multi tasking

Today was productive! The day started early and went very well. Yesterday I make a huge batch of homemede spaghetti sauce which we had for dinner last night. Today I made 2 large batches of lasagna. I didn't cook them...I just put them together and froze them. It always makes me feel good to know there is a meal ready for another day.... a crazy day! And it really didn't take much time.

Last week I bought a huge bag of apples. We prefer a really crisp sweet apple...Gala or Fuji.....these were very tart and softer than we like to eat but......perfect for baking! Emily and I worked together to peel and slice the 20 pound bag. It didn't take very long and of course we had a great time together. I bought one of these handy dandy apple peelers...which is a great alternative to the expensive kind. We found it on clearance for $3.oo a few years ago and it works great. It doesn't slice them for you but it peels very well....and the kids love to crank it!

We put them in large bowls....sprinkled with a little sugar, cinnamon and a few pats of butter. We threw them in the microwave for 5 min......took them out stirred them and then another 5 min. We had 2 large batches of these....we let them cool and put them in freezer bags to use later for apple crisp.

Yes ,I know that my pictures are all out of whack!!! Our PC is going crazy and I am having to use Eric's lap top.....I can't make it work???? I do not have time to continue to fiddle with it:)

Homemade Laundry Soap!!??

OK......Have any of you ever watched the Duggars on Lifetime television??? I am always interested in how others save money. I have never seen the show..because we save money and don't have those cable channels :)..... but one of my friends told me about how their family makes their own liquid laundry soap. I was curious so I looked it up on the web and sure enough I found the recipe. This was my issue......with 7 of us.....laundry detergent is quite expensive! I started using the cheap stuff and our clothes started stinking...UUGG.

So I thought this seems way to simple to actually work.....will my clothes smell fresh or will they start to smell stale?? Will it get out the normal stains???? The cost is so low per recipe that I decided to give it a try. Much, much, much to my surprise it works!!!! I have been using it for 6 weeks now without any problems! Love it! What an easy way to save some cash!

Here is the low down...... total cost per recipe less than $3.....yep you saw that right less than $3.00 for so many loads!!!!!

Top Load......5/8 cup....180 loads
Front Load...1/4 cup.....640 loads

Here is how I made it:

*1 bar Fels Naptha Soap(I found this at Publix on the laundry aisle)
*1 cup Arm & Hammer Washing Soda...not baking soda!!!!
*1/2 cup 20 mule Borax
*1 teaspoon Shaklee Basic H( I use this stuff for EVERYTHING!! So many uses...without chemicals! Order Here) Duggars recipe does not call for this ingredient I added it because I love it!
*one 5 gallon bucket with lid

Cut up bar soap in very small pieces or grate and put it in a pot with 4 -5 cups of hot water.....turn on medium low heat and stir occasionally until soap is completely melted.

In the 5 gallon bucket combine Washing Powder, Borax and fill half way with hot tap water. Continue stirring occasionally until powders are dissolved completely. After the powder dissolves add the teaspoon of Basic H(this product is a fabulous cleaner and degreaser....it is very concentrated!) When all of the bar soap is melted add to the bucket and stir.

Add water to the top of the bucket and continue to stir. When you have is all well incorporated......put the lid on it and leave it overnight. When you open it up you will have a yellowish....semi jelly looking goo......I promise this is OK!!! Fill one of you old liquid containers half way with solution and the rest with water and shake until it is mixed....then you are ready to go.

Remember......it does not take as much of this solution as others.....measure out the amount you need....see above....If you are using your old liquid lid you may want to make a mark on the lid at the proper measure!

When you run out refill half way again...add your water and shake....make sure you get you lid back on the concentrate tightly and it will stay fresh for months! I re-stir the "goo" every time I refill. This cleaner smells fresh but it does not have a strong scent....I use a fabric softener with a strong scent because we like it! You may want to use unscented softener of none at all!!

Let me know what you think!!! I put a picture below of all the ingredients so that you will know what you are looking for!!!