Persevering Momma

Taking The Day One Spoon At a Time

I Found My Savior With This Hamburger Helper Rebate

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Thank you to Helper for sponsoring this post and for inspiring me to sample your Free Ground Beef Rebate!

Free Rebate

I will be completely honest with you all.  I am 28 years old and this was my first time ever using Hamburger Helper and I have begun to wonder why I never tried it sooner!  I was ecstatic sampling all three variations of Hamburger Helper for this amazing campaign.  I wish I had known about this product back in my early years living on my own.  It makes dinner so much easier, faster, and tastier than eating some of the bland food that I used to make when I was on a serious budget.

By the time that I began experimenting with my third variation I thought I would try something a little different with the package and decided to turn mine into a baked pasta dish.  Growing up baked mostacholi was one of my favorite dishes so, I thought it would be neat if I could turn this box of Cheesy Italian Shells into a similar dish!  My idea to add Mozzarella cheese and bake it went over amazingly!  The dish was scrumptious.

Hamburger Helper Collage PP

Doesn’t it look delicious?

You can easily make a quick dinner dish for your family, too!  Hamburger Helper is offering the best incentive on why you should try their products out with your family right now!  If you buy 3 packages of Hamburger Helper and 1 lb. of Ground Beef you can then use their Mail-In Rebate and get the pound of ground beef for free!!!

hamburger helper rebate

Fall Picnic’s Are In – Use A Traditional Picnic Basket

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Summer is leaving and Fall is coming, but that doesn’t mean we can’t still spend quality time outside.  With the Fall colors coming soon it makes for the perfect time to go on a family or romantic hike and picnic.  Picnic’s are always a fun little excursion, but when you go to have one you need to make sure that you have everything that you will need.  This isn’t the easiest task out there either.  At least not in a nice compact way.

That is why you need a picnic basket to take along with you.  Now, I have never personally had a traditional picnic basket, but some day I want to get one of the nice fancy ones that has spots built in for all of your dishes, silverware, napkins, and blanket so that all you need to add is your food and drinks.  If you head on over to this site I found you will find some of the cutest baskets.  I linked up a few for you in the image above that I know I want to splurge and pick from.

Spend a little time browsing their website and while your at it I would love to hear any fun family memories or romantic endeavors you had while picnicking.

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10 Unbelievably Ordinary Things That Aren’t So Ordinary

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Some of these unbelievably ordinary things I am going to share with you are going to baffle and surprise you so let’s have a little fun today.

 

Loctite (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

1. Super Glue | Emergency Wounds Suture

Super Glue is such an amazing thing.  You can use it for so many things. It is great for sealing up small open wounds.  Ones that need to be sutured but you can’t do it right then.  This is great when traveling, especially while hiking and camping. Have a superficial wound that needs stitching? No medical staff, no needle and thread or no sewing training? No problem. While it will not do much for penetrating wounds like gunshots, super glue as an emergency suture can quickly bind and protect minor lacerations that otherwise could become infected.

 

Black coal or charcoal for cooking (Photo credit: epSos.de)

2. Charcoal & Cheesecloth | Water Purification

I have known this one for awhile and if you have ever been curious like me then you might have pulled apart a water filter to see what is inside.  The main ingredient inside of them is… *drum roll please* …charcoal! Charcoal is amazing for some other uses than cooking: water purification. Drill a hole in the bottom of any type of plastic container, line it with the cheesecloth, place charcoal in it and pour in water – and voila, an instant water purification system! Afterwards, you can let the charcoal dry and cook your dinner with it.

 

Condom gun
By Timothy Takemoto

3. Condoms | Water Storage | Water Repellent

Now don’t laugh at me.  But condoms can hold up to a gallon of water and that is not something to joke about.  If you get lost, if there is an emergency condoms can be helpful.  You can stretch them out and catch rain water in them or fill them with water from innumerable sources.  One thing I highly suggest is that you use a condom that does not have spermicide on it because that is going to leave a bitter taste to your water. They are also great for putting over things you want to keep water out of, for instance the barrel of a gun.

 

Arm & Hammer Baking Soda
Arm & Hammer Baking Soda (Photo credit: TPapi)

4. Baking Soda | Reliever of Upset Stomachs | Fire Extinguisher

Baking Soda is something that I always say should be around the house.  It has so many amazing uses two of which are ones you want to remember if you are ever going hiking or in case of an emergency situation.  Sprinkling Baking Soda over a small fire will extinguish it.  This does include grease fires.  Never use water to put out grease fires.  Suffocate it with something else and baking soda is one of the best choices.  It is also something that you can ingest a little bit of to rid yourself of an upset stomach.

 

Balsamic vinegar, red and white wine vinegar
Balsamic vinegar, red and white wine vinegar (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

5. Vinegar | Antibacterial And Microbial

If you are looking for a natural antibacterial and microbial then vinegar is the way to go.  I know since I am accident prone I needed to learn ways to treat burns.  I have burnt myself so many times on all sorts of different implements that I needed to come up with a way to treat it.  Applying vinegar to the burn will help to heal it and pull some of the heat out just like aloe pulls the heat out of a burn.  Vinegar can be used as a cleaning agent as well as something to mask your smell when out in the wild.  It is also like Baking Soda and can be mixed with water to relieve an upset stomach.

 

Kaugummi
Kaugummi (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

6. Chewing Gum | Suppress Appetite

Chewing Gum.  It is as simple as this.  Chewing Gum does not have many calories, but it is an appetite suppressant because it almost tricks your body into thinking you are eating food when you really are just chewing.

 

Soothing
Soothing (Photo credit: stevec77)

7. Petroleum Jelly | Fire Starter | Lip Balm

Petroleum Jelly is something that is great for using in severe weather because it can be used to help prevent chapped lips and chapped skin. Simply rub a little bit on. It can also be used for starting fires. Rub it onto your wood or whatever you are burning and light that area with ease.

 

bucket of dryer lint
bucket of dryer lint (Photo credit: kris_wotipka)

8. Dryer Lint | Fire Starter

If you know you are going camping, hiking, or might be in an emergency situation you can stash a small bag of dryer lint in a plastic baggie to start your fire. You will only need a small pinch of dryer lint tucked in with you kindling to get a fire started and roaring.

 

Cut Dryer Sheets in Half and Reuse Them (98/365)
Cut Dryer Sheets in Half and Reuse Them (98/365) (Photo credit: trenttsd)

9. Dryer Sheets | Bug Repellent

Hang a dryer sheet near you outside to repel bugs and mosquito’s from coming near you. You can also rub one against your skin to use as a bug spray. In addition to tucking it into the containers with your food to keep bugs from coming and getting into your food.

 

Med u saću
Med u saću (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

10. Honey | Anti-fungal | Antibacterial

Honey might be sticky, but Treat minor cuts and wounds with honey’s antibacterial and anti-fungal properties. Apply a small amount twice daily to a wound or burn to speed healing process.

 

Do you have any other tips for ordinary things that have not so ordinary uses?

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Are You Ready To Get Cooking? FREE Recipe Website From Kenmore

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Cookmore.com – Kenmore (Free Recipe Site)

When I saw this free recipe website I knew I needed to share it.  It is really easy to use and a great way to find healthy recipes for you and your family.   It isn’t just the fact that you can access these recipes easily it is the fact that you can make cookbooks that you can share and show your friends for awesome weekly meal plans or diets you might be trying to keep up with.


Sign up for Cookmore now to gain access to recipes, cookbooks, meal planner, calorie counter, grocery list, and so much more! You have access to LOTS of FREE recipes–with something for nearly every diet or culinary preference. But, even better than that, you have access to visually appealing (and delicious) recipes, inspiring food concepts, and award-winning chefs–designed to meet your needs.

Organize your recipe collection in one place. Plan for those upcoming holiday meals, with an estimated calorie count built into the recipe planning process. Plus, you can create a grocery list to get everything you need for your meal plan. It’s the perfect combo of resources for busy moms and dads!

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Chicken Salad Recipe Made With Leftovers

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Chicken Salad Recipe

If you saw my Chicken Salad Leftovers Wordless Wednesday post this week you will know that I had a ton of leftovers this week.  Last weekend we smoked two whole chickens and a 10 pound pork butt and for just our family that is a TON of meat.  We had about one whole chicken for leftovers and over half of the pork butt left.  That meant I needed to get creative and find some fun and interesting ways to use our leftovers, right?  Right!

If you also have some leftover, overripe Bananas you should check out my Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Recipe while you are here.  It is a great desert bread for your children to devour!

[gmc_recipe 20864]

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