Homemade Dish washing detergent

 What are we up to now?? Do not worry this is not a new fad loose weight clean out your system drink. What this is is my newest found love. I have, more than anyone should admit, enjoyed making and using my homemade laundry soap. Since taking that brave leap of faith, I've ventured on to homemade dish washing detergent. This is what is working for me.

Mix together above ingredients in this order
1 cup baking soda
1 cup borax
2 packet clear sugar free koolaide Or 2 tablespoons citric acid

As a rinse agent use White vinegar

I use 1 heaping tablespoon per load

This is the dishwasher I have. Nothing fancy here! And, It takes three hours for 1 cycle!!!

We all have different dish washers, water softness and water temperatures so my recipe may not work for you, but I encourage you to try some alternative recipes. Other recipes that may work better for you include:

Powder Recipe 1
1 cup Washing Soda
1 cup Borax

Powder Recipe 2
1 cup Baking Soda
1 cup Borax
For the above two recipes:

• Mix thoroughly and store in a plastic container, use approximately 2 TBS per load.
• Use vinegar in the rinse compartment as a rinse agent to help prevent residue
• Try adding 2-3 drops essential oil

Powder Recipe 3
1/4 cup Washing Soda
1 TBS Liquid Dish Detergent
Use the above for each load of dishes.

Liquid Dishwasher Detergent Recipe
1 part baking soda
1 part borax
1 part water
1 drop lemon or orange essential oil per cup of detergent

• Mix the ingredients thoroughly and store in a sealable jug.
• Use 2 to 3 TBS per load.

If you’re having a cloudy dishes problem after using the homemade detergents:

• Try adding a few drops of liquid dish soap to the powder compartment when you add the powder.
• You could also try cutting back on the amount of soap used (if you’re using 2 TBS, try cutting it back to 1 – 1 1/2 TBS).
• Make sure to use vinegar in the rinse cycle

Good luck!! Please let me know what works best for you and your family.

Coconut Oil: And why we love it!

I would love to see everyone use's for coconut oil. Please add what you use it for to the list! I have an "upstairs" coconut oil that's in a wide mouth jar for all beauty/body things and "downstairs" coconut oil in a mason-type jar for cooking. What do you do?

Upstairs- Baby/Beauty/Body/Hair

Eye make up remover- on a Cotton pad, does the trick, PLUS leaves you moisturized.

On rashes- I have super sensitive skin. CO seems to calm it down.

On Ends of Hair: if its seeming dry and damaged (post beach trip?) Ill put a SMALL amount on just the ends before I shampoo.

On Razor Burn: Don't know why this works, but....

Sunburn: I used a little on it yesterday and it healed up nicely. I'm not sure your supposed to put oil on a burn however...
As lotion: face lotion, lotion for legs and arms
Babies bottoms- use in place of your normal butt paste or desitin. I use it even with cloth diapers.
Bruises, Cuts, Scrapes, Rug-burns, etc: lather it on there.

Downstairs- Cooking, etc

-For any type of sauteing that would need a "spray" or butter

-For a change of pace when scrambling/frying eggs. Makes them a little tropical and summer-y.

-Melted in place of oil in some baking (a friend did this in a chocolate cake mix. yum.)

-In Mashed Sweet Potato's- enhances the sweet so you don't really need sugar. Be warned before hand, as the first time I added a bunch of brown sugar and they were too sweet.
-Popcorn- make popcorn then add a little melted butter and coconut oil- toss with Sea Salt
-Pretty much anywhere you would use oil- I added them to muffins instead of oil- even brownies.
-Veggies- a little butter, coconut oil and sea salt
-Ezekiel bread toast- smear it like you would butter
-Even waffles- I put it like you would syrup or butter

What do you use it for?

Product Review Thursday

What is your favorite lotion/moisturizer?

Beth Ann- This is really not my strong point. I had a very lovely allergic reaction to the aveda skin care line (they will tell you pas possible. I tell you tres possible.) I didn't flat out react to ALBA's coconut moisturizer, it just burned my face. Not awesome. This was the point when I caved and went back to my junk filled oil of olay. I do use coconut oil under my eyes, and if I am being good I use the oil cleansing method and don't need much moisturizer. But, none of you should listen to me... I know infants with less sensitive skin than me :/

Leigh Ann- Due to my current pregnant state, I love Palmers Cocoa Butter Formula Tummy Butter. I did use it faithfully with baby #1 and did not get stretch marks on my tummy. I do believe that you are probably more predisposed to stretch marks depending on your type of sink, and how fast you needed to "build the base". I use tummy butter on my thighs, legs and hinny too. ;-) Granted, there are stretch marks on some of the previous mentioned areas. But, not on my tummy! (on a side note I know I should be able to hit the unbold button and fix this bold issue, but its not working for me.)


A.K.-  I would have to say right now we are all on a Coconut Oil fix in our house. We use it for everything! I will lather Anna up with it after the bath. If i'm using a cloth diaper, I will rub some on her little rear end. I also use it on my face morning and night. Scott and I both use it in the place of lotion (legs, arms, hands, etc).

Heather-

Adriane-

Kombucha- Honestly!

Is anyone else a little addicted to Kombucha? I had tried some not so great version and some pretty good versions until I stumbled on Honest Tea's version. Bliss. I drank several bottles of this not-so-frugal brew a week and then ...gone. As you can read here, Honest Tea pulled the product because of some controversy over the slightly (.05%) alcoholic product of the fermentation. (Dear FDA: your on my bad list. Again. Not even sure this was your fault.). Devastating.

So fabulous ladies: has anyone made their own home brew? How did it work out? Any tips or tricks? Can I make it peachy and delish? OR Anyone want to shout out their favorite brand of fermented tea? Because ladies: I've got a fever. And the only prescription is MORE Kombucha

*he means fermented black tea.

Farewell, my love:

Preschool

Preschool. You know if you do not send your kid to preschool they will be ill equiped the rest of their lives! They will be socially inapt and probably they will fall into a path that leads to a destructive life of crime.

Well, you know that is how the rest of society looks at preschool. I for one only want my kiddo to love learning. I do not think he is out to be a genius, even tho his diaper claims. I want him to have fun, learn and be challenged but with limits. After much researching this is what I came up with.

http://www.hubbardscupboard.org/

This is a FREE website with curriculum for PreK. My son is 19 months old so we do the activities for 2 year olds. Some of it is over his head, but we just roll with it. She has lesson plans for two days a week. A bible concept, bible verse, craft, math, and story are all incorporate into the session. My only wish is that we had some friends to do this with! I am hoping to get a co-op group together but so far no avail.

Please check out this site and tell me what you think.

Homemade Laundry detergent

I love the Duggars! I love the full quiver idea and I love laundry...OK well I guess I don't love laundry. But, I am a huge fan of making laundry easier and more cost effective for my family. This is probably not an EASIER option but, it is more cost effective and if you are a little goofy, like myself, you will think grating soap with your amazing food processor is fun!

So here is what I've learned over the last few months. Making powdered detergent is easy, it gets clothes clean, and yes I use it on my cloth diapers!! NO fancy pants high price detergent for my kids bum. Just homemade goodness. On a side note, I have a friend that used this recipe on her cloth diapers for over a year. She loved it and said she never had problems with ammonia build up or staining.

I use this recipe:    

Powdered Laundry Detergent - Top load machine

1   Fels-Naptha soap bar
1  Cup - Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda*
½  Cup Borax

-Grate soap or break into pieces and process in a food processor until powdered. Mix all ingredients. For light load, use 1 Tablespoon. For heavy or heavily soiled load, use 2 Tablespoons. Yields: 3 Cups detergent. (Approx. 40 loads)

*Arm & Hammer "Super Washing Soda" - in some stores or may be purchased online here (at Meijer.com). Baking Soda will not work, nor will Arm & Hammer Detergent - It must be sodium carbonate!!

**** Side note: For my cloth diapers, I have a HE LG front loading washing machine. I used the same amount of detergent recommended in this recipe but, I add extra water to the wash and rinse cycle. Also, I add the extra rinse cycle too.

So, my steps to washing cloth diapers are:

1. Dump all diapers in HE LG  washer, wash on normal cycle, cold/cold, water plus, extra rinse with NO DETERGENT.

2. Second wash 1 or 2 Tbsp detergent, wash on normal cycle hot/cold, water plus, extra rinse. 

3. Dry in dryer..(I know, stop glaring at me, I will be replacing all my Velcro soon) or hang outside on a clothes line. Outside is best because the sun natural bleaches out staining. 

****Side note number two: Guess what! After 2 months, I realized my washer has a rinse and spin cycle option. So, now I use this button instead of washing the diapers on a normal cycle without detergent for Step. 1 

I have not tried this recipe but it looks like a goodie!  

Homemade Liquid Laundry Soap- Front or top load machine- best value

4  Cups - hot tap water
1  Fels-Naptha soap bar
1 Cup - Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda*
½ Cup Borax

- Grate bar of soap and add to saucepan with water. Stir continually over medium-low heat until soap dissolves and is melted.

-Fill a 5 gallon bucket half full of hot tap water. Add melted soap, washing soda and Borax. Stir well until all powder is dissolved. Fill bucket to top with more hot water. Stir, cover and let sit overnight to thicken.

-Stir and fill a used, clean, laundry soap dispenser half full with soap and then fill rest of way with water. Shake before each use. (will gel)

-Optional: You can add 10-15 drops of essential oil per 2 gallons. Add once soap has cooled. Ideas: lavender, rosemary, tea tree oil.

-Yield: Liquid soap recipe makes 10 gallons.

-Top Load Machine- 5/8 Cup per load (Approx. 180 loads)

-Front Load Machines- ¼ Cup per load (Approx. 640 loads)

*Arm & Hammer "Super Washing Soda" - in some stores or may be purchased online here (at Meijer.com). Baking Soda will not work, nor will Arm & Hammer Detergent - It must be sodium carbonate!!

TIPS FOR LAUNDRY SOAP: Use Fels-Naptha  bar soap in the homemade soap recipes, but you can use Ivory, Sunlight, Kirk's Hardwater Castile or Zote bars. Don't use heavily perfumed soaps. I buy Fels-Naptha from Wegmans. Washing Soda and Borax can often be found on the laundry or cleaning aisle. Recipe cost approx. $2 per batch.

Product Review Thursdays

What's your favorite natural shampoo/conditioner and where do you get it from?

Adriane-

A.K.- haven't yet found my favorite. Nothing to write home about. Am looking at a shampoo bar that someone recommended, will let you know what I think.... (that is once I get to the "big city" and do some shopping in a few weeks!)


Heather-


Leigh Ann- http://www.longlocks.com/hair-care-recipes-cookbook.htm
I found this site after a little research and I can not wait to try the results. I will let you know if I have a favorite recipe or if, like Anne Shirley, my hair turns green.

Beth Ann- Does the Aveda line count? I think it should, except for the fact that a bottle costs as much as a car payment. Rosemary Mint & or Shampure if I have a gift certificate. Currently Avalon Organic's Lemon or Lavender. They sell this at our BX. I have tried Burts Bee's and Whole Foods 365 brand and wasn't thrilled with either of them. My friend swears by cocoa pink, but its also a bit pricey. She also does the baking soda/Apple cider vinegar method. Heres how:http://cavegirleats.com/2011/01/14/no-poo/

Breaded Chicken Breasts

I know many of us have the cookbook Nourishing Traditions. If you don't, here is a great recipe we tried recently and loved! It's super easy!

Breaded Chicken Breasts
Serves 4-6

8 skinless chicken breasts (i used the chicken tender size)
1 1/2 cups unbleached flour
1 teaspoon pepper
4 eggs, beaten
2 cups whole grain bread crumbs
1/2 cup grated Parmesan Cheese
about 4 tablespoons butter
about 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Trim chicken breast and pound lightly (or skip if you have the tenders size). Mix flour and pepper together on a plate; have beaten eggs ready in a bowl; mix bread crumbs and Parm. cheese in another bowl. Using tongs dip each piece first in the flour mixture, then in the beaten egg, then in the bread crumb mixture. Saute a few at a time in butter and olive oil about 7 minutes per side, being careful not to burn (i put the cover on the pan in order to help it stay moist) Transfer to a heated platter and keep warm in the oven until ready to serve.

A great thing to pack in kids lunches or for a meal on the go! I froze the left overs and will use them as a quick meal for Anna when I need something for her to eat!

ENJOY!

Announcements/Invites

Obviously this isn't "granola" related, but with all of the preggo women out there, thought I would post our favorite place for getting Birth Announcements, Christmas Cards and Birthday Invitations:

Autumns Creek

They are cheaper than places like Snapfish and Shutterfly, plus I always like to support stay at home moms trying to use their creative abilities to help their family earn a little extra cash.

You can customize or create your own design. Like something but need different colors? Want to create your own? Send your ideas to Marie and she'll create something gorgeous overnight!

Trust me, if she can deal with perfectionist me and my standards, she can handle any job :)

Love it or Leave it? Product Review, Deodorant

Natural Love it or Leave it: Deodorant

Switching from commercial products to natural ones is not for the faint hearted. I would love to see product reviews of things that are loved and things that could stand to be left behind. I know every ones different, so it's great to hear lots of opinions! Personally, I detest sweating and/or stinking. So when I started reading about the junk & heavy metals in commercial deodorant, I was not a happy camper. After some initial resistance I tried a few deodorants (and made my man try too). Here are what we found to work best for us. What do you use? What do you dislike? Has anyone made their own?

Love it:

Deodorant:

For men: Natural Grooming by Urban Cowboy

"Wild, Maximum Protection"

This controls man-stink as well as commercial deodorants, but without the strong smell. Yes, after a long day in a jet, on a run, or after a Workout Of the Day, you'll still want your man to shower up. But that's no different in our house with commercial or natural.

For Woman:

Alba Botanica, Clear Enzyme Deodorant

Tea Tree with Baking Soda

My friend, a personal trainer, recommended this. I think it works great. I have never tested it in the lovely Texas heat, but as far as the Northeast goes, it works well. It even holds through runs and WOD's for the most part. Plus, the commissary stocks this brand- score!

Leave it:

Well, I don't really have any deodorant dislikes. Do you?

What do you use?

Baby Food

I had so much fun making my daughters food when she was first starting to eat "solids."

Trying to make baby food is definitely more enjoyable when you make it with a friend. Moms can enjoy a glass of wine while making the food and the babies can play on the floor together... it's a win-win situation.

Also, what worked for us was that I would get in the kitchen once every 2 weeks. I would make an assembly line with lots of different foods. I would cook for about 2 hours and then wouldn't touch it for another two weeks. As you can see, I'm an "all or nothing girl." I don't want to be in the kitchen every day. So this way I would make a ton one night and then have enough in my freezer to last over a month or so. At any given time, I had about 7 different fruits and vegetables frozen in our freezer.

Simply take the food out the night before and thaw it over night in your fridge. Then heat it for a few seconds the next day and it is ready to eat!

We started with carrots:

After that, it was avocados then bananas. (we were on vacation and those only require mashing the food- an easy thing for on the go.)

Then we moved to sweet potatoes.

Next up: Peas (not pictured) then apple sauce

As you can see- I steam the vegetable or fruit, then blend/puree it. I know some of us have special baby blenders but I just simply used my normal blender. The only thing I really needed the food processor for was spinach.

After that- I put them in a special ice cube tray and then once they are frozen- pop them out and put them in a freezer bag labeled with the freeze date and expiration.

I introduced a new food every four days (rule of thumb to wait to see if any allergies).

Here are some other things that were on our menu.

Butternut squash:

peaches, zucchini, pears and

broccoli

The books that I have and love:

Super Baby Food

Top 100 Baby Purees

The Healthy Baby Meal Planner

Baby and Toddler Cookbook

In my opinion, if you are only going to get one book- go for Super Baby Food. That's the one I still reference even now when she's eating all solids and finger foods.

(Granola Mamas- feel free to add your experience and tips to this post)

Cloth Diaper 101

Since the day we brought Anna home from the hospital- she has been in cloth diapers. Some people wait a few weeks before starting, but we figured if we didn't start from the beginning- we may never switch over to cloth diapers. Another reason was that I was so excited to start the process. I had day dreamed about my little baby in cute little cloth diapers since the day we found out we were pregnant, I couldn't wait to make that dream come true! I literally think the moment we walked into the house- we were at that changing table putting on her cute little pink diaper

Why are we using cloth? Yes, it saves the environment a little, but really- disposable diapers will be made whether we buy them or not.

The reason we do it is because:

1) most people around here cloth diaper- so it was normal to us. Scott hadn't been around too many diaper changes until we moved here and babysat some of our friends kids- so cloth was really all he knew.

2) It saves money and is good for the environment- but really both of those are pretty minial reasons why we chose to cloth diaper

3) It was a challenge for me- and I was up to the challenge!

4) After not being able to give birth to my daughter "the normal way" or naturally- this was something I could do. I needed to feel in control of something!

5) It's what is best for our daughter. Why wouldn't you give them the best possible. What is in fact inside those disposables? Do we truly know if they are safe? Why risk your child's health on something you could prevent. Here's how I look at it. When you go to someones house, do you bring store bought pie or a homemade pie. Of course, you bring the homemade. It's just better. That's how I looked at cloth diapers (weird analogy, I know!)

We love it. Looking back- I have never once doubted our decision. Sure, sometimes it takes a little more work, but its completely worth it.

Here are some supplies we have.

-When Anna was first born, we started off with 12 BumGenius 3.0 - Extra Smalls (6-12 lbs). My friend and I split them (her baby was born 3 months earlier- so would be done with them by the time Anna was born). We bought them at Thanksgiving time when they were on sale. She stayed in the XS for about 1-2 months and then we continued to integrate the 4.o All-in-one diapers and she is still in those today.

-18 cloth diapers (we started with about 6 and slowly bought more):

BumGenius 4.0- All in One. I recommend this diaper to everyone. It is by far my favorite. The snaps are going to last through the entire diapering experience and multiple babies- so make sure to get the ones with snap closure instead of velcro (the velcro will pick and loose its ability to hold the diaper shut)

(note, these are all the 4.0 diapers- just set on different size snaps to make the different sizes. The smallest fits about 8-9 pound babies and the biggest goes up to about 35lbs)

Flip- we have two covers and about 10 liners. This is a money saver and allows you to use one cover for multiple diaper changes. You simply put the liners in your trashcan and keep replacing them with fresh ones.

-Diaper Sprayer- this is a MUST if you are doing cloth diapers

-Trash Can- any cheap kind will work though

-Pail Liner- you put all the diapers in this (in the trashcan) and then when you wash diapers- you also wash this with them... so you need 2- one to use while other is washing/drying

-Wipes- either regular wipes or cloth wipes. If using cloth wipes- I make a solution or will buy a liquid concentrate. If I'm lazy or we have just gotten back from vacation- I use regular wipes and throw them away.

-Detergent- Rockin' Green Detergent. Hands down the only detergent you will ever need. Nothing else works.

Our routine:

-Take dirty diaper (and cloth wipes, if you are using them) and pull the liners out of the diaper. Place all of it in the pail liner which is in your trashcan. If it is a poopy diaper, first spray poop off with your diaper sprayer and then wring it out and put into your trashcan.

-Repeat process (many times during the day!)

-About every two days, take the entire bag to the washing machine. Turn bag inside out and put the bag and the diapers into the washing machine. Set the washing machine on cold rinse and do a rinse. (If i'm feeling like I need a little more cleaning, I will do an entire washing cycle). After this is done, pour in the detergent... I use about three scoops, and run an entire washing cycle with an extra rinse on hot. After this is done, take your diapers outside and hang them on the line.

-When they are dry, stuff the diapers so that you don't have to do it with a squirming baby on the changing table and you are ready to go!

It's that simple!

Video demonstration of how to cloth diaper coming soon!








Cloth Diapers 101

Thanks to my sweet hubby for filming this for me. Thanks also for not telling me that our swifter and Anna's church bookbag were in the background... excuse our mess :)





(Granola Mamas- feel free to add your experience and tips to this post)

Welcome

Hello!

We all met in a small little town called Del Rio. God placed us there for many reasons, but one of them was to allow us to all live in the same hole in the wall place together. We all met at different points during our time in Del Rio but overlapped for a bit of time. Throughout our time, we were able to swap tips and share information on our journey to a better and healthier life. Now that we are spread across the globe, we need a central place to meet and share our latest and greatest endeavors.

Here is where we will chat about Infertility, Giving Birth, Post-partum, Sleep Training, First Foods, Child Training, Home Schooling, Bible Studies, Recipes, Cloth Diapers and so much more. So grab a cup of tea, pull up a chair and join in. You won't want to miss what these women have been up to in their own lives!