Fifty-Nine Bottles of...Spice On the Wall (Or In The Cabinet)

I have come to a realization. I love spices.

I realized this last night when I was doing a bit of spice-cabinet-organizing and counted up nearly 60 spices and spice blends in my cabinet. I know! It's an addiction! But I really do use nearly all of them, at least occasionally.

There is definitely all kinds of stuff in there. Although every once in a while I come across a recipe that calls for a seasoning that I actually don't have. Hard to believe, isn't it?

And I know that you are supposed to clean out your old spices every six months or so and while I must admit I'm too cheap, I mean frugal, to do that with abandon, I do toss one occasionally. But it is amazing how long spices actually do last!

I do have a few personal faves. Seasoned Salt is one. I love the stuff from Tastefully Simple, although I do have a great from-scratch recipe for seasoned salt that I love, too. Smoked Paprika is another wonderful spice. I could just smell it all day long! Then there's some good old Cajun seasoning. I try never to run out of this. I add it to lots of things in place of salt and pepper. It gives an extra flavor kick that is wonderful.

Of course, I love freshly ground pepper and kosher salt~which I now keep in what used to be a jelly jar on my stovetop. So handy!

What are some of your favorite spices? And how do you most like to use them? Tell me!!

This post is linked to Show & Tell Friday at My Romantic Home.

The Making of an Egyptian Death Mask

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My kids have had a chore chart for a while. It's one of those magnetic boards and they share it. However, it's not by their rooms and often they (and I) forget to update it. Plus it's a little bulky. When I saw the concept of a door hanger chore chart on Pinterest, I loved it! It was compact, right there were the kiddos could see it coming out and going into their rooms, and it costs almost nothing to make. I headed over to one of my favorite stores: Hobby Lobby, of course. They have these little wooden door hangers for .79. I also grabbed a couple of packets of decorative buttons for $1.99 each. I already had the clothes pins and the paint so those cost me nothing. I began by painting the door hangers (I used tempera paints because that's what I had). Then I grabbed a fine point Sharpie and the clothes pins and started writing chores on them, making sure to write them correctly so they will ...

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As our homeschool takes some time off this summer, my mind almost never stops thinking of and planning ahead for the upcoming school year. This is probably because I'm Type A and an obsessive planner...lol Whatever the reason, I do enjoy this season of planning. But I also need to be refreshed as a homeschool mom. Homeschooling can be incredibly exhausting and all-consuming. It's not easy and it's a lot of responsibility. And I take that very seriously when I am researching curriculum and planning toward the next school year. So also taking some time to rejuvenate and refocus myself is very important. How do I do this? Each summer I take some time to read something inspiring and motivating that speaks to me as a homeschool mom. Some of my fave reads from past years--that I have nearby on my shelf and refer to often--are Educating the Wholehearted Child, The Well-Trained Mind, The Charlotte Mason Companion, A T...

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