How Our Family Uses Mnemonics

When I was a young girl, my grandpa taught me about word association. He told me when he needed to remember someone's name, he would try to think of something associated with that name. I've always remembered my grandpa's tip and still use it when necessary.

As my children went through school and were required to memorize assignments, I taught them the word association technique. Once, on a car trip, Katelyn brought along her homework (She's the only child of mine who would actually take homework on a vacation) and the rest of the family brainstormed to help her memorize the capital cities of all 50 states. Baton Rouge, Louisiana still stands out in my mind. We helped her remember it by thinking "Loise has too much rouge on her cheeks."

A couple of years ago, when Katelyn was going through pharmacy school, she and I came up with some unique and often funny ways she could remember the names of generic drugs. One of the drugs that I recall Katelyn learning is Levetiracetam. It's the generic drug for Keppra, something Cody takes for seizure control. Levetiracetam was one of the more difficult words to remember, so we got ridiculously creative and came up with, "Tyra (Banks) had to leave and try to seat them." ( Levetiracetam = Leave and Tyra seat 'em) Katelyn will never look at Tyra Banks the same way, but more importantly, she will never forget Keppra's generic equivalent.

Yesterday, Katelyn was trying to remember a friend's birthday. She thought it was on the 9th day of the month, but found out via facebook that it's actually the 10th. I offered this suggestion to her, "Your birthday is on the 16th, an even number. Nine is an odd number. Just remember that your friend's birthday can't be on the 9th, because it's an even number like yours."

At that point, Katelyn stated, "That's how I remember your birthday mom. When I was little, you told me I could remember your birthday is on the 29th because it's odd, just like you."

Tip for Putting on Mascara

Do NOT separate mascara clumps with a sewing needle.

I have been doing this for as long as I can remember and never had a problem... until this morning. Two or three of my eyelashes were clumping together, so I pulled out my needle to separate them and accidently poked myself in the eye.

This is what I looked like after the doctor dropped orange dye into my eye...

You can see in the picture that the skin under my eye is stained and my make-up is trashed.

Here's the good news:

1) I found out that eyes heal quickly, so the pain should go away after a couple of days.

2) The eye doctor gave me some sample anti-biotic and lubricating eye drops, therefore I'm saving money by not having to buy prescriptions.

3) Dr. Croft made me feel a little bit better by informing me that he sees women in his office about once a week for the very same thing.

11 Tried and True Kitchen Tips

1) Line measuring cups with plastic wrap before filling with sticky, gooey ingredients like peanut butter and shortening. The cups will be easier to clean.

2) When making cookie dough, no need to mix dry ingredients and wet ingredients in separate bowls. Combine wet ingredients as directed, then mix in baking soda, baking powder, salt and spices before adding flour.

3) Cut brownies with a plastic knife. I promise it will work like a charm and, once you try this, you'll never cut them any other way.

4) Spread jelly and jam with a spoon instead of a knife.

5) Vegetables and fruits will stay fresh longer if you line produce drawers with newspaper instead of paper towels.

6) Brown sugar remains lump free if you keep it in the refrigerator produce drawer.

7) Recycled Parmesan cheese containers are great for storing/sprinkling powdered sugar.

8) Cream will whip lighter and fluffier if you chill the bowl and beaters in the freezer beforehand.

9) Buy Sharp cheddar cheese. Because of the strong flavor, you can get away with using less in recipes and stretch your dollar.

10) For better flavor, add a little Sweet pickle juice to deviled eggs and homemade potato salad.

11) Always soak wooden skewers before using, to prevent them from burning on the grill.

5 Tips for Better Muffins

1) Take care not to overmix the batter. A lumpy batter will produce tender muffins.

2) Muffin pans come in different sizes; therefore, you will need to adjust the cooking time accordingly.

3) If your muffin recipe does not fill all the cups in your pan, fill the empty cups with water. The muffins will bake more evenly.

4) Unless directions say otherwise, muffins should go directly into the oven as soon as the batter is mixed.

5) Always check muffins for doneness 5-7 minutes before the end of recommended baking time to avoid overbaking. The muffins are done if a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.