She's So Crafty!!!

Homemade Wipes 

Well howdy beautiful people!! It's been a while since I've posted on She's So Crafty!!! Working full time, caring for a family and going to school full time can have a girl pooped at the end of the day. Whew! Today I tried my hand at homemade wipes that can be used for the entire family;not just for little ones! I'd like to thank Tiffanie Walker-Labeau for sharing this great idea on her YouTube channel! You have such great ideas!

You will need:

• 1 roll of Bounty paper towel (be sure to get a paper towel with the strongest absorbency. Viva work well also.)
• 1 wipes container or any large container with a lid
• 1 strainer
• 1 full leaf of an Aloe Vera plant 
• a mild soap like a baby body wash
• almond oil
• 2 cups of water
• a blender
• a medium sized cooking pot
• 1 table spoon 
• 1 very sharp knife or sharp scissors
• your favorite essence oil (optional)

Now we're ready to begin!

Step 1- cut the paper towel roll in half. ( this is the most time consuming and tedious part.

Step 2- Cut 1 fresh aloe vera leaf into small chunks.

Step 3- Add water and aloe vera chunks to the blender and liquify until aloe is in very small pieces.

After blending, add the almond oil and stir.

Step 4- Bring to a boil. (Boiling is important because it will kill bacteria. you want to do this because your wipes will be sitting up moist in it's container)

Step 5- Strain the liquid.

Step 6- Add in 1 tablespoon of the mild detergent and stir well. This is the time when you would add 6-8 drops of the essence oil and stir well. Pour this liquid over the paper towel roll.

Step 7- After allowing the paper towel to absorb the solution for about 10 minutes, pull out the cardboard roll.

The wipes may now be pulled from the center of the roll!!! Thread through the dispenser. Guess what?? You're done!! Enjoy! 

You may have to experiment with the paper towel to find the absorbency that you desire, so have fun and please return to the blog to comment!

You can feel confident that you have created a product that is gentler and safer for your family will saving good bit of money on wipes!

Feel free to let us know when you try it and how the wipes are working for you and your family! We'd love to hear from you!! Be blessed!!!

Cakelicious Cake Ideas!!!

Hello Blogging Family...

Welcome to my blog.  As you can see my blog will be about CAKES!!!

Not just any cake but those delicious, custom cakes baked and designed with love by no other than the infamous Ms. Alice and Cake Daddy. 

This blog will be filled will wonderful pictures of our cakes but first let me share the story from Cake Daddy, my wonderful husband and Ms. Alice, my beautiful, virtuous and inspiring mother-in-love (mother-in-law)...  But first lets look at our story as told by my husband...

2013 was NOTHING short of God showing Himself STRONG in my wife and I's life! On my 8 year anniversary date on March the 8th earlier this year I was told my services were no longer needed after giving nothing but hard work and loyalty to the company I truly had planned on retiring from. BUT GOD said different! I left that day NOT with my head hanging down nor was I a disgruntled employee. In fact to his surprise I actually hugged my boss and told him I loved him and thank you! You say how could I do that after being done wrong? It's the GOD in me! I called my wife on the way home and told her the news and we both agreed to give it two weeks to see where God was going to lead me. I then called my mom (Ms. Alice) and said I believe we may be about to go full time in the cake and catering business. She said LEGGO!!! Lol! We have been doing cakes on a small level since 1992 when she made me attend a cake decorating class at J C Penny which I did NOT want to do but I'm glad I did! Now get ready to shout because I'm hear to tell you that we have NOT missed one mortgage payment, car note or bill being paid since my being let go!!!! TO GOD BE THE GLORY!!!! We haven't slowed down since we made the decision to go full time!!! 

Now enjoy the ride of the wonderful world of the cakecoaster...  

You can check us out on FaceBook at Ms. Alice's Shop Cakes & Catering-Cake Daddy, Instagram at mannyfresh71, Pinterest 71mannyfresh71 and our website at www.ImYourCakeDaddy.com.  
Thanks again and enjoy.

Inspirational Vitamin

I pray that this devotion will touch you just as much as it touched me. Enjoy

Prime Time With God

Today's Prayer
Dear Father in Heaven, please hear me this morning. I am sorry for my failures as a family member. I pray that you will forgive me where I have messed up, and will give me wisdom and knowledge and grace to do better. I pray for every family, that you will bind them together in love, that every member will uplift and support one another daily--in all circumstances and challenges that come. Help us to be forgiving and understanding. I pray for your blessing upon those who seek your will and your continued anointing upon the family unit. May we all look to you with our whole hearts and turn to you for help in times of trouble as well as look to you with praise and celebration in times of joy. You tell us in your Word that we are to be thankful in all things. So I am thankful for even the trials that bring us closer together. Thank you, Father, for loving me and surrounding my family with your protection. Please continue to have mercy upon us and bless us according to your will. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen!

Joyce Meyer Daily Devotion

 Love Yourself So You Can Love Others

It's tough to enjoy life when you don't like yourself. People who haven't learned to accept and get along with themselves tend to have more difficulty accepting and getting along with others.

I personally spent years having a hard time getting along with people, until I finally realized through the Word of God how my difficulty with other people was actually "rooted" in my difficulties with myself.

The Bible says a good tree will bear good fruit, and a rotten tree will bear rotten fruit. Likewise, the "fruit" of our lives comes from the "root" within us. If you're rooted in shame, guilt, inferiority, rejection, lack of love and acceptance, etc., the fruit of your relationships will suffer.

However, once you have a revelation of God's unconditional love for you and begin to accept yourself and others, eventually these new roots will produce good fruit, and your relationships will thrive.

What are your roots planted in? Examine your heart today and pray that God will firmly plant you in the soil of His love, so that you can genuinely love yourself and then love others. Make sure you are rooted in Him today.

Prayer Starter: God, I want to be rooted in Your love for me. Without Your love, I can't love myself or others, so I receive it today.

The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.” (Mark 12:31 NIV)

So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. (Isaiah 41:10 NIV)

She's So Crafty!!!

Happy New Year!!!!! Well, almost, anyway :) I want each of you to know how grateful I am that you have allowed us to inspire you in some way. As 2013 comes to a close, I'd like to share a bath butter recipe with you.  After you've watched the old year out and praised and partied the new year in, relax with this luxurious and insanely moisturizing butter for your bath. I found this recipe about a year ago and I have been using it ever since! It is simply amazing. I love the silky soft feeling that my skin has after bathing in this butter. This formula can also used as a tanning butter in the sun, but be very careful! Temperatures outside can affect your bath butter. If it is very cold, and your butter is too hard/firm, most of the time, then simply remelt and add more sweet almond oil until it stays soft when it is set up. If you are in a very hot region and your butter stays melted most of the time, put it in the refrigerator to firm it up. The bath butter should be firm, but you should still be able to spoon out a teaspoon for your bath.  It will melt in the warm water. I usually add a teaspoon in my water as it is running. Tomorrow I will post pics of the new batch I will make!


Here's what you will need:

1/2 cup cocoa butter ( I prefer the Palmer's brand cocoa butter cream)
1/4 cup coconut oil ( I purchase this at a local health food store)
1 teaspoon sweet almond oil ( I purchase this at a local health food store)
3-6 drops of essential oil (your preference; I used equal parts of lavender essential oil and jasmine essence oil)
1 microwave safe container ( I used a large Pyrex measuring cup)
Stirring spoon
1 decorative tin or container for your finished product

Step 1
Melt the cocoa butter
Step 2
Add the coconut oil
Step 3
When both have melted, remove them from the microwave and add the sweet almond oil and the essential oil. Stir until you mixture start to cool (about 5 minutes)
Step 4
Add your butter to your favorite decorative tin or jar. Remember to put it in a container that is shallow enough  and has an opening wide enough to be able to spoon it out into your bath. I used a decorative tin that I found at a local antique shop.
Step 5
Let your butter set up. You may choose to refrigerate it.

She's So Crafty!!!

Merry Christmas to all of you!!! I am absolutely thankful that God has graced my family and I with another year! This Christmas is especially exciting for us! Our new son is celebrating his first Christmas! It’s always a joy to see the children wake up on Christmas morning with the anticipation of opening their gifts. Seeing the joy on their faces as they tear open those gifts is priceless. I thank God that he continues to bless us to be able to provide for our NEEDS and a few of those WANTS on the list.

After opening gifts, the family has worked up an appetite for a good hearty breakfast. Yummo!!!! But there’s no time to sit on it! It’s time to get dressed and prepared hit the road to fellowship with family on this glorious day!! All the hugging, laughing, playing games and more good eating has us all pooped and ready to relax the rest of the evening away! What a better way to start that relaxation than with a nice warm bath and some cozy pajamas. Today I’m going to share a She’s so Crafty Bath Salt recipe with you that is sure to get you relaxed.  You might ask, “Why bath salt?” Well, bath salts are wonderful for pulling the impurities out of the skin. This recipe also contains baking soda, which is good for soothing and smoothing the skin. The essence oil is the perfect touch for adding aromatherapy to this lovely, beneficial combination of ingredients. So here goes! 

Peppermint Bath Salt

You will need:

1 glass container (I used a spaghetti sauce jar. It’s a great idea to start saving up your glass jars with the lids. They are always handy for the products you will make.)

¼ cup of bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)

½ cup of sea salt

3-4 drops of essence oil (I used 6 drops of peppermint essence oil because I like my fragrance to be strong)

Step 1

Add the baking soda and sea salt to the jar.

Step 2

Add your favorite essence oil drops.

Step 3

Put the lid on the jar and shake well to mix all of the ingredients together.

Guess what?? That’s it! You’ve made your very own luxurious bath salt! Just play with the recipe and add different essence oils for different aromatherapy experiences!  If you like the recipe, please post, share this link and/or leave your comments to let me know what you think!!! Have fun!

J❤st A Thought

Life is so wonderful when it's embranced with a clear path of faith and a love of learning.  J❤st A Thought is a wonderful way my sisters and I will bring you life experiences, talents, and interests.  I am so excited just about sharing such a wonderful sisterhood with a strong group of women.  So to the ladies of J❤st A Thought, thank you for allowing me to embark upon this journey.

To our viewers, here's  J❤st A Thought...

THERE IS

NO FORCE

EQUAL

TO A

WOMAN

DETERMINED

TO RISE.

She's So Crafty!!!

DIY Body Wash

I absolutely love trying out new things!! I love to try and share DIY ideas of others.Yesterday I started trying my hand at a DIY bubble bath!  It turned out wonderful! I turned a $1 bar of soap into about a gallon of body wash which would cost about $12!! Wow! What a savings!! 

One of my favorite sources for DIY projects is Pinterest.com. It has a wealth of ideas and suggestions for crafty homebodies like myself! :) There are also tons of other wonderful blogs out there to help guide you on your way! 

To get started, you will need the following materials:

1 bar of your favorite soap (I used the Aloe Vera scented Ivory)

Cheese grater

container for soap shavings

measuring cup

16 oz of water

1 large pot 

1 large stirring spoon

Step 1

Grate your soap. I used the whole bar  for almost a gallon of body wash. 

You may use half of the bar for less body wash.

Step 2 

Add  your grated soap and water to the pot and heat on medium until all soap is melted evenly. You will have to stir occasionally to help the soap dissolve quicker. Your dissolved soap mixture will look white or milky. I added a tablespoon of coconut oil to my my melted mixture to add a bit of moisturizer to my skin.

Step 3

After all of the soap has dissolved, turn your stove off and let your mixture cool for about 2 hours. A film will develop over the top after it has cooled for a few hours. At this point, dip your spoon in to see if your body wash is the thickness you desire.

Some of the water will reduce while cooking. You may need to add a bit more of water to get your body wash to the consistency that you want. If you add more water, heat your soap up and stir again. Let it sit to cool.

If your mixture is the right consistency after it has cooled, add it to your container.

Guess what?? That's it! I just know you will enjoy your body wash! Not only have you saved money, but you have a product that you created on your own!!! You're Maaaarrrrvelous, Darling! 

Hello Bloggies!! 😘

It's me!! I'm taking it one day at a time enjoying and loving life to the fullest! Stay tuned, because it's more to come to this blog with lots of positive

"J❤st A Thought "moments...

Thank you for visiting!!

Welcome to our Just A Thought blog! We are so excited about sharing our thoughts and ideas with you! I have to tell you that creating this site was a REALLY big deal for me! This is something that is totally out of the norm for me; but in the words of the gospel artists Mary Mary, "If you want to get something that you've never got, you have to do something that you've never done!!!" When I told the ladies about the idea of a blogspot, it was well received. Ty asked where this wonderful idea came from. I told her that my mind has been on a lot these days and I have been thinking of ways to share the things I love with the people who matter the most to me! This is one of the ways I thought of, so here goes. I know you will discover the treasures that my lovely sisters and I have to offer! Thank you for joining us on our journey!