Boiling

Place 6-8 raw eggs in a single layer in a large pot and add enough water to cover by one inch. Add some white vinegar (2 tablespoons per quart of water). Add dye ingredients (1 cup of vegetable solids per cup of water, 1 tablespoon of spices per cup of water, or substitute liquid ingredients for water) and bring to a boil. Turn heat to low and simmer for 20-30 minutes. The motion of the eggs in the boiling water ensures that the color will be even on the egg. The resulting egg will be very hard-boiled and inedible, as it picks up the flavor of the dye.

Cold Dipping

In a saucepan, add dye ingredients and cover at least 1 inch with water. Bring the water just to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer about 15 minutes to an hour until you like the color. Remove the pan from the heat.

Strain and pour the mixture into a bowl or jar that is deep enough to completely cover the eggs you want to dye. Add 2 to 3 teaspoons of white vinegar for each cup of liquid. Add the eggs and leave them until you like the color. You may want to leave them in for several hours or overnight for deeper color. If you choose to do so, be sure to do it in the refrigerator to keep them edible.

Remove your eggs with a slotted spoon and dry in the empty egg cartons or paper towels.

Don’t forget the crayon trick and decorate your eggs before you dye them. Or use stickers to keep certain shapes white. You can also dab the wet eggs with a sponge for a textured look or wrap with thin rubber bands for a tie-dyed look. To make them shiny, rub some vegetable oil on them after they’re dry.

Here are some things to try out. Mix and match, it’s a science project too!

We rely too much on the plethora of individually wrapped foods and single-use plastic bags, aluminum foil, and wax paper. Admittedly, these products are extremely convenient, but are you willing to allow new landfills and incinerators to be built in your own backyards as the old ones overflow and wreak havoc on our air? It has been estimated that 67 pounds of waste is generated per school-age child using a disposable lunch per school year. That equates to 18,760 pounds of lunch waste for just one average-size elementary school. The switch to a waste free lunch is simple.

Buy a lunchbox Lunch boxes are way cooler than boring brown paper bags and they allow your child another way to express themselves. Just be sure to stick with healthy plastics #1, 2, 4 or 5. Some plastics, like PVC (#3), polystyrene (#6) and polycarbonate (#7) contain hormone disruptors or lead that can leach into food.

Contain the food Buy reusable containers for food once, instead of plastic baggies over and over. This also allows you to buy your lunch food items in bulk to be stored properly at home and portioned out daily.

Stainless steel utensils A no-brainer.

Thermoses make a comeback! Or you could get a sealable cup…if that’s what you’re into

Cloth napkins Wrap a sandwich in it for double duty

Go Bento! Japanese bento boxed lunches are rapidly gaining popularity in the US with both children and adults. JBox has just about everything Bento that you could ever want.

Don’t limit your children to all of the lunch box fun. Buy a “sophisticated” one for yourself and be the envy of the office.

For those of you who cling desperately to your bottle of “kills 99.9% of bacteria” spray, let it go. You are doing more harm than good.  Most bacteria are benign and the natural bacterial flora in our bodies is instrumental in protecting us from the disease causing kind. Killing 99.9% of any bacteria means that the .01% that are resistant to the chemicals are going to go forth and multiply, thus rendering your cleaning products useless. Remember, you’re living in your house, not trying to perform surgery in it. Keep it livable by switching to safer, natural and often, much cheaper cleaning products that you can make yourself. Most ingredients are already in your kitchen. Here are some basic recipes to get you started. For more natural cleaning alternatives, visit The New Homemaker.

All Purpose Cleaner

1tsp borax or washing soda
2 cups warm water
2 Tbs distilled white vinegar
½ tsp natural liquid dishwashing soap
10 drops lavender essential oil
5 drops rosemary essential oil

Combine the borax or soda and water in a spray bottle and shake well. Add the rest and shake again. Lavender and rosemary oils have natural antiseptic properties and are pleasing to the nose. Spray on just about everything!

Window Cleaner

2/3 cup water
1/3 cup distilled white vinegar

Combine and shake in a spray bottle and use newspaper instead of paper towels to stay streak free. If there is a waxy build up from previous cleaners, add ¼ tsp natural liquid dishwashing soap.

Sink and Tub Cleaner

1/3 cup baking soda
1/3 cup borax
1 tsp natural liquid dishwashing soap
5 drops lavender essential oil
5 drops eucalyptus essential oil

Mix in a small plastic container. This gently polishes without damaging porcelain or fiberglass. The oils help disinfect and of course, smell good.

Air Fresheners

Air fresheners can be as easy as putting a few drops of essential oil in some water on the stove for humidity as well as fragrance, or mixing 25 drops of essential oil with a teaspoon of vodka and water in a spray bottle.

To keep flies away and add a lovely scent to your home, use either lavender, eucalyptus or cedar oil in a diffuser or on cotton balls placed around the room. Alternatively, set out bowls of fresh lemon and orange peels mixed with dried cloves.