Whole Wheat Peanut Butter Waffles

These come out pretty heavy but quite good. I have mine with a little sugar free butter flavored syrup and MMMM MMMM!

Whole Wheat Peanut Butter Waffles

2 1/4 cups whole wheat flour
4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1 1/2 TBSP Splenda Granular (instead of sugar)
2 eggs, beaten
2 1/4 cups milk
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 tsp. kosher salt
Cooking Spray


Combine first 8 ingredients and mix until smooth. Preheat waffle iron and when it's hot spray surface lightly with cooking spray.
Fill medium size ladle with batter and pour it onto the waffle iron. Cook until the waffle is golden brown.


EASY!!!


P.S. due to my overwhelming business there will be no Frugal Friday post this week as I'm focusing on other areas.

Knit Knack Kit - HELP!

I have the Knit Knack Kit (very good product for beginner knitters) however I am missing one of the pattern cards and I need it quick!

Does anybody have this kit or the cards? I need the pattern for the baby booties - this is for a baby shower gift that's coming up in 2 weeks.

Can anyone help? I've tried searching for the pattern online but I can't seem to find it.

What An Honor

I want to take a moment out of such a busy day and say THANK YOU to the folks over at Organized Christmas and Holiday Grand Plan.

I found out quite by accident that I am featured on their home page. They posted a link to my christmas notebook from last year.
I consider this an honor and quite frankly I'll be bragging to all my friends and family about this one for - well let's face it - years to come.

If you are visiting from the link on Holiday Grand Plan then welcome - I'm a stay at home mom that loves organization and we all need a little organization around the holidays but don't go overboard - keep it simple, sweetie.
Like I always say - simply planning leads to planning simply - and it's all about the plan - SIMPLE!

Alright does that sound corny? Methinks it does but it's my catchphrase from now on and you'd better not swipe it.

Stay tuned because by the end of the week I should have a brand new binder online for your viewing pleasure. Won't you come along for the ride?

Also coming up in the next day or two is a wonderful healthy waffle recipe.

Holiday Grand Plan Week 1

Well folks - we have begun and I'm off with a bang!

This week we begin the Holiday Grand Plan with List Week.
We are also supposed to work on cleaning up our Front Porch however right now it's just too dang hot and I can't remember the last time I worked the front porch the very first week.
I've been doing the HGP since 2000 and I frequently switch my weeks around.

This year I have major travel plans which will affect the next two months. In total I'll be missing at least 4 weeks out of the plan SOOOOOO.....

This week I'm starting with the living room and the entry/foyer. I'm combining weeks 2 and 3 and working as fast as I can.

Week 1 is my favorite because I get to make lists galore! I'm about halfway finished setting my notebook up for this year and I've already begun working on some homemade knit gifts.

Speaking of knitting (and why wouldn't we be) something big happened last night and it may lead to a big sale and the realization of a dream I've had for about a year now. I'll provide some more details once I can. It's very exciting but it means I won't be getting much sleep this fall - I am going to be one busy mama.

Well I'm off - I'm working on about 5 hours sleep - I made a huge breakfast, did a load of laundry, cleaned up, mowed the lawn and now I have to knit, clean, get groceries. I have a feeling I'm going to run on empty!

P.S. Here is a link to last year's notebook you can view online. Once I get my notebook set up for this year (it will be much the same) I'll put some pictures up.

Frugal Friday: Olive Oil Uses

I buy Olive Oil in bulk and keep it in a dark place in my pantry.
I ran out of furniture polish several months ago and didn't care to buy any more so I dabbed a bit of the oil onto a cloth and polished my wooden furniture with it.
Voila!

Here now is a link with 10 household uses for Olive Oil.
Enjoy!

Never Dull

I am gearing up to head into a very busy season of life over the next month or two.
September is always hectic with my son's birthday, my anniversary, Scottish Festival, Holiday Grand Plan.

But this year there's an extra challenge added to the mix. During the next month and a half I will be dividing my time between VA and MD to help care for my mom. She has Alzheimer's and her regular "caretaker" is having some surgery so I'll be stepping in. The biggest challenge is the difficulty my mom and I have in getting along. She can only take me for a couple of days and I can only take her for a few days longer. I just have to laugh at it though.

HGP starts on Aug 26 and this year I'm not really concerning myself with the Holidays. We don't have money to buy gifts and truthfully I'm not in a gift giving or Christmas celebrating kind of mood. It doesn't seem to matter in the grand scheme of things to me. I'll put decorations up because of my husband and son but if it were just down to me I'd rather not. Bah Humbug!
I'm still going to participate in the plan though because of it's cleaning schedule.

I've got a big yard project in the works and as soon as I get started I'll share the plan and pictures. I want to put in a garden but I don't want to do a lot of work, with a toddler it's difficult to find the time to tend to a garden and a huge yard so I'm going to start small and easy.

I've completed 2 knit hats in each color of yarn that I have and I've now begun to make matching scarves. I'm working very hard on my knits, I hope I can sell them. As Christmas gifts I'm going to try and make some coffee cozies and drink coasters with some leftover yarn. It shouldn't cost me anything but time. As soon as I get one of those made I'll post a picture.

Well I must be off, a house full of duties awaits me!

Haircut

I'm not feeling so hot today and I did not sleep well last night. I have a great deal of "things" to get done in the next 2-3 days so I'm taking it easy this evening.

I got my hair cut quite short today. I couldn't go to my regular hairdresser so I went to a place down the street. I took in a picture of what I wanted and what I got was considerably different! Although it's not at all what I was going for it's still nice especially in this summer heat. I think I'll let it grow out a bit. It has a lot of layers in it and if I grow it out just a tad I think it will look a bit shaggy and fun.

I've been knitting away still and I got a brand new color of yarn in. I have to get some pictures of it. The hat I made out of it looks like it's camouflage!

Frugal Preparedness: Water

I am the type of gal that likes to prepare for emergencies and the most important thing I can have in my emergency arsenal is water.
Now I do buy bottled water when I can get an excellent deal as it's handy to keep in the car or in a survival bag.
But for long term heavy duty storage I like to use large juice containers (and they have a handy handle for easy transport).

You must properly clean the juice jug and then disinfect the water.

Let's go!

Here are the tools I'm starting out with. A just emptied juice jug, dish soap, bleach and an eyedropper


Fill the juice jug 2/3 of the way full with water and then add a tad of dish soap


Now shake shake shake! Let the bottle sit a couple of minutes and then shake some more. I do the shake shake shake dance a total of 3 times


Let's not waste all that water. I poor the water (and soap!) on my plants outside. The soap will not harm anything.
By the way - when watering your outdoor plants in the summertime, make sure you water either in the morning or evening as if you water in the afternoon it will evaporate to quickly.



Be sure to thoroughly rinse your container, let the water run until all the soap is out. Just to be on the safe side I dump the water out again and then fill it back up.


Now it's time to disinfect and prepare it for proper long term storage. This is a gallon jug so with your eyedropper (be careful with your clothes, you may want to use gloves) add 4 drops of bleach.


As you can see it's simple and quick to reuse a good sturdy container and add to your emergency preparedness.
Waste Not Want Not and Always Be Prepared!

Bits and Tads

I've got a post brewing already for tomorrow's Frugal Friday post, I hope some folks will get some use out of the tip.

I've been doing some research online and while I can't share the details of the situation yet, I found something that's not so good and I'm not sure what to do about it. It involves me personally and I decided to go see a lawyer about it. I have a consultation next week and I'm very nervous about it. I have the feeling that if I decided to do something about this situation I would be on the losing end.
It's not the end of the world type deal - it's a trademarking issue. It's something I should have taken care of several years ago but never had the money to do so. Now it looks like somebody could have taken it to use for their own. Actually it looks like several people have taken it.

Hmmmm, maybe I should just cut my losses - in 100 years will anyone care? In a biblical world view does it really matter to me? I'll wait to see what the lawyer says before I make any decisions.

Yesterday was the hottest day of the year in my neck of the woods, today doesn't feel any cooler and I have to venture out to a couple of stores. I'd better take some water along for me and the kiddo!

Product & Company Review: Those Shirts

I purchased a T-Shirt about two months ago from "Those Shirts". I will not directly link to them because I'm giving them enough publicity as it is and they do not deserve it.

Their "faq" states shipping time is about a week (2-3 days processing, and 2-3 days shipping time - they ship via priority mail).
I was hoping to take the shirt on vacation with me and so I ordered it slightly more than a week before I was to leave.
Date ordered: June 15

Vacation time comes and no t-shirt. Not even a notice of shipment.
Once I did get the shirt it was 2 weeks since I had ordered it, so double the time they stated it would take.
Date Received: June 29

I tried the shirt on, I ordered an x-large and the tag stated it was x-large but it was so big on me, it was the same size as a 2X. And then - the worst happened. The shirt stained my undergarments, my furniture and my SKIN! It was a red shirt and so I looked as if I were a lobster. How embarassing! I've never had clothing stain my skin.

I decided that things were just not going right with this transaction and I was unhappy with the product so I took the company up on their full refund offer - no questions asked.
Well they may not have asked but I sure told them! I sent them an email explaining the situation and to find out how exactly to go about returning the item.
Return email sent: July 4

A week went by with no reply to my email so I emailed again. This time I did receive a reply right away but with a curt answer of: "Sorry about that - instructions for refunds are on your packing slip and on our Contact Us page..."
Return email sent & received: July 12

So now I have to go and do the work for myself, they finally took the time to respond to me but they couldn't just mention in the email their refund instructions? How hard is that? I knew the return instructions were on the website and my packing slip but I wasn't going to take any chances, things already weren't going well.

The next day I returned the item and I used Priority Mail with Delivery Conf. just so I could know for sure that they received the shirt back. It was delivered to them on July 16. Along with the shirt I sent a note asking them to contact me telling me when I would receive the refund.
Nothing.....

On August 5 I had to waste more of my time and email them once again! I stated:
"Well my bad shopping experience with this company seems to get worse. I've had to contact you numerous times now.
I sent the shirt back and it was delivered to you on July 16. I asked to be notified of when I would receive my full refund but I haven't heard anything and I've not received my money back.
Do you treat all of your customers this way? "
I made sure to include the delivery confirmation number in the email so there would be no mistake.

Late that night on August 5 I received this reply: "Your refund has been processed. Have a nice day."

Well lah dee dah. They sure did give me a refund (well I am out the $5 for the return shipping). They offered no apology and do you know what? I'm willing to bet they weren't going to give me a refund if I hadn't pressed them for it. They were going to see if they could let it go and maybe I'd forget all about it.

So - my experience with this company is bad product, even worse customer service, shipping slower than stated and just one big headache!

This is just one opinion but I'm not going to be quiet about it. I felt so strongly about this one that I had to let others know. Be forewarned!

Recipe: Cottage Cheese Pancakes

So apparently my cooking capabilities are on the decline. My fiasco from last night carried over to this morning.
I made Cottage Cheese Pancakes and either they burned or I couldn't cook them enough. Can someone please help me find my inner Rachel Ray? Maybe she's on vacation. I was able to rescue enough of these delicious yummies to feed the fam this morning.

Anyway I thought I'd share the recipe. I follow a strict high protein diet and these cheesy "pancakes" are a meal fit for even the pickiest in my family. Both my husband and my sister like them and I mean that's saying something!

Cottage Cheese Pancakes

1/2 medium onion, chopped
1 TBSP butter
1 egg
1/2 cup cottage cheese
2 TBSP flour
salt
pepper

Saute the onion in the butter until golden...allow to cool in pan.
In a small bowl, beat egg slightly, blend in cottage cheese, flour, salt and pepper, add onion butter mixture.
Heat nonstick skillet, spray with Pam and place 1/4 cup scoops of batter and spread into small pancakes. Cook until browned...flip and cook until lightly brown on other side.

You will have to cook awhile on the first side before you attempt to flip otherwise you'll get a gooey cheesy mess.

I like sugar free syrup or tabasco on mine. The onions in this really make it that much better.
Double the recipe to serve a family of 4, add some fruit to round out the meal.

Let me know if any of you try it, I'd like to know what you think.

Later today I'll be posting a product and company review for a company called "Those Shirts."

Sometimes Ya Got It

And sometimes you don't. Take for instance me...and today. I just "don't got it".

My son was having quite a difficult time in obeying today. It ended up with him having to go to bed early because there was just nothing else to be done.

Before I put him to bed I did give him dinner which leads me to the next headache.
I overcooked the asparagus (which is the only thing my son specifically asked me for tonight). My son said, "This is really not good. Ew"
Then the Chicken in Dijon-Orange sauce was undercooked. I can't manage to figure that one out. Anyway after standing in the kitchen for over an hour at that point I decided to break out the Lunchables.

The evening has ended now with me having to write a "nastygram" to one of my clients because he hasn't paid me yet for the work I did on his site. He's notorious for not paying and he is one of the reasons I have had to institute a late payment policy. I am considering changing the 2% charge to either a 5% or 10% late payment charge because the 2% just seems to be a bit of a joke.

By the way, the nastygram wasn't nasty at all and a rather nice reminder. Now I'll have to give him another 2 weeks to pay up.

To be quite honest I am feeling a bit drowned these days, like I can't quite get my head above water. But I'll get through it, we all do. And that's the long and the short of it!

Picture Post: Go Spot Go

Joanna had asked me a question about removing stains and so I thought I'd do a picture post to help out.

We start out with our ingredients and you can find the recipe here



And now we'll pick a spot on the carpet. Here is where my dog puked. GROSS. It has been there a few days because it's behind a door where I wouldn't readily see it.


Want a closer look at that nasty stain?


Pour on the remover but be careful, a lot of this goes a long way and will foam up quite a bit once you get scrubbing. Let solution sit for a couple of minutes on the stain.


Okay now get scrubbing. Scrub in each and every direction, don't be afraid to really press into it.


Sop up the moisture with a clean dry rag


Here's what it looks like now. Let this dry some more.


And now here we have the formerly stained area after it's been vacuumed.



I also cleaned an area that my son had gotten some playdough on. It had dried and I couldn't get it up easily. I used the spot remover solution and here is the before and after.



I hope this post helps and now you know that a homemade solution that doesn't have nasty fumes or harsh chemicals can clean every bit as good as what you can find in the store!

Note to Joanna

Update to the stain remover post below


Joanna, thanks for your comment. It always amazes me that people put carpeting in a dining area or bathroom for that matter (and don't get me started on putting wallpaper in a bathroom ah but I'll save that for another post).

I'm going to do a picture post for you this afternoon so you can see how I go about getting the stain out and so you can see just how well this stain remover works - and at a fraction of the cost of commercial spot removers!

Stay tuned - the post should be up by this evening.

Homemade Spot Cleaner

Anyone who knows me knows that I am an animal lover and I always have a menagerie roaming about in my house.
With one dog, two cats, and a toddler, my carpet gets disturbingly mungy.
The best commercial carpet cleaner I have found is Woolite's Oxy Deep. However the smell of that cleaner bothers my husband's sensitive smell.

On my neverending quest to find frugal and natural alternatives I've found my own homemade carpet cleaner and has been tested and approved by me!
This recipe comes courtesy of Karen Logan in her book Clean House, Clean Planet.


Go Spot Go Stain Remover

Ingredients: Liquid dishwwashing detergent (not soap). I use Ivory.
Glycerine (found it at the craft store in the cake decorating section).
Water

Be sure to use a clear, not colored, liquid dishwashing detergent.

What Else You'll Need: a 16-oz squirt or spray bottle.

How to Make: Mix 1/4 cup liquid detergent with 1/4 cup glycerine and 1.5 cups of water. Pour into a squirt or spray-bottle.

How to Use: This "wet spotter" is especially good for ballpoint ink, marker, newsprint, coffee, tea, juice, jams, bbq sauce, and mustard as well as those nasty carpet spills.
Glycerine has natural stain removing qualities: it makes that stain so slippery that it just has to rinse out. With tougher stains, you won't always get all of the stain out, but with a little bit of knuckle rubbing you'll get at least 50% of it out. You can use this on upholstery as well. Be forewarned: this formula can take a lot of rinsing to get out, so don't squirt on too much. A little goes a long way. Do not use handwashing liquid soap for this recipe because it can set sugar and fruit stains. Use a regular liquid hand-dishwashing detergent such as the kind at your kitchen sink.

Commercial Brand (Shout) vs. Go Spot Go (22-oz. spot remover): $2.67 vs. $1.62.
Using about 1/4 cup liquid detergent will cost you 14 cents; 1/4 cup glycerin, about $1.48. You'll save $1.05 each time you refill the bottle!

To Mountain Mama

Dear Musings of A Mountain Mama,
You may never see this but I enjoy reading your blog. I see now that you've set it to invitation only and I was wondering if I might be invited by you.
No hard feelings if I'm not but I genuinely enjoy reading your posts.

Thanks!
Pink

Troubles Are The Noneiest

My son and I enjoy watching Noggin together and one of the songs on that network goes: "Days are the sunniest, jokes are the funniest, troubles are the noneiest everywhere I go."

That's sort of how I feel today. I am in the midst of a great deal of family drama...
Mom's got Alzheimers, I'm trying to reestablish a relationship with my Dad and so far he's unwilling, my Uncle has about a month to live, my aunt is bedridden with diabetes, my sister is in the middle of a divorce....AY!

Despite all this I feel at peace. I know there isn't a thing I can do other than walk through each day and that's comforting.

Before I sign off to do some web work I just had to mention a sweet deal I got today on Ebay.
I generally use just one type of yarn for most of my knitting, it is the softest yarn I've ever come across. It regularly costs 5.99 at Joann Fabrics and I try to wait until it goes on sale for $4.99.
Well today I got 8 skeins of a rare beautiful blue color in this particular yarn for a total of $13.31 and that includes shipping. If I had ordered the same from Joann's (which I can't because this color is not currently being made) it would have cost me about $60.00

Over the last few weeks I've ordered over 60 skeins of this yarn between Ebay and Joann's. I think I'm addicted.