Homemade Laundry Detergent

I've been making my own laundry detergent for almost a year....like 10 months. I LOVE it! I will never, ever, ever.....EVER...buy store detergent again (well...never say never I guess....but you feel where I'm coming from). We had a bottle of Tide given to us and of course I was not all...."Get that out of my face!!! How dare you put your store bought detergent near me!" No, no, no.....I was all "Heck yeah!!" I'll take free detergent any day :)

When I say I've been making it though.....I have to tell you I feel kinda like I'm lying because I've only made it twice...so it's not like I'm slaving over it. No, I bought a box of Borax, a box of washing soda (which is completely different than baking soda mind you), a 3 pack of Dial bar soap and gave it a go. Now.....I've read a lot of different recipes so here's another. LOL! One I read said to use Fels Naptha (sp?)...it's a bar soap specifically made for laundry....I also read that the Duggars along with plenty of others just use the bar soap of their choice. Growing up we used Dial and it is just the smell of clean to me (I can't use that in the shower....drys me out...anywho).....so that's what I used. Plain ol' yellow Dial. Those ingredients were like $10-$13....can't remember and it'll change anyway based on where you live. So basically most recipes went like this....

1 bar of soap grated (apparently you can pop it in the microwave for like 30 sec. though? I did mine in the food processor....not going to lie. I did use the grating attachment though).

1 cup washing soda

1/2 cup Borax

Now here's where a lot of people differ....how much water to add. I read where one blogger used 3 gallons for this....the Duggars use 5 gallons....let it set overnight....split it and add that much water again. Here's a link to their recipe (which says Fels Naptha BUT if watch it on youtube they use Dove...I think....but they don't use FN).

I toyed around with the first batch. I made a 5 gallon bucket full and then I would fill my container half way and then fill the rest of the way with water. In the end I just started filling the container completely with detergent and going that route. Can't say I saw a ton of difference but it was just easier. So the next batch I just had 5 one gallon jugs (old vinegar bottles....yeah...I use a lot of vinegar) that I filled with the goop and called it good. It's seriously goop too. It's got like jelly consistency clumps in it. A lot of them. Here's a close up and a not so close up (I'm no photographer). 

That second picture...not so helpful...those clouds though are the clumps. 

So you grate your bar and melt it completely in hot water. I just fill a large pot with water, pour in the grated soap, and stir until the soap is dissolved. I don't let it boil because I think I read somewhere that it can make a bubbly mess. Then I dump it in my 5 gallon bucket that I have sitting in my tub, turn on the faucet to hottest possible, when hot I start filling up my 5 gallon bucket. I also dump my 1 cup of washing soda and 1/2 cup of Borax in and stir, stir, stir. I put the lid on and let it set for 24 hours. After 24 hours I funnel the sludge into the gallon buckets and voila! Done....for 6 months!!!! Love it!! 

I don't like to do steps a billion times so for me...I just grated all 3 bars of soap the first time I had out my food processor and measured out enough Borax and Washing Soda in different containers for 2 more loads and so this past time it seriously took all of like 10 min. to mix it up....if that much. 

I've read where people add scents...you know...do what you will. I don't. Sometimes I wished I had BUT I started making my own fabric softner and now I've got my smell good :) I'll tell you about that in a much shorter post next. 

OH....and before I forget here's some more crappy pictures of the container of grated soap and the container of Borax and Washing Soda....I guess so you can see how I roll? I don't know....

Victoria

Victoria is almost 4. She never ceases to amaze me. She turns 4 on 2/19....she can write her name....which amazes me enough because it is so long. LOL! She has to think about it and spell through it a couple of times but she can do it! She can read 10 sight words:)

1. Stop
2. Go
3. No
4. Yes
5. The
6. A
7. I
8. At
9. Is
10. Ummmm....I can't remember? oh well...I don't have her flash cards with me right now.

She knows all her upper and lower case letters and what they sound like as well as most of her numbers 1-20.

Two days ago she proposed to me. HILARIOUS!!! That's the first time that has happened to me so it totally warmed my heart:) She wants to marry all the people she loves. It is too sweet and so very innocent. She loves to play with her Tag and her Leapster. Dear Leap Frog.....I love you!

She doesn't really like to learn with me so Thank God she loves to use these learning tools and is a sponge at school.

She adores church. If we ever miss she is devastated. Yesterday I didn't go because....like usual lately...Emily conked out at 9:15 and didn't wake until 10:30...I had no time to get ready. Kevin works every other weekend and he didn't get home until 10:45. I hate missing church. Victoria hates it more. She said...I really wanna go to church. When I told her we couldn't she cried. She loves Jesus:) She even says regular....out of the blue.... "I love you Jesus!....and you too God!" I've never met such a genuinely sweet child. She if full of love and empathy. She really does amaze me because honestly....I don't feel as much as she does. Maybe that is normal though considering as adults when tend to become hardened by our life experiences. 

Victoria tends to pray multiple times during every meal. I adore it! I just cannot believe how blessed I am!

Victoria Rose....I love you little lady!!! Thank you for making me smile, laugh, cry, etc. every. single. day! You are a joy and my life is not complete without you!!!

My little lady that cannot watch Pocahontas before bed because she has nightmares. She is a gift....thank you dear God for blessing me and trusting me to raise this child of yours....that reminds me daily that she is your gift...your child...and not my possession.

Thank you dear God for the family she has been blessed with. She has been blessed with so many grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and an amazing little sister (their love is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen).

Thank you for these 4 years of bliss my precious baby girl! I love you to the moon and back!!!

I'll admit it....I'm strict.

In this day in age we almost have to whisper it....I'm strict. I am though....especially by today's standards. I expect that my children will say "Yes ma'am" and "No, thank you" and "Excuse me." It is sad to me this is foreign. My oldest remembers to say the blessing before a meal even when we forget. She doesn't run around farting on people, having burping contests, or telling us what to do. Lord help her when...if... she tells one of us to "shut up."

My daughters are my most treasured gifts aside from my husband. I don't have to teach him though. He was already taught well my his mom. We have the job of teaching our daughters though. We don't take it lightly. We are not put on this Earth to be their friends. We want to joke and laugh with them of course but they...well, Victoria at least at this point, knows that our word is final. She says "Yes ma'am" and "ok, I understand." It is fairly rare that she chooses to throw a fit over something or tell us no. We have no warning consequence for no. She gets a swat right away...unless I'm having an off day and then the response she gets is "Excuse me. Would you like to try that again?"

Yes, we spank. Generally it's 1-2 swats on her butt with our hand that generally hurts her pride more than her butt. Emily gets her hand smacked once after several no's (just like Victoria did at the same age).

I expect respect and good manners from my children. Some would say I expect too much too young but I get exactly what I expect from them. If Victoria burps she says "excuse me." She says "May I please have....." Every once in a while she'll say such things as "Give me chewies (that's what she calls fruit snacks)."  When this happens I am actually so taken aback I have to just look at her for a bit and then tell her that she doesn't command me and she can try to ask appropriately in a bit.

I miss children not yelling at parents and telling them what to do. I miss the times before Sponge Bob (that is like the worst cartoon ever in my opinion).

I respect my children too though....don't get me wrong. Victoria can choose what she wants to wear for the most part (I know everything in her closet is appropriate since I put it in there), she can choose what she wants to drink (because we only have milk or water around here), and I ask her opinion about supper quite often. I ask her what she wants to do often. I love her and I know she loves me and that she is not feeling in lack of love from her parents that are strict. She knows what is expected from her though and I think that is very important. She doesn't have to guess what upsets us or if she is allowed to do something. She knows when she acts out there are consequences.

Anyway....this is my ramblings just to say yes....I am strict. I am sure I have come across that way in previous posts so here's the confirmation. It's quite odd to me actually what a prude I have become when it comes to raising my children. The thing is.....the closer my relationship is with God....I have come realize that I am trying to raise his gifts in a way that would make Him happy. In a way that they treat everyone with love and respect....to always use the best manners possible. I have learned recently that, quite frankly put, having good manners is acting in a way that doesn't make others uncomfortable. If my girls are always on their best behavior and acting like ladies than they will most likely not be making others uncomfortable.

Sorry, this post is all over the place. It's something I wanted to share my feelings on but couldn't quite come up with a fluent way to do so.

Life Lessons

Victoria got a book some time ago....I believe October 2011, from the Imagination Library. The book was actually written by Dolly herself, I am a Rainbow. I LOVE it! I particularly love this part, "It's not always up to you, the way that you feel. But how you act is a different deal." 

That's a great life lesson. I try to tell her all the time that if she is sad or mad she can't act out. She's definitely allowed, encouraged really, to go sit by herself for a bit and think about her feelings, but she is required to talk about them. I'm so mad because..... Mommy you hurt my feelings by.....  

I blame that on my mother. We had to talk about everything when I was growing up. I think it's a valuable life skill though to be able to verbalize why you feel the way  you feel. In order to do that you have to know 1) what you are feeling and 2) why you are feeling that way. I feel it's important, necessary really, to be able to talk to the person you are upset with and work past it. I'm not the best at returning calls and such...(which makes people think I'm upset with them) so I have to say.....my sister and one of my besties are totally the same way. They will message me and say, "Are you upset with me? If you are, let's talk about it." I feel like it really shows you care when you want to talk about a problem and fix it. Sweeping a problem under the rug never fixes the problem....it masks it for a bit but it always raises it's ugly head again and usually in the form of the person that didn't want to talk about it is overly sensitive about everything. They didn't work past it so they think about it all the time. 

Which leads me to that whole saying of "forgive and forget." That's a stupid saying. As humans we don't just say...."Hmm....I would like to hit delete on this event." That's just stamps it further into our memory. I really like this very long explanation. We can act like we forgot and not hold something against somebody, and maybe several years down the road we might forget, but it doesn't just happen. I also really enjoy the information about forgiving there. It jives with what my pastor says. You can forgive and move on in different directions. Hmm...really because in Matthew 18:21-22 it says I should forgive my brother not 7 times but 7 times 70. Well....it also says in Matthew 18: 15-17  15"If your brother sins, go and show him his fault in private ; if he listens to you, you have won your brother. 16 "But if he does not listen to you, take one or two more with you, so that BY THE MOUTH OF TWO OR THREE WITNESSES EVERY FACT MAY BE CONFIRMED. 17 "If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church ; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. 

So there we go. You really should forgive....the Christian idea of forgiveness is that you love them, don't wish them harm, don't be vengeful. Christian love is not speaking ill, doing good deeds, and praying for them. I have to say I have a personal issue in my life and I feel covered here. I have been questioned and accused of those that feel like I am against them (even though there is no reason for them to feel that way). I have been told that I don't apologize correctly and that I haven't really forgiven. Well, I have. I pray for them, I don't wish them ill-will, I tried to reach out and talk about our disagreements. No go. Oh well.I have learned in life that as long as you know who you are and what your intentions are it really doesn't matter what others think. You can't make someone that has no intentions of giving you a chance believe or understand you. God knows your heart. I guess that all has come with age as well. It still hurts and still makes you question yourself from time to time when someone has such horrible things to say about you. You just have to say oh well. So that all ties back to the "It's not always up to you, the way that you feel. But how you act is a different deal."

Sometimes we are hurt or mad but we can't act out. We forgive and we pray and hopefully discuss with the person that has hurt us or made us mad and we work past it. We don't ever treat others badly. Ever.

Oh....BTW.....I also loathe the whole..."don't let others control how you feel." Umm....okay. Well, that's really hard...especially when you want something to work so badly and the other party really doesn't care. Sometimes there are toxic people in our lives though and we have to recognize those people and just let them go. Forgive and move forward......in different directions.