Busy, BuSy, BUSY

Good evening! I hope all have enjoyed your holidays an are all doing well. I don't know about you, but from September through January, it feels like it's been one big blurr! But now, it's time to get back to our normal routine.

School is going well for Kiddo. He is excited that this is his last year and has even mentioned the word "college"....YIKES! For someone who puts up a fuss everyday when it comes to completing his assignments, it was quite a surprise. We'll just have to wait and see if he feels the same way in a few months.

We are focusing a lot lately on practical living skills that Kiddo will need when he decides to leave the nest and be out on his own. Some days I have a very hard time wanting to teach him things he will NEVER use in everyday life and just stick to the basics that he WILL need to succeed and function in society . Do any of you ever feel like that? Sometimes I just want to chuck it all in the trash can and forget about it! lol

I hope 2012 has started off to be an AMAZING YEAR for all of you.  For us, it has proved to be very interesting, however, I know that God has a plan for our family and we are very excited to see in what direction, our Heavenly Father leads us.

Praying that the new year brings you all much love, and our world much peace!

SORRY

I'm sorry I have not been keeping our homeschool blog up to date. So much has been going on lately and also a change in focus, that I have barely been keeping up the Farm blog either.

I hope you are all doing well and are enjoying this holiday season.

God bless!

Another Ten Minutes, Please!

One of the many blessings of homeschooling is that on those mornings where you just want to sleep in another ten minutes (or another 2 hours).....it can actually happen!

Home Made Fabric Softener.....You CAN Make It!!!

Good morning, all! This entry is the companion post to home made laundry detergent..........Home made fabric softener. I have tried different recipes and I feel they all work about the same, so it will just be a matter of personal choice. Jen over at MayTheyBeMightyMen has posted one as well. Please go take a look and see which recipe she has. While you're there, if you happen to have any "frugal living" tips you would like to share, please feel free to do so.
Frugal living is a subject I think we can all help each other with. I was even contemplating having Frugal Friday and posting time/money saving tips for all to share. Leave me a comment and let me know what you think.
This is the recipe that I have used. Sorry there are no pictures this time! : > (

Home Made Fabric Softener

6 cups water

3 cups distilled white vinegar (this is what makes your clothes soft)

2 cups hair conditioner ( yes, that's right......hair conditioner)

I used an old plastic milk jug for this but you can use whatever you wish. I measured out 6 cups of warm water and put that into my milk jug. I then measured out 3 cups of vinegar into a glass my glass measuring cup, added my 2 cups of conditioner (I used one with a lavendar scent) and stirred them together making the conditioner easier to pour into the milk jug. Now shake. You will get some sudsing on the top, but that is ok. Just shake before each use. This WILL have a vinegar smell to it but don't worry, your clothes won't smell like it. I have added more water and less vinegar sometimes depending on the strength of the scent of the conditioner I use, because I have always HATED the smell of vinegar!!! And to think we use it in soooo many home made cleaning items. Go figure!

How do I use my fabric softener? I fill up an old pump detergent bottle, and I also use a spray bottle. It depends on the mood that I am in and whichever is closest to grab, but I do prefer the spray as it is easier to handle. I then take a wet wash cloth (which I normally have in the wash any way because I am FOREVER washing them) and I either squirt a little bit of softener on the cloth, or three pumps of the spray (this is called a re-usable dryer sheet). Then, if I am drying the load completely, I just toss it in the dryer and PRESTO......no static cling and my clothes smell fresh. If I am hanging them up/out like I normally do, I put the fabric softener in the rinse cycle, (I prefer to put it in the wash when I add my detergent so I won't forget it....hmmm....me forget something? lolol) and dry them in the dryer for 5 minutes before hanging them up to get the wrinkles out.
Well, there you have it........Home made fabric softener. See, you CAN make it!! Do you have a different recipe that you would like to share with us? Please feel free to do so. And if you try this recipe..........PLEASE Let me know what you think!! I really like it!!


P.S. I have heard about wadding up three balls of aluminum foil and putting them in your dryer to eliminate static cling. I have not used it, but I am willing to give it a try. Now I will REALLY have a hard time keeping Kitty out of the dryer! R O F L O L !!

Another Birthday Girl

Today over at "May They Be Mighty Men," Jen is celebrating her birthday. Please stop by and leave her some HAPPY BIRTHDAY wishes!

To The Birthday Girl

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BARLOWGIRLGIRL!!!

Hurting And In Need Of PRAYER!

Have you even been told something by someone that has hurt you right down to the center of your heart? Something that has made you second guess many aspects of your life? But you can't say anything to that person, because you were not supposed to know about what was said in the first place?

This is me right now and I don't know what to do. It has caused me pain and anger and I don't know how to deal with it and get passed it. I am trying very hard and I have been praying about it but I am still at a loss. It is someone very close to me which makes it that much harder and even more hurtful.

Please pray that God will give me the guidance and understanding to do what is right in how to handle this situation.

Blessings~

I'll Be Back

Hello, everyone! It is been a loooooooooong time since I have posted anything. As most of you know, we have been having problems getting on the internet due to cable issues. It probably shouldn't have taken this long to fix the problem, but I had an issue with my husband drilling holes in the wal l of my bedroom to run the cable. I knew that if I did that, then the computer would continue to stay in my bedroom, taking up much needed space, and the office/sewing room/school room, would NEVER get cleaned up and organized again, and that really needs to get done!

Now that the weather has been warmer here, I have started to go through boxes to see what stays and what goes. I have found a couple of things I have been looking for, thank goodness. I didn't have the desire to do this during the winter, as there is NO HEAT in the office. I will post what I can on eBay and give the rest away. I LOVE yard sales and love having them because I really enjoy meeting all the different people. You get to meet neighbors you didn't even know you had. My only problem with them is that I just HATE the clean up afterwards!!!! : > (

Kiddo continues to amaze and annoy me in some way each and every day. I have to say I really HATE puberty! lolol He really is keeping me on my toes and I am thankful for that. Today we are hoping to go for a walk. As I was letting the dogs out this morning, I heard a woodpecker and I want to go try and find it so I can take some pictures of it. I have taken a lot of pictures in the past couple of weeks, hoping to be able to remember what it is we have done so I can post about it later.

Well, I am going to go for now. I need to go over to the Lounge and check on things there. I hope to be back blogging regularly soon. I really miss my friends here!

Love and blessings~

CRISCO.......Y U C K !!!

I was reading Jennifer's post over at jsgay97 and she mentioned CRISCO. Well did that bring back a memory I wanted to forget!!!

My mother, Nana, was good in the kitchen. She got her cooking abilities from my grandmother, Foxy. Well, one day, my mom was making an angel food cake. Now, what is the first thing you want to do when you are a kid and your mom is making a cake? Taste the batter? You bet!

Anyway, I tried to take a big spoonful of the batter like I normally did. Well, this time she tapped my hand and said very sternly, "NO, you may not eat this batter!" "Why not", I asked. And with a loving gaze, she looked down into my eyes and replied, "Because I said so!" "What kind of an answer is that,?" I thought? (I know now, that is a typical mom answer)

Okay, I don't know about you, but when someone tells me I can't do something, that makes me want to do it all the more. So, here we are in the kitchen, mixing bowl between us, both staring at each other like two cowboys with their guns cocked and ready at a show-down, waiting to see who will draw first, when all of a sudden........the phone rings.

"NOW IS MY CHANCE," I thought to myself. WAHOO....she's now in the other room. As you can imagine, I didn't waste any time. Before you could blink, I had the biggest scoop of batter I could get and shoved it right into my mouth. Uh, oh.... something doesn't taste right Y U C K....what is that? EEWWWW.....It's CRISCO!

I Just HAD To Laugh

~I am sorry that I have not been able to post for the past few days. We have had problems due to our internet cables and not because of our computer like we thought, but I think we have it all figured out and we should be good to go (hopefully) by Monday or Tuesday. In the mean time, I have to use DH's lap-top and get on when the service is working. So, please bear with me and I will post and visit my friends when possible~

And now......on to my post!

Kiddo recently celebrated his 14th birthday. My friend Biscuit and her daughters, Sunshine and Wild Flower, gave him a little hand-held game called 20 Questions and it is REALLY cool!!!! You think of an object, and it asks you 20 questions which you answer with, YES, NO, or SOMETIMES, and by the responses you give, it guesses what your object is. I have tried this about 10 times and it has only missed once, and that is because I answered one of the questions wrong. Next time, I will answer YES when it asks if my object (a match) burns!

Well, the other day, Kiddo picked it up for the first time and gave it a try. He stood there, answered all the questions, and then said............

"DARN!! I don't know how it knew my answer. I whispered really softly so it wouldn't hear what I was saying!"

My response was....what else....R O F L O L. What else could I do?

Is Making Your Own Laundry Detergent Really Less Expensive?

The approximate cost of making 2 gallons of the liquid laundry detergent, using the Fels Naptha soap is .71 cents. With the 2 gallon recipe, you will have enough detergent to do approximately 64 loads of wash. That comes out to about .01 cent a load.

Here is the breakdown I found on the internet, but I can't remember where.....SORRY!!!! But please remember, they are using the prices they paid for these items and you may have paid a little more or a little less for your ingredients. Here in VA, I paid less for all three. I buy my soap when they have really good sales. However, this last batch I made, I used FREE (I love that word) soap I got from my close friend. Her husband travels a lot for work and he brings her back lots of hotel bar soap. Thank you, my close friend's husband!!!

Fels Naptha: $1.12 for a 5.5 oz bar. The recipes says use a 1/3 (approx. 1 cup) of a bar. They calculated 2 oz. just to make the math a little easier. The cost of the Fels Naptha per batch is: .40 cents.

Washing Soda: $2.23 for a 55 oz. box. This came to .17 cents per batch. They calculated how much per oz (2.23 divided by 55) and then weighed a half cup of washing soda (4.2oz.) and multiplied my per oz. price by 4.2

Borax: $3.27 for a 76 oz. box. This came to .14 cents per batch. Did the same calculations as above, however a 1/2 cup of borax weighs 3.5 oz.

For the final numbers they have .40 + .17 + .14 = .71 for 2 gallons of laundry detergent.

That means that 2 gallons = 64 - 1/2 cup portions. They then divided .71 cents by 64 which = .01109 which is approximately .01 cent per wash load.

Can you beat that? The answer is.......................NO, YOU CAN'T!!!!

Come On..............You Know You Want To Make Some Homemade Laundry Detergent

"GOD IS GOOD!!!"

I just had to say that!!

Before I get to the detergent recipe, I just wanted to wish my son, nintendomaster a......

"HAPPY 14th BIRTHDAY"

Please stop by and wish Kiddo a Happy Birthday. He would LOVE it!

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Have you ever had something on your mind and then out of nowhere, someone asks you about what it is you have been thinking about and there is NO WAY they could have known that? THAT IS SOOOO COOL! Well, Belinda over at luvs2bemom read my mind yesterday. I kept thinking all day that I needed to make more laundry detergent before I ran out, but something would come up and I would forget. Thank you, Belinda, for reminding me I need to make detergent!
When we decided to homeschool, I knew I had to find ways to help us live a more frugal lifestyle, now that we were going back to one income. Not only that, I just LOVE things that are home made, no matter what it is. (unless they are dust bunnies) My kids have always known that I have a very hard time spending money, but when I started making the detergent, they thought I had gone "CRAZY!" We have been making and using this recipe for over 7 months now and I have only made 3 batches. Each batch I make will fit in one of those Purex containers with the pour spout and cup.
So, here are the directions.......and with pictures too! I am a "visual" person and need to see how things are done. I have a hard time reading directions, so when we first made this, I had my husband read the directions and do it with me. For some reason, I can read the same directions, book passage, scripture verse, etc., and get something out of it completely different than you. So, the last time I made the detergent, I decided to take pictures in case someone wanted to make it.
So here you go, Belinda.........this is for you!
There are 2 ways to make this detergent, liquid and powder, but they both use the same 3 basic indredients. Also, if you can, whatever utensils you use to make the detergent, it is a good idea to label them and keep them separate so you won't cook with them. I can't remember if I got my untensils at the thrift store or at a yard sale. This detergent will not suds up very much, which also makes this great for front loading washers, but it is still cleaning your clothes. The first time I used it, I put in my detergent and the clothes, but I forgot to close the lid. When I went back and looked at the water it was dark. I thought something had run because of the BORAX of the Washing Soda. Looking more closely, I realized that nothing had run, it was the dirt from our clothes. Y U C K !!!! I know, I know.....stop talking and get on with the directions!

The 3 basic ingredients you need for your detergent are:
1 cup of Grated bar soap - (Fels Naptha, Ivory, Coast, Irish Spring, basically any kind you like...scented or not) you can add a little bit more soap if you want a stronger scent or you can add essential oils to scent it.

(Now you know what to do with all those bars of hotel soap )

1/2 cup BORAX - you can get this at Wal-Mart or almost any grocery store down the detergent aisle

I purchased mine at Wal-Mart for $2.97 for a 4 lb 12oz box.

1/2 cup Super Washing Soda (not to be confused with Baking Soda....they are NOT the same thing) You can find this at Martin's, Kroger's, and Farmer Food's here in VA. You would need to call your local grocery store to see if they carry it. I purchased mine at Martin's for $1.99 for a 3 lb 7oz box.
Other items you will need:
5 gallon bucket or container with a lid (if making the liquid or some other container for the powder
Grater ( or you can use a food processor, but you need to grate the soap for both kinds)
Cooking Spray or something else to "lightly" grease your grater for easy clean-up later (trust me on this one from personal experience!
Pot - big enough to hold 1/2 gallon (this is needed to dissolve the ingredients)
Measuring cup - 1/2 cup size
Mixing spoon with a long handle - to stir your mixture in the bucket

Ok, we are going to make the powder first.

The first thing you need to do is to "lightly" spray your grater with cooking spray to make cleaning the grater easy later on.

Now, grate your bar soap. Grate the whole bar even though you only need 1 cup, as you can save the remaining soap for another batch. Put soap into a bowl or container.

Measure out a 1/2 cup each of BORAX and Super Washing Soda. Put them in the bowl/container with the grated soap.

Stir or shake your 3 ingredients together.

Now if you have a food processor, some have even used a coffee grinder, you can grind it up to make a finer powder. I did that to mine. The picture above is with the soap just grated, the pictures below, is what it looked like before and after I used my Ultimate Chopper. I prefer to make a finer powder.

See the difference? It is just a matter of preference. Now all you need to do is store it in some kind of container.
How much powder do I use? I use 1 tablespoon for a normal load and 2 tablespoons for a large or extra dirty load.


Onward to the liquid~

Follow the same directions for grating and measuring the soap (you do not need to put this in the food processor because you are going to dissolve it in water), BORAX, and Washing Soda only this time keep them separated.

Take your pot and put about 2 quarts of water in and put it over a medium flame till heated.

(you don't have to be EXACT with this recipe. As my mom would say, "It's not rocket science, Laura!" ha ha (LOVE AND MISS YOU, MOM!)

While the weather was warm and we cooked outside, I would make my detergent on the grill using the left over coals. This way I was not wasting the charcoal or using the electricity.

Ok, now we are going to add our ingredients ONE AT A TIIME, stirring and dissolving each one before adding the next one. The mix will get thicker but to what degree all depends on the soap that you use.

1 cup grated soap,

1/2 cup BORAX,

and 1/2 cup Washing Soda

Are you still with me? It's pretty easy, huh? It's okay, we are almost finished!!!

Alright, after those three ingredients are dissolved, turn off the heat and remove pot from burner. Get your bucket/container and put again about 2 quarts of water in it.

I like to use warm water for this part, only because I am ALWAYS FREEZING and if I get my hands in it, it's WARM!

Next, pour your soap mixture into the bucket and stir.

Now add about a gallon of warm water and stir again.

Coming to the home stretch..........................Now all you have to do is put a cover on it and let it sit overnight, however, I have used it right after making it because I waited to long to make more and I really NEEDED to do laundry.

The next day when you remove the lid, there are a few different ways it may look. There is no WRONG way, as again, it all depends on the kind of soap you used. I don't have a picture because mine looked the same as before.

• It may look just like it did before you put the lid on
• It may look like nothing but a big blob of gel
• It may have the look and consistency of egg drop soup

In any case, all you need to do, if it has gelled, is to stir/shake before use.
How much liquid do I use? I use 1/2 cup per normal load and up to a cup for large and extra dirty loads.
Well, there you have it in a nut shell. Homemade laundry detergent. I hope you enjoy making this as much as I do.
Should you have ANY questions, please feel free to message me.

~COMING SOON TO A BLOG NEAR YOU.....................

HOMEMADE FABRIC SOFTENER~

Do I really need a DISCLAIMER? Should this say something different? "As with any recipe, please take caution using any/all appliances. Results may vary. I do not assume any responsibility for your results."