Homemade Fire Starters

We really enjoy having a fire in the fireplace whenever it gets cold enough.  Over the years, we have tried several different kinds of fire starters, without much satisfaction.  Finally, out of desperation, we decided to make our own.  Here's how we did it:

Supplies:
*pine cones
*muffin tin
*melted wax
*uncoated wick
*spray glue
*salt, salt substitute, alum, epsom salts, borax (for different colored flames)


Cut wick about twice as long as the bottom of the pine cones.  Place it in the center of each muffin cup.  Pour a little bit of melted wax over the wick in the muffin tin, maybe 1/4 of the way up.  Straighten out the wick.  Place a pine cone in each muffin cup.  After about a half an hour the wax should be hard enough to pop out of the tins.  If the wax separates from the pine cone, add a little more wax and let it harden a little longer.  Trim the wicks.

Place pine cones on several thicknesses of newspaper.  Spray with glue, one at a time and sprinkle with one of the salts or other chemicals.  Use only one chemical per pine cone.  Let dry. Use in your fire as a fire starter.  Light the ends of the wicks and it will slowly burn.

Here is a picture of a gift basket we put together using our homemade soap, candles, and our homemade fire starters.

Fall

Fall is absolutely my favorite season!  As the weather slowly changes from brutally hot,  to hot, to very warm, to warm...I get envious of all the people who live where there is a "real" change of seasons.  But, even with our subtle change in weather, I still enjoy the fall.  I love the sound of the fallen leaves crunching beneath my feet.  I love the smell of pumpkins, apples, and pecans baking.  I love the way I start thinking about Thanksgiving and remembering all I have to be thankful for.

Here's a tiny look of fall at my house.

Cooking Pumpkins

This year we decided to use fresh pumpkin for our pumpkin pies.  The girls cleaned out the pumpkins and made a big mess, but it was all worth it.

Homemade Applesauce

Several weeks ago, we went to the apple orchard and picked a lot of apples.  We made a whole bunch of applesauce.  We have canned applesauce, frozen applesauce, frozen apple pies, etc.  Here's our very simple recipe for applesauce.

APPLESAUCE
12 cups apples
2 cups sugar
3 T. cinnamon

Wash and core apples.  Cut in half.  You don't need to peel the apples.  Place them in a large crock pot or an electric roasting pan.  Add sugar; more or less depending on how tart the apples are.  Add cinnamon.  Cook for several hours until very soft.  Use a hand blender to make the sauce as smooth as you like it.  We like our homestyle with a few chunks in it.

Menu Monday

This is our menu for the week of November 16th through November 22nd.

*MONDAY
---Roast Chicken
---Yellow Rice
---Breaded Vegetables
*TUESDAY
---Lasagna
---Homemade Bread
*WEDNESDAY
---Spaghetti & Meatballs
*THURSDAY
---Orange Chicken
---Brown Rice
*FRIDAY
---Chicken Enchiladas
---Beans
*SATURDAY
---Homemade Pizza
*SUNDAY
---Salisbury Steak
---Mashed Potatoes
---Green Veggie