Homemade Laundry Soap

I've seen this recipe for homemade laundry soap all over the internet.  Last week, my sister, who does all the laundry, came to me and said, "we've only got one bottle of laundry detergent left."  So I decided that now is the perfect time to make my own laundry soap and see if it really works.  It only has three ingredients, and it's easy to make (one of my favorite words - easy!)

Ingredients:

1/2 bar of Fels-Naptha soap
1 cup of borax
1 cup of washing soda

all of these ingredients can be found at Walmart.

Grate the soap into a container.  I used a regular 4-sided metal grater (smallest grate).  Add the borax and the washing soda and mix well.  I store the laundry soap in a small covered plastic container.  Use 1 - 2 tablespoons per load of laundry.

I brought home some dirty kitchen towels from the church and washed them using this laundry soap.  It worked.  The towels came out clean and smelled fresh.  This stuff works.

A Little of This and That

I know it's been a while since I've done any blogging, but I've been busy living my life.  I had one really bad week where the headaches were sooo bad and I pretty much just went to work, came home, and slept.  The headaches are a result of my accident in November and I don't know if they'll ever go away.  The doctor gave me two shots at the base of my skull and this past week, the headaches have been tolerable.

Work has been busy.  We're getting ready for a ministry fair tomorrow at church.  I've been learning new accounting software, putting together a new church directory, and rearranging my office space - whew!

I've been dabbling in a few different projects and I've crocheted a couple of things, made some homemade laundry detergent, and I have a stack of new projects and recipes that I want to make.  I've been working on reorganizing my home pantry with new shelves and storage buckets, plus there's stumbleupon, pinterest, and pogo - I love these websites!  Don't worry.  After I put the finishing touches on some of my recent projects, I'll be blogging about them.

Ever Have One of Those Nights?

Did you ever have one of those nights when you just couldn't sleep?  Well, here I am; it's 3:40 am and I'm wide awake.  It's so quiet in the house and outside.  The only sound is the clicking of my computer keys.  I'm supposed to be at work in 5 hours (yawn).  Instead, I'm staring at my computer screen wondering why I can't sleep.

Chicken Pot Pie Soup

My favorite soup right now is Panera's Sonoma Chicken Stew.  It's like chicken pot pie without the crust.  It tastes so yummy!  I was thrilled when I came across this recipe for Chicken Pot Pie Soup from http://www.skinnytaste.com/.  It is so delicious - you have to try it.

Chicken Pot Pie Soup

1/4 cup flour
2 cups water
4 cups fat free milk (I used 2%)
1 large celery stalk, chopped
1/2 medium onion, chopped
8 oz. sliced baby portabella mushrooms (I'm not a big fan of mushrooms, so I only used about 1/2 finely chopped mushrooms)
2 chicken bouillon
pinch of thyme
10 oz. frozen classic mixed vegetables
2 potatoes, peeled and cubed small
16 oz. of cooked chicken breast, diced small
salt and pepper to taste

Create a slurry by combining 1/2 cup of cold water with flour in a small bowl and whisk until well blended.  Set aside.

Pour remaining water and milk into a large pot and slowly bring to a boil.  Add celery, onion, mushrooms, chicken bouillon, thyme, frozen vegetables and return to a boil.  Partially cover and simmer on low until vegetables are soft, about 20 - 25 minutes.  Remove lid, add potatoes, and cook until soft, about 5 - 10 minutes.  Add chicken, and slowly stir in slurry, stirring well as you add.  Cook another 2 - 3 minutes, until soup thickens.  Add salt and pepper to taste, then serve.

I actually made this soup the night before and it was wonderful for dinner the next evening.  I don't have a picture because it didn't last long enough for me to take one!

Paper Mache Heart

I like to try new crafts, so when I saw an article on how to make miniature pinatas, I thought it was a cute idea.  I modified the directions to make my own paper mache heart.

Start with a cereal box and a heart template.

Open up the box and trace two hearts on the cereal box.

Cut the hearts out and using masking tape, assemble the heart.  I used strips from the box to make the sides of the heart.

Cover the heart with masking tape.

To cover the heart, I cut purple and pink tissue paper into strips and then I tore the strips into pieces.

Using mod podge, cover the box with the pieces of tissue paper until the box is completely covered; then add a top coat.

After I finished the heart, I made a hanger for the heart by braiding purple, pink, and white yarn together.  I hot glued the hanger to the top of the heart.

Here is the finished heart hanging on my front door.  It's a cute, easy decoration to make.