Spring Planting

Spring is finally here, and now it is time to start my plants in the house. I start my plants inside 6 to 8 weeks before I want to plant them in my gardens outside. Now that we have longer days with sunlight, it’s time to start those plants that need a little head start.

Here are some of the plants that I start early.  I plant peppers, chives, parsley, honey dew melon, musk melon, watermelon, and tomatoes. This is just a few of the plants that I start early.  Most of the seeds that I use are from the year before. I save my seeds from my plants each year and dry them out. Then I store my seeds in zip-lock bags and use them the following year to plant. Free seeds are always nice to have.

Now it’s time to plant those seeds. I reuse my pots from year to year, so I do not have to buy pots. If you run short on pots try using containers you have around your house. I use cottage cheese containers, glass jars, spice containers, or any other container you can find. Poke a hole in the bottom and use the covers for drainage. Always buy some good potting soil to plant your seeds in.

My daughter wanted to do something different this year so we also planted some flowers. So I took some of my odd sized containers and let her decorate them before she planted her seeds. She decorated one with tin foil and another one with wrapping paper. When her flowers come up she can give them away as gifts or keep them inside or outside during the summer. This is a nice little project for your children to do. They can watch their flowers they planted grow.

As my plants start growing, I will post some pictures to show you how they are coming along. Gardening is one of my favorite hobbies, and as the summer progresses I will show you more of what I plant and grow. I love having my own fresh fruits and vegetables that I have grown with my own hands. Spring and summer are a great time to be outside getting your hands dirty and playing in the dirt.Try planting your own seeds instead of buying them, this saves time and money, Happy planting from Suzie Homemaker.

Easter Egg Brunch

Happy Easter! Easter is a time for getting together with friends and family. This time of year the flowers start coming up and hopefully, winter is coming to an end. Every year at this time we have a special Easter breakfast that my family likes to make and eat. So today I will be giving you my families Easter Brunch recipe. I make this recipe many times a year, but Easter is a special time that we share this recipe with the whole family for Easter breakfast.

Easter Egg Brunch

                8 eggs                                         1 Quart of milk (skim, 2%, or whole milk)

                2 teaspoons mustard                    1 teaspoon salt

                1/2 # shredded cheese (any flavor you like) I use Cheddar Cheese

                ½# bacon or ham                           Bread any flavor about 12 pieces

1.       Take a 9 by 13-inch cake tin and spray it with non-stick spray.

2.       Take your bread and butter them. Place the buttered side of bread down inside of pan.

3.       Take your cooked bacon (or turkey bacon), or ham and sprinkle them over your first layer of bread.

4.       Sprinkle half your cheese on top of bacon or ham.

5.       Take a blender and mix together your eggs, milk, mustard, and salt

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6.       Pour ½ of the mixture over your bread, bacon, and cheese.

7.       Repeat the same process with another layer of bread, bacon or ham, cheese and then pour the rest of the egg and milk mixture on top.

8.       Bake at 325 degrees for 50 to 60 minutes.

This Egg Brunch is delicious and very easy to make. The recipe I am showing you today is only a half recipe. You can make as much as you like. Have a Happy Easter from Suzie Homemaker.

Doing Surveys for Cash Rewards

Today, instead of savings tips I going to show your how to make a little extra cash each month. Everybody likes a little extra spending money once in a while, so I thought I would show you how I make $55.00 dollars a month by only spending 1 to 2 hours a day on my computer. I will give you the two web sites I use to make extra cash, plus and extra web site I just started for more cash. I am talking about doing surveys and watching videos and reading news articles. You can spend as much time as you like or have available to do these easy surveys. When you have enough points just turn them into cash or gift cards. These web sites have so many different rewards to pick from.

The first web site I use is www.swagbucks.com. This web site has many different ways to earn points. I do surveys, Daily polls, Daily offers, Videos and more. To the left of the page is all your opportunities for surveys and more. Under Discover, you can find printable coupons, which you can use and earn points for redeeming them in your local stores and printing them. In the upper right corner is where you can watch your points add up. Press on the little round picture to redeem your points. This web site is so much fun and has a lot of surveys to pick from like. Gold, Partner, and Peanuts surveys. This one I usually earn $50.00 dollars a month just for doing some surveys.

The second web site I use is www.bing.com.  This web site all you have to do is search news articles. In the upper right corner do extra searches for extra points. After 475 points, earn your reward. This web site I usually earn $5.00 a month because this is all they will allow. This takes me less than 5 minutes a day to do.

The third web site I just started using so I don’t know how this will go yet. But they pay cash and the surveys are similar to the swag bucks surveys. My daughter found this web site for me. The web site is www.ipoll.com.

Everybody likes a little spending cash once in a while, so why not try this out. Spending 1 to 2 hours a day really can pay off. With just the first two web sites I make $ 660.00 dollars a year. Adding the third web site just gives me more cash. Have fun doing surveys and giving your opinions, while earning cash from Suzie Homemaker.

Stain Remover for Stainless Steel Pans

How many times have you burnt on some food in your stainless steel pans? Well, my oldest daughter decided to make a batch of popcorn in one of my stainless steel pans and did not add enough oil and burnt my pan pretty good. I tried Soft scrub and then I tried an SOS pad and it would not take out the stain. I thought my pan was ruined. So I did some research and I found an easy recipe for cleaning my burnt stainless steel pan. So today I am going to show you my burnt stainless steel pan before and after I used this recipe.

Here is my stainless steel pan my daughter burnt popcorn in. As you can see there are a lot of little black dots from the popcorn. Like I said I scoured and scrubbed and still could not get this pan clean until I tried this easy recipe.

First take your pan and put 2 to 3 inches of water in the bottom. Next add ¼ cup of baking soda and ¼ cup vinegar. Stir the baking soda and vinegar together and boil for 15 to 20 minutes. Take off the burner and let cool for 30 minutes

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After the liquid is cooled I just took a sponge and a little dish soap and washed the pan out. With very little effort the burnt on popcorn stains disappeared. If the stain still does not disappear repeat the process over again.

Instead of using all those harsh chemicals I used things I already have at home. This recipe is easy and very inexpensive to make and use. Hope this helps with some of your burnt on stains from Suzie Homemaker.

Easy Sock Pouches

What to do with old socks that are getting bad. Don’t throw them away yet. If you have socks with the heels getting thin or holes in them, I have an easy project that the children can help you with. So today I am going to show you what I do with old socks.

I cut off the heels and save the tops. Take the cut-off sock and inside it out and sew up the bottom. You can make these in different sizes and colors. I like to have different colors so I can color code them.  This is my way of knowing where all my remotes are.

I use these sock pouches for glasses, TV remotes, cell phones, soda cans and for my pens in my purse. These pouches are so easy to make and they keep everything clean and safe. With all the remotes you have in your living room I make an extra bag to hold all the sock pouches. Previously I showed you how to make a tie around waist clothes pin bag. I use the same pattern  but make the straps longer so I can tie them around the arm of my couch. This is where I keep all my remotes in the living room so I do not lose them.

Everybody has socks and the do get thin and old, so why not use them for an easy project that the children can help out with. Like I said before I do not like to waste things, so I find ways to reuse them. This is a quick and free way to use old socks. More saving ideas coming soon from Suzie Homemaker.

Homemade Poppy Seed Bread

As you all know I love to bake from scratch. Here is another recipe that my whole family loves. When I make this recipe I almost always make a double batch and make 4 loaves right away, because my husband is the first to eat almost a whole loaf. So today I will give you my recipe for Poppy Seed Bread.

Poppy Seed Bread

1 Package Yellow or White cake mix                                 4 eggs

1 3 oz. package instant vanilla pudding                              1 cup hot water

½ cup canola oil                                                                1/4 cup poppy seeds

Beat all ingredients together for 4 minutes. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 to 50 minutes in 2 greased and floured pans. This bread is quick and easy to make. The bread comes out moist and delicious.

Enjoy a nice loaf of warm Poppy Seed Bread today. More family recipes coming soon from Suzie Homemaker.

Homemade Quilts vs Store bought Quilts

How many of you have quilts on your beds during the winter? I know I do and so do my children. Today I would like to talk to you about quilts and how expensive they are. The last time my mother-in-law bought me a quilt I had to look twice and say that’s a quilt. I took one look and said it’s so thin how can this possibly be a quilt. I now use it for a throw over my quilt for a bed spread. Quilts are very expensive and very in thickness and quality and price. So I am going to show you several store bought quilts and homemade quilts. I think you know where I am leading to here, I own homemade quilts.

First the store bought quilts range in price from $25.00 dollars to over $300.00 dollars. These quilts can vary in thickness and quality. My mother-in-law always wanted my girls quilts to match their room and style. This can become very expensive, so I let her buy these quilts for them. But me girls always went back to their homemade quilts, because they were always warmer and thicker. Here are some store bought quilts in different thicknesses.

Now I want to talk about homemade quilts. I grew up with a homemade quit and still have one today. My girls have homemade quilts and so do all my nephews because I made them for them. My mother has a quilting frame which I used. You don’t have to have one to make a quilt by hand, but is does make it a little easier to tie them.  Here' is  my homemade quilt and my girl homemade quilts.

Making a homemade quilt is a lot cheaper and you can control the thickness for warmth. My youngest daughter wanted a blue quilt so I went to the store and bought two flat sheets, quilt batting, and yarn to match her quilt. If you do not have a quilting frame just lie your sheets on the floor and place your batting inside and sew up the sides. Next cut a piece of cardboard into a big square (any size you like). Use your square to mark where you want to tie your quilt. This will help keep your batting in place. When buying your batting always remember to buy washable batting.  After the winter season, I just wash my quilt and put it away for next winter.

My oldest daughter decided she wanted a patch work quilt, so here is where all your scrap material comes in handy. Between me and my mother, we sewed a lot of squares together to make the front of her quilt. The back of her quilt was a flat sheet. Then we used yarn to tie her quilt.

When I tied the quilts from the quilting frame I sat underneath and pushed the needle up while my mother pushed the needle down. This was fun for the girls to help out making their quilts. If you do not have a quilting frame just lie the quilt on the floor and fold the quilt as you go when you tie it.

My homemade quilts are warmer and thicker than store bought quilts because I can control the thickness. Plus I can make a homemade quilt for under $75.00 dollars. I have owned my homemade quilt for over 30 years now.  Have fun making and creating your own quilt and save money in the process from Suzie Homemaker.