Preparing

You won’t need to say a prayer or even a zen koan in order to prepare yourself for this feat of engineering. What you will need is a wrench, some duct tape and some household items like Vaseline and WD-40 (You do have WD-40 in your house, don’t you?). You’ll also need to be patient and careful lest you cause a disaster and require the assistance of a professional plumber. Turn off the water under the sink, plug down or cover the drain to avoid losing small parts and duct tape your wrench jaws to avoid scratching your faucet. Put down a cloth that you can lay and clean your faucet parts on and we’re all set.

Getting started

Identify the type of faucet that you have. Generally speaking Faucets can be divided into four different types – the classic compression faucet which uses rubber washers to seal the water valve and the three washer-less faucets – ceramic dish ones, ball-type and cartridge faucets. Let’s start with the classic faucet type.

Classic Faucets

The most likely problem with a classic Compression faucet is a broken rubber washer. In this case you need to remove the top of the faucet, unscrew the column screw keeping it together, take out the screw and the handle and unscrew the nut with your wrench. Take out the nut and change the washer beneath and coat it in Vaseline. Assemble the  thing back together taking care to properly tighten the nut with your wrench. If the faucet still leaks the valve seat might be pitted. You can fix it yourself with a valve-seat dresser but by this point you might as well replace the faucet. Unless it’s particularly fancy it should cost under 15$.

Ceramic Disk Faucets

Ceramic disk faucets should also be fixable. Pull back the handle and unscrew the set screw then remove it and take off the handle. Remove the cap, unscrew the disk cylinder screws and lift the cylinder. Lift the neoprene seals and replace them if necessary then thoroughly clean the deposits on the cylinder opening with vinegar. Rinse, replace the seals and reassemble then move the handle up ( or set it to on) and slowly turn the water back on. If you turn it onn too quickly the force of the water can tear the ceramic disk apart.

Ball Faucets

You know ball faucets, they’re the adjustable left-right lever once. Well, they’re hard to fix as they have a lot of parts. You’re better off buying a replacement kit and replacing the whole insides of the thing. Simply unscrew the handle, remove the cap and collar and loosen the faucet cam with the tool in the kit. Next, remove everything inside: Cam, washer and ball and remove the seals and springs in the mechanism with some pliers. Cut off the old O-rings and coat the new ones in grease and install them in their place. Then put the new parts in. Voila, instant fix! Don’t worry, it isn’t cheating. Ball faucets are insanely hard to fix otherwise.

Cartridge Faucets

Cartridge faucets are very similar to Ball faucets in outward appearance but work differently and are easy to replace. Make sure you have the right length cartridge though!. To fix them, pry off the decorative cap, remove the handle screw, tilt the handle back and pull it off. Detach the clip holding the cartridge in place and pull out the cartridge. Replace the o-ring and spout and reassemble the thing with a new o-ring or replace the cartridge entirely.

There you have it – an easy and fool-proof guide to fixing leaky faucets. Remember to call a plumber if at any point you feel out of your league but if you can pull it off on your own congratulations!

The post Home Improvement – How to Fix a Leaky Faucet appeared first on Simple Life !.

My big girl, De.

How to Make Dog Treats: A Quick Note About Homemade Dog Treats

Not all people food is safe for our canine friends so it’s important to make sure you don’t feed your dog anything that isn’t good for them. We talked a lot about forbidden foods for dogs in our homemade dog food article so I’m not going to go into it again here but make sure you check out that list and familiarize yourself with it so you know what you’re giving your pooch isn’t going to give him or her an upset tummy or worse. With that said, a few of these recipes do incorporate one or two  of the forbidden foods. I absolutely only use the forbidden foods if I’m absolutely positive they don’t cause harm to a dog in small doses. That is the case with all the recipes on this list. Remember, these recipes are for dog treats only. Treats should only be given to your dog when they’ve done something you want to reward them for such as rewarding them for good behavior. Otherwise, they’re no longer ‘treats’ and are just something the dog come expect. That in mind, all of these treats are perfectly fine for the average dog. If your dog has any special dietary needs, however, you’re going to want to consult with your vet first before you start offering your beloved pooch any of these recipes just to be sure they’ll be diet appropriate.

How to Make Dog Treats: X Recipes for Dog Treats Your Dog Will Love

As I mentioned above, the recipes I’m about to share with you are treats and shouldn’t be what you feed your dog for meals. I hate to be repetitive but that’s a very important point to make and I want to make sure I make it. Some of these recipes are healthy but they don’t offer the vitamins and nutrients your dog needs to be healthy if used as a meal. Okay, let’s talk recipes.

Homemade Dog Treat Recipe #1: Bacon Flavored Dog Biscuits

This is one of De Niro’s favorites. To make these bacon flavored biscuits, you’ll need:

• 2 eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 tsp salt
• 10 tbsp. bacon fat, melted
• 5 cups whole wheat flour
• cookie sheet
• large mixing bowl

Step One: Preheat oven to 350°F
Step Two: Grease your cookie sheet and place aside for later use.
Step Three: Crack your eggs into the large mixing bowl and beat them well.
Step Four: Stir in bacon fat, milk, salt and water. Blend until mixture is well combined.
Step Five: Stir in your flour. Do this gradually to make mixing a bit easier.
Step Six: Pull off bits of the dough you’ve made and roll them into balls. The balls should be roughly two inches in size.
Step Seven: Place the dough balls on the cookie sheet you greased in step two.
Step Eight: Bake your biscuits for 35-40 minutes.
Step Nine: Remove from oven and place biscuits on racks to cool.
Step Ten: Place in plastic container and refrigerate until ready to use.

Homemade Dog Treat Recipe #2: Beef and Cheese Dog Cookies

This recipe makes four dozen dog treats that your dog will love. They also make great gifts for the dog lovers in your family. To make these, you’ll need:

• 1 cup rolled oats
• 1/3 cup margarine
• 1 cup water, boiling
• 3/4 cup cornmeal
• 2 tbsp. white sugar
• 1 tbsp. beef bouillon
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
• 1 egg, beaten
• 3 cups whole wheat flour
• large mixing bowl
• cookie sheet
• cookie cutter

Step One: Preheat oven to 325°F.
Step Two: Grease your cookie sheet and set it aside.
Step Three: Combine oats, margarine and water in your large mixing bowl. Let this mixture stand for 10 minutes.
Step Four: Add bouillon, cheese, cornmeal, egg, milk and sugar to the mixture you prepared in step two. Stir in these ingredients gradually and make sure everything is mixed together well.
Step Five: Add flour cup by cup until the mixture from step four has become a stiff dough.
Step Six: Lightly flour a clean flat surface and begin kneading your dough.
Step Seven: As you knead your dough, add in a little flour until your dough is no longer sticky.
Step Eight: Roll out the dough until it is 1/4 inch thick.
Step Nine: Cut your dough with your cookie cutters. I like using dog bone shaped cookie cutters but any shape is fine.
Step Ten: Place the dough you’ve cut out onto the cookie sheet you prepared in step two so that each shape is roughly 1 inch apart.
Step Eleven: Bake for 35-45 minutes or until the cookies are golden brown.
Step Twelve: Cool cookies before serving. Store any unused cookies in the fridge in a loosely covered plastic container.
*For a different flavor for this one, you can substitute beef bouillon for chicken bouillon.

Homemade Dog Treat Recipe #3: Diabetic Dog Treats

When I wanted to make treats for a friend’s diabetic dog, I had an incredibly hard time finding diabetic dog treat recipes. After lots of searching and a little trial and error, I found a great recipe her dog went crazy for. The best part? It’s perfectly healthy for diabetic dogs. To make these treats, you’ll need:

• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/2 lbs. beef liver, chunked
• 2 eggs
• food processor
• 10×15 inch jelly roll pan
• parchment paper
• pizza cutter

Step One: Preheat oven to 350°F.
Step Two: Line your jelly roll pan with parchment paper then set pan aside for later use.
Step Three: Put your beef liver into the food processor and pulse the meat until it is finely chopped.
Step Four: Add the flour and eggs to the beef liver in the food processor and blend until the mixture is smooth.*
Step Five: Spread evenly in the pan you prepared in step two.
Step Six: Bake the treats in the over for  15 minutes or until the center of the treats is firm.
Step Seven: Cool and cut the treats into squares using your pizza cutter.
Step Eight: Store any unused portions in a tightly sealed plastic container in the fridge.
*If your food processor isn’t big enough for the liver, flour and eggs, pour the liver mixture into a large mixing bowl, add the flour and eggs and mix with a wooden spoon. To make it a bit easier to mix, stir in the flour instead of adding it all at once.

The post How to Make Dog Treats appeared first on Simple Life !.

• Exotic Eucalyptus

In the Land Down-Under, koala bears live in eucalyptus trees and feed off their foliage. This makes them mellow, as the plant’s leaves contain a small dose of a hallucinogen substance – and it also makes their urine smell nice! That being said, the plant will also make a great addition to your décor, with its unusually colored leaves, tinted in a special kind of bluish green. Since the plant hails from the Antipodes, it requires a hot, sunny environment and also needs to be regularly watered. Some pruning might also be in order, for those who want to avoid seeing it develop into a tall tree and keep it looking more like a shrub.

• Delicate Jasmine

Jasmine is a girl’s name that evokes far-off places in the Arabic world, as well as a general sense of delicateness and frailty. That’s because this plant is actually used for brewing tea – jasmine tea is traditionally drunk in Oriental societies after a good, sizeable meal, and this is because it helps calm the stomach and aide in the digestion process. The second reason for its ‘reputation’ comes from its delicate, little white flowers, which need a humid environment and plenty of light. The plant needs to be fertilized twice a year and can develop into a lovely overhanging bush. You can even put up a small trellis or a beam for it to climb on, and then decorate the room in which you keep the plant just like your personal version of a Far Eastern oasis.

• The Victors’ Bay Leaf

Bay was immensely popular in Antiquity, as winners in battles or in the Olympic Games of Ancient Greece would receive crowns made from woven branches of bay. The leaves of this plant can also be dried and stored, in order for them to be later used as spices for anything, from stews to soups. Its savory taste also makes it highly appropriate for any hot winter dish. As if culinary delight wasn’t enough, bay is one of the best plants to keep in your apartment, since it doesn’t require that much maintenance. All you need to do is make sure the pot remains evenly moist throughout the warmer season. You can let it go a bit drier in winter – and make sure it gets plenty of sunlight!

• The Scented Geranium

Geraniums are well-known and loved for their unassuming beauty, for their fluffy, hairy leaves, as well as for the great way they can add just that needed touch of greenery to an indoor setting. Beyond this, however, this modest traditional apartment plant, which only requires regular watering, access to some natural sunlight and your usual plant food, is also great because it comes in a variety of scents, from lime and rose to the more exotic ginger and nutmeg. Sometimes geraniums tend to run long stalks, which you can simply snip off and use as cuttings… for more geraniums!

• Oregano

All oregano tastes great when dried and ground to be used as spice, but Cuban oregano also makes a wonderful house plant. It’s got big, juicy leaves, and it’s related to Swedish ivy (which is no more from Sweden than Cuban oregano is from Cuba). It doesn’t need constant exposure to natural sunlight, but placing the pot in a place where it gets some access to the beneficial rays of the sun will make it develop into a thriving, dense bush. It also doesn’t require that much water; prospective owners should know not to drown it by over-watering. It’s very easy to re-root cuttings, which makes this plant a great house gift for friends.

The post How to Grow Herbs Inside and Which Ones to Choose appeared first on Simple Life !.

Little Mookie

How to Make Your Own Cat Treats: Helpful Hints

Cats are not people. Sure we sometimes like to think of them as children but they’re not. They can’t eat the same things you and I can eat all of the time. Some of the foods we eat on a regular basis can make our feline friends sick. Sometimes, these foods can even be toxic so I think it’s important to take a moment to mention foods you should never, ever give your kitty. The following food are off limits for cats:

• Alcohol
• Baked goods
• Bread dough (or any other dough with yeast)
• Caffeine
• Candy
• Chives
• Chocolate
• Cooked bones
• Dairy products
• Dog food
• Garlic
• Grapes
• Gum
• Onions
• Raisins
• Toothpaste
• Tuna

Alcohol is probably a pretty obvious one but some of the other items on this list might need a little more explanation. Candy, gum, toothpaste and many baked goods can all be lumped together because they are dangerous to your cat for the same reason – xylitol. Xylitol is an artificial sweetener found in the items I just mentioned. This additive increases the amount of insulin circulating through your cat’s body and could lead to lethargy, loss of coordination (a pretty big deal for a cat), seizures, vomiting and even liver failure. Chocolate is also serious, leading to abnormal heart rate, seizures, tremors and possibly even death. Caffeine can be fatal for humans in high enough quantities so it stands to reason that it can also be fatal for cats. Keep an eye on your coffee cup. My Mookie loves to try to sneak sips and while a small quantity won’t cause any significant damage, larger quantities certainly will.

Grapes and raisins are also a bad idea for your furry friend as they have been known to lead to kidney failure in cats and can make cats sick, even in small quantities. The tricky thing about this one is that not all cats seem to suffer ill effects from grapes or raisins so it’s entirely possible your cat could eat them without getting sick. At the same time, it’s also entirely possible your cat could eat them and get sick or suffer kidney failure so it’s always better to be safe than sorry, especially when it comes to our feline friends.

This brings us to dairy products. Cats really seem to love dairy in all forms but that doesn’t mean they should have it. Kittens can often tolerate milk in small quantities but most adult cats cannot. This all has to do with the feline digestive system and the fact that it cannot process dairy so as much as your fuzzy friend may want it, they should not have it. I feel their pain on this one. I also love dairy and I can also not have it. Now, dairy, unlike many of the other things on the not-for-kitties list, really doesn’t have any long term negative health effects on cats but it can cause diarrhea and an upset tummy, similar to the effects dairy has on lactose intolerant humans like myself. I definitely don’t wish those symptoms on my kitties.

Chives, garlic and onions are three more of the foods that can be grouped together because they all have the same effect on cats. These foods break down your cats red bloods cells which can lead to anemia. These foods can also lead to gastrointestinal issues. It’s better to just avoid them. A small quantity every once in a while hasn’t been proven to have a negative impact on feline health but a large quantity at once or small quantities regularly will. I just avoid it entirely when making cat treats or cat food to be safe. One thing I always add to the cat food I make is bone – either as bone meal or ground up whole bones. The key words here are ‘ground up’. Bone is actually quite healthy for cats but it should only be given to them when it has been ground up in a grinder. Raw bones can be okay because they’re not likely to splinter but cooked bones should never, ever been given to a cat whole. They can and likely will splinter which could cause all sorts of problems. I avoid this issue by just not giving my cats bones at all unless they’ve been run through the grinder and mixed up as part of their food.

Let’s wrap this one up by talking about two foods that can be okay every once in a while but shouldn’t be given to cats on a regular basis – tuna and dog food. I occasionally give my cats tuna as a treat but I don’t allow it more than once a month if they even get it that often. I love tuna and make sandwiches for myself on a regular basis but I never leave the tuna where the cats can get at it. If you leave it where they can reach it, they will eat it! Dog food can be harder to keep from your cats. My youngest cat, Mookie, loves stealing my dog’s food, especially since it really ticks off the dog and ticking off the dog seems to be one of Mookie’s great pleasures in life. Stealing a bite of dog food every now and again is no problem but it shouldn’t be a staple food, just like tuna.

Baby Steve!

How to Make Your Own Cat Treats: 5 Recipes for Homemade Cat Treats

I was only going to include one recipe for cat treats but I just couldn’t narrow it down to one favorite. All of the recipes I’m about to share are simple, quick and moderately inexpensive and are sure to please your kitties. Just remember, these are intended as treats only. I only give my kitties their treats 2-3 times a week or when they’ve done something I feel they deserve a reward for (they’re great for teaching your kitties to do tricks or for rewarding good behavior). That keeps the treats special instead of allowing them to become something your cat expects. Okay, enough talk – let’s get to the recipes.

Homemade Cat Treat Recipe #1: Tuna Balls

Mookie loves these. Steve, well, she’s a finicky girl and for whatever reason, isn’t crazy about tuna. She likes them and will eat them but she prefers other treats a bit more.  Mookie, on the other hand, absolutely loves them. To make tuna balls for your kitty, you’ll need:

• 1 can tuna, drained
• 1/2 can flaked turkey or chicken
• 2/3 can kitty kibble
• bread crumbs
• small mixing bowl

Step One: Combine the tuna, turkey or chicken and kitty kibble in your mixing bowl, making sure you mix it well.
Step Two: Form mixture into small balls.
Step Three: Chill for roughly an hour.
Step Four: Roll the balls in your bread crumbs and serve!

Homemade Cat Treat Recipe #2: Kitty Cookies

Now this is a treat Steve can really sink her teeth into. I don’t give it to them often, saving this treat for once every few months. To make Kitty Cookies, you’ll need:

• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/4 cup soy flour (available at most grocery stores)
• 1 egg
• 1 tbsp. catnip
• 1/3 cup cat’s milk (available at most pet stores)*
• 1/3 cup powdered milk
• 2 tsp. wheat germ
• 1 tsp. unsulfurated molasses
• 2 tsp. olive oil
• cookie sheet
• mixing bowl

*if you can’t find cat’s milk, you can swap it out for regular milk
Step One: Preheat oven to 350° F.
Step Two: Oil your cookie sheet and set it aside.
Step Three: Mix all dry ingredients together, making sure they are well combined.
Step Four: Stir in remaining ingredients.
Step Five: Roll out mixture onto the cookie sheet you oiled in step two.
Step Six: Cut the mixture into small pieces. You want them to be small enough that they would be considered ‘bite sized’ to your cat.
Step Seven: Place the cookie sheet into the oven and bake your cookies for 20 minutes.
Step Eight: Remove for oven and allow to cool.
Step Nine: Remove from the sheet and place in a plastic container that seals tightly.

Homemade Cat Treat Recipe #3: Kitty Crackers with Tuna

As I mentioned earlier, Steve doesn’t love tuna. She does, however, love these crackers. Sometimes I think she just likes to be picky for the sake of being picky. In any event, both of my kitties go nuts for these crackers. To make them, you’ll need:

• 6 oz. tuna, undrained
• 1 cup cornmeal
• 1 cup flour
• 1/3 cup water
• Mixing bowl
• Cookie sheet, greased

Step One: Preheat oven to 350° F
Step Two: Add all of the ingredients together in a mixing bowl and mix it will.
Step Three: Roll batter onto a clean, flat surface so that the batter is about 1/4 inch thick.
Step Four: Cut batter so it forms pieces that would be bite sized to a cat.
Step Five: Place pieces onto your greased cookie sheet.
Step Six: Place the cookie sheet in the over and bake crackers for 20 minutes or until crackers are golden colored.
Step Seven: Cool until ready to serve.

Homemade Cat Treat Recipe #4: Burgers for the Kitties

I’ve not only served these treats to my own cats but have given the recipe to friends to make for their kitties and it’s always a hit. To make burgers for your kitties, you’ll need:

• 3 oz. sausage, finely ground*
• 2 tbsp. oatmeal
• 1 egg
• catnip, finely chopped (I only use about a tablespoon, but you may want to use more or less depending on your cat’s taste)

*can be traded our for finely ground beef
Step One: Kneed all of the ingredients together making sure you’ve mixed everything together well.
Step Two: Shape the mixture into flat patties.
Step Three: Broil on medium heat for 7-10 minutes or until the outside is crisp. Make sure you turn them often to ensure you get the best cook on the patties.
Step Four: Remove from heat and allow them to cool.
Step Five: Cut up cooled patties into cat bite-sized pieces and serve.

Homemade Cat Treat Recipe #5: Scrumptious Sardines

Steve is a finicky eater. Mookie will eat anything I set in front of him. Both of them go absolutely mad for these seafood treats. Steve has learned the sound of the sardine can opening and tries to climb me like a tree every time she hears it. Mookie hasn’t learned that sound yet but he has learned to watch Steve. When she goes nuts, he goes nuts. I wouldn’t be surprised if your cats do too. To make Scrumptious Sardine treats for your cats, you’ll need:

• 2 cans sardines (flat cans)
• 2/3 cup rice, cooked
• 1 tbsp. liver, pureed (canned liver cat food works as well)
• 1/4 cup chopped parsley
• small-medium sized mixing bowl

Step One: Combine all of your ingredients in your mixing bowl. Make sure you mix them well.
Step Two: Roll into balls or simply spoon it out into your cat’s dish. It’s that easy.
This recipe is a wonderful treat that will stay good in your fridge for up to three days. You can also freeze this one in plastic containers to thaw and serve later.

The post How to Make Your Own Cat Treats appeared first on Simple Life !.

My Mookie, as a kitten.

How to Make Your Own Cat Food: The Ingredients

There are some who insist you absolutely must have a grinder if you’re making your own cat food. There are others who insist a grinder is not at all necessary. Then there are some who fall in the middle. I am in the middle. While you certainly don’t need a grinder to make your own cat food, I would highly recommend investing in one. I’ve played both sides of the fence. When I started making my own cat food, I didn’t use a grinder. Within a very short amount of time, I realized using a grinder was not only more efficient but cut back on costs as well. Because of the basic dietary needs of our feline friends, choosing ground meat from the grocery store means having to add in all sorts of supplements to make sure they are getting what they need. In my case, it was adding bone meal to each recipe. By using a grinder, I’ve removed the need for bone meal, cutting back on the cost, even if just a little bit.

With the grinder discussion out of the way, it’s time to get into the next debate – raw food VS. cooked food. There are strong arguments on both sides of the debate. Cooking the food you offer your cat can reduce the nutrient content in the food. On the other hand, giving your cat raw food can expose them to harmful bacteria that could make them sick. So which is best? I like to tread the middle ground here. I partially cook the meats I give my cats, Mookie and Steve, or, at the very least, make sure it has been well cleaned and is as fresh as possible. I don’t fully cook the food to preserve as much of the nutritional value as I can but when I do cook it at all, I just cook it well enough to get the surface bacteria.

I don’t give Mookie and Steve a lot in terms of vegetables. Cats are carnivores. In the wild, they would be eating birds, mice and other small mammals. They are hunters by nature and consume most of what they catch, including the bones. This brings us back to the grinder. When I grind meat for Mookie and Steve, I leave the bones in, making sure those bones are finely ground before I offer the meat to the cats. Any bones or pieces of bone left in the grinder are disposed of. The bones need to be finely ground before they get to the cats or you are putting the cats in danger. This couldn’t be more important so make sure you remember it.

If you’ve opted out of using a grinder, you’re going to want to make sure you add bone meal to every recipe you make. Bones contain important nutrients your cat needs to stay as healthy as possible. Now, let’s talk about skin. How much skin you leave on the meat depends on your cat. If your cat has health issues such as pancreatitis or is overweight, you’re going to want to remove about 3/4 of the skin on the meat. If your cat is thin and needs to gain a little weight, you’ll leave all of the skin on the meat. If you’re cat is neither too skinny nor too chubby, take about half of the skin off the meat. This gives your cat the level of fat he or she needs to be healthy. If you have multiple cats that have different weights, prepare different batches of food. It might be a little more expensive and more time consuming but it’s the best way to ensure each of your cats has what he or she needs.

Leaving the skin on the meat isn’t always enough to give your cat the fat content they need. Cats are high energy animals. They like to run around and play. The calorie content is important. With that said, you don’t want to make them overweight. A reasonable amount of fat is still important though. Don’t cut the fat off the meat you give your cats. Some even like to add a little bit of bacon fat to the food they make for skinnier cats to up the fat content and to give their food a little extra flavor. Both of my cats are thin, fit cats so I don’t find adding bacon fat to their food is necessary although I do sometimes add a little bit to their meal as a treat if I’ve made bacon for myself.

I only use chicken, turkey or rabbit for my cats’ staple diet. I sometimes give them fish to give them variety and to make sure they don’t get tired of their normal diet. My cats are finicky and won’t eat something if they’re bored of it. Sure they’ll eat it when they get hungry enough but I don’t like forcing them to eat something they don’t enjoy. Now, for the chicken and turkey, I stick to dark meat mostly, really only using breasts when I feel like changing it up. Breasts just don’t have all that much fat which doesn’t make them an ideal choice for your cat’s staple diet. Rabbit is also very low in fat and is generally skinned before it gets to your kitchen. That means the fat content is even lower. When I make cat food using rabbit, I always add in a little chicken or turkey to up the fat content.

Now let’s talk about vegetables and grains before we get to the recipes. Our cats are not like us. They do not need the same things we do. Humans are omnivores meaning we need both plants and meats to be healthy. Cats are carnivores. They do not need plant matter to be healthy. Some do like adding a small amount of vegetables to their cat food. I don’t, but in the end, it is a personal choice. If your cat was a wild animal and not a domestic one, it may, in fact, probably get a small amount of plant matter in its diet but it would be indirect consumption. In other words, any plant matter your cat would get in the wild would come from the stomach or intestines of some other animal it ate. For that reason, that would be a very, very small part of their diet. Cats don’t have the necessary enzymes in their bodies to break down plant matter and extract nutrients from it. Grains are the same basic principle.

If you are going to put vegetables in your cat’s food, stick to a very small amount. Vegetables should make up less than 5% of your cat’s diet. In addition, you’re not going to want to feed them vegetables raw. You want your cat to get as much out of them as you can so instead of raw veggies, steam them first. Steaming them will help lock in the nutrients and will help your cat get the most nutrients out of them possible. Again though, vegetables really aren’t necessary. Your cat will get everything it needs out of a meat based diet.

My Steve.

How to Make Cat Food: The Recipe

Okay, we’ve talked enough about ingredients. It’s time to move on to the recipes. I’ve only chosen to include one recipe for this article because I think this one gives you the basic idea of what a healthy meal for your kitty should consist of. Don’t be afraid to experiment though. This isn’t the only recipe you can use. Play around with different combinations and ideas and see what works for you. Before we do dive in though, I want to point out one thing that is very important. Before you switch your four legged friend to a homemade diet, you should consult with your vet. Some cats do have special dietary needs and you want to make sure you meet those needs. Your vet should be able to tell you if the meal plan you’ve come up with will work and if not, they should be able to point you in the direction of a nutritionist that specializes in animals so you can be certain the meals you’re making are the best meals for your kitty. Okay, enough talking. Let’s get to the recipe.

To make this recipe, you’ll need:

• 4.4 lbs. chicken thighs or drumstick (with bone)
• 14 oz. chicken heart
• 7 oz. chicken liver
• 2 cups of water
• 4 egg yolks
• 4 capsules raw glandular supplement (available at most health food stores)
• 4, 000 mg salmon oil
• 536 mg Vitamin E (powdered capsules are easiest to use)
• 200 mg Vitamin B-Complex
• 1.5 tsp. salt with iodine
• 4 tsp. powdered psyllium husk (available at more health food stores)

*This food can be made and frozen but if you’re planning to go in that direction, add a capsule of taurine and a few drops of salmon oil to the food every couple of days as some of the nutritional value from these ingredients may be lost when frozen and thawed.
Step One: Remove the skin from the meat and remove the meat from the bones.
Step Two; Cut up the meat into small chunks. Set aside for later.
Step Three: Toss the skin, liver, raw bones (make sure they’re raw as cooked bones can splinter) and heart into your grinder and grind it up.
Step Four: Put the mixture from the grinder into a bowl and set it aside.
Step Five: Pour your water into a bowl and mix in all of your remaining ingredients (not the ingredients you set aside in step 4) but leave out the psyllium.
Step Six: Mix in the psyllium.
Step Seven: Mix the meat from step 2, the mixture from step 4 and the mixture from step six together, making sure you mix it all together well.
Step Eight: Divide the mixture up into portions and pour those portions into plastic containers, being careful not to overfill the containers. The lids could pop off and then the food would be no good. Date and label each container so you know what is in it and when it was made.

I’m going to finish up with a note about serving this food. It needs to be thawed in the fridge before serving it but it should never be microwaved and it should never be allowed to sit out after thawing for more than 48 hours. The food will go bad and could make your kitty sick. Also, this recipe also works if you want to use rabbit. Just use the whole rabbit and add in meat from chicken thighs or turkey thighs until the mixture is roughly 20-25% chicken or turkey meat.

The post How to Make Your Own Cat Food appeared first on Simple Life !.

image source: curvygirlguide.com

How to Make Your Own Dog Food: Ingredients

First and foremost, let’s talk about what you can’t put in your dog’s dish. Dogs can’t eat everything humans can eat and some of the things you eat could cause serious illness in your dogs so it’s important to be careful. You should not make homemade dog food that includes:

• Chocolate
• Dairy products
• Garlic
• Grapes
• Onion
• Macadamia nuts
• Raisins

Perhaps surprisingly to some, dogs should also not have raw meat. Salmonella and e.coli can have a negative impact on your dog’s health just as it could our own. Any meat you feed your dog should be cooked properly – just like you were cooking it for yourself. Bacon is okay for your dog but only in small doses. In other words, for a treat every now and again bacon can be okay (although consider one of the healthy homemade dog treats we’re going to talk about in a moment) but if given to your dog on a regular basis can cause pancreatitis.

So that that we have talked about what you shouldn’t use to make your own dog food, let’s talk about what you can use. There are lots of options out there. I’m going to give you three easy recipes for making your own dog food in the next section but don’t be afraid to get creative and try out your own recipes. You just need to make sure your dog is getting the vitamins and nutrients it needs to be healthy. Healthy homemade dog food should contain a protein source and a carbohydrate source as well as vitamins and other nutrients that your dog needs as well as a little bit of fat. Some great combinations you could try out include:

• Beef for protein with potatoes for the carbs
• Lamb for protein with rice for the carbs
• Chicken for protein with pasta for the carbs

You could, of course, mix and match, throwing in a few extra healthy for dogs vegetables to get the additional vitamin content you need. It’s also a good idea to learn a few different recipes and rotate them so your dog doesn’t get bored of eating the same thing all the time. This also gives you the chance to figure out what meals your dog enjoys the most and come up with other, similar recipes to keep them happy.

One final note before we get to the recipes. I’m going to bold this bit because it’s important. Make sure you add healthy oils (like fish oil) and ground egg shells to anything meal you make for your dog. Egg shells must be finely ground up. They offer your dog calcium and are an important part of any meal plan you make for your dog. Oils offer the fatty acids your dog needs, making them another important part of any recipe. I didn’t include them in the recipes below because they should automatically be a part of any meal you plan to make for your furry friend.

My girl, De, and her destroyed tennis ball.

Recipes for Making Your Own Dog Food

As I mentioned above, you can try experimenting with a few different recipes to see what your dog likes best. My dog, De Niro, particularly likes these recipes so I thought I’d share them. I give them to her three days out of every week and use my own recipes the rest of the time.

Recipe 1: Turkey Dinner for Dogs

This is a fairly quick, simple recipe that your dog will love. It’s also a very well rounded recipe that offers most of what your dog needs to be healthy and strong. To make this one, you’ll need:

• 1 lb. ground turkey
• 2 cups brown rice
• 6 cups water
• chicken hearts and livers (I only use a few)
• 8 oz. frozen broccoli, cauliflower and carrots (often available together in 16 oz. bags)
• table salt (just a small pinch will do)
• Dutch oven (large)

Step One: Puree your frozen vegetables and place them aside to be used later in the recipe.
Step Two: Toss your turkey, hearts, livers, water and rice into the Dutch oven.
Step Three: Stir the ingredients until the turkey has broken up completely and is spread throughout the mixture.
Step Four: Bring to a boil and then turn the heat back.
Step Five: Allow the mixture to simmer for 20 minutes.
Step Six: Mix in the frozen veggies and combine well.
Step Seven: Cook for 5 minutes.
Step Eight: Remove from heat and allow the food to cool.
Step Nine: Refrigerate until the food is ready to be used.

Recipe 2: A Little Bit of Everything

This is my girl’s absolute favorite. It’s the only recipe I make to freeze so she knows when dinner time comes and I head to the fridge, she’s in for a treat. There is nothing cuter than my big German Shepard/Doberman mix jumping around excited like she’s still a puppy. With that said, this one does take a little while to make but it’s well worth it. To make this one, you’ll need:

• 2 chicken leg quarters
• 1 lb. ground beef
• 1 cup brown rice
• 2/3 cup rolled oats
• 10 oz. frozen spinach, thawed, dried and chopped
• 2 cups frozen broccoli, chopped and thawed
• 15 oz. canned kidney beans, rinsed and drained
• 2 carrots, shredded
• 1 cup cottage cheese
• ½ cup fish oil
• ½ cup blueberries
• *½ cup celery and cauliflower, steamed and chopped
• *½ cup peas, steamed
• large pot
• large skillet
• large mixing bowl

*optional

Step One: Puree your spinach, broccoli, beans, carrots, blueberries, celery, cauliflower and peas then set aside to use later.
Step Two: Put your chicken legs in your pot and cover with water. Make sure you add enough water so the legs are covered completely and there is an additional inch of water on top.
Step Three: Bring the legs to a boil and reduce the heat. Cover your pot and allow to simmer for 40 minutes.
Step Four: Remove the legs from the pot, leaving the water in the pot after the 40 minutes of simmering is over. Set them aside.
Step Five: Stir the brown rice into the liquid you cooked the chicken in.
Step Six: Bring the rice and broth to a boil and reduce the heat. Cover the rice and allow it to simmer for roughly 40-50 minutes or until the rice is tender.
Step Seven: By now, the chicken legs should have cooled. Remove the skin and bones from the chicken legs and chop up the meat.  Set the meat in a bowl.
Step Eight: Drain your rice and pour the rice into the bowl with the chicken. Set this bowl aside.
Step Nine: Add your ground beef to a heated skillet. Cook it through. When it’s done, it should be brown and crumbly.  This should take about 7-10 minutes.
Step Ten: Drain your beef of grease. I like to empty it onto a clean paper towel and then pat it with a second paper towel to make sure most of the grease is gone.
Step Eleven: Add the beef to the chicken and rice and mix in all remaining ingredients, making sure everything is combined well.

This recipe makes a large amount of food that can be frozen and thawed overnight in the fridge when needed. Store it in plastic containers but make sure you label and date each container so you know when it was made.

Recipe 3: Meatloaf for your Dog

I absolutely love this recipe and my girl goes crazy for it. It’s fairly easy to make, can be stored and served as needed. To make meatloaf for your dog, you’ll need:

• 1 ½ lbs. ground beef
• 6 celery stalks, chopped
• 5 carrots, grated
• 1 apple, cored and diced
• 2 eggs
• 2 slices plain white bread, pieced
• 1 cup rolled oats
• 1 cup wheat germ
• 6 oz. tomato paste
• 4 medium sized potatoes, boiled and cubed
• fish oil
• large roasting pan
• large mixing bowl

Step One: Preheat your over to 350º
Step Two: Add your oil to your roasting pan and set it aside. The oil should cover the bottom of the pan.
Step Three: Mix the ground beef and vegetables together with your tomato paste, eggs, apple, bread, oats and wheat germ in a large mixing bowl. Make sure you’ve finely chopped all of your vegetables to ensure your dog is getting the most out of them. I puree them but that is your call. Cut up a few extra potatoes, carrots and celery for our next step.
Step Four: Divide the mixture into four equal parts. Form each separate part into its own loaf.
Step Five: Place your loaves into the pan you oiled earlier. Add the spare veggies you chopped up in step three around the loaves.
Step Six: Cover your pan and allow your loaves to cook for 80 minutes or until the temperature inside the loaves is 175º. If you’re not using a meat thermometer, just ensure the meat is cooked through all the way.
Step Seven: Leave loaves to cool. When ready to eat, you should only give your dog 1/3 of a loaf.

Making Your Own Pet Food: An Important Warning

A big part of the reason pet owners begin making their own pet food is ensuring the food they give their pet is as healthy as possible. With that said, dietary needs can vary from pet to pet, depending on breed, size and any special health considerations. Before you start feeding your dog or cat homemade food, you should first check with your vet and make sure the diet you have planned will offer your pet what it needs. In addition, it is recommended that you take your pet for checkups with the vet twice a year to make sure the new diet is working out okay. As your pet ages, their dietary needs will probably change and you may have to offer supplements or alter your diet plan to meet those needs. Regular checkups will help ensure you know when and if that’s necessary.

The post How to Make Your Own Dog Food appeared first on Simple Life !.

image source: pretty-roses-pretty-girls.blogspot.com

What Do I Need to Make My Own Baby Food?

Before we talk about the process, we need to make sure you have the right tools for the job. Don’t worry though. You probably aren’t going to have to go out and buy a bunch of new products you’ll only use a few times. Most of the tools you need to make your own baby food can be found in the average kitchen although there are specialized tools you can opt to buy instead. This is a good option for families that have multiple young children, care for multiple young children or who plan to have more children in the future but buying these products isn’t actually necessary. You can use something you already have in most cases. Okay, let’s start talking tools.

First and foremost, you’re going to need a tool for pureeing your food. Soft foods like sweet potatoes and bananas can easily be pureed with a fork but for other foods, you’re going to need something to grind up your food with. A blender or food processor is a great option here and is what many parents will opt for. Using a food processor or blender allows you to make larger quantities at one time which makes this the ideal option if you’re planning to make food and store it. For smaller quantities though, the blender or processor might be a little too much.

Hand blenders can be a great option for parents as long as you have or buy a good one. Sometimes hand blenders have a hard time contending with solid foods but they can be great for softer foods or used in combination with other tools. Hand blenders are great for small tasks as well as larger ones so they might be the ideal option if you’ve gone with a blender or food processor for bigger jobs because you can then use the hand blender for smaller jobs. The main difference between a hand blender and a regular blender is the fact that hand blenders are put into the food instead of having the food put in them.

Another great option that is popular among a lot of parents who make their own baby food is the hand turned food mill. These handy little tools often come with various blades that you can choose from to get different textures for your baby’s food and because they don’t require electricity, you can take them pretty near anywhere in the house. This is a great option if you have multiple children and can’t necessarily stay confined to an area with an outlet while you’re making your baby food.

Now, let’s talk about the specialty tools you can buy that are designed with making baby food in mind. A baby food grinder is similar to the hand turned food mill in that it is portable and doesn’t require electricity but it is different in one key way. There are no different blades with baby food grinders so you’re not able to adjust the texture of the food you make. This can be a pretty significant drawback as most parents are going to want to change the texture of the food as their baby grows and starts moving towards eating solids.

One of the best options out there is the all-in-one baby food maker. You really won’t need anything else if you buy one of these. Some all-in-one baby food makers will even defrost and reheat food you’ve already made and stored but that isn’t necessarily the case with all of them. So what do these tools do? Well, they start by steaming the food you want to make your baby food out of and once that is done, it purees the food for you, eliminating the need for food grinders entirely. They tend to be a bit on the expensive side and don’t do anything you can’t do yourself but they will make the whole process much easier and less time consuming for baby food making parents.

Aside from something to prepare the food in, you really won’t need any other tools although it is a good idea to have spare containers around in case there are leftovers. If you’re preparing food to store, you’re going to want to have sometime to store the food in. Tupperware containers and ice cube trays work well for storage. Make sure you date and label everything you store though. If you want to go that extra mile, prepare your food with a calendar close by and store your good in daily portions with the “made” date and the “use” date both marked on the container. This helps you stay organized and lets you know when it’s time to make more food.

image source: xcitefun.net

What Should I Put in the Baby Food I Make?

Now that you know your options for tools, it’s time to talk recipes. Before we start, I want to point out that it’s always best to choose fresh fruits and vegetables for your baby’s food. They taste better, can be easier to work with and don’t have the chemical content canned or frozen vegetables often have. If fresh fruits and vegetables aren’t available, choose frozen. If your baby is under three months old, you should always opt for frozen carrots, green beans, beets, spinach and squash if you decide to use these ingredients in your baby food because frozen will have a lower nitrate content than fresh. You can opt for organic foods as well. While organic fruits and vegetables can be more expensive, we’re dedicating an upcoming article on how to buy organic food for less so you can definitely buy organic while still saving money.

As we mentioned a moment ago, nitrates can be a concern when you’re making your own baby food. Companies that make baby food test for nitrates but there are a few ways you can limit your baby’s exposure to nitrates even when you opt to make baby food yourself. You should avoid making baby good that contains green beans, beets, carrots, spinach or squash until your baby is older than three months old. It’s also a good idea to have your well water tested for nitrates. Your well water would be considered safe for babies if the nitrate content in the water is less than 10ppm. Fresh fruits and vegetables often have little in the way of nitrates but as they age, the content level rises. Make your baby food as soon as possible and freeze it. Freeze any extra servings right away as well to limit your baby’s nitrate exposure.

One of the most common questions parents have when making their own baby food is whether or not they should use salt to add a little flavor to their food. The answer to this one is simple. No! First, it just isn’t necessary. While you may like salt on your food, your baby doesn’t yet know that certain foods taste better with a little sprinkle of salt for flavor. Not only is it not necessary to add salt to your baby’s food, it could also be dangerous. There are many health concerns related to salt, high blood pressure and kidney failure being just two of those concerns, so giving salt to your baby just isn’t a good idea. In addition, if you start giving salt to your baby at such a young age, they could develop a dependency on it which makes it much more difficult to give them proper nutrition later on.

There are a lot of foods out there that have salt in them and should therefore not be added to any kind of food you make for your baby. These foods include:

• Marinated tofu or miso (really any type of food that uses soy as a protein)
• Buttermilk and other milk based drinks
• Many cold cereals (check the ingredients list. If the sodium content is greater than 200 milligrams it should be avoided)
• Various processed cheeses (American cheese, blue cheese, Roquefort cheese, Parmesan cheese, Feta cheese and cottage cheeses to name a few)
• Salad dressings
• Canned soups, chili and paste
• Canned vegetables
• Deli meats
• Shellfish
• Instant cereals
• Frozen dinners
• Certain pancake mixes
• Butter or margarine with salt added
• Instant noodles, instant rice or instant potatoes

There are many other foods out there that contain salt. Your best bet is to check the ingredient list on any prepackaged food you want to give your baby. There may be a “no salt” version of whatever product you’re considering. Opt for that product over the product that contains salt.

Any food you have canned yourself is off limits for your baby. Fresh made food that you’ve frozen in containers is fine but canned food is not. This is an important distinction to make. Home canned foods may contain bacteria that could make your baby very ill so it should always be avoided. You also want to avoid giving your baby food that has been made with unpasteurized milk. Honey is also off limits as it may expose your baby to botulism which could harm or even kill your baby. If you opt to feed your baby food from a can or use ingredients in your baby food that has come from a can, make sure the can is not dented, bulging or defective in any way. Also make sure you check for expiration dates. It may be a bit over cautious but it’s better to be safe than sorry.

That’s it for today. Make sure you come back for a few great recipes for making your own baby food that will tell you exactly how to use all of the tools and ingredients we’ve talked about today.

The post What You Need to Know About Making Your Own Baby Food appeared first on Simple Life !.

image source: thefuntimesguide.com

It’s less expensive.

Having a baby costs a lot of money. There is just no arguing that point. Your little one will be your pride and joy but it will also be a huge strain on the average person’s bank account. Saving money any way you can is obviously appealing. Even you will have to initially spend a little more to make your own baby food, the savings in the long run definitely make it the more financially sound option. Start gathering the basic materials before you plan to start feeding your baby your homemade baby food so you don’t have to worry about spending money on pre-made baby food to feed your baby while you’re buying materials to make homemade baby food. Buy the materials a little at a time so you can spread the cost out a little bit. Too see how much money you’ll actually be saving, factor in how much you’ve spend on materials and figure out how long those materials will last. Now, add up the amount you would’ve spent buying pre-made baby food for the same amount of time. You might be a little surprised at how much you actually wind up saving.

It isn’t complicated.

I’ve mentioned my friends who make their own baby food but when it comes to writing this portion of the article, there is only one friend I have in mind. This sweet, sweet, lovely woman is a wonderful mother and a terrific friend but the lady can’t cook. She could burn water. She can also, however, make food for her baby with no trouble at all. Follow a few very basic recipes and even the culinary-challenged Moms and Dads out there can pull off making their own baby food. The money you save combined with how easy it is to make should be enough alone to sell you on the idea of learning how to make your own baby food.

image source: xcitefun.net

You know what’s in it.

This is a big one. When you’re buying pre-made baby food, you can look at the ingredient list to get an idea of what’s actually in the product but that’s all it will be – an idea. You weren’t there when it was made. You have no idea what actually wound up in the final product. From chemicals and preservatives to things that may have made their way into the food during the manufacturing process, it can be hard to say what you actually may be feeding your baby. While most often, any food you buy at the grocery store will be perfectly safe for your baby, more and more mothers and fathers are becoming less okay with the idea that they can’t know exactly what goes into the food their baby is eating. This makes homemade baby food an appealing option for obvious reasons.

You can opt to go ‘all natural’.

All natural food is a big deal these days because people are becoming more and more conscious of what they’re putting in their bodies. If you eat an all natural diet, why should you offer your baby anything else? Your baby needs certain vitamins and nutrients to stay healthy and to grow up strong but you can make sure they’re getting everything they need in their meals by making their food yourself, opting for all natural ingredients instead of ingredients that may have preservatives or other chemicals in them. Organic ingredients can be a bit more expensive to buy but even with the added expensive of opting for organic, you’ll still be saving money – especially if you were considering buying organic baby food which can be outrageously expensive.

image source: thefuntimesguide.com

It doesn’t take as long as you might think.

When a lot of new parents start thinking about making their own baby food, one of the first thoughts they have is that they won’t have nearly enough time to undertake such a big project. That just isn’t true the vast majority of the time. It is faster to just open up a jar of baby food, of course but making your own baby food doesn’t take all that long either, especially since you can make it in advance and store it for when it’s needed. Most of my friends who make their own baby food choose one day a week to make the food they’ll need for the following week in advance. Sunday evenings are often a good option because there isn’t quite as much going on. If you’re working and making your own baby food, plan on a time that fits into your schedule. We’ll talk more about how long it takes to make your own baby food when we talk specific recipes because different recipes may take longer than others.

It’s great for baby sitters.

When you’re making your own baby food and storing it for when it’s needed, label each container with the day it was made and the day you intend to feed it to your baby. If you have a baby sitter or nanny that watches your baby while you’re at work or at school, you can just tell them where to find the food and they can look for whatever container they need. It’s no more difficult for your baby sitter than opening a jar of baby food.

Do you make your own baby food? What made you decide to start? Are you happy with your decision? Let us know in the comments section below. Just considering making your own baby food? Make sure you come back for our step by step tutorial that not only teaches you how to make your own baby food but offers a few great recipes you can try out at home.

The post Why Should You Consider Making Your Own Baby Food? appeared first on Simple Life !.

image source: cultivatorscorner.com

What is Composting?

When you start composting your organic kitchen and yard scraps, you are basically just aiding a very natural process. Organic materials break down naturally using bacteria, fungi and other micro-organisms as well as insects and worms. By composting your organic scrap materials, you’re just making it a little easier for those materials to break down as they naturally would and then you’re reaping the rewards of that process.

image source: wikipedia.com

What is Compost?

Compost is the material you’re left with after composting. It is a nutrient rich soil that is dark in color and crumbles when you touch it. My main concern about my husband’s compost pile was the smell but I was surprised to learn that a properly cared for compost pile doesn’t really smell all that bad. Compost itself really just has an earthy kind of smell so when you properly care for your compost pile, it shouldn’t smell much worse than an average dirt pile which isn’t really that bad at all.

image source: magazine.ayurvediccure.com

What are the Benefits of Composting?

As I mentioned, I was concerned about the idea of composting when my husband first mentioned it but he sold me on the idea when he listed the benefits. The biggest for me was the positive impact composting can have on the environment. Composting your kitchen and yard scraps means those materials are not going to the curb with the rest of your household trash to be taken to the landfill. The benefit there is obvious but goes beyond just reducing the amount of trash you put in landfills. Composting offers plenty of oxygen to your kitchen and garden scraps which allows them to decompose naturally. In a landfill, this material doesn’t get the oxygen it needs to decompose naturally. When this material decomposes without adequate oxygen, it produces greenhouse gasses so by choosing to compost, you are choosing to do your part to reduce greenhouse gasses.

In addition to the benefits to the environment, composting also offers tremendous benefits to your garden. By using compost in your garden, you can significantly reduce, if not completely eliminate, the need to use chemical fertilizers. Composting improves the texture of the soil and enables it to retain more moisture and oxygen, making it an excellent, natural fertilizer that is rich in nutrients which will help improve the overall quality of anything you grow in your garden.

image source: tinyfarmblog.com

What Can I Compost?

There are a lot of things that can be composted. There are a lot of things that cannot. Knowing the difference between what can be composted and what cannot be composted is a big part of proper composting. Before you know how to compost, you need to know what you should and shouldn’t be putting into your compost bin or your compost pile. The basic rule of thumb is anything organic can be composted but there are exceptions. Those exceptions are:

• Ash
• Bones
• Dairy products
• Diseased plants
• Eggs
• Fats or oils
• Fish
• Fowl (including chicken or turkey)
• Meat
• Peanut butter
• Pet droppings, especially pet droppings with litter
• Sawdust or wood shavings from wood that has been painted or treated with chemicals
• Spreads of any kind
• Weeds that have gone to seed

Many of these things cannot be composted because they can lead to foul smells or can attract animals to your compost pile. It may seem like a long list but there are still lots of things you can put in your compost pile. First, let’s talk about green materials.

Green materials are rich in nitrogen and are perfect for composting. Most of these things are commonly found in the average kitchen and all of them are able to be tossed into your compost bin or your compost pile. These materials include:

• Coffee filters
• Coffee grounds
• Egg shells (must be crushed)
• Fruit and vegetable scraps or peelings
• Gardening materials
• Grass clippings
• Paper towels
• Tea bags
• Weeds that have not gone to seed

You can also compost brown materials. Brown materials are rich in carbon and are also great for your compost. Once again, these brown materials are things commonly found in and around the average home. Brown materials include:

• Bread
• Cardboard (shredded)
• Dry leaves
• Egg cartons (shredded)
• Paper (shredded)
• Pasta
• Rice
• Sawdust or shavings from paint/chemical free wood
• Wood chips (must be finely ground)

As long as you stick with the things you know you can compost and avoid the things you cannot, you should have a healthy, beneficial compost heap that requires only basic compost maintenance, doesn’t smell terrible and doesn’t attract animals.

image source: cultivatorscorner.com

How to Compost: A Step by Step Guide

To start, you’re going to want to pick a good location for your compost heap. It should be somewhere that is accessible year round but offers a little shade. You also need to make sure your compost heap is able to drain properly so look for a spot that offers good drainage. Once you’ve picked out your spot, you’re ready to begin.

Step One: Loosen the top soil for your compost heap. You want worms and insects to be able to move up into the compost heap to do their jobs and loosening the soil makes that easier for them.
Step Two: Put down a 4cm layer of materials from the brown materials list above. Because you’ll need a decent quantity of this material to make the full layer, you should consider using a mix of brown materials although shredded paper, shredded cardboard or dry leaves will work well if you have enough on hand.
Step Three: Add a 6cm layer of materials from the green list. Grass clippings can be a great option here. Spread this material evenly over the brown material layer you put down in step two.
Step Four: Add another layer of brown material. This time, you’ll want a thicker layer, at least 10cm. If you already have composted material, you can add that material for this step instead of another layer of brown materials. Adding a layer of already composted material gives you a head start as it will already have some of those helpful micro-organisms that help compost your brown and green materials. If you don’t have any composted material, you can use soil or you can stick to the layer of brown materials. Use what you have at your disposal. This layer helps tame odors and wards off fruit flies that may be attracted to the green materials layer.
Step Five: Fill up your compost bin (or pile) by adding layers of brown and green materials, alternating layer for layer. In other words, a brown layer always goes over a green layer and a green layer always goes over a brown layer. Finish off the layers with soil or composted material (or brown materials if you have no soil or composted material).
Step Six: When your pile is full, it’s time to turn. This is one of the most labor intensive parts of composting and it is a process you will have to repeat every two weeks. You need to turn it to make sure the materials have enough air to compost properly. You can use a turning tool or a garden fork, depending on the size of your pile. Continue turning until everything is mixed well.
Step Seven: Turn your pile every two weeks and keep an eye on the moisture of the pile. You want it to be damp but not wet. It should be about as moist as a sponge that has been wrung out. If your compost it too wet, you can remedy the problem by adding some brown materials. If your compost is too dry, add a little bit of water to have it the moisture it needs.

After roughly 8 to 10 weeks (or 3 to 4 turns) your compost should be done. It will have an early odor and will be dark brown in color. It will feel somewhat crumbly and moist if you handle it. You’ll need to let this material mature for a month or two before you use it in your garden.

Questions about compost, composting or how to compost? Ask them in the comments section at the end of this article. I’ll do my best to answer any questions you may have in an upcoming article. Thanks for reading and happy composting!

The post How to Compost at Home appeared first on Simple Life !.