I recently tried dry shampoo and I was so pleased that I thought I’d share the information. I used the recipe for dry shampoo found here.  I went to Target, Home Goods, and Walmart looking for a shaker like the one pictured. I did not find one. The closest I got was a parmesan cheese shaker that I found at Walmart for $1.97. The holes on this shaker are large enough to easily get the shampoo out and onto my hair. I used the recipe as it was written, but I doubled it. This gave enough to completely fill my little shaker.

Normally if I don’t wash my hair, it will be oily near the scalp, especially around my face. On day one after washing. So I was excited about an option that would possibly let me go longer without washing my hair. I have mixed feelings on shampoo products. They seem to be a necessary evil in my life.

I washed my hair normally on Friday morning. On Saturday morning I took my shaker of dry shampoo out onto our back deck. I figured that with my long locks, it was going to be messy.  After brushing my hair, I shook the shampoo on and worked it into the roots as directed. I made sure to get the areas close to my face and around my ears. I used a natural bristle brush to brush it out. It was indeed messy brushing the shampoo out. I don’t see myself ever doing this inside our house. I also had to frequently tap the brush or run my hand over the bristles to get the shampoo out of the brush. I brushed & brushed and I’m glad I did. I LOVE the results! I will be dry shampooing for many years to come I’m sure. It’s very cheap, it’s easy on the hair (as far as I can tell), and it gives great results!

I am so pleased with my dry shampooed hair! My hair is very thin and it’s committed to being straight as a board. This leads to rather boring hair dos in my humble opinion. I know it’s the style for some, but when it’s the only style you can mange, it gets old. The dry shampoo makes my hair behave as if it’s thicker. I can back comb it, I can muss it up…and it stays! I do use a little bit of freezing spray if I really want it to stay as I have it.  I’ve been having a lot of fun trying out styles from these pages on Cup Of Jo’s blog. I feel like I have new hair, hair that I love!

My freshly "washed" hair.

Check my Youtube channel for more video tutorials on knitting, crochet, and sewing.

The crochet cast on is a provisional cast on used in projects where you want to have live stitches at the beginning of your project. This cast on is used in my Butt Knits Traditional Wool Soaker pattern.  In this video I show you both how to create the crochet cast on and how to “un-zip” it or remove it when you are ready to.

Additional picture tutorials can be found here on the blog, and also on ButtKnits.com. Patterns are available in my Etsy shop & there are free patterns available here.

Recently my husband and I took a short trip to a larger city. It’s been a while since we left a sprawling metro area. And now we  remember some of the reasons why.  Though we do miss some big city perks like fancy museums, Trader Joe’s, Whole Paycheck Foods, IKEA, zoos, etc, what we do not miss is being looked at like “breeders“.  By looked at I mean, actually stared at with mean and ugly faces occasionally accompanied by rude comments and heavy sighing.

I’m not going to get into the debate about how many children one should or should not have. That’s way too serious for this blog! You can use Google to find those sites and discussions if you are so inclined. Rather, I thought I would share a few of my favorite comebacks when confronted with the usual, “You have FIVE children!” And by the way, if you just happen to be a realtor and you WANT to sell a house to a family with lots of kids, don’t say that phrase with disgust. It causes an equal reaction on the parents part. You know, the people who will buy the house which culminates in you receiving a paycheck.  Yes, I’m feeling a little feisty this morning!

Here are some of my favorites…

• “Wow! You’ve got your hands full!”
  I need a good comeback to this one. I’ve tried the looking at my empty hands. I’ve tried saying I have a full heart. I need something better…
• “There’s a way to fix that you know.”
  Why would we need to fix something that’s clearly not broken.
• “You know where babies come from right?” and “You know what causes that right?”
  Yes I do, don’t you?
• “I’m glad it’s you and not me!”
  My kids are glad it’s me and not you too!
• “Are they ALL yours?” (where to begin – there are so many wonderful things to say to this one)
  I like to look at them thoughtfully, maybe even count them, then say “Yes. I think so.”
  “No, I don’t recognize that one.”
  “No, the others are at home with their Daddy.”
  “No, this is only about half of them.”
  “Why do you ask?”

I think of all of the answers to the usual questions, asking “Why do you ask?” is one of my favorites. If you’re not feeling joyful that these parents before have children, then clearly you’re not “asking” a simple, friendly question. You are judging. You are probably even being rude. I don’t ask people with no children or with just one child why they don’t have more. I either see if there is some common ground we can converse on or I mind my own business. I don’t ask them if they would like some sex advice on how to make a baby or if they’ve been to a doctor to see if they can get fixed.

Does all of this mean that I am incredibly happy having so many children? Yes! Does it mean that my children are always perfect angels and I never have a bad day or an embarrassing family moment in public? Heck no! Being a mom of many is not easy. Being a mom of one can be a challenge! But just because I have a rough time of it, it doesn’t mean that I want advice on how to use birth control. It would be so much more fruitful to offer a hand or a “I have SO been there” nod or word of encouragement. That would really be more helpful than kicking me while I’m down. Don’t you think?

Have any great comebacks you use? Tired of hearing the same lines over and over and over and over….
Share it here!

Today my oldest child is 10 years old. A decade as he likes to say. The big 1-0. Double digits. He is tall. His foot is a mere 1/2″ shorter than mine (and I have big feet!). He has a wonderful smile and a very intelligent outlook on life. He loves to read. When Daddy comes home from work having stopped at the library on the way and delivers books to him, he calls it “Book Christmas”. He is immediately engrossed in a book. He actually gets in trouble from time to time for reading when he should be doing something else. Being a book lover myself, I love this trait about him.

He loves to talk. He has an amazing memory. He can recite things word for word after hearing or reading them. Especially commercials. Thankfully this has decreased now that we don’t have TV. I used to get the full run down on the benefits of the Snugee or the glass ball that waters your plants. Now I just hear word for word what he has read. Which is often entertaining.

Most of all, I love him. I just enjoy him. He’s responsible, entertaining, and honest. He is, dare I say it, our guinea pig. The first born. He is the child we have learned on. All of our five children are different and wonderful and we learn a great deal from all of them. They all require new learning and lead us into new areas of parenting. But the first child is special. Mom & Dad have no prior experience. No hands on experience.  Only books and other parents to turn to for advice.

I had no idea when he was born how deeply he would change my life. How much growing I would have to do to be a mother. I certainly thought I had it all down pat before he arrived.  We had been urged by friends and family to use the Ezzo method of parenting (Babywise). This seemed like a great idea to us. Baby would be sleeping through the night at 6 weeks and life would be perfect. I’ll warn you now that if this is a sensitive subject for you, please feel free to click away. I’m about to get all soap-boxy…

Here is a site that I found (yesterday – wish it had been around 10 yrs. ago) that can give you some background on the Ezzo parenting methods and the controversy that follows them.  Prior to my son’s birth my husband and I read the parenting guide and did our best to prepare for baby. Though our Bradly birth instructor was one of those “weird” moms who let her 18 mo. old nurse (gasp!), we held to our beliefs that babies needed to be trained – right from birth.

Though I consider myself to be a fairly intelligent person, I could not seem to grasp the feeding schedule. What with a sore body, giant boobs, and trying to get this new baby to nurse, I was lost when it came to scheduling him to nurse. I even had my husband write down the schedule so that I could abide by it. It just didn’t flow though. I was constantly watching the clock and beating myself up when I mixed things up. And then there was the crying.

Our beautiful new boy had a powerful set of lungs. He cried every time I put him in his crib. It was AWFUL! I called fellow Ezzo parents for advice. I was told

• close the door to his room and turn up the TV
• listen to music on headphones so you can’t hear him
• lay him on his stomach with a pacifier in his mouth so he can’t spit it out

Finally, one mom said the key words, “You are his mom and you are the only one who can decide what’s right for him.” Ironically she would later decide that our children could not socialize because we were not raising our kids by the Ezzo method. Her words stuck in my mind. Soon I would be staring down at my little baby in his crib. He was purple-ish from crying. There was a ring of sweat around him on his crib sheets from his frantic crying. I truly believe that I felt the Lord speak to me saying, “Woman, pick up your child.”  And I did. It dawned on me that if we had company – I would not leave my baby to cry. I would have tried to quiet him. If, pardon my brashness, but, if Jesus had been over to visit us, I certainly would not have left my baby to scream and cry while I offered him a drink of water. Of course not. And if Jesus were there in physical body, I believe he would have picked up the child himself if I had not.

There was no more crying it out at our house. He co-slept, he was worn in a sling every day, he was nursed whenever he wanted to nurse. And you know what? He is turning out just fine!   And now I have that one missing thing that new mothers lack when trying to muster the gumption to tell others to mind their own darn business…I have experience. Ten years and five children worth. It’s been tough. It’s been challenging. It’s been amazing. Each night as I rock my 9 month old I take time to be aware of her. Her smell. Her softness. The wonderful sound of her breathing. Trying to memorize each second and burn it into my memory. It doesn’t work. I did the same thing with my now 10 year old. Yes, I remember smelling him and loving the sound of his breath. The warmth of his body next to mine. But the actual bliss of the moments; it fades. I know I loved it. I know I don’t regret one rock of the rocking chair or one hot and sweaty afternoon of wearing him in the sling. But the experience fades with the years. So mothers, love your babies. Love them dearly and truly. Love them for the amazing and wonderful creations they are. Nurse them. Hug them. Snuggle them. Enjoy them. They are tiny for a very very short time. Bond with them. Let your family and friends think you’re crazy. Maybe you are. But you are your child’s mother and you are the one who chooses what is best for your baby. Remember that.

If you are a parent who has chosen differently, I don’t judge you based on that. I do not believe that based on that choice you are a bad parent. We have family and friends who chose the cry it out method and they have no regrets either (at least not that they’ve mentioned to us). I’m sharing my experience in an effort to encourage mothers who may be on the edge and feel torn between the advice in a book and their own mothering instincts.

Two great sites:
Dr. Sears
La Leche League International

We love hummus at our house! Unfortunately it’s a bit on the expensive side when you’re on a strict budget.  I’ve had a hard time finding a recipe that tasted “right” to everyone in our household who eats it.  Here is the recipe that I have finally come up with that makes us all smile

I have not tried this recipe with canned garbanzo beans, though I’m sure it would still be yummy! I have found that using my pressure cooker to cook the beans makes them nice and smooshy – perfect for creamy hummus.  Here’s how I prepared the beans…

1 bag dried garbanzo beans (1 lb/16 oz.)

Pre-cook the beans by rinsing them and removing any discolored or broken beans. Place in pot with enough water to cover plus 2″.  Bring to a boil over high heat. Boil for 3 minutes, remove from heat, cover and let sit for about 1 hour. If you prefer, you can soak the beans over night instead.

To pressure cook them I used the guidelines on this page.  I cooked the entire batch of beans (the 1 lb pkg. as above) with enough water to cover plus 2″. I cooked them at pressure for 25 minutes and then used the slow release method to let out the pressure (remove from heat and allow pressure to decrease slowly over time). Once the pressure had released I drained the beans, covered them and put them in the refrigerator. This is enough beans to make a triple batch of the hummus recipe below.

Making the hummus…

Place the following in a food processor:

• 3 cloves garlic
• 1/4 C. water
• 1/4 C. lemon juice
• 1/3 C. tahini
• 2 C (14 oz.) garbanzo beans (cooked as above or canned)
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 1/3 C. olive oil

Process until smooth & creamy. That’s it!

Did you try this recipe & like it? Scroll down and share it!

I have finally finished my socks knit from Conjoined Creations Flat Feet sock yarn. I say finally because I started them in July of 2008.

When I first saw this sock yarn I just had to have it. I was intrigued by the idea of knitting from flats. I was also interested in seeing how the designs on the flats translated onto the sock. I cast on using the stitch pattern from the Swirl Sock pattern. I worked them two at once, toe up, using the magic loop (my standard method for socks).

It didn’t take me long before I decided I did not like the colors of the yarn. Then I decided I didn’t like the patterning of the sock pattern with the yarn. And it was clear from the beginning that I did not like knitting with the yarn. I just never got to a point where I liked the yarn. The kinkiness was too much for me. I also noticed that the stitches seemed distorted on the socks as I knit them (due to the kink of the yarn).

With all this negativity why did I go on? I wanted to give the yarn and the pattern combo a good chance. I wanted to love them. Then, at some point, I began to feel that I was too far into the project to stop. I’d just finish them and wear them whether I loved them or not.

I finished them yesterday. Soaked them in cool water with Eucalan. Blocked them on sock blockers. I am wearing them today. They’re comfortable. I have decided that I do like the parts with more pink in them. I think what throws of my color love is the orange parts. I think I would have liked them more without the orange part.Overall, even a less loved pair of hand knit wool socks is far better than a pair of store bought socks.

Have you used this yarn? Love it? Hate it?

I have been on somewhat of a break from the internet recently. I must say, I’m getting a lot more done!

This week I’ve been working on finishing up a pair of longies for my 2 year old.  All of his winter longies are a few inches short so he has been in need of a new pair.  I worked up a pair of steely gray (they may look black, but they are a really dark gray) and white longies with deer in a wintry forest. I LOVE them! They’ve been washed in Eucalan and are drying. I’m going to cheat and put them on heat register to try to get them dry for him by tonight. 

I’m also sewing up some cloth diapers for my daughter. I am addicted to using the kits from DiaperKit.com! I hate cutting out multiple pieces  and DiaperKit’s pre-cut kits make it so darn easy! Although the kits are great by themselves, I like to add an extra layer of a cute printed flannel. I can get 2 body cuts and 2 full size soaker layers (trifold). I’m making butterfly soakers (tutorial here). I love the butterfly soakers for my heavy wetter! I’ll be doing another post about the entire process of how I sew diapers using the kits.

What have you been up to?

I’m so excited to be just one sale away from 100 sales at my new Etsy shop, Amber Perry Patterns. To say thank you, I will be giving a free pattern away to the 100th buyer. The 100th buyer at Amber Perry Patterns will have their choice of one (1) free pattern from the shop.
Who will it be?

UPDATE: We have a winner! Congratulations to diaperhoudini for being my 100th customer at my new shop! Thank you all for making my transition from Butt Knits at Etsy to Amber Perry Patterns at Etsy a really smooth one!

I’ve been offline for a few days due to a huge storm hitting West Virginia. We lost power at 4:23 am on Saturday morning. We had power restored at 11 am on Monday. It was a long few days. We were able to stay in our house. Thankfully no pipes broke and there were no major events other than the power outage.

I want to really encourage you all to be prepared for such emergencies. We have moved twice in the last year and had let our supplies dwindle. We had no propane for the camp stove. We had no firewood. Not a good situation to be in. We did have some knowledge though and that helped us to get through until we were able to get wood and propane.

You can make your own “Sterno” at home for heating water. It is an open flame. By that I mean OPEN FLAME! Especially when initially lit. The flame starts out tall and then gets shorter. I found this to be true each time it was lit (not just the very first time). Never to be put where it can tip over, get knocked over, be around children (we have 5 of those), etc. I decided to clear one side of my sink and put the can in the sink to hopefully minimize any accidents. The flame is burning off alcohol so it can not be put out with water. I wanted to be clear that I put it in the sink not so I could douse it with water, but in case it tipped over I would at least not have flame rolling across my floor.  I was also careful to clear the area around the sink of anything flammable.  This homemade cooking/heating gave us some hot water and our first hot meal (Spaghetti-o’s) in 24 hours.  Having a way to heat food & drinks really boosted our moral.

Supplies:

• Large metal can & its lid
• Roll of toilet paper
• Isopropyl alcohol (rubbing alcohol)

How To Make:

Clean The Can: You need a large clean metal can and it’s lid. In our case, I emptied a can of crushed tomatoes into a bowl, cleaned the can and lid (be careful of sharp edges) and dried them. Do NOT throw away the lid!

The Toilet Paper: Remove the cardboard tube from the toilet paper roll. Fold the TP roll in half length wise and then in half again (you’re crushing the roll and making it as compact as possible). Insert the roll of toilet paper into the can. Wrap additional toilet paper around your hand (making a mini-roll of TP) and compact in the same way you did the large roll – use this to fill in any spaces. Repeat until you have the can tightly packed with toilet paper.

Adding Alcohol: Slowly pour the isopropyl alcohol over over the TP in the can until the TP is saturated. This took nearly 2 bottles in my case.

Use:

Hold a match to the alcohol. It should light right up. This will burn nicely for quite some time. To put the flame out simply lay the lid on top of the flame. I am told that snuffing (eliminating any source of oxygen) is the only way to put this flame out. That is why you need the lid. I used tongs to put the lid on because I had them available. Make sure the flame is out and keep it out of the reach of children.

After several uses you see a bit of charring on the TP & some blue candle wax from lighting it (we were conserving matches).

You will need to hold the pot above the flame (resting the pot on the flame will put it out). I used an oven rack across my sink.

**Please know that I am sharing this in the hope that it may come in handy one day to you or your family. I am in no way a survival expert. YOU are 100% responsible for your safety should you choose to try this. I can make no guarantees on how well or how safe it is. As with any open flame; you must make sure there is proper ventilation. Keep yourselves safe! I used the canned heat several times before we were able to obtain propane for our camp stove and I had no problems using it. I made sure my children were no where near me when dealing with the can in any way.

If you pop on over to Muthering Heights you can read all the details and enter to win either a Butt Knits longie pattern or a pre-cut, ready to sew cloth diaper making kit.