Retiring A Flag

I was wondering what my blog would be about today, but as the family was beginning the process of retiring a flag, I realized what it should be.  I had taken a flag from a friend awhile back that was worn out and fraying and told her I would retire it properly for her as she didn't have the means.  So this morning we all sat down in the living room and went to work.

The red stripes were cut apart from the white and the blue field of stars was separated from the stripes.  All 50 of the stars were cut out from the blue.  It was a bit time consuming, but it was a nice feeling to know what we were doing.

After finishing, there were 4 piles of Old Glory on my couch.  My husband started a fire outside and one pile of colors at a time and with a moment of silence, we retired those wonderful colors.  I will admit it was a little emotional for me, but a moment I know I will always remember.

So if you have an old flag that is worn out, please don't just throw it in the trash.  Give it to someone to retire or retire it yourself.  Give our flag the respect that it deserves.

~I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.~

DIY Fabric Softener

Since I posted about making detergent yesterday I figured it was pretty logical to follow with making your own fabric softener today.  It is just as easy and inexpensive and you can use your favorite scent.

Things you will need:

White Vinegar

Hot Water

Suave Conditioner (scent of your choice)

     *Make sure you have about 30 fl oz of conditioner

Bowl for mixing

Airtight storage container(s)

In your mixing bowl pour 6 cups of HOT water, 3 cups of white vinegar, and 2 cups Suave conditioner.  Give it a good stir, don't worry, it will be chunky.

For my storage, I divided the mixture into glass jars and gave them a good shake after the lids were on to further mix the ingredients.  If you see it begin to separate after sitting in your container for awhile, just give it a good shake or stir to mix the contents again.

For each load just pop in a couple of tablespoons like you normally would with store bought softener and you're ready to go!

Homemade Laundry Soap!

I have been using homemade laundry soap for awhile, and I thought I would share it with anyone who might be interested. It is very inexpensive and EASY to make! So easy, you can get your kids involved!  I also have my own recipes for Febreze, fabric softener, and dishwasher soap that I will share later on.

Things you will need:
2 or 5 gallon bucket
saucepan
cheese grater (large holes)
Box of Washing Soda
Box of Borax
Bar of Fels Naptha washing soap (Or Ivory soap)

The Washing Soda, Borax, and Fels Naptha can all be found in your laundry aisle at the store.

First you grate about half of the bar of soap into a dish.  It's really not as hard to grate as I thought it would be!

 Pour the soap flakes into your saucepan and add 6 cups of water.  Stir over medium heat until soap flakes have melted.

 See the soap flakes?

 No more soap flakes!

Now you need to add 1/2 cup of Borax and 1/2 cup of Washing Soda into your pan and stir until it has dissolved (just a couple of minutes usually).

Remove your pan from the heat and pour 4 cups of HOT water into your bucket.  Add the soap mixture from your saucepan and stir.  Next you need to add 22 cups of COLD water (1 gallon + 6 cups)  Stir and let your mix sit for 24 hours.

 The detergent will gel as it sits, it makes a sort of egg noodle soup consistency.  You can also add about an ounce of your favorite essential oil to the mixture to scent it, I haven't yet because I really like the light, fresh smell of the detergent alone.  This does not make lots of bubbles when you use it, but don't let that fool you.
I have recycled my old detergent containers and that is where I store my homemade detergent, but any airtight container will do!
-It takes 1/2 cup per load of laundry. 

I also keep some OxiClean on hand if I have a super grimy load or I want to soak something before I wash it.  I wish I had a before picture of my husbands hat he wears to work, because after I soaked it in some warm water and Borax/Washing Soda/OxiClean for about an hour, it looked brand new! I swear by this stuff, it really is amazing.  The whole process to make the soap takes about 10 minutes, and it is so inexpensive compared to buying laundry detergent from the store. Happy Washing!

Welcome to my corner of the internets!

Alright, here I am embarking on the world of blogging.  I think this will be a fun way for me to combine two activities, writing, and keeping family and friends up to date with my world.  Don't get me wrong, I check facebook as much as the next girl, but I have been thinking for some time about getting away from it and I think this will be a great opportunity.  I think this blog will be a big random mix of things, how-to's, book reviews, art projects, ramblings about my family, thoughts on my day/week.  It seems right now that nothing is really off limits.  I don't promise a daily post, but I would like to have new content a few times a week.  Thanks in advance to everyone for stopping by, I hope you enjoy the visit.  God Bless.