Laundry, Tomatoes, MOPS, & Open Gym

A little bit of everything!

I had to buy some more Washing Soda and Borax last week to make another big batch of our homemade laundry detergent and figured I should do a follow up just in case anyone was curious... this was the 1st time I had to buy this stuff since October!! So it looks like it will cost about $10.00 every 4 months for laundry supplies! Cha-ching! That is a huge savings compared to what we were spending for the HE Tide and Snuggle dryer sheets and fabric softener. Other than when my family was here over Christmas, I have not used either the dryer sheets or fabric softener and our clothes are perfectly clean and soft =) (I still have some Tide and Snuggle that I don't want to throw away so I'll use it when we do laundry for company until it is gone.) I do not see any reason why we would ever go back.... it's super easy, saves money, and is supposedly healthier... what's not to love?!

Next up... tomatoes! So, I do not have a green thumb at all. I love flowers and plants in the house but I've never kept anything alive for very long. And now with cats that eat the plants and a toddler who would dig in the dirt, you will not find a live plant in my house for a while. BUT, I have always loved gardens! Both of my grandmas had gardens and I always loved eating fresh vegetables straight out of the garden!(A part of me wishes I could live on a farm in the country and have a biggg garden... I don't know why, I don't really like to get dirty or work outside, haha) Anyways, I did some research on Container Gardening and decided to give it a try this year! Here is my one and only tomato plant....

I bought the plant like that and transplanted it into the pot. I am also going to try cucumbers, but I am starting those from seeds so they aren't quite ready to be planted yet. I am just hoping and praying for 1 little tomato!! haha I will be so excited if I even get 1! I am completely ready for it to be a total fail though, lol.

This morning we had a MOPS play date at Alamo Gymnastics... Open Gym! Speaking of MOPS... next year I am going to be joining the steering team as the MOPPETS Coordinator! The steering team is made up of all the positions needed to run MOPS (Lead Coordinator, Assis. Coordinator, Outings, Crafts, Prayer and Care, Treasurer, Hospitality, ect.) The MOPPETS Coordinator is in charge of the curriculum, craft supplies, snacks, sign-in sheets, and name tags for all the kiddos! I am very excited to get even more involved with MOPS! But back to Open Gym... Wyatt had a blast! I am so happy to have learned about this place. They have Open Gym every Monday and Wednesday from 10:30-11:30 for 5 bucks! 

The kids loved this big foam pit! 

Trampoline..

Then, we sat outside with some friends and had a snack =)

I'll be back on Sunday! Hope everyone is having a good week!

The Secret Laundry Villains

(No clue how the first time this posted, it was just a draft! =/ Sorry.... here is the completed post...)

So it was getting to be about that time to buy another jug of laundry detergent and fabric softener,

and as we were planning our budget for the month, we weren't to thrilled that these products were on the lists of things to buy. Even with coupons, they aren't too "cheap."

The Mrs. remembered coming across blogs and websites in the last year or 2 of people making their own laundry detergent. She thought it was neat, but never really gave it a second thought.

Well, last weekend we decided to go ahead and "give it a second thought." We googled "homemade laundry detgerent" .... and were enlightened about a whole 'nother world out there we never knew existed! ha It turns out.. laundry detergents have paired up with fabric softeners and dryer sheets to form the #1 evil toxin villain team behind global warming and all other horrible things in life... whoa, snap out of it, sorry we were in "pretend" mode with Wyatt for a second (this happens all the time to Mr.). Seriously though, there are some pretty weird things (toxins and chemicals) in these products that enter our bodies through our skin via our clothes.

So when we learned we would 1) save money 2) change our whole laundry process to all natural and 3) help save the environment.... we figured, why not give it a shot?! So off we went to Target and HEB to gather ALL 3 ingredients we would need to make our laundry detergent. 3 things people, it doesn't get any easier than that!

All you need is Borax, Washing Soda, and Soap (Our grand total for these items was $7.68)

We mixed together 2 cups of Borax and 2 cups of Washing Soda

Then added 2 bars of grated soap!

Just stir and store!

(Empty formula can wrapped in scrapbook paper)

This is the powder version but you can also melt the soap and add water and make a liquid version. We use 1-2 tablespoons per load. Based on our smaller (test) batch, it looks like this batch will last us about a month. And there is still plenty of Borax and Washing Soda! We will just need to buy more soap, that 3 pack of Ivory only cost $1.15.

As for the fabric softener, we just ditched it! No more fabric softener to be seen in this house! And the dryer sheets (the leader of the toxic villian team!)... never again will we fall into Snuggle's cuddly little trap! Instead, we just put a couple drops of lavender oil on a washcloth and throw it in the dryer with the wet clothes.

 The results..... We haven't had any issues with static cling, which is what dryer sheets are supposed to do. (But even if we did experience static cling, there are tricks for that too!) Our clothes are just as clean as before. The only thing different is they don't have the strong "laundry" smell that comes from all the extra

(; toxic) ingredients. We're never goin' back! So long Tide and Snuggle!

Here's a few websites that we used along the way:

The Family HomeStead

DIY Natural

10 Recipes

NOTE: Let it be known that we are NOT tree huggin' hippies, just penny pinching poor people. Hence, the reason we embarked on this crazy adventure of making our own laundry detergent.

-Mr. and Mrs.