Removing Water Spots

Do you have water spots ruining the beauty of your wood furniture? Our dining room table - which I love - was really starting to show its wear and tear. Lots of little scratches and nicks are visible but the numerous water spots are what was really causing it to look bad. I tried polishing it. I tried the mayonnaise trick. (Pinterest fail.) Twice. I gave up...
...until I saw another idea on Pinterest: Use a hair dryer! It worked!!! I am so excited! I wish I would have taken a before picture of the whole table because I got rid of at least eight water spots. Three were rather large - like this one:

Be patient. This takes a while - like twenty minutes. But that is still less time than refinishing even a tiny piece of furniture! On high, I put my hair dryer close to the spot.

Once I realized this was working - slowly - I grabbed a book to read while holding the hair dryer. I definitely recommend having something to do that still allows you to rotate hair-dryer-holding-hands easily and doesn't require any kind of listening.

Keep the hair dryer close to the spot and be patient!

Ta da! The spot is gone!

When you are done, moisturize the wood. I used olive oil.

Oscillococcinum

You know that feeling when you just "hit the wall" with fatigue, aches, and chills? I had heard that this 'Oscillococcinum' was the wonder drug for that. Although it isn't really a drug - it is a homeopathic medicine with zero side effects. I have always been a bit leery of homeopathic remedies (I'm not sure why I trust man-made chemicals more than the natural stuff???). I had heard so many great things about this from different people that I rushed out to buy it when my son 'hit the wall' and came down with a fever after dinner one night about six weeks ago. 
There are these little vials (pictured in the bottom right corner on the box) packed in groups of three in the box. You take three vials, one every six hours. Inside each vial looks like large salt crystals - like you see on hot pretzels. These crystal-like things are tasteless and dissolve in your mouth. And they work! My son's fever broke overnight and he was just a little puny the next day and perfectly fine the next.
So then this week when my husband 'hit the wall,' I pulled out the Oscillococcinum again - but this time not until the morning after his 'crash.' He slept most of that day, his fever broke, and then he was almost back to normal.
Now I suppose these 'bugs' could have just been the 24-hour variety and the Oscilloccinum didn't really do anything... but others who have had the same thing this winter who didn't take Oscilloccinum have been down and out for several days, and close to a week in some cases. So now I am a believer in what we call 'the ossy-oxy-stuff'. (You can hear how to really say it here.)

Love's Complete

I received this book on my nook from BookSneeze in exchange for an honest review. Even though this was a children's book, I was interested in reading it since I have many friends who have adopted internationally - several from Russia.
The book is written in rhyming verse, just four lines per illustrated page. After observing the adoption process through my friends, the poem is very accurate - including the frustration and paperwork. However, as a children's book, I would assume it was created to be read to the child as a way to explain their adoption. It just seemed to have a negative tone to it. Yes, there is a lot of waiting but I would prefer to focus on the excitement and expectation in that waiting.
Also, the illustrations were very outdated. I mean, how many American women wear hats with veils?
Two stars.

Unglued Devotional

I received this book from BookSneeze in exchange for an honest review. I read Lysa TerKeurst's blog and her email devotions and always seem to get something out of both so I was excited to see her new book on the BookSneeze list this time! And I was not disappointed: five stars!
There are 60 short devotionals to read - labeled as "60 days of imperfect progress." Each day begins with Scripture and a "thought for the day" followed by the text and a prayer.
Lysa is so real, sharing her life experiences and how God has shown her lessons through them. Many of them I remember reading as emails and it is so nice to have them all in one book. Like her daughter's 'to do list' which included telling people she loves them (Day 48).
There are so many take-aways in this book! Super reminders like to think about whether you are trying to prove something or improve a relationship (Day 13). Each day is full of wisdom on how to stay strong in the Lord and not come 'unglued' in our human-ness.

An Amish Kitchen

I received this book on my nook from BookSneeze in exchange for an honest review. The subtitle is Three Sweet Stories to Nourish Your Soul. But it isn't just that; it also includes a reading group guide, recipes from the three novellas, as well as the herbal remedies used by Fern Zook, one of the characters, who finds her way into each story. But please note that the three stories are independent of each other.
The first novella, A Taste of Faith by Kelly Long, uses Fern Zook as the main character. She is twenty years old and lives with her grandmother. They are the 'go-to' home for herbal remedies and the story revolves around her life and growing independence. I enjoyed this story but thought it ended too abruptly and was very rushed at the end.
The second novella, A Spoonful of Love by Amy Clipston, also revolves around a young lady and her growing independence. This one, Hannah Kling, is running the family's bed and breakfast. She is trying to prove to her parents that she is capable of handling the B&B, even when a young Amish man comes to stay. Again, I enjoyed the story but wished it would have continued.
The third, and final, novella was my favorite. A Recipe for Hope by Beth Wiseman is about a family with three teenage boys, all in their rumschpringe, or running around years. The mom, Eve Bender, struggles with being good enough for her own mom, especially while raising three 'wild' boys. The story shows the ups and downs of two generations trying to interact and respect each other. There are some interesting twists in this story which makes it hard to put down. Again, I wish this would have been longer and not rushed at the end.
Four stars.

Chocolate-Covered Baloney

Chocolate-Covered Baloney (Confessions of April Grace #3) by K. D. McCrite was another fun book provided to me on my nook by Thomas Nelson Publishing in exchange for an honest review.

This book, written in the first-person, reminded me of the Junie B. Jones' books written for much younger kids. April Grace is a sixth grade girl, so definitely older and more mature than Junie B. but still just as funny.
I am looking forward to my twelve-year-old daughter to read this book. It is always fun to discuss books with her and this one will lead to discussions about judging people without knowing their whole story and then leading into asking for forgiveness and forgiving.
This book takes place in 1987 which seemed odd for a book published this year (2012). However, there is an author's note at the end of the book. McCrite explains that she wanted today's youth to realize "what you experience is new to you, but it's not new." It's as reminder that life still happened before cell phones and Google!
Five stars for the tween/young teen population!

The MoneySmart Family System

The MoneySmart Family System by Steve and Annette Economides was provided to me on my nook from BookSneeze in exchange for an honest review.

The subtitle is "Teaching Financial Independence to Children of Every Age." It does teach financial independence but it also teaches basic independence and character as well. Because of that, I think this book is more of a parenting book than a money book. For example, some of the later chapters are much more parenting advice involved with some finance thrown in: "Activities for Character, Strength, and Scholarships," "Playing and Paying: Toys, Recreation, and Technology" (gives helpful websites for movie/gaming reviews) "Gifts and Gratefulness," and "Friends, Love, and Marriage." They are well written chapters and I agree with them almost 100%;

Ex: "Parental involvement is critical, and so is honesty. We know one family who allowed their eleven-year-old daughter to lie about her age so she could have a Facebook page. She learned an "important" lesson from her parents - she doesn't need to follow the rules."

they just seem out of place in a "money" book.

The book starts by explaining the 5/50/500 rule. Steve was a graphic designer and learned that if a mistake was caught early in the printing process it may only cost $5; if the mistake is caught a little later, that mistake may cost $50. But if the mistake is caught near the end of the process it could cost $500. And so it is with raising our children. If we train them well when they are little, their mistakes will cost less ($5). As they get a bit older, the mistake could cost more ($50, $500, $5,000, etc.). Throughout the book this analogy is used in a helpful way.

This book goes into detail about chore charts, points, and 'pay days,' including chart examples and pages to copy. (However, on the nook that doesn't work.) Many ideas the Economides' family uses are very similar to ideas we currently use. There are a few things I think we may implement after reading this book: raising the 'pay day' amount to include clothing money and/or extracurricular activities.

The best part of this book, I think, is the number of references provided. Books and websites are mentioned if you want more information on certain areas, lists are made for you as to how to buy a used car, how to file for college scholarships, etc. They also tell you about two more chapters they have online, which I have not yet read.