Pinterest success and failures take 2

Well I have complied a list of my recent Pinterest adventures and what kind of results I had. Check them out below. I would love to get some input on Pinterest Pins you would like to see me attempt. So if you are already a member of my group "See Kristin Attempt This" please start pinning things you would like for me to try. If you are not and would like to let me know!

A little something for the kids: Small Town Driving Mats

Source: between3sisters.com via Kristin on Pinterest

I printed these two pages out and whipped out my laminator (man I love using that thing!) The kid loved having something new to drive his "Little People" car and "Hot Wheels" cars on. I have decided though, I think I need two more and some Velcro to attach them and then it will be magnificent!

 

S'mores Dip - yep you read that right!

 

Source: whatmegansmaking.com via Kristin on Pinterest

  

This recipe is perfect!  My hubs and I ate half of the bowl of it in one sitting - probably not so good.





Homemade creamer!

Source: mrshappyhomemaker.com via Kristin on Pinterest

This recipe is great.  But let me give you two tips.  You don't have to add the vanilla.  If you use syrups with your coffee for different flavors you won't want it and then it will be more versatile.  Second, save a decent plastic creamer container from the store and make it and store it in that.  We did the jar and it was difficult to pour without making a mess.  Plus then you reuse!  Definitely a keeper and cheaper than store bought!






















Personalized Baked Oatmeal Cups - eh.

Source: sugarfreemom.com via Kristin on Pinterest

Well these had such promise but tasted pretty blah.  I even ramped up the sugar content but they were just so dense and flavorless to us.  In order to eat the 2 dozen that I made we topped them with Ready Whip and that helped.  I made them in butterscotch chip, chocolate chip, raisin, and blueberry.  Butterscotch was the best by far.  I don't think we will make these again, the 1 1/2 year old would not touch them and that was sort of the point - easy go to breakfasts.


Homemade deodorizers - not so easy.

Source: onegoodthingbyjillee.com via Kristin on Pinterest

So I made this up in no time and let them dry for the 24 hrs.  I did not have a silicone pan so I used a mini muffin pan as suggest.  Yeah, those suckers were not coming out whole.  When I tried to "pop" them out with a knife, they just started to crumble.  I was a tad upset as I am cheap and ended up throwing it all away - oh the wasted time, money, and resources!  I might give it another try if I get my hands on the right sort of pan.  I really wanted them for my son's cloth diaper pail that smell worse than death. 

DIY Dishwasher detergent - Maybe there is hope?

Source: kingdomfirstmom.com via Kristin on Pinterest

This worked...sort of.  Most of the dishes were clean but a few still had some gunk.  However, the inside of the dishwasher has never looked cleaner.  May have to give it another try with a shot of vinegar in the rinse spout.


Dr. Bonner's Sal Suds in the Dishwasher - Not so hot in ours!

Source: passionatehomemaking.com via Kristin on Pinterest

This was very watery as you can imagine a solution of Sal Suds, water,  lemon juice, tea tree oil, and
white vinegar would be.  Most of the dishes were clean but not as clean as a commercial detergent would clean them.  I am starting to wonder if my dishwasher is more the problem.  But none the less this one did not work for me.

Okay so there is another round of Pinterest success and failures.  If you want to see another round give this post a like and follow/Pin to my board on Pinterest.
See Kristin Attempt This - Pin items for Kristin to try out and blog about!

Today, choose Love.
Kristin

Easy DIY Highchair Cover

So you remember taking precious time picking out the perfect highchair?  And if you were like me after 6 months of breastfeeding you loved the idea of some meals not seated at the cafe de Mama!  This sweet picture below is the first bite of rice cereal my son ate.  Look at how sweet he is and how cute that chair is.  So what's the problem here?  That stupid set of chair covers and straps are not washing machine washable.  WHERE were my brain cells when I picked this out and why didn't they read that?  Oh yeah I was growing a human being and so my brain was way more needed in that area, so for at least 18 months I was as close to brain dead on many levels.  Some call it pregnancy brain, some call it mommy brain.  I personally call it unfair and just another blow you don't really know you have coming from the miracle of growing/raising a child!  But I digress, I will have to do another post about all the stuff I had no idea was going to happen to me cuz nobody had the balls to tell me (yeah you know who you are and I will pay you back for it).



Look at how pristine this chair is!

Anyway, after many attempts to keep this sucker clean without being able to put it in my magnificent washing machine (I have a serious crush on my washer and dryer - they are so special to me - we might need a moment here) I had to come up with another option and here it is. My T-shirt Highchair Cover! It is so awesome to me because I have about 5 of them so when one is gross off it goes and into the washer!  It is wonderful because it covers more than just the cloth areas but some of the hard to clean parts as well.  It is saving me time and money!  Two things this penny pincher loves!

Can you imagine the amount of cleaning it would have taken!
 

Here is one of my covers - not cute but does the job and keeps things much cleaner!

 

It may be dirty but better the cover than the chair!


So here is the how to.  First, I find that an extra large T-shirt works best for pretty much any chair.  You know you or your significant other (there has to be a better term - lets make one - your Siggy - yep I like it - you may use it - I am good at sharing!) have about 10 T-shirt you got in some event, sport, school, or buying disaster that needs a new use - here it is!

Put the T-shirt on the chair like shown below - no it will not fit without a few modifications.





 

Go to the back of the chair and find the middle of the bottom of the shirt.

 

 

Cut up the shirt like shown leaving about 6 inches from the collar. (That is my Gracie - she likes to hide from the kid and seems to think the highchair can save her!)

 

Now you can see how the shirt can cover most all of the fabric ( if you wanted to get fancy and really cover it you could cut some of the extra off the back or side to "patch" the head hole but it generally stays pretty clean - your call). 

Yes, this is the hubs college shirt from his freshman year in soccer and yes he was good, but more importantly he was a hottie!

 

 

Okay now where the straps are you will pinch the fabric. If you want to make this all symmetrical you could measure and all that jazz but come on it is going to be covered in all sorts of pureed mess so go easy on yourself!

 

 

Cut a hole large enough to get the strap through but not too large so that much food can get thru.

 

 

See so easy! Repeat for all straps, including if you have a 5 point harness.

 

 

Finished product! Now you can turn it inside out or whatever but why not enjoy those charity walk t-shirts a little more before you have to make them into rags.

 

 

This is what the kid was doing while I was finishing this. What you cannot see is the poor dog running away because said kid came at her outta nowhere with a headbutt. My kid loves to headbutt - so proud.

 

P.S.  That is a PVC free clear shower curtain that we use under the highchair to keep the floor clean.  It works like a dream!  We have 2 so when one is gross we throw it in the washer and put the other down.  Otherwise you can just spot clean it!  It is great for food messes as well as crafts!

Happy making parenting life easier crafting!

2013 what am I going to do with you?

So I do not do resolutions so much as I do not like setting myself up for failure (I prefer for failure to happen naturally as it was intended).  I more like to think of them as a list of To Do's or goals for my life and I really don't set timelines of, in the next year.  Okay so that was all along the lines of vague, so I am going to put myself out there and announce some of my goals or to do's for the year and how I plan to work on them - cuz lets face it, when you are working on a major goal it is an evolving and changing thing.  Okay enough preface lets get down to it!

• Continue to "Green" my family's lifestyle - I recycle, donate what I can, I have even started using less chemicals but I know I can do more. 
• My goal here is to phase out all chemical based cleaners in my life.  I have got a start using vinegar and baking soda to clean the toilet!  I know many people think without the smell of bleach it isn't clean but I am here to tell you it bubbles and scrubs great.  Don't worry I will share all of my progress and tips!  The key is to think a little bit ahead of when you will run out of cleaner.  For example, I am not a fan of the detergents for dishwashers so I have been researching alternatives.  This is my favorite and I plan to test it this week!

Source: kingdomfirstmom.com via Kristin on Pinterest

•  Now let me be honest I want to do this as much for the environment and my family as I do for the ability to save money!  But sometimes I have to go with what is easy.  I have a serious love affair with Charlie's Soap for our laundry.  We cloth diaper (see I am saving money and the Earth) and this stuff is AMAZING.  I might have to do a longer feature on it in a Products I love post, but until then check them out!

                            Safe, non-toxic, biodegradable soap | Charlie's Soap

• Buying more foods from local farmers and organics.  This maybe a little more expensive but in the long run I am making a difference in what my family eats and our health so it is totally worth it.  In order to make this happen I am now ordering from http://www.greenbeandelivery.com/indianapolis/ and boy is it worth it.  We get fresh produce delivered weekly and feel more incentive to use it. 

There is so much more I want to do but you don't want to be reading this forever so I will check back in on my "greening" soon!

• Care for my body - We can all take better care of ourselves in many ways but this year I am focusing on being healthy.
• Make an appointment for skin check.  It is that simple.  Something we take for granted is so important - take time to make the important appointments for your health.  Some Dr.'s will let you schedule up to a year in advance and with most health insurance carriers and the new health care act prevention or wellness checks are free!  So get with it all ready!
• 30 minutes of movement at least 5 days a week.  Yes, I know that is vague but it is that simple too.  Maybe one day I go walk the mall with the kiddo and the next I vacuum and dust for 30 minutes.  It all counts. 
• 7 hours of sleep each 24 hrs.  Okay I have an 18 month old so sleep is never a guarantee but it is important so I will nap more if I need to and go to bed earlier if I need to.  Sleep is so important to everything we do.  I know my patience is much shorter with my son when I don't get about 7 hours.  So sweet Tempurpedic bed, lets snuggle up more!
• Cut myself some slack
• No one is harder on me than me.  I will admit it here and I now I am not alone, I want so badly to be perfect at everything.  It is not about how others see me but how I see myself.  This caused me a huge amount of anxiety for the first year or so of my son's life.  I really felt that I had to be the perfect mom who made everything from scratch, worked really well part time from home, and had a successful jewelry making business.  Oh did I mention a spotless home, perfect body, and happy husband?  Would I ever expect even half of those things from a friend?  Absolutely not.  Why should I expect them from me?  It has only been in about the last month that I have started to change my perceptions and be proud of everything I accomplish. 
• So how will I do this?  Yeah, how?  Well I really think only time will tell and everyday will be a chance to be kinder to myself.  So when I do mess up, it is just an opportunity to "hug" myself a little tighter, maybe do a little "Brightener", and try again.  At the end of the day it is about enjoying the simple moments more.

                                                            

Okay I could go on and on but then no one really wants to hear all about me.  I encourage you to write down some goals and ways you can work on them.  We will revisit this in the future to check in on how I am doing and maybe how some of you brave souls who are willing to share are doing!  My biggest piece of advice on any goal is to break it down into smaller pieces and only take one piece of one goal at a time.  You cannot say I am going to lose weight and give up all sugar, cut 1200 calories, and run 15 miles in the first day and expect you can keep it all up.  Take small bites and you are less likely to choke - good advice for life!
Remember it is about doing better but mistakes and taking a different path than planned can end in results you never expected!
Happy journeys my friends!