Roasted Tomato-Basil Soup

In my previous posts I have mentioned my best friend Pinterest. Today, I would like to introduce you to the love of my life; My crock-pot <3

My Roasted Tomato-Basil soup is an all time favorite around our place. So much in fact, that in the middle of summer, in Texas, I still get requests for my soup.

With that being said, I have decided to share my beloved recipe with you, and your families.  You're welcome! 

This recipe makes 6 servings.

Prep time: 10 to 15 minutes.

Cook time: 8 1/2 hours on low or 4 1/2 hours on high

What you will need :

• 2 cans (28ounces each) peeled whole tomatoes,drained and save the liquid (makes for 3cups)
• 2 1/2 tablespoons packed dark brown sugar 
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 3 cups chicken broth
• 3 tablespoons tomato paste 
• 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1 can (5ounces) evaporated milk
• 1/4 cup shredded FRESH basil
• salt and pepper, to taste 

                                                   

 

Drain the tomatoes, save the liquid ( 3cups)

        Preheat your oven to 450F. Line a baking sheet with foil; spray it with nonstick cooking spray. Arrange your tomatoes on foil in lines. Sprinkle your tomatoes with brown sugar and top it with the onion. Bake about 30 minutes or until tomatoes look dry and light brown. Let tomatoes cool slightly; finely chop tomatoes. 

        Place the tomato mixture, the liquid you saved from the tomatoes, broth, tomato paste and allspice in your Crock-pot slow cooker (a.k.a love of my life).  Mix well. Cover; cook on low 8 hours or on high 4 hours.  

        Add the evaporated milk and basil; season with salt and pepper. Cover; cook on high 30 minutes.

Enjoy!! If there are any leftovers, I like to put the rest in a decorated mason jar, and surprise someone with a delicious dinner.

Let me know how it turns out for you!!

How To Clean Your Stinky, Mildew Towels

 

If you are anything like me, you start off every morning in a rush due to oversleeping.

This means frantically running to the shower, rushing through your morning routine, and leaving a pile of destruction behind you, including your wet towel on your bathroom floor.

( I am getting better at pacing myself and cleaning up after myself, I am , really!)

Even if you are nothing like me, hang up your towel to dry properly, and wash it in your pristine machine, your towels can still end up smelling, now matter how pristine it is!

Smelling that sour scent in towels is truly one of my biggest pet peeves and it grosses me out. 

So this is a fabulous trick to know.

All you need is Vinegar and baking soda to fix this mess.

Wash your towels in hot water and a cup of vinegar, then run a second time with a half cup of baking soda.This will strip your towels from all of that residue and mildew smell, and will actually leave them feeling fluffy and smelling fresh.

*** Do not add laundry detergent to either wash. Just once with vinegar and once with baking soda.

*** This trick also works well with wet bathing suits that were left to dry.

Have fun with fresh smelling, mildew free towels!!!

Coconut Vanilla Sugar Scrub And Shaving Technique

I am always on the lookout for simple and inexpensive ways to pamper myself,t and thanks to Pinterest and amy-nostalgia I stumbled upon this incredible find!

Now, the scrub is amazing, but the shaving technique is what brings on the smoothest silkiest legs ever!

You  know you want to try it! 

First thing you will need to do is whip up a batch of this delightful scrub.

Now, in the other blogs and posts I have seen they made a " Coconut Lime Scrub"... I however changed it up a bit and I absolutely LOVE it.

So lets whip this up! Here is what you will need

 

 Coconut Oil ( one of my favorite things on earth)

         Sugar ( yes I bought the cheap kind and it worked great )

       Essential Oils of your choosing ( I chose Vanilla & Coconut)

 1/2 cup Coconut Oil

1 1/4 cup of Sugar 

Several drops of your choice of essential Oils

Put it all into a jar and stir!!!

Shaving Technique:

Grab your fabulous scrub, your razor, and your coconut oil. Fill up your tub, and soak for a few minutes.

 

 After soaking for a few minutes here is what you need to do:

• Using your Coconut Oil, shave your leg
• Once shaved massage your leg with your fabulous scrub, take your time and enjoy it, and then rinse
• Now shave your leg again. You heard me, shave again. (Rinse your razor often, you will see why)
• Repeat with your other leg.
• After your bath, use your favorite lotion, or use the Coconut Oil as lotion.

The first time you shave it removes the hair. After you use your fabulous scrub, which loosens dead skin cells, the second time you shave it removes all the gross cells. 

How to clean your mattress the natural, chemical free way!

 I read an article about the creatures and dirt living in the average American's mattress, and I almost vomited. First thought " I HAVE TO GO CLEAN OUR MATTRESS!" 

I didn't want to use any chemical products however, so I turned to my best friend Pinterest. 

Here is what you will need:
1: Baking Soda
2: Kitchen strainer or mason jar with holes poked in the lid
3. Essential Oil of your choice ( I use peppermint )
4. Your  mattress

How to do it:

STEP 1: First I remove all bedding, and go ahead and throw it in the wash! I like to have everything fresh! I do this once a week!  Just so you know ahead of time, this process takes about an hour!

STEP 2: Lift up your mattress and vacuum really good in between the mattress and box spring. Might as well, it only takes two seconds!

STEP 3: I use a little mason jar with lid, add 1 cup of baking soda, and add about 5-6 drops of essential oil to it.( I like peppermint or lavender) Pop the lid on, and shake it up really good!

STEP 4:  I have seen other posts where they use a kitchen strainer for this part, but mine didn't do the trick. Instead, I poked a bunch of little holes in the lid, sprinkle the mixture all over your mattress, and leave it up to an hour. {This gives me plenty of time to do my laundry for the bed, and clean up a little more around the house.}

STEP 5: Now get out your trusty vacuum, suck up all the baking soda. You can say Auf wiedersehen ( goodbye ;-0)  to all of those nasty bed bugs and dust mites while your at it! {Trust me, they're in there} The baking soda is great because it draws up any deep dirt and ick that has been lying there in your mattress, along with any moisture because we all sweat more than we think at night.  Also, the smell of the oil  is amazing, and will make you sleep like a baby!

Perfect polish every time!

Let's talk fingers and toes!

 As usual I found this nifty little trick on my beloved Pinterest. I have been using this trick for a while and thought I would share it!

All you need is the polish of your choice, Q-tips ( I use a eye shadow angle brush as seen in the photo),a cuticle stick and Vaseline.

Before you start painting make sure you have CLEAN nails. I use one of those things to buff my nails. A common mistake is also to make them shiny but the nail polish will stay longer when you only buff them!

Put some Vaseline on your brush/Q-tip, wipe it around your nail, being careful to not get it on your nail. The polish won't stick to wherever the Vaseline is.

Use the cuticle stick to wipe away the extra.

Honestly that's all is takes!! Hope you try and enjoy it as much as I do!!!

P.s. another little secret when it come to wet finger nail polish.. run your nails under cold running water and it will dry MUCH quicker without smearing !

          

                                                         

Ladies, are we not all tired of scrubbing, picking, and screaming at our nail polish to come off?

If you are anything like me, you love painting your nails but hate when it starts to chip and the time comes to REMOVE the what now likes to pretend is superglue on your nails. ( impossible to remove!)

Luckily God gave us Pinterest ;-) So I went on my search to find an easier way!

As luck would have it, I found the absolute easiest nail polish removing technique that will also save you  money. Come on now, how awesome is that?!

What you will need:

• Cotton balls ( here is where you save money) 

I usually only need one, sometimes two cotton balls to remove ALL nail polish!! So buy the big bag and it lasts FOREVER!

•  Nail polish remover ( I usually just buy the store brand cheapo brand and it works great!) 

1. Take the cotton ball and unravel it. tear it into ten little finger sized pieces

• Dip the torn cotton ball pieces into the remover ( not too much, just enough to where it's not dripping everywhere ) and place the wet cotton onto the nail. ( make sure its covering all the nail polish.
• wait for a minute or two
• Grab a new piece of Cotton ball and wipe off the wet Cotton from your nail while pressing down with some force ...Or as my Husband would say "use your man hands". Do this from your nail bed to your nail tip. This way , your nails will not be damaged.
• If you do it correctly, almost everything ( if not everything) should come right off your nails.
• If there is anything left you can dip more cotton into the remover and wipe the rest off easily.

Picture below on how it worked for me!!! I love this and plan on using this technique every single time!

I'm back!

Well as you can tell I have not posted a new blog in quite some time.

I got very busy and caught up in life as one does.

I have however decided to start taking time for myself and doing some of the things I love when I need some down time. 

So here I am with a TON of new blog post ideas so please stay tuned! ( especially for you pinterest lovers)