Household Recipes (per request)

I have been requested by some people to post the recipes I use for my household products. So - Here is what I am currently using.

First off is my laundry detergent. This is the 3rd different kind I've made and it's by far my favorite. It makes a TON of soap. I have shared with friends and relatives and used 2 containers full and still haven't put a dent in the recipe I made almost 4 months ago. It cost about $20 but I'm thinking it will last at least a year (and we do at least 1 load a day!)
http://www.howdoesshe.com/cheaper-and-better-diy-laundry-detergent

For cleaning, especially my stove and counters, I use a mix of 1/2 white vinegar 1/2 water in a spray bottle I got at the dollar store. I just spray, wait a couple minutes and wipe. It works better than the spray from under my sink, a heck of a lot cheaper, and it's safe for the kid and the dogs.

For the Dishwasher, I use the recipe from the link. however, I didn't use the drink mix, just lemishine powder. It can get clumpy but it works great. Use either the lemishine rinse aid as well or white vinegar. At first I didn't use the epsom salt but trust me, you need it. It makes a HUGE difference.   http://beingcreativetokeepmysanity.blogspot.com/2011/01/dishwasher-detergent.html

I used to make my own baby wipes. I loved them more than the bought ones, however, getting the container opened one handed was a challenge so we are buying them again. If you have a little one that isn't so squirmy yet or are more nimble than me, go for it. MUCH cheaper, MUCH better for the environment and they smell so amazing!


Some of the best weed killer I've ever used is...wait for it..... Vinegar! (There's not alot that stuff won't do! I buy it by the gallon!) Just spray - or in my case, pour - on the weeds in the morning of a hot day with no rain (just the weeds though!) and let mother nature do the rest. It might take a day or two to do it, but they will be GONE! We have a problem with these prickly weed things in the grass and now it's all fixed! Give it a try!

If you do give any of these a try, leave a comment and let me know how it worked for you.

Have a good weekend everyone!

Lisa xo

Pinterest is my crack

I started this blog to document some things that I have tried from Pinterest. Unfortunately I have just now started documenting things with pictures and the like. I just wanted to post this to show some of the other things I have done successfully with help from Pinterest. Sorry if I don't have links to the original. Some of these are old! This of course isn't everything I've done. Follow me on Pinterest for more things!

Gnome Hat

 Gnome hat

 

Christmas present for my hubby

Footprint Shirt

Thing 1 and 2 for my neice and nephew (coming soon!)

Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss

 Mohawk hat for my nephew JJ

Mohawk Hat

Pigtail Hat for my niece Cristallia

Baby girl hat

Mickey Hat (one of a few I've made)
I used the versatile hat pattern from Micahmakes.com

Chocolate dipping spoons

Chocolate dipping spoons

Peck's 1 year old photo

First Year Portrait

Garlic Herb Bread (taken from cinnamon braid idea)

Braided Cinnamon Rolls

 Mickey outfit for a friend's new arrival

 Mickey Mouse Diaper Cover Crochet Pattern

 Hat made from Micah Makes versatile hat pattern

Happy Father's Day! (and Happy Annevar!)

Happy Father's Day to all the daddies out there. We had a pretty uneventful (but fun) weekend. We partook in some Annevar festivities yesterday. It started with the parade. Here are just some of my favorite pictures from there...

Prince and Princess (aren't they so adorable?)

Part of the candy stash (and 2 string cheeses!)

 

I love the hometown pride people have here!! 

 

Anyways, back to Father's day. I snuck around and made my husband a gift using some mementos and some shadow boxes I bought 2 years ago at a yard sale. (and some inspiration from Pinterest!)

 Here is proud papa with his gift

 

Don't know if he'll hang it here at the house, or at the office. But, I do know that he will appreciate it for many many years to come. This afternoon, we went to the local park with my father-in-law and did some fishing. (Well, the men did some fishing. I sat and enjoyed the "breeze" - which in NE means winds of 20-30mph with gusts of at least 45mph haha) while Peck played around in the van - which has been his new favorite place as of late. 

3 generations of Kirkpatrick men. Love it!

 

my mother-in-law's dog sissy enjoying the breeze 

 

my father-in-law's "big catch" of lake muck

 

Yet another holiday success, I'd say.  Can't wait until my big roadtrip with these guys in 2 weeks. (but maybe it's just cause I'm homesick haha)

Until next time - 

Lisa.

Annevar Celebrations Begin!!

This morning, I went to help make Lion Burger meat. (think sloppy joe but jazzed up) It finally hit me that Annevar is here yet again. This time last year, I was celebrating with my family from NC - We had Peck baptized. It also happened to be his half birthday :)

See him in his little Baptism outfit? So darn cute!

 

Ok. Proud mommy moment over. Back to Annevar. Annevar (Ravenna (the town I live in) spelled backwards) is our annual festival. We have carnival rides, contests, shows, mud drags, a parade and all sorts of good times. I really love how no matter how long you've been away, you always "come home" for Annevar.  I, nor my in-laws, are not originally from here. However, we have felt welcome since day 1. I got asked tons of times if we were putting Peck in the cute baby contest, so of course we did this afternoon. He didn't win (there was some pretty fierce competition!) but we had a blast and it was good to see him interact with other kids of all ages. 

Ready to get this thing started!

 I can't wait to see him getting candy and toys at the parade on Saturday. I hope he actually is OK with the carnival this year as well. (Let's just say things didn't go so smooth last year)

I am so happy that Annevar is here. I am also super excited that I will be home in just 2 short weeks! 

Until next time - 

Lisa xo

Messy painting fun!

 Today was too pretty to stay inside. So what did this mommy do? Made a HUGE batch of sidewalk paint. I could only find 3 colors of food color so I tried to be as creative as possible with colors.

 

I showed Peck how to do it and let him go. Soon, he was painting everything in site. He even decided to leave little hand prints all over our van (I wish I would have taken some pictures but I rinsed it off before I thought about it! boo.)

"Washing" his hair with paint

He even tried to get Zoe involved!

I think this was a total success. Peck had an absolute blast and even liked the bath afterward!

Smiles!!

Of course I would love to give you the exact recipe to the sidewalk paint but I don't measure. I just put some corn starch  in a bowl and added water until it mixed nice (I ended up using my hands. The spoon just wasn't cutting it!) and added a little flour. Since it's nothing but kitchen stuff, I'd say it probably wouldn't hurt if it were eaten. Peck tasted it and he's still kicking! haha.

I got the idea from this blog...
http://www.playcreateexplore.com/p/activites-for-ages-1-3.html

of course it was found on my favorite site in the world - PINTEREST! haha

Hope you have as much fun as we did !