Basic Baked French Toast

I found that by baking french toast, instead of frying it, it gets nice and firm and crusty on the outside, and has a better cooked through texture in the inside.  This is officially my favorite way to make french toast!

Thick Slices of Bread (I used a loaf of homemade wheat here)

4 eggs

1 1/3 cups of milk

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp nutmeg

splash of vanilla

a sprinkling of salt

1. Mix all ingredients, except bread, together

2. Dip bread in mixture, soaking both sides

3. layer in a pan, bake at 375

Snowmen from Electric Tea Light Candles

24 Days Of Simple Christmas Projects
Day #1

Snowmen From Electric Tea Light Candles

These candles are pretty easy to find at the Dollar Tree, Family Dollar, Dollar General - any of those stores with the word "Dollar" in their name.  :-)  Depending on the store, they are 2 or 3 for $1.  Most of us will have the embellishments on hand in our craft stashes, making this a really cheap starter craft.

I used E600 glue to attach the hat, and the ribbon to hang them.  (You can find e600 glue in the automobile section of Dollar General) a white gel pen to accent the hats (which are simple black card stock) and a black sharpie for the faces.

 These will be really cute hanging off gift bags this Christmas!

I saw this idea on pinterest, then googled it and found that it is not a new idea at all..  and the variations are endless!

This is the very basic idea that I started with.  Drawing the face on is so much easier than I expected..  I found that for me, 5 dots for the mouth worked well, and the "secret" is to make the eyes a little bigger, if the face doesn't look quite right.  (she has some other candle ideas in this post as well) http://christyrobbins.blogspot.com/2012/11/four-holiday-candle-ideascheap.html

This one has an adorable hat and scarf, and has a magnet on the back.  What a great idea!  At the bottom of her post she offers to share her cricket template if you email her.

http://noelmignonlayouts.blogspot.com/2012/12/easy-snowman-magnet-with-free.html

This Stampin Up Demonstrator got fancy with hers - and she gives you step by step directions.  I love the scalloped punch she used on the back of hers, I used that idea from her.  I like the paint she used in place of the sharpie too, for extra dimension

http://inkingidaho.blogspot.com/2012/11/snowman-tea-lights.html

To see more 
24 Days Of Simple Christmas Projects
http://fieldsofhether.blogspot.com/2013/11/24-days-of-simple-christmas-crafts.html


Linked on:

24 Days Of Simple Christmas Crafts

24 Simple Crafts

 that can be used for small Christmas gifts this season. 

Why 24 & not 25?  Because 3 across worked better for the size of my blog.  :-)
Almost all of these can be completed in an afternoon.

1 Tea Light Snowmen	2 Photo  Calendars	3 Dishcloths
4 Paint a travel Coffee Mug	5 Pajama Pants	6 Scarf
7 Candle Wraps	8 Heritage  Ornaments	9 Tea Lighted Felt snowman
10 Ruffle Scarves	11 Soap Dispenser	12 Memory Ornaments
Personalized Books	How To Make A Quick  Family Tree	Soap
16 The Perfect Baby Blanket	17 Reindeer on Chocolate Covered  Pretzel Rods	18 Salted Hot Caramel Hot Cocoa Mix
19	20	21
22	23	24

Tackle it Tuesday - Glove & Hat storage

The before pic on top is shameful.  I have no excuse.  Half of that mess is a pile of mending.  I tossed almost half of it, figuring if it was there all summer and not missed, we don't really need it.  The other half is puppy supplies. From the puppies we had here this spring.  What is supposed to be there in the summer are the pool towels, kayak bags and the middle assortment of bug sprays and sunscreens.

I spent some time looking for ideas to better organize our hats and gloves, but ended up, as seen on the bottom of the photo, with a basket of Miche covers, a stack of scarves, a crate of gloves and a stack of hats.  Simple, but I think it works for us.  Anyway, it's at least clean!  And it only took me a few minutes to fix this area.

Some of the ideas I found, but couldn't use in this space:

Shoe racks are the most popular solution, and probably what I would use if I had a door to hang one on. 

I love this sooooo much!  I do not have any wall space in my laundry room unfortunately.

http://www.pinterest.com/pin/283445370270811027/

 http://indulgy.com/post/HGBcVcpal1/how-to-build-wall-mount-storage

These buckets are really cute, and would be simple to make.

http://www.pinterest.com/pin/77968637270920133/

I found this on a google image search - you can buy racks like this, or maybe find something at the thrift store (a letter holder maybe?) that would work. But I know my kids would not take the time to put gloves back on here and we have so many gloves that it would take up too much space.  (We need work gloves, nice gloves, snow gloves..  x5 people)

This is such a pretty "after"!  She has before pics and her process on her site here:

http://www.casasugar.com/Photos-Organized-Coat-Closet-13602700

I LOVE that scarf storage!

Curtains from Shower Curtains

When redoing our daughters bedroom, we were having trouble finding reasonably priced curtains.  Even material to make curtains was pricey - so we started looking at sheets.  And while in the aisle at Dollar General looking at Sheets (nothing in a good pattern there) we turned and spotted a cloth shower curtain that was perfect.  

It's super quick and easy to cut the curtain in half and add a pocket rod and some hems...  Fast and easy and reasonably priced!

We took the closet doors down to have the carpet installed, and then our daughter decided she liked the closet better without the doors.  We went back to Dollar General and got yet another fabric shower curtain, and hung it on a shower curtain rod across the door. 

========================

https://fieldsofhether.blogspot.com/p/diary-of-housewife.html

Heritage Ornaments

 24 Days Of Simple Christmas Projects

Day #8

Materials needed:
 - Family History (I like to do a photo on one side & a brief history or genealogy on the back)
 - Ceramic Ornaments
 - Modge Podge
 - Brush to Apply the Modge Podge

Genealogy is a passion of mine. While researching, I find all sorts of interesting little tidbits - like a distant relative that wrote a hymn, or our connection to a local landmark, or pictures of a flour mill once owned by relatives...  But these can be made with just a picture of your great grandmother, and a simple genealogy list on the back.  My goal is to make a new ornament each year for the family, to pass the history along from generation to generation.

  

The most time consuming part of making these is the sizing.  I found it easiest to guess at size, print, then keep adjusting my sizing until it fits the ornament.  With the square and rectangular ornaments, it is simple to measure and size the photo accordingly.  With the shapes, I ended up cutting text and piecing it on the ornament, then going into my document and changing the text to match up with what I had cut and pieced - then I reprinted.  

When you brush the modge podge on it will look like glue - very opaque.  Do not worry, it will dry clear.

These ceramic ornaments are around $1.50 this time of year, but after Christmas they are often on sale for 50 cents, or even 25 cents on clearance - I stock up for the following year when they are on sale!

The first year I did these, I did not think ahead well enough.  From now on I want to do 4 extras, one for each of our children, which I will pack away for them, and then give to them all at once when they have married and have their own trees.

To see more 

24 Days Of Simple Christmas Projects

http://fieldsofhether.blogspot.com/2013/11/24-days-of-simple-christmas-crafts.html

10 most popular articles in Hobby Farm 2010

As part of my efforts to eliminate one of my blogs, I'm slowly moving all the most popular posts from there to here.  This is an OLD post, from a HobbyFarms Home email, that continues to receive a lot of hits 3 years later!

Discover the most popular articles, best tips and hot insider guides that kept animal owners and enthusiasts clicking for more on HobbyFarms.com in 2010.

1. Produce Bound Underground»
   Root cellars, the ancient technology that enables the long term storage of your farm’s bounty.
2. Hay and Feeding Advice for Livestock Owners»
   Hay is the mainstay diet for our livestock. Learn the intricacies of hay types, nutritional content and quality before purchasing your next load.
3. Making Your Own Hay»
   Learn about making your own hay. If you have access to a patch of hay land, the equipment and you'd like to produce the best possible forage for you pets and livestock, do-it-yourself haymaking can still spell dollars and sense.
4. Small-farm Tillage and No-till Equipment»
   When caring for a small farm, you don’t necessarily need large tractors or implements; smaller no-till and traditional tillage implements could be the best bet for your property.
5. Recipes for Animal Treats»
   Find recipes for animal treats from Hobby Farms and Hobby Farm Home food columns and more.
6. How Do I ... Build Raised Beds»
   Growing in raised beds has many advantages: It can be easier on aging backs and knees, and the soil conditions inside a raised bed can easily be kept optimal.
7. Mushroom Farming»
   The mushroom farming industry could use a few more good growers. Learn how to begin this crop on your farm.
8. Keep Your Garden Protected»
   Protect your garden using planting strategies, fences and even owls--help keep deer and other critters away.
9. A Custom-Made Root Cellar»
   Root cellars are as practical today as they were in the past. Learn how to build your own root cellar.
10. Gravel Pathways»
    Whether pathways on your farm are used for walkways between garden produce or for thoroughfares between barns and pastures, there’s a type of footing for every situation.