I wanted to do this rice heating pad over the weekend, but then I got sick--fever, chills, cough. And then, somehow, while sick, I hurt my neck. So I really need to be able to have a rice heat pack for my neck--you know, a heating pad that isn't attached to the wall--but I was hurting too bad to try to make one! Oh, the irony! But now I seem to be on the mend--both the cold and the neck injury--and now I can make this heat pack.



While I was laid up, I was able to do some research, and I assure you I am not the first person to come up with a rice heating pad. My design is similar to an image I found via pinterest with a link to www.thegreenwife.com. But the link didn't work for me--it appears to be broken, so I took a look and developed my own version. I have made it a little different from the picture: first of all, it is a little longer and thinner since my neck pains sometimes go down my arm--I wanted some more flexibility. But the more important difference in my mind is that instead of taking two pieces of material and sewing all around, I am taking one piece of fabric and folding it in half lengthwise. Why? First of all, I wanted as few places as possible for rice to escape--I figured whole fabric worked better at that. Second, and more important to me, on my last craft post I shared how my sewing machine and I are fighting. I wanted to sew as little as possible to get this project done!

Here's the materials:


a piece of tightly woven material, 9 inches by 22 inches
rice
thread
scent (I chose lavender vanilla, but craft stores have all kinds, chose one you like)
various sewing tools: sewing machine, pins, hem gauge

Make sure that you press your fabric before starting. It will help with the measuring, pinning, and the sewing. I also went ahead and folded the fabric in half lengthwise and pressed it again to get a crease where the bottom of the heat pack will be.

First take the two long sides and hem them--I did about a 1/2 inch hem.




 Fold the fabric longwise so that the right side of the fabric is on the inside.

Sew a seam along each of the short sides. Snip the corners of your seam and then turn it right side out. You will now have something that resembles a very short pillowcase. Measure the fabric in the long direction and divide it into four sections--I used a pin to mark the lines. Sew these lines so you now have four little pockets.


Take the rice and mix in some of the scent. I used about 3 cups of rice and I didn't want it to smell to strongly, so I used 3 drops.

Fill the pockets of your fabric with rice--but not too full--you want the rice pack to give some when its closed, not feel like a rock!

Once you have a section filled with the rice, hold it closed with some binder clips until you can sew it closed.


Just simply run a seam down the open end.


Now, I wish I could tell you that my sewing machine behaved during this little project. I do. It did better than last time, but it was still a little snarky. I'm hoping that it decides to straighten up because I have a couple more projects I want to sew up! But now, I'm going to relax with some rice powered heat--just going to warm it in the microwave for a couple of minutes!





Sometimes I link up at the following places: 413 Sparrow Lane, 504 Main, A Little Tipsy, Blessed with Grace, Crafty Scrappy Happy, Eat at Home, Finding Fabulous, Gingersnap Crafts, House of Hepworths, How to Nest for Less, It's Overflowing, Made in a Day, MomTrends, Not Just a Housewife, Organizing Junkie, Positively Splendid, Simply Sugar and Gluten Free, Six Sisters Stuff, Sugarbee Crafts, Tidy Mom, The Finer Things and I Dream of Clean’s Spring Cleaning Challenge,  The King's Court IV, and The Finer Things in Life.

It’s been a while since I’ve posted about frugality--so here's a frugality tip that's been rolling around in my head for a while.One way I try to stay frugal is by looking for freebies online. One of my methods is using SwagBucks.  I pay for around 1/3 to 1/2 of my diapers (remember that I have 2 kids in diapers) through this program, by doing things that I would do ordinarily on the web.

Basic Deviled Eggs

10 eggs, hardboiled
3 tbsp mayonnaise
1 tbsp mustard
Salt and pepper to taste

Peel the eggs and cut them in half lengthwise.



Add the mayonnaise and mustard. Mix. Add the salt and pepper to taste. Mix again.

It's been a rough weekend; I have been fighting a cold for most of it. That mostly means that cooking a cleaning have been on the back burner. However, with a new produce shipment coming in tomorrow and since I'm feeling a little better, I'm hoping to feel much better this week and cook as planned.

Monday: Mini Meatloaves, Salad, Fruit



Tuesday: Pesto Caprese Chicken, Squash, Fruit


What do you have on the menu?

I've been wanting to create coordinating outfits for all 3 of my girls for some time now. I have seen so many pillow case dresses, and thought, that might work--straight seams, basic sewing--right up my alley. Then I heard about bandana dresses, which follow the same kind of method--straight seams, a ribbon through the top, and best yet--no hemming since the edges are already finished.

So I grabbed some bandanas the last time I was at a craft store, and I was off!

First, I washed the bandanas. You will want to do this to remove the stiffening agents that they put on them to make them nice and easy to package up. You will also (hopefully) cause any shrinking or fraying that will occur before you sew your project. Then you will need to iron the bandanas--one you wash them, they will be wrinkled.

Then you will need to line up the bandanas facing each other. If your bandana has directional pattern,  make sure both bandana have the top at what will be the top of the dress. My little dress to be had this type of pattern. I didn't want those little branches facing down, or even worse, the back pointing down and the front pointing to the side! I then pinned the fabric together. I measure two inches from the bottom because I wanted a little side detail.









And she loves her new outfit, which is the most important part--makes up for the major fight I had with the sewing machine! Enjoy!

1/2 pint jar or similar container
Obviously you can make this more decadent by changing what kind of sweetener. You could add other things to make it healthier, such as flax seed. What I liked about this was the possibility to feed my girls this relatively easy meal for breakfast, now that I have tested it. I could indoctrinate them into the Ukrainian tendency to putting sour cream on fruit...hmmm...or I could just keep this yummy treat just for mommy. Tough decision, I know. Enjoy.







PS: Come join #DairyBreakfastClub recipe party at TidyMom along with The California Milk Advisory Board and RealCaliforniaMilk.com 

It was so nice to have my husband home for dinner every night last week. I am spoiled, I know, but it is super hard  to work all day, wrangle all the kids in the van at daycare, and then cook dinner and feed them all by myself. If you are a single mom or this is the norm in your family let me just say, you have my admiration!

We ended up with a lot of mexican-themed meals last week--I got two bunches of cilantro in the co-op! Part of the fun of meal planning is knowing that things may not go as planned, but at least we know we have something in the house that we can eat. So we missed out on the chicken nuggets and mini-meatloaves last week. I'll be putting them back in the menu this week. Eggs were on sale last week, so we'll have breakfast for dinner, since everyone loves that too!

I let my husband pick the meal for Sunday--we had grilled steak and baked potatoes! Happy Father's Day to him--the funny thing is that he runs the grill, so he chose to cook on Father's Day--go figure!

So here's the plan for this week:

Monday: Teriyaki Meatballs and twice baked potatoes
Tuesday: Breakfast for dinner and fruit

Saturday: Grilled Pork Tenderloin, Foccacia, Fruit

Happy Father's Day to all the dads I know!

But in particular, Happy Father's Day to the following wonderful men:

First of all, to my Dad! He taught me to work hard and to strive for the absolute best I could do. He also taught me that the most serious of people need to be silly sometimes, too.

Next, to my Father-in-law Jim! He has welcomed me into his family and heart, and I have never felt unwelcome at their home. We can't wait until you get here in a few weeks.

Finally, to my husband! He is a great daddy--and a great teammate. It's definitely been a roller coaster the past couple of years, but I wouldn't have ridden this ride with anyone else. I asked my oldest what she loved most about her daddy and she said, "his hugs."

I hope that everyone has a wonderful day--relax, take some time to do something you love, and surround yourself with your family. All of you guys deserve it!

So are you like me and still working on Father's Day projects? Or am I the last one?

Anyway, if you are my husband then you need to stop reading this. My father and father-in-law, too.






Waiting for the men to leave...





Are they gone? Okay, great.

I have a great idea for my husband's gift for Father's day. Since my girls are all under 5, they need some help. I'm not going to tell you what it is, but it is related to nature, and something my husband has asked for in the past.

Anyway, we went to the zoo this past weekend, and I got some great shots I got of the animals there.

Here's some pictures of the gorilla posing for me:



So since this was something that we recently did as a family, I thought we could incorporate it into his Father's Day card. I converted the image into photoshot, and well forgive the pun, but monkeyed with the contrast. I then placed some appropriate text and came up with this image:

But since I wanted a card, I created a card that can be printed on one side and make a quick fun card for him!

So if you are wild about your dad--or your kids are--here are a couple of free printables just for you!

I may just make some for the girls' Granddaddy and Papa, time permitting...