Toothpaste, a Toothbrush and Silver

Well, I haven't been writing much lately, have I? I have missed it! After my 15k in Denver, I have been hosting family and friends and feeling so very blessed to do so. Dave's parents came last weekend, and I cooked almost as much as I would have if it were the holidays. It was a lot of fun! After my in-laws left, though, I told Dave that I would not be cooking the rest of the week. But, when friends called and said they'd be in town last night, I had to invite them over. So I made soup and banana bread for 9 extra people besides my 5, and they came for dinner. Once again we were blessed with a full home and full hearts.

Here are some pics from Dave's Dad and Step-Mom's visit:

Windy day at Theodore Roosevelt

High on the Hill Family Pic

A Nice Random Guy Offered to Take a Pic of our Group

(I'm always very relieved to get my camera back after someone offers to take a picture of us.)

King Grandpa Dan and his Little Princesses

Celebrating Grandpa Dan's Birthday

Grandma Christie and Saige Looking at Pictures

We had such a GREAT TIME!

Speaking of great times, I wanted to share with you my latest re-purposing trick! A few years ago, Dave's mom was kind enough to buy me some long tea spoons at an antique store. They are so nice, like the pretty ones you use in fancy restaurants. After using these pretty spoons a few times, I realized these spoons are silver. Oooh. Fancier still. But, then these little spoons decided to start tarnishing on me, and I felt as though they were too fragile to use. :(

Then, as I was reading in my checked out library book (Vinegar, Duct Tape, Milk Jugs & More by Earl Proulx), I found this trick: use toothpaste to take tarnish off of silver. (Don't use the gel kind of toothpaste, and don't scrub very hard on the silver, or you might scratch it.) This is a life saver for me and my long tea spoons. I was afraid to use any harsh chemicals on the spoons because then I really wouldn't use them again in a splendid cup of tea or any other drink. The chemicals could potentially make me or someone else sick! Toothpaste (with a little water) and an old toothbrush are much more natural cleaners. And I like natural.

Toothpaste Scrubbed on Tea Spoon with an Old Toothbrush

See All the Tarnish on the Paper Towel?

I remembered while I was lightly scrubbing my spoon that when I worked at a jewelry store in Oklahoma that the store owner recommended you can use also use toothpaste and an old toothbrush to gently remove gunk from jewelry. Must be something to toothpaste! I think my jewelry will get a bath next.

Thanks for reading today! Love to all of you and your families! -Amber

Sister Dating and Re-purposing

Yesterday was a great day! Aubrey and I took our 5 kiddos to see the buffalo and prairie dogs at Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Unfortunately, they were doing some construction in the park, so we had to wait a while to get in and out of the park. But, we rode in my sister's van, and the kids were occupied with a movie. The kids enjoyed seeing the animals, playing at a playground in Medora and eating a picnic lunch. Aubrey and I had a good time too, but we especially liked that all of the kids took a nap when we got back to my house at 2:30. We also ended up snoozing on the couches until the late afternoon, and our kiddos started waking up.

Around 5:00, Aubrey and I got ready for our sister date. We've never done anything like this before, but sometimes it's nice to trade in your husband for some time with your sister. (Not that it wouldn't have also been great to go with Mr. Dave, but sometimes girl time is what every girl needs.) So, we put on sun dresses because it was such a nice, warm day in Dickinson, left the kiddos with Dave and headed to dinner. We froze in the restaurant's a/c while eating a tasty and high-caloric dinner, and then headed to a coffee shop to grab some coffee. Unfortunately, all the coffee shops in our little town are closed by 7:00p.m. So, we opted for some DQ desserts and shopping time instead. We giggled and chatted and had a great time! We were home early and in bed at around 10:30. (Which is early for me and late for Aubrey.)

While we were gone, Dave sent us some pictures, and this video:

These little outbursts are part of what happens with kids, and is also what wears us old parents out! I think it's hilarious! (I'm also glad that it wasn't one of the outbursts that Aubrey and I had to deal with.) All of the drama was due to Dave's request that all the kids come in from playing outside and get ready for bed.You can tell in the video that they aren't tired at all.

Right now, all 5 kids are contentedly watching Mickey shows on Netflix. So, even though it's raining and we can't go outside, life is good!

Aubrey's and my next mission will be getting ready for Lydia's birthday party on Saturday. I need to figure out what kind of cake to make, and get some decorations gathered up. I'm praying that the birthday/summer surprise that we ordered my girls comes on time! Don't tell my daughters, but the trampoline that is being shipped here will be used for re-purposing tons of pent up kids energy! Hallelujah and Amen.

Blessings, Amber

Re-purposing FAIL

So, like anything else managed by a human, I sometimes fail in my re-purposing attempts. I would like to share some of those attempts with you today. :)

About 2 weeks ago, I planned to talk with you all about re-purposing potato water. I still believe that reusing potato water is awesome, but the recipe I planned to show didn't come out at all!!!!

Here is a picture of the recipe I took from the classifieds in our new home town of Dickinson:

 According to the recipe, you should take the potato water and use it as a sourdough starter. I thought this was a great idea! However, the recipe didn't fully explain all the steps to making the recipe, and my sourdough biscuits turned out more like rock biscuits. I wish I would have been less embarrassed and taken a picture of them. They were seriously a hilarious sight to behold.

potato water

After boiling, I put the potatoes in a freezer bag and placed them in the freezer. We were planning to go out of town that evening, and I didn't really need the potatoes for anything, but I wanted the water for making the sourdough starter and for sharing a re-purposing idea with my blog readers. I also would have liked to bring some of the biscuits along and throw some of them in the freezer for when we came home...but I ended up just throwing the majority of them out....

However, to look on the bright side, I still have those potatoes, and perhaps I will get them out of the freezer, reheat them and make potato soup or mashed potatoes with them tonight. I also saved the leftover potato water in the freezer, so the soup idea is actually very plausible. Especially because it is chilly and rainy today. Which brings me to my next fail....

Due to the weather, we probably won't be getting our compost pile made today. Our yard consistency is actually very soupy. Hopefully tomorrow though.

>>Other fails:

Once I used my peanut butter (nothing but peanuts that were ground) in a recipe that called for organic peanut butter. I was supposed to heat the pb in the microwave until it was smooth. I kept heating mine up, waiting for it to be smooth, but I'm pretty sure I just burnt it instead. Those granola bars were not well received or well eaten around here.

When I was a bank teller in highschool, pantyhose were mandatory. I really tried to salvage the ones that were ripped with clear nail polish. However, that never worked to stop the run. But, it did work in gluing the pantyhose to my leg.

I've also tried way too many times to repair things with super glue. It is not a magic, fix-all, people. (As I'm sure you know.) It does not do well at repairing wooden picture frames, barbies, or most things that will be regularly used. At least, that's my experience. Actually most glues have failed me often.

Once, when we lived in Houston, our van froze over due to freezing rain. I was in a HUGE rush to meet a real estate client, and had no de-icing gear (because I lived in Houston). So, in my haste, I remembered that when I lived in Northern states, some people used credit cards to scrape ice. However, this ice was thick and didn't feel like budging. I shredded my most used credit card. Stink!<<


Well, that sourdough biscuit recipe and I aren't through yet. And once I figure out the missing parts to the recipe, please know that I'll post it here for you all to read about.

Thanks for reading. Please share your re-purposing fails with me soon!

Blessings, Amber