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Tuesday, April 11, 2017

Spring Cleaning with Apartment Therapy: Day Two




Okay. I am exposing my embarrassing fridge for the day two challenge. Lucky you.

Before
A little over a year ago, we purchased a Samsung counter depth food showcase refrigerator. We love it. It is perfect for teens, and we literally have seen a difference in our electricity bill because we put the most commonly used foods and condiments in the front showcase. After a while, though, laziness sets in, and things start being put "wherever it can be shoved". We also made a rule that all leftovers or carry-out must be placed in our storage containers. It doesn't always happen, but really, this has been a HUGE help in keeping things less cluttered and chaotic. It also helps limit food waste and we are more prone to recycle the other containers right away. I find Styrofoam vile and a health/environmental hazard, so we try to get our food out of those types of containers as quickly as possible anyway.

I can't get enough of the InterDesign and mDesign acrylic fridge/food organizers. They make life a lot easier. We also use the special green-lidded Rubbermaid containers for fruit and veggies which lends to even more naturally easy organization with quick identification of the type of stored and slower food spoilage. It may not be designer beautiful, but it is extremely functional. Still, we are not perfect, so day two was a good kick in the pants for us as a family. 

Everyone pitched in a little for this one. Hopefully we will maintain our clean and organized fridge...well, at least for a couple weeks longer than last time...Baby steps.

After- Inside



After- Showcase Door


Happy Spring Cleaning!

Faith




Monday, April 10, 2017

Spring Cleaning with Apartment Therapy


'Tis the season for Spring cleaning, but for me, it's a bit more of necessity since we are preparing for a big move. While we are packing and planning, sometimes the mundane chores get lost in the larger projects. When I came across the Apartment Therapy challenge, I decided to sign up to help me stay motivated and on task. Even when tired and sore, a little extra 20 minutes is worth the peace of mind and the comfort of a community ritual.

First day: Cleaning the rubbish bins in the kitchen

I made my son do it.

Yes. I know. I'm horrible.

;)

Maybe tomorrow will be something less vile from having two teenagers in the house and I will take a picture of my progress.

Happy Spring Cleaning!

Faith 


Friday, April 7, 2017

Adventures in Gardening: Stevia (not Truvia)




On my forever quest to find healthy alternatives to refined sugar for the family and for my guests, I have definitely found one that I have fallen in love with over the past couple years after I grew it in my herb garden for the first time in 2011.  The name of the plant is Stevia, and it is very likely you have heard of it before since it is mentioned in commercials for a product called Truvia.  I am not recommending Truvia in any way. I have not used it. I have since purchased stevia packaged by Trader Joe's, and am pleased with the product, however, there is nothing like growing it in your own yard.

I have started to grow it in my butterfly garden section of my yard instead of the herb garden with even better results.

One very cool way to sweeten coffee calorie free is to add the dried leaves to the coffee beans in the grinder, or the crushed leaves to your coffee grounds.  Same goes for tea.  While I know it can be purchased in highly processed form from the grocery store under the name Truvia, I am always hesitant when something is processed to the point of unrecognizable.   I still have dried leaves, and have ordered the plants from Michigan Bulb and purchased from our favorite local nursery, Schwartz's Greenhouse.

Happy Gardening!

Faith