Carnival #101

This week our carnival can be found at Greenhab: One family's journey to green up their lives. This is the home blog of Kellie, one of the MIFS contributors. Thanks Kellie for a wonderful carnival!

Be sure to head over there for the entire carnival, but here are a few that I found particularly interesting:

Fused Plastic Valentine Heart

This is a project by RecycleCindy. I love all of Cindy's projects, but most of them are out of my skill set since they involve crocheting. This one is different. Incredibly cute, and something even I could make!

Homemade Nest Boxes for Chickens

Love these ideas for re-purposing items for nest boxes. If you raise chickens in the city or the country, there is no need to spend a lot of money to keep your hens happy. 

Winter Vegetable Pie with a Cheese Crust

The cheese crust sold me on this post. Though, I have to admit, I have no idea what kind of cheese that is in the recipe! Of course, the using what you have, and making a large quantity at once were also great features to this post.

Would you like to host a carnival or contribute to this blog? It is easy. Just email makeitfromscratch (at) yahoo.com for details!

Of other interest around the blog world:

The Homesteading Carnival

You don't have to consider yourself a homesteader to enjoy this carnival. This carnival is full of recipes, crafts, and other do it yourself ideas. 

Holmes County, Ohio: My Favorite Places

This is a shameless plug for a guest post I wrote for Scribbit. 

Firsts on the First - Making a Map Cake

Welcome to the February edition of Firsts on the First. This is a monthly feature where I share something I've tried to make for the very first time, fail or succeed. Last month I tried Coffee Liqueur. This month the kids and I made a map cake. 

We've been studying ancient history this year using Mystery of History Vol 1 as a beginning text. After every three lessons there is a time line and map activity. After a series of lessons about Egypt, the map activity was somewhat different than any map I have ever made before. It was a map made from a cake. 

Start with a yellow sheet cake. We used the simplest recipe I could find in the Settlement Cookbook, but of course, you could use a mix. Then we mixed up a simple butter frosting. About 2/3 of the frosting was colored orange. The other third was made blue. 

Turning the cake long ways, we scraped out a bit of the cake at the top of the pan where the Mediterranean Ocean would be on the map. Then, using the back of a knife, a groove was made for the Nile River. Both of these were frosted in blue. The rest of the cake was frosted with orange. (Pardon my out of season table cloth!)

Next, flags were made for the places we learned about by simply cutting a square of card stock, writing the location on it, and taping it to a toothpick. Then the flags were placed in their appropriate positions. Chocolate kisses were used to represent mountains (I think the kids got a tad bit carried away with the mountains,) and chocolate chips became pyramids. A map cake of Ancient Egypt:

This was a fun and fairly easy project, not to mention the most delicious map ever. The kids had a lot of fun making (and eating) it. Wish I had known about this lesson plan when I was teaching. My middle school students would have loved it!

Did you try anything new last month? Share it with us by adding the link to your post below! (It is perfectly acceptable to link to posts that have also been included in the carnival.) 

Fun From Scratch

As I sit in my living room writing this, I am looking at what can only be described as a toy disaster. The room looks as if a big toy bomb went off and rained down doodle pads and legos and match box cars from the sky. I'm realizing two things. 1) My 3 year old has more toys than should be allowed by law. 2) We didn't buy them!

I'll admit to getting him a few toys/games at Christmas. For his birthday we buy him one gift. And that's it for new things. Throughout the year we may pick something up at a yard sale or thrift store once in awhile, otherwise he is seriously spoiled by friends and family.

I almost hate to admit (okay, I absolutely LOVE it) that his favorite toys right now are the rocket ship that his dad helped him make last weekend and the flying caterpillar that he and I made this week. It makes me wonder just what would happen if we weren't blessed with so many generous people in our lives. Would second hand and hand made be enough for him? I'd like to think so.

Here are the projects we did this week...

#1 - The spaceship

My son is totally into rockets and astronauts and planets this month. He has the planets more or less memorized (although he calls them "Jupiper" and "Saturin").

He and his dad got all MacGuyver on a paper towel roll and cardboard from a cereal box. We don't even use paper towels anymore so I had to go dig out a secret stashed-away roll and unravel the paper towels from it. They cut out "legs" for the spaceship and taped them on, then made a cone for the top. All put together with duct tape. Not exactly environmentally friendly, but much more so than the plastic rocket they saw at the store that was made in China from goodness-knows-what kind of chemical-laden plastic, right?

(My husband took these photos, I think this was his attempt at a MacGuyver joke!)

Little one played with it all day, flying it around and giving a play-by-play of what was happening. He's developing quite the little imagination!

#2 - The Caterpillar

This idea came from a little book we found called Making Caterpillars and Butterflies by Sandy Dunbier. We haven't tried the butterfly yet, but the caterpillar was super-easy. You take an egg carton and cut out a strip from the bottom. That's the body. Have the child paint it and decorate with anything you have on hand. We don't have any glitter or sparkles like they suggested, so we just painted ours. Then use a pipe cleaner for antenna. We also glued on button eyes and yarn for a mouth.

These projects are so easy. They not only keep your child occupied (especially on those winter "inside days") but they teach things like planning and following directions. In the end, they have a toy they can be proud of, that has cost you next to nothing, and is much easier on the environment than what you'll find in a store.

~*~
I'll be hosting next week's Make if From Scratch blog carnival over at my blog Greenhab. I hope you'll all enter!

Double Delicious Cookie Bars

Okay, this is not one of Stephanie's great, healthy and resourceful recipe posts. This is Heather punting in Stephanie's place while she anxiously awaits her power being turned back on. So I have a great, simple and sweet treat for everyone tonight and I hope you'll enjoy them!

Double Delicious Cookie Bars
1 stick (half-cup) margarine or butter
1 Package Graham Crackers, crushed (about 1.5 cups)
1 14oz. can sweetened condensed milk
2 C. (12 oz.) Chocolate Chips
1 C. (6 oz.) Peanut Butter Chips


Preheat oven to 350 degrees (325 for glass pan). In a 13 X 9 inch pan, melt margarine in the oven. Sprinkle graham cracker crumbs evenly over the margarine; pour milk over the graham cracker crumbs. Top with both types of chips and press down firmly. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until lightly brown on top. Cool; cut into bars. Makes 24-36 bars.

This recipe was given to me by my sister-in-law and originally came from the Hershey's website.

Heather is a wife, mom,
school cafeteria worker,
councilwoman and babysitter from Ohio.
She also blogs at Heather LessiterIts All for the Best
and The Fat Bottomed Girl.

We Have a Blogger Down. I Repeat, We Have a Blogger Down.

Stephanie called me today and asked if I'd post a blurb letting our faithful Make It From Scratch readers know that her power has been knocked out by this winter storm slicing its way through the middle of the country.

And I was all, "Don't worry, Lady. I got your back."

She probably won't have power until sometime Friday, so please be patient and excuse the absence of her regularly scheduled food post on Thursday. I'll be putting one up in her place. I know those are big shoes to fill, but I wear a size 10 myself, so I hope that will do. LOL!

Kellie and I have some great posts coming up in the next few days as well, so you can get your Make It From Scratch fix!

Anyone else out there digging out from the storm?

Carnival 100 - One Hundred Years Ago

Welcome to the 100th edition of the Make it from Scratch carnival. To commemorate this edition let's take a look back to what was happening 100 years ago.

In 1909, the President of the United States was Theodore Roosevelt, but not for long. William Taft was inaugurated in March of 1909. The NAACP was founded. Peary and his companions reached the North Pole, and American singer Burle Ives was born. 

Life was very different then. Much of what we take for granted today had not even been dreamt of a hundred years ago. Now, we have the choice of cooking from scratch or buying ready made items. Then, cooking from scratch was the norm.

Making jam is one thing that many of us still enjoy doing today. Store bought just doesn't compare. Kate is making Peach Jam. Simple and delicious.

Joanna @ OneKrustyMama tackles homemade pizza, including the crust in Pizza Pizza.

A new recipe for Chewy Chocolate Cookies is shared by ChristineMM. Unfortunately she can't share the recipe, but she does tell you how you can get your hands on it. They look delicious. 

Mary gives us some more chocolate goodness,  5 Minute Brownies. These are made in the microwave. Guess they weren't making 'em like this in 1909. 

Rani shares another simple sweet treat, Crispy Rice Cookies.

This is how I imagine they may have cooked 100 years ago. Waste not. Want not. Jason shares Money Savers: Making Many Meals From Whole Chickens.

And while we are talking chicken, how about Cream of Chicken posted by How to Me.

The Smarter Wallet is trying to cook more meals at home. See what is cooking,  Cheap Meals You Can Cook At Home To Save Money! 

This was a time of transition in America. Most items were still made by hand, but technology was advancing rapidly.  The Model T had just been introduced, and soon the assembly line would become part of the American factory. 

I could just picture Karen's Pretty Knit baby coat and its matching bonnet in a photo from the early 1900's. It is a lovely classic.

Love these Twin Martian Dolls shared by Deanna aka Pop Tart. At another blog she shares  Five Recipes For Finger Paint. 

And to go with that finger paint, Make an easel and painting box. Great idea Grandmother Wren!

In If you can't beat 'em upcycle 'em  Kellie shares how she turned the containers from her husbands stock up purchase into something pretty and useful.

Heather shares a fun Valentine that won't sugar up the kids; You're All-Write Valentine. 

vh creates a pretty and economical solution to a gardening dilemma in Cheapskate's landscaping.

Ah the dishwasher, a modern convenience that I am so thankful for. Timbuck2mom found that Homemade Dishwasher Detergent left something to be desired. 

Crafting a Simple, Marvellous Desk Calendar is on the agenda for Vera Lang.

Raily Arena presents Tips To Get You Started On Selling Your Home, even in this economy. 

Do you think anyone 100 years ago could fathom the technology of the computer? Sometimes I am astounded by it.  50+ Free Open Courseware Classes for Web Designers Perfecting Their Craft shared by Fiona King. 

Thank you for joining us for this 100th edition. Next week our newest contributor extraordinaire, Kellie, will be hosting at Greenhab: The Browns go Green. Be sure to get your submissions in and join us there.

And don't forget, Firsts on the First is coming this Sunday. Try something new and share with us how it turned out. 

Image credit: Hagerstenguy,

Image Credit: Old Picture of the Day

Hand Made "You're All-Write" Valentines

These hand made Valentines are a great way to 'spread the like' on Valentine's Day. They are especially good for boys to give out being that they aren't always as keen on the lovey-type valentines found in the stores.

Along with being sweet without being overly affectionate, these treats are fat and sugar free. I have to admit that while I don't deprive my kids from sweets, I am usually the Mom who gives out the non-candy treats for holidays. Do they really NEED another candy bar or gummy whatever in their bags? Our state has instituted a wellness policy in our schools that allows limited sweets at school parties and this is perfect for those situations, too.

Skip the crowded seasonal aisle and head straight for the stationery to whip these up in a jiffy! Use your imagination to come up with other phrases if you'd like.

MATERIALS NEEDED

Memo-sized notepads

Cardstock or paper

Stamps, stickers, markers

Computer and printer

Printer labels (optional)

Scissors or paper trimmer

Adhesive (I used Glue Dots)

Pencils (optional)

Step 1: Print your saying on printer labels or directly onto card stock. We used the phrase, "Valentine, You're 'All-Write!' Your Friend, Steven." Trim to fit if necessary. Place labels onto paper or cardstock.

Step 2: Trim cardstock or paper to fit the cover of your memo pad. Mine were about 2 5/8 X 4 1/8 inches.

Step 3: Decorate your card with stamps, stickers or other art supplies as desired.

Step 4: Attach to the cover of your memo pad with adhesive.

You can see the different steps I took in the photo below. Set them up in an assembly line to make several at one time.

Other phrases you could use are:

~Write on, Valentine!

~You're the 'Write' one for me.

~You're picture perfect. (With a small stick figure or smiley face drawn on it)

Heather is a wife, mom,school cafeteria worker,councilwoman and babysitter from Ohio.She also blogs at Heather LessiterIts All for the Bestand The Fat Bottomed Girl.