Home Made Fruit Fly Trap

Atleast once a year we seem to get infested with fruit flies. I hate those pesky little things!  I don't know where they come from but it's usually out of the blue. I had to do something because they were everywhere and started to remind me of the flies in the Amityville Horror movie. 

I should also make it clear that I hate going to the store. Really hate it. The traffic to get there, the people there, and then there's the fact that I have to get dressed and brush my hair. I normally look like one of those poor people you see on an episode of hoarders or in the subway in DC.

So- here's my homemade cheap solution:

Apple cider vinegar. (ACV)

A mason jar (any size will do)

A small piece of plastic wrap big enough to cover the mouth of the jar. 

A toothpick. 

Pour some ACV in the mason jar. You could use any cup really, but I had a mason jar handy. You don't need a lot of ACV, maybe 1/2 to 1 inch in the jar. Anything more would just be a waste. (If you're using a small 4 oz. jelly jar, fill it half way.)

Stretch the plastic wrap over the top of the jar and press it down around the mouth of the jar. Press and seal works great for this step but really any plastic wrap will do. If your wrap won't stay in place you can secure it with a rubber band or even some tape around the mouth of the jar will hold it in place. 

Use a toothpick to make a small hole, but large enough for the fruit flies to crawl in but not so big that they can fly back out easily. 

After a few days you should notice that there are considerably less flies buzzing around your sink or fruit and floating in the ACV instead!  You can place several of them in the kitchen or whereever your fruit flies are hanging out. 

Hopefully this will help you out too, and save you a trip to the store!  

Until next time, check out our Facebook page for more tips and pictures!  

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Snow much fun!

Snow cones seem to be a sudden interest around my house lately. We used to have an ice shaver that was hardly ever used, and is likely packed in a tote way up in the rafters of the garage. 

Goodwill is my sanctuary of crap-I-don't-need. I love that place. Some of the stuff people give away baffles me. Some of it is junk and some stuff is still in the original packaging. Like the snow cone maker I got the other day. 

I have searched high and low for the bottles of snow cone syrup that was stacked to the ceiling earlier in the season to no avail. Not a single one at Walmart or at Giant, our local grocery store.  

Alright then. I'll make it myself. Somehow. I think. Well, I will try. Basically snow cone syrup is sugar, water and flavoring. I tried 2 cups of sugar to one cup of water but that was way tooo sugary. I could taste the diabetes. So, I reversed it, 1 cup sugar to 2 cups sugar and I was pretty sure that was going to work. 

Now for flavoring. I tried adding drops of candy making extracts and it works but was clear. You can taste the syrup after each drop until you get the desired strength. About 3 drops of extract to the sugar water was good. Adding food coloring to the mix gave it some pizzazz. I mean, who wants a plain colored snow cone??  

I tried adding a small packet of koolaid mix to the sugar water and it was perfect!    Color and flavoring in one and at 20 cents per packet you can't beat the price!  So, I finalized my recipe as follows:

 

-1 Cup WHITE real sugar

-2 Cups water

-Mix water and sugar in a small saucepan and bring to a boil and cool until sugar is completely dissolved. 

-Add 1 SMALL pouch of UNSWEETENED koolaid powder to the sugar water and stir until dissolved. 

-Pour into mason jars to cool completely, and store in the fridge until you are ready to use. 

-Drizzle over shaved ice for a wonderful treat!  

-Recipe makes about 2 cups of syrup. 

*Make several flavors and drizzle over the shaved ice for multi flavor snow cones!