Dirty Laundry: Going Green and Saving Money

Being a family of FIVE on one income, I am always on the lookout for ways to save money.  I buy generic groceries, use coupons, do "price matching" on produce and meat at Wal-mart, we use energy efficient appliances, try to keep lights off, things unplugged, eat most of our meals at home and the list goes on and on.

So when a good friend of mine told me her husband made his own laundry soap and that it costs only 5 cents a load, I knew I needed to make my own soap too!  We have LOTS of dirty laundry around here (did I mention there's 5 of us?!) so being able to save money on something that I use a lot of is really going to help out the ol' pocket book.     

Not only are the ingredients easy to find but they are cheap and All Natural!

Here are all the ingredients:   
Borax ($2.99), Arm & Hammer Washing Soda ($3.79) and a bar of ZOTE $.99) for a total of $7.77 before tax.  You can even use Ivory soap if would like!
I found the Zote & Borax at several places (Home Depot, grocery store, Wal-mart) and the  Washing Soda at an Ace Hardware Store since my Wal-mart was out of it or no longer carries it. Also, Fels Naptha is another good laundry bar to try and I actually think it smells better than the Zote.  However, Zote is a lot bigger so you can actually cut it in half and make two batches and it's the same price so it's actually cheaper to use the Zote. Plus it's pink and my daughter thinks it's pretty!

So the first thing you need to do is grate up the laundry bar.  You can use a cheese grater or a food processor.  I chose to use my food processor because I'm lazy efficient like that.

I used a saw and cut the Zote into 3rds so it would fit in my food processor.

I used the slicing blade to chop it up but it just turned it into a giant pink ball.  I really don't know how to use my food processor that well and all of it's little intimidating accessories but I wasn't about to give up!

So I went with plan B and used my cheese shredding blade (I'm sure there's a proper name for it??) and it worked perfectly.  So now I have what looks like pink shredded cheese.     

Then I changed the blade again to the slicing blade and it grated it into a finer texture similar to little tiny bb's.  (That's bb's not boobies)  Can you see the difference below?

 

After I got the bar grated into a fine texture I began adding the powder mix which is the Borax and Washing Soda.  Normally you would add 1 grated bar to 1 cup of Borax and 1 cup of Washing Soda but since the Zote bar is so big, you can actually double the batch or even triple it.  I decided to triple it because I'm cheap frugile.  So my batch consists of 1 bar of Zote, 3 cups of Borax and 3 cups of Washing Soda.  If you use a normal size bar like Fels Naptha or Ivory Soap, your batch would be 1 grated bar, 1 cup of Borax and 1 Cup of Washing Soda.  Confused?  Good.

So that's it!  This is what it looks like all mixed together.  It's a beautiful pink powder that smells very fresh and clean.  Each batch yields approximately 32 ounces (between 32-64 loads based on how many Tbsp used per load).  You only need 1 tablespoon per load but you can adjust it however you need to if your laundry is extra dirty.  

You know like if you have 2 year old twin boys that like to dump bowls of cereal on their heads or play in the mud or eat spaghetti without a bib!

If you have a front loader HE machine you just put it in the dispenser where you would normally put powder detergent.  It's also safe for septic systems.  I've been using my home made detergent since May and my clothes have come out clean and smelling fresh without any soap residue.

I had a ton of questions about this soap and using it in my HE front loader so if you're like me and need to know everything about everything, go to www.diynatural.com and go under the "Cleaners" tab and you will find the answers to any questions you may have.

Here's the website cost comparison between store bought detergent and the home made version:

• Arm & Hammer® liquid 100 ounce detergent – $6.79 – 32 loads = $0.21 per load
• Tide® with Bleach powder 267 ounce detergent – $20.32 – 95 loads = $0.21 per load
• Homemade powder 32 ounce detergent – $2.98 – 64 loads = $0.05 per load

I actually found my ingredients cheaper than the guy on the website so I'm actually saving more!  

If you are into saving money or making an all natural laundry detergent then you should give this a try!  It's so easy y'all and get your kiddos involved too, they'll love it!  Get them to grate the bar of soap for you with a cheese grater they will think it's fun and it's the hardest part, he he.

Have you ever made your own laundry soap?? Know anyone else who has made their own?

New Fabric= New Project

These two lovelies came in the mail yesterday and I couldn't be happier!!  The colors look exactly like they did when I went to order them from Fabric.com.  I did the happy dance when the UPS man pulled up in front of the house because I knew exactly what he was bringing me.  Of course I composed myself when I opened the door to get my package and then squealed like a little girl on Christmas morning once he left! 
I cannot wait to show you what I do with this lovely fabric!!

P.S. I worked really hard on the kitchen last night and think I'm about 99.9% done with the walls!  

Graduation Blast from the Past

Happy June 1st everyone!  Can you believe it's already June!  It's supposed to be in the 90's here all week so it looks like we will be spending a lot of time playing outside in the water so we don't melt!
Today marks the 20th anniversary of me and my hubby's high school graduation.  Here's a picture of us just after the ceremony ended.  Don't we look young!!  Oh to be young again and just starting your life.  

We weren't exactly "high school sweethearts" since we were just friends in High School.  But once we graduated we spent everyday together and we even took summer courses together at a nearby Junior College.  Then one day he kissed me and well, you can't be "just friends" who spend all day together and be kissing each other because that's called dating!  We're having our reunion at the end of July.  We can't wait to see all of our old friends and see what they've been up to!  

Speaking of graduation, my daughter graduated from Preschool last week and I only cried once.  Well three times total if you count the day before.  So in just a few short months I will be taking her to Kindergarten.  I still can't believe my little miracle baby is going to be old enough to go to Kindergarten, it just doesn't seem real. 
Here's a pic of her (center next to the tall boy) and her class up on stage singing with her twin brothers watching from below.
Yes, the one on the right kept taking his shoes off and I was too tired to put them back on for the 1ooth time!  I let him win that battle so I could actually watch the program and take pictures. 
Plus we're hillbillies like that!  Just kidding.  Well sorta.

 

Making Progress: Kitchen Update

Once Spring arrived it seemed I couldn't keep my kids inside for more than 5 minutes before they began to bang their little fists on the patio door and say "Momma outside" over and over.  So needless to say I had to put my little kitchen project on the "back burner" and enjoy some fun in the sun with my kiddos.  And when I mean "little kitchen project" I'm referring to the painting of the walls and cabinets in the kitchen which is the opposite of "little project" if you ask me.  

Or anyone for that matter.

But I managed to make some progress and was able to complete one entire wall.  I also did the cutting in around the cabinets, ceiling and doorways. 

Here's a pic of the one and only painted wall in the kitchen (and a baby).  It's hard to tell but if you look really close you can still see the old yellowish paint around the windows. Can you see it?

Here's another shot, can you see the old paint on the header?  Hey did you notice the white cabinets??  Those are about halfway finished too!!
Yes, the lighting is totally off but that's because we had solar screens installed on the windows last year to help with the heat.  Our kitchen faces west so in the late afternoon the sun would hit those windows and you could literally feel the heat coming in.  When I would make dinner for my family I felt like I was standing under a heat lamp!  So although that side of the house is cooler now thanks to our new screens, it does make the space look a little darker so please pardon the extremely poor lighting. 

I will be sure to remove the screens when I take all the "after" photos to allow all the natural light in.

Here's a picture of the same side of the kitchen when we first moved in just to give you a little perspective on how far we've come!  I can't wait to complete all the painting so I can put my kitchen back together and once and for all get all the paint out of my hair!

Guess What I'm Working On??

Good mornin' Sunshine!  Happy Good Friday everyone!

I'm doing just fine today except for a little chocolate hangover that I'm nursing this morning!

My kids had their Easter party at school yesterday and they each came home with baskets full of goodies!  My daughter doesn't like chocolate so she gave me all of hers and I stole the boys chocolate before they even knew they had some.  Is that bad?  Stealing candy from your babies?  I'm really doing them a favor because if they ate too much of it they would probably get a tummy ache, right?  So you see I'm actually doing a good deed here.  Don't you agree?  

Don't answer that.

Sooo, you wanna know what my latest project is?  Well including all the other ones that I'm working on.

Yeah, that's right, I started another one.  No I haven't finished the kitchen cabinets but we're not going to talk about that today.  It's kind of a sore subject with me right now so let's not go there......K?

Ok, I'll give you a hint..........it has something to do with paint.

Need another hint?  

Ok....walls.

Oh you can't figure it out?  

Ok, here's another hint.....Diet Coke.

Still don't know really?   Ok last clue..........kitchen.

That's it, that's all I'm gonna say.  
The first one to figure it out gets a free diet coke!  Because that's my sponsor for this project.  



I hope to have the reveal for you guys first thing Monday mornin'. Wish me luck!

In the meantime, I hope you guys have a wonderful Easter!  I know we will, my mother-in-law is cooking a ham and squash casserole for Easter lunch.  Yummo!  Can't wait!


~Beth

Texas Bluebonnets

Taking pictures in the bluebonnets has been a family tradition in my family since my sister and I were kids.  I've tried really hard to keep this tradition going with my family too.  The bluebonnets come out in April and last approximately two weeks.  You can find them along the highways and randomly scattered in fields.  Every year we are searching for the best spot to take pictures in the bluebonnets. 
Here's a pic of my daughter when she was around 8 months old.

 I could just eat her up!!

These were taken in a field next to the highway. 

Here she is about 2 1/2 years old.

These were taken in a field next to a friend's house.

There were a couple of years that I missed but so far I have 3 pics of my daughter and the first of many with my twin boys.
And here they are now....

These were taken in a field next to an industrial park.

Do you have any Spring time family traditions?

Crazy Spring Weather

We had a really scary thunderstorm in the middle of the night last week.  We woke up to the worst winds that I have ever heard or seen since moving to this house 11 years ago.  Everything on our patio was crashing around and the house was making loud creaking sounds.  My husband turned on the news and they said a tornado was headed our way.  I looked out the window and saw our trampoline starting to take flight so we grabbed the kids out of their beds and we all squeezed into this hall closet also know as the "Craft Cave".

My daughter loves going to the "Craft Cave" so it was semi-fun for her.  The twins on the other hand were quite upset.  It lasted about 15 minutes and then it was total silence.  And then we lost power.  So we were walking around with flashlights which is so much fun with crying kids.  We checked our backyard and there was no sign of our beloved trampoline that was less than a year old, that was our daughter's birthday present last year, that was a little expensive...but that's not the point.  The point is that we were all safe and sound and that's what really matters.
Here's where we found our trampoline the next morning.

(This is our neighbor's driveway)

Our trampoline knocked down our fence, damaged our neighbor's shed and hit both their cars. 
We lost some shingles on our roof and some sleep but other than that everything is just fine. I was praying that we would be OK and God answered our prayers.  I know other parts of the country also had devastating storms and the news is just horrible with all the deaths and injuries. I am praying for you guys over there in my neighboring Southern states.  Hope y'all are all safe and sound! 

Have you had any bad storms lately??