No More Shampoo!

There are so many chemicals in our personal hygiene products now a days. Sodium Laurel sulfate; Laurel sulfate; carregenan; parabeans. All potentially cancer causing chemicals. I bought a chemical free shampoo from Whole Foods market, but I found that my hair did not feel clean and itched more than usual. Desperate for some answers I turned to the internet. I found a great solution, but before I advertised its amazing effect I knew I needed to experiment myself because it sounded so different. Here it goes......drumroll......... Baking Soda and Apple Cider Vinegar. Yikes! I was nervous at first. This was a little weird for me. It worked! I no longer have oily hair or dandruff. My hair is shiney clean. I can go quite a few days. I washed it with my new discovery on the 4th day because I had been dehydrating and pickling and didn't want my hair to be stinky out it public. Here is how you do it. I bought two water bottles at Target (the squeezable kind). In one bottle add 2 Tbsp. of baking soda and fill the rest with warm water. I think these are 14 oz. bottles. The other one has 2 Tbsp. Apple cider vinegar and fill the rest with warm water. Now to try it out. Get in the shower and wet your hair thoroughly. Add the entire bottle of baking soda water to your hair and massage it in. Rinse out. Now squeeze out a good amount of the vinegar water over your hair. Leave for a minute and rinse. Done. I have also just put straight baking soda on my hair. Make sure your only put a Tbsp for short to medium hair. I tried the straight vinegar. That burned my troubled scalp. I will never do that again.

Cinnamon Apples

1 5lb. bag of apples
1/2 cup of light corn syrup
1/2 cup cinnamon candies
1/2 cup cinnamon
2 cinnamon sticks
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cloves
1 1/2 cups of sugar
1/2 c white vinegar
2 cups of water
red food coloring
Slice apples horizontally. Remove center from each slice. Add apple circles to a bowl of water with 1/2 cup lemon juice. This helps to prevent browning. In a pot combine remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil to 5 minutes. Add drained apples to cinnamon mixture and cook for about 4 minutes. This will soften them up to fit in the canning jar. Fill clean heated jar with apple slices and pour hot cinnamon sauce over top. Leave 1/2 inch of space at top. Cover with lids and boil in water bath canner for 10 minutes. It is good to wait a few days to eat these so the apples turn bright red and absorb all the flavor.

Salsa Verde

5 pounds of tomatillos
1 bunch cilantro
2 yellow onions
2 jalapenos
juice of 4 limes
1/4 cup canning salt
1 tbsp garlic powder

Bring to boil 5 pounds of tomatillos which have had the outer leaves removed. I also like to boil the jalapenos (cut and seeded) with them. While those are boiling, removed leaves from cilantro stems, place in blender. And chopped up onion to the blender. Add about 1/2 cup of water. Blend all together until smooth. Add blended green mixture to empty water pitcher. Once tomatillos are done, laddle them into the blender along with jalapenos and blend until smooth. I add about 1 cup of the water the tomatillos and jalapenos were cooked in to make it easier to blend. Add this to the onion/cilantro mixture. Mix together. Pour this into a pot. Add salt, garlic powder and limes. Bring to a slow boil. Poor salsa into clean heated jars. Add lids. Process in water bath canner for ten minutes. This should give you about 6 pints of salsa.

Capital Punishment

I used to be so adamantly FOR the death penalty. 100% stick it to them they deserve to die. An eye for an eye was my motto. Do it now....don't wait for twenty five years. My thought on this changed this week. You would think that I would feel a strong desire for revenge for the person who killed Scott's aunt Carol. I want justice, but my heart tells me that taking another life for a life is wrong. I feel forgiveness and mercy for this woman who so clearly lost her mind that day. However, this does not mean that I think she should not be punished for her crime. I just wish our government would create a prison system that people would fear to have to end up. How compfy to have three square meals a day; t.v.; college education and a roof over their heads. I once read of a Sherrif in Arizona who made his prisoners wear pink and eat balogna sandwiches everyday. They live in tents with no air conditioning and worked hard labor everyday. I wonder how his town did as far as a crime rate?

More Canning

Today I canned 15 pints of green beans and 8 pints of diced tomatoes. There is a sale on sweet corn, so I might need to go to the store tomorrow and buy a bunch. My bread and butter pickles turned out well. There is only 5 jars, but we do not eat them too often. It is the dill pickles that Maddie and Mary love. My back is hurting and I can barely stay awake. Time for bed.

Making your own Deodorant

Here is a great recipe for homemade doedorant I found

3 Tbsp. Shea Butter
3 Tbsp. Baking Soda
2 Tbsp. Corn Starch
2 Tbsp. Cocoa Butter
2 Vitamin E capsules
Essential Oil- Ylang Yang & Orange

Melt all of the ingredients (except essential oil) and it a good stir. It is easier to melt in the microwave for 30 seconds. Add essential oils, stir again, and pour in a small jelly jar (1/4 pint) then place in the fridge to set. If you make a large batch and quadrupel the recipe, just keep any extra jars in the fridge and take one out one at a time. The lady who made this recipe said next time she was going to add a little vegetable glycerin next time she was going to do a batch to make it easier to use.

Canning and dehydrating

Today I found pickling cucumbers on sale at Super-Fresh for 10 cents each. I bought about 30 of them and made Kosher dill pickles (13 pints). I think that was the first time I have ever made them. We will see how they taste in 6 weeks. I also bought zuchinni for 10 cents each and decided to dehydrate them sliced. They will be perfect for minestrone soup and chopped up more will be great for zuchinni bread. And since they were on sale, it is even cheaper than growing them myself. I bought 5 lbs of carrots to dehydrate. I bought many cans of carrots a few years ago and I just do not like them canned. It makes them too sweet. I also bought roma tomatoes to can, but they still feel a little firm, so they are in the cupboard ripening. I am also going to do sweet potato and regular potato in the food dehydrator. I am thinking that this is a whole lot easier than canning. Not to mention less expensive since you do not need to by so many canning jars. Peas would be nice dried as well. I just do not like the mushy peas in a can. We also have seeds to plant this week of green beans, red sweet corn, peas and finger carrots. It would be nice to do more. There is never enough time in the day.

Homemade Laundry Detergent

Today I made homemade laundry detergent. I love the clean scent it gives. The recipe is
1 grated bar of Fels-Naptha Soap
1 cup of Borax
1cup of Washing Soda
You melt the shavings of soap with a little hot water (about a cup) or so on the stove, in a sauce pan of course. :) In a five gallon bucket add about 1/4 of the way up with very hot water. Add the Borax and Washing Soda and stir thoroughly; when the Fels-Naptha has completely melted, add it to the bucket. Stir again. Let this sit for 12 hours. Add enough water to the top and stir, stir, stir. At this point I put the solution in saved laundry detergent bottles. It lasts for about 200 washings. Always shake your bottle of homemade detergent before each use. I like the scent as is, but you can also add essential oils of your liking. (Ex. lavender, orange, eucalyptis, etc.)
My next project is to make homemade bars of soap.

Our 13th Wedding Anniversary

Lucky Thirteen. May 30th. A few days late posting. :) I still cannot believe how fast the last 13 years have gone by. It seems like just yesterday when Scott and I knealed at the alter in the San Diego Temple and were sealed for all eternity. Three girls later and we are still going strong. There have certainly been a few moments of "UG", but it has been wonderful to work through them and still be married today.

Our New Homeschool Name

Today as a family we decided on the name "The Liahona Center of Excellence". We have been homeschooling now for two years. Most of the time we seem to be moving and unpacking. We already know we are retiring from the Navy in January 2012 and will have yet another move. Scott is still in the deciding mode of what he ultimately would like to become. He already has the knowledge of a Physicians Assistant. Unfortunately in the civilian world it amounts to nothing! He must first spend two years in college to obtain a master's degree and certification to practice in the outside world. Poverty will strike for two years and with three girls and all need braces, this will be trying at times. We will also need to downsize to a smaller place. Base housing is an option in this area. It is not the new housing we have now, but it would be decent for a couple of years. We will all be in school. It will be nice to get to see my husband in a different light. I have only known him as the Navy man. It is exciting and a little unnerving. What I do know is that we are going to stock up on many household goods and try to live off of food storage for two years. I hope to make very few trips to the grocery store. We are also going to get rid of the satelite. We can rent DVD's through Netflicks and can enjoy many educational movies when there is some extra time. I have already gotten rid of the cell phone. I don't like to use it while driving and find great annoyance at people who do. :) The only time we ever REALLY need one is while we travel to the West. Not to mention the brain tumors developing in greater numbers with people who use cell phones. When we need one for road trips we can get a prepaid. I should be taking pictures of our new schoolroom by weeks end. As we have found things (books, supplies, etc.) our little classroom looks more and more like a fun happy place to be.

Maui Zaui Pizza

Pizza dough
olive oil
pizza sauce with a pinch or two of cayenne pepper
1 lb mozzarella cheese
1/2 lb of Gouda cheese
1 pkg Canadian Bacon
1 small can pineapple tidbits (drained)
1/2 C purple onion (thinly sliced)
6 pieces cooked and crumbled bacon
3 green onions (thinly sliced)
1/2 C sliced banana peppers
1/2 C chopped tomato

Preheat oven to 450*. Roll out pizza dough. Place on a round pizza pan. Cook in oven for 1 minute. Remove from oven. Spread olive oil over pizza. Spread sauce over dough. Sprinkle a little cheese. Add toppings to pizza. Add remaining cheese. Bake for about 20 minutes.

Gourmet Veggie Pizza

Pizza dough
olive oil
creamy garlic sauce
1 lb. mozzarella cheese
1/2 C chopped garlic
1 cup fresh baby spinach
1 cup thinly sliced zucchini
3/4 C thinly sliced onion
1/2 C chopped tomato
1 C chopped canned artichoke hearts

Preheat oven to 450*. Roll out pizza dough. Place on a pizza pan. Bake for 1 minute. Remove from oven. Sprinkle a little olive oil over pizza. Spread garlic sauce over pizza sauce. Add a little cheese. Sread all the toppings. Add more cheese. Cook for 20 minutes. Let rest for a few minutes before cutting.

BBQ Chicken Pizza

Pizza dough
Olive oil
1 C Sweet BBQ sauce
1/2 C honey
1 lb. cooked shredded chicken
1 lb. shredded mozzarella cheese
1 triangle of Gouda cheese
3/4 C green pepper (thinly sliced)
3/4 C purple onion (thinly sliced)
1/2 C chopped cilantro

Preheat oven to 450*. Roll out pizza dough and place on a round pizza pan. Bake in oven for 1 minute. Remove from oven. Spread a thin layer of olive oil over dough. Mix together BBQ sauce and honey. Add most of it to shredded chicken. Set aside. Spread remaining sauce over pizza. Sprinkle a little cheese. Spread chicken on top. Add purple onion and green pepper. Top with remaining cheese. Bake for 15-20 minutes. Open oven and add chopped cilantro. Bake for another 2 minutes. Let pizza rest for a couple of minutes after baking. To make a crispier crust, place a baking pan full of water when you start the oven. (Bottom rack). Leave in during cooking.

Pizza Dough

3 C all-purpose flour
1 pkg active dry yeast
1 C warm water
2 Tbsp olive oil

1. In a lg. mixing bowl combine 1 1/4 cups of the flour, the yeast, and 1/4 tsp. salt;
add warm water and oil. Beat with an electric mixer on low speed for 30 seconds,
scraping bowl. Beat on high speed 3 minutes. Using a wooden spoon, stir in as much
of the remaining flour as you can.
2. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead in enough remaining flour to make
a moderately stiff dough that is smooth and elastic. Divide dough in half. Cover and let
rise for 10 minutes.
* You can use 1 cup of whole wheat flour in the dough for a little more nutrition. Just make
sure to eliminate 1 C of the white flour. I like to bake the crust for 1 minute on 450*
before adding the toppings.

Welcome to our Blog!

This is a new experience for me. I have never done a famliy blog and always wanted to. We are currently living in North Chicago and my husband is working for the Pre-Seal Team Training Center at Naval Station Great Lakes. We are in base housing and will be here until January 2012.
We are still unpacking after being here for a few months in base housing. It seems like for years we carted so many extras along for the ride and now finally have to face the music and get organized. We have given away bags and bags of clothing, toys and other miscellaneous items. It is beginning to feel like freedom. Where ever we end up permanently will be so much easier knowing we are not carting around junk.
Our new ward is awsome. For those who are not aware of the term "Ward"....it is a geographical lacation of members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. We go to church according to what area we are in. Several Wards are part of a Stake. For the life of me I cannot remember what our Stake is called. We are in the Gurnee 2nd Ward. Scott is now the Ward clerk and I have been asked to teach Relief Society once a month. Megan was baptized when she was 8 years old and Madeline will be baptized in a month or so.
We have been "Homeschooling" our girls for a couple of years. I always thought we would send them to public school later in life, but they are pretty adament about staying home until they move on to greener pastures. We'll see what the future holds.