10 Ingredients to Make from Scratch {at Keeper of the Home}

Last week, I posted on 10 Ingredients to Make from Scratch over at Keeper of the Home. Here's an excerpt:

When I first started cooking from scratch, it didn't seem too hard. I gathered my ingredients and followed the recipes. But then one day it hit me: I wasn't buying processed, pre-packaged meals anymore, but I was using processed, pre-packed ingredients to make my "from-scratch" meals. And these ingredients were just as additive-laden as any other store-bought meal. Yikes!

I decided right then and there that, little by little, I'd start learning how to make each ingredient at home. And although it is more time consuming than buying everything at the store, making your own food leaves a huge impact on both your health AND your pocketbook!

Hop on over to Keeper of the Home to read the rest of this post!

Parenting on a Penny: How to Furnish a House on Craigslist {at Green...Your Way}

It's been QUITE a while since my last Parenting on a Penny frugal-living post! I hope you enjoy this post on how to furnish a house on a shoestring Craigslist budget! 

Image by starathena

I'm so excited and very honored to be guest posting over at Decorating...Your Way, a division of Life...Your Way today!


Here's an excerpt on today's post on how to furnish a house by using Craigslist:

Nearly three years ago, my family made a cross-continent move from a short ministry stint in Vancouver, BC, Canada to North Carolina. We arrived to our new home with six suitcases, a jogging stroller, a pack ‘n play and a diaper bag. Our new townhouse fit our family perfectly--but we didn’t have much to fit inside it. 

Since we were transitioning from a tight missionary budget to an even tighter one-income teacher salary, we knew our choices on furniture would be limited. It was either Walmart (if we could even swing that) or second-hand. 

Hop on over to Decorating...Your Way to read the rest of this post!

Homemade Toothpaste, Homemade Ranch Dressing & Homemade Nut Butter Featured in this week's Healthy 2Day Wednesday!

Welcome back to Healthy 2day Wednesdays! I am so excited to be joining these amazing ladies in hosting every Wednesday:

• Quick and Easy Cheap and Healthy
• Day2day joys

Link up to any of our blogs with your favorite healthy post!

Top three this week:

Since you were one of the three "chosen"... you've been Facebooked and Tweeted by Rachel!

Homemade No Flouride Toothpaste from Small Footprint Family





Homemade Ranch Dressing from Gabrielle's Journey to Real Stuff





Homemade Nut Butter from Your Thriving Family

Rules for this Link-Up:

• Share an idea, tip, recipe, things to avoid, something new to try, natural remedy, alternative medicine, going "green" tips, etc. that will help us to remain or become more healthy!
• If this is your first time participating read more info & get button here.
• Comment on another participant's post.
• Add button or link back to that day's link up.
• Spread the word so we can learn more ideas on keep our families healthy; feel free to share on Facebook or Twitter.
• Ideas: homebirths, natural remedies, an interesting article, something eco-friendly, a review, natural cleaner, alternative or holistic approaches to health, how to's, the list goes on & on!
• If you are adding a recipe, make sure the ingredients do not include white flour, refined sugar, processed products, packages products (unless it is clearly stated or pictured that it is organic or all natural) and the like. We are looking for whole food recipes that are beneficial to our health!

If you're not participating today, I hope you'll come back & join in next week!

Everyday Opportunities: Church Nursery Workers Extend Grace

Gluten is from the devil … at least with my child, I think it really may be.

That was my Facebook status one afternoon last week. The morning had been rough, to say the least.

It was Tuesday. The Sunday before had been the daddy-daughter dance at church. There were cupcakes. And who can tell a 3-year-old she can’t have a cupcake when all the other little girls are eating the delicious delicacies? Cupcakes are one of my little girl’s favorites.

A good parent of a gluten-free youngster would have sent a gluten-free cupcake. I forgot.

And Daddy … well, that night, Daddy looked into those big blue eyes begging for a cupcake, and he caved. How could he say no?

I did something even worse the next day. My little girl had her first dentist appointment. She did great. She hopped right up into the chair, leaned back and opened her mouth for a full cleaning with the hygienist.

She didn’t want a thing to do with the dentist himself, but I’d say it was a successful first trip. No cavities. That’s always a plus.


It was such a great visit that I decided to stop by the Healthy Home Market on the way home to buy my little girl a post-dentist treat. And what did I buy? Candy, of course – “healthy” candy, that is.

But I didn’t read the label on the bulk bin. It was a Valentine’s Day assortment of confections, including pink, red and white candy corn.

Candy corn contains gluten.

Oops. I didn’t even think about it until the next morning.

With the cupcake well into her system and the candy corn now fully consumed, we were in trouble.

By Tuesday morning, she was fully “glutened,” as another gluten-free mom friend of mine calls it.

Tuesday is Bible study day for me. I attend Morning Grace at Grace Covenant Church. They provide an excellent nursery for my girls. But my little girl didn’t want to go.

“No!!!!!” she screamed and threw her fists up in the air. “I don’t want to go!”

Mommy really wanted to go. Sometimes, that one hour is the only adult interaction I have all week. And I knew she would enjoy herself once she got there. So I persevered in getting us all ready to go.

When we arrived, things got worse. The cheery-faced greeters threw open the doors for us. “Good morning!” they said smiling.

My daughter grimaced at them. I reddened and didn’t dare look the greeters in the eyes.

“I don’t want to go!” my little girl screamed to the greeters. She tossed her backpack down on the sidewalk.

My husband said I should have scooped her up then and headed right back to the car to call it a day, but I really, really wanted to go.

So, I picked up her backpack, balanced my toddler on one hip and said, “Come on, we’re going.”

She followed and calmed for a few minutes, until we arrived at her class.

When we got to the door, she took off running in the opposite direction and screaming.

The nursery director had seen the wearied look on my face when I entered. She had been there when we discovered last year that gluten affects not only my daughter’s digestive system but also seriously alters her mood and behavior. She’s really a different person depending on what she eats.

“You go,” the nursery director told me. “This is your time. Your one-hour a week to just worship the Lord and be with other women. I’ll take care of getting her in her class.”

I went to the Bible study with a huge weight lifted. I knew she was in good hands, and I was thankful that someone gave me grace.

When I returned an hour later, they said she had done fine. Almost a week later, the gluten pretty much made it’s way through her system.

Not everyone may understand how certain foods can affect a child’s behavior, but even when they don’t, I’m thankful for grace.

*This column first appeared in the Mooresville Weekly newspaper. 

Chicken "Meatza," Home-Cured Corn Beef and Steel Cut Triangles Featured in this week's Healthy2Day Wednesday Link-Up!

Welcome back to Healthy 2day Wednesdays! I am so excited to be joining these amazing ladies in hosting every Wednesday:

• day2day joys
• Quick and Easy Cheap and Healthy

Link up to any of our blogs with your favorite healthy post!

Top three this week:

Since you were one of the three "chosen"... you've been Facebooked, Pinned and Tweeted by Anne!

Chicken "Meatza" - who comes up with this amazingly creative stuff? A grain-free crust made with shredded meat! Awesome.

Home Cured Corned Beef - did you know you could cure your own corned beef at home? I didn't! Pin this one so you can have it handy for next year at St. Patrick's Day!

Steel Cut Oats Triangles - a great way to prep ahead steel cut oats!

Rules for this Link-Up:

• Share an idea, tip, recipe, things to avoid, something new to try, natural remedy, alternative medicine, going "green" tips, etc. that will help us to remain or become more healthy!

• If this is your first time participating read more info & get button here.

• Comment on another participant's post.

• Add button or link back to that day's link up.

• Spread the word so we can learn more ideas on keep our families healthy; feel free to share on Facebook or Twitter.

• Ideas: homebirths, natural remedies, an interesting article, something eco-friendly, a review, natural cleaner, alternative or holistic approaches to health, how to's, the list goes on & on!

• If you are adding a recipe, make sure the ingredients do not include white flour, refined sugar, processed products, packages products (unless it is clearly stated or pictured that it is organic or all natural) and the like. We are looking for whole food recipes that are beneficial to our health!

If you're not participating today, I hope you'll come back & join in next week!

Making Working at Home Work for You--Part 2 of 2 {at Homemakers Challenge}

A few weeks ago I decided to step down from contributing to two amazing sites--Homemakers Challenge and Modern Alternative Mama. I still highly recommend these sites, but life was getting busier than it needed to be for a mother of two (almost three!) precious little girls, and I felt the Lord leading me to focus more on them and less on contributing to so many sites! (I will still be contributing to Keeper of the Home!) I hope you enjoy my final post at Homemakers Challenge!

Today I'm posting over at Homemakers Challenge on making working at home work for you! Here's an excerpt:

In part 1 of “Making Working at Home Work for You,” I wrote about choosing a job that fits in with your unique gifts and personality. For example, if you do not like being on the computer, freelance writing may not be a good option for you. But if you’re a good seamstress and saleswoman, perhaps you can try your hand at selling homemade clothing.

Today, I’m addressing the scheduling aspect of working at home. As a homemaker, you know how busy keeping a home is in and of itself. How do work-at-home moms fit in one more thing?

Click on over to Homemakers Challenge to read the rest of this post!

Repurposing Baby Food Jars {The First Years: Starting Solids}

It's hard to believe this is the final post in our Starting Solids series! Be sure to go back and check out the complete series (listed below) if you missed a post!

In the last post in this series, I wrote about 6 ways to use up baby food purees. Today, we're looking at repurposing those old baby food jars once all the food is gone!

Now, if you made your own baby food, you may not even have any jars to repurpose. BUT, not many of us take homemade baby food on the go, and, after a while, quite a few jars will start to accumulate--even for those of us who mostly make our own food. 

Image by jencu

Now you can just rinse them out and toss them in the recycling bin, but repurposing them is an even greener idea!

Check out these 7 ways to repurpose those old baby food jars:

1. Use them to store spices. This is the main way I now re-use my old jars. I love that I can easily dip my measuring spoons into the wide neck of the jar. I do have a fancy-smachy spice rack, but I use the old baby food jars for my excess spices, so they stay in the cabinet until I need them. Mine are plain and simple. I use a sharpie to notate the type of spice each one contains. 

But check out the following repurposed baby food jars-turned-spice containers from DAV.I.SON! Wow! She attached magnets and everything!

Image by DAV.I.SON via Pinterest

2. Use them for children's crafts. You can make all kinds of crafts with old jars, or you can simply use them to store fingerpaint, etc. 

3. Use them as toddler-sized musical instruments. Let your child help you pick out beans, sand, acorns, beads, coins or anything else that makes noise to place in the jars. Your child will be fascinated with the different sounds each jar will make! Decorate the outside of the jar together!

Check out the tiny jar of Nutella! You can do the same with peanut butter, jelly, hummus, etc.!
Image by _Libby_

4. Use them to store homemade personal body care products, like homemade deodorant, eye cream or even small lotion bars. 

5. Use them as "encouraging note" or "prayer request" jars. Some students at my husband's school once wrote tiny notes of encouragement and placed them in baby food jars and gifted them to their teachers. You can do the same with prayer requests. 

Image by stevendepolo

6. Use them to make Christmas ornaments. Snow globes anyone?  

7. Use them to make pretend food for your child's play kitchen. A friend of mine lets her children pick out dry beans, pasta, rice, etc. to store in the jars, and she super glues the lids shut. No more cheap plastic food! It's cheaper and better for the environment! (Although, I confess, Little Girl's toy kitchen is full of plastic food!)

What are some ways you've repurposed old baby food jars?


Did you miss any posts in this series? Check them out here:


Starting Solids: An Introduction
The Best Foods to Feed Baby
Homemade Baby Food
5 Finger Foods for Baby
The Second Best Milk for Babies
Baby Food on the Go: Ella's Kitchen Review
Baby Food on the Go: Sprout Review
Baby Food on the Go: Plum Review
Baby Food on the Go: Happy Baby Review
6 Ways to Use Up Baby Food Purees

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Sourdough Starter, Homemade Cold Remedy & Easy Homemade Laundry Detergent Featured in This Week's Healthy 2Day Wednesday!

Welcome back to Healthy 2day Wednesdays! I am so excited to be joining these amazing ladies in hosting every Wednesday:

• Quick and Easy Cheap and Healthy
• day2day joys
• The Humbled Homemaker

Link up to any of our blogs with your favorite healthy post!

Top three this week:

Since you were one of the three "chosen"... you've Facebooked, Tweeted and Pinned by Erin!!

Brandy at Living Water Health and Wellness shared how to make a sourdough starter! I really need to get around to making this, as sourdough is my hubby's favorite!!

Rebekah, from Potholes and Pantyhose, shared her amazingly simple homemade laundry detergent recipe! 

Artistic 31 Mama shared her homemade lemon ginger cold remedy! Man, I really needed this one last week!

Rules for this Link-Up:

• Share an idea, tip, recipe, things to avoid, something new to try, natural remedy, alternative medicine, going "green" tips, etc. that will help us to remain or become more healthy!
• If this is your first time participating read more info & get button here.
• Comment on another participant's post.
• Add button or link back to that day's link up.
• Spread the word so we can learn more ideas on keep our families healthy; feel free to share on Facebook or Twitter.
• Ideas: homebirths, natural remedies, an interesting article, something eco-friendly, a review, natural cleaner, alternative or holistic approaches to health, how to's, the list goes on & on!
• If you are adding a recipe, make sure the ingredients do not include white flour, refined sugar, processed products, packages products (unless it is clearly stated or pictured that it is organic or all natural) and the like. We are looking for whole food recipes that are beneficial to our health!

T-"Tapping" it to Better Health!

Today's post is neither a sponsored post nor an advertisement. (I've actually never had one of those!) But contributing writer, Mary, is very well-versed in the T-Tapp exercise program, and I asked her to write about it because, quite frankly, it intrigues me, and I wanted to learn more myself! I hope we can learn together through Mary's post! 

Image by ctr 

By Mary, Contributing Writer

Do you have 15 minutes a day to devote to your health and to get in shape? For most homemakers, that is about all the time we can find for exercising. If you want to get in shape but time is lacking, then T-Tapp is for you! 

T-Tapp is a sequence of copyrighted movements designed by fitness expert Teresa Tapp. The goal of T-Tapp is to put the body in alignment to optimize bodily functions.  Getting your body in proper alignment enhances your body’s ability to burn fat, move lymph, and sculpt muscles. 

Image by cempey 

T-Tapp doesn’t require fancy equipment, lots of time, or space - just your tennis shoes and dvd player. 

• T-Tapp utilizes comprehensive, compound muscle movement so that rapid reshaping can take place. What that means is that you are working a lot of muscles in each move to increase your inch loss.
• It is designed to cleanse the lymphatic system and pump the junk.
• It uses mind-muscle movement…it boosts thinking and brain power.
• It is excellent for balancing your hormones.
• It produces long, lean muscles instead of bulky ones.
• T-Tapp is very rehabilitative, especially for the back and knees.
• Gentle enough to do while you are pregnant. (Note from Erin: I need to try this asap!!) 
• But effective enough when you are not pregnant to get you in shape fast…T-Tapp looks simple, but will give you a workout like no other.
• Techniques learned in T-Tapp can be applied to other fitness programs and takes your walking routine to a new level.
• Heals from the inside out.

Image by wanbeijes 

The focus is not on losing weight, but on losing inches. As you exercise you build muscle. Muscle weighs more than fat. Do not watch the scales, but pay attention to how your clothes fit.

It is possible to lose two dress sizes in 4 weeks while T-Tapping. I have met some of the success stories in person. I have been blessed to meet and workout with Teresa by winning two contests and going to the Retreats in Florida. How fun to meet the lady on the screen and other T-Tappers…mostly stay-at-home moms who love the 15 minute concept!  

There are many tricks you can do to incorporate T-Tapp during the day…Try it now…Ribs up, shoulders back, stomach in, and tuck your tail.  This allows you to breathe deeper, improve your posture, and tighten your stomach. Imagine that you have can zip up your stomach and hold it there.

Take deep breaths. Big Inhale…BIG exhale.  Get all the air out. It is possible to shrink those ribs that expanded in childbirth. I lost 3 inches at the bra line through deep breathing at the retreat.

Work during the day doing these tricks and you will notice a difference. When pushing a shopping cart or driving the car, hold the buggy with palms flipped up and thumbs pointed out.  This will help keep your ribs up and shoulders back.

Want to see an example of T-Tapp?  Hoe Downs is a fun 3 minute exercise that I do after each meal to burn calories, balance blood sugar, and trim my lower half.   If I can, I usually go to the rest room after eating and do a set or two.  If you feel like you are getting sick, do some Hoe Downs to pump the lymphatic system and get the toxins out.

Teresa has a Try Before You Buy page to get see some examples of T-Tapp. 

Want to get started with T-Tapp?  Here are some ideas for you:

• Basic Workout Plus -the 15 minute exercise program
• Total Workout-has workouts up to 60 minutes
• MORE program -for those with health concern, need rehabilitation,  or more weight to lose… includes a variety of short workouts, including chair workouts
• TappCore -great for kids or if you just want to do one move at a time.  

If you are interested in seeing what T-Tapp has done for me, click here.  I have many health problems, but most are kept in check or gone when I consistently T-Tapp.  I do not have the energy to jump around, nor do I have the time for long workouts.  

Image by hortongrou 

I do have enough energy to T-Tapp and then it gives me more energy.  I do have 15 minutes a few times a week to improve my health. I do have a desire to feel better and to have more energy to take care of my home and family God has blessed me with. I do have time to sneak in little tricks to activate muscle that aids in inch loss.  

How about you?  Do you have 15 minutes a day to work out to improve your health and lose inches? Think about giving T-Tapp a try.  Because “Yes, you can!” (Teresa’s favorite phrase)

Mary is a farm girl, wife, and homeschooling mom to 2 sons. She is passionate about her faith, family, homeschooling, healthy living and tries to find balance in it all, as well as farm life. She blogs at The Encouraging Home where she tries to encourage others in life and to stay focused on the Lord and the things that truly matter, even through stress, chaos, and trials. It is her desire that women will rise up and take back the challenge of raising their children for the Lord, so we can change future generations and our nation.  

A Recipe for Real Food

By Elsie, Contributing Writer

It's been a year since I got real with food. These past twelve months or so I've tackled many new recipes, and, in the process, have learned that the real food journey is, itself, like following a recipe. 

It's not a very precise recipe, and there's no specific formula, but in my mind the recipe for real food has perhaps four main components:

- Pleasure

- Curiosity 

- Patience

- Clean ingredients

I'm positive that food is meant to be enjoyed—when you eat it, when you prepare it, and even when you gather it. Especially when you eat it.  

But eating won't be as pleasurable if you aren't first bitten by curiosity. Curiosity might've killed one unfortunate cat, but in our case it's more likely to usher in a kaleidoscope of new flavors, textures, and methods. To delve into real food you have to be curious. You have to genuinely wonder “why does it matter if I soak my grains?”, “Does raw milk taste better than pasteurized?”, “Can I have a sweet tooth and still be loyal to Weston A. Price?”  

But eventually your musings over these things may turn to muddling, as you inundate yourself with recipes, processes, advice, make-overs, health benefits, etc., etc.... I'm sure that no real food writer is trying to overwhelm their readers.  

Many, many people advocate baby steps when approaching real food and offer tips to keep things simple.  

You're probably overwhelmed because you allowed yourself to be.  Slow down and savor the journey like you would a silky custard smothered in raspberries (or whatever berry you're most in love with).  

Making a switch to real food takes a tremendous amount of patience and perseverance, even if you didn't eat fast food every day before the change.  It will take patience to let the beans soak and the broth simmer and patience to let the new methods soak and simmer in your brain.

Apart from a proper mental attitude, when it comes to creating real food clean ingredients are the basic building blocks.  Pre-real food I dutifully read Nutrition Facts on all my food labels. But after learning more about fats and sugars and calories, I've discovered that the facts I really want to know are listed in the ingredients.  I started putting items back on the store shelves that included things like high fructose corn syrup, MSG, and hydrogenated oil.  

But I realized that sometimes when you eliminate all the questionable ingredients, you're left with something rather basic and probably not very tasty.  It might not be bad for you any more, but its sheer boringness might have you longing for processed sausage-and-egg toaster pastries all over again.  Avoiding bad ingredients may make you realize how much you depend on food chemists for flavor in your food.  

Consider the lowly bowl of oatmeal.  It's good for you and it's filling, but it's just not what you'd pick for your birthday breakfast.  Thankfully, for every unsavory ingredient that you've avoided by opting for oatmeal there are exponential possibilities to add flavor back in.  Top your oatmeal with raw honey, cinnamon, nutmeg, cherries, blueberries, sausage, mangoes, coconut milk, or maple syrup and you begin to get the idea: there's fun and freedom in following a real food recipe. 

Not only do alternatives offer an endless spectrum of flavor, but they give you an opportunity to amplify the nutrition.  There are many ways to substitute for some of the ingredients you might want to avoid most:

- Instead of eating sugar or artificial sweeteners, experiment with rapadura, molasses, fruit purees, maple syrup, raw honey (probably easier to get your hands on than raw milk!), and things that lend sweetness like cinnamon, nutmeg and coconut.  

- Instead of MSG, entice your taste buds with fresh herbs and spices like ginger, chipotle, pepper, cumin, and garlic.

- Instead of food made with hydrogenated oil, make your own with coconut oil, olive oil, butter, and animal fat.

- Instead of dyes, add color to meals with fruits and vegetables. 

Maybe sometimes you've felt like I did a year ago: restricted by how much you “can't” eat on a real food diet.  Forget it!  Start exploring ingredients and variety will rock your kitchen.  

Elsie loves to express herself through words and through culinary creations. The food she makes is a reflection of her experiences--whether the homemade comfort food of a happy childhood, the flair of Latin American cuisine borrowed from her family's time on the mission field, or the rich and hearty fare of restaurants and pubs she visited during her ramblings in Switzerland and Oxford. Elsie and her new husband Eric live in Michigan.The couple enjoys pursuing a simple, natural life.

Someday Elsie hopes to write books that reflect her experiences, but in the meantime she's discovered that her blog, Back to the Source, is the perfect venue for combining her love of words and of food.