ice cream without an ice cream maker!

I've actually tried this, and it really works!

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 cup half and half
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup salt (The bigger the granules, the better. Kosher or rock salt works best, but table salt is fine.)

• Ice cubes (enough to fill each gallon-size bag about half full)
• 1 pint-size ziplock bag
• 1 gallon-size ziplock bag

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Instructions

1. Combine the sugar, half and half, and vanilla extract in the pint-size bag and seal it tightly.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
2. 
   Place the salt and ice in the gallon-size bag, then place the sealed smaller bag inside as well. Seal the larger bag. Now shake the bags until the mixture hardens (about 5 minutes). Feel the small bag to determine when it's done.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
3. Take the smaller bag out of the larger one, add mix-ins, and eat the ice cream right out of the bag. Easy cleanup too! Serves 1.
   
   
   
   
   Yummy treat for a hot day, and it takes less time than going to an ice cream shop!
   
   
   
   

Recycled desk... kitchen island

Since moving into our house in Aug of 2010, my husband and I have wanted to get an island for our kitchen. 

We hadn't been able to find one we liked within our price range.

We also have a pot rack that we wanted to hang, but needed an island to hang it over!

So... we bought a desk and in 1 day converted it, with a few changes, to a kitchen island. Then we were able to hang the pot rack over it. Changed the whole look of the kitchen!

I LOVE IT!!

Kitchen before

Isabelle in the kitchen before :-)

Desk purchased from Craigslist

After

After

Pot rack!!

Still a few minor tweaks and adjustments to make, but I am in love with our "new" kitchen.

I have such an awesome husband!

Gluten Free Pancakes

Since deciding to go gluten free, I have had a hard time finding recipes that didn't require xanthan gum. Tonight, I wanted to make pancakes.


I searched the internet and found a recipe that didn't require xanthan gum! However, the recipe asked for flours that I do NOT have. 


http://www.celiac.com/articles/823/1/Easy-Pancakes-Gluten-Free/Page1.html

Here is how I modified the recipe:


Mix in bowl:
1 cup Sweet White Rice flour
1/2 cup Gluten Free All Purpose Flour
1/4 cup Coconut Flour
1/4 cup corn starch
1 Tablespoon gluten free baking powder
1 Tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt


Mix in second bowl:
1 1/2 cup almond milk
3 eggs
4 Tablespoons vegetable oil

Stir the two mixtures together. Heat a non-stick pan on medium, add butter or margarine.  When pan is hot, pour batter to form pancakes. You can sprinkle with blueberries if you want. Wait until the bubbles that form in the pancake start turning into holes, then flip over.

When the other side is cooked, transfer to a plate and serve with real maple syrup.

I made 1 pancake, tasted it, and made appropriate adjustments to my taste.  I, personally, added some organic gluten free vanilla extract.


They taste close enough to traditional pancakes to make me happy, and Isabelle ate 4 of them (sans syrup)!

p.s.
I forgot to mention how AMAZING the coconut flour smelled. I really want to make something else with it.  Gluten free macaroons maybe?!  hmmm.... hubby would LOVE those!

Easy peasy bird feeder aka: re-purposed water bottle

This is a quick and easy craft to do with your child.
If your house is like ours and you get a lot of birds, this could be something fun to do.
 
Take an empty water or soda bottle, cut off the top and leave a little "cup" in the bottom and enough on the back to be able to hang it on a fence.
 

 
I used ribbon to attach mine to the fence, because let's face it... birds could care less what it looks like, as long as it holds birdseed. (Although, we DO live in Valencia, so.. you never know)

 We filled it with birdseed and now we are waiting for birds!!

t-shirt to re-usable tote - aka (another) re-purposed t-shirt

My husband used to be in a construction-like business and used to thrash his t-shirts.  

Now that he is no longer in that industry, he is getting rid of his old stained t-shirts.  I am using them to make re-usable, washable totes! It really doesn't matter if they are stained, and if it bothers you a lot, just dye them.

 
Start out with your old/stained/holey t-shirt, cut off the sleeves and neck to make your handles.

 Then I turn it inside out and sew the bottom to the depth I want, double stitch for security. I fold over the corners and double stitch again.

And that's it!  You now have your very own, one of a kind, re-usable, washable tote!  

(thank you to my lovely assistant for holding up the shirt) :-)

I suggest getting all the t-shirts you want to use and doing them all at the same time.  


You can also use smaller shirts to make smaller totes.

cellphone holder - aka re-purposed bubble bath bottle

I am one of those people who plugs their cellphone in the outlet over the kitchen counter.  Every now and then I'd come in and see that my husband had moved my phone (and cord) out of his way.  So, this project is perfect for me!

We go through a lot of bubble bath in this house, so being able to re-purpose the bottles is a VERY good thing! First thing's first... cut or peel the label off, if possible.


I drew lines on the front and back of where I wanted to cut to make my holder. (higher in the back)

I cut where I drew my lines and then drew in a square to put the plug through, and cut that out too.

I had some extra fabric that I really liked, so I sanded the bottle, then glued the fabric on.

Now, you are ready to USE your cellphone holder.  To be honest, I made the back of this one a little too short.  So, when I made one for my husband, I made the back taller and it worked MUCH better/easier.  

The problem isn't making the holder, it's getting people to actually use the holder! You can also take it with you when you travel, that way, you ALWAYS have a place to put/hang your phone.

t-shirt to tank (aka: re-purposed t-shirt)

Another contribution from Pinterest!


I started with a trip to "The GW" and bought a shirt that was too big, and had something I liked on the front.

I cut the neck and arms off.

Then, I turned the shirt inside out, pinned and sewed the top, straight across.  (you can do this by hand or with a sewing machine.)

Now, I need to make my "straps". For this one, I used material from a different t-shirt because it would have made this one TOO short! You don't want to use the bottom hemmed part of the t-shirt, so cut that off, then cut a strip just above it.

If your hem is wide enough, you can use a pen with a cap to thread your 'strap' through the hem. If not, use a safety pin.


Then, bunch up the material in the front and back.  Try the shirt on, you can adjust the scrunching after you tie it to the desired strap length.

You can also do this for your beautiful baby girl!! I tried it with ribbon, but the scrunching didn't stay scrunched. :-) So, I switched to t-shirt scraps.

Have fun!  And don't say I didn't tell you this was an addicting project!

re-purposed art

I saw this idea on Pinterest, and I REALLY liked it.  So, I thought I'd try it out, considering we have papers of scribbles almost everyday!


This is such a simple idea.  Honestly, anyone can do it!


I started out with one of Isabelle's scribbled pieces of art and a blank canvas.

First, I chose the color I wanted the background of the canvas to be, and painted it.  (This is the fun part) Try to enjoy and experiment with different techniques, take your time and enjoy the therapeutic benefits of "painting". I put my ipod on and enjoyed this part of the process

Then, I cut out petal shapes from the scribble art.  At first, I drew a template of the pieces I wanted to cut out on the back of the paper.  But, this shape is so easy to cut out, that I ended up just cutting random petal shapes.  Try to make some of them larger, or make sure you cut out pieces that "fit" the space of the canvas you're using.  (I started out making the petals too small, and had to adjust my plan and make larger pieces)


Then, I laid out the petals on the canvas to make sure they were where I wanted them to be.  I suggest doing this before actually gluing them down.  I also took a picture which helped me to focus on the space of the canvas, rather than the space AROUND the canvas.  (Or, just squint to focus only on the canvas.) Then I glued the pieces down.

Now, we are ready to hang!


I am looking forward to using today's scribble art to make another one or some smaller ones. (I will amend this blog post with any follow up art)

big love comes in little packages

My attempt at meditation didn't go as planned last night. My two crazy dogs kept perking up and freaking me out a little each time, which did not make for a peaceful environment!

I will say, however, I did find a great new mantra:

"I am beautiful compassion"

It reminds me to be peaceful and loving in all I do. It gives me a sense of calm.

In my new sense of calm I realized something today, I hadn't put much thought into before.

The hallway of our house is adorned with photos, mostly of our children. I look at these photos everytime I walk down my hallway. But, today, it was different.

Today I realized how profound of an effect these photos have on me. A few in particular.

This one embodies so much emotion, a moment of pure love and happiness. A moment I shared with the love of my life, the man I will spend the rest of my wonderful life with.

For me, this photo brings together 2 lifetimes. Two versions of the same person. Two lifetimes in one life. One could not exist without the other.



This is love in it's purest form.



These moments are the ones people live for. The moments people strive for. And I have had them.

It's not that I have never appreciated these moments and how lucky I am to have them. More that I want to make sure I appreciate them everyday and remember that these moments brought us to where we are. That we fought through the tough times to get to these moments. And it has all been worth it.

So, now, I am going to enjoy watching Toy Story 2 for the 300th time in bed with my beautiful little product of true, unconditional love.

And I am going to appreciate this moment.



Oh, before I go, let me share with you a piece of my own little heaven. Oh how I wish her great-grandmother could witness this.

enjoy <3

rebirth

For a few mos now, there has been a lot of chaos in my once peaceful (mostly) home. Not bad chaos, just different. More people, more noise, more to clean.

Tonight, however, my house is silent. My sister and her children are at our mom's house, my husband is at a friend's birthday party, my son is with his father and my baby girl is sleeping soundly in the room next to me.

As my husband and son were getting ready to leave to their respective destinations, I began to ask myself "what am I going to do?" I'm not used to being alone, like this. I am alone everyday, I feel alone most of the time. But, tonight, my house is quiet.

I thought I'd fill my time with mindless television and reading on the internet. As I read, I began to feel the calm. A calm I have not felt in a long time. My mind was quieting, my nerves were settling and I began to think. To REALLY think. Not about what I should do now, who is making so much noise, or how I would handle the next "episode".

I started thinking about how wonderful my life is. How lucky I am in spite of the difficulties/struggles we have. I start thinking about how lucky we are to live in a 3 bedroom house in a mostly quiet and safe neighborhood in Valencia (so lovingly referred to as "Awesometown"). How lucky I am to be able to stay home and not have to deal with the stresses of being a working mother. How lucky we are that we don't have to live in a 1 bedroom apartment somewhere, both of us working to make ends meet and barely making it. Things may not always go the way I want them to. My timelines may not always work out. But, things are always taken care of.... eventually. Bills are paid, food is made.

So, I am sitting here, looking around my house and I realize it is quite a lovely house. We have nice things, comfortable things. And really, do we need nicer? more? bigger? No. I think we don't. I think that as long as we have eachother, and support and love eachother we are fine. I think it's time to write those little "pep talks" and mantras in a visible place. To remind myself of the beauty of simplicity.

I sit here, thinking these things and I realize that it is time for a rebirth. The rebirth of Christine Nicole Brandes. A simpler, happier more content person. Time to appreciate, fully, the beauty that is my life. To appreciate, fully, the love of a wonderful man. To appreciate, fully, the beauty of my children.

I turn on "New Age" channel 856 on DirecTv music channel, I start typing this blog and when I finish it's time for some quiet meditation. To relish in the silence, to be peaceful, to be content.

i fell in love with you

I'm not much as a writer. Here is my attempt at a [simple] heartfelt "poem"

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i fell in love with you the moment i saw you, the moment you spoke my name
the road has been rough, but the pain has been tamed

we fought through the hard times, made it to the other side
we've been through things, that make weaker people hide

some words were meaningless, said in vain
to get the advantage, to play the game

an unfaithful moment, an ego fed
an emotion and feeling, taken straight to the head

a moment in time, that tore us apart
a moment in time, that gave a fresh start

a start that was clean and true
to change the things we thought we knew

to make us stronger, to make us real
to understand each other, and how love can really feel

now we're a story, people wish they could tell
the envy of relationships, where the relationship fell

i saw in you, what love could truly mean
a love that seems possible, only in a dream

a true love, through and through
what it means, to have someone see the real you

to love so deeply, it brings tears to your eyes
to make it worth, all the failed tries

i love you more and more, with every passing day
even more than I can explain or say

i see you, in the eyes of our child
a love and passion, untamed and wild

our future is exciting, it's beautiful and bright
my day is complete laying next to you each night

you hold me, and tell me it will be okay
and life gets better with every passing day

i fell in love the moment I saw you
my love will always be strong and true

thank you for being you
and letting me be me too

change is in the air!

"some things have come to light"

I'm not sure if it's the impending doom of officially being over the age of 30... or if I'm "growing up".

Things have been changing... things are... well, great!

A lot has happened in the last 2 mos. Mostly not to me, but to other people. Things that make me realize, "Hey! It REALLY could be worse!" These are the things I think about when the day isn't going as planned. (mostly)

So, cheers to turning a new leaf. And cheers to a bottle of formula so you can finish your blog entry!

If I were a religious person, I'd say God is telling me to slow down. However, the force is not strong with this one. So, I say "The universe is telling me to slow down." to take things one day at a time. To see the beauty in everyday.

Here is where I will begin...

Aaron and I have been married for just over 2 years, and together for just over 7. I believe this is a record in both our books. The first several years were difficult to say the least, but we came through it and fought when most couples would have given up either on the relationship itself or the other person. So, let's put that on the "good" list.

I recently read a blog in which the girl stated she was the luckiest girl in the world. I beg to differ. I happen to believe that I am the luckiest girl in the world, despite my complaints! I am married to a man who accepts me for who I am, accepts my bad days and walks on egg shells when it's been a bad day. (which recently has been frequent) We live in a house, not a tiny apartment. We are not famous, no one will even read this blog. But I think we're rich. Rich in friends, rich in family and rich in our lives. We eat well, we have fun and have amazing kids.

Hate to cut it short, I seem to be on a roll. But duty calls. And her name is Isabelle.

We are off to Target to do more shopping for the party this weekend. (more on that later)

Cheers!

Happy Day.

Fibromyalgia diet

Here are the diet guidelines that I'm supposed to follow...

Foods to avoid

These products are thickeners/emulsifiers/binders. The thickeners are sometimes used in bulk laxatives, spice products, ice creams, salad dressings, toothpaste and sauce & gravy mixes.

Pepper is a nervous system irritant, as is apartame and glutamate.

Aspartame is related to asparate, and MSG/glutamic acid is related to glutamate.

Wheat
Xanthan gum
Carrugeenan gum
Glutamic acid
Textured vegetable protein
BHA BHT
Aspartame
Pepper - both peppercorns & whole peppers, especially green bell peppers

Foods that are questionable

Mushrooms
Potatoes
Tomatoes
Eggplant
High fructose corn syrup

Foods that are usually ok

Oats
Corn
Rice
Sweeteners: Spenda and Stevia
Breads: Spelt & Ezekial


Most of these things I'm ok with... but I really like Potatoes!! Does "potatoes" include sweet potatoes?! I'm ok with using Splenda or Stevia. But have you ever tried Ezekiel bread?! It's like uber wheat bread!

I also recommend avoiding alcohol, it makes you really toxic and sore the next day.

I've also been told not even to have 1 cup of coffee in the morning because it could effect my sleep at night. THAT I find interesting! I may need to break that rule.

Ok, coffee is ready! Baby needs to eat soon. As soon as the boys get up I will make breakfast. Today will be my first day on the higher does of Savella, a little nervous and I want to make sure I have something in my stomach before I take it.

I'll post later with my response on Savella.

Happy Sunday!