Little Ms. Sunshine

Rick and I watched Little Ms. Sunshine last night. Rick rented it for me over the weekend when I was sick, but as usual, I did not get to watch it until 2 days later! Anyway, Rick was in the kitchen and not going to watch it. He was going to take his James Bond into the bedroom to watch, but this movie was so funny he watched the whole thing. It tells the story of a family with some issues and their journey to take the daughter to a beauty pageant she got into by default. The journey is humorous, but the pageant is hilarious! The whole movie is worth watching, but the end is great. It is so typical about the little girl pageants for those of us that are not in that circuit. And this was a normal little girl looking normal. I highly recommend if you get some time to rent a movie. I know it won some award and I can see why!

I made bread!

I love to cook, but I have only made bread a few times. I make some great rolls from scratch at Thanksgiving (I don't know why I don't do it more often!) and I make pizza dough occasionally. I have been so concerned with the high fructose corn syrup you find in ALMOST every loaf of bread in the store that I have been telling everyone to check what you are eating. Someone once told me they heard a doctor say that our bodies know what to do with sugar because it has been around forever, but high fructose corn syrup is new and probably what is causing obesity. It is in everything. So my friend Kristen told me she made bread the other day and it was not too hard. She even made it without a bread machine. And then my niece Gabriella had to make bread for a 4th grade school project, and hers came out good too. So I decided, why not? I found this cookbook that had been my grandmother's called The New York Times Natural Foods Cookbook (this particular copy was copywrited 3 years before I was born!. In it our tons of bread recipes. I choose crusty white bread. You did not even kneed it! It turned out pretty good, I even impressed my mom! :)

5 cups unbleached flour
1 tsp sea salt
1 package dry active yeast
1 cup lukewarm water
1/4 cup olive oil
2/3 cup milk plus 1 tablespoon
1 egg, lightly beaten

Mix the flour and the salt together. In a separate bowl, mix the lukewarm water and the yeast and dissolve the yeast. Add 2/3 cup milk and the oil and stir well.(**I learned one time do not make the water too hot, it kills the yeast!). Combine with the flour mixture. Mix it vigorously until combined. Place in an oiled bowl. Cover and let it rise double. (This takes about 1 1/2 hours). Punch it down and divide it into two halves. Roll each to 1/2 inch thick and then roll into a jelly roll. Leave both on a oiled cookie sheet and let it rise double again (this takes about 30 minutes). Mix beaten egg and 1 tablespoon of milk and brush over the top of the bread. Put a pan of hot water into the oven. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Cook at 400 degrees for 15 minutes then lower to 350 degrees for 15 minutes until browned.

When you make it, you can control what is in it! I challenge you t make some bread soon!

Another income stream!

I am on a work at home mom forum called Mommy's Helper Community. It is a very friendly forum with real posts and not all ads (my pet peeve). I am so interested in affiliate marketing and how to make money with internet sites and websites, without having to spend a lot of time. Today I found on that forum a company called Zilo. Pretty much is a referral site for your favorite products. You set up your free store by filling it with things you like or find interesting, like my store, and then get paid when people shop from you. You promote on forums and to your contact group of friends and family. The greatest thing is you can set up your store with a referral from me and I get a commission on your store as well (plus anyone that sets up a store from your referral), forever! Here is the link if you want to start your own store- http://www.zlio.com/?r=51692.

With only 51692 stores, you have pretty good odds! Most products I have seen so far are from Amazon. It is such a neat idea!

The second personalized store I found was on online "create your own shirt" store. Our Smart Mom Store sells shirts with our logo as well as shirts for other clubs and groups. You make the shirts, set your commission and sell them. There are a lot on our site that we buy ourselves, so we did not even add commissions. I got three in the mail a week after I ordered them, and they are wonderful! This is so much easier than ordering them from a shop, paying a set up fee, and then having to order 12 or more identical shirts. I was able to order three shirts, three sizes, and two different logos and I paid $44, with shipping. There is a link on the store site to make your own store. It is free. And addictive!

So many ways to create that second or third stream of income! I cannot believe all that I have missed! My mind is opening to the amazing possibilities of different ways to provide for my family and stay home with my kids. As I find more affiliates, I will post them too!