Wuvies Whimsies Designs

Archive for October, 2009

I know, last minute and all, and I have no excuse except I just kept putting it off. Today though I got right up and first thing I saw in my notebook was “Halloween” in big letter and underlined a lot. So as soon as I got my shower and the laundry started, I made my halloween cake.

This fancy little thing is something Duncan Hines came out with called the Halloween Trick or Treat Spooky Fudge Twirl. Basically, it is a very orange cake and you swirl fudge cake batter through it, then bake. Very easy, fast and comes in a box.

As soon as I got the cake in the oven, I went outside to make the graveyard.

Yes, this is the “Graveyard in a Box. All this came in one little box and was super cheap at Walmart. I did wait till they had all Halloween stuff at 50% off. You can call me cheap, but I think of it as smart.

After the graveyard was done, I checked on our “mystery” pumpkins.

The mystery about these pumpkins is we only bought one. Brian wanted to carve a pumpkin, which he did. You can see the bat one at the top. So we put it outside and a few days later, we had 2 pumpkins, then just 2 days ago, we found 3 pumpkins. Usually, pumpkins go missing and you find pieces of them all over the road. Not here, they just multiply. I wonder how many we will have by Thanksgiving?

Anyway, I came in and filled the candy bucket.

Cali was not that happy about all the candy as you can see. She was certain that the bucket was her own personal place to play and sleep.

Then, last, but not least, I lit the black pumpkins.

These are my favorites, and they don’t multiply, or rot.

So, that is my morning so far. I am ready for the little ghosties and gobblins tomarrow. All is good, now off to fold the clothes.

Oh, I also made a silly layout with some of my photos.

I belong to the Granny Thread at DSP, and those ladies are always coming up with the most amzing ideas, recipes, cures, and solutions. If you ever have a question, that is the place to head.

This morning, our own Queen PQ posted this list of great Home Remedies for everyday things. I wanted to keep the list around, so I figured I would post it here so I could find it when I needed it. Hope you enjoy!

Granny Wisdoms – Home Cures:

Home cure: Duct tape
Use it for: Warts
Yes, this really does work! Covering warts with duct tape eliminates them better than freezing them off, according to a study published in the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine. In the study, the duct tape eliminated 85% of the warts after 2 months, compared with 60% with the freezing method.
To use duct tape safely, clean the area. Then cut a piece of duct tape to a size slightly bigger than the wart. Apply the duct tape to the site and rub into place. Every 3 days, remove the tape and file down dead skin with a pumice stone or nail file. Repeat until the wart disappears. Chemicals in the tape suffocate and kill the wart.

Home cure: Baking soda
Use it for: Urinary tract infections
At the first sign of symptoms, drink a solution made with ¼ teaspoon of baking soda mixed in 8 ounces of water. Continue this once a day until you can get a culture done at a doctor’s office and start antibiotics. Baking soda makes the bladder environment more alkaline, which reduces bacteria’s ability to multiply, says Larrian Gillespie, MD, a retired assistant clinical professor of urology and urogynecology in Los Angeles.

Home cure: Apple
Use it for: Whiter teeth
Crunchy fruits and vegetables act as little toothbrushes when you chew them; they have a natural cleansing action that works on tooth enamel to remove stains. In particular, “apples have a gentle malic acid that also helps dissolve stains,” says Jennifer Jabow, DDS, of Park 56 Dental in New York City.

Home cure: Olives or lemons
Use it for: Motion sickness
Motion sickness causes you to produce excess saliva, which can make you nauseated, some doctors say. Compounds in olives called tannins dry out your mouth and can help soothe the queasies. Pop a couple at the first hint of nausea; sucking on a lemon can also do the trick.

Home cure: Sugar
Use it for: Hiccups
A teaspoon of sugar swallowed dry can stop hiccups in minutes, says Andre Dubois, MD, PhD, a professor of medicine in the emerging infectious diseases graduate program at Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, MD. The sugar is believed to modify the nerve muscles that would otherwise tell the muscles in the diaphragm to contract spasmodically and contribute to hiccups.

Home cure: Cloves
Use it for: Cuts
Sprinkle powdered cloves on a cut to keep it from becoming infected, says Duke. Clove oil is rich in eugenol, a chemical that’s both antiseptic and pain-killing.

Home cure: Vegetable oil
Use it for: Brittle nails
In order to really fix dry nails, you have to address the problem of too-little moisture. In addition to using hand lotion regularly, try this nighttime treatment from dermatologist Dee Anna Glaser, MD: Before you go to bed, apply vegetable oil to your hands, then put on vinyl gloves or wrap your hands in plastic wrap to keep the oil off your bedding. The hand coverings force the oil to penetrate your skin, preventing your hands and nails from getting too dry.

Home cure: Olive oil
Use it for: Eczema
Soothe flareups by applying olive oil directly to the irritated area, says Christopher Dannaker, MD, assistant professor of dermatology at the University of California San Francisco. Packed with antioxidants that can reduce the inflammation associated with eczema, olive oil is the basis for many moisturizers; when used alone, it lacks chemical irritants you may find in store-bought creams. As a bonus, olive oil’s antioxidants help prevent and repair damage that can lead to wrinkles and brown spots.
Rub 1 teaspoon per square inch of skin, which creates a seal that prevents skin from drying out. For serious cases, cover oil-slathered skin with plastic wrap overnight to lock moisture in.

Home cure: Tennis ball
Use it for: Achy feet
For an easy, free mini massage that stretches and soothes your arches, slip off your shoes and roll each foot over a tennis ball, golf ball, or soup can for a minute or two. To cool throbbing feet, roll them over a bottle of frozen water.

Home cure: Lemon balm tea
Use it for: Cold sores
Lemon balm is a first-choice herbal treatment for cold sores, which are caused by a type of herpes virus (not the same kind that’s sexually transmitted). It has antiviral properties that work to tame herpes outbreaks, says James Duke, PhD, author of The Green Pharmacy. Prepare lemon balm tea by brewing 2 to 4 tablespoons of the herb per cup of boiling water. Let it cool, then dot with a cotton ball on the cold sore several times a day.

Home cure: Listerine
Use it for: Blisters
The classic breath freshener—and powerful antiseptic—can also do a number on blisters. Moisten a cotton ball with Listerine and dab it on your blister 3 times a day until the area dries out and no longer hurts, says Janet Maccaro, PhD, CNC, a holistic nutritionist and certified nutrition consultant in Scottsdale, AZ.

Home cure: Yogurt
Use it for: Bad breath
Preliminary research shows that the live bacteria in yogurt can suppress levels of bad breath–causing bacteria. “Good” bugs in yogurt may crowd out the “bad” stink-causing bacteria or create an unhealthy environment for it, says John C. Moon, DDS, a cosmetic and general dentist in Half Moon Bay, CA.

I know I have not posted in a long time. I seem to be falling farther behind the harder I try to catch up. I really need to get back in to my little routine. I am one of those that needs to focus, our I just  totally fall apart.

I think my biggest problem is I put my daily journal away and I quit writting notes to myself. Yes, I know, it sounds a bit odd, but trust me, for this “odd bird” it works. If I don’t write things down while they are in my mind, they are lost forever!

So today, I dug out a new notebook, found a pen that actually has ink. (I save everything) Started making lists and even did a few things on my lists. So today was not a total waste.

I did not get a layout done today, I redid my blog instead, but I did find one layout I did a week or so ago that I really liked. So I will post it today.

This is my darling grand daughter, Malayla. All the kits I used are made by DSP Designer, Lauren Bavin. She makes some of the most amazing nature kits. She is always giving away freebies also! So if you are ever looking for a fun place to learn Digital Scrapbooking, or a place to buy amazing kits, head on over to DSP. Tell the Wuvie sent you.

 

Another Page in the ABC’s of Holly. This is N for Natural. The layout was done using Touch of Gold Page Kit by Lauren Bavin

Today was my idea of a beautiful Autumn day. Sun was out, but it was a nice cool day, the trees are turning beautiful colors and the sky was a pristine blue. Due to other commitments, I had to stay around the house, so I decided to take a walk in the woods in a day dream and scrap it also.

This layout was done using several kits made by DSP Designer Lauren Bavin and the photos are my darling grand daughter Makayla. I really didn’t want to wake up from this dream.

 

The Word of the Week was Marvelous, so another page was added to my beautiful grand daughter Holly’s Boook. This layout was done using a new kit from DSP Designer Lauren Bavin – Sheltered Estuary.