HOMEABOUTProjectsMary KayRecipesContact

June 29, 2011

Homemade Laundry Detergent

This weekend I got a lesson on being a thrifty homemaker from Susie Homemaker...AKA...my mom (who really is Susie)cdd!! My first lesson was on how to make Homemade Liquid Laundry Detergent.



1. Grate the Fels Naptha Soap in a sauce pan. (use 1/3 of the bar)






2. Add 6 cups water and heat it until the soap melts.


3. Add the Borax (1/2 cup)



3a. Add the Washing Soda (1/2 cup)


E was helping Grandma...


Stir all ingredients until dissolved.

Remove from heat.


Pour 4 cups hot water into the bucket (about 2 gallon size bucket).



Now add your soap mixture and stir. Add 1 gallon + 6 cups of water and stir.

Let the soap sit for about 24 hours it will gel. You use 1/2 cup per load. 


*Full Recipe for Homemade Laundry Soap

1/3 bar Fels Naptha
1/2 cup Washing Soda
1/2 cup Borax Powder
Bucket (about a 2 gallon size)
*I used an old cat litter container

Grate the soap and put it into a sauce pan. Add 6 cups water and heat it until the soap melts. Add the washing soap and the borax and stir until it is dissolved. Remove from heat. Pour 4 cups hot water into the bucket. Now add your soap mixture and stir. Now add 1 gallon plus 6 cups of water and stir. Let the soap stir for about 24 hours and it will gel. You use 1/2 cup per load. 

Enjoy!

*Some of the products (Fels Naptha and Washing Soda) can be hard to find. However, I did find them both on Amazon.com and at my local Walmart. 



I also want to show you how much money you are saving by making your own laundry detergent (*All prices are from my local Wal-mart).


Here are the prices of each item:

1 bar Fels Naptha (5.5oz): $.97
Washing Soda (55oz/3lbs 7oz.): $ 3.24
Boarx Powder (76oz/4lbs 12oz): $2.98
Water: FREE!

Here is the price break down per batch:

1 bar Fels Naptha: $.32
Washing Soda: $.24
Boarx Powder: $.16
That’s a total of $.72 a BATCH, which is $.02 per load (if using 1 cup).


Check out who I like to link to...Linking Up

Tip Junkie handmade projects

Garage Sale Finds

I love garage sales...especially ones where I can walk away with some good finds for cheap!! This weekend while at my parent's house we decided to stop at a couple garage sales. The first one was a fundraiser for Hospice. We hit the very end of the sale (about an hour before it ended). When we drove up I thought it looked pretty picked over. Once we got up there they told us it was $2 for a bag or box (and we could pretty much take ANYTHING, whether it really fit or not). I took a bag, not really thinking I would find much! Boy was I wrong!

Here is what I got for $2...



1. 10 Boy clothing items (sizes 12 mo.-4T)
2. Trivial Pursuit Game (for my MOPS table pieces)
3. An 14 piece (missing two glasses otherwise 16) Dish Set (that I have been looking for)
4. Magazine or paper holder
5.Something that I don't know what it is called! Anybody know?


What is this called?


Have you had any good garage sale finds lately?

June 28, 2011

Top Ten while you were gone...

Josh was gone in CA on a Mission Trip with his Senior High Students for 11 days (including training). While he was gone I decided to keep a "journal" of what happened in mine and E's life! Here is the top ten things that happened!

10. Celebrated Father's Day with the Christenson's

E and Grandpa C

9. Had a play date at the Eagle's Nest. Went in the ball pit!!



8. E had a play date at Lara's house (with all her kids)...had SO much!! Cried when we left!

7. E got a haircut that was a little uneven...oops!

6. Tornado sirens went off...had to go to basement.

5. Stood up for over a minute!!

*Picture taken with cell phone camera

4. E climbed up 3 stairs while chasing Mocha!!



3. E signed "all done" at dinner!

2. First road trip with Kelsey and Elliana (3 1/2 weeks old)


Elliana (3 1/2 weeks old)



1. Saw all three sets of Grandparents (E's Great Grandparents) on my side of the family!! (Plus many other relatives this weekend)

E and Great Grandpa Marv

Great Grandpa Kenny and Great Grandma Hope with 7 out of 8 Great Grandkids!



Today I am linking up to It's a Crafty Life's Ten on Tuesday
Photobucket" />

June 24, 2011

Tastefully Simple Winner

The winner of the Tastefully Simple $25 gift card is....


#15 (picked with Random.org)



kolpin said...



i like the PERFECT PARMESAN BISCUIT MIX
gfc follower kolpin
kolpin4680 at gmail dot com

June 23, 2011

Celebrity Look-Alike

Today I am joining The Little Hen House in their "I'm a Celebrity Look-Alike" blog hop! I don't really think I look like any celebrities (at least not most days), but after getting my bangs cut, my lovely friend Bert from FTM, told me I looked like Jennifer Hudson.




Close enough...right?!?

June 20, 2011

Tastefully Simple Giveaway

Thank you to all the followers of Life's A Project!! We hit 50 (well actually 51)!! So let's celebrate this little milestone with a yummy GIVEAWAY!!

My wonderful Tastefully Simple Consultant, Susan, is giving one lucky Life's A Project reader a $25 gift card to use with on her Tastefully Simple Website! And let me tell you...you will be able to use it in no time!!


Tastefully Simple is a wonderful company based out of Minnesota. ALL their products only need 1-2 ingredients added! They also offer 100% satisfaction guaranteed on their products! I have never been disappointed with their service (fast shipping) or taste of products (and I have tasted almost ALL their products). 

Let me show you a few of the products (some of my favorites!)...

Cinnamon Muffin Melt Mix

Classy Chocolate Pound Cake Mix (I have only had the almond...but oh chocolate)

Fiesta Party Dip Mix

Oh My Chai

Bountiful Beer Bread Mix (I make with Diet Coke instead of  Beer)

 So now onto the awesome giveaway sponsored by my awesome Tastefully Simple Consultant, Susan!  One lucky winner will win a $25 gift card to use on Susan's website.  The contest will run from today (Tuesday, June 20th) until Friday (June 24th) at 8am Central Time.  Giveaway is open to US residents only.  All entrants MUST be a GFC follower of Life's A Project to win.  Any entry that is not a GFC follower of Life's A Project is not eligible to win.  Please leave your contact information if it is not viewable in your GFC profile.


How to Enter:

Mandatory Entry: Must be a public GFC (Google Friend Connector) follower of Life's A Project. Then visit Susan's Tastefully Simple Website and leave a comment below of what you would buy!

Extra Entries: (leave a comment for EACH extra entry you complete)
*Share this giveaway on your FB status and leave the link to your profile
*Share this giveaway on your blog and leave a link
*Share this giveaway on Twitter and leave a link
*Become a NetworkBlog Follower of Life's A Project
*"Like" Life's A Project on Facebook


Even if you do not win you can still order from Susan's website. You can also earn free product (which is what I have done before) and host a show. Contact Susan through her website for more details. This was not a paid sponsor. All thoughts and opinions are my own.


GOOD LUCK!!

June 19, 2011

Happy Father's Day!



Happy Father's Day to all the Father's out there! And an extra special shout out to those first time dads!

Some Father's Day Inspiration...

"A good father is one of the most unsung, unpraised, unnoticed, and yet one of the most valuable assets in our society." ~Billy Graham, Christian Evangelist

"The most important thing a father can do for his children is to love their mother." ~Theodore Hesburgh, Catholic Priest and President Emeritus of the University of Notre Dame


Proverbs 23:22
Listen to your father, who gave you life,
and do not despise your mother when she is old.


Colossians 3:21
Fathers, do not embitter your children, or they will become discouraged. (NIV)


Happy Father's Day to my dad...




Happy Father's Day to my husband, the amazing father of my child...



Like Father, Like Son


Happy Father's Day to my Father-in-law...

Grandpa and Grandma Christenson with Elijah

Josh with his parents


And I guess I will also give a little shout-out to my brother-in-law, Mark who is a BRAND new 1st time dad! (Just kidding Mark...had to give you a hard time)


Mark and Elliana

I hope you all have a wonderful Father's Day, whether it is your first, or 30th! Thank you for playing a vital role in our lives! We love you!




June 17, 2011

Flower Frame

Here is the latest Flower Frame I made! 



I forgot to take pictures during the project, so I will just let you know what I did.

You will need...

1. A frame
      *I used a frame I already had and spray painted it white, then sanded the edges to give it the worn look
2. Material for flowers
     *I used some left over black material that I already had
3. Hot Glue Gun/Glue Sticks

First I cut strips of material and folded them in quarters, length wise (to make it thicker...you could skip this step), then when it was a thin strip (about 1/4-1/2 inch) I rolled it from one end to the other creating the flower. I added hot glue as I went to keep it in place. Use just a little hot glue otherwise it will come out the edges. I made three flowers of different sizes and then glued them together. After that, I picked a corner and glued them on! 




This would be a great project for Mother's Day or a Birthday gift. I was going to add my son's hand prints and create something like this...

Via: ActivityMom
However, he did NOT want me to put his hands on the paper...he only wanted the paint on his hands! 

I would love to know if you tried this project!