Hygiene Hypothesis: Are We Too "Clean" for Our Own Good?

Interesting medical college article, especially if you suffer from an autoimmune disease. Click here. If this hypothesis is true, a little dirt and germs as a child could be beneficial.

"Increased hygiene and a lack of exposure to various microorganisms may be affecting the immune systems of many populations - particularly in highly developed countries like the US - to the degree that individuals are losing their bodily ability to fight off certain diseases.

That's the essence of the 'hygiene hypothesis', a fairly new school of thought that argues that rising incidence of asthma, inflammatory bowel disease, multiple sclerosis and perhaps several other diseases may be, at least in part, the result of lifestyle and environmental changes that have made us too 'clean' for our own good."

May is the Month for Lilacs

The New Century Third Reader, The Lilac, 1899.

Lessons with Plants, 1907

Modern Prose and Poetry for Secondary Schools, Warble for Lilac Time, 1914

HT to Elena for her post, Lilacs.

Free Homeschool Stuff: Art Projects for Children

A few favorites from the Art for Kids blog:

Maud Lewis Cat Painting

Tinted and Shaded Circles

Marker Drawing

Click on titles to go to projects.

Cute Wrap Skirts for Spring and Summer

I received my wrap skirts today from Thailand via ebay, and I love them! I had a pair of wrap shorts in the early 80's which were very similar. They fit very well, and will continue to fit when I lose this dern extra 25 pounds(two sizes smaller). One of the skirts is reversible. I also got a free gift of pretty pair of neutral Thai shell dangle earrings. Low light for these pictures, sorry. I was trying to figure out what was in my hair in the first picture...dirty mirror. Note to self - clean mirror! Click to enlarge pictures.

Not a bad price(less $14.00 at auction per skirt) even with shipping, and it arrived quickly. I clicked through Bigcrumbs.com for a little extra discount, and ebay gave me back some ebay bucks. Discover card is giving back 5% on clothing this month as well. I'm hoping that ebay purchases count for this.

K-Mart is having a sale on cotton sleeveless tops for $4.00(I'm wearing one), so I'll have to go back to purchase a few matching tops for these skirts. I'm also sporting a new wedding ring in silver. I outgrew my original gold one, and they were 70% off at K-Mart. I got a new band for $19.99.

Skirts were purchased from Nepal Silk on ebay. The reversible one at top is made from silk Saris, so soft, and beautiful fabric. The others are cotton Batiks. All need to be hand washed. They fit small - extra large( true to U.S. sizes). They sell some plus sizes as well - cute sun dresses. I like the kimono style because it covers chubby shoulders and arms(giggle).

Look at the fabric on this one...it's the same style as the first one at top. I also saw a pink one which was beautiful. I love the feel of Sari material, and it works so well at keeping you cool. When I lose a little weight I'll wear my top tucked it, or wear a shorter top length to show off the skirt's waist.



I just discovered that you can wear this wrap as a sun dress, criss-crossed in the back and front. If I were skinnier, I could wrap it around to the back. I had to hold it for the picture. I can still wear it tied around the front, without the criss-cross, as a bathing suit cover-up. They have longer wrap skirts which would make a cute longer sun dress. What a versatile piece of clothing!

Free Old Fashioned Gardening Magazines

I found this over at Google books, The Garden Magazine. There are many editions from 1905 - 1920's. See this main page at bottom right to view other editions. These books are downloadable and in public domain. A tip for printing or saving pages, select HMTL mode on side bar at link.

Old Fashioned Victorian Gardens

All from vintage gardening books:

A nice list of Victorian flowers

and

Victorian Flower Garden Designs

and

Features and Equipment of the Victorian Garden, of interest - Garden paths or walks - how to build, How to make a Hot Bed, Fruit Gardens, Garden Manures, and Potting mixes in the Victorian era.

Popular shrubs: Azalea, Holly, Hydrangea, Rose, Lilac, Forsythia, Andromeda, Barberry, Peony, and Quince.

Flowers: Delphinium, Aster, Alyssum, Chrysanthemum, Tulip, Pansy, Violet, Lavender, Daylily, Hosta, and Yarrow. Crinum lilies AKA: cemetery lilies are coming back in style.

And of course all types of ferns were popular.

I tried to find modern designs for small Victorian gardens, but they were loose interpretations, very modern(almost Zen-like) with lots of concrete patios. They should appear all natural, but somewhat controlled. They used loose and wild plantings within controlled boundaries, a bit of like a cottage garden, but more formal and tidy. The pathways were typically loose materials, not concrete or hard surfaces(unless main walkway). I'll keep looking, but artist renditions are always a good source.

Here's one in London:

Found a good one thanks to Homeliving: Explore the Victorian Garden: find resources, history and information about gardening in the 19th century.

Other resources:

Old Fashioned Living: The Garden Path, a long list of plant and garden information.

Here's one under construction in Britain - notice the sharp contained boundaries which will house plants that overflow giving the illusion of naturalized planting areas.



"There is a distinct atmosphere connected with those simple one-path gardens that is most delightful. It lies not only in the gravel paths and the stiff, box-borders, but in the fragrant old-fashioned flowers that were grown promiscuously inside the trim line of box."(Garden Ornaments, 1916) This sums up Victorian gardens to a tee, and I think I feel most comfortable with this sort of garden - ordered chaos.

Free Homeschool Stuff: Online Courses and Education

A nice listing of free online courses and education as well as an informational video on how to use these resources.

Includes: Business OpenCourseWare, Technology OpenCoursWare, Science OpenCourseWare, and Liberal Arts OpenCourseWare.

Homemade Ketchup

Tonight I decided to make my own ketchup. We are almost out, so after we finished a bottle Kurtz Ketchup, I thought I'd just make a copy-cat recipe from the ingredients on the back of the bottles minus the corn syrup. I also checked around the web for other recipes to see how people were making their ketchup. Most recipes were pretty much the same. The main ingredients are tomato paste, sugar(sweetener), vinegar, onion powder, salt, and spices. Instead of using a recipe, I just experimented with these ingredients by keeping an eye on the texture and adding spices to taste.

You certainly can make ketchup with diced tomatoes, but next time I'll wait to get some tomato paste! It's taking a long time to thicken up; I've got it cooking on low, and added some corn starch. The taste is really good, just too thin.

Here's what I can remember using for a large batch:

- Two cans of tomato sauce, one can of diced tomatoes, and one can of seasoned diced tomatoes
- 1/2 cup sugar, and a big pour of dark molasses
- 3/4 - 1 cup vinegar
- A little water(a mistake, needs less liquids!)
- Various shakes and pours to taste of onion powder, Italian seasoning, cardamon, celery salt, tarragon, salt, coriander, and garlic.
- A few sprays of canola oil
- A little corn starch to thicken which got blobby on me.

I used the blender to liquefy the tomatoes and combine everything, now I'm waiting for it to thicken up on the stove. I think I may need to get some tomato paste tomorrow to fix it.

Here's a formal recipe: Hillbilly Housewife Homemade Ketchup recipe

Is it worth it? Maybe, if you use the paste, or you have a lot of tomatoes to use up. I think it takes a lot of them to make a good thick paste. The benefits are a product free of artificial ingredients and high fructose corn syrup, made to taste, adjustable for sugars and salts.

You can also just purchase organic or Kosher ketchup which is free of artificial ingredients and high fructose corn syrup. Not all organic ketchups are free from high fructose corn syrup. Ketchups like Muir Glen, Trader Joe's(spicey), Annie's, and all Kosher are sugar based.These ketchups are about $3.50 a bottle and up.

See more entries at this week's Make It From Scratch Carnival.

Make Your Own Mulch and Compost from Leaves

"Every spring we make new leaf mold. This is part of this year’s huge pile of ground-up leaves… by next spring it will have become a pile of rich black “soil” that will do wonderful things to our gardens." Read the rest here.

We do a version of this as well, more out of laziness than anything else! ;) Seriously, this is an efficient and cost effective way to recycle, and take advance of nature's cycle of decomposition. We use a mulching mower to shred the leaves, tiny sticks, and grass into tiny pieces so that they decompose more quickly. Instead of piling them, we just mow right over the stuff and leave them. Everything returns to the earth as free fertilizer. Anything extra or unsightly gets raked up around the trees in a neat circle, or wisked into the beds as mulch.

In addition to the using a mulching mower, we get free wood chips from local tree cutting companies. I dress the beds with these, right over the leaves and weeds. It all breaks down into lovely rich soil with the help of lots of worms who find the mix lovely.

Less work and cost for us, and better for the environment.

Our local government is encouraging this natural method of landscaping in order to minimize fertilizer and other chemical run off(storm drains) into the Chesapeake Bay, which is suffering a slow death from algae bloom and pollution. In addition to loss of wildlife, waterman jobs have been lost due to poor catches. Crab and fish are no longer as plentiful.

Yogurt Recipes and More

Just what I needed! See Denese's post for a list of homemade yogurt techniques, recipes with yogurt, and as a bonus, homeschool yogurt science.

I just made a mixed berry yogurt smoothie with one of the recipes, yum.

Natural Inspect Repellent Spray

It's that time of year again in our area. The mosquitoes are out in force already. This year we are trying a natural deet-free products. In the past we've used Avon's Skin-So-Soft(deet-free), but not all natural, with very little success.

Seven natural insect repellents:

California Baby(some Targets)
Aubrey Organics Gone!
Badger
Kiss My Face Swy Flotter
Repel
Sport Bite Blocker SPF 20
Homemade on Etsy

You can also make your own with essential oils added to either oil, vinegar, witch hazel or vodka. To name a few, these essentials oil are known for their natural bug repelling properties: lavender, eucalyptus, citronella, lemon grass, lemon eucalyptus, peppermint, clove oil, rose geranium, cedar, *neem oil, and tea tree oil.

*Neem oil stinks! I have found that citronella completely covers the smell of neem oil, so it's a good choice for pairing.

I plan to make my own, and purchase a commercially produced natural bug repellent. I have read that these products work with your skin chemistry, so no one product is good for everyone. I'm guessing that a combination of many different essentials oils that are known to repel mosquitoes is probably better than just a few.

Using natural soap scented with the bug repelling essential oils in addition to the spray might not be a bad idea for layering the protection. I think I'll look for some at either Target, Etsy or vitacost.com . Vitacost has a bar of neem soap for $1.32.

Check Vitacost.com as well. I buy discounted Dr. Bronner's products from them. The shipping is very low at $4.99 on any size order, and they ship fast. I'm trying

All Terrain Herbal Armor Insect Repellent Spray Deet-Free 4 fl oz $5.19. It's got one positive review. I'm also ordering some essential oils for some other projects - great prices as usual.

Also see :Five Plants That Repel Mosquitoes

7/09 update: I made my own and used the All Terrain. Both worked well! I still got a few bites, but then I got bites with DEET repellents as well. BTW, it works well as a natural deodorant too. I used vodka as a base, and added neem oil, eucalyptus, citronella, lemon eucalyptus and cedar essential oils. I didn't measure, but recall pouring about a tablespoon of neem oil and 2 tablespoons of citronella into an 8 ounces spray bottle full of vodka. The remaining essential oils measured out at about 10-15 drops.

I haven't tried this, but you might be able to add zinc oxide powder to your bug spray in order to give it sunscreen properties.

Hot Enough for a Pool!

It's so hot here! We put the kiddie pool room up again. This pool, green outdoor carpet, and screened tent are going on their third year. The tent has some small holes which have been patched, so I think this will be the last year for the tent. Family Dollar had one for about $30.00, so I went ahead and bought this for next year. They had it up in the aisle, so I was able to see it before purchase. This is a really good price, and it looked sturdy. The one we are using now was purchased from the camping section at Walmart.

This pool room is great for a few reasons. It has an outdoor carpet running right up to the back door to keep the little ones feet clean. Clean feet means a clean pool and house. The outdoor carpet is easy to sweep when it does get dirty. The zipper screened tent keeps it cool and bug free. Placing it right outside the back door of the den means that I can watch(pool guard) my daughter from inside, which is a must for me when it is sweltering outside. The only way I'd stay out there was if I were sitting in the pool. When it's very hot, I hook up the hose to a side pole and put it on "mist". My son and daughter loved this last year. My son is getting a bit too big to even sit in the pool, but he does it anyway in hot weather.

This was our set up in 2007. That blow up pool sprung a leak after only one season, so we went a hard walled pool.











When the daughter is six, we'll get a bigger pool. I've got my eye on a nice 10 ft. x 30 inch circular Intex pool(ages 6 and up). These metal frame inexpensive pools snap together easily, and are simple to take down when the weather cools off. I have seen mixed reviews for this pool online, so I'm hoping this pool works for us. Most complaints were about the weak pump, and leaks during the seond year. The tarp has to be purchased separately; without the tarp, the bottom is prone to leaks from sharp objects. Amazon reviews, four out of five stars.

The Intex Metal Frame Pool - 10'x30 is $79.00 + $55.00 shipping(heavy to ship) at Amazon.com. ToysRus might carry it as well. Target.com has got it for $129.00, and I think they may have free "ship to store" for pick-up much like Walmart. I'm keeping my eye on this one, but we have another three years before I'd feel safe enough to purchase this pool for the little one.

Jean Plaidy Historical Novels

I decided to begin reading fiction again, so picked up one of many Jean Plaidy historical fictions at the library. I'm beginning with Plaidy's Murder Most Royal: The Story of Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard. "This novel focuses on the two of Henry VIII's Howard wives, Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard. It begins with Anne as a young woman leaving for Brussels and her homecoming to England and her subsequent rise to power in the English court. It also parallels the life of Catherine Howard, first cousin of Anne Boleyn who goes on to become Henry's fifth wife. The story of the rise and fall of each of these women are told in this story". This is out of order for the Tudor Saga, but my little one is not one to stay still in the library while I figure out which one to read first. Next time I'll request them online for pick-up.

Plaidy was known for her well researched historical fictions. From a Jean Plaidy site, a newspaper review wrote, "Jean Plaidy, by the skillful blending of superb storytelling and meticulous attention to authenticity of detail and depth of characterization, has become one of the country's most widely read novelists."

Great reading, but I am so tired today! You have trouble putting her books down.

An insightful review at Amazon.com for Murder Most Royal:

"I have read many Plaidy novels, but this delves deeper than the others and represents, in my opinion, absolutely the best of Plaidy, and probably the best on the period. What I don't like about modern historicals is the way they play with history. Plaidy sticks to the facts as they are known and provides insights and details that make the story come alive. The characters are real people, and the facts can't be disputed. In this book, she gives a fairly graphic portrayal of the torture used to extract the false confessions of Henry VIII's hapless victims, and after reading it, I found Plaidy gave me a new understanding of what this era in history, and this dynasty in particular, stood for, and it is even more horrific than I ever imagined.

Plaidy's Henry VIII goes about his grotesque and bloody deeds with a good conscience, patting himself on the back for being such a fine and righteous fellow, which makes him even more appalling to our civilized mind. It is a look into the black mind of a serial killer, and a gripping read. Once you pick up the book, you can't put it down again until you're done. Despite the graphic parts, I recommend this novel even for teens, because they won't get a twisted view of history, and besides, Catherine was only a child when this ogre chose her for his queen, so this book would appeal to them.

I think everyone who reads it will probably pause and give thanks for being born at a time in history when a monster like this can't roam the highest echelons of power stuffing his bloody mouth with the flesh of saints and sinners alike. That is the beauty of a great historical novel. It makes us understand the past, and appreciate our present even more."


The Tudor Saga

1. Uneasy Lies the Head (1982)
2. Katharine, the Virgin Widow (1961)
3. The Shadow of the Pomegranate (1962)
4. The King's Secret Matter (1962)
5. Murder Most Royal (1949) (aka King's Pleasure)
6. Saint Thomas' Eve (1954)
7. The Sixth Wife (1953)
8. The Thistle and the Rose (1963)
9. Mary, Queen of France (1964)
10. The Spanish Bridegroom (1954)
11. G*a*y Lord Robert (1955) (first by Eleanor Burford, republished as Lord Robert in 2007)

See here for a complete list of all her historical series.

Plaidy's books could be good reading for older students(seniors and college) wanting to enhance their understanding of history.

Before and After: Pallets Used For Outdoor Furniture

After:

Read more here.

Chinese Take-In Recipes

My husband and son love Chinese food, so tomorrow I am going to try it at home for a change. I've made fried rice in the past, but I'm still looking for that perfect restaurant style recipe.

Recipes from RecipeZaar:

Fried Rice using sesame seed oil. 4.5 stars out of 5.

Bourbon Chicken, fattening, but the hubby likes it. 4.5 stars out of 5.

I'll update this post with the results. : ) I still need to get some sesame seed oil which apparently is the key to the authentic taste for these dishes.

Here is the recipe for one of my favorites, but this will be for another night, Hunan Chicken.

Update: The Bourbon chicken was incredibly easy and very good! I used half the sugar to help with the calories, so it was more spicey than sweet. I added more ginger than mentioned in the recipe. This is such a wonderful base which can be adjusted. I can see myself using this for many dishes.

The fried rice was okay. It needed more, so next time I'll add garlic and more veggies. It was just a little dry and bland, but I used it as a base for the Bourbon chicken.

Leftovers: Yummy, this bourbon chicken tastes even better the second day after it's been sitting in it's juices. I had a little over a salad of dark greens with a bit of salad dressing and it was wonderful!

Grow a Salad in a Table Box

This is great for urban gardening, and for those who have limited mobility. Items can be stored underneath, so it's a great space saver as well. I think the rabbits would have a bit of trouble getting into this garden!

Read more here. Alternatively(and easier), you could just nail or place the box to an old shabby table.

You could put your garbage can potatoes right next to it, and a pretty Colonial bird bottle for natural insect control on a deck post. A compost bin could be stored underneath the table. Then you could hook up a garbage can rain barrel to the down spout. If your back door is near the kitchen, this makes gardening very user friendly.

.

Homemade Natural Dog Flea Soap

We use Frontline Plus(fleas and ticks), but the dog still gets a few fleas, and we vacuum the house frequently(no fleas in the house). I get the authentic product deeply discounted from ebay which is good on the budget. When I bought Frontline directly from the vet we had the same problem, so it's not bad product from ebay. I briefly thought about going all natural with flea protection, but we would still have the tick problem. What we've had to do is combine Frontline Plus with monthly flea baths. I'd like to go all natural with the flea soap in the future.

I was browsing Etsy when I saw this really nice natural dog soap for fleas. I have many of the essential oils mentioned in the ingredients for the humans in our family, so I could make my own... or buy a bar. Time and energy are at a premium(scarce, so highly valuable) around here.

Here a recipe using similar ingredients over at About.com: Easy Dog Soap Recipes using bug rebelling essential oils such as citronella, citrus oils, tea tree oil, and lavender.

This sounds very drying to a dog's skin, but that is the reason it kills the fleas: flea bath with original Dawn(no bleach formula).

And here is a good comprehensive article full of recipes for repelling rid of fleas and mosquitoes using natural ingredients such as brewer's yeast, lemons, herbs, eucalyptus leaves, strong soap(dehydrates fleas), diatomaceous earth, etc.

It recommends using diatomaceous earth(dehydrates exoskeletons of insects) in areas of the garden where your pets tends to go most frequently. I actually do this with the cat. He likes to roll in one area of the gravel patio, so I sprinkle the diatomaceous earth in this area. I also put it in his cat bed.

If you use a drying soap, I think I'd follow this up with a herbal rinse containing some essential oils, or herbs steeped in water, and a few drops of glycerin and aloe vera.

I wouldn't recommend using essential oils on cats. I've read that some of them are very toxic to cats. Check with your vet before using herbal remedies on your pets.