will be more prone to peeling and flaking if the nails are rough around the edges or have ridges in them. Filing and buffing gives a smoother surface so that polish won’t flake.

3. Choose the right polish. Did you know that nail polish expires? Most brands will only last about a year before they become thicker and start to clump. Polish that’s too thick will go on thicker and won’t dry well, leading to more chance of smearing or smudging. Most nail polish formulas are similar and will last almost a week, but fast drying formulas are an exception. The extra ingredients that allow fast drying polishes to set so quickly also makes them peel more quickly, so try to avoid fast-dry formulas unless you absolutely have to use them. The extra few minutes spent drying a standard nail polish will be well worth it if your manicure lasts days longer.

4. Care for your polish properly. Summer weather is especially tough on nail polish – the high temperatures can cause polish to separate and the color to change. To keep your nail polish
in top condition, refrigerate it in the summer. You should also clean the polish bottle carefully after each use by wiping the outside edge of the bottle with a cotton ball soaked in nail polish remover to keep the bottle from sticking shut. Finally, be sure that you gently blend the nail polish before applying
by rolling the bottle between your hands. Shaking a bottle of polish will create air bubbles in the polish that can cause bumps and clumps when you apply it – guaranteed to shorten the life span of your pedicure.

5. Use a base coat and top coat. It takes a bit more time to do a complete manicure rather than just throwing on some polish, but its well worth the effort. After your nails are clean, be sure to apply a base coat; this product prepares the nail for polish and gives nail polish something to cling to so that it
lasts longer. Follow this with two thin coats of polish in the desired color, and then finish off with a quality top coat. When you apply the top coat, be sure to run the brush horizontally across the tip of the nail with a bit of it going under the edge of the nail. This will help prevent peeling and seals the manicure properly.

6. Don’t rush things. Be sure to let your nails dry five to ten minutes between each coat. If the coat below isn’t completely dry before you add the next one, your nails won’t dry properly for quite a while, leading to chips and smudges. If you are in a rush or simply impatient, plunge your nails into ice water for a few seconds between coats – this will quickly dry and seal the polish.

Thursday, March 26, 2009

Giveaway for a Udu Doll

My friend, Samantha on twitter.com/astheygrowup has a giveaway for a Udu Doll from The Shrunks.

The giveaway page.

Tech Support, Manuals & Troubleshooting for Consumers

Tech Support, Manuals & Troubleshooting for Consumers

What is FixYa?

Go to the site for all your tech. needs and lots of other troubleshooting needs as well. From Circular Saw to Cars and Printers, you name it they have help.

Natural Cures - Farmers' Almanac

Natural Cures
This is from the Farmers' Almanac site. So go check it out. You will find lots of interesting things you never knew about.

Just Add a Pinch of Salt: Recipes for a Cleaner Home

Just Add a Pinch of Salt: Recipes for a Cleaner Home
I wanted to share this information with you, plus they have more household saving info that is just as interesting.

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Just had to pass this one on--------

This is one of the better emails that I have ever read on this
subject and I had to pass it on!
---------------------------------

One of my sons serves in the military, he is stationed in
Ontario , Canada . He called me yesterday to let
me know how warm and welcoming people were to
him and his troops everywhere they go.
Telling me how people shake their hands and thank them
for being willing to serve and fight, not only our own
freedoms but so that others may have them too.

Then he told me about an incident in the grocery store
he stopped at yesterday, on his way home from the
base. He said that several people were in the line
ahead of him, including a woman dressed in a Burkha.

He said when she got to the cashier, she made a loud
remark about the Canadian Flag, lapel pin, the cashier
wore on her smock. The cashier reached up and touched
the pin and said,
"Yes, I always wear it proudly, because I'm a Canadian."

The woman in the burkha then asked the cashier when
she was going to stop bombing her countrymen,
explaining that she was Iraqi.

Then, a gentleman standing behind my son stepped
forward, putting his arm around my son's shoulders and
nodding towards my son, said in a calm and gentle
voice to the Iraqi woman:

" Lady, hundreds of thousands of men and women like this young
man have fought and died so that YOU could stand here,
in MY country and accuse a check-out cashier of bombing YOUR
countrymen. It is my belief that had you been this outspoken in
YOUR own country, we wouldn't need to be there today.
But, hey, if you have now learned how to speak out so
loudly and clearly, I'll gladly buy you a ticket and pay your way
back to Iraq , so you can straighten out the mess in YOUR
country, that you are obviously here in MY country to avoid."

Everyone within hearing distance cheered!

Breezy Bags Giveaway

I follow the blog " As They Grow Up" and Samantha has this Breezy Bag Giveaway on her blog. I wanted to let you know about it.
Plus by putting the link on here I get an extra entry for this drawing. I would really like to get a set of these 5 bags that come in their own little bag.
She said that just one bag held a weeks worth of groceries for her family of 5. Now that is a bag if I say so myself.
So you can see why I would really like a set. Plus having their own little bag to store them all in really makes them attractive.

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Barter and Trade

Welcome. This is a FREE barter auction site!

LaborTrader

Whether you have a service to offer or are in need of a service, LaborTrader.com is the place to make the connection.

U-Exchange

U-Exchange

You can trade anything from babysitting and calligraphy lessons to pianos and foosball tables to cars and boats at U-Exchange.

If We Treated our Bible Like a Cell Phone

Cell Phone vs. Bible

Ever wonder what would happen if we treated our Bible like we treat our cell phone?

What if we carried it around in our purses or pockets?

What if we flipped through it several times a day?

What if we turned back to go get it if we forgot it?

What if we used it to receive messages from the text?

What if we treated it like we couldn't live without it?

What if we gave it to kids as gifts?

What if we used it when we traveled?

What if we used it in case of emergency?

This is something to make you go....hmm...where is my Bible?

Oh, and one more thing.

Unlike our cell phone, we don't have to worry about our Bible being disconnected because Jesus already paid the bill.

Makes you stop and think 'where are my priorities? And no dropped calls!

P.S. DO WHAT YOU THINK GOD WOULD WANT YOU TO DO WITH THIS.

Trust in the Lord and *ASAP (Always Say A Prayer)


Have a blessed and wonderful day!


Knock, Knock I knocked at heaven's door this morning. God asked me...'My child, what can I do for you?'

And I said, 'Father, please protect and bless the person reading this message.'

God smiled and answered...'Request granted' .

'Be kinder than necessary, for everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle.'

Sunday, March 22, 2009

Smile For Today

Two priests died at the same time and met Saint Peter at the Pearly Gates. St. Peter said, "I'd like to get you guys in now, but our computer is down. You'll have to go back to Earth for about a week, but you can't go back as priests. So what else would you like to be?"

The first priest says, "I've always wanted to be an eagle, soaring above the Rocky Mountains ." "So be it," says St. Peter, and off flies the first priest.

The second priest mulls this over for a moment and asks, "Will any of this week 'count', St. Peter?" "No. I told you the computer is down. There's no way we can keep track of what you're doing."
"In that case," says the second priest, "I've always wanted to be a stud."

So be it," says St. Peter, and the second priest disappears.

A week goes by, the computer is fixed, and the Lord tells St.. Peter to recall the two priests. "Will you have any trouble locating them?" He asks.

"The first one should be easy," says St. Peter. "He's somewhere
over the Rockies, flying with the eagles. But the second one could prove to be more difficult."

"Why?" asketh the Lord.

"He's on a snow tire, somewhere in Vermont."

Prayers Please::::::::

I received this from a group I belong to and wanted to add it here so Bobbye could get the full effect of the prayers.

From Bobbye--

Would like to ask for prayers and good thoughts for our daughter, Wendy, and my b-i-l, Harold.
We took Wendy to the hospital Friday. She's in the Mental Health Unit and will only be there for two-three weeks since this unit is not long-term.
Also, would you add my b-i-l, Harold? He has a slow moving cancer but has begun to have more frequent problems. Wally will be going there within the next month or two while I stay home to be with Rexi Sue.
Thanks, much.
Bobbye

Never put off til tomorrow what you can do today..

I don't know about you but there have been many a times when I have thought I could wait until tomorrow to call someone and have that long talk we haven't had in awhile to catch up. Or set down and write that letter that I have been thinking about doing but just hadn't had the time to do. Our lives seem so busy now days with cooking, cleaning, keeping up with the latest on the daily soaps on TV. Between taking the kids to their after school practices and doing all the errands we have to do when do we just have time for ourselves let alone making time for the other people in our extended lives.
Well we should really try harder to MAKE that time because you NEVER know when you get that phone call that tells you someone has passed away or has been in an accident and is now unable to understand a word you say. Be it from natural causes or an accident. Life is shorter than you think. We go around taking it for granted.
Once our kids are grown and have kids of their own-their lives are so busy they forget to keep in touch as often as they use to. Before you know it a month has past and you're saying "boy has he/she grown." Where has the time went?
Say the things now that you want to say, tell them you enjoyed the little things. Tell them you remember that special something they went out of their way to do for you. Let them know you care. When you are busy getting groceries make a second to stop by the card section and pick up a few cards to have around the house that you can send so someone to just brighten their day.
Better yet look for them at garage sales or Goodwill or the Salvation Army Store. I pick up cards there all the time for a little of nothing. Even a postcard will do. Just something you can jot a line or two down on to let someone know you are thinking about them.
What will it take but a few minutes out of your day to set down and say "HI" on a card and send it on it's way?
That's better than setting at the funeral home wishing you'd done it, isn't it? Flowers are a nice way to say Hi- how are you? also. Especially to relatives, be it if they live miles away or just the other side of town. Just imagine their surprise when they get a knock on the door with a delivery of flowers. Flowers say it all without saying anything at all.
I try to live my life with as few regrets as possible. I believe that is what all of us should do.

I don't want to be the one standing at the funeral home wishing I had gotten a hold of this person more often. DO YOU??????

Don't let old arguments keep you from friends or family. FORGIVENESS-- let things go and forgive.

Mark 11:25-26 (King James Version)

25And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.

26But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses.

We all to often let things fester and keep us from old friends and family that we love because of a STUPID argument. Be the bigger person and forgive the other one and tell them so and tell them you want the past left in the past and start anew. All to often good relationships are lost just because of stubbornness.

I know this all too well. I have a brother that is holding a grudge for something that didn't happen and for that we haven't talked in over 10yrs. I try to talk to him but he won't talk to me. But I have forgiven him and I know God as forgiven me. So I am good in my life.


So Don't Put Off Til Tomorrow What You Can Do TODAY!

How can a young man keep his way pure?

By living according to your word. I seek you with all my heart; do not let me stray from your commands." -
Psalm 119:9,10

Red Sunflower



I think this is so beautiful I just had to share it with someone. I have never seen a red sunflower before.

Friday, March 20, 2009

Vinegar Cobbler - Depression Era Recipe

Vinegar Cobbler

1/2 cup white vinegar
1 1/2 cups water
2 1/2 cups sugar

One recipe for a double pie crust- Below

Mix first three ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Let this boil for about 2 minutes, then thicken with a paste made from flour and water (about the consistency of thin gravy). Boil for a few minutes again, until thick. Turn off heat and let cool a little. (Doesn’t have to be cold.)

Line a glass or porcelain baking dish (sides and bottom) with pie crust. Pour enough filling in to cover the bottom. Cut the remaining pie crust into strips. Place one layer of strips over the filling in the pan. Top with more filling. Put one layer of pastry strips lengthwise in the dish, and the next crosswise. Keep alternating pastry and filling until dish is full enough. Better not to be too full, or it will boil over in the oven. Bake until done.

**Great Grandma’s recipe notes that she is not sure of the time or temp because she has not baked one in her new stove but once, and that was a long time ago. We usually bake it at 350 for 35-45 minutes.**


One recipe for a double pie crust

  • 2-1/2 cups flour
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 3/4 cup shortening
  • 6 or 7 tablespoons of water
  • waxed paper or pastry cloths
*pie crusts secret*: The crust is easier to manage when it is rolled out between waxed paper or pastry cloths.

First get out your trusty big bowl. Measure the flour and salt into it. Stir it up, to evenly distribute the salt. Measure the shortening with a 1/4-cup measuring cup. Scoop up a full quarter cup of shortening and level off the top. Your fingers will get messy. It is just a fact of nature, once I accepted this, making pie crust got a lot easier. Now scoop the shortening out of the cup and plop it into the bowl of flour. Measure the shortening again, 2 more times, making 3/4 cup all together, be sure to level off the top of it each time.

Now, use a fork or your fingers to mix the fat into the flour. You don't want it too well mixed, but it should be in small crumbly pieces. Then add your water. Mix the dough up with the fork, or your hands until it forms a ball of dough. Knead it a few times to make sure it holds together well. Add a little more water if you need to.

Divide the dough in half, forming it into two balls. Rip off two sheets of (roughly) square shaped waxed paper. Lay the first sheet down and pat out a pie crust ball into a thick circle on top of it. Lay the second sheet of waxed paper over the pie crust. Now you have a sandwich, the pie crust is the filling, and the waxed paper is the bread. Use a rolling pin or a sturdy jar or glass to roll out the dough between the sheets of waxed paper. The dough is quite manageable in this state. Roll it out as thin and big as you like, 12" diameter is standard. Now, gently peel off the top sheet of waxed paper, being careful not to rip the crust. It should peel off quite easily, despite the wrinkles in the paper. Place the waxed paper back down on the crust, and flip it over. Peel the other side of waxed paper off too, again being careful. Do not replace the second sheet of waxed paper. Now get your pie pan and lay it upside down over the pie crust. Slip your hand under the waxed paper lined side of the pie crust,and place your other hand on the pie plate. Gently invert the two together. Remove the final sheet of waxed paper and you should have the pie crust nicely centered in the upright pie pan. Gently adjust the crust in the pan, being careful no to stretch it into shape, but only to coax it carefully. If you stretch pie crust, it will shrink back while it bakes. Sad but true. This means you have to get the pie crust plenty large enough to fit into the pie pan when you roll it out.

Let the extra crust hang over the sides of the pan. Roll out the other half of the crust the same way you did the top half. You can reuse the same waxed paper. When the second crust is thin, set it aside.

Fill up your pie crust, using the filling of your choice. Mound the fruit slightly in the center if you like a pretty peaked top on your pie. Loosen both layers of waxed paper on the second crust. Remove the top layer of waxed paper, and carefully invert the crust on top of the pie filling. Remove the final sheet of waxed paper and toss them into the garbage. Trim the crust so it extends about 1/2 an inch beyond the rim of the pie pan. Cut and paste with any dough scraps if you have thin spots. Fold the edges of the crust under and crimp them with your fingers or a fork to seal the edges. I flute the edges by pinching them with my fingers into a pretty rim, but this is not necessary. It is pretty easy though, with a little practice. Like playing with play-dough almost. Cut slits in the top of the pie for steam to escape. Bake as directed.

For a single crust pie, just cut the recipe in half. Or make the whole recipe and refrigerate or freeze the other half for later. To prebake a crust, bake it at 425° until it is golden brown, about 10 or 15 minutes. Poke it all over with a fork before baking to prevent air bubbles from forming.

This is much harder to describe than to actually do. This recipe is exceptionally easy to handle, and the waxed paper method really lightens the task. Lard and animal fats make flakier crusts than vegetable shortening. Vegetable shortening still makes a very good pie crust though, and no animals are harmed in the making of it.

I've made reusable pastry cloths from hemmed pieces of old pillow cases or sheets. Cut them about 18" square and hem or zigzag all the edges on the sewing machine. Then use them just like the waxed paper and toss them into the washer when you are done. They actually work better than the waxed paper, and are much cheaper and more ecologically friendly.

Freezer Chocolate Chip Cookies

2 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 sticks butter or margarine (room temperature)
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
2 cups chocolate chips

Preheat your oven to 375F.

Get out a bowl and combine the flour, salt and baking soda.
In another bowl cream your butter or margarine. Add the sugar and continue creaming until it is light and fluffy. Add the eggs and stir until you have a smooth mixture. Stir in the vanilla.

Slowly add the flour mixture and stir just until it is well combined. Add the chocolate chips and mix them into the dough.

Scoop the dough out about 2 tablespoons at a time and set them 2 inches apart on your baking sheet.

Bake the cookies for 10 minutes or until they are golden brown on the edges. Cool them on a rack.

To bake them from frozen cookie dough, do not preheat your oven. Stick the frozen chunks of dough on a cookie sheet, put it in the oven and then turn the oven to 375. Let the cookies bake for about 20 minutes or until they are golden brown.

What I usually do is make a big batch of cookie dough and then take about half of it and bake it as usual. The other half, I’ll drop on a baking sheet just like I would if I where to bake them, but then I stick the cookies sheet in the freezer. After a few hours, I take the frozen “blobs” of cookie dough out and store them in a freezer bag. Then whenever I’m ready, I take them out and bake them up.

As far as baked cookies go, they can be frozen as well. Just take them out and thaw them on the counter for about 15 to 20 minutes. For warm cookies, microwave the thawed cookie for a few seconds or stick it in a toaster oven (not your regular toaster though).


Thursday, March 19, 2009

Virus spread from MySpace and other networking sites

This notice was sent to all Department of State employees today.

Important information you need to know about emails from social networking sites.

Use Caution on Social Networking Sites

Malicious software is taking advantage of the popularity of social networking sites to spread throughout the Internet. The popular social networking sites that have been targeted include myspace.com, facebook.com, hi5.com, friendster.com, myyearbook.com, bebo.com, and livejournal.com. Users visiting these sites, whether from your home or office PC, should exercise caution and be alert for suspicious e-mails coming from users of these sites that may in fact be generated by malicious software.

One such piece of malicious software that is carrying out these attacks is called "Koobface", which is a worm that spreads itself among users of these websites by generating invitations from an infected user's contact listing. These invitations come in the form of e-mails that are sent to the contacts of the infected user, inviting them to click on a link to view a video. If the recipient clicks on the link, they are then directed to view a video and notified that their version of flash player is out of date. The website will then prompt the user to update their flash player. This update is however, not a legitimate Adobe Flash Player update; instead, it is a link to the Koobface malware file. Upon execution of this file it downloads additional software from websites managed by hackers that can make information on your PC accessible to the bad guys.

Administrators and users are advised to do the following to protect against malicious software attacks:

Install antivirus software and keep the virus signature files up to date. (Administrators and users on privately owned computers)

Use caution when downloading and installing applications. (Users on privately owned computers)

Obtain software applications and updates directly from the vendor's website. (Users on privately owned computers)

Do not follow unsolicited links.

Cappuccino Bar

PREP TIME: 15 Min. TOTAL TIME: 40 Min. MAKES: 32 bars

Homemade bars are in the oven in minutes when you get a jump-start using Bisquick® mix.

Bars
1 1/2 cups Original Bisquick® mix
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup raisins
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup water
2 tbsp. any instant coffee granules
2 tbsp. shortening
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 egg

Glaze
1 cup powdered sugar
1/4 tsp. vanilla
1 to 2 tbsp. cold brewed coffee or milk
HEAT oven to 350°F. Grease bottom and sides of 13x9-inch pan with shortening or cooking spray; lightly flour.
In medium bowl, STIR bar ingredients with spoon until well blended. Spread in pan.
BAKE 20 to 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
In small bowl, MIX glaze ingredients until smooth and thin enough to drizzle. Drizzle glaze over warm bars. For bars, cut into 8 rows by 4 rows. Serve warm or cool.

The no-excuse workout



Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Head Lice Treatments

Well it is that time of year again when kids are sharing brushes or helping each other fix their hair in different styles. I which they are using each others clips and barrettes. So let them know they need to not share their brushes and things.
So I have found some homemade things to use to get rid of head lice.

*One of the things that works well is dog flea and lice shampoo. This you can use to wash your hair every day without any harm.
*Beer is another thing that works well in getting rid of lice. After whatever treatment you use, rinse with beer. Let stay on the hair for 30 minutes to an hour and wrap head in a towel. Then rinse it out.
*Another method is using Suave Coconut shampoo. I don't know how effective this is, I would only use this on a young child who doesn't have it too badly.
*Vaseline will suffocate them. This is said to be one of the best treatments. Plaster the hair right down to the roots. Leave on for 30 minutes. Shampoo with dish soap or any other degreasing soap. It takes about 6 shampoos to get it out. The chemical solutions are not working at all, do not use them, they are harmful.
* A tip from Olga- "I have used Vaseline on my daughter head, covered it with a shower cap and left it on all night. the next day I went through and found none. To get the Vaseline out is put cornstarch on the hair when dry, this will soak up allot, and another thing I used was dawn dish soap and baking soda and this work well too. good luck!"
*A tip from Julie Majewski, " I have a friend who tried the Vaseline. She said she left it on for a couple days and it even killed the eggs. She said that since the eggs take about 3-4 days to hatch, keeping the Vaseline on wont let them hatch so they will die off. I think the over-the-counter treatments are too strong to have to keep using over and over and I want safe ways."
The most important thing to do to get rid of the lice is to make sure that you get ALL of the nits out. They are the eggs and will hatch. This is the one thing that is not killed by any treatments, even the store treatments. You must pull them out by hand. When my children had lice, I spent hours and hours pulling the nits and the bugs out by hand. We used the beer and the essential oil treatments.
*Olive oil (extra virgin) works the same as Vaseline.. put it on at night. put on shower cap.. see if they can sleep in it.. in the morning.. wash a few times.. then pull out all the nits as a preventative measures..
*Lice HATE tea tree oil. Use Paul Mitchell's tea tree shampoo.. or add a couple table spoons of tea tree oil to your favorite shampoo and conditioner..
*You can also add to your rinse water in your laundry.. as well as Skin So Soft. They also hate Skin So soft so you can use it as a fabric rinse in your clothing (mosquito's hate this as well.
*Don't forget to boil brushes and combs and rub them down with tea tree oil as well. (Helps repel those bugs!) Also, Bugs love nice clean hair.. you can use mouse and gel in your child's hair.. and this helps to repel the bugs too.
http://www.liceoff.com/ - sells a good, natural lice remover.
*Mayo .. used like the olive oil or Vaseline
*Crisco (used the same way)
*Goop (used the same way) Vinegar - used to help loosen nits. Mix with conditioner (50 50) and spray on..

*I read that if you mix Listerine and water 50/50 and spray the hair with a light mist after every shower it will help re-infestation
*We've found that the most effective way to combat lice is to put a good amount of white hair conditioner on dry hair work through and use nit comb. This should be done every day for 7 days. Seems to be working well as the conditioner stuns the lice.
*The best and easiest head lice treatment is blow-drying the (dry) hair on the highest setting the child can tolerate. Do it outside or put down a sheet behind the head, as lice and nits will dry out and fall off the hair. The ones that stay stuck to the hair are dried out and dead, and easier to remove. The nits will not hatch, but still need to be removed just to be safe!
This can be used after treating with homemade treatments like the ones already mentioned on your website. This method is a lifesaver if you are confronted with a really bad case that includes lots of live bugs.
*30 minutes on high in the dryer gets rid of infestation on clothing and blankets, all the child's bedding needs to be treated, don't hang it on the line! Some stuffed animals can be placed in the dryer without damaging them, all the others should be bagged in plastic bags for 30 days. Vacuum children's rooms, backs of chairs, sofas, car seats, backpacks, mattresses; lice don't stick to things that are not hair and will be removed. Don't waste money on lice removal products when nice clean free hot air is a louse's worst enemy!
*Everyone always says that the RID shampoo will work and it does BUT if you are a messy home keeping person then it wont work because the bugs will still be in your carpet and on your furniture so try using the RID spray and after doing that try using 1/2 Listerine and 1/2 cup of water after each time your child or you wash their hair!! And then there will be NO MORE lice!
*Or try using some mayo and let it set for 30 min and then shampoo it out with ANY kind of dish washing liquid!! BUT it will take about 6 to 7 shampoo cycles of this.
*I bought a bottle of the squirt Kraft mayonnaise and took almost 1/2 out of the bottle and refilled it with white vinegar. Smells awful but we worked through it. Coat the hair like a thick salad and cover with saran wrap for at least 5 hours. The mixture is rather runny and we had to do some wipe offs frequently. We added a nice bandanna over the mess for her vanity. I rinsed her hair and washed it twice with Dawn dish-washing soap and then used a nice Tea Tree soap after wards. Then I started using the little comb I had bought. She was infested but when I was done combing her hair out and blew it dry, honestly all the nits just fell off of her head. She is clean as a whistle again. Now I am not sure if it was the name brand mayo or that I used more vinegar this time but it worked like a miracle. After we were said and done I took a small spray bottle full of water and added about 20 drops of Tea Tree oil to it and sprayed everyone down and combed everyone's hair in the house. This was truly the fastest and easiest time I have been able to rid our home of head lice. The best part was, I didn't have to use anything on her sweet head that was harmful to her in anyway. Hope this helps someone!
*After spending close to $100 buying every lice-removing-wonder-cure, I have come to the realization that NONE of them work. Here's what my pharmacist recommends. Not only does it work like a charm, but it's CHEAPER!!!
Wash with Prell Shampoo -- the original green one and rinse;
Towel dry;
*Drench hair with Listerine Mouth Wash, the original brown variety;
Cover with shower cap and wear overnight, preferably 12 hours;
Wash again with Prell;
Blow hair dry;
Go OUTSIDE and comb with a fine tooth comb or brush (lice comb is not necessary.)
Stand back and watch the lice, eggs, and nits fall off the hair shaft!!!
It's a miracle!

I spoke to a Herbalist after having untold problem with nits. She said that if you're lacking vitamin B it can make it harder to get rid of nits. And, also, get into garlic! Evidently nits can't stand garlic in the blood!

THEY MISSED HIM!

They were looking for A Lion, He came as a Lamb,

and they missed him.

They were looking for a Warrior, He came as a

Peace maker, and they missed him.

They were looking for a King, He came as a Servant,

and they missed him.

They were looking for Liberation from Rome, He

submitted to the Roman cross, and they missed him.

They were looking for a fit to their mold, He was the mold

maker, and they missed him.

What are you looking for? Lion? Warrior? King? Liberator?

What are you looking for?

They were looking for their temporal needs to be met. He

came to meet their eternal needs, and they missed him.

He came as a Lamb to be sacrificed for your sin.

Will you miss him?

He came to make peace between God and man. Will you miss him?

He came to model servanthood for all mankind.

Will you miss him?

He came that we might have true Liberty.

Will you miss him?

He came to give you eternal life.

Will you miss him?

When we submit to the Lamb we will meet the Lion. Join with the
Peacemaker
and we will meet the Warrior. Work with the Servant
and we will meet the
King. Walk with the Submitted and we will
meet the Liberator. Concern
ourselves with the eternal and we will
have the temporal.


If Jesus is not fitting into the mold you have, then come to the mold
maker
and get His new one. Submit to His plan for your life and you
will see the
eternal need met first, then all the other things you have
need of will be
taken care of as well.

-- Author Unknown

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Home Made Laundry Softener and Stain Remover

You can save lots of money using homemade softeners.

LAUNDRY SOFTENER


Recipe #1

2 Cups White Vinegar
2 Cups Baking Soda
4 Cups Water

Combine slowly and carefully over sink. The baking soda and vinegar will fizz.
Pour into plastic bottle, cover, and shake.
*Hint - Reuse your "Downy" bottle.

Use 1/4 cup in the final rinse or in a "Downy Ball".


Recipe #2

2-3 Cups Water
1 Cup Liquid Fabric Softener
Large Sponge

Combine water and liquid softener. Cut sponge in 1/2 and keep in liquid. When drying clothes, remove sponge, squeeze out excess liquid and place in dryer with clothes. When dry, just place sponge back in liquid to be used for next load.


You can also use these products alone to soften:
Plain White Vinegar - Add 1/2 cup to final rinse.
Baking Soda - Add 1/4 cup to final rinse.
Regular Fabric Softener - Dilute and use normally.
Hair Conditioner or Cream Rinse - Pour 1 tablespoon into damp washcloth and toss in with clothes.

STAIN REMOVER

Recipe #1

1/2 Cup Ammonia
1/2 Cup White Vinegar
2 Tablespoons Liquid Laundry Detergent (Use
HomeMade)
2 Quarts Water

Mix well, and store in spray bottle.
*Hint - Reuse your "Spray and Wash" bottle.


Recipe #2

1/2 Cup Ammonia
1/2 Cup Liquid Laundry Detergent (Use
HomeMade)
1/2 Cup White Vinegar
1/2 Cup Water

Mix well, and store in spray bottle.
*Hint - Reuse your "Spray and Wash" bottle.


Recipe #3

1/4 Cup Borax or Arm and Hammer "Washing Soda"
2 Cups Cold Water

Sponge on and let dry, or soak the fabric in Borax mixture before washing in soap and cold water.


Recipe #4

For Heavily Stained Clothing

**NOTE: This is for use with white cotton, nylon and polyester only.

1/2 Cup Liquid Laundry Detergent (Use
HomeMade)
1/2 Cup Electric Dishwasher Detergent
1/2 Cup Non-Chlorinated Bleach or Ammonia, Not Both

Soak clothes in washing machine overnight or until stains disappear. Launder as usual.

Dry/Powder Laundry Soap Recipe

Mix one box of Borax with one box of Arm and Hammer "WASHING SODA" and add 2 bars of grated bath soap that you like the smell of... use 2 Tablespoons to a load... works very well for a powder soap. Plus goes a long way for a few dollars. This works best in a hotter temp. water so the grated bar of soap can melt while washing.
Or if you don't want your clothes in the hotter temp. just start a small bit of hot water for a few minutes to let the mixture thoroughly dissolve then change the water temp. and add your clothes as you normally would.

Liquid Laundry Soap Recipe

This makes liquid laundry soap. I have been using this recipe for years now.
1 bar of bath soap (shredded, any kind/scent)
1 C. Borax
1 C. Arm & Hammer WASHING Soda. (not the reg. laundry detergent)
1 LARGE canning pot

Shred the bar of soap the best you can, then add it & about 1/2 gallon of hot water into the pot. Warm on low in the pot until the soap is dissolved. Then add the Borax and Washing Soda, stir until dissolved. Add more hot water until the pot is full. Continue warming for about 1/2 hr. more. Stirring often. I make mine at night then let set over night to cool completely. Stirring it before I put it into the containers. Then put into containers. Sometimes it will thicken a bit & sometimes it doesn't. (my batches never turn out the same way twice) I use the same amount as I would regular detergent in my wash loads. It does not suds up much. But it cleans very well.
I have even added 1/4 -1/2 container of shampoo to it at times. Since shampoo is for taking the oils out of your hair it will do the same for your laundry. Like the oils from your necklines of your clothes. Adding this will make the soap suds up while filling containers so be careful not to overflow.
I usually get about 4, 1-gallon containers of laundry soap out of each batch.
That's a lot of soap for about 39cents to make.
I also use vinegar in the rinse cycle instead of fabric softner. It doesn't leave a smell on the clothes.
Or if you're short on things you can use a bawled up roll of aluminum foil in the clothes dryer instead of a fabric sheet.
Or even putting a dab of hair conditioner on a washcloth in the dryer will have the same effect.
**remember to clean out the dryer hose that goes into the wall at least once a year to prevent fires. **
*I use my vacuum hose attachment to get into the vent inside the dryer door to clean it out once a month.*

TIP OF THE DAY- For no Bugs in Grain or Flour...

TIP OF THE DAY

For no Bugs in Grain or Flour add one or two fresh bay leaves to each bag. No bugs and no flavor transfer.