Make your own laundry detergent in less than 10 minutes

I originally posted this in 2008, but thought that I would revisit this little gem since it is time for me to make more detergent. This is a tutorial on how to make the powdered version of laundry soap. I hope to be able to put up pictures of how to make the liquid kind later on today. I prefer the liquid since it lasts longer in this house, but I will whip up a small batch of powdered if I'm in a pinch. No more running to the store just to pick up detergent so I can conquer Mt. Laundry.

This is another one of those things that I would have never thought I could do until I saw it on a website I visited. It looked really easy and inexpensive. If it's easy and cheap and works well, then I'm all for it.

I have seen a few laundry detergent tutorials out there, but none for the powdered version. My girls are the one who really wanted to do this tutorial. This was their first time making detergent. They were 14 and 12 at the time. So, as you can see, it is so simple that even a child could do it.

To start with you'll need 3 ingredients:

• Borax - 1 cup
  


• Washing Soda - 1 cup
  


• A laundry soap bar--->Fels Naptha or Zote - 1 cup
  

Many people have said that they have had a hard time finding the washing soda or the Fels Naptha. The easiest way to find Fels Naptha is to go to this website. Under brand you click on laundry care and under item click on Fels Naptha. Then you can type in your zip code. It will tell you all of the stores around you that carry it.

To find the washing soda call this number. 1-800-524-1328. It is a recording that will give you a list of stores that carry washing soda in your area.

What to do:

1. Measure out 1 cup of Borax and put into a bowl

2. Measure out 1 cup of washing soda and put into a bowl

3. Grate 1 cup of the soap bar. Add to bowl with Borax and washing soda. I am using Zote this time. I usually use Fels Naptha, but found this at my Super Target and thought I would try it.











4. Mix well

5. Put in storage container---> In this case we are using an old cool whip container

6. Use 1 Tbsp per load.

That's it. It's as easy as that. It only cost me pennies per load. A very frugal alternative to store bought detergent. It works well too. If I have a really dirty load I will up the amount I use by a small amount. I know that people use Oxyclean also. Have you made your own laundry detergent? What did you think?

Pictures of making this version later!

Liquid Detergent:
Washing soda 1/2 cup
Borax 1/2 cup
Bar of laundry soap 1/2 bar (Fels Naptha or Zote)
Bucket
4 cups of hot water in large bowl

Directions:
Grate soap and put in a large saucepan. Add 6 cups water and heat until soap melts. About 15-20 minutes. Add washing soda and borax. Stir until dissolved. Remove from heat. Pour the 4 cups of really hot water into your bucket. Add soap mixture and stir. Next, add 1 gallon plus 6 cups of water and stir. Let soap sit for 24 hours before using so that it gels. Use 1/2 cup per load. If you are using a front loader use less than this.

Now, sometimes I add just a tad more soda and borax than the recipe calls for. In the summer is when I do this more as the children get dirtier. I put mine in a 2 gallon bucket with a lid. It fits on my shelf better. One more thing. As the detergent is gelling overnight, we take a hand immersion blender or my husband takes his drill with a paint stirrer attachment and will mix it up a few times. I find it just holds together better. Now, it will separate sometimes, but just mix it up before you use it!

Simple project to pass the time: Making a t-shirt dress!

Ok, since i'm so hugely pregnant and don't feel much like getting out these days, my husband and I thought it might be nice for me to do one fun project a day until baby comes. Today I decided to make matching cute t-shirt dresses for my two youngest girls. They make great play or going out dresses and are so cheap to make.

I thought I would put a tutorial up for those who feel adventurous. I am usually pretty bad about putting pictures up, but I do realize that many people, myself included, are visual. They just need to see it.

All you need is basic sewing skills for this project.

Supplies needed:

• 1 t-shirt (I payed $2.00 each for the tshirts i'm using)
• 1/2 - 1 yd of material (For my 5 yo daughter I am using 1 yd, for the 2 yo I am using 1/2 yd. I bought the material for $1.00 yd.) *If making for a bigger girl you will need to add more fabric. Up to about 2 yds.*
• Matching thread

Step 1:
Put t-shirt on your little one. Mark or measure how many inches right to the belly button. After taking it off, cut it where you marked. You can cut it a little shorter than this if you want, I like the way it falls cut a little shorter so I usually go 1 inch above the belly button.

Step 2:

Fold fabric in half, lengthwise with the selvage edges together. Selvage edges are the edges that have not been cut. *If you are making a dress for a bigger girl, fold fabric in half with the cut edges together instead of the selvage edges. Sew down the long sides.*

Step 3:
Sew sides together to form the skirt. I usally like to make a french seam here, but that's just to keep it from fraying on the inside. If you want to learn how to do a french seam, go here.

Step 4:
Mark the center front and center back of the shirt and skirt with pins.

Step 5:

The skirt will have the right sides facing eachother now. Sew a basting or gathering stitch (which is basically a very wide stitch), at the top of the skirt.

Step 6:

Pull the gathering threads to make the gather of the skirt.

Step 7:

Turn the shirt inside out and put it upside down in skirt. Match center pins of skirt and shirt together and pin. Now adjust your gathers as needed.

Step 8:

Once gathers are adjusted to fit the width of the shirt. Sew the skirt to the t-shirt. I like to go around twice. Once in a zip zag stitch. It is stronger that way. My first few I had to restitch holes because my girls play so hard.

Step 9:

Turn dress right side up now. Try the dress on your little one to see where you want your hem. Pin it and then sew. I like to do a double fold on the bottom of the skirt because it makes the dress fall better at the bottom and it keeps it from fraying. Once I have it pinned around I just take it and fold it inside itself. Then I sew it. Of course, that is just optional.

The finished product!

Optional:

I have added eyelet lace at the bottom before to add a little something. You can also take the leftover t-shirt material and make a matching scrunchie or add ruffles on a sock. I like to crochet a matching ruffle on socks to wear with it. So cute! Maybe that'll be my project for tomorrow!

It really is simple to do and can add to your little girl's wardrobe for not much money. After reading Crystal's Frugal Friday post and Jennifer's comment on my blog, I decided to add that you can make this project even more frugal by using up older t-shirts that your little girl may be outgrowing. Reusing them extends their life and saves money. Have fun!

Frugal maternity clothes!

My works for me Wednesday post is pregnancy related this week. I also thought this would make a great post for Frugal Friday's at Biblical Womanhood.

I am nearing the end of my pregnancy so it is what is consuming me at the moment. It is also the stage where you are constantly uncomfortable, and nothing fits. Yes, my body is uncomfortable this time, but I can say that my clothes are not.

I have always had to switch sizes at the end or wear the one pair of gouchos that still fit. It is not fun to have to wash and wear the same thing everyday. This time around though, I found a great tip online early on that I thought I would try.

What I did was use an old t-shirt to make my waistbands for my maternity clothes. I guess it would be something like the Bella Band that they sell, except a bit more frugal. Now of course, to make this work you do have to know how to at least operate a sewing machine, or know someone who does, but you do not have to be an expert at it.

I have actually made myself a few biased cut A-line skirts this time and used old t-shirts for the waistbands. You can find the tutorial to make the skirt here. This tutorial is not exactly maternity, but it works well as a maternity skirt.

The great thing that I found out through trial and error is that I could use just the waistband to reconstruct some of my regular wardrobe. I just cut off the bottom of an old t-shirt and stitched it over the normal waistband. I can just remove it after i'm back to my normal size.

For example, I have a demin skirt that I love to wear that no longer fits. It has a side zipper that I left down. I then took the t-shirt I had cut and pulled it to where the zipper ends and stitched it all the way around right over the top of it. There is no need to make the stitches super small. Now the skirt stays up and I can use it all the way through my pregnancy. Which is hopefully only another week or so! :-)

The great thing about the t-shirt waistband is how comfy it is. It is about as comfortable as the waistband in the gouchos I have. Another great thing is that it grows with you all the way through. No more having to buy more than one size. It has been a lifesaver here. It is easy and frugal too!

What doesn't work for me: Homemade dishwasher soap

This week is a themed week for What Works for me Wednesday. It is, What DOESN'T Work for me. Well, the one thing I have tried unsuccessfully over and over to make work is homemade dishwasher solution. It does not work!

I love saving money. I love using as many chemical free cleaning supplies and I love making my own laundry detergent. You would think that I would love making my own dishwasher soap. Nope! I have tried at least 3 different recipes and none have worked.

The problems I have had, are a thick film left on the dishes, and the solution not cleaning the dishes well at all. I have tried using vinegar as a rinse aid, which is fine, but it does not help. So this frugal, natural kind of momma is sticking with Cascade! If you're thinking about it go ahead, but for me it was a waste of time.

Of course, if you have any tips that I may have looked over on how to get it to work, i'd love to hear about them. And of course for more things people have tried and found does not work for them, visit Rocks in my dryer.

Frugal Friday- Build you own washer and dryer pedestal

If you are like me and have a front loader washer and dryer set, then you know how hard it is to reach in and grab clothes out. I am getting closer to the end of my pregnancy so I just cannot bend far enough over anymore to switch the clothes from the washer to the dryer. I have resorted to depending on the children to switch them for me.

Now, when they sold us the set they tried to get us to buy the matching pedestal set for another $200.00 each! There was no way I wanted to spend that much more for them. When we got them home it did not take long to see why we might need them.

Well, being the frugal minded people that we are my dear, sweet husband decided to make our own. He was ready to build a platform with 2 pullout drawers. I had to remind him that the drawers would NEVER be used since I would not want to bend over that far. So, he built me just the platform.

We went to the habitat restore and got a large sheet of MDF for $1.00 and then we bought 1- 2x8x8 and 1- 2x8x10 for $10.00. We used paint that we already had, so the total cost to us was $11.00! Much better than the $400 it would have cost us.

Here are the before pics:




Here are some after pics:

We still had a few touch ups to do in the after pic, but you get the picture. It wasn't hard to do and it saves my back, all while saving me a bunch of money. Many home improvement projects can be done yourself for so much less. Make sure you check to see if your city has a Habit for Humanity restore. You can find all sorts of things to spruce up your home for pennies on the dollar.

For more frugal ideas, make sure to visit Biblical Womanhood for Frugal Friday's.

Making your food last by preserving it

Last time I posted I talked about our garden and how it really was worth the time involved. You can read about it here. Now i'd like to talk about preserving food.

So you plant a garden and it does well. It does REALLY well. What do you do with the abundance of vegetables out of your garden that you get? The quick answer is to preserve them so that you can enjoy your garden all year long!

Preserving food is a lost art. It sounds so old-fashioned. I remember my watching my grandmother canning food as a young girl. It brings back fond memories of staying the summer with her. Eventhough I loved to help her, I still never learned to do it myself until recently. It was one of those things that I tucked away in my mind that I loved about Grandma's house, but never ever would do myself. Why should I, when I could go and pick it up already canned for me?

While it may be rather old-fashioned, it really is a great skill to learn for the here and now. We, as homemakers in the 21st century, in the age of rising grocery prices, faced with looming recession, and tainted food are having to look long and hard at the way we are doing things. Maybe our grandmothers and great grandmothers had it right. They faced many ups and downs, but they still fed their families affordable nutritious meals. We like to think that we've been freed from the chains of homemaking, but we've just traded it for a new set of chains.

There are a few different ways you can preserve your food. You can freeze, dry, pickle, or can your extras. Freezing is the cheapest way to preserve food and many times the healthiest, since it doesn't destroy any of the nutrients. With freezing you just blanch your vegetables first and then put them in a freezer bag and pop them in the freezer. To learn how to blanch your vegetables, read here. This is super easy and doesn't take much time at all. It is well worth it though.

I will not get into drying or pickling here since I don't do them. I do plan on making my own pickles one day, so i'll let you know how it goes.

The last way is canning. Initially, canning can get a bit costly if you let it. You need jars, a water bather, and pressure canner for many vegetables. You can find inexpensive jars at goodwill, garage sales, or off of your local freecycle. Since I do not have a pressure canner I stick to more acidic foods that are sufficent in a water bath. I will tell you though, I have canned many jars of preserves without any of these things, except the jars of course. You just have to make sure that you submerge your jars entirely as you give them a water bath.

This is a picture of a canning water bath.

If you would like to learn how to can there are many resoures out there. You can start with the Ball website. I also recommend the Ball Book of Preserving . I thought about giving a step by step tutorial on the canning process but there are so many online resources that you can look up that will get you started.

Of course, if any of you live near me, we could have a get together after we harvest a bit. We do this every year with my friend, Carlie. We pick our figs and then get together to start the process of canning strawberry fig preserves. I do enough to last us a whole year. Both of our familes look forward to this every year. I'm sure our children will remember this for a long time to come.

Since I do not have my own fruit orchard, I am limited to either buying or fruit or picking it locally. Many times you can find fruit to pick locally cheaper or even free. See my post here for more information on how to find free produce. To find local places to pick I always start with looking at this website. It lists places to pick according to state and it has information on canning, including recipes. I just love this site, but I have found other u pick farms around me that are not listed here, so always be on the lookout.

While preserving food seems like alot of work, it is beneficial to learn. I found it makes it nicer to include my children and my friends. Good company makes the work seem lighter. If you've read anything i've written, you will know that I love to do things that will make great and lasting memories. I love my simple life.

Five Budget Busters: and ways to combat them

5 Budget Busters
I was tagged by Carlie at Why Ask Why for a new meme challenge-The Budget Busters Challenge. I am supposed to list the 5 things that can keep me from staying on budget.

I figured I would tie this meme into my Frugal Friday post, since I have wanted to write on how we have managed to keep on budget for those things that can normally make us overspend.

5 potential budget busters at my house:
1. Buying books and magazines
I am avid reader, so I love buying books. I also have a love for homeschooling and homemaking magazines. The problem is, most of the books and magazines I read are not ones found in regular bookstores. That means I have to order them online and then adding a shipping fee on top of it.

Some of the ways I have found to not overspend here is to give myself an "allowance" of sorts. Scott and I pay ourselves a little bit out of each check to spend for things we want. Now I tell you, this is not a huge amount since we have a goal to pay off all our debt this year. It is the one way we have found to not overspend though. When I get my money I am free to buy a book or magazine I love so if I want to.

There was a time where we just didn't have any extra at all, so I would check at my library for any books they had. I also used the interlibrary loan option. Another thing I did was to sell extra books that I wouldn't read again on ebay and then I would use the money to buy new ones. I still do this! I keep the money I earn in my paypal account so I always know what I can spend. I also ask for gift certificates for my birthday and Christmas. I love amazon or ebay gift certificates.

2. Hobbies/Crafts
I am the type that always has to have some kind of project going on. I get bored easily, so I am always learning something new. I never took the time to learn any crafts while growing up, so now I want to learn them all! I have taken up cross stitching, sewing, crocheting, knitting, and gardening...so far.

As i'm sure you already know, these can all be a big budget buster if I let them! What I have done to keep within my budget is to once again use that allowance, if I have any left. I also have picked up craft items on my local freecycle, at yard sales, and on clearance.

This is another good thing to ask for gift cards for! Hobby Lobby, Joann's and even Walmart carry giftcards. Use them when they have a great clearance to make your buck stretch even more.

For my sewing, I fit that into our monthly clothing budget. I love sewing sweet little dresses for the girls. I still get to practice a hobby I love, as long as I stay within that preset budget. Who knows, maybe i'll start selling some of the little dresses I make to pay for some of my hobbies.

3. Eating out
This can be a big budget buster for us. Just bringing all of my family to McDonald's costs around $35.00. This is why we don't do it very often at all. If we do, we order pizza.

I make a menu and I stick to that faithfully. I prepare in advance now for dinner so that i'm not left at 6:00 with nothing cooked. A little time and planning on my part helps in the eating out department. We used to have to pick up food at least 2-3 x's a week, now I don't have to do that anymore.

Not wanting to totally deprive ourselves of ever having a nice night out to dinner, my hubby and I always go out for our birthdays and anniversary. We also take the whole family out when we get a nice sized check. this is usually income tax time or when Scott finishes a nice sized side job.

4. Gasoline!
Have you seen the prices lately? Gas just went up here again yesterday. I think I saw it at $3.45 for regular unleaded. I know that may not be as much as some of you are paying, but it's the most i've ever seen it here.

You can read my recent post here on what we're trying to do to keep as close to our set budget as we can.

5. Home improvement projects
Our house is always a work in progress. It seems as though the list of things we need to do or want to do grows continually. When we finish one project, we add two more.

While we have no set budget for this, we just put aside money until we have enough to do our project.

We have gotten things we need for our projects from freecycle and the Habitat restore to save money. We have also learned to do everything ourselves. We are even building a set of bunkbeds this weekend. This saves a ton of money! Although we are ever greatful that people hire painters. It helps provide for our livelihood.

The biggest thing that helps, is being content with what we have. Many people overspend here because they want everything beautiful all at one time. While it's nice to dream, we are content with things the way they are. God has blessed us and continues to do so.

There you have it. While we may occasionally go over board and bust our budget, we do much better than we used to. It helps when you have a goal in mind.

Take a minute to think about your own budget busters. What can you do to help bring the cost down to where you can stay within your budget?

Inexpensive and healthier eggs! Great fun too!

I said that that this week would be devoted to some of the frugal things we do as a family. A few of the things we do will seem quite different than what the norm is, but I figured it would be fun to share regardless.

I thought I would introduce one of the things that has saved our family a good bit of money for my Works for me Wednesday post. What works for me is chickens!

Yes, you read right. I did say chickens. Most people think "No way, not me, we live in the city," or they think that chickens are dirty animals. Well, we have had 2 laying hens now for about a year and I can tell you that they are great pets! They are docile and very peaceful to watch.

The 2 girls we have now give us right at about 1 dozen eggs a week. That would be plenty for the average size family. They only need housing about the same size as an average doghouse.

Many people that have chickens have what's called a chicken tractor. It is basically a portable chicken coop. You move it around your yard every couple of days so that it doesn't kill your grass and gives your chickens access to fertile feeding grounds.

When you have a tractor, the chickens eat the bugs in your yard, fertilize your grass, and give you free range eggs. With the cost of eggs at $2.50-$3.00 a dozen now it is more affordable to have your own chickens and healthier too! We pay right at about $10.00 every 3 months or so for feed. That is for about 12 dozen eggs!This year we have added on to our small flock another 8 baby girls. By the end of the summer we will be getting, on average, 8-10 eggs a day. With our larger than average sized family we will use a good bit of this for ourselves, but we do have a waiting list of people that want to buy the rest. This will pay for any feed we have to buy so it will make our eggs free!

If you live in the city you may still be able to have a couple of chickens. We live right in the middle of town and are able to have as many birds as we want as long as they are penned up. You need to check your local ordinances or call your local animal control to see if your city allows them.

Our girls are really easy to care for. I'd say they are much easier than a dog or cat because they don't need as much attention. No grooming fees, no walking, no chewing up your shoes, no jumping up on your children. Just keep their area clean and give them fresh food and water.

If you're interested in learning more, The City Chicken or The Backyard Chicken are two great places to start looking.

Menu Planning Monday: $60 week!

I have noticed that my trend of spending $60.00 has stayed for awhile now. I have no intentions of dropping my budget though. I will just continue to stock up as I can. It is nice to know that I could drop it even further if I had to.

This is my kick off post for a glimpse into my frugal lifestyle. This week I plan to focus on how we, as a family, practice frugality. It will give you a peek into our life, and how we make things work here with less money than many people live on with a much smaller family. Stay tuned, as it should be an interesting week!

Breakfast:

Monday: Baked Oatmeal

Tuesday: Waffles and sausage

Wednesday: Omelettes and strawberries

Thursday: Muffins and Sausage

Friday: French Toast

Saturday: Eggs, biscuits, and a meat

Sunday: Country ham and gravy over biscuits

Lunch:

Monday: Sandwiches and a side veggie--->either raw or cooked

Tuesday: Ham, mac & cheese, and a veggie

Wednesday: Homemade tomato soup

Thursday: Grilled cheese sandwiches and fruit

Friday: Leftovers or quesidillas if we have no leftovers

Sat and Sun: We either eat leftovers, or a salad, or sandwiches

Snacks:

Monday: Strawberry Shortcake--->yum!

Tuesday: Fruit

Wednesday: Banana Bread or homemade bread drizzled with butter and honey

Thursday: celery and ranch or peanut butter

Friday: Tortilla wraps---> I usually fill them with pizza sauce and cheese, which the kids call "mini pizzas", or peanut butter, banana, and honey

Dinner:

Monday:

Homemade chicken pot pie

Pumpkin rolls

Tuesday:

Broiled Tilapia

Grilled vegetables

Yeast rolls

Wednesday:--->This was supposed to be last week!

Cajun Style Meatloaf

Homemade mashed potatoes

Green beans

Thursday:

Chicken and Stuffing

Corn

Friday:

Pizza night
Cheesebread

Saturday:

Meat and Potatoes

Corn

Yeast rolls

Sunday:

Italian sausage and peppers

Green beans

Garlic bread

For more great menus head over to Menu Planning Monday's, hosted by I'm an Organizing Junkie.

CVS and Walgreen's were good to me this week!

It is always so nice to have a great week. It seems like the last few weeks have been kind of slow for the deals here, but they finally made up for it. I have paid nothing OOP for any of the deals I did this week, so I have made out really great.

I hit up my local CVS twice this week and then just today I made two trips to Walgreen's. I still need to go to Albertson's for my free bag's of salad. They are on sale 10/$10 and I have $1.00 coupons. I love free salad!

This is what I have gotten so far:


CVS:
3 packs Huggies Supreme
6 Degree deodorants
1 Cascade
3 Excedrin's
2 CVS brand Tylenol
1 Hefty trashbags
9 Essence of Beauty products

Total before coupons and ECB's was $66.52. Total OOP was $0.00. If I had not had my giftcard I would have paid $2.00 OOP. I made $41.00 in ECB's, which means I broke even. That was great for me since i'm not trying to build up, just roll them over now!

Walgreen's:
8 Naturemade Rx Essentials
4 Aveeno lotions
4 Aveeno baby products
4 Reynold's Aluminum foil
2 gallons of milk
1 fabric softener
2 packs of styrofoam plates
2 packs of styrofoam cups
1 pack of plastic silverware--->These last 3 things are for Baby B's birthday party tomorrow

Total before coupons was $106.87. I paid $0.00 OOP for all of this. Had I not had my giftcard I would have paid $5.00 OOP. I also now have $20.00 in Register Rewards to spend!

All I can say is, "Thankyou CVS and Walgreen's!"

Saving money by bartering

I am always trying to find new and creative ways to save money, but this week for my Frugal Friday post I want to talk about an idea of saving money that goes way back. Bartering!!

Bartering is a great way to save money for items or services that you need. It goes back as long as there have been people. It has almost become non-existent, but there are people who are trying to revive it. With the cost of just about everything sky-rocketing, bartering can be an invaluable tool to saving money.

Currently my family is receiving haircuts free for an entire year because we bartered with someone. She needed a paint job and we always need haircuts. It has been a win-win situation. Thanks, Carol!

I know of a lady who bakes bread for someone who sells free-range eggs. It's an even trade off for them. They get bread and she gets eggs. There are so many different things you can barter for. You do not have to have a professional skill to be able to do it. You could even trade off babysitting. The are many unique possibilities when it comes to bartering.

Here in our area we have a bartering ring. It is actually called a business exchange. You can look in your area to see if they have one set up. Ours is called Lafayette Business Exchange. If your area has one it may called something similar.

If you don't have any professional services to trade or your area doesn't have anything set up then ask people you know. It never hurts to ask someone to see if they would be interested in trading services or goods. A good place to start is the people you go to church with. Even neighbors or friends.

Bartering is fun and definitely frugal. The best part is, not only are you blessed, but someone else is too. For more frugal tips, visit Crystal's blog for Frugal Friday's.

Works for me Wednesday: Getting blood and ketchup stains out of clothing

I know some of you may already know this tip, but I know others may benefit from it. An old tip I learned from working at the hospital for so long is that peroxide takes blood stains out of clothes.

It also will take out ketchup stains. For those of us with little ones, this is a wonderful thing to know since they tend to spill ketchup on themselves as often as possible.

What you do is pour some peroxide on the stain, let it bubble for awhile, and then blot off. Repeat until there is no more bubbling and the stain is faded enough. You can then treat it as you would any other stain and wash as normal.

I always treat with a little spray and wash, then take a bit of my liquid laundry detergent, and put it directly on the stain. I then take my laundry scrubbing brush to get it in really good. It works every time. I do have a recipe I shared, here, that tells how to get out stains that just won't come out any other way. Hope this helps someone because it has worked for me many times over!

For more Works for me Wednesday tips, visit Rocks in my Dryer.

How do you afford all those children? - Part 1

The first thing i'd like to say is that I will be writing this in two parts. The first part will be a background of sorts that has nothing to do with the financial side of raising children, but is just as important to say. The second part will cover the practical how to's that we apply in our family to be able to afford raising our children. So let me get started.

How in the world do you afford to feed and clothe all those children? Your husband must make really good money. I hear it all the time. I will say this, that while we are not living below the poverty line, we are by no means rich either.

I was just reading an article today that quoted the latest Dept of Agriculture's figures on how much money it takes to raise a child. They say that each American child costs an average of $204,060 to house, clothe, educate and entertain until the age of 18. I'm sure that does not include the cost of college either. That means it take $11,337.00 per year to raise one child.

If that were always true, then that means I would be spending $68,022.00 a year on my six children. I can definitely tell you that I am not spending that much. Does that mean I am depriving them? I think not.

The questions I get on how we actually make it work are legitimate concerns for most people. They just don't see how in the world I can really give all my children what they need. While this is not a post telling you to have a big family, I do want to show people that raising children can be done for less than what you think. Without making your children feel deprived, of course.

What do your children really need? Of course a home to live in that keeps the cold and the heat out, good food to eat, clean clothes that fit. That about covers the basic material needs for survival. Anything else we give them materially just adds comfort. Then, most importantly, they need need love, nurture, safety, support, guidance, relationship, training, and discipline. These are not written in any particular order, of course.

So then, why is it so expensive to have children? Is it really the rising costs of living? Let me share with you something I looked up. In 2006 the median family income was $48,201.00. By comparison, in 1955 the median family earned $4,919 (worth about $35,857 in 2006 dollars). That is less than what we make now, on average. Also, the average family size back then was 3.7 children. I think it is hovering right over 2 now.

Yes, things do cost more. I really think though, what has changed the most is our perception of what is needed. There is a difference between what we need to raise our children and what we want to give them.

It's completely natural to want to provide for, and give things to your children. It's what a loving parent wants to do, but don't let the things you give them be how you show them love. That's where it gets confusing for most of us.

I know that when I became pregnant with my first baby I told my husband that I wanted to give her everything that I didn't have. Now mind you, I wasn't neglected, but at a younger age I wasn't able to be involved in many things nor did I receive many of the things I asked for. I resented that.

As we added more children to our family we had to step back and evaluate how we were doing things. I felt that if I didn't let them be involved in more activities or give them more things, that my children would resent me too, like I did my own mother. I think it was at that moment that I realized that it wasn't the lack of involvement or the lack of things that I resented. It was the lack of relationship.

After that my priorities became clearer. I understood what my responsibilities as a parent were. Yes, I still give my children things. Yes, they are still involved in some extracurricular activities, but it is the relationship that I have with them that matters more than anything.

One thing I want to share with you is that we set goals for our children. A few of these goals are to:

*Raise our children to love the Lord

*Raise our children to become productive citizens. We want them to know how to run a household, how to have a good work ethic, etc..There are obviously more goals that we have for them, but I just wanted to share a quick glimpse with you.

So, what do we have to do as parents to help our children reach these goals? This is how we approach things when making decisions about what we give them or what they're involved in. It makes it much easier.

The responsibilities that we, as parents, have are those I listed at the beginning of this post. Besides the basics of providing them with food, clothing, and shelter. We are to give them love, nurture, safety, support, guidance, relationship, training, and discipline. When we apply these things, it's puts perspective on what's important and maybe not so important for our children.

Like I said, what I have written tonight isn't exactly the practical how to's that i'm known for, but this was just as important to say. It gives value to things that aren't material and encourages family relationships.

Getting stains out of baby clothes

Have you ever been to a garage sale and found a cute outfit for baby but passed on it because it was stained? Or have you ever thrown away an outfit after you tried treating it or bleaching but the stain was still there?

I used to do the same thing, but not anymore. I found a great way for getting even the toughest stains out of my baby clothes. Now of course this works on any clothes that are stained. I just wanted to address baby clothes because spitup stains and little poopy stains ruin so many cute clothes. With having a larger than average family, it's important that I keep these clothes looking good so that I can pass them on to the next baby.

When I take down baby clothes out of the attic and I find some that stained, or when someone gives me clothes that have stains on them I will mix a batch of this up. I have yet to ruin an outfit with it, but if I did, it was already ruined before so I have nothing to lose. Oh, this will also brighten dingy or yellowed whites too!

Here's the recipe:

1 cup of Cascade

1 cup of Borax

Enough hot water to fill a 5 gallon bucket 2/3 of the way full

Put stained clothes in bucket overnight. Take the clothes out in morning and wash like normal. You can also put the mixture and clothes in the tub if it's easier for you, but with little ones in the house I use a bucket with a lid.

Hope this saves someone from tossing clothes out like I used to. Clothes can be so expensive!

For more frugal tips, visit Biblicalwomanhood!

The frugal life, is it just for hard times?

I was reading Carlie's post on how more and more people are jumping on the frugal bandwagon. While that is exciting to me, being the frugal woman I am, I think that some people are doing it because of the recent hype. I hope with all that is happening in our economy maybe a few people will make some changes.

At the end of the post, though, she asked how others are preparing ahead for any bad times ahead. Well, I thought that I would address what we are doing here since my comment was already way too long over there.

This is the comment I left at her blog.

I am not one to listen to all the media hype. Before you boo me, i'm not saying that people aren't feeling a pinch from the jump in the cost of living. We all are! Just remember, the economy has its ups and downs all the time. It's an election year so everything that could be a possible platform for the candidates to discuss is hyped up. It's what draws the ratings up. I am glad that people are starting to take a look at spending habits though. Now, I will step down off of my soapbox.

We have been living frugally for quite awhile. I chose this out of necessity at first, but I live it now because it is a fulfilling way to live. Some of our frugal goals this year are to pay off all debt except for the house, cut back on grocery spending--->done, reduce energy costs, and cut down on our monthly gas spending--->we have cut down on the amount we use, but we are still paying the same amount as before since the prices have shot up. It's always great to be prepared, but don't panic. Use this time to reduce spending and pay off that debt! :-)

As I mentioned earlier in my comment, yes we are coming into some lean times, but don't panic. It is always a wise thing to be prepared for anything that may come our way.

Before I talk about what we're doing as a family, i'd like to share a few traps that people fall into.

The first trap I see is that we, as a society, have become used to a high standard of living. Instead of working and saving for something, we all want to get it now. Why not, when you can make a small payment every month? "Oh, don't worry," some say, "We'll have this paid off in no time. We're due for a raise, or we'll pay it off with our taxes or our bonus." How many of us have said some of these things, but when it came down to it we didn't pay it off? This has increased the panic in many people because they can barely make ends meet now due to the heavy debt burden they carry.

Another trap I see is people spending way too much money in general. I know that for the longest time Scott and I thought we were entitled to spend our extra money. We worked long and hard for that money, so why not! Does that sound familiar? Yes, it's true that we do work for what we have and we do need a little recreational time every now and then. Does this entitle us to spend so much? No.

I know this is not a popular answer, but if you are in debt and living paycheck to paycheck, then instead of spending your extra money, you need to be saving it and paying off that debt. Then you can budget in a little more for recreational spending down the road.

Lastly, people just haven't been taught how to manage a household budget. When I was first married I had no concept of budgeting. At the end of the month I couldn't figure out where all my money went. Frequently we couldn't finish paying the bills eventhough we brought in more than we had to pay out. Many times we were either late on the bills or we used our credit card to pay a bill or buy food. We are still paying for those times 15 years later. Ouch!

So, what can you do to make it through the tough times, or to at least prepare yourself? I'll share with you some of the things we have done and are doing.

1. Put some money into savings, and do it now!
One of the best things we have done is to start a savings account. I don't know many times we would get ahead only to have something else happen that would set us back. How frustrating is that! Now that we have some in savings, if the car breaks down, or the a/c goes out in the house we can pay for it without having to use a credit card! We just start putting back into savings again the next month.

2. Pay off those credit cards
Like I mentioned earlier, we are still paying for mistakes made almost 15 years ago because of credit cards.
Debt is a huge ball and chain. It kept me working when I wanted to come home for many years. We just didn't feel like we could make it on just Scott's income. Between a huge mortgage, two car notes, student loans, credit card debt, most people are drowning just like we were.

Scott and I have a goal to owe on only our house by the end of the year. He is working alot right now so that we can do this. I do everything I can at home to help stretch that money. After we have that paid off we will start putting aside money for a bigger house. I have no desire to have a bigger mortgage, so it means we will be saving for awhile. I'd love to buy a house debt free, but we'll see.

3. Start a budget
This is important. You've got to know where your money is going. It is so easy to spend a little here and there and then before you know it, it's all gone.

While i'm talking about it. Start paying cash for things that you can. I get $150.00 every two weeks for groceries in cash. When it's gone, it's gone. You will spend less if you have just cash, so leave all those cards, including your debit card, at home.

4. Cut back
Where can I save money? Can I cut back on food? What will I need to do to cut back in this area? Maybe you need to learn to cook from scratch more, or how to use coupons, or even start a vegetable garden in the backyard.

To cut back on gas, maybe you need to stay home more or get rid of one of the vehicles.

There are many places in our budgets that can be cut back without making us feel like we are deprived.

If you have to cut back on cable, what can you do that's fun to replace it? Rent movies from the library or redbox. Read a book together as a family. Go outside more. It's not about what you don't have. You might actually be surprised that some of these changes can make your life better.

5. Cut back on energy costs
Change your lightbulbs to CFL's. Turn your thermostat up. Wash clothes in cold water as much as possible. Make sure you have adequate insulation. Put weather stripping around doors, caulk leaky windows. Hang up curtains that are darker so they keep the heat out in the summer and the cold out in the winter. There are many ways you can cut costs here, these were just a few off the top of my head that we have done.

This is just some of the things we have done or are currently doing. while it will still be awhile before we reach our goal, were something to happen we would be able to weather it.

To live a truly frugal lifestyle requires a different way of looking at things than you have in the past. Frugalness is not just for hard times. It is a very fulfilling way to live. One last thing i'd like to leave with you. Eventhough a storm comes our way, just remember that God provides for us. this has proved to be true over and over for us. I just recently wrote on God's provision. Prepare, cut back, pray....but don't fret.

Menu Planning Monday: Another $60 week

This is the second week I have come in under budget. I had $30 left over so I stocked up on a few great deals they had out there. I should be able to work those into next week's menu. The one thing I was able to get with my extra money this week was a flat of strawberries. I am buying another one when I get my money this week so I am hoping to make some nice desserts and can a few jars of preserves!

Breakfast:
Monday: Waffles and fruit
Tuesday: Baked Oatmeal
Wednesday: Eggs Florentine and fruit
Thursday: Muffins and Sausage
Friday: French Toast sticks
Saturday: Eggs, biscuits, and a meat
Sunday: Country ham and gravy over biscuits

Lunch:
Monday: Sandwiches and a side veggie--->either raw or cooked
Tuesday: A meat, mac & cheese, and a veggie
Wednesday: Chicken Salad
Thursday: Grilled cheese sandwiches and fruit
Friday: Leftovers or quesidillas if we have no leftovers
Sat and Sun: We either eat leftovers, or a salad, or sandwiches

Snacks:
Monday: Carrots and ranch dressing
Tuesday: Fruit
Wednesday: Banana Bread or homemade bread drizzled with butter and honey
Thursday: Baked pepperoni(we do this every so often since I don't buy chips, they crisp real well)--->The children want this again
Friday: Tortilla wraps---> I usually fill them with pizza sauce and cheese, which the kids call "mini pizzas", or peanut butter, banana, and honey

Dinner:
Monday:
Lasagna
Green beans
Pumpkin rolls

Tuesday:
Zesty chicken
Corn

Wednesday:
Mexican night

Thursday:
Black bean soup
Cornbread

Friday:
Pizza night
Cheesebread

Saturday:
Cheeseburger pie
Buttered peas
Salad

Sunday:
BBQ pork pull-apart sandwiches
Potatoes cooked in butter, onions and bell peppers
Green beans

Zesty Chicken:
4 chicken breasts
2 cans italian diced tomatoes
2 cups heavy whipping cream
2 T butter
2 garlic cloves
1 tsp basil
salt and pepper to taste
Pasta--->I use vermicelli, but you can use whatever you like!

Directions:
First, put on water to boil for noodles. I like to use a bay leaf in my water but you don't have to. Put butter in pan to melt. Dice chicken breasts and brown in melted butter. Add garlic to chicken breasts. Next, add the italian diced tomatoes and cook over medium heat for 10 minutes. Measure out heavy whipping cream andpour into pot. Add basil, salt and pepper at this time. Cook on medium for 12 minutes. After done, season with more salt and basil if desired. It will thicken a bit after it sits, but this is not a super thick sauce. Serve over pasta.

Baked Pepperoni Chips:
6 ounces pepperoni, thinly sliced

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Lay the pepperoni slices in a single layer on a baking sheet and bake for 6 to 8 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and soak up the excess grease by pressing paper towels against the pepperoni chips. Return the pan to the oven and bake an additional 2 to 4 minutes, until the pepperoni slices are very crispy, unless they already are crispy.

For more great menus, head over to Organizing Junkie for menu planning monday.