To test to see if an egg is fresh, immerse it in a pan of
cool, salted water. If it sinks, it’s fresh. If it floats,
throw it away!!

* Avoiding colds with a teaspoon a day! Thanks to its rich stores of nutrients–including niacin, calcium, riboflavin, copper, magnesium, iron, manganese, phosphorus, potassium and zinc–taking a teaspoon of honey before bed can boost your immune system, calm coughs and help you sleep better.  PLEASE NOTE: Honey shouldn’t be given to children under age 1 because of a rare risk of botulism.

* Making a cleanser that restores radiance to skin! Blend together 1/4 cup raw honey (found in health-food stores), 1 Tbs.  liquid soap and 1/2 cup glycerin in a small bowl. Gently rub onto your face with a clean soft cloth, wash away with warm water and pat face dry. Pour remaining cleanser into a clean plastic bottle and store in the fridge

Are your feet tired and tender? Well, you know there is
more than 1,000 nerve endings on your soles. Place a handful
of marbles in a basin and fill with warm water. Soak your feet
for 10-15 minutes, rolling your soles over the marbles to
stimulate the pressure points that turn on calm all over!

Keep the kitchen drains smelling fresh — Do you ever walk through your kitchen and smell a foul odor, only to discover that it is emanating from your drain? You can use coffee grounds about once a week to remedy this problem. The first step is heating some water to a boil in either a teapot or a pan. Once the water is hot, bring it over to the sink. Pour about a half cup of used coffee grounds down the drain, immediately followed by the hot water. You should follow the coffee grounds with at least 5 cups of boiling hot water. The hot water will push the grounds through, ensuring that they will not clog the drain. Your drain should smell fresh for at least a week afterward.

Cat/pest repellant — While some of us may love cats, we don’t love them in our gardens; outdoor cats often have trouble distinguishing between a litter box and your garden. You may be surprised to discover that your used coffee grounds can help them make that distinction! Simply mix the coffee grounds well with used orange peels and then spread them around the outside of your garden. Since cats dislike the smell of coffee, as well as any citrus smells, this mixture will drive them away quickly!

Enhance carrot and radish growth — We all have heard that coffee grounds make a great fertilizer in garden soil. And you may also know that your grounds are a great asset to compost piles. What you probably haven’t heard is that coffee can enhance the growth of carrots and radishes in particular. Before you plant, mix your carrot and radish seeds with used coffee grounds. Then plant them all together. Not only will the grounds increase your carrot and radish size and amount, but they will also ward away any underground pests attracted to your veggies. Give this a try and watch your crop flourish!

Deodorizer — Whether you love or hate the smell of coffee, that smell is not an issue when it comes to using coffee grounds as a deodorizer. Coffee grounds attract and trap unwanted odors, without imparting that unmistakable coffee scent. After you have dried them, preferably on a cookie sheet or foil, place your coffee grounds in old pantyhose. Tie the hose off, and then simply place them in any closet or area that needs freshening up. Results should last for a few weeks or even an entire month.

You can apply the same method to your freezer. Why spend money on baking soda when your old coffee grounds do the same job? After drying them as you did above, place the grounds in an old used margarine tub or something similar. Place the lid on, but poke holes in the top to allow the flow of oxygen. Without this oxygen, the coffee grounds will not be able to suck up odors effectively.

Dust inhibitor — No, I’m not asking you to dust your home with coffee grounds! This is simply a trick for those who have a fireplace in their homes. If you have a fireplace, chances are you use it often, which necessitates cleaning. Cleaning a fireplace is notoriously troublesome, as the ashes that build up are light and airy, often flying all over your house as you try to clean. Once again, the solution to this common problem is sitting in your coffee maker — wet, used coffee grounds. Before you clean your fireplace, take a good amount of wet grounds and gently place them over the top of the ashes and soot. They will quickly begin to soak up some of the dust, allowing you to clean your fireplace without the mess and the headache.

What Does
Your Favorite Summer Fruit Say About You?

Cure an earache
I have personally used this tip just a few months ago. AND it did help!

A number of folks swear by olive oil as a natural remedy for earaches. One suggestion is to “very carefully use a cotton swab to apply olive oil to the outside ear cavity to help with earaches and excess wax.” One online tip suggests: Heat up some olive oil in a microwave for 30 seconds then apply it to the ear that hurts for relief.

Ease snoring

Taking a sip of olive oil before heading to bed can help lubricate your throat muscles, cutting down on snoring. We won’t tell if you drizzle some extra olive oil on Grandma’s salad the next time she comes to visit!

Others have noted that downing a teaspoon of olive oil can help soothe a scratchy or ticklish throat.

- Keep it out of direct sunlight and in a cool place, as exposure to the sun and heat will quickly break it down into oxygen and water; rendering it ineffective. Store it in a dark bottle and remember to keep it out of reach of children.

- Dip your toothbrush in a 3% solution of hydrogen peroxide solution to help kill bacteria on the brush after brushing.

- A tablespoon of 3% hydrogen peroxide solution  in a cup of water can be used as a mouthwash – swish for up to 60 seconds once a day; but don’t swallow and be sure to rinse your mouth out afterwards. This can also help whiten teeth.

- Hydrogen peroxide in a 3% solution applied to a rag can be used to clean benchtops and cutting boards to help kill salmonella and other bacteria

- Half fill a spray bottle with a 3% solution and then top it up with water for use as a bathroom and toilet disinfectant and cleaner. This is especially useful if you have a septic, greywater or blackwater treatment system as it won’t harm the bacteria in the treatment areas – the hydrogen peroxide would have diluted to a point that renders it harmless by that stage through the interaction with flush water.

- Mix a 3% hydrogen peroxide solution with two parts water in a spray bottle and use on areas affected by mold. You can try a neat 3% solution for areas like bathroom tiling, but be careful on the strength in relation to painted items as it may bleach them.

- Make a whitening toothpaste by mixing baking soda and enough 3% Hydrogen Peroxide to form a paste

- Use 3% hydrogen peroxide to sterilize cuts and abrasions – the fizzing you’ll see occur is normal.

- To help kill bacteria such as E. Coli on fruits and vegetables, add a quarter cup of 3% hydrogen peroxide to a sink full of cold water. immerse, rinse with cold water and drain. By killing bacteria this will also help keep fruit and vegetables fresher for longer. You can also use a spraybottle containing a 50/50 mix of 3% hydrogen peroxide and water – just spray and rinse.

- Add a cup of 3% hydrogen peroxide to your whites wash in place of bleaches

- Remove bloodstains from clothing by blotting stain with 3% hydrogen peroxide, then rinse promptly with cold water to avoid bleaching of the fabric.

- To remove yellowing from lace curtains or tablecloths, fill a sink with cold water and a 2 cups of 3% hydrogen peroxide. Soak for at least an hour, rinse in cold water and air dry