Homemade Ice Pack

I've seen quite a few "recipes" if you will, on how to make a homemade icepack, and most call for 2 cups of water and 1 cup of rubbing alcohol. I added a bit more water to mine because it wasn't really freezing. Maybe my rubbing alcohol was stronger than normal.... Not sure.  I also added a couple drops of blue food colouring. A great way to get rid of it, as I will never use it for actual food after discovering how bad it is! Just wanted to share :) 

You will need:

1 cup rubbing alcohol

2-3 cups water

3-4 drops blue food colouring (optional)

2 large ziplock bags

Mix all ingredients in one ziplock bag. Push all the air out and seal (don't suck it out... haha... the fumes are strong!). Then place inside the second bag (just in case it leaks). Place in freezer for a few hours. If it doesn't seem to be freezing at all, just add a little more water. If its freezing too much, add more rubbing alcohol. 

Giving my couch new life!

It's no secret that my couch needed a good cleaning.. lol. We have had it for 4 years, and it has been through a lot, especially with 2 toddlers!  Wiping it with a microfiber cloth and water was working for awhile, but it lost it's touch.  I found some helpful hints online and tried them out, and they worked great! I don't have complete before and after pics, as I wasn't planning on blogging about it, but I have a couple. I also used some old pillows, took the stuffing out, and used it to get rid of some of the sagging in the back of the couch. Who knew that there were handy little zippers hiding underneath that would allow you to do this?? Lol. Oh how I love the internet! 

I used some rubbing alcohol, an empty spray bottle, a stiff bristle brush (kinda like this one),  baby wipes (I used Kirkland brand), and a blow dryer. The method I used was putting the rubbing alcohol in the spray bottle, spraying/saturating couch (small sections at a time... I did a square or 2 at a time on my couch), giving it a good scrub with the brush. and the a good scrub/wipe with the baby wipes (you will go through quite a few!). You will see the dirt come off on the wipes. Somehow the rubbing alcohol helps lift the stains and also helps get rid of old water marks. You can then blow dry they area. You probably don't have to blow dry, but it dries faster, and also allows you to see if you missed anything right away. You should do a little test in an inconspicuous area just to make sure it won't affect the color. My couch is fairly light, so there were no issues. I used this method on my entire couch, but it will also work as a spot treatment in the future :) Happy cleaning!! 

The below pic is the "before". The left side has been cleaned and stuffed with extra pillow stuffing, the right side has not:

After stuffing and cleaning:

Before cleaning:

After cleaning:

Cherry Delight

I've made this a couple of times and I love it! So yummy and so simple! The picture isn't the greatest, but I promise it tastes really good! I should have scooped it with and ice cream scoop or garnished it with a mint leaf to make it look nicer, but I just wanted to eat it! Lol. 

You will need: 

3 cups frozen, pitted cherries

1/2 cup non dairy milk (I used unsweetened soy)

2 Tbsp pure maple syrup

1/2 tsp almond extract

3 Tbsp non dairy chocolate chips (optional)

I used the vitamix to make this, as the tamper comes in handy, but a food processor would work well too. I don't think a regular blender would work too well though. 

Combine the cherries, milk, almond extract and maple syrup in vitamix or food processor and blend until smooth. Add chocolate chips in last and blend just long enough to chop them up a bit so that you have little chocolate pieces in your mixture. Spoon into bowls and enjoy! Makes 2-4 servings, depending on how much you want! :)