My friend Revka at The Porch Light tagged me.  I’ve been blogging for 8 months.  I’ve been wondering when someone was going to tag me. 
This meme comes with the following requirements:
Give the meaning of your kids’ names, and write about what or how or why you gave the name to your kids. Tag five people to play along and leave a comment at their blog to let them know they have been tagged.
I’m not actually going to give you my kid’s names, but I’ll tell you some things about their names. First off, I’ll tell you that I’ve …read more

The Carnival of the Recipes, Italian theme, is up at The Porch Light.  Looks like some yummy recipes are available.  Here’s some that caught my eye:

Revka at The Porch Light,  shares the recipe for her family’s Favorite Meatballs. This versatile recipe can be used to top spaghetti or subs.
Beth The Expatriate’s Kitchen graciously gave us two enticing entrees: Gnocchi with Duck and Porcini Mushroom Ragout and Chicken Scallopini with Lemon, Artichokes and Capers (this recipe includes tips for creating true 30 minute meals).

Revka’s meatballs sound great for making a yummy sub.  Beth’s chicken recipe using artichokes and capers makes my mouth water.  I’ll have …read more

My friend Revka at The Porch Light recently began a new venture of making custom blog headers.  To get more experience, she has offered to make 25 free blog headers.  Stop by her blog and check out some of her beautiful work.  Hurry, there are only 14 headers available.

I’ve been giving a lot of thought lately to cutting off the cable.  I mean, here we are, almost out of what I call “stupid debt”.  This means all debt other than our home. 
Even though we are still almost out of debt, our monthly living expenses are high.  I just keep wondering where the money is going.  I sit back and look at the checkbook and it makes me sick.  There are deductions for the cell phone, cable and internet, water, electric, gas, house payment, student loan (almost paid off), Wal-Mart, Target, etc. 
I know that there are some things you just …read more

  
 Just as promised, I have some pictures of the Valentine crafts that I suggested for this week.  At the top are samples of the heart collages we made.  (Once again, I love the die cut machine.  What a time saver!)  Next, are the painted hearts we did with marbles.  And finally there are the Valentine cards for the parents.  The card on the left doesn’t have the handprint made into a heart.  It is way too hard to get a toddler to hold their hand still to make a heart. For instructions on these crafts, click over to my post on Valentine’s Day …read more

My friend Revka at The Porch Light has hosted the February edition of the Healthy & Fit Family Carnival.  Looks like there are some great tips for keeping your family fit and healthy.
I will be hosting the March edition.  If you have an article that you would like to submit, please submit it here.  Posts can be submitted until March 4th and space is limited to 10 submissions. 

I was visiting Revka’s “The Porch Light” and found a recipe for hot chocolate.  You can make a bunch of it and put it into jars for gifts.  I like to see those homemade gifts that are put into old-fashioned mason jars with cute fabric on top.  Here’s the recipe:
Heavenly Hot Chocolate Mix
10 2/3 c. powdered milk
6 oz. jar nonfat powdered dairy creamer
4 c. confectioners’ sugar
3 1/2 c. cocoa powder (can use hot chocolate mix like NesQuik)
Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. (I recommend processing the powdered milk in a blender to break down the large particles into …read more

If you’ll notice, “The Porch Light” is listed under our links of favorite blogs.  Revka is a stay-at-home mom of 3 young little girls.  She writes about life, family, cleaning, and many other issues moms face.  Recently, Revka launched another blog focusing on ideas to use with your preschoolers.  At Revka’s “Little Fun; Little Learning” you will find songs, crafts, helpful websites and more.  Be sure and check it out.  This would also be a great site for homeschoolers.  I have already found some ideas to use with my preschool class.

I was visiting “The Porch Light” again today and found more frugal cleaning tips for you.  Don’t forget to check out the other ones I got from Revka last week.
 
To remove crayon scribbles spray with WD-40 and wipe off with a cloth.
Note:  This tip is only for regular crayons and does not work for those horrible water-based crayons.  Also, I do not recommend this for material; but if you do use it for that, you can use dish soap to remove the grease spot from the cloth.
To remove ink marks use rubbing alcohol or a hairspray with a high alcohol …read more

Today I was visiting “The Porch Light”, a blog written Revka.  As a stay-at-home mom of 3 children, Revka is also on the look out for thrifty ideas.  This week she posted some recipes for helping us with our cleaning.
 
Basic Wood cleaner & polish
1/8 cup oil (either linseed, olive or vegetable)
1/8 cup vinegar
1/4 cup lemon juice
Laundry Detergent stretcher
1-2 tbsp borax
1-2 tbsp. baking soda
1-2 tbsp. of liquid detergent
You can mix the borax and baking soda half and half and keep it in a tub; then just scoop 2-4 tbsp. of the mix as needed depending on how dirty your laundry is. Start the …read more