Moms' Idea Factory

Don't try to eat this!

 

It's a recipe, sure, but not one for eating!  

 I'm as concerned (more or less) as the next mum when it comes to a) not having nasty chemicals in my house and b) not spending the whole paycheck every month. So, as I was googling around for some homemade lotion recipes for Christmas crafts last month, I ran across a few websites with essentially the same recipe for homemade detergent. After much rumination, I added the required ingredients to my shopping list.  

Most of the recipes I came across used Fels-Naptha soap, which is readily available in the states (or online at soapsgonebuy.com) but has a nasty orange colour. Sunlight is the only one readily available north of the border, but, never one to do things the easy way, I picked some Pink Zote up in Bellingham last weekend on my fortnightly Trader Joe's pilgrimage. Zote is gorgeous pink and smells a bit like citronella. 

This is so easy, and cleans so well (so far) that I can't believe I hadn't yet tried it. You can use a little of the liquid for a stain pretreatment. We are even using it in our dishwasher now too, with vinegar in the rinse-aid) compartment. 

Did I mention it's less than $3.00 to make 1250 loads worth?

1 small bar laundry soap (Zote, Fels-Naptha, sunlight) approx 200 grams

1/2 cup borax

1 cup Super Washing Soda

20 drops essential oil (I used lavender, but lemon, orange, etc wouold do)

Grate the bar of soap into a large steel saucepan. Pour over about 4 cups of water. Heat on low, stirring occasionally, until it is totally dissolved. Add in borax and washing soda. Stir until dissolved.

Pour all into a 5 gallon paid with a lid (I used a large rubbermaid-type container). Add enough water to make 5 gallons. Stir, cover and let sit overnight to gel up. Stir in essential oils.

Decant into an old detergent bottle and use 1/2 cup for a top loader, 1/4 cup for high efficiency machines

Buying organic veggies

Maybe it's my natural inclination to get my back up whenever I feel someone is trying to tell me what to do. Or possibly, it's that I bristle at what I feel is a "starbucks-ization" of the "organic lifestyle" by organizations such as Planet Organic and Whole Foods (I mean, come on - organic mangoes? Sheesh, since when is flying a fruit halfway around the world sustainable? Oh that's right, Mr. Planet Organic, you don't do it because it's sustainable, you do it so you can charge someone 7 dollars for it.) I just don't seem to be able to force myself to jump on the "I have to buy everything organic" bandwagon. Besides, since I decided to stay at home with the kiddos, it's not like we are exactly rolling in cash. So here I've reproduced for you the "Dirty Dozen" fresh foods that are highest in pesticide use (taken from Dr. Andrew Weil's book, 8 Weeks to Optimum Health).  Choosing to buy organic brands of these 12 most contaminated foods can cut your pesticide consumption in half:

Apples
Strawberries
Spinach
Peaches
Grapes
Red & Green Bell Peppers
Cantaloupes
Cherries
Celery
Apricots
Green Beans
Cucumbers

There are a number of other, non-produce items that ought to go on the list: especially oats, and (especially if you live or shop in the States) meat & dairy.

Craft Supply Box

Get a large clear plastic bin with a lid - Ikea has awesome ones (the name of the line is Samla) and start gathering craft supplies for rainy days! Supplies can be very cheap or even free. In my craft bin are:

• construction paper (dollar store)

• toilet roll tubes

• stickers (dollar store, ebay - I got a lot of 1000 stickers for $3)

• old magazine pages with interesting, colourful pictures

• sequins (dollar store)

• yarn

• ribbon

• small pieces of gift wrapping paper too small to use for gifts, or recycled pieces

• bits of cardboard saved from cereal boxes

• tissue paper

• scraps of fabric

• glue sticks (dollar store)

• safety scissors (dollar store)

• buttons (all those spare buttons you get when you buy a new article of clothing)

Anybody else got any ideas for cheap or free stuff to add to the craft box?

Ham in Coke

This family main dish is one of our favourites. It's super easy and has 3 ingredients. Oh yeah - it's amazingly cheap too! I usually serve it with a side of mashed or roasted potatoes and cabbage with peas in a mustard white sauce. The whole meal, including those sides, costs somewhere around $2 per person! A. 3.5 Kilo piece will serve 8-10 people.

• 1 x 3.5 kilo Smoked, bone-in pork shoulder (sometimes called picnic shoulder)

• 2 x 2 litre regular (not diet) cola

• 2 x medium onions, peeled, quartered

Place all ingredients into the smallest stock pot they will fit in (probably the biggest one you have!). Bring to a boil, cover and reduce heat. Boil gently for 3 to 3.5 hours. Remove ham from liquid, remove excess fat and carve. Leftovers are fantastic in sandwiches.