Working with Eggs
April 30, 2008
Bad eggs are rare but they do occur. Crack eggs into a separate bowl before mixing with other ingredients. If the egg is bad it will have an unmistakeable odor.
If you find an egg stuck to the carton, fill the indentation with cool water and let sit for five minutes. The water will soften the dried egg white that is holding the egg in the carton.
Many techniques are used for cracking open an egg. Their is an easy method you can use if you want to keep the eggshell out of the frypan. Using the following method will keep the egg shell from shattering when you crack the egg.
1. First, find a flat surface, you want to crack the egg on a flat surface and not on the edge of counter or frying pan.
2. Place the egg in the upper part of your palm, between your thumb and first three fingers. Leave a space between your middle and ring finger. Give a short, sharp crack to the exposed area on a flat surface.
3. Once the egg is cracked, quickly bring the egg over the bowl or pan and quickly spread apart the two halves of the shell. Pull the lower half down with your ring finger, while pushing up the upper half with your thumb and middle finger. The egg will gently fall into the bowl as the shell spreads apart.
If you drop an egg on the floor, pour salt on the floor, heavily. Wipe it up fifteen minutes later. Salt will set up the eggs protein so that it’s easier to clean up.
If you have to clean up a mixing bowl that has eggs coated on them, use warm water. Hot water may set up the egg’s protein and make it harder to wipe off the bowl.
George Lake updates his blog Monday-Friday with cooking tips and recipes that relate to each other. Check out the following blog if you want new recipes and additional cooking tips:
http://www.dailyrecipes.blogspot.com
Fashionable Mom
April 30, 2008
You’re a mom and you’re still thinking about being ‘fashionable’? That’s the kind of response I got from someone I went shopping with. All I did was go shopping with this mom and when we passed a fashion outlet selling fashionable clothing and apparel, I commented that I wanted to get that frilly pink top with splashes of lime green that is flying off the shelves with a 70% discount tag!
Is it wrong to be a mom and still want to be fashionable? In my personal opinion, there’s absolutely NOTHING WRONG with wanting to be a fashionable mom! Being mom doesn’t mean that we have to give up our rights to being fashionable, beautiful and healthy. Being mom doesn’t mean that our lives and the entire focus of living has shifted from ‘us’ to ‘family’. Of course, without a smidgen of a doubt, being mom zaps your energy and any mom with a sense of fashion can tell you that it takes a lot to be a fashionable mom.
It already takes so much effort to dress up the kids?imagine trying to find time matching fashionable tops with fashionable skirts?and then find the blasted fashionable handbag with the same color and tone to go with the same-colored fashionable shoes! What an effort!
When we used to be single, trying to be in fashion didn’t used to be such an effort, did it? In fact, pulling out fashionable clothing off the shelves and donning them seems to come so naturally to most of us when we are young and LOOKING! Now that we’re not looking anywhere else but at our kids, we find it such an effort just to be fashionable?
And yet, being a fashionable mom is still possible! ABSOLUTELY! All it takes is some effort, planning and some common sense. And work at it!!
Marsha Maung is a freelance graphic designer and copy writer who works from home. She designs apparel and premium items at http://www.allmomstuff.com and is the author of “Raising little magicians”, and the popular “The Lance in freelancing”. More information can be found at http://www.marshamaung.com
Making Gifts A Pleasure
April 30, 2008
As we reach the time of year when Christmas items start to appear in the stores, and thoughts of vacations start to wind down with the shortening daylight, it is a good time to think about gifts. Not only the gifts, though, but also the practise of giving.
Offering a gift can be a mutual pleasure; some might say it should be a pleasure for giver and recipient. A problem with a modern commercial Christmas, however, is that buying gifts can become a chore. Often it is a stress ridden chore in the dying days before Christmas Day, as everything gets left to the last minute.
A true gift, though, should bring with it no stress; it should come from the heart to be a true gift, and not be out of duty. If someone is resentful of having to spend time and money buying Christmas gifts, then the result is not a gift but a token of duty.
Why not make this next Christmas a time to make the choosing of individual gifts a pleasure for yourself, and for the recipient. Often in the last minute haste to buy gifts in time for Christmas Day, people become detached from not only the purpose, but the person to whom they are giving. Bought hastily in a crowded stress filled store, scarcely a thought may pass for the individual on the receiving end, however close they may be to you.
Most of the year, if not all, can be filled with work, commuting, rushing here and there, stress, and self focus. How about time and attention for those who really matter in your life, whether spouse, offspring, other relatives, friends or colleagues? The choosing of a gift, and presentation of it, can be a silent way of giving each of them special attention, and then culminating with their pleasure at the receipt of the gift.
Behind every good present there is a person who worked hard to make the best choice. The secret to buying the perfect gift is to think about the message you want to send out, when the receiver opens it. If you think about his or her hobbies, to his or her vacation plans etc. It means you have really studied that person and you bought the present precisely for them, for that occasion; in this case, Christmas.
Friendship and caring are themselves are a gift, so you can see that if you put some real selfless effort into choosing gifts, the value of the gift is magnified. That is something which will shine through the wrapping paper, and in the moment of giving the pleasure that you feel in making the gesture will radiate in the warmth of your expression. The choosing and the giving of a gift are inseparable.
With Christmas some way off, now is a good time to start thinking about the meaning of giving, so that by the time Christmas comes, there will be no thinking "oh, this Christmas gift business is a chore."
Instead of thinking about the physical aspects and "inconvenience" of buying Christmas gifts, of the costs and effect on your credit card, think about the love, respect and caring that you feel for those to whom you will be giving. That way you will beat the stress before it surfaces, and enjoy the act of giving as a true pleasure.
This Christmas article was written by Roy Thomsitt, owner of the Gifts For Xmas website and http://www.xmas-ornament.com
Goals: What Would You Like to Accomplish in the Next 90 Days?
April 30, 2008
“What would you like to accomplish in the next 90 days?”
That’s the question I often ask of my coaching clients or seminar members as we begin to set goals.
Once you have answered that question, here are 10 steps to get there.
1. Ninety days
Choose something that you would like to accomplish or change within the next 90 days. Ninety days is a much more manageable length of time than a year and allows us to enjoy reaching our goals more often.
2. What to subtract
What is currently in your life that you would be willing to commit to not being there 90 days from now?
3. What to add
What is currently not in your life that you would be willing to commit to having in your life 90 days from now?
4. Choose one
Whether it is something to remove from or add to your life, pick just one thing to accomplish in the next 90 days. While it’s great to have as many goals as you might want, it’s best to choose just one thing to focus on.
5. Write it down
It does not matter how strong your memory might be, it’s still not as strong as the weakest ink. There is power in writing things down because it reminds you of where you want to go. So when life gets busy and stressful (as in most of the time), you are much less likely to get distracted long enough to lose your focus.
6. Find a model
Find people who have done what you want to do and follow the trail they have left. Success always leaves a trail that if we learn how to follow can save us frustration and time.
7. Create a map
If you wanted to travel across unfamiliar territory you would consult a map. Here are the two most powerful steps to creating your own map. Ask yourself “What are all the necessary actions I need to take to get to where I want to go?” and write down the actions you decide on and follow them. Doing this allows you to:
8. Be consistent
It’s rarely one big effort that helps us achieve our goals. More often, it’s small consistent actions taken each and every day.
9. Schedule a future action
Whatever your goal may be, right now, today, schedule a future action that anticipates the completion of your goal. If you want to get rid of a certain amount of weight, schedule a shopping trip to buy the clothing that will fit on that day. If your goal is to save or invest a certain amount of money, fill out the deposit slip now and schedule time on that future date to make the deposit.
10. Maintain and celebrate
Once you accomplish a goal, it’s all too easy to cross the finish line and stop doing all the things that got you where you wanted to go. We need to keep doing what has worked, and perhaps do even more of it.
While you are doing this, celebrate.
One of the best things about achieving goals is celebrating how far you have come. It’s fun, and it builds momentum for the next 90 days.
For more tips an tools on goal setting and goal getting visit Tools for Successful Living
Everyone Loves Flowers
April 30, 2008
Flowers Truly Reach Your Soul.
Flowers are a heartfelt, natural way to lift our spirits. They can provide a smile for a tired face or even brighten a room for a convalescent. Just imagine your favourite flower. Are you smiling yet? You are definitely in a better mood.
There isn’t a doubt that beautiful surroundings provide us with a favorite environment that helps us thrive. Flowers are an simple and affordable way to add a splash of color and emotion into your life.
Tropical flowers are an exciting new change from traditional floral gifts like roses , and with modern shipping methods they are availble worldwide. Their large size and vibrant colors make them an impressive gift for favorite occasions like Mother’s Day, Valentine’s Day, birthdays and anniversaries.
Flowers can be purchased from local florists or “Grower Direct” services that ship them worldwide. If purchasing flowers to be shipped, make sure someone is waiting to accept the order and that they are not left with the mail on a back porch in the sun all afternoon until someone comes home from work. Flowers are shipped without any water supply, and neglecting them for hours on top of the shipping time can take days off their lifespan.
If you buy tropical flowers like heliconias or gingers, or if you are lucky enought to live in the tropics and have them in your garden, here are a select few tips to help them thrive and to extend their shelf life as cut flowers.
Caring for Cut Tropical Flowers ——————————————
one. Water your plants well and give them a large drink prior to cutting. This is significant for foliage plants as well because a few varieties "drink" incredibly little after cutting. Instead, they live off their stored sap.
Tropical plants have adapted to their natural environment which means frequent but short periods of heavy tropical downpour.
Look at the flower heads and notice how the petals are "cupped" to catch and store as much water as possible. These plants drink from the top and like being showered with water.
Look at the pattern on the leaves. The ridges channel water down to the stem where it’s absorbed into the many layers of the plant.
two. If your flowers have been out of water for any length of time after cutting, submerge them entirely in the bath for half an hour before placing them in a vase.
three. Cut three to four inches off the stem and then place them in a tall vase FULL of clean water.
four. Use a spray bottle to mist them at least twice a day.
five. Change the water and trim a new end on the stems every second or third day.
You are able to double the vase life of your cut flowers by applying these elementary techniques.
Frank Vanderlugt
Visit our website at http:/www.flowers-now.info
What To Do If Your Newborn Has Jaundice?
April 30, 2008
What To Do If Your Newborn Has Jaundice?
by: Michelle Higgins
Don’t panic if your doctor tells you that your newborn baby has jaundice. Jaundice in a newborn baby is a common condition.
Most newborns have normal physiological jaundice and in very rare cases is the jaundice due to serious liver disorders.
Why my baby?
The blood cells in your baby’s body are broken up into a yellow pigment called bilirubin. The level of bilirubin needs to be kept normal by the liver and kidneys by excreting it in the baby’s poop. But the liver of a newborn baby is not very mature. So bilirubin levels rise in the blood causing yellow pigmentation of the skin.
More than 90% of newborn babies are affected by normal physiological jaundice. So relax. This type of jaundice is seen usually on second or third day of the baby’s life and disappears by the 7th or 10th day.
How to tell if your baby has jaundice
Yellow discoloration of the skin and the white of the eye is the key symptom of jaundice. Your baby may also be sleepier than usual. This could be normal physiological jaundice especially when it appears 3-4 days after birth.
Monitor your baby after 1 or 2 days of his birth. You can diagnose jaundice in the newborn baby by doing a very simple test. Press your fingertip against your baby’s forehead or nose tip. If it appears white, you have nothing to worry about. If a yellowish color appears, it is time to call your doctor. A blood test might be needed to confirm that there are no specific causes for the jaundice.
More on jaundice in the newborn
Normal physiological jaundice does not affect baby’s general health.
Breast milk can also produce jaundice in a few babies. However, the pros of breastfeeding outweigh the condition and you will probably be advised continue breastfeeding.
Premature babies are more prone to developing jaundice. Blood group incompatibility between you and your child can also produce jaundice.
When jaundice is a cause for alarm
If jaundice appears within 24 hours of birth and persists for more than 14 days, it could be pathological jaundice due to a liver condition. Other pointers include baby’s refusal to feed, dark yellow urine, pale or clay colored poop and a weak and irritable baby. Call your doctor immediately if you detect any of these warning signs.
How your baby will be treated
Normal physiological jaundice in your newborn does not require any special treatment. Adequate fluid intake is essential. Breast feed your baby at least 8-12 times a day.
A mini sunbath might be recommended. You may be asked to put your baby’s crib near the window that gets the maximum sunlight. Make sure you protect baby’s eyes and limit exposure to direct sunlight. Follow the instructions from your caregiver.
In case of severe jaundice, phototherapy or bililight therapy will be used. Your baby will be exposed to artificial light, which can decrease the bilirubin levels.
Most newborn babies have jaundice. In some, it so mild that it goes unnoticed and in some babies it may worsen to produce symptoms.
Detecting the symptoms early does help. So do keep a close watch on baby (as if you need telling). If your newborn is diagnosed with jaundice, you now know what to do.
