Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Those Baby Facts are Amazing

Children grow up really fast. In one moment there is nothing more than a few cells and almost immediately vital organs are being built. That tiny ball of cells only needs forty weeks to grow and form a human being capable of living on its own. Even after birth the changes happen quickly-personalities and decision making seem to happen almost at once. Things like moving on their own, needing help with diaper changes and even how they learn to speak are pretty commonly understood. Here are some interesting tidbits and trivia about infants that you might have fun learning.

By the time most women learn that they are pregnant, their babies already have pumping hearts. The heart forms and begins beating around three weeks after conception takes place. It is pretty much right around this date that a woman realizes that she is pregnant. If you ever wanted an excuse to be fascinated by babies the fact that it only takes three weeks to build a beating heart would probably do the trick! Doesn’t it blow your mind that the foundation of the heart that you have now only took a few weeks to make?

Did you realize that some people give birth to babies who already have teeth? Other babies have to wait longer than usual and won’t see any teething until they are almost toddlers.

A baby’s first teeth are momentous and dreaded by many parents. There is no reason to fret if your child starts teething earlier or later than his peers. All babies develop at their own paces and even if your other children started teething at a certain age, there is no guarantee that this baby will do the same.



But what to do if you are kind of unsure exactly who the father of that new baby is? Thank goodness for paternity testing! Just by collecting a simple paternity testing sample, you can figure out who the father is and get on with your life.

Babies are able to physically communicate before they can verbally communicate. Many parents use this as a basis for beginning the “baby signs” program with their kids. These parents teach their kids how to sign for things like food, drink, diaper changes, naps, etc and it makes it a lot easier for babies to communicate what they need. Communication skills of adults who were taught physical communication style before verbal communication style are better than those who were simply taught how to talk as young kids. Babies are really interesting little people. Nobody really knows exactly how they learn or how quickly they learn it. The one thing everyone can agree on is just how quickly babies change and how amazing it is to watch them grow up.

Monday, August 29, 2011

Can It! Preserve with Preserves

Have you ever thought about canning fruit but believed that it was too difficult and time consuming? It is a lot less difficult than you feel! Besides, in the winter months when the fruit is out of season you can still appreciate the jelly, jams or preserves that you made. Canning is a great way to both save money, be self sufficient and make the most of your bountiful harvest. You can use a water bath canning set up, but personally, I prefer a good solid pressure canner both for ease and peace of mind.



Jams - They are made from chopped or crushed fruit, sugar, pectin and lemon juice as the acid. It contains the soft pulp or puree of fruit but does not include chunks of fruit.

Jellies - Sweetened fruit juice that has been jelled with the aid of pectin and lemon juice as the acid. It is typically clear and bright.

Preserves - Is frequently mixed up with jam, the principal difference is that preserves include complete chunks of fruit. Cooked with sugar until the fruit is suspended in a syrup, it is not jelled.

Marmalade - It is a soft jelly that is normally made from citrus that consists of the complete fruit such as the peel.
The sugar balances out the bitterness from the rind.

Fruit Spread - Is the same as jam or jelly except rather of making use of sugar an artificial sweetener is utilized. Thus it is 'low calorie' version.

Fruit Butter - Fruit butter is not actually butter as it does not include any dairy butter in it. Rather it refers to how simply it spreads. It has the consistency of butter and spreads as easily. It is a fruit puree, lemon juice as the acid, sugar and assorted spices.

How to Pick Your Fruit for Preserving

It doesn't matter if you are producing jam, jelly or a fruit spread, picking the right fruit is vital to a good result. I see so several 1st time canners and preservers use overripe fruit and then wonder why it didn't turn out appropriate. They mistakenly feel that the overripe fruit that is really soft will be easier to make into a jam or jelly.

Most folks don't comprehend is that the enzymes in the fruit have begun to break down the sugars and pectin in the fruit turning it from delicious to yucky.

In my experience, I've identified that a ratio of 1/4 slightly under ripened, (just not too under ripened). Eventually you will find your own sweet spot. To 3/4 ripe fruit yields the best final result.

You will find that measuring out the proper amount of fruit is vital to producing a productive homemade batch. Rather of measuring out by volume, weigh your fruit. Depending on the size and shape of the fruit whole, there will be air pockets in and about each piece leading you to acquiring the wrong quantity. Good quality recipes will give you a complete approximate volume and then a processed volume that you need to be working with.

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Take a Step to a Greener World

I'm trying to find ways to make a difference in my little world that will affect the entire world (eventually, kind of like the butterfly effect).  Here's some stuff I'm doing now:

  1. Buy used books and magazines
  2. Recycle the books and magazines when I'm done
  3. Dry my clothes on a clothes line
  4. Turning up my thermostat this summer
  5. Cutting back on my showers and baths
  6. Carpooling (preferably after a shower, lol)
  7. Local harvests