DewTHIS

Crib or Rabbit Hutch?

So, if you have read my other blog you would know that we are the proud owners of two fairly big rabbits. Fudge and Domino. Nathan adores his "B's" and we are happy that he has some pets of his own. The only problem was... hutch? We got them for free and they came with a carrying cage but it was too tiny for them to stay in forever! They also were making a huge mess in my house (every morning was a cleaning job!) After we moved to Riverton last summer, Nathan's crib became very unsafe. It was old and the screws were getting stripped and so on. I was planning on using it for a bonfire or something when a brilliant idea hit me. Why not make it into a rabbit hutch? The frame is in good shape, it is just the right size and it would be really easy to make the bottom a few feet off the ground!! So that is is exaclty what we did with the help of my mom:).

So first we wired the corners so they would stay sturdy. Also so the drop side wouldn't try to fall (the inital problem making the crib unsafe!)

Then my mom cut some boards for slats and used zip ties to fasten wire around the bottom.

We used the crib bottom as a top that easily swings up and down thanks to the funky metal slats that held it in the bottom!

Ta Da! Rabbit Hutch!

Fudge enjoying the new life outside!

Domino chilling in the shade!

So, you never know what some craxy piece of furniture you have may become some day:)

Make your own Strawberry Syrup:)

This week Safeway had an awesome sale on strawberries ($1 a lb!) so consequently I bought about 5 or 6 lbs of strawberries got home and said, 'okay now what!'. What was I going to do with all the strawberries! Then a thought occured to me.. why not try making strawberry syrup for panacakes, waffles, ice cream, etc.? So I found myself a recipe, made a small sample batch (yummy!) and then decided to can some syrup for our family! Here is my recipe and pics of what I did... I am sure there are about a hundred different ways you could do this and I just did what I wanted and so feel free to do the same! To each thier own:)

Strawberry Syrup

8 cups strawberries (about 3 1/2 lbs.)

7 cups sugar

1/4 cup lemon juice

1. If you are going to can your syrup, make sure you get your lids, rings, and jars ready in thier boiling water before you start to make the juice:)

2. Wash and cut strawberries into fourths.

3. Puree the strawberries in a food processor (I found myself a little tiny one at Wal-Mart a few years ago for $3. Best thing I ever bought)!

4. Mix strawberries and lemon juice together in saucepan over medium heat. Add sugar and bring to boil for 1 minute.

5. Remove from heat and scrape off any foam that may have aquired on top.

6. Ladle into you hot jars.

7. Wipe rim, put lid on and screw on rings until JUST fingertight. Replace in boiling water.

8. Make sure jars are covered with boiling water. Place lid on top of pot and let boil for 15 min. Remove jars from water bath and let cool for 24 hours. Check lids to make sure sealed. And you are done!!

This yields about 64 oz. of syrup

Okay so my experince had a few twists! I first burned my arm with a jar full of hot water. Then in a bizarre twist the lid off of my jar IN the water came off!! How that happened is still a mystery to me!! I don't know what happens when some boiling water gets into your jar of jelly/syrup? Any ideas? I replace the lid and ring after draining some of the water out so I canned it but would love to know if it is safe? Anyone had that happen to them? Hopefully I can get the jars out without any injuries:) Have fun canning!!

So the one on the left is the one with water (see the watery look...) but after a while you can't really tell so.....

Okay???

Indian Fry Bread

Soo sorry this has taken me soo long to post! Getting ready for our new baby and then we got rabbits (check out my other blog about that) I have just been running:) Okay, so here is a quick simple easy recipe for Indian Fry bread and there are soo many different things you can do with it and it really doesn't take all that long!! They are also really filling! Hope you enjoy!

Indian Fry Bread

3 cups flour (white, whole-wheat, half/half)
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/3 cups warm water

Mix the flour, baking powder, and salt. Add water until a good dough forms. Knead and roll out. Fry in REALLY hot oil. Serve warm with what ever you want!!

Topping Ideas:
Refried Beans, Taco Meat, Lettuce, Tomatoes, Lettuce, Sour Cream
Powdered Sugar
Honey

Sorry I don't have any picks they were gone before I could:)

Have ants?

I love our new place except that we had ants in the kitchen from day one! I cleaned behind and underneath the refrigerator and stove (okay Michael cleaned them for me:))

Gross Refrigerator!!

Yucky stove!!

But the ants would not stop envading!!! It was really making me mad!!! I tried everything- bleach, lysol, ant traps, and everything that they say to do!!

Finally, I found the thing that works ... any guesses?

WD-40!!!!!!

I know crazy!! But I swear I sprayed it down under my counters and the ants have been gone for over a week now!! I am planning to bug bomb our house if it ever stops raining to make sure that ALL the bugs are gone (the down side to apartment living). So if you ever need to get rid of your ants you now know what works:)

Money Saving Smoothie Tips

Okay so I LOVE shakes and smoothies but after a while the ingredients can sometimes really add up- especially if you are trying to make healthy ones with yogurt, fruit, etc. So here are some tips that I have discovered this week in my attempt to have smoothie ingredients available without breaking the bank!!

Tip #1

Buy fruit when its on sale in ANY form. Frozen, fresh or canned all make great smoothies. If you find fresh fruit on quick sale take it home and freeze it yourself. I have found that I can buy the overripe banana's at Smith's and put them strait in the freezer. When I want a smoothie I just take it out let it thaw for 5-10 mins and the peel comes right off (or you can use a knife if you don't want to wait:) These are also great for banana bread!

Tip #2

Buy yogurt on sale and freeze it. This is good just by itself but just as good in smoothies. For yogurts like Yoplait that have the funnel shape container just line a small toddler snack cup with plastic wrap, pour yogurt into cup, freeze and then remove from container and you can just stack them in your freezer. Just pop one in the blender when you make your next smoothie.

Tip #3

This pregnancy I have been really craving citrus and so I have also started freezing juices in ice cube trays. Orange juice expecially. Again you can fill up a freezer bag with all the ice cubes and store it in your freezer for when you need it. Works great when orange juice goes on sale becuase it is soo expensive!!! Also a great cold snack for younger kids (if you put sticks in them before they completely harden)

Tip #4

You can make any combination you want!! You don't have to have a specialized recipe. Be creative and just use your inner taste to make a smoothie that tastes good to you!!

Let me know if you have found any tips that make smoothies or shakes easier for you to make or your favorite combos :)

Family Scripture Reading Program

I thought I would just share the word about the summer scripture reading program Deseret Book is sponsering through http://www.scriptures4kids.com/. Each day a child 2-17 reads (or is read to) for 15 mins. counts towards a total of 30 or 60 days between now and August 31. If a child reads for 30 days Deseret Book is awarding them a $5 gift certficate. 60 days earns a total of $10!

I have been trying to figure out a scripture study program that our family could do that could involve Nathan and really get us going. Thanks to my wonderful friend Shayla Smith, she gave us a schedule that her young family uses for thier scripture study and we have really enjoyed it so far! It uses the scripture story manuals that you can purchase through Distribution and the DVD's that you can buy in a combo set. You study one story a week and that basically means you will complete a book a year:) Here is the schedule that we are going to follow. Now you can mix it up and adjust it to meet your needs however you want.

Both of these programs were just an answer to my prayers! I really needed a new study program and I needed something to help us get into the habit!! I will let you know when level we complete but if we can get this into a habit we should go the whole 60 plus!! Of course we will have a couple days of adjustment when the baby comes:)

Sweet and Sour Chicken (my fave!!)

I see many recipes and such for Sweet and Sour Chicken but it always includes the breaded chicken you buy from the store and its usually just a recipe for the sauce. When I was working at Wal-Mart a few years ago as a checker, I would browse through the cooking magazines (against the rules of course) and I copied a few down to try at home. This was one of them!! I had a Sweet and Sour Sauce I loved and now here is the chicken to go with it! Hope you enjoy it as much as we do!!

Sweet and Sour Chicken

Chicken Dippers

Ingredients:

1 cup flour

1 cup cornstarch

2 teaspoons baking powder

2 teaspoons baking soda

2 teaspoons sugar

1 1/3 cups cold water

Oil for frying

1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Directions:

Cut up chicken breasts into 1-2 inch pieces. Mix flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, sugar and water in a bowl. Add cut up chicken pieces.

Heat oil over med. heat. Add battered chicken and fry about 5-10 mins.

Remove from oil and drain on paper towel.

Serve with Sweet and Sour Sauce. Yummy!!!!

Tip: I halve this part of the recipe for our family of three and use three chicken breasts! Hope that gives you an estimate on how much it makes!!

Tip: If you have some time when you buy chicken breasts on sale. Pre cut the chicken before freezing and then all you have to do is thaw the chicken, make the batter and its that easy!

Sweet and Sour Sauce

Ingredients:

1 (16 oz) can pinapple chunks (save juice!)

1/4 cup brown sugar

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1/4 cup vinegar

1 tablespoon soy sauce

Directions:

Drain and save pinapple juice. Combine sugar, cornstarch, pinapple juice, vinegar, and soy sauce in saucepan over med. heat until sauce is think and bubbly. Remove from heat and add pinapple chunks (if desired) and serve over rice or Chicken Dippers.

Tip: I freeze my pinapple chunks to use in smoothies or shakes or as an ice cream topping, there are endless possiblities!

Awesomistic Brownies

Okay so these are the best ever brownies!! They taste like all the combos of the yummy desserts that are out there!! So here they are ... and I am sure they have the calories that make them so yummy:)

Awesomistic Brownies

1 box cake mix- German chocolate or yellow
1/2 cup butter or margarine
1 bag caramels (I bet caramel dots would would work just as well)
1 bag chocolate chips
1/2 cups nuts (opt. of course)
1/4 cup milk (evaporated if you have it)

Mix cake mix, butter/marg., nuts and 2 tablespoons milk. Press 1/2 of mixture into a 9 X 13 pan and bake at 350 degrees for 6 mins. Meanwhile, unwrap caramels and melt in microwave with 2 tablespoons milk. 1 minute on high-stir, 30 sec.-stir, repeat until melted. Remove crust from oven and pour chocolate chips on top. Pour caramel on top of the chocolate. Crumble the remaining cake mixture on top. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 min. Cool and enjoy!! :)

The Best Pizza Crust!!

This recipe came throught the grapevine from two of my good friends from Logan, UT!! It is absolutly delicious and I can't wait to make it again!!!

Pizza Crust

Ingredients:

1 cup warm water (110 to 130)
1-2 tablespoons dry active yeast*
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 -3 cups flour

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Add yeast to warm water and stir until dissolved. Add sugar, salt and oil. Add flour in small amounts until dough forms a ball and can be handled. Knead on a lightly floured surface for 2-3 minutes. Let dough rest for 5-10 minutes to rise. Spread on oiled pan. Apply toppings of your choice and bake for 20 minutes. Enjoy!!

Nathan helping top our pizza:)

* UPDATE: After making this every week for a while I was like - That is adding up to A LOT of yeast! I played with different amounts and I like just a little over 1 TBLS.

You can do the whole 2 if you wish- if just seemed like too much for me:)

Thanks to http://www.thischiccancook.blogspot.com/ for posting this fantastic recipe!! Check it out for others:)

Hot Fudge Sundae Cake

This is sooo yummy!! It is really easy to put together and makes a cake with its own hot fudge topping!! Try it! I know you'll love it!!

Hot Fudge Sundae Cake

Ingredients:
2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
4 tablespoons cocoa
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
4 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups chopped nuts (opt.)
2 cups packed brown sugar
1/2 cup cocoa
3 1/2 cups very hot water

Directions:

In a 9 X 13 pan, mix flour, sugar, 2 tablespoons cocoa, backing powder and salt. Mix in milk, oil and vanilla with fork. Stir in nuts if desired. Mix brown sugar and 1/2 cup cocoa in seperate bowl. Sprinkle over batter in pan. Pour hot water over entire pan. Bake at 350 for 40 mins. Spoon warm cake into bowls top with ice cream or whip cream and pour hot fudge on top:) Yummy!!

You can halve this recipe for an 8X8 pan if you are serving a smaller family.

Let me know how it goes!!

Yummy Sour Cream Enchiladas

This is a great way to use leftover chicken or just stick a couple of breasts in the microwave and steam them until done if you like these as much as I do! This recipe came from my piano teacher in Ridgecrest, CA and its one of our faves!!

Sour Cream Enchiladas
Ingredients:
2 cups cut up cooked chicken
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 pt. (about 1/2 container) sour cream
1 small can green chiles (opt.) or cut up green onions
1 doz. flour tortillas
grated cheese

Combine first 4 ingredients. Spread on tortillas. Roll up and place side by side in pan. Top with cheese. Bake at 325 for 30 minutes!

Quick Easy and Yummy!! These are great the next day so I make the whole batch! (Usually a 9 X 13 and an 8 X 8)

Try it and tell me what you think!

Tip: I buy sour cream when it is on sale and freeze it. It gets a funny look and kinda runny but it works great for this recipe!

Chicken and Rice

This is a very easy way to make Chicken and Rice and the leftovers make great enchiladas! (Recipe to come:)

Chicken and Rice

Ingredients:
2 cups rice
2 cans cream of chicken soup
3 cups milk
5-6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 chicken boulion cubes (or 4 tsp. chicken boullion)

Directions:
Pour rice into a 9X13 pan. Lay chicken breasts on top. Mix cream of chicken soup, milk and boullion in a bowl till smooth. Pour over chicken in pan. Cover and cook at 350 for 1 1/2- 2 hours.

Thats it! Serve with a nice salad and garlic bread (I cheat and butter regular bread and sprinkle garlic powder on top broil for a few minutes and viola!).

To make in a smaller batch for smaller family halve recipe and use an 8X8 pan.

Try it and tell me what you think!

Face Match Game

Here is a fun game to play and see what combinations you come up with! The download says to make it into a book and cut the pages and use it that way.

Click here to download the pdf

I need more quiet activities to do in sacrament meeting so I pasted the pages onto an empty cereal box and empty soda box (its a green activity! I actually felt pretty cool using these instead of throwing them away:)) Then I cut them into strips and then glued strips of flannel on the back of the pieces.