Home Made Laundry Soap

This may seem like "Oh my gosh I can't MAKE something to use!!" Well it is quite easy and quite effective and QUITE money saving. Here is how I do it!

I use the following recipe:

1 Fels Naptha bar of soap (you could use another bar, some use whatever kind they like, Fels Naptha is a laundry bar and was what I was recommended) *Found mine at Ace Hardware, all three of these items can be found at Harris Teeter
1 cup of Arm and Hammer Washing Soda (THIS IS NOT BAKING SODA- find it with laundry stuff at the store!)
1/2 c of Borax (You can find this too at the laundry isle)
4 cups of water
5 gal bucket with lid

Let the money saving begin:
First grate up the bar of soap. Now I am lazy, so I cut it with a sharp knife then throw it in my ghetto brand Magic Bullet (whoosh whoosh and its powder!) You could opt for a real live metal grater for an arm workout, to each his own.

Next put the grated soap and the water in a pot, heat until it is all melted together. Do not boil.

Fill a 5 gal bucket half way with water. Add soapy water mixture, add borax and washing soda. Stir. Fill up to the top, cover and let sit for 10-12 hours to thicken.

Stir (and I mean get your hands in there and mash up the gelatin like thickened parts, when I went in to stir mine this morning the entire bottom was like jello, you have to get it all mixed in well so it forms lumpy liquid, it won't be smooth but it won't have giant chunks either.) Fill a used laundry soap dispenser half full then fill the rest with water. Shake (this breaks up the lumps) before each use. It is not a smooth soap, it is goopy but pourable, somewhat lumpy.

Optional: Add 10-15 drops of essential oil fragrance per 2 gallons once soap has cooled.
This yields 10 gallons!! TEN!
For a top loader you want to use 5/8 cup per load (180 loads)
Front loader: 1/4 c per load (640 loads!!!!)

ROCK THE SAVINGS my friends!

This recipe was found at www.duggarfamily.com Thanks!!

A Re Cap

I'm floored, as I am most years, that the end of 2011 is upon us. I think back and wonder where the year has gone. What did I accomplish and did I do what I set out to do? If I look at the calendar year, instead of the school year, I see how many changes have actually taken place! We have begun homeschooling our kids as of 2011-2012 school year and are loving it. We have the flexibility and freedom to teach them at their own level and to their own interests, as well as incorporate our faith daily! We have another family member! Itty Bitty was born March 26th, 2011. I am now a stay at home/work at home mom, selling Tupperware and teaching my children.  I am cooking and baking and shopping and keeping the house in a way I never have before! I think of my sweet Nana often and hope that I can one day do as good a job as she did raising her 5 children and keeping her house just so. I was able to be with her when she passed and I am ever grateful to know she was not in pain and just let go of our hand and grabbed on to the hand of her Savior. I'm amazed how God brings us into a place that we never thought possible or that we never thought was in our path. He is funny that way, knowing exactly what we need and when we need it. I'm thankful to serve Him and know that my best interest is all He has in mind.

Big Dad Chef has taken a promotion this past spring at Spring Arbor and now is the Dietary Manager for both buildings there in Laurel Park. He is an astounding boss and works very hard. I'm blessed to be available to care for our children so that he can do what needs to be done, when it needs to be done.

Big Boy Child is doing second grade curriculum this year and is progressing well. He played football this fall and is just beginning his third year of basketball with Upward. He loves Legos and building things, and also likes the Wii and his brand new DSi from Santa. We have to limit the time on both or he will become glued to it!

Sweet Pea is doing a Letter of the Week curriculum as well as preschool skills (puzzles, lacing, pre writing, numbers). She is continuing to take tap/ballet at Releve Performing Arts Center and loves it. She is learning much more this year than she did last year, mostly due to her own maturity. She also did cheerleading this fall for Upward Football at Biltmore Baptist and loved it as well! It really boosted her confidence and our little gal broke out of her shell!

Itty Bitty is starting to stand on his own! REALLY!? My other two were walking by nine months but I'm happy he is taking it easy on me. He is a sweet boy who LOVES being attached to his mama. Hopefully as he ventures on and let's go of the couch, he will let go of Mama a bit too! Oh my silly little man!

Here is hoping that 2012 will be just as wonderful as 2011 has been. God has a lot in store for our family and we are excited to be part of His plan!  May you and yours be blessed beyond measure.

It's been a while!

It's been quite a while since my last post and many things have kept me busy and off of the blog! Homeschooling and outings and the passing of one of my most dear family members, my Nana. After that we had family in town, which was a wonderful bittersweet time of fellowship. Our family is adjusting to the void created by our loss, but we are trying to move ourselves along. So now, just this week we are getting back to some kind of schedule.

This Tuesday we attended Take Action Tuesday with the HCHA. Click on the link to see photos! This group meets at East Flat Rock Park each Tuesday and does fun educational activities together. I'm really looking forward to next week, Camping/Backpacking workshop with a fellow from Diamond Brand outfitters.

Update on the kids:
Big Boy child is flying through his work! He is doing so well with each subject and he says he likes Reading the best. We are using Abeka for reading this year and it has some really great stories that are character building. He is almost finished with the flag football season. He has really enjoyed playing football! Next up for Big boy child is Upward basketball! Lucky for us it is much closer to home, only a short 5 minute drive as opposed to the 25mins we are driving for football.

Miss Sweet Pea has hit a growth spurt! She is getting so tall and so grown up. She is my beautiful girl. Last night was her first night back at Releve Performing Arts Center (which she attended last year) and she was BEAMING as she ran up and hugged her teacher. This group does a WONDERFUL job teaching and encouraging children! I'm so proud of her homeschooling accomplishments! My girl knows her numbers 1-10 and can recognize and count out items (bears, marshmallows, sticks) to that number. She is working on her letters and this week we are learning the letter H.

Itty Bitty, as he has been dubbed, is doing fabulous! He is at the very beginning of sleeping through the night. He has slept from 10p to 6a a few times now and I'm hoping it will become routine! Bo gets up on his hands and knees and rocks back and forth, he is getting ready to chase the big kids around! He loves the other two and smiles and laughs at them all day. His cloth diapering is going wonderfully. We have sold off some of the Sunbaby pocket diapers and are now using Alva Baby diapers ( LOVE THEM!)

Hopefully I won't go a whole month without posting again! Happy Fall everyone, enjoy the beautiful color and the smells of this great season!

Nicki's Diaper Giveaway

Nicki's Diapers is giving away a Best Bottoms OWL DIAPER!! I am so in LOVE with owls right now. Check out their Blog and enter to win! Enter here

Moving right along...

Things are going great with homeschooling. We got Big Boy Child started in the Saxon Math 2 book and it is much more on his level. I have added writing to his daily work as well. The kids are enjoying studying about animals for Science and have learned about elephants, ants, owls, ducks and turtles so far. I've also moved him to his 8th reader for First Grade. Looks like he will be moving into Second Grade readers soon. He is such a smarty pants. HaHa

Sweet Pea is doing well with her preschool work as well. She has improved drastically with her cutting and hand control. I have her doing lots of number work (games) and tracing. She can now recognize numbers 1-8 consistently and can count out items up to ten without error. I'm so proud of her! She hangs right in there with Big Boy! She is always asking for more work!!

Homeschooling with a baby proves challenging but as he gets older he is more able to entertain himself and then we do a bulk of the work while he takes a nap. It is working quite well!

Overall I'm extremely pleased with the way things are working out! I'm hoping to set up a few more playdates during the week so that the kids can play with more children their ages. We've met several families playing football/cheerleading that are also homeschooling families, which is very exciting!! Thanks for reading and HAPPY FALL!!

A Quick Update

So last Friday was our first official field trip! We went fishing with the Pisgah Center for Wildlife Education's staff up at Buck Forest Rd in Dupont Forest. The kids didn't catch a single fish but enjoyed the day very much! We got to practice patience and learned a lot about handling a fishing pole (me freaking out when kids came swinging their "dipper rods" around us) It was nice though, that they could see the fish nibble their bait. We also got to see a giant turtle swim around the lake. I used this trip to talk to them about habitats and food chains. A great day overall!

The programs offered by the Pisgah Center for Wildlife Education are free and occur monthly! If you are in our area, check out their website for offerings!

Oh My Math...

After getting through a week and a half I have come to the realization that Big Boy Child really is too far ahead of the Math curriculum that I bought. I purchased Saxon Math 1, because it is first grade...well Mr. Math did so well on the placement test he should actually be in Saxon Math 2! So I'm trying to supplement him with other activities (like time and money which he totally is finding challenging) until I can get the correct level of curriculum. Note to self: administer the free online placement test through Saxon's website BEFORE purchasing curriculum! Live and learn.

As for Reading, Bible, and Science things are going smoothly. Big Boy has finished his first chapter book, Night of the Ninjas, a Magic Tree House book. As a reward he got to check out and play games on the Magic Tree House website! He can't go back to the awesome cool site until he completes another chapter book! I'm so mean! Ha Ha!

Sweet Pea continues to improve on her hand strength and can now trace her name very nicely! Yesterday I had her use counting bears and put the right number of bears on the number card....well, 1-5 were awesome...after that it was a real chore! Maybe we will only work on 6-10 for a while. She did it but wanted to rush and count incorrectly, stinker! I'm so proud of the kids' hard work and good attitudes.

They are receiving a sticker for each assignment they do with a good attitude. When they fill up their page we will take a trip to the Dollar Tree for a special treat! So far it is working great!

Blessings to all of you! Thanks for reading!

Ready....Set....GOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So our first week of Home School has made me love being a SAHM (stay at home mom) even more! The kids are learning and excited about each activity! We school for about 2 hours a day and that completes the work. A few days we were done in an hour and a half! I planned the days just as I did teaching public school! Amazing how much you can do 1:1 and with little or no interruptions. I absolutely love that I don't have to wake the kids up and take them somewhere. The are usually up by 8am and we get started around 8:30am. Today we started at 9:30 and were done by lunch. We do save Science for the afternoons. They love learning about animals and how God made them and gave them instincts (that is what this week was about).

Challenges so far: I started too close to the beginning of the Math curriculum (lesson 20) it is way too easy for Big Boy Child. I am going to skip up to about lesson 40 and see how that goes. I also have been pulling some workbook pages from a great book I have for things that I know he needs work on. I will also have to make sure to get Sweet Pea some extra things to do. She has been amazing! The first day had me a little concerned because she could barely trace circles or draw anything. But now she is getting the hang of it and she is gleaning so much from what Big Boy is learning! Yesterday she told her daddy that she was "helpless" outside. That was our Science vocabulary word!

Looking Ahead: Some things I need to change for the upcoming weeks are: the schedule. I need to put a break in between Reading and Writing. I also need to move Math to very first right after Bible. We do calendar each day and I believe it will flow more smoothly if we go ahead right into our Math lessons. I also want to make sure to take the kids to the big Tuesday Play Time at the Park with the HCHA ( Henderson County Homeschool Association)...last week they had 39 kids! Also, coming in the next few weeks is organized PE type lessons at the park! YAY!
Overall I am in love with Home Schooling thus far!


We have Sweet Pea's early afternoon ballet starting up in September, Cheerleading and Football start up next week (Upward at Biltmore Baptist Church) and we are excited for those to start again!! It is a busy and fun time of year!

Chore Packs

An update: We have abandoned chore packs because the cards fall out LOL really they just slid right out and were lost! So.......I'm going to be ordering the Motivated Mom planner in hopes to run this house more smoothly. There is actually an iPod app for it, so I'm thinking I might just do that, or you can purchase an ebook that is printable. It is $8 but if you use the code from www.thehappyhousewife.com you can get a dollar off the printable version...something to ponder :)

I have recently started using these with the kids and it has made a world of difference in how we start our day! They are so independent now! The kids look forward to doing them and actually fight over who gets to sweep the floor. I made them at home using simple materials and for less than $5!

What is a chore pack?
   A chore pack is a stack of cards, inside a name badge pouch on a necklace, that have age appropriate chores on them in the order that you want them done. For example, brush hair, make bed, set table, get dressed, etc. Click here to view a video of a Mama explaining how her family uses them. We've adapted them for our family, as you can for yours! Make it work for you!

Home School, eh??

So begins our journey into our first year of home schooling. Ezra will be beginning first grade on Monday. Good thing about homeschool, since he is ahead, he can begin further into the curriculum! So we will be starting at about lesson 20 in math and in our second reader for reading.

This year we have chosen to use Saxon Math, Abeka Reading, Science, Social Studies and Bible. We will also be doing Art lessons (taught by me) once a week, library visits weekly, and self directed project learning. Right now Ezra is really interested in fossils, so I believe we will begin there with the self directed projects. I've been able to find a ton of helpful websites to help with math practice, handwriting, spelling practice and phonics/reading games. I've even found games/websites that are appropriate for Elize, Pre K.

Elize will be doing "Letter of the Week" which I found on Confessions of a Homeschooler. It is a FREE....YES FREE...curriculum or you can download the entire document for $10 or have a CD sent to your home for $16! It is chock full of fabulous math, fine motor, and pre reading/pre writing activities! Best of all they are already made! I just have to print them!

So do you have a Tiny Tot?? Confessions of a Homeschooler also has Tot School! So if you are looking for activities for your toddler, check her out.

My dining room has been converted to our home school area. I always have enjoyed teaching at tables instead of desks anyway. I have a bookshelf with our books, art supplies, chore packs, and teacher supplies. I also have a white dry erase board that I can pull out and use, but I can hide away behind the shelf when not in use. I'm very excited to get started. I'd like to get a bulletin board to stick some things up on like the kids' work, a map, things like that. But for now, we will start with what we have.

For planning/organizing lessons I am using two things. I have a simple Monthly Planner that I use for writing down events (play dates, ballet, cheerleading, football, doctor appointments, etc) and for lesson planning I am using a Word document using "tables".

I'm excited to report back and let you know how our first week has gone!

Caring for Cloth Diapers, etc....

How do you wash them? What about poop!?

Two questions I was most concerned about! Let's do this step by step...

1. When you get new diapers, if they are natural fibers (cotton, hemp, bamboo) they have to be "prepped". This means repeated washing/drying cycles to make them absorbent. These are typically prefolds, fitteds and some inserts. Other diapers, like pockets, you can wash and dry once. 
2. Wash cycle: I have a front loading HE machine that uses less water...when washing cloth diapers, less is NOT more. You want more water! When I am ready to wash my daipers (stored in a dry pail) I actually soak them in water for about thirty minutes before washing them in the washer. I just do a hot wash with Rocking Green Diaper/laundry detergent. Then I run a cold rinse cycle. 
3. You DO NOT want to use diaper creams when using cloth diapers!! You can, however, use a baby washcloth or some barrier between that cute tooshy and the daiper and use cream. You want to keep the cream OFF the diaper because it will cause stink issues or repelling. 
4. Ok, what about poop!? If you EBF (exclusively breastfeed) you *can* just throw it in the pail and wash it on wash day. EBF poop is completely water soluble. If you don't want to do that you can get a diaper sprayer (this is a small sprayer that hooks onto the toilet) or just do a good swish in the toilet. Solid poop can just be dumped and flushed. I'm really enjoying not having disposable diapers with poop in them sitting in a pail stinking up the room!
5. If you notice stains on your diapers try to sun them out first. Amazing I know! Just put them in the sun and kapow...stain is gone! Who knew! Way to go God, good thinking! :)

How many diapers do you need?? Well that depends on the kind of diaper and how often you want to wash diapers! Newborns use a lot! So you will want 10-12 or more per day to have a good. This is where I think prefolds become quite the value! You can buy 2 dozen or so and 6 covers and be set!! This is what we did, and then moved to OS (one size) pockets when he could fit...around 11 pounds. I'm now kind of leaning towards AI2s/hybrid diapers called Flips. These are a PUL wipe-able cover with stay dry inserts. You can reuse the cover as long as it isn't soiled! And no stuffing pockets! Woot Woot!!

 So that is about it for the cloth diapers. I have really enjoyed using cloth this time around and have NO desire to go back to disposables. I don't use them. Wish I would have started cloth with my first son 6 years ago! I highly recommend it, and you can do it! Diaper laundry is my very favorite laundry! Who doesn't want to fold adorable diapers and every time you do diaper laundry you can say "Oh, I just saved $20 by not buying sposies! AWESOME!"

 3 weeks old in pre fold with cover

 3 months old in a OS Bumgenius Pocket

Our Cooshy Tooshy Journey

YET ANOTHER UPDATE: The fabulous thing about cloth diapers is that they are customizable as your baby grows. So as your wee one starts to wee more you can change or tweak what you are using. I just wanted to update on what we are using now that little man is a year old. I have pockets, of course, which I love. My dear sweet husband thinks that the Sandy's fitteds (which I have 6 and LOVE them) are complicated so I've actually ordered a few (ahem...8) more pockets and some bamboo inserts. He always sleeps in a pocket though. I also continue to use prefolds at times, especially when I feel little man needs a breathable diaper. I've made (yes with a sewing machine) a couple of pocket fitteds and fleece covers using Rita Rumps Pocket Fitted Pattern and I like those as well for breath-ability. I made two pair of wool longies using wool sweaters and they came out quite nice. I will probably be able to use one again next winter. So for the time being I'm using my mish mash of diapers according to the needs of the wee boy's bum. Lowing fluff even more than when I started over a year ago!

UPDATE: We are using all pocket diapers now, with a few FLIPs inbetween. I have recently ordered Alvababy diapers and really like them! They are extremely affordable and SO SO SOFT! Aren't the prints cute? These are (IMO) the diapers I was buying from www.justsimplybaby.com just with a different tag. I ordered these directly from China. 

 

So being the mother of three I am pretty money conscious. I like to buy resale/consignment clothing and items and purchase groceries at low prices. When we found out we were expecting number 3 I began to think of ways to save money. One of the biggest changes I made was diving into the world of cloth diapers. You think "Ha! World of cloth diapers?! What could there be? White diapers with pins and covers, right?" You couldn't be more wrong! The world of CD (cloth diapering) is continually growing. There are bookoos of types of diapers, brands of diapers and places to get them! Unfortunately most of the "places to get them" exist solely online. So begins our journey:

I spent hours and hours researching the internet about diapers! How do you wash them? What about poop!? What kind are going to work for my baby? What is the best deal? Where can you get them?? How many diapers do I need??

1. Types of diapers...(I'm highlighting the main ones)

• Pockets- stay dry feeling with stuffable pocket for absorbent inserts (customizable absorbancy) These come in snaps or aplix (aplix is Velcro) Sunbaby Diapers are an inexpensive good quality pocket to try if you aren't sure. I personally have purchased these and use them daily.
  
• Prefolds/flats with covers: This is your biggest money saver as it is the most inexpensive to purchase. These are your grandma's diapers. A cotton or hemp rectangular diaper requiring a cover. Prefolds can be fastened on using a Snappi or other rubber type fastener or pins. Personally, I'm scared of pins LOL Prefolds/flats are not a stay dry feel. Covers are made with a PUL waterproof fabric. Some can even be wiped clean to use for the next prefold/flat. Tons of prints and styles. I used these diapers for the first 8 weeks or so because the other diapers I boguht were one-size so they didn't fit Bo yet. Imagine Prefolds from Nicki's diapers are great. I used them with some different types of covers. Now I use the prefolds at times, but sometimes for burp cloths as well.
  
• AIO (all in ones) Like a disposable, but cloth, longer drying time. Examples
  
• AI2 (all in 2s)/Hybrid: Multiple insert options. Biodegradable, organic, stay dry liners. These go on like a disposable but usually have reusable covers that can be wiped clean.
  
• Fitteds: These are usually cotton, hemp or bamboo and require a cover. Very absorbent. Fitteds do not require folding as they have snaps or velcro fastners. Fitted diaper examples
  
• Wool~~~ baaa baaa: Wool has it's own world. There are longies, shorties, skirties and they need to be lanolized to be absorbent. Wool tends to be expensive but many people love how absorbent it is! I haven't tried any yet. Examples of wool

To be continued....
#2 Diaper care

Who am I?

Well, the question requires many answers! I am a mother, daughter, sister, aunt, friend, wife, and most important of all, I am a sinner saved by grace. I was born and raised in the mountains of beautiful North Carolina. We attended a small church regularly. I knew the same kids all through school. Then, went to college at Western Carolina University in Cullowhee, NC to pursue a teaching degree. I am a teacher by nature and love children. I am married and the mother of three (ages 4 mos, 3 years and 6 years). My life has changed so very much since becoming a mother and I'd like to share some of my favorite and most asked about topics with you. Know that everything here is simply my humble opinion. I hope you enjoy reading about our lives and the way God has led us through.