







~Julia
Joining Amy at Homestead Revival for her Preparedness Challenge:)
Living simply with a thankful heart
~Julia
Joining Amy at Homestead Revival for her Preparedness Challenge:)
I am so thankful to have so much of it in the freezer for later use.
Cool and drain….I always lay the cabbage out on a clean dish towel on the counter.
When cabbage is fairly dry, pack into quart freezer bags, seal and freeze.
The delicious aroma floats on waves through the house all day making my mouth water. It is a super simple soup to make and so deliciously healthy and filling.
Put everything into soup pot or crock pot. For stove top version….boil for 15 minutes, then simmer for at least 3 hours. You want the soup to thicken.
In the crock pot, just cook on high for at least 6 hours.
Shred or chop ham before serving in the soup. Mine is usually falling apart and I just use a fork to shred.
Serve with grilled cheese sandwiches or crusty rolls and a garden salad.
Enjoy!
~Julia
Canning jar soap dispensers are a fun and easy gift or useful item to make!
I have used our pump everyday for over a year now and it has held up beautifully.
That is saying a lot when you have four kids and a farmer husband.
If you are interested in purchasing the antique zinc lids and blue Ball canning jars, Ebay or Craigslist are a great place to search.
I typed in “zinc canning jar lids” on Ebay and there were so many available for a reasonable price!
The same was true when I searched under “blue Ball canning jars.”
I loved that there were so many different sized blue jars!
Tags sales are also a good avenue.
If you find it too pricey to get your hands on zinc lids, ANY canning jar lid will do!!
The lids and rings, as well as the plastic lids are great!
The inside of the lid has a ceramic underside. You will need to remove it.
To do this, place the lid right side up with the ceramic side down on a hard surface.
Using a nail, or thin screw driver, tap a hole through the top….right on your mark.
This way, the ceramic is face down and will not shatter in your face:).
After you make the hole, this is what the underside will look like…
To remove the ceramic cap, I try to just tap it really hard right side up.
Most of the time, it will just fall out. If it won’t budge, use protective gloves and remove it manually.
Be careful! You are dealing with sharp objects:).
Next, you will want to make a mark on the underside to use as a guide for your hole to put the pump in.
I {roughly} measure 1.5 cm in an “X” pattern to give me my dimensions.
Using needle nose pliers, slowly start to peel back the zinc. It is a light metal and easily bendable.
Remember, you are not going for perfection….just a hole big enough to fit the pump in.
It doesn’t need to be perfectly round!
It is better to be on the snug side, as a hole too big will make the pump tend to be a bit floppy.
So, err on the side of being too small, test your pump as you go.
It is so easy to make the hole a little bigger!
When the hole is sufficient to hold the pump, crimp the remaining tin back flat with your pliers so there are no sharp edges.
At this point, you have the option of sealing your lid with a clear polyurethane so that it won’t corrode.
{Thanks Jody for the tip!!}
Make sure it is completely dry before inserting the pump:).
Making sure the pump is firmly in place, first glue right along the base of the pump to the underside of the lid.
Next, add a little more glue to the pump… adhering a little more to the underside.
You want it to have a good base to hold it securely in place.
Let it dry thoroughly.
Last, you will need to trim off a small amount from the straw portion of the pump.
Insert it into the jar and estimate about how much needs to come off.
I like the bottom of the straw to be about 1/4 of an inch from the base of the jar.
Measure your straw and then measure the height of the jar to the rim.
This will help you determine where to cut.
I cut off about 1/2 inch of the Suave Lotion pump and had a quart sized jar.
Screw on the lid and whalaa!
You are finished….now wasn’t that easy?
http://heatherbullard.typepad.com/heather_bullard_collectio/2010/02/diy-mason-jar-soap-dispenser.html
You can fill your jar with soap {or lotion}. I use mine in the bathroom and by the kitchen sink. I really like a clear soap. Costco’s environmentally safe dish soap is wonderful and the scent is delicious!
The soap lasts forever and you have to fill it up so infrequently.
With four kids and a farm we do a lot of hand washing around here:).
Have a great day!
~Julia
Place ribbon on the left hand side, half way down the pocket. This is about 4 1/2 ” up from the left bottom corner. Stitch in place. Seal the ends with a little Fray Check. This makes it so the ribbon won’t unravel in the wash.
Pin right sides together, making sure that the loose ends of the ribbon are not going to be attached where they shouldn’t.
This seems to create and even amount of tension.
Leave a three inch gap somewhere to turn it inside out.
Iron out. PLEASE NOTE…my ribbon is in the WRONG spot! Can you believe that? I had to go back and attach it 4 1/2″ up from the bottom left corner. Pretend that is what you see:).
Pin the gap closed, matching edges. Sew a 1/4 ” top stitch around the entire edge of the changing pad. Easy as pie!
You are finished!
One side is soft and warm to lay baby down.
To secure, fold half way down, roll up, and tie with a bow. The pad fits nicely into a purse. Best of all, if it gets dirty just throw it into the wash and dry it on low heat.
~Julia