Fall Spider Web Craft

So the Fall is slowly coming upon us, but don't be fooled, September is only 6 days away so we are well on our way to full blow Fall weather. Along with the weather changes there are many things right like the leaves changing colors and falling, the morning dew returning (at least here in Delaware), and most importantly, the spider webs. Ever notice that there are so many more spiderwebs in the fall than in the spring? Well heres why:
"Garden spiders have a seasonal timetable. They hatch in the spring, reproduce and die in the fall. So while they lie low in the early summer (trying to keep from being eaten), by now the survivors are large enough to start spinning webs. And they're in a hurry because the females need to lay their eggs and, well, you know ... that "die" part." To read this article click here


But enough about that, if you are a craft person like me then here is a simple fun activity to do with kids of any age, or even just for yourself.

All you need is:
1 can, white spray paint
1 piece of construction paper

All you need to do is:
Find spider web, and spray it all over with the spray paint, then place the construction paper behind the web and press it up against the web. Then cut the web along the edges of the paper, and Voila!!!

You can also switch up the colors. My mini and I decided to use glow in the dark paint and make some glow in the dark webs for halloween. Be creative, and please share your spider webs with me.

Two ingrediants, two days, Mommy hack to summer rash cure!

So my daughter was experiencing a terrible rash on the back of her neck to which we discovered was a heat rash,also known as miliaria, so I did some research and came up with a remedy that not only cooled, and calmed her down enough at night to get her to sleep peacefully, but also got rid of her heat rash completely in 4 days.

I decided to do a corn starch and Aloe Vera mixture that I could apply heavily to her skin every afternoon when she come home from school, and night after her bath. I would say that you can apply it during the morning as well but it looks really weird when it dries, and it kind of gets on everything.

So I used ½ cup corn starch and ½ cup Aloe Vera. (I used the Aloe Vera that had no dies or perfumes added because they are always really sticky and would counter effective to the cleaning out of her pours.)

Then I mixed (in w whisking fashion) these two ingredients together with a small fork until nothing was separate anymore, and it simply looked like a white lotion.

I applied it every afternoon when she got home and every night after her shower before bed. I saw results by day 2 and by day 4 the rash was completely gone. 

For other tips and tricks to staying healthy check out the blog entries at www.beyoutfit.com

Natural Squirrel Repelant

So as some of you know I have had a squirrel climbing into my house now for few days and it is not to pleasant to have a crying squirrel stuck behind your walls, nor is it fun to wake up to the nonstop scratching of them trying to get in or out of your house through the worlds smallest space. So after being woken up too many times by this little guy I decided to do something about it. Ok so quick back ground before I tell you what I did is that as child my father loved birds and so we had bird feeders everywhere, and all the little birdies came to eat and build nests in our trees. Little did we know that squirrels happen to like the same food as birds and squirrels are bigger, and scarier than the birds. It wasn’t long before all of the birds were gone and there were only squirrels. We stopped putting out food, but by that time the squirrels had already settled in and were trying anything and everything to find some food, they starting eating my dogs food and would have no fear of us trying to chase them away. My parents bright idea was to then catch the squirrels in traps and then drown them in a big trash can of water.  This actually worked for them, and about 2 summers later we were squirrel free, but my father never put the bird seed back out again.

Because of this though I was determined to get rid of this squirrel in a more humane way. I found out that squirrels hate hot peppers. All of the homemade repellants though only included cayenne peppers, which for some reason I could not find in actually pepper form, anywhere! So I decided to try out some recipes and see what worked for me and my squirrel.

 

1 Green Pepper (you want a male pepper, because they are more acidic and do not have the sweetness of the female pepper. To tell the difference look for the pepper with 3 bumps at the bottom instead of 4.)

2 cups red wine vinegar

3 cups water

5 Jalapeno Peppers

1 juicer                         

 

Chop the tops off all the peppers and cut them down to manageable sizes that you can put in your juicer. Then juice. (be careful when you are juicing the Jalapenos that you do them slowly and do not breath in deeply. Some of the juice is going to come out the top and it may choke you up a bit. Save the reins.)

Pour the juiced peppers into a container, then add the 2 cups of vinegar,

and top off the rest with water.

Leave this container out uncovered at room temperature for about 2 days, and then transfer to an empty squirt bottle. (When you squirt this make sure that you are up wind, or that you are not in an enclosed space. The juice is strong and you do not want to inhale it if you can avoid it.)

***The reins can be used to make a super-hot salsa, or add them to a chicken rub to make it extra spicy!!!***

I have a garden as well and some cats that like to run around my neighborhood. This mixture should keep away a multitude of animals, and although it is spicy it is 100% consumable and non lethal to any animals. 

Are you a victim of Cyber Slacking?

Companies have been cracking down about what they are calling cyber slacking. Employees are spending less and less time actually working, and more and more time watching videos, checking emails, or hanging out on social media. Companies are starting to discuss calculating how many hours are actually spent working vs how much are spent cyber slacking and then only pay the employees for time they spent working. From an Employers standpoint that sounds fair, but not so much from the employees right. Well for those of you who have started to fall into a cycle of cyber slacking, or slacking in general, I have put together some tips on how to help improve your ability to avoid distractions, and not just the electronic ones.

I am very prone to allowing distractions to consume my time. I have to constantly focus and refocus myself in order to stay concentrated long enough to finish the tasks that I am asked to complete. I make lists, find non distracting places and focus for certain amounts of preestablished time in order to get the most work done in the most efficient way. These distractions come to me for work, school, basic day to day obligations, just about everything, and having a phone does not help. There are many times that I turn my phone on silent and put it away in order to get a few hours of work done, however in my experience I always miss the super important phone call that won’t answer when I call back (right now it’s my tax accountant, who seems to call me everyday during my studying time and leaves his office 20 minutes after calling.) When it comes to relationships though i stay on task very well. Not only do I mean this for an intimate relationship where I am not distracted by the urge to cheat but I mean in it in relation to any and all relationships in my life, where as I become consumed in doing for others most of the time, and so I become so focused on doing the task for someone else that it often has the opposite effect. instead of become distracted with other things in my life I become devoted to doing the one thing that can help that person. So for me personally this is a challenge because most of my distractions are internal. My brain never stops working, I actually over think most things. I also have terrible anxiety which causes me to run through list after list of things that need to get done or didn’t get done, or need to be redone, which is a huge distraction as well. Here is how I cope with distractions.

1. Write Lists: Not only will this help you to stay organized, and prompt, but for those of you have suffer from anxiety , or just have a huge workload the list serves a physical representation of the weight you no longer need to carry, you can see the things you’ve crossed off, the things you’ve accomplished. You can now see what is left to do, so you do not need to worry about forgetting about it, or over-looking it.
2. Turn it OFF: Radio, Phone, TV, Social Media. I know it’s hard, when you are sitting down at the computer to do homework and you are on the internet, not to go on facebook, or YouTube, but think back to the last time you were on youtube, you probably started off watching a relevant video and ended up watching grandmothers losing their dentures, and the worst part is you can remember how  this escalated. Point is that if you turn off the music, and the tv, and the phone you have already eliminated distractions such as my jam coming on, your BFF texting you about her BF LOL, the hilarious talking baby commercial, and many others.
3. Location: Yes your location matters;location and time. Do you have an office? A daycare/sitter? A library pass? A student ID? USE THEM!!! If you are trying to get work done and you are sitting in the kitchen with a toddler running around then chances are you won’t get much done. However if you chose to work when your children and/or loved ones are out then no one has to play 20 questions with you. Sometimes just being alone isn’t right, try going to the public library, the wifi is free, and you are completely alone there and able to work in private. If the library works use it if not trying creating an office setting in your house, or if you are in school using the school campus resources (library, computer lab, tutoring labs). I love suggesting that people go outdoors to concentrate, and this method works for many, unfortunately for me I get distracted in wanting to hear and see the birds chirp or feel the wind more closely and then being outdoors becomes a distraction for me.
4. Posture: I know this sounds silly, but yes sitting correctly can help. So, when you are laying in bed or sitting in bed doing homework your body is already relaxed and material that does not grab and hold your attention will set you off to sleep. So sit in a chair, and use a desk or table. When you use a desk or a table you back is in a better alignment then if you are slouched over on your bed or on your lap. Your wrists are also in better alignment this way. This might not seem like a big thing, but being comfortable is. If your back or neck or wrists start to hurt, not only are you causing long term damage(carpel tunnel, etc...) but your brain triggers your body to want to move and find a different position or walk around which then causes you to take a break and lose your train of thought.

Graduating Class of 2015... need help concentrating and staying focused during your future studies ...?

I am very prone to allowing distractions to consume my time. I have to constantly focus and refocus myself in order to stay concentrated long enough to finish the tasks that I am asked to complete. I make lists, find undistracting places and focus for certain amounts of pre established time in order to get the most work done in the most efficient way. These distractions come to me for work, school, basic day to day obligations, just about everything, and having a phone does not help. There are many times that I turn my phone on silent and put it away in order to get a few hours of work done, however in my experience I always miss the super important phone call that won’t answer when I call back (right now it’s my tax accountant, who seems to call me everyday during my studying time and leaves his office 20 minutes after calling.) When it comes to relationships though i stay on task very well. Not only do I mean this for an intimate relationship where I am not distracted by the urge to cheat but I mean in it in relation to any and all relationships in my life, where as I become consumed in doing for others most of the time, and so I become so focused on doing the task for someone else that it often has the opposite effect. instead of become distracted with other things in my life I become devoted to doing the one thing that can help that person. So for me personally this is a challenge because most of my distractions are internal. My brain never stops working, I actually overthink most things. I also have terrible anxiety which causes me to run through list after list of things that need to get done or didn’t get done, or need to be redone, which is a huge distraction as well. Here is how I cope with distractions.

1. Write Lists: Not only will this help you to stay organized, and prompt, but for those of you have suffer from anxiety , or just have a huge workload the list serves a physical representation of the weight you no longer need to carry, you can see the things you’ve crossed off, the things you’ve accomplished. You can now see what is left to do, so you do not need to worry about forgetting about it, or over-looking it.
2. Turn it OFF: Radio, Phone, TV, Social Media. I know it’s hard, when you are sitting down at the computer to do homework and you are on the internet, not to go on facebook, or YouTube, but think back to the last time you were on youtube, you probably started off watching a relevant video and ended up watching grandmothers losing their dentures, and the worst part is you can remember how  this escalated. Point is that if you turn off the music, and the tv, and the phone you have already eliminated distractions such as my jam coming on, your BFF texting you about her BF LOL, the hilarious talking baby commercial, and many others.
3. Location: Yes your location matters;location and time. Do you have an office? A daycare/sitter? A library pass? A student ID? USE THEM!!! If you are trying to get work done and you are sitting in the kitchen with a toddler running around then chances are you won’t get much done. However if you chose to work when your children and/or loved ones are out then no one has to play 20 questions with you. Sometimes just being alone isn’t right, try going to the public library, the wifi is free, and you are completely alone there and able to work in private. If the library works use it if not trying creating an office setting in your house, or if you are in school using the school campus resources (library, computer lab, tutoring labs). I love suggesting that people go outdoors to concentrate, and this method works for many, unfortunately for me I get distracted in wanting to hear and see the birds chirp or feel the wind more closely and then being outdoors becomes a distraction for me.
4. Posture: I know this sounds silly, but yes sitting correctly can help. So, when you are laying in bed or sitting in bed doing homework your body is already relaxed and material that does not grab and hold your attention will set you off to sleep. So sit in a chair, and use a desk or table. When you use a desk or a table you back is in a better alignment then if you are slouched over on your bed or on your lap. Your wrists are also in better alignment this way. This might not seem like a big thing, but being comfortable is. If your back or neck or wrists start to hurt, not only are you causing long term damage(carpel tunnel, etc...) but your brain triggers your body to want to move and find a different position or walk around which then causes you to take a break and lose your train of thought.