She considereth a field...

I have been bitten by the gardening bug.  I love being able to grow my own food!  

Yesterday I sprayed these little clay pots with chalkboard paint and today after I made sure they were totally dry, I labeled them and set them out (even though they don't have the herbs in them yet).

I started about 3 dozen seedlings a week and a half ago.  Now that they're starting to sprout, I'm so excited to get all three Tower Gardens filled and running!  So I started more tonight.

I prepped some seeds for the Tower Gardens and some for the regular (soil) garden.

The weather has been perfect for seeds to sprout, so I decided to set the new ones out with the others.

It's been fun for us to check every morning for new sprouts.  Hoping this greatly increases those sightings and helps our produce budget!

Making homemade carpet freshener

I learned about a simple homemade carpet freshener today online.  It was 5 drops of essential oil plus baking soda.

I had about half of a quart jar full of baking soda, added 5 drops of On Guard essential oil and mixed it well.  

Hammy, my 8 year old, helped me make a shaker lid for our carpet freshener.

When we had enough nail holes punched, we tried it out.

We shook it on the living room rug and sang, "Let it snow!"

After letting it sit a few minutes, I vacuumed it up.

Ahhh!  Nice and fresh!

I can just hear it now, 

"You have 8 kids, a hamster, and a cat and a dead rat in your walls??  I couldn't tell at all!"

Homemade Disposable Baby Wipes Tutorial

4/20/11 This is a revisited post updated with a breakdown of prices in parentheses next to the ingredients.  Prices may vary according to your area.  I recommend using the generic baby oil and shampoo but using quality paper towels.  Buy the paper towels in bulk (use your coupons too) for best prices.  Watch the sales.  Paper towels don't expire.  ;)  My cost for homemade wipes?  74 1/2 cents for a batch of 70 wipes.  So, YES, homemade wipes are cheaper than Wal-Mart wipes.

1/2 roll Quality Paper Towels    (58 1/2 cents for the half roll when bought in bulk)
1/2 Tbsp. Baby Shampoo or Baby Bath    (5 cents)
1/2 Tbsp. Baby Oil    (5 cents)
1 drop of Tea Tree Oil    (6 cents)
container for wipes
1 1/4 cups water

Start with some good quality paper towels like Bounty. Yes, this truly turns out FAR cheaper than store-bought baby wipes even with Bounty. It makes a difference.  Don't waste time and extra money by buying the cheap stuff.  I hear Viva is good too for wipes.

Unwrap them. We're doing a whole lot at once because we change a WHOLE lot of diapers in Pookieville. AND because I am all about efficiency. No sense getting the knife and cutting board out every three days when I need wipes again. And I do not make enough wipes to last a week. I'll get to that later.

 

Now get yourself a cutting board and a knife.  Do NOT use a serrated knife.  I made that mistake for YEARS (yeah, I'm s-l-o-w sometimes).  It causes a huge fluffy mess.  Even the electric serrated knife makes a mess.  Just use the knife your grandma gave you that ended up being your favorite knife even though it doesn't match any of your other knives.  You know the one. 

Cut it in half.  When cutting it sometimes makes a squeaky sound that upsets my chi. This is to be expected and does not lower the awesomeness of homemade wipes.

Now, I like to use purified or distilled water to lower the chances of anything growing.  And I heat it in the microwave in a glass measuring cup until it boils which is 2-3 minutes. 

 

Remove the paper tube from the center.  Just work it loose and pull it out.  It's a little easier if you wait until the roll is wet to pull out the center.  But soggy paper towel tube wigs me out.  I dunno.

 

Add 1/2 tbsp (1 1/2 tsp) baby shampoo/bath to the 1 1/4 cup of boiled water.

 

Add 1/2 tbsp. baby oil to the water/ baby bath mix.

Add 2-3 drops of tea tree oil (not to be taken internally by gremlins- or anyone)

Pour over the paper towels in container.

 

Watch out for the steam!

All done!

The tea tree oil helps prevent mildew from growing on the wipes.  But even with tea tree oil they will mildew in about a week (at least here on the central west coast).  So that's why we only do one-half roll at a time.  It's really fast once you've got the supplies close by.  I keep them on top my fridge and whip them together between doing dishes or cooking dinner. 

These are ready to use as soon as cool enough.  My kids love to hug the warm container.

This post is linked at http://www.lifeasmom.com/ , Tales from Bloggeritaville, My Coupon Teacher, Finding Fabulous, 11th Heaven's Homemaking Haven

If you needed 510 diapers a month...

 would you rather pay for disposables or wash that many cloth diapers?

And let's pretend, just for fun, that that 510 diapers might go down to 360 diapers for a few months (if your Hammy potty-trains) before going up to a probable 720 diapers a month (newborns poop a lot you know).

And so, now that I'm done rambling on such a random probably-doesn't-apply-to-TOO-many-people point, I'll switch the laundry while you comment and vote on my poll on my left sidebar.  Or eat hot dogs and watch fireworks.  You pick. 

Happy Independence Day!






P.S.  I also have a poll on the right sidebar guessing if it's a boy or girl.

Fleece Diaper Pockets Tutorial

Fleece diaper pockets are a frugal semi-crunchy mama’s dream.  They work much better than just a fleece liner because they won’t bunch up.  The fleece pulls the wetness inside the diaper and the baby feels dry longer. 

When changing the diaper, just pull the diaper and doubler out of the fleece and toss them all in the diaper pail together.  If it’s poopy, pull the diaper and doubler out and all you have to rinse is the fleece pocket.  A lightweight fleece pocket is so much easier to rinse than a big-ole poopy prefold.

Look for remnants of fleece to make these pockets.  I actually bought the fleece for $4.44 a yard at Wal-Mart and got 14 out of each yard.  With tax, it's still less than 30 cents a piece. 

Gather your supplies:  Fleece, measuring tape or ruler, scissors, diaper, cover, and doubler.

Lay your prefolded diaper on the fleece to get an idea of how big to sew the fleece diaper pocket.  Allow for an extra half inch around. 

Cut a piece big enough to fold it in half sideways. ←→ Also make sure your stretch is ←this way→.  Fleece only stretches one direction.  This is very important that you make sure it goes sideways.  It is a hassle to try to stuff a fleece pocket when the stretch is going the other way.  I did that once and ended up chucking that pocket because it was so dang annoying.

Sew a straight stitch along the top and down one side (not the folded side).

Turn right side out.

 

Now stuff it.  mwahaha.  *ahem*

All stuffed.

Place stuffed fleece pocket in cover.  I prefer Proraps. 

Put on Tater, or whatever cute baby you have laying around your house. 

So comfy!  I think I might just . . . ahh! 

Spare fleece pockets and one already stuffed diaper, just in case.

If you like what you read here, follow me on my journey.  I’d love to have you along.  :)

This post is linked at Thrifty Thursdays, Frugal Fridays, My Coupon Teacher’s Thrifty Thursdays, and Frugalicious Friday. and Homemaker Mondays, and A Soft Place to Land.

Ask away!

Please submit your cloth diapering questions that I haven't answered here or need further explanation.  I will compile another post of Cloth Diapering Q & A. 

I suppose if you have other questions, you can ask them too.  I can't guarantee I'll know the answer-- unless it specifically applies to me and my family.  Feeling nosey?  You could read my 100 list.  It's a little outdated though.  Maybe I'll write another one when I hit 100 subscribers. 

Round one cloth diapering Q&A

I am excited about my readers’ interest in cloth diapering.  I am more than happy to share my experience with it.  Here are a few past questions.

New Nikki and Danny blog follower:  What do you use?

Nikki:  Regular Chinese Prefolds,  Bummis Super Whisper Wraps in snaps, also the aplix (velcro) kind, proraps, doublers, and fleece pockets.  Proraps are actually my favorite cover because of the gusseted legs.  They really make a difference.  Flannel wipes I make out of 9 inch squares of flannel.  Some are one layer wipes.  Some are two layer.  You can also buy flannel wipes online through ebay, etsy, and more places like ComfyBummy.com.  We have all-in-ones, but we don’t use them.  I think they’re gross actually because it seems like I can’t get the smell out of them.

Devoted and related Nikki and Danny blog reader:  How do you wash them?

I dump the pail of dirty and wet diapers in the washing machine and run it on hot wash with this detergent.  It doesn’t suds up and gets them really clean.  And it’s cheaper too.  For my front-loader washing machine it only takes 1 tablespoon per load.  I fill the fabric softener cup with distilled white vinegar.  This balances the PH and makes them come out clean and fresh smelling.  With three in diapers, I’m cutting corners and not hanging them all dry.  This WILL wear out the diapers faster though.  It’s a compromise really. 

The covers get washed with my white laundry unless they have poop on them.  If poopy, I wash them in the sink first and then throw them in with the white laundry.

Do you use a wet diaper pail or a dry one?

Dry.  Definitely.  With at least two in diapers at a time, I reach a load in a little over a day preventing the stink level from taking over the bathroom.  I used to do a wet pail with my first thinking it would help prevent stains.  But seeing as these are prefolds and now we’re on the fifth and sixth babies using them, I don’t care if they get stained because I don’t plan on reselling them.  I think I’ve certainly got my money’s worth out of them.  Covers stain a little easier because they aren’t 100% cotton.  The covers don’t go in the pail anyway.  The covers get washed with the whites making sure the velcro is closed so as not to snag anything.  The doublers and fleece liners also go in the pail.

What if you get a poopy diaper?  Are you ready to throw in the towel, so to speak? 

Nope.  Not with fleece liners.  I pull the diaper and doubler out of the pocket and drop them in the diaper pail.  Then I dunk the fleece pocket in the toilet water to get the poop off.  The cold water really helps loosen it.  Use gloves if you’re grossed out.

Do you make your own? 

I make fleece pockets and flannel baby wipes.  I have also made my own doublers.  When I’m using disposables I use disposable homemade baby wipes. 

New Nikki and Danny blog reader:  Have you cloth diapered many?

I cloth diapered Pookie starting at 5 months. 

Gabbers was cloth diapered until she started showing signs of allergies to everything.  We thought possibly the vinegar in the rinse cycle.  We switched her to Pampers Cruisers for a spell.  Then back into cloth again.

I cloth diapered Bun most of his diapering days. 

Hammy has been cloth diapered about half because of overwhelming nausea at the beginning of my twins’ pregnancy and then being overwhelmed with three in diapers.

The twins have been cloth diapered for one day.  I decided I would finish the size 2 diapers we had and then put them in cloth.  We’re almost there.

Appalled mother at church:  Are you planning on cloth diapering your twins? 

No way!  (Yes I am.  I really am.)  Sometimes I’m a closet cloth diaperer.  Why?  People are weird and try to educate me on how I actually do not save money cloth diapering.  I know the reality of it and see the savings in my bank account and my piece of mind knowing I’m not going to be sending 150 diapers a week to the landfill.

I am sure I missed more questions.  Please leave them in the comments and I’ll endeavor to answer them in our next round of cloth diapering Q&A.  Here are the next questions I plan on addressing:

All of these terms are new to me.  Can you explain in laymen’s terms?

Do you cloth diaper at night?

Do you cloth diaper when traveling or on vacation?

Do you cloth diaper when running errands or going to church?

There is something so endearing about a huge cloth diapered tushie. I cloth diapered the twins a few days ago. 

I found that I had no desire to use the cloth diapers that didn't have fleece pockets.  Fleece pockets make it SO much easier for when there's a poopy diaper.  So I'm going to sew up a bunch this week out of my fleece remnants.  They are unbelievably easy to make.  So if you're a cloth diaper mama and are interested, or know someone about to have a baby and want to make an inexpensive gift, check back next week for a step-by-step Fleece Pocket tutorial for Frugal Friday.

WFMW Peanut Butter jar uses

At our base commissary, the 18 oz. Jif peanut butter is usually the cheapest per ounce. So that is the size we have always bought while living here.

This little jar is so handy for holding crayons after the crayon box won't hold the shape anymore.

It's just the right size for a bank- and the bonus is it's see-through and motivating to see all the pennies saved.

You can make "I spy" kits with them and super glue the lid shut.

Store honey. This Fall we bought raw local honey in bulk (150 lbs.) and I've found that these are better for refilling versus our old honey bottle and bear- because they have foil on them and can't go in the microwave. Here in the Frozen North, the honey is constantly thickened to the point of not being able to squeeze the honey bottle/bear. So, we use the cleaned out peanut butter jars and can microwave if we want, or just spoon out the right amount. VERY convenient.

Store stickers and other little odds and ends that five year old girls love to collect.

Store a comb and a package of ponytail holders or scrunchies.

I'm in love with these handy little jars. They definitely work for me. For a myriad of good ideas, visit the Works for Me Wednesday carnival at http://www.rocksinmydryer.net/

Thanks for stopping by!

Some WFMW oldies but goodies:

Cake Box Cookies
ALL OUT Valentine's Day
Mommy Store disciplining lifesaver
No ironing necessary

Frugal Friday-- dryer sheets

I don't recall if I've blogged about this before. Today I'm feeling too lazy to look through hundreds of blog posts; so if you've read it before, let it be a lesson unto you. File it in your gee-whiz file. Refer to it when you're looking to cut $1.00 from your monthly budget. Waste not. Want not. etc. etc.

To stretch your pennies just a little more, cut your fabric softener sheets/dryer sheets in half. If you find that using half is not sufficient to cut the static for certain loads, then you could always use two and make it a whole dryer sheet.

Do not use dryer sheets on your bath towels, kitchen towels, and cloth diapers. It decreases the absorbency.

Keep an empty tissue box on top of the dryer (thanks Mom for the idea) and write "used dryer sheets" on it. Then whoever takes a load out knows to place it in there.

I will sometimes toss a used one into the dryer with a new one. I figure there might be a little something left in them.

You can also use used dryer sheets as stabilizer with appliques.

Dust with used dryer sheets. They are very handy for dust on electronics. I especially like to use them to dust up the yucky, smelly, dust that accumulates next to the toilet by the toilet brush and plunger before I mop the floor.

You can use them to stuff crafts that need stuffin'.

I'd love to hear if YOU have any additional thoughts or ideas about dryer sheets.

Frugal Friday-- Saving Cereal Bags

My Frugal Fridays tip this week is to save your cereal bags. Shake out all the crumbs and flatten the bag to save it. A good place to save a pile of bags is in an empty cereal box.

You can open it all up or leave it as is for your needs. Here in Pookieville we use these bags in place of wax paper. Although, I probably wouldn't bake a pumpkin roll on them. I freeze Grandma Kahn's Perfect Pie Crust in them. When it's time to roll out the pie crust, I use them then as well to roll it on. I've cooled caramel popcorn on them. I've also cooled granola on them. mmm... granola.

I have also frozen brownie bites, muffins, and cookies in them.

And on occasion when I use disposable diapers, I've thrown a particularly stinky diaper away in one and put it in the kitchen trash so I didn't have to brave the 10 foot walk to the trash can in the bitter cold. Wrapped in the cereal bag it blocks the smell a lot better than a grocery plastic bag from somewhere like Ooh-Mart.

I am ALWAYS on the lookout for more ways to recycle things and be frugal. I would love some more frugal tips. What do you do in your home that's frugal?

WFMW- emergency storage tips

*Please look at this post for my daughter's birthday and give me your advice.*

Lizbit- I know I've heard the little witch story. But I just can't remember how it goes. Something about cutting out a little house. Right? Could you remind me? I know the kids would love it.

I actually considered not linking from Rocks in my Dryer so I wouldn't have to do an enormous amount of stomach crunches. But I decided to anyway. I'll just have to split up my crunches throughout the day. I have been a faithful Latter-day Saint hoarding away my food storage and drinking water to prepare my family in case of emergency. A few things that work for me:

1. Store powdered Gatorade to use with your emergency drinking water. If you have to boil your water, this will make it much more palatable. I figured out this one on my own. I m smrt.

2. Store Nestle Quik to go with your powdered milk if you don't like the taste of prepared powdered milk. (I just acquired this handy knowledge this last Sunday from a gal at church.) Or if you prepare your family like my sister, she gradually got her whole family used to the taste by mixing store-bought milk with mixed up powdered milk until they could drink it straight.

Updated note: Milehimama stores Ovaltine with her powdered milk because it has more vitamins. Very smart!

3. Use empty milk gallons for emergency flushing water. Be sure to write on them with a permanent marker what it's for. Pour gallon of water into a bucket. Use to flush. Here in the Frozen North, this has come in handy. There have been times when we've had the water turned off for maintenance or frozen pipes and whatnot. At one point I was tired of seeing three dozen gallons of water in my storage room, so I used two dozen to water the garden. And then I recycled the gallons.

I love emergency storage tips. So, if you have some, please share. I would love to expand my knowledge and preparedness. Thanks for stopping by!

Five things I'm sure you REALLY wanted to know about me.

1. I bake the bread for our congregation's sacrament every week.

2. I love pajamas (to the point of buying them at least yearly).

3. I have an astigmatism.

4. I have 200 lbs. of rolled oats in my pantry.

5. I've finally figured out that it's easier to cloth diaper two than just one. With two in cloth diapers, I have enough to provide a load in a little over a day (like a day and one-eighth). So I don't have to rinse and wring out or soak diapers to prevent serious stink. I just shake out any solid poop into the toilet and toss them in the drypail with the wet ones. One day does not a bunch of stink make. No more dried out chapped hands from rinsing, dunking, wringing. No more unwashed diapers hanging dry all over the bathroom. Aaaah! Everyday I am reminded of how much money I'm saving and how many diapers are NOT going to the landfill.

I am tagging Cristtin (Haddorkus) and Kimm (Life with Littles) and Gurrbonzo.

WFMW-- Reusable Nursing Pads

I've been racking my brain to share a Works for Me Wednesday tip with you. I'm sure there are tons of things I do on a regular basis that I just assume others do too. This may be one of them, but I'm sharing it anyway.



To make your own pair of reusable nursing pads you will need:

approximately two 5"x20" pieces of flannel
scissors
sewing machine or serger
matching thread

I use a CD as my circle pattern. I place it on the fabric, outline it and cut it out. Each nursing pad takes four circles (approximately 5 inch diameter each) stacked together and sewn all around the edge. A serger makes it way faster and without fraying edges. Or you could zig-zag all around.

What really works for me is using old receiving blankets that are nice and soft from multiple washings. You could use old flannel shirts or sheets too. Stains or wild prints don't matter since only the nursing baby will see them. :) So check out your yard sales and thrift stores for some flannel and make your own! I'd recommend sewing a few pairs so you don't run out while they're washing. And to wash: just toss them in with your regular wash or towels and then into the dryer.

Speaking of dryers, for more WFMW tips visit Rocks in my Dryer.

What frugal mommy tips work for you?