Laundry Detergent

I had a lot of questions about my homemade laundry detergent on Facebook, so I thought I'd just write a blog post about it! :-)

First of all, my recipe: a while back, a friend of mine (Hi Beth!) shared the recipe that she uses from Modern Cottage.

1 bar of soap, grated

1 cup Borax

1 cup Washing Soda

1/4 cup Oxy-Clean

Mix it all together. Use one tablespoon for a light load, two tablespoons for a large or dirty load.

There you go, that's it! Pretty simple, right? I have been doubling the recipe. I bought some Ivory bar soap a while back thinking that I needed it for the detergent. So, to get rid of it, I've been using one bar of Ivory and one bar of Fels Naptha. I was recently told that if you stir this recipe for a while the shreds of soap will break down and it will turn completely into powder. I may try this next time, but Russell thinks it looks cool the way I make it now, so maybe not! Haha!

I have been using homemade laundry detergent for a few months now. We have been very happy with the way it smells - and more importantly, the way it cleans. So, I'd say we're converts! :-)

Russell and I are trying to live a more green life. We're doing what we can for our family and for the environment. The added benefit is more often than not, we save money in the long run by choosing the greener option! Making our laundry detergent fits right along with this.

• I haven't priced out the detergent exactly, but various websites estimate this detergent costs between 12 and 14 cents per load.


• I really just like know what goes into the products we use around the house. The Fels Naptha does have some fragrance in it, but at this time I am okay with it. Down the road, I may look into other options.


• Most of the commercial detergents have a lot of chemicals in them. When your clothes are rinsed clean, all of those chemicals drain out of your washer and into our water supply. Yuck!

Some notes - I can't say for certain because we don't have an HE washer, but I'm told this works for HE washers as well because it is a low sudsing detergent. Also, I do not use this detergent on my cloth diapers because soap can cause a build-up. For my cloth diapers, I use equal parts Borax, Washing Soda, and Oxy-Clean Free.

So, hopefully I answered some questions out there!! Let me know if I can answer any more! :-)

Jameson - 2.5 years

I know a lot of the blog is focused on Delilah. It is so fun to chronicle all of her milestones month to month. I wish I had thought to start this blog when Jameson was a baby! So, as my little man turns 2.5 today, I think it is only fair to have a post dedicated to only him. :-)

Jameson is developing by leaps and bounds these days. It is so fun to hear him put together a few ideas. In the past, we were just thrilled to hear him say the word "shoes." But now he will say "shoes on" or "shoes off." He tells me when things are up or down. His newest obsession is the movie Cars. Lately, he's been telling me about the red car or the blue car. This morning he told me several times "Mommy up, Daddy nigh-nigh." Oh and the other day he crawled in my lap and said "I wuv you, Mom." Aww, that's the best!

Jameson is turning into quite the comedian. He loves to put on a show for an audience. He now has a dance he does when he eats that I think is hilarious!! He will sing for us. He likes to make faces. He can get D to laugh like no one else. He loves to be tickled, even though it usually ends with "Shop [stop] Mommy" or "Shop Daddy."

Jameson is quickly becoming less and less a toddler, and more a little boy. He is so independent! The other day, I learned that if I don't get downstairs fast enough he will get his bowl out of his cupboard, get the cereal out of the pantry, fill the bowl, and put the cereal away - I did pour the milk for him. :-) He is also turning into a little monkey. I learned tonight that he can climb up onto the bathroom counter by himself! He is growing up right before our eyes!!

Jameson 2.5 year appt

Jameson had a doctors appointment on Monday. We got to see Dr. Zimmerman because she is back from her maternity leave!! I'm not sure if this is a normal appointment or to track his talking (or lack there of). We've been working on sentences the last few weeks. Instead of just "wa-wa, please" or "car, please" or whatever he's asking for, I've been working "I want wa-wa, please." And it seems that he's figured it out!

So, back to his appointment. This was the second time that I braved taking both kids on my own. We got there on time, which was a feat in and of itself. Once we checked in, Jameson immediately bypassed the TV and ran over to the books (saying "Book! Book!"), I was so proud! The nursed called us back pretty much right away (which is amazing on a Monday morning!). The nurse weighed and measured him. They now weigh him on the big scale and measure him against the wall. They did this at his 2 year appointment, but it still surprises me that he's such a big boy! He weighed 29.6 lbs and was 35 inches tall.

The nurse took us to the room. She asks some questions and then leaves. Then I start filling out the packet they gave me. I had to ask him to practice a few of the skills. I learned that he can repeat two random numbers out of order (like two, five). I also learned that the next skill we need to work on is fine motor drawing skills. :-) While I'm completing the questionnaire, Jameson is playing around the room. He is opening and closing every drawer. He then decides that he wants to be up on the exam table. So he starts saying "Help me up, please." Yay! So, I included that as an example of a sentence!

So Dr. Zimmerman comes in and starts checking Jameson's eyes, ears, throat, stomach, etc. Everything looks normal. She asks about his last and next appointments for his foot. She commented that there is still some curvature to the foot (I told her that Dr. Sheehan said he will likely always have that) but that he has the range of movement to put it back to normal (which is most important). She then went through and scored the questionnaire. Now, keep in mind that Jameson was below average on the last assessment and she's been threatening to recommend early intervention for probably a year now. She would set a goal and deadline for Jameson and he would just barely meet that goal. So, she went through and said that Jameson is now above average in communication. Did you hear me??? ABOVE AVERAGE!!!!! You have no idea what a relief that was to hear! :-) Really, the only area he was a little low on was the fine motor skills (drawing), but she said that was still in the normal range! Yay!

And, as if that wasn't good enough to hear... Jameson was showing off all of his skills. He counted, said his colors, did some animal noises, and spelled his name. And she said to Jameson "Your mommy is running things like a pre-school." That was quite the stroke to the ego. :-) So, all in all, it was a positive experience. However, I was told that they reformulated one of the immunizations that Jameson had previously received to include 6 new strains, so he will need a booster. But, I scheduled that for the same time as his flu shot, so hopefully that won't be too traumatic.

While we're on the subject of Jameson, there is some big news in our house. On bath night, I generally ask Jameson if he wants to sit on the potty. He usually sits on it, pretends to push something out, hops off and gets in the tub. On Sunday, he sat on the toilet and immediately started peeing. I started cheering so loudly that Russell (who happened to be home) came in to see what the commotion was about. We made a big deal about it and have been talking about it ever since. Well, tonight was bath night again, so of course I asked if he wanted to try to go potty before getting into the bath. And, again, he peed right away!! He was so proud of himself for being like Mommy and Daddy! We're not going to officially try potty training until Russell switches shifts. We think that will be easier because he'll be on a much more regular schedule rather than spending one day here, two days there, one day somewhere else... But, yay Jameson!!!!

7 months old!

Can you believe it?? I can't! We're over halfway to Delilah's first birthday. :-( My little cuddly girl's personality is coming out more and more everyday! She definitely is a little diva. If she's upset about something, she is not afraid to let you know! She can go from a smiling and happy to a shrieking with tears running down her cheeks in 0.2 seconds. :-) She has really, REALLY enjoyed her first month of solid foods. So far, she has tried rice and oatmeal cereal, as well as sweet potatoes, squash, carrots, peas, green beans, and apples. She love it all! She wants to try everything and she is so strong! If you're holding something like a cup, she will grab it and pull it toward her mouth. You have to be very careful because she just might pull whatever it is out of your hands!!!

She also is very interested in the items that we have in the pockets on the changing table. As soon as you lay her down, she is already rolling over to grab anything she can reach. Her new trick is to bang things - specifically on her highchair tray. She might just pound on it with her hand or use a toy. It is so fun to watch her use intentional movements! She will do it and then watch for your reaction. She loves making people laugh - especially her big brother! They're relationship is getting more fun to watch everyday. Jameson likes playing peek-a-boo with his sister and singing to her. Delilah revels in the attention from her big brother.

Weekend Recap

Friday was a typical day. I went to Weight Watchers. I'm down another 1.6lbs. Woo hoo! So that means I'm down nearly 24 lbs! I went to work, came home, and hung out with the kids until bedtime.

Saturday, the kids had a photoshoot with our neighbor, Staci. The kids are going to be famous models, but there will be another post about that in the future. But, to tide you over, here's a teaser:

This picture was Staci's vision. We had Russell hopping around the garage (even though he didn't feel good and he was listening to the Husker game before work) to make D smile. After the photoshoot, we went to the zoo for a baby shower. This was monumental because it's the first time I've taken both kids to the zoo by myself. Kellie and Jon were also there. Jon and his friend (the father-to-be) took Jameson and a couple of other kids around the zoo while the ladies participated in the baby shower. Afterward, we wandered around the zoo for Maddie's first trip to the zoo. Poor Jameson got a bug in his eye on the way to the cat house! But we wandered around a bit before it was time to leave. And we even ran into an old friend from Ames (who now lives in Omaha) on the way out!

Sunday was another quiet day. We stayed at the house. Tonight was bath night. Delilah is getting crazy in the bath tub!! I give them a bath together. I put the baby bath in big bath tub. Tonight, D was leaning over edge of the her bathtub to grab toys from the big bath! She is getting so strong!

Pretty quiet over here...

So, we had a wild weekend, but otherwise it's been pretty quiet. Russell took Sunday and Monday off for the circle party and then Tuesday and Wednesday were his normal days off, so he had a nice little break. Unfortunately, we all started feeling pretty yucky on Monday night. I'm hoping it's just allergies. Sneezing, coughing, stuffy heads, etc. It seemed to hit Russell and Delilah the worst. I was worried that D's ear infection was coming back, but she looked a lot better today - no gunk coming out of her eyes. So, I think we're on the road to recovery, but the earlier part of this week was spent sleeping! :-)

Circle Party 2010

So our annual circle party has come and gone. This year the theme was "Cinco do Circle." I know it doesn't EXACTLY make sense, but 5 was a big theme this year. There are 5 houses on the circle, it was our 5th circle party, and it was held on September 5th. Russell made a banner this year. He wanted to hang it from the street light, so that everyone who saw it knew what they were missing. I envisioned disaster when he told me he was going to free-hand it, but I was impressed that it turned out pretty nice! I designed T-shirts for the ladies and the kids and Russell helped me iron them on. And, well, to give you an idea of what THAT process was like...He said next year we will just have them printed. :-) But, I think they turned out pretty cute...especially for the price!

Like every year, the neighbors rented a bounce house. As usual, it was a big hit. It was fun to see the little kids in it. What a difference 6 months makes! At Jameson's birthday party, these kids weren't so sure what to do in the bounce house. But now, 6 months later, they were having the time of their lives! :-) Guess we'll be going back to Jumpin' Jax again next year!!!

We ate lots of yummy food, had a few drinks, and of course there was the firepit! This was the first circle party that I wasn't either pregnant or working, so I celebrated! :-) We played spoons, which is a circle favorite. I call it a success that we did not break a table! And we made it to breakfast, which was Russell's goal. We had a delicious meal of eggs and toast. After that, everyone was ready for bed!

Overall it was a good night and a nice way to bid farewell to summer. Unfortunately, no one told the kids that we wanted to sleep in this morning. So, we were up pretty early. The good news is we are both off today, so we have a day to lounge before it's back to work!

Game day!

Quiet Week!

It has been a pretty quiet week. I can't even think of anything interesting to talk about that happened this week! This week seemed to speed by. Which is good because I was worried it would craaaaaaaaaaaawl because it was the first full week that I had to work in 4 weeks! (But I get Monday off!) This is probably the calm before the storm!

We have another busy weekend ahead of us! Tomorrow is the first Husker game! Yeah! I won't be WATCHING it because it's on pay-per-view and totally not worth buying for Jameson, Delilah, and I. But we will be wearing red!

Sunday is our annual circle party with our neighbors. We are very excited! It is always a good time. And this will be the first year that I'm not pregnant or working!! :-) Hopefully I have some good pictures to post.

Finally, in Weight Watchers news...I lost another 2.4 lbs. I hit 5% today! Which means I lost 5% of my body weight! That is VERY motivating!! :-) Yay, on to 10%, that's my next goal!