Mollee Made

Setup Habitat for My Leopard and Crested Gecko

Crested and leopard geckos are species of lizard that have for a long time been kept as pets. Many people prefer them because they are readily available, their food can easily be found in the pet stores and all the relevant information that one needs about them can easily be found. The habitat that these lizards live should be made as good as possible and similar to the natural environment. This should be done to ensure that they are not stressed and that they are always healthy and comfortable. This article gives an insight into a leopard and crested gecko habitat

Cage

These animals like climbing on walls and surfaces which means that you should provide a cage that allows them to climb easily. They are easy to keep in simple conditions. A hatchling can be housed in an aquarium. Research indicates that the eating habits of juvenile crested and leopard geckos are changed and they do not eat comfortably. This in return can result in health problems. When they reach 4 months, you can keep them in an aquarium of at least 20 gallons. If you have three of them, they can comfortably fit in an aquarium of 29 gallons.

However, you should not keep only males in the cage. Having one male and 2 females in the cage is okay. They use their tails to manoeuvre around branches when they climb the tree branches in the wild. This means that they like climbing which makes it necessary to have enough vertical space rather than the horizontal one. Habitats that have more vertical space may be more expensive than tanks. However, if it contributes to the wellbeing and the health of the animal, it is quite relevant and worth the investment.

Substrate

Having a cage is not just enough. You should start investing to achieve a perfect habitat for your pets. The next thing that you should look for is the substrate. The nature of the substrate that you provide to your animal matters a lot. This is because they tend to ingest bits of the substrate during their feeding. Ingesting non-digestible materials might be detrimental to the general health of the animal.

Avoid wood chips and sand as well as other loose substrates. A paper towel is a good substrate for these animals. If a paper towel is accidentally ingested, it does not cause health risks to the animal. A substrate such as coconut fibre, zoo med eco earth, or even slate tiles can be used. These help to maintain the moisture within the cage and at the same time resists odour, mildew and moulds (more…)

Sunshine Tag Blanket

Since we have less than 10 weeks until Mini M&M is due to arrive, I knew I wanted to make something from her board for the winter 2013 Pinterest challenge. I’ve been feeling braver with the sewing machine lately, so this weekend I tackled a tag blanket — you know, one of those mini blankies for a baby that has ribbons all the way around it for little fingers to explore.

I made mine in the shape of a sunshine in yellows, oranges and hot pink to coordinate with her nursery colors. It’s not perfect, but it sure is a happy little toy that I have a feeling she’s going to like.

The two pins that inspired me were this basic ribbon blanket tutorial …

… and this turtle-shaped tag blanket that was recently sold on Etsy.

Here’s exactly what I did, in case anyone wants to sew one for their little sunshine:

materials
sun rays template (PDF)
sun face template (PDF)
1/2 yard fabric for the sun rays (I used this yellow plaid)
1/2 yard fabric for the back (I used yellow minky dot)
1/4 yard fabric for the sun face (I used a quilter’s yellow polka dot)
1/4 yard white fabric to line the sun face
various colors, widths and textures of ribbon
yellow thread (more…)

Our Little Kitchen Makeover

Matt and I have been slowly and steadily renovating our kitchen since August, and on Saturday morning, we finally declared it done! It’s nothing terribly fancy, but it feels that way to us, especially compared to what we were living with before.

Ugh! Right? I’m not sure how I tolerated those cream melamine cabinets and faux-butcher-block countertops with white appliances. And the floor was covered in burgundy-and-peach marbled linoleum. I don’t know how we thought painting the walls sage green would help. [shudder]

So here’s what we have now. When you first walk in, you notice our nickel ceiling light from Ikea, which replaced an old boob light, and my Julia Child quote art over to the left.

As you step in further, you can really appreciate our new white, black, gray and green color scheme.

Our friend Kathrine works for a wood renewal company called NHance, so she helped us get a good deal on these white shaker-style wood cabinets. They built our new Ikea microwave into the cabinets over the stove, which saved us a lot of needed counter space. We went with Kat’s recommendation of Arboleda to do the countertops, and they did a great job on our black marbled Formica. (more…)

Mini M&M’s Nursery (and Name!) Reveal

Yep, I’m still here. And still pregnant. I had every intention of sharing progress updates on the nursery as we went along, but I just didn’t have it in me. And you’d probably rather just see it all done anyway, right?

So, TADA!

(more…)

Best Thing I Ever Made

Meet Julie, everybody:

It’s hard to believe it’s been two weeks since this little bundle made her grand entrance into the world. She already loves to eat, and I have high hopes that she’ll enjoy painting and crafting as well.

She’s keeping me even busier than I’d anticipated, so I’m not sure when or what I’ll be posting next, but I promise I’ll be back.

Salmon Salad Is the New Chicken Salad

See, you guys, I told you I’d be back! Julie and I (and Daddy and the dogs) are doing swell. If you follow me on Instagram, you’ve probably already seen too many photos of the baby, so I won’t bother you with one here. She sure is cute though.

So, as I stated in the title of this post, salmon salad is the new chicken salad in our house. It’s quicker to make, more nutritious for me as a nursing mom, and this Greek-inspired version that we’ve been eating for lunch is really fresh and flavorful. A scoop of it is lovely on a salad or sandwich, or even just on crackers or kettle-cooked potato chips (okay, you got me — those aren’t as nutritious).

ingredients
4 6-ounce skinless salmon fillets
1/4 cup olive oil, divided
1/2 an onion, finely chopped
1/2 a cucumber, seeded and chopped
3/4 cup plain, nonfat Greek yogurt
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
zest and juice of half a lemon
1/8 teaspoon dried dill
1/8 teaspoon dried oregano
salt and pepper, to taste

directions
Drizzle the salmon fillets with two tablespoons of the olive oil, season them with salt and pepper, and roast them in a 400° oven for 15 to 18 minutes or until cooked through. Allow them to cool; then flake them apart with a fork in a medium bowl. Add the remaining olive oil and all of the other ingredients (including extra salt and pepper), and stir to combine.