No More Windex

Replacing the Windex!

Short and sweet … just like these two items make washing windows and mirrors. The Norwex Enviro cloth and window cloth have replaced my Windex for YEARS! If you have never been introduced to Norwex, let me be the one to tell you … there’s nothing like Norwex clean and without chemicals no less!!!

It’s as simple as using hot water to get the Norwex Enviro cloth (turquoise) wet, wring out the excess water, wipe down the glass with it, and then wipe the glass dry with the Norwex window cloth (pink). Really wish I had a before and after, but even if I did the picture wouldn’t even do this combo justice. 

And just to add the Norwex Enviro cloth has pretty much replaced ALL of my other surface cleaners from ceilings to floors in every room in the house! Best part about these, Norwex keeps adding new colors so you really could designate a color to each job if you so wished to do so. :)

What's in Store

As we are recovering from life comatose from this last week and a half of holiday fun and family time and dwelling in the moment of New Year's Resolutions (which I truly enjoy the opportunity each year to make a change, but I don't limit myself to only make a change at the start of a new year), it's relaxing to think back over the past year and get excited about what is to come.

Life is the perfect balance of learning from the past, living in the moment, and being open to opportunities of the future ALL at the same time. I try not to dwell on the past, but I do appreciate that each new day we are given is a great opportunity to make it better than than the day before. I realize I need to slow down sometimes to enjoy the moment we are currently in. AND I need not to worry about tomorrow but I do need to listen to God's whispers because His plans for my tomorrow starts with how I obey Him today.

2015 holds things that actually happened and 2016 will bring dates of specific happenings we can plan for but there will also be so many unknowns along the way. As I reflect and ponder at the start of this new year, I can only get excited about what's in store.

Highlights of 2015 - started a blog + started a new job + #4 began pre-school + welcome another niece AND nephew into this world + everything in between

Looking forward to in 2016 - turning 35 ... it's just another number in my mind, but some may see this as a milestone :) + #3 will start kindergarten + hopes to finish my Homemade Day by Day challenge + LOVING GOD + loving people + keeping life simple

For the Blog: To Do - Make - Replace - Share

mascara

mozzarella

ciabatta bread

butter

blush

almond extract

more freezer meals

Young Living distributor
italian seasoning

pumpkin pie spice

chai latte

cream cheese

bearawicka (a family favorite of the Mr.'s dad's side ... have a recipe ... need to try this out)

cough drops

concealer

blush

sunscreen

bug spray

donate hair

dryer balls

velveeta

lipstick

eye shadow

Bar Keepers Friend (kitchen sink cleaner)

bar soap

shampoo (not no-poo)

conditioner

bacon

taco sauce

apple butter

enchilada sauce

queso

ice cream
make and take classes

liquid hand soap

dish soap

chicken bouillon

cheese (any variety)

fruit snacks

crockpot meals

coconut milk

granola

granola bars

sourdough bread

wine

sauerkraut (I love this stuff, but never buy it since I'm the only one that'll eat it!)

marshmallows

hard candy

biscuits

gravy

farm fresh eggs
uses for shea butter
uses for beeswax
uses for aloe vera gel
uses for coconut oil
uses for activated charcoal

... and the list goes on but I need to make myself stop :) 

What's something you would add to the list?

Homemade Laundry Soap

Homemade Laundry Soap

Now that #1's basketball and #2's baseball is over, I am looking forward to having some "extra" (if there is such a thing ... heehee) time to get back to blogging! 

My mind-set still continues to be simplify the ingredients and make what I can from "scratch" for less than what I could buy it at the store.

4 batches worth of homemade laundry detergent

I've tried a couple different recipes over the years for laundry detergent, powdered and liquid, but this is the one I've settled on. It's easy and cheap (like and love!). The ingredients pictured below cost about $12 and there is Borax and washing soda left for 2 more batches. I am sure this one is a very popular on Pinterest, but I borrowed my recipe from a teacher friend who has five children so I knew it had to do its job well! In addition, she informed me that she started only using this in her older machine but has now been using this in her high-efficiency wash machine for years!

Homemade Laundry Detergent

1 cup Borax

1  cup washing soda

1 bar of Fels-Naptha, shredded and/or chopped

Shred  (I used my Kitchenaid shredder attachment) or chop bar of Fels-Naptha. Combine the Fels-Naptha and remaining ingredients in food processor and chop until well blended. Use 2 tablespoons per large load for your top loader or front loader. 

I use this on everything except the Mister's socks due to sensitive skin and my Norwex cloths. I have always had to use free-everything laundry detergent on his socks and I haven't taken the chance to see if this would be okay for his feet. If I had to guess this version of homemade laundry detergent may not be the best if you have sensitive skin (which would make for a great post). However, Norwex recommends using their laundry soap for their products, so since I absolutely love my Norwex cloths and taking good care of the Mister I will continue to sparingly use :) their laundry detergent for these items. 

Cost comparison: I am still working out the cost per load, but initially the three and a half jars pictured above cost less than $7 and if this lasts me as long as a $14-$25 for 100+ loads of store bought detergent does then I'd say it's a win!

Updated 10/31/16 - I now use this on EVERYTHING including the Mr's socks. :) 

Homemade Stain Remover

How to Make Your Own Gel Stain Remover

We have become very dependent on our stain removal process for quite some time now. With having four kids to cloth and not good about dealing with stains when they are fresh, stain removal has become a dreaded but very important task. My mindset has developed (yes, developed ... it hasn't always been this way) into a very waste-less one and it pains me when I am going through a freshly washed load of laundry and I end up tossing a quarter of it to the side because of stains. Let me give you a little script of what goes throw my head when this happens :)

-----

Annoyed Me: Ugh! What do they get themselves into?!?!

Literal Me: Who knows? They are kids, what do you expect?

Annoyed: I don't know, but now I have to spend extra time getting these stains out!

Literal: You know you could just turn those into play cloths and replace them.

Annoyed: We just bought that shirt last week!

Literal: Oh, right ... well that was a waste of money.

Annoyed: AND TIME! So frustrating.

Literal: I guess we need to get the stain remover out and get to work on our stained-stashed clothes (the pile that has accumulated over the course of the last week or two). 

Annoyed: Yeah, but I don't have TIME today, do you think we could wait another week?

Literal: Maybe, but #2 (he's the messiest) is running low on shirts.

Annoyed: I know, it was worth a try to procrastinate longer!

Literal: So go get the stuff?

Annoyed: Fine!

-----

The cat's out of the bag, I'm the crazy mom who talks to herself because sometimes I just need a grown up to bounce ideas off of! Please tell me I'm not the only one that has these types of conversations with themselves! ;-p

Before I continue, let me just make a statement in defense of my laundry soap, "I've tried different laundry soaps (and I hope to find a homemade version) and I in no way find my laundry soap guilty for not doing it's job ... I blame the children!" heeehee! If you have a laundry soap that get's out EVERYTHING the first time, please share your secret. 

We use 3 products for stain removal, Shout, Dawn, and Fels-Naptha. I did just recently purchased some Norwex Stain Remover but I haven't used it enough to compare it. Depending on the stain type we will use one of these or a combination of them. I have been researching how I could make my own version of Shout and Dawn so be sure to keep an eye out for those posts, it gets me excited (eye-roll allowed, I can get excited about the silliest things) just thinking about the day I find something that works just as good and is easy to make!

I came across Fels-Naptha years ago when I was responsible for washing the Mr.'s entire baseball teams' new white pants after every game ... still not sure how it ended up that way or that I was so willing to do that (I'm just thankful I am no longer doing this)! For all you baseball moms and dads out there, you know that red baseball dirt is a PAIN to get out, so we trialed and errored until we found this miraculous soap. I started out using the bar, getting it wet, and rubbing the stain which works really well, but sometimes a little extra elbow grease was needed with a brush and I really didn't like the little pieces of soap I end up with when using a bar of soap. So I reverted to using this method instead.

gel stain remover using Fels-Naptha

Homemade Stain Remover

1/4 bar of Fels-Naptha (found with the laundry soap)

2 cups of HOT water

1 wide-mouthed pint sized glass jar

Use a cheese grater or food processor to shred the Fels-Naptha. Place shavings in glass jar. Add hot water, don't overfill. Secure the lid. Shake gently until soap is dissolved. Allow to cool. Gelled and ready to use. Apply desired amount to stain. Use a scrub brush or toothbrush to rub in. Allow to set for 10-15 minutes. Launder as usual. For tougher stains, allow to set for longer and reapply as needed. 

original stain after a few washes without pretreating

homemade gel stain remover

scrub-a-dub with a brush

after one application and one wash

after second application and setting for few hours

after second wash

The stain is still barely there, but much better than it was! And in all reality these baseball pants are going to look like the first picture in a matter of one inning anyway :)

As for a container, I prefer the wide-mouthed pint jar because it's easy to get to the bottom of the jar. I will usually make one bar worth of stain remover and use 2 quart sized jars and then transfer it to the smaller one.

Cost: $0.97 (Walmart) for 1/2 gallon of stain remover

Tick Repellent

I hate ticks! They really gross me out!! A few years back was my first encounter with a tick, I saw something on our dog and when I went to go investigate I realized what it was. The Mr. wasn't home and was going to be gone over night so I had to be the one to tackle removing it. I quickly started searching the internet for solutions. It wasn't big and blood-filled so I knew it had to be rather fresh which helped. I then went to work using a tweezers to remove the tick by it's head and then placed it in a jar with some rubbing alcohol to kill it.

We live in an area where ticks are very likely but definitely not in an overabundance. However, last night I found a tick on me ... EEEEKKKKK!!! I had been out mowing yesterday evening and when I was getting ready to shower I noticed something small and dark on my arm, and SURE ENOUGH it was a tick. A first for me and I had the heebie-jeebies the rest of the night! 

So, the first thing on my mind this morning was there's something I could make as a tick repellent which is when I came across Primally Inspired. She has been using rose geranium essential oil on both her dog and herself and hasn't found a tick since using it. 

I absolutely LOVE essential oils and have been using them since our #1 was little, so just over ten years. This led to making bath salts, sharing them as gifts, and then eventually tried my hand at selling them on Esty when #3 was little. I would have loved pursuing the Etsy thing more but it was easier to just gift and sell my bath salts locally. Through all of this I have discovered I am an essential oils hoarder and am very stingy with even our own personal uses because they can get costly. I am a firm believer in the benefits and natural uses of essential oils but it truly is an investment, a very good investment though!

I was very blessed to meet up with my cousin and her essential oil mentor yesterday for a essential oils chat. I am always excited to hear about others' ideas and uses when it comes to their own day to day lives. 

Rose Geranium is just a blend of rose oil and geranium oil so if you would have both of those you could great your own blend. 

Today's Question: What is your favorite use for rose or geranium essential oils?

Homemade Ant Bait

How to Make Your Own Ant Bait Stations

It's that time of year when the ants are out in armies and it breaks my heart to know I am poisoning worker ants and then they are carrying it back to their colony to kill and destroy it ... extreme thinking I know but just so sad! Which is why I try not to think that deeply each time I place a cotton ball out once I have spotted an ant colony feeding on that one very minuscule crumb that one of the kiddos dropped who knows when. 

I have been using this method for some time and I now keep a jar under my kitchen sink (child locked of course!) with the cotton balls soaking in the solution so all I have to do is pull one out when I need it. It only takes about a day, maybe two, when I notice no more ants traveling back and forth. Usually I will try to follow their trail to the source of entry into our home which is quite easy if I just sit and watch without disrupting their for orderly path!

Homemade Ant Bait

1/4 cup warm water

1/4 cup sugar

1 tablespoon of Borax

Mix all ingredients together until sugar and Borax are dissolved. Add 6-8 cotton balls to the solution. Stir until cotton balls are saturated. Store in a closed container out of the reach of children (just to be safe).

ant bait station after 15 minutes of setting out