Just left of normal

I've known this easy (not to mention green - and FREE if you already have vinegar in your pantry) method to cleaning the coffee maker since i was young because this how my mother did it. It wasn't until recently that i realized how few people not only don't know how, but don't even know that you can clean the coffee maker. So i thought i would share the method with you.

First empty your pot or carafe as well as dump the filter and grounds. If you have a removable filter basket rinse it along with the pot. Grab your vinegar (you don't have to be picky if you only have apple cider vinegar thats ok but regular distilled vinegar works best) Pour one part vinegar with two parts water into the coffee maker's reservoir. Set it to brew like a pot of coffee. Once it's finished turn the maker off and let it sit for about 15 minutes.

To remove the traces of vinegar left behind (and so your coffee doesn't smell or taste like vinegar ew) brew 2 more pots using water only through the maker. Between cycles allow it to set and cool for 15 minutes just as before. If you feel the need you can brew additional pots of water, especially if you still smell vinigar on it. If your maker is really gunky or old (maybe if this is the coffee maker at work) then you can run the vinegar cycle again before rinsing)
Lastly wash the filter basket as well as the pot with warm soapy water, don't be afraid to use that little scrubby brush either.

Voila you'll be able to brew smooth delicious coffee once more :D

As long as you have the vinegar out you can clean the mashing machine by adding about a cup of vinegar and running a full regular cycle to clean it. This only needs to be done every 6 months to a year. I'd clean the coffee maker once a month.

I am notorious for having way more projects going at once than i can actually finish. This my secret project, i am sort of free handing. This one should take me a good while because of the size of the finished product (intended size anyway). Once i am farther along i will share more, to be honest it's still in birthing phase.

I feel like i post way less often than maybe i should. It seems to me that the feed numbers jump around like crazy. I've been thinking about making a craft blog of mostly just tutorials and walk through's of really cool projects. What sort of really cool projects you ask? Well... cool ones, lol and of course eco-friendly. Tell me what you all think.

Speaking of i actually have an idea for something i want to try today, i'll update later.

I almost forgot to add the bit about the Baby Clapotis. When i first started my clapotis i was way excited and got as far as starting the body and after the first drop i was disappointed. I didn't like the look of two strands in the drop (i had been knitting it with 2 strands help together). But i didn't want to waste all that work and frog the whole thing. So i went ahead and bound it off (yes adding the drops). I thought i could add icording to the two long ends and let my baby wear it. Set it on the back and criss cross the front over the tummy, allow the cording to continue around and tie in the back (which is a plus cause it will also be hidden). However the increase rows in the pattern aren't going to be enough for a child over say 15 to 18 months. i suggest continuing the increase rows an addition 6 times. Also you could measure your child, with their arms out wrist to wrist and continue until it's approximately that long.

DISLAIMER: The first half of the entry is safe. After reading about the drain, i suggest that anyone who is easily grossed out or has been feeling unusually queasy today beware.

I thought i might be able to get through the weekend relaxed and uneventful but let me tell you i spoke way to soon. The first issue is that the drain is still kickin my ass not to mention getting on my last nerve. It is a bit better since i started using a natural enzyme drain cleaner (eco-friendly) called "Citra-Drain by Citri-Solv. I found it at our grocery store after consulting my Green Clean book (which is great, has recipes as well as some product suggestions). It has helped it's draining faster... 5 minutes instead of 10, but it is definitely not free flowing yet. I suspect that it's less goo and more hair that is causing the clog. Which is most of the problem since it seems the tub push pull plug won't come out. So i googled it and found this Q&A, the person has the same issue i have and even a picture so this is the next thing on my list to try.

The next and most recent event (least fun and most disgusting) when i went it to get lanna up from her nap i picked her up and saw there was a big wet and brownish spot on the bed and thought "oh great". So i layed down an old towel on the floor and put down a plastic throw away pad to lay the diaper on but i was so unprepared for what was to come. Pulling off her pants i see it's out the top of her diaper a little in the front, not to bad.. lifting her a little to see if it's out the back, i see that it is . I'm thinking of man this is gonna be messy but i wasn't prepared for it to be all the way up her back, even on the back of one arm a little. I wipe off as much as i can and carry her with two hands away from me (the classic movie "new-parent-doesn't-know-what-to-do" move) and we rush into the other bathroom to wash her since i still have drain stuff in mine. She has had another mess since then though it wasn't as bad it was still out the back a little. She has been on antibiotic since Friday for some nose/ear thing. I don't know if that was blocking her up or if it started it, either way i am sure the big plate of fresh fruit she had at breakfast was contributory. Hopefully thats all it is and not that she's coming down with something.

So i am one of those anonymous Walmart shopper.. you know those totally against everything that walmart is and stands for, the way they treat even their long term full time employees but most often financial circumstance rules out over even the atmosphere of Target. Sure i can get all those things at Target or the grocery store but my experience is that walmart is between $.50 to a $1 cheaper on most simple items and more on larger items, at the end of the receipt thats a significant savings to me. Though i get in and out as fast as i can and hope i don't run into anyone i know... usually i don't, that should tell me something right?

Anyway onto my point.. apparently for Earth day Faded Glory had a push of eco freindly shirts made from "100% Transitional Cotton - is grown using no chemical fertilizers or pesticides" printed inside the shirt it also says "by purchasing this product you are helping cotton farmers transition their fields from conventional farming to organic farming practices". So my question is, if a brand as big as Faded Glory can do it why can't they all switch? It seems like there is plenty of proof that natural and organic alternatives work just as well, in fact usually better, then why not switch?

This may end up being a long entry, i decided to do my herb project. So we had this old pot bottom that was nice and wide but not being used for .. well i don't know if it's ever been used. I didn't hesitate to claim it, i got the little herb kit from target. This isn't the first time i've picked up one of these type of little kits from buzzy seeds, i think they are adorable. I didn't think that little bag of rocks was going to be enough but i was hoping just maybe there would be just enough. I was wrong, i found another bag from the dollar tree with almost twice as many rocks and even then it was just enough.
The kit was a mix of basil, parsley and chive. It will be nice to add some fresh herbs rather than died flakes that stick to the front of your teeth. I actually have a few tiny buds already popping up so i'll have that update soon.