Granny's Helpful Hints

April 18, 2005 was the day my Granny Aline passed away.   There were times she would call me and say, “Gina, you’re on my mind.  Everything okay?”  She always said she had a special bond with me.  It was amazing that 99% of the time when she asked, I had a bad day and needed to talk to someone.  She was a good listener!

Anyway, today, I was racking my brain trying to figure out what to blog about.  Granny popped in my head.  I decided to go through some of her recipe boxes for a good recipe to share.  But I ran across an index card ring with some helpful hints instead.

So, here is just a few helpful hints she wrote…

Flea Prevention

1.  Rosemary and water- boil for 1 hour and cool.  Strain.  Pour water in spray bottle and add a little more water.  Spray on cat or dog.

2.  Put pine needles under the pet’s bed-will keep fleas out of the house.

3.  Add garlic and Brewer’s yeast to food-will keep fleas off pets.

Slow Drains

Use Plumb Clean-it is the best!

Repairing Wallpaper

When seam pops up-raise and apply clear nail polish to seam, press, hold for a few seconds-seams will be sealed.

Dingy Whites

Try whitening formula of 1 cup automatic dishwasher detergent and 1/3 cup household bleach added to one gallon hot water.  Be sure to mix in a plastic or stainless steel bucket.  Soak your whites in solution for 30 minutes.  Remove and wash as usual.

Prevent Color Running

Soak colored clothes in water with a little vinegar, then wash normally.

Fluffy Rice

Add a teaspoon of lemon juice to cooking water to make rice fluffy.

Paint Smell

To remove paint smells when painting add two tablespoons vanilla flavoring to each gallon of paint.

Sticky Price Tag Glue

To remove sticky glue left when removing price stickers on merchandise, use small amount of peanut butter worked well into surface, wet a small amount of terry towel and rub gently til all is removed.

Ice Cubes

Put ice cubes in brown paper bag-they won’t stick together in freezer.

Lighting Candles or Fireplace

Lit a stick of uncooked spaghetti for lighting a fireplace or candles on a cake.

Well, folks, there you have it.. Granny’s helpful hints.  If I run across some more I will be sure to let you know!  Enjoy this glorious day!

God bless..

U R Challenged!!

Spring is obviously here with the 3 inches of pollen on my van.  Spring= Spring Cleaning!!  [or at least that’s what Grandma always taught.]   Grandma would wash windows, curtains, and move her furniture around [just to clean out from under it].  She would scrub the walls, inside and out, beat her rugs, and got on her hands and knees to wash the floor.  It was a time to really air out the house..the windows were open and the warm sunshine made everything sparkle.

Grandma was a gardener.  [Sadly, I didn’t get the green gene…can’t even keep silk plants alive.]  So, the week after Easter, she was busy doing two things:  planting and cleaning out the freezer to make room for the current summer’s crop.  She would give away to family and friends the extra veggies she had frozen.  She even refused to go to the grocery store until everything was eaten out of the freezer.

So here’s your challenge….

1.  Take a “before” picture of your freezer(s).

My Deep Freeze

Kitchen Freezer

2.  Make sure you have enough milk, eggs, butter, and bread..purchase if you need to..unless of course you have some in your freezer.

3.  Do not purchase food except for the basics (eggs, milk, butter, bread) until your freezer is empty.

4.  Record how long it has taken you to eat what you already have stored up and how much money you saved while doing this challenge.

5.  Take an “after” picture of your freezer.

And the best part:

6.  Email me at regina@reginadettra.com with your challenge results and pictures.  Your email will be put in a drawing for a cookbook to be given away on April 28th.

Good Luck!!  Happy Eating!!