Healing Herb Chart - Cayenne for Heart Attack?

Long before the prescription drugs available for all our ills they used to use herbs for healing.  They also used to die at an early age so you need to look at that before you throw out all your meds. 

            I came across this chart that I found very interesting concerning using different herbs for health problems. 

            I have a live rosemary plant in my kitchen in a five gallon container that I love.  I use rosemary in my cooking and enjoy having fresh rosemary whenever I need it.  This chart says it is a good anti-oxidant, I have always heard rosemary is good for your memory.  Maybe if you clean out your body you brain will be better?  Just an idea of my own…

            Cayenne is said to stop a heart attack, I have heard it is good for your respiratory so I have always taken it for my veins.  Years ago I was boating on Lake Powell on a first date with my husband and sliced the top of my hand open, it was bleeding profusely.  My husband (boyfriend then) had some cayenne pepper and poured it on my wound instantly stopping the bleeding.  The cut was bad enough that it should have had stitches, but being on the lake in the middle of nowhere this worked wonderfully.  Since then I have used cayenne pepper on many occasions to stop the bleeding, I think it should be in everyone’s first aid kit.

            Cinnamon is supposed to help lower blood pressure.  I keep a  jar of cinnamon on my kitchen table and sprinkle it on my honey toast in the morning for cinnamon toast.    Yeast Infection - In some studies, cinnamon has shown an amazing ability to stop medication-resistant yeast infections. 
Cancer Prevention - In a study published by researchers at the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Maryland, cinnamon reduced the proliferation of leukemia and lymphoma cancer cells.  

Now keep in mind I am not a medical professional so this is only my opinion, you should check with your doctor to see if some of these things work for you.

You might want to study some of these herbs; I have numerous books I have used as reference over the years.  Just be careful if you are taking medication that you check to make sure that herbs don’t interfere with your medication and cause other problems.  I myself am a true believer that you can be healthier with the herbs Heavenly Father gave us.



 

 

Zions National Park

This picture was taken right off the road in Zion's Park

 

 

If you want to go to a National Park that is awe inspiring, go to Zion’s National Park in Southern Utah.  If you’re a hiker you can hike, if you’re a climber you can climb, if you’re a rappelled you can rappel, if your one to go on a long hike then I recommend the Zion Narrows.  You will hike through towering walls of sandstone in water.  Just be aware if you are going through the Zion Narrows you need a permit and you might need it for some of the other rappels but you can get them on line before you go on your trip.  If you are none of the above and just want to ride through Zion’s Park in your car you can do that too, you just don’t go off the beaten path.

            The day I went was overcast, on most days it is sunny and blue skies, you might even see one of the long horn sheep or deer as you drive through the Park.  One year my daughter got her truck butted by a long horn sheep who didn’t like the idea of her being in the road (didn’t hurt the truck.)  Just make sure you take lots of water in your water reusable bottle if you go hiking, they prohibit disposable water bottles in Zion's (you can have what you want in your car.)

            You may drive through Zion's Park year round, highway 9 ends at highway 89 and you can go North to Bryce Canyon or South to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon.  The east entrance of Zion's Park is about ten to fifteen minutes from highway 89.  The winding road in Zion's Park is only around eleven miles long.  There is a road that breaks off the main road in the park that takes you up to Zion's Lodge that you need to take the shuttle in the summer to get to it unless you are staying at the lodge, then you may drive  your car there.   They shuttle you off the main road to Zion's Lodge where you can eat at the restaurant and walk in the Virgin River that  is the ending point of the Zion's Narrow hike. 
           
            There are many things to do in this beautiful park, it is South of Bryce Canyon that is a couple of hours away or Zion’s Park is North of the North Rim of the Grand Canyon (much prettier than the South Rim of the Grand Canyon and not so commercialized but they do have a motel and restaurant.
   
             There is a tunnel in Zion's Park that is a little over a mile long built using horse and wagons built in the early 1900's.  My husband's father and Grandfather helped build the tunnel, it took about a year.  The men started building from both sides and met in the middle.  His father and Grandfather each got paid a wage and their horse and wagon got paid a wage.  They would dynamite the tunnel and then send the men in with there horses and wagon to pick up the rocks and throw them out the windows that were dynamited in for ventilation and light.  It is a beautiful sight going through the tunnel and looking out the windows at the top of the mountain.  My Grandkids always have me honk in the tunnel, to scare away the giant gofer their Grandfather says is in there - although it is just for fun. 

            Zion’s National Park is about four hours away from Las Vegas so plan a trip there next time you go to Las Vegas Nevada, it is well worth it, then head on up to Bryce or the North Rim of the Grand Canyon.

Old Fashioned Jacks

            I remember I used to play with jacks for hours and I was really pretty good at it.  Pigs in the blanket, horse in the stable, over the jump, games we played with jacks.  My girlfriends or my sister would play with me each wanting to win. 

            I was at a Christmas bazaar a while ago when a women came over and started playing jacks and announced she was the queen of jacks.  Shortly after she left another women came over and started playing with the jacks and told me she was the best at jacks.  I told her the queen of jacks was just here and she then wanted to challenge her. 

            I hadn’t played jacks for many years and the first few times I started playing I was amazed at how uncoordinated I was but alas just like riding a bike I got back on and am now back into the game of jacks. 

            I think it is very good for all ages; it helps with your eye and hand coordination.

            I went to buy some jacks one day and all I could find was some cheaply made “Made in China” jacks.  I wanted made in America jacks.  I searched until I found some old fashioned jacks like I used to have with heavy duty jacks and rubber balls.

            If you want to play some fun jacks like the old fashioned ones we used to have you can find them at http://www.stitchthrutime.com/Old_Fashioned_Toys.html along with other made in American Old Fashioned Toys.

 

Watering Transplanted Plants

You have now planted your tender plants into the garden and are dreaming of the tomato sandwiches you will soon enjoy.  Not so fast, first and foremost you must make sure the plants are watered well.  When you first transplant plants make sure they are watered a lot and often.  This is one of the most important things you can do for your plants.  When they are first transplanted they can go into shock so make sure you give them the water they need. 

            When they start new growth you will be able to cut back on watering.  When they have taken hold you can water them less but make sure they don’t go into stress mode because that takes away from the time period for your tomato sandwich.  Just watch your plants and they will talk to you and let you know what they need.  They may not verbally talk to you but they will show you how they feel.  If you are giving them what they need then they will give you what you want, a tomato sandwich.

Companion Gardening

Many years ago I started gardening using companion gardening and I have been using it ever since.  If you are going to go to all the work of planting a garden you need to make sure you are not putting the wrong plants with each other.

Every year before I start to plant I make sure that I am not putting plants together that share the same bug or lower their resistance to disease.  It takes a little more time to research what you are doing but I think you will find you will be more successful in gardening.

You can pick up books on it or you may search the internet for companion gardening.  I also have on my blog who should and shouldn’t be put together like don’t plant potatoes and tomatoes together but carrots love tomatoes.  You may also go to http://www.stitchthrutime.com/Planting_Your_Garden.html and click on the gardening link for more information on companion gardening.  I think you will find the chart above quite helpful in your planting this year and next.

I also use companion gardening when planting herbs and flowers at my home and ranch so don’t just do it for your vegetable garden.

Teaching Kids to Sew

 

     For Christmas a few years ago I bought my granddaughter a sewing machine, one of those small kitty toy ones.  Save your money, that was a horrible waste of forty dollars, we spent more time trying to get it to sew then actually running the machine, we finally gave up.

     I have a small craft machine that I set up on an old shoe chair from a department store for my granddaughter to practice on.  Right now she is working on straight lines, which is why she is using gingham scraps to follow a straight line.  We are also working on the reverse; next she will be putting two pieces together.  I would like her to make a baby blanket for her dolls to begin with, but first she needs to learn to run the machine.



Planting Strawberries

Supervising how to fill holes with water

Helping Prepare to Plant Strawberries

 

          I planted fifty strawberries about a month ago and bought another fifty at the end of the year sale at Gurneys.  My ground is dry and as I dug fifty holes for the berries my older grandson was filling the holes with water, a job that needed to be repeated a few times because the ground has been so dry.  Usually we plow it again but we couldn’t get the tiller to start and I wanted to get the berries in, they were very dry when they came in and didn’t look very good.

            About three quarter of the way through the filling of holes my grandson had to go use the restroom so he called his younger brother to take over the job while he was gone.  The first picture is of him telling him what he needed for him to do.  In the second picture you can tell the little brother is doing as his supervisor had told him.  When the first grandson came back he went to help Grandpa plant melons so the younger one was still filling holes with water.  As time wore on the younger boy kept telling his older brother he could have his job back; even though he had tired of the job the younger grandson was a good helper and kept on working with Grandma until the job was done. 

            When it came time to plant the strawberries everyone helped as that is the best part of the job, we put a couple of scoops of better dirt in the holes and made sure they were wet; then the plants went in and watered them again. 

I plant my strawberries like I plant my tomatoes except you need a better mulch than tomatoes; you can see a tuitorial at http://www.stitchthrutime.com/Planting_Tomatoes.html
An important thing to remember is don't plant your strawberries where you have planted tomatoes or potatoes within the last three or four years.

            Teaching the next generator is an important part of life, we don’t work in the garden, its we play in the garden.





Ironrite

 

 



“Take a Holiday from hand ironing for the rest of your life” is what is on the front of the manual for my new or should I say new to me Ironrite.  That sounds good to me. 

            I am so happy - I just got an Ironrite from my mother.  I remember a few years ago when she called me excited to tell me she had found an Ironrite at a garage sale by her house.  She told me only the women with money used to have an Ironrite, in other words she always wanted one and was unable to have one when they came out.  I saw the garage sale price tag of $60.00 on the side of the Ironrite, it is missing the cover but to me it is absolutely wonderful.

            The gear oil needs to be drained and replaced; I have already cleaned around the machine as it was in her basement where she seldom used it.  I will use it for fun and for my sewing business.

            Looking over comments on the internet I think Ironrite owners are obsessive about their little machine that was from the 40’s to the 60’s.  The few times I have used it I got into a rhythm as I have rolled the clothes through the iron, using the right petal to lift the roller up and down and the left petal to pause it.  It might become my new meditation time, soothing and it reminds me of using my spinning wheel.  (Something I need to do more of as I haven’t done it enough to really know what I am doing.)  I can see why there are so many Ironrite owners who love their old fashioned Ironrite.

            I will get out my old water sprinkler for the things I will iron, it fits on top of an old fashioned soda pop bottle to sprinkle the clothes and let them set before they are ready to iron.  I showed the bottle sprinkler to my daughter the other day and told her what it was used for; her generation never used them, now they have fancy steam irons and don’t need it anymore – unless you have an Ironrite.  I guess I’m one of the wealthy people now, I own an Ironrite.