Coconuts..

I recently became obsessed with coconuts..coconut oil,coconut milk,water and all coconut .

Bought a couple of coconuts on Friday cracked the one open and had the water with some ice and it was delicious,me and the kids ate some of it and grated the rest. We made the granola witch I posted earlier and some yummy cup cakes with rye flour and coconut oil frosting..Read about the coconut benefits.

http://www.care2.com/greenliving/the-numerous-health-benefits-of-coconuts-2.html

I make all sorts of things like body butter out of coconut oil and coco butter.

Cakes and cookies,lip balm,hair conditioner and make yummy pop corn with the coconut oil .

These recipes are available on the blog.. So get coconuting for a healthier yummy life.

Home made granola

Dry cereals have been around for along time making breakfast easy and fast.. Just adding milk or yogurt and its ready to be eaten.
But buying most commercial brands form your local grocery store is not always the healthiest option.
There loaded with sugar conservatives,color and wheat..So if there was a  way to make your own cereal without chemicals and with low or no sugar at all then you would take it right?
So here I will share a yummy and easy recipe to make granola.. Can be eaten with milk or yogurt and you could add your fresh fruit and seeds to it.
So here goes:
1 cup organic oats
I cup shredded cocunut
Half a cup raisins ( more if you like is ok)
3 table spoons of cocunut oil
Half a cup of honey
Seeds of any kind depending on your preference ( I use hemp seeds,sun flower)
Nuts like almonds ,macadamia
1 tsp cinnamon

So you combine oats,cocunut,raisins,nuts,cinnamon ,nuts and mix.
Melt honey and coconut oil and add to the oat mixture. Preheat your oven to 185 and then place the mixture to a cookie sheet and spead evenly..Bake for half and hour till golden brown. Take out of the oven and let the granola cool down and put in an airtight container.
And now you could have it with your fresh fruit and add more honey if you like..

Diy toothpaste

Making toothpaste at home is simple and with ingredients you probably have in your pantry..
This is a healthier alternative to store bought paste and much cheaper too. Unlike the store bought toothpaste you don't have the chemicals and fluoride added witch is harmful for out healths and our kids. Click on the link to read the effects of fluoride..
 http://www.fluoridealert.org/issues/health/
So with that said lets go see what we will need for our toothpaste :

 3 tsp Stevia

6 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon hydrogen peroxide
2 tablespoons coconut oil (warm enough to be liquid, which means above 76 degrees F)
10 drops peppermint, clove, or citrus pure essential oil

Put baking soda in a bowl, add the other ingredients and mix until you achieve a proper paste texture. Add a small amount of baking soda if it’s runny; add more coconut oil if it’s too dry. Taste, and add more essential oil if you want a more flavorful paste. Store in an opaque container (required to protect the hydrogen peroxide) and use as usual.

What I do with my container I take foil tape and cover the jar that I will store my toothpaste so it will be protected from sunlight, peroxide loses its effect when it's exposed to sunlight ..

And that is it.. 

You could add some glicerine if you like for more smoothness and sweetness.
Good luck.

Slip and slide

We had so much fun yesterday on our diy slip and slide,it was made last minute with the very things we had on hand, next time I will be purchasing a large piece of plastic sheeting and trying it with that.. We used 2 plastic table cloths that I,had and stuck them together with plastic pluming sticky tape .
Got the hose out the game was on, we added out plastic Ikea container for a paddling pool and poured
Dish soap that made really big bubbles we also got our snake bubbles out and kids had a blast..You should try it too..

Fabric painting

Fabric painted tea towel

We had fun printing our own personal tea towel with the kids it's a fun activity and have a tea towel to remind you of your summer holidays.. Boys loved to use the brushes there hand and potato to print.                

Check out the photos and see how colorful it looks..

What you need is a tea towel or a old piece of fabric and fabric paints egg carton or somewhere to poor your paints and fabric crayons.

And that is it you could trace your hand or hand print . Use a potato to stamp or just let them use there imagination run wild..

Stamping with cherries

Cherries cherries sweet sweet cherries ..
We were sitting and eating cherries yesdarday afternoon and I had a brain storm.. We all know cherries stain clothes and they have a lovely color ,so I thought why not stamp with cherries..
So I got the kids to stamp dots on a hand towel and on pieces of paper..
We stamped our hand prints ,finger prints and lip prints.. The kids looked all purple by the time we were done but they had so much fun..

 So next time you have cherries tried it if you don't mind a bit of mess..
Have fun.....

Eastern black swallowtail in the garden.

We were in the vegetable garden just now and my oldest boy noticed these beautiful caterpillars,there  eastern black swallowtail and they go in a cocoon and become beautiful butterflies.. We will be watching them every day and we will keep you posted..

Jar photo frames

This is a fun way to display fun pictures on your shelf or window seal and look really pretty and effective too. Your little ones can help  by adding the beans.
You will need :

1. Jars in different sizes
2. Beans( lentils ,black eyed beans,kidney beans and any kind of beans also rice)
3. Photo 
4. Sticky tape

Put your photo in the jar wrong side up and stick the sides just a little to keep in place 
Add your beans in layers to look more effective and put the lid on. That's it now decorate we're ever you like.. Easy peasy..

Add caption

DIY lip balm.

Hi there ,today I will be showing you how to make homemade lip balm it's super easy and really good for your pucker.
I am not a lip stick kind of person but I can't go without my lip balm.. You could tint this one with beet root powder or nature food coloring or even coco powder for a nice brown shade..
So here goes..
You need:

• 1 part beeswax (example- 1 tablespoon)
• 2 parts shea, cocoa or mango butter (example-2 tablespoons)
• 2 parts coconut oil (example-2 tablespoons)
• 10 drops of essential oil of choice (pepermind  essential oil for a cooling and refreshing lip chap or tangerine for a yummy one)

In a double boiler melt you butters and your oils and when there all melted wait a 5 minutes and add your essential oils and mix them in.

Poor them in a clean sterilized container and wait until they set . That is it ,if your using some coco powder or beet root add in when oils are melted and mix well to incorporate ..I left mine natural this time for everyday use.

These can be a nice little gift to and also this is good for your hands and feet to make them extra soft..

Bath paints

If your kids love to play in the bath then this recipe and activity is just for them. Bath paints,what a fun way to create and use there imagination. Bubbles and paints.

Here is what you need:

 

• 1/2 cup baby wash
• 1/4 cup cornstarch (or tapioca starch)
• Drops of food coloring
• Muffin pan or plastic egg container

 And this is what you do..

1. In a small container, add baby wash and cornstarch and mix well.
2. 
   In a separate and smaller container, take a portion of the mixture and add the desired amount of food coloring (I recommend starting with less than a drop). 
3. 
   Put the colored mixture in the muffin pan and repeat the previous step with another color until all the colors are used. Feel free to mix colors to come up with new ones and have fun together

Fabric softener DIY

Making you own fabric softener is cheaper ,easy and with less chemicals if you use hair conditioner.
By adding your own essential oils you can make your own sent and it leaves cloths feeling soft and smelling great.
With recipe was made by using a cheap conditioner with very few chemicals ,I read the label carefully and made sure of it, this is a Greek made hair conditioner from Jumbo and it costs €1.00 and makes 3 batches of fabric softener.
You will need:

1. Hair conditioner 
2. Vinegar 
3. Water
4. Essential oils( tangerine,geranium,tea tree oil)

In a bowl put 2 cups of hair conditioner and 2 cups water,mix with a spoon or a whisk add  2 cups white vinegar and 10 drops of each of the essential oils. Mix well and poor in a container.

Use half a cup for each load..
That's it..

Window painting ..DIY window paints

Painting the windows in bright colors is something that kids love to do.. A friend off ours come over and I said: ok let's paint some fun pictures on the window, and he said paint the window? Really? I guess they have a not allowed rule in there house.In this house as long as it cleans its allowed ..and they had a great time..
So today I will be giving a simple recipe how to make your own window paint..Here it goes:

You will need:

• Liquid soap
• Tempera paints
• Jars( baby food jars,any kind of  container with a lid)
• Brushes

 First start by adding the desired color of paint to the jar.  

Now just add a little dish soap. 

 The more soap you use the thinner the paint will be and the easier it will be to wipe off when it is dry.

Mix them up with your brush and start painting, when you are ready to clean just get a wet rag and wipe it off.

Have fun...

DIY hair conditioner

DIY hair conditioner :
Mix together 1 can of coconut milk, 1 tablespoon of honey, and 1 tablespoon of olive oil.
Apply on hair after shampooing, leave in for 5 minutes until you soap your body and then rinse out.
Good healthy soft hair..

A good day out in nature

 We had a really good Saturday out with the family. We went out in the mountains picking cherries and other fruit and eating yummy food. The water we drank was straight for the mountain and it was icy cold and fresh. As nature lovers that we are we took in all the bird chirping and all the fresh air and green.. Would love to live in such surroundings..

                                                                                    

Making snake bubbles

Making snake bubbles is a fun summer out door activity and easy to make that keeps kids busy and happy. We did this with my kids a couple of times and we also added some food coloring for a rainbow affect.
Takes a little more effort for the little ones to blow but they get the hang of it soon.

Things you will need:

• Bottle 
• Sock
• Dish detergent like fairy( works best)
• Food coloring ( optional)
• Water
• Scissors
• Paper tape or elastic band

Cut the bottom of a bottle and keep the top part were the spout is, then cut the bottom of a smelly sock:-) and leave the end bit ,fit the end of the sock on the end of the bottom were the opening  is and secure with the elastic band or with the tape.I did the tape.

In a bowl put some detergent and little bit of water and dip the sock in and blow..

It's that easy , big snake bubbles come out and if you desire add some food coloring to the end of the sock and blow and beautiful colored bubbles will come out..

Have fun!!! And a good Sunday to y'all ..

Home made bug spray

Summer is here and so are the nasty bitting little bugs.. So I have a good recipe that will keep them away when your out in your garden enjoying the fresh summer night..

1. Fill spray bottle 1/2 full with distilled or boiled water.
2. Add witch hazel to fill almost to the top.
3. Add 30-50 drops of essential oils to desired scent. The more oils you use, the stronger the spray will be.
A good combination is of tea tree, eucalyptus, mint, citronella, and lavender.  The lavender added gives a calming smell.
This is good for children's skin too.

So happy bug free summer to all ..

Side walk chalk DIY

This a fun activitie for kids,creating out in the road ,in the drive way in the fresh air
and once there done with there master piece ,snap a picture and get the hose out and
spray.It all washes away easy peasy..
Making it could get a bit messy but kids love to mix in the mixture and help out pouring .
Materials :

• Tempera Paint (use primary,and mix secondary colors)
• Plaster of Paris
• Water
• Wrapping Paper Tubes
• Wax Paper
• Masking Tape
• Sandwich baggies (for piping bags)
• Scissors

Cut the tube into 5 inch segments.  Line the interiors with wax paper, tape the base to seal one end, and set aside.The following  recipe is for one color .

Mix 2-3 tablespoons of tempera paint with 1/2 cup of water.  Stir in 3/4 cup of plaster of Paris.  Spoon the mixture into a sandwich baggy and snip the end.  Squeeze the contents into the tube. Prop straight up (I used the masking tape ring to support my 6 tubes).

Allow to dry at room temperature for at least 12 hours.  Enjoy!

Homemade Laundry Detergent

Making your own Landry detergent is easy and not at all time consuming, it's is safe for the environment and for some people with some allergies to the harmful chemicals..
Stuff you'll need:

• 1cup borax
• 1cup washing soda 
• I bar soap(I use the green soap from the laundry isle)
• Essential oils

Grate your soap with a cheese grater and mix in borax and washing soda drop 20 drops of essential oils I like to use Lemon or Tangerine ,makes the clothe smell nice and fresh and clean.

Put everything In a glass jar and use 2-3 tablespoons in your washer.You could print some nice labels and stick them on your jar. I've added a link were could print them out.

You could find jars from ikea really cheap .

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B4U0BGUaglqcZVVNb1duV0c5aDQ/preview

Food luck..

Make a summer memory sheet

This is something that we did last year and most definitely going to do this summer holiday.
Its a summer memory sheet,purchase a cheap sheet or if you have an old one hanging around use that.
Every day in the summer give it to the kids to make a drawing of something,it could be something they did that day,somewhere they went or what ever they feel like.
what you need:

1. sheet
2. fabric crayons,markers
3. iron

Lay the sheet down on the floor for them and give them the colors and let them draw..as simple as that.
When the holidays are over and the sheet is all filled up with there memories just iron it to seal it in.
You could use the sheet or you could make a duvet cover out of it,or even make a curtains for there bedroom if you do it 2 years you have a pair..you will be amazed how colorful it looks..
Have fun..

 
  

General cleaner DIY

Why buy cleaners from a shop if you could make your own in 5 minutes with out the harmful chemicals.
 You will need:

1. Spray bottle
2. White vinegar 
3. Essential oils( I like tea tree and geranium)
4. Funnel 

Take your bottle and unscrew the top off, place the funnel in the bottle and fill it up with vinigar
Drop 40 drops of essential oils, divide 20 drops of the one and 20 drops of the other.I like to use tea tree oil because of its antiseptic qualities and geranium
for the lovely fresh smell. Now screw the top on and spray away..
I spray and wipe it with a wet rag..

Hennie our chicken

As i promised before i will be posting our animals that we love with you,hence the name Doolittle's    
This is about Hennie the chicken out lovely white chicken.
This past Halloween we were leaving our home to go out and down the road on the edge of the road was 
a little white chicken, my son spotted her and yelled out Chicken..... so i reversed stopped the car and out
AP went like a flash. He ran and ran until finally he caught her and back he came with a proud smile-:)..
So we took her home.. And she has been one of our favorite animals and the good thing that we get a lovely
tasty health egg every morning.. This is a special thing that my kids like to do as soon as they wake up is run out and get the egg..

 

LOVELY GIRL DON'T YOU THINK?

I make a sugar craft cakes for any occasion if you would like to get a look see you can find me at:lhttps://www.facebook.com/SparklesAndFairycakes?ref=hl

 

Cardboard painted frames

Hi there today i will be sharing a fun project that we made with the kids.

We had cardboard boxes and needed an activity to do with the boys so in my brain came a vision of colorful

photo frames ,so lets get started..

You will need :

1. Cardboard boxes
2. acrylic paints
3. scissors
4. kids :-)
5. glue 

 Get your boxes and cut flat pieces of witch size you would like the biggest frame to be and then cut out a window in the middle ,this will leave you with a window in the middle for the photo to go in.
Then take the piece that was in the middle and cut an other window in that one ,now you have 2 photo frames
continue this until you have your very little photo frame,the last little piece of cardboard that you will have left will be to little to make in to a frame so what i did was cut that in different shapes and got the kids to paint them. You can stick these little pieces on the frames once kids have finishes painting them, now get the kids to paint them in bright,fun colors..
When the paint is dried print some fun photos that fit in the frames and stick them from the behind of the frames.
Now your fun cardboard frames are ready to put on the wall,i put mine on with double sided tape.
My kids had loads of fun making these and now are up the wall in our play room,hope you have fun too.

   You could cut the shapes in wavy shapes it makes them more fun..

DIY make up remover

I would like to share my make remover recipe ,it works wonders and leaves skin soft and clean.
I like to make my own since its healthier for my skin with no added chemicals?
Things you will need:

1. Empty bottle
2. Olive oil
3. Water
4. Baby shampoo

In the empty bottle poor 1 1/2 water,1/4 olive oil, 3 tbsp  baby shampoo.
Shake before use and with a cotton wool pad wipe face and eye make up.
Wash off with cold water and enjoy a nice and soft face.
You could use Castile soap if you would Iike instead of the baby shampoo.

The Crafty Doolittle's : First post!!

The Crafty Doolittle's : First post!!: Hi there all ,this is my first ever blog post ,I'll be sharing all my interests with all,crafts,baking,sugar crafting and health. With ...

First post!!

Hi there all ,this is my first ever blog post ,I'll be sharing all my interests with all,crafts,baking,sugar crafting and health.
With summer here and a breath away from school holidays there will be a lot of crafting over here with my 2 boys and fun photos to share..
I have a 9 year old and a 4 year old ,Alex and AP and I am a stay home mum. I spend all my time with my boys doing all sorts of things and activities  and I love to find new ideas to share with them and them with me. We love animals and have a whole bunch at them at home that I will be introducing with you in my posts..
Over the time I got some wonderful ideas from some great creative bloggers out there I hope I can inspire some of you over time..