Showing posts with label Works for me Wednesday. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Works for me Wednesday. Show all posts

Wednesday, November 21, 2007

Works for Me Wednesday

I had a really great tip for today to add to Shannon's list at Rocks in my Dryer, but I totally lost it in the flurry of getting ready for Thanksgiving. So, my tip is this:

Whatever you DIDN'T get done? Don't worry about it. Enjoy your family and friends and great meal (even if you forgot to buy rolls). tomorrow is about giving thanks for all your blessings. Not about how perfect the food or your house is. If your mother-in-law peeks in a hall closet or sees the pile of papers you didn't get filed (ahem), well, there was probably a time when she wasn't perfect either. And if she SAYS anything? Ask her for a housecleaning service for Christmas.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Wednesday, November 14, 2007

Works for Me Wednesday


My WFMW tip this week is a heads up about hotel practices. DON'T USE THE GLASSES IN YOUR ROOM! Someone sent me this link to a news clip about how they clean the glasses. Apparently, at best they wash them in the bathroom sink, and at worst they spray them with some kind of chemical and wipe them with a dirty towel you have left on your floor. Blegh. People always assume they got sick on the airplane or from eating bad food when they get sick while traveling! I suggest bringing your own glasses, or stay in cheap hotels that put out disposable plastic glasses that are sealed in plastic.

To see much more pleasant Works For Me Wednesday tips, go to Shannon's blog, Rocks in my Dryer.

P.S. Isn't her new WFMW header pretty?

Wednesday, October 31, 2007

Works for Me Wednesday




This isn't exactly a tip to make life easier for YOU, but it could make Thanksgiving nice for a couple of soldiers near you!

Last year we invited 3 soldiers from a nearby Army post to share our Thanksgiving meal with us. Thanksgiving for us is a Big Deal. The Cowboy builds a fire in an underground pit and cooks 2 or 3 turkeys along with a beef brisket or two.

There is always plenty of food and we are truly thankful for God's numerous blessings on our lives.

Right now you have be be pretty darn brave to join the military, not only during a war, but right before a Presidential election. The soldiers that came to share our meal last year were fresh out of boot camp and it was the first time any of them had been away from home for a holiday. They were all "country kids", and enjoyed coming to our little place in the boonies to celebrate Thanksgiving.

If you want to invite some soldiers, you have to act fast because they are already putting together the lists to match soldiers with families. I don't know how other military bases do it, but for ours we had to call the base chaplain. I couldn't find anything online about it this morning, but if you call the general information number in your phone book for the military base near you, someone will direct you to whom you need to talk to.

Last year was the first year we did it, and for sure it's going to be a yearly occurrence for us. They don't send one soldier to a house full of strangers by him/herself. Be prepared to take two. We offered a place for four since we cook such a mountain of food, but one of ours got sick at the last minute last year so we ended up with three. We sent a PILE of leftovers back for her though!

About a week before Thanksgiving they had a "meet and greet" on the fort. The families and soldiers gathered in the gym, where they had tables set up. Each family sat at a table, and the solders just came and sat with a family they liked the looks of. That's where we met the four that were going to come to us, and made arrangements to pick them up on Thanksgiving morning. Most of them don't have cars, so you have to be prepared to pick them up and take them home.

It's just a nice way to share a little bit of your bounty with someone who appreciates it. It's a little awkward at first, and be prepared to graciously accept being called "ma'am" every time you talk to them. Don't give them a hard time about it, okay? They are trained to be respectful, and it's not nice to tell them they make you feel old.

That's what we do. Check out a plethora of other WFMW tips at Rocks in my Dryer.

Wednesday, October 24, 2007

Works for Me Wednesday

Okay, I know it's October, and people are doing more wintery things than summery things, but we happen to live near an indoor swimming pool, so my WWFW tip is about modest swimwear for my little girls. I personally think girls ought to be able to play in the water without worrying about what they are going to expose, and without having to constantly pull their suits up in front or down in the back as the case may be. Well, several years ago I ran across one of these in a grocery store of all places. They only had sizes to fit my youngest, but since she was the daughter that didn't care if her suit was creating the Biggest Wedgie Of All Time, she wasn't going to take the time to pull it out, I bought her one. The tag had a web site address, so I went online and quickly ordered one for my other daughter. She was the daughter who would wear shorts and a shirt OVER her normal bathing suit...and then wrap up in a towel. Here's the web site: Radicool Australia

The suits look like wet suits, and they are designed to protect from the sun. Now that my girls are getting bigger, they are sizing out of the one piece suits and have to go with the shorts and rash guards. It's a good solution for kids that want to be modest, but want to look a little more modern than this:

It's a pretty picture, and though my old fashioned heart would love to see my darlings frolicking in the waves in such a lovely ensemble, it's a tough sell for my highly practical teen and tween.
I know lots of girls just buy boy's swimming trunks and a tankini top, which works too, and is probably cheaper, but this is our solution. Works for Me!

Check out more Works For Me Wendesday tips at Rocks in My Dryer.

Wednesday, August 15, 2007

The Minister's Cat


My Works for Me Wednesday tip is a word game that has entertained my children (an me!) in waiting rooms and restaurants for years. Nothing like keeping their little minds occupied when the food takes so long to arrive that they have colored the little children's menu, all the napkins, and are starting to "paint" their fingernails with cheap crayons that NEVER COME OFF. Not that MY babies do that anymore, since my littlest Audrey has just turned 10 and is MUCH too old to paint her nails with crayons when she could be making little magic growing worms with her straw paper.

The rules to "The Minister's Cat" are simple. Each player takes turns describing the minister's cat with the most obscure adjective they can think of for each letter of the alphabet. You start with "A". The first person might say, "The minister's cat is an antagonistic cat." The next person (if she is quite a bit younger) might say, "The minister's cat is an angry cat." If everyone playing has about the same level of vocabulary skills, you can decide who wins that round by general consensus of who came up with the most obscure adjective. We have also played by just taking turns with the alphabet, for instance, the first person gets "A", the next person does "B", the third does "C", etc., and no one really wins or loses.

It takes a while to get to "Z", and by then the food has come, the nurse has called the patient in, or Dad has finished drooling over the new chainsaws in Home Depot, and the sweet little old lady at the next table over has stopped by to compliment you on how well behaved your children are. You smile and say "thank-you" while discreetly trying to cover evidence of wet straw paper worms with your napkin.

Check out a plethora of interesting tips at Rocks in my Dryer.

Wednesday, June 27, 2007

Works for Me Wednesday



Well, fist I was going to post about my wonderful MOONCUP, but Brandy at The Building Brows Beat me to it with her post about the Diva cup which is very similar. Do check it out, though. The Mooncup changed my life!

So, I decided, it's getting hot. I'll post about keeping a frozen jug of water in your ice chest for grocery shopping and picnics. I was beat to the punch by both T with Honey and momrn2 at My Quiet Corner. I do mine a LITTLE bit different though. In one of my brother-in-law's hunting magazines there was an article about frozen jugs. Reading it, I learned that dissolving a half a cup of salt in a gallon jug of water makes the ice colder and last longer. It WILL take longer to freeze (3 days!), but works wonderfully.

I make mine with 1/4 cup of salt in half gallon milk jugs because the size is easier to manage than gallon sized. My husband spent one summer on a job where he had to camp out all week. The jugs stayed frozen until the 4th day, and the food was still cool into the 5th day each week. This was BEFORE they invented those wonderful 5 day ice chests. He had to be careful not to put his Pepsi RIGHT next to the jugs or it would freeze and explode! That's how cold they are. Works for me!

Be sure and go check out Rocks in My Dryer for more WFMW tips!

Wednesday, June 20, 2007

Works For Me Wednesday




I found this site: Rocks in My Dryer through this site: Charity Grace, (who happens to be my dear cousin). I think it's a fun idea, and would like to participate. I'm guessing you just jump on in and post a tip, so here ya go...

My daughter and I get terrible seasonal allergies. We have found that when we are sneezy, snorty, itchy, and miserable, a Coke temporarily relieves allergy symptoms. It has to be regular Coke. The Safeway brand of cola works too, but those are the only ones we have found. Sprite doesn't do it. I'm not a fan of Coke, but I figure the chemicals and sugar have to be less harmful than being pumped full of allergy medicine that turns us into zombies for the rest of the day. Works for me!