Friday, December 3, 2010

Easy Natural Gift Ideas to Make & a Sweet Recipe Too!

Hello Dear Ones!

Here are some nice natural gift suggestions done by our daughter, Marianna a couple of years ago. Marianna and I have our level one herbology certificate (Family Herbalist) and we are trying very hard to achieve more natural ways of spicing up life.

I'll follow up with a sweet recipe for you as well for scrumptious melt in your mouth Molasses cookies from Marianna. Having four daughters is a blessing, they love to cook and create so it usually looks something like You Can't Take it With You (1938) ....Me? I'm the mom on the typewriter with the kitty as a paper weight! LOL Instead of making fireworks in the basement, hubs is either making his music in his recording studio, or scooting out the door with a brief case to his small town office...Sewing, cooking, creating and we're all creative messies. Imagine that? (Never come over unannounced!) Ha!

The first video is on making your own naturally fragrant bath salts, enjoy!


How to make natural body & linen sprays. How cool is this? : )


How to on making natural body powder! Is this not neat?




And here is Marianna's Molasses cookies, she found the base for the recipe in an old paperback copy of Fannie Farmer Cookbook. These really do melt in your mouth, I am not a fan of spice cookies or things of the sort, but oh my....These are what I call wowee!

Here's Marianna's variation of the recipe:

Marianna's Molasses Cookies ~Marianna

1/4 cup molasses
1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup dark-brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon groundcloves
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1 egg
1 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Mix the molasses, butter, brown sugar, and egg in a bowl, combining well. Mix the flour, salt, spices and baking soda together, add to the first mixture, and blend thoroughly. Arrange by teaspoonfuls on ungreased cookie sheets, about 1 inch apart, and bake for 6-8 minutes or until crisp and lightly browned. Sometimes Marianna will place a pecan half on each cookie. So homie!

And here's a tip from yours truly, Mama-Mi-Mi ; )

Since we're talking molasses here, did you know if you have a bitter pot of coffee (horrors!) especially if your kin folks are over....You can add a drop of molasses to a cup and voila! That molasses has a way of taking that bitter taste right out. You can also add a teaspoon to the coffee maker basket when making coffee too. Try it! : ) So far, I've not had it fail.

Enjoy your families! Enjoy this advent season, I'm trying hard to keep things in proper focus on Christ keeping things simple but wondrous and sweet too. : )

K.I.S.S. Keep it simple sweeties! (I got that from Dr. & Dorothy Moore years ago on homeschooling). Oh that we would have more Dr. & Dorothy Moores! If you ever get a chance, check their books out, they were and are a blessing!



If you get the druthers you and your entire family may be very blessed by a Bing Crosby radio program on my VisionforaGodlyHome.blogspot This is a WONDERFUL old time 1940s radio program with a precious, precious story of a special little donkey.... along with GREAT Christmas music by Bing!





Also some old time 40s movie suggestions will be gradually posted in the comments section of VisionforaGodlyHome.blogspot as we think of them for the Christmas season.

Here is one favorite called "Meet John Doe" (1941) in entirety, it's not digitally remastered as a bought copy or televised would be, but I think you'll enjoy it just the same. What a Christ glorifying message. When we came back home with my baby girl from the birth center one beautiful late November night in 1993 we watched this movie for the first time, talk about a sweet memory!

Movie: Meet John Doe (1941) in entirety!

Movie Description

Bless you all! (Said in the most southern drawl imaginable) *Muah* (A sister kiss on the cheek) ~Amelia