Laundry detergent, baby wipes and a little irony

I mentioned in my last post that I have been making some of our frequently used household products. I am doing this to cut down on cost but also to continue to rid our home of chemicals. So, both of these things are very easy to do and very cost efficient.

For the laundry detergent, I bought a box of 20 Mule Team borax (available in most large grocery stores) for $4, a box of Arm and Hammer Super Washing Soda for $3.50, and a 3 pack of Kirk's castille soap for $3.70. For just over $10, I have the supplies to make 4-5 months worth of laundry detergent. I was buying the Kirkland brand "natural and environmentally friendly" detergent before that for $13 per jug that lasted less than 2 months. Doesn't add up to a ton of cash saved, but combined with other efforts, I'm "trimming the fat" so to speak.

Laundry Detergent "Recipe"

1 cup borax

1 cup washing soda

1 bar soap

Grate the soap on a box cheese grater and mix together with other 2 ingredients. I store mine in a rubber maid plastic drink bottle with a snap on lid. For large or particularly dirty loads, use 2 tablespoons of the mixture. For smaller loads, 1 tablespoon is enough.

Our clothes come out of the wash fresh, clean and with just a faint (natural) scent of the castille soap. I made some for a friend of mine with Ivory soap because of allergy issues and it's both easier to grate up because it's softer as well as less expensive. I like the castille soap because we don't have allergy issues with the ingredients and it does not have any synthetic ingredients.

I was a little concerned about the harshness of the soda and borax, but in reading up on them both individually and combined,  and found that if I were to use the recommended 1/2 CUP "booster" they both recommend on their boxes in every load of wash, I would probably destroy our clothes! But, in 2 tablespoon increments without other soaps, it's perfectly gentle!

On to the baby wipes: this one is really easy too. Saw a giant Bounty roll of paper towels in half and place cut side down in a large plastic container (the only one I found that worked is a generic rectangular plastic tub from Walmart (where I really hate shopping). Otherwise, I'd have to put them in a heavy and cumbersome glass jar that I don't want to mess with while changing a very squirmy 2 year old. Oh, and I did not do cost comparison on this one yet. I've just wanted to try these for a long time! 

Diaper Wipe "Recipe"

2 cups warm water

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 tablespoons baby wash

10-12 drops tea tree oil

Combine all the liquids and pour over the paper towel roll. You don't have to use the tea tree oil, but I use it as a preservative because my first batch of wipes got stinky after a few days because there wasn't any other preservative and they go bad. 

So, here's the ironic part. Back in high school and college, I never saw myself becoming a "domestic", make-your-own anything kind of wife or mother. Let's be frank, I didn't even picture myself cooking meals let alone making laundry detergent and baby wipes! As a matter of fact, my one of my aunts knew someone who had a key chain that said, "My only domestic quality is that I live in a house". I wanted that keychain so badly because it was the perfect description of me!  Who knew I'd turn into this crunchy, earth and budget conscious kind of mom? Ha! 

Back to raising boys

I feel like my blog went from being all about my boys and our family to basically just being about our adoption journey. I have always been the kind of person that struggles with dwelling on the hard stuff and heartbreak and sometimes I just have to acknowledge that there is pain to be dealt with but that I need to focus on something else for a while. So, I am going to do a series of posts on what my journey of raising boys has been like in the past couple months, adoption drama aside.

One of my seemingly never ending quests is to be more conscientious of the foods my kids are eating and the products that are in our home. One of the things I am wanting to tackle now is the fact that there are always 3 kinds of milk in our refrigerator. I drink regular cows milk, Noah (who is allergic to soy and dairy) has almond milk and John (who does not digest the milk protein) and Caleb drink soy milk.  I am becoming more and more concerned about all the issues surrounding soy and would really like to get the soy milk out of the house. There's nothing wrong with the unsweetened almond milk Noah has, but it does not have a ton of nutritional value to it. So, I decided to research raw milk.

One of the many agricultural benefits to living in the central valley is that Organic Pastures, one of the premiere raw milk farms in the state is just outside of town. I did a lot of reading about raw milk and then also got a lot of information from one of my girlfriends sisters who works there. Initially, I was not even going to consider switching my immuno-suppressed child to unpasteurized dairy but began to change my mind when I dug deeper into the facts. There have been fewer cases of milk contamination from raw milk than pasteurized milk in the past few years, so there is really no safety net just because it's heated to a certain temperature before it's shipped. I also learned that it tends to be much easier to digest because it contains all of it's live, natural properties when it is NOT heated.

I got some good tips in my reading and from my contact at OP on how to introduce raw milk into our diets and make sure that everyone is actually tolerating it. The one major draw back is the price. It is a LOT more than regular milk, although there is not as shocking of a price difference between it and the almond and soy milk I'm already buying.  Nevertheless, I have started looking for ideas and ways to cut down on other household expenses to offset the cost difference. That leads me into the topic for my next post, the homemade laundry detergent and baby wipes I've started making.

So, if I haven't already bored you out of your minds, come on back a little later and I'll share some cool ideas! And yes, I do seem to becoming more "crunchy", "roots and berries" or just plain crazy the older I get in case you were wondering!

Betrayed

I'm pissed and I'm not going to hold back on this post. That won't surprise those of you who know me well, but for the rest of you....be prepared!!!!!

I've known all of my adult life that our foster care and protective custody systems are broken. I've seen this broken system fail child after child. But, I've never had to stand by and watch it betray and utterly fail two little girls I love with a passion. To make a very long story short, the previous social worker involved with the girls case basically decided she was too busy to do her job and punted the case to an adoption specialist without doing her job. The most critical thing she decided not to do was document ANY of the issues with grandma. None of the court order violations during visitations or the subsequent cancellation of her visits was documented. None. And this woman gets paid to do this job, mind you. So, the adoption case worker is obligated BY LAW to start ALL OVER with the grandmother. Today, she was awarded temporary custody of the girls. They will return to the very place they were abused in unfathomable ways. In my mind, there is no worse betrayal. Our system has failed. Miserably. And broken quite a few hearts along the way. EPIC FAILURE in the truest sense of the term.

What a difference a few days makes....

I really can't put into words the difference a few days of being on "stay-cation", away from basically all my responsibilities! Our boys have been with my in-laws since Monday morning and John and I have had an AH-MAY-ZING time of relaxing, doing some fun projects, going to movies, trying new restaurants and just hanging out. I had honestly forgotten how many things we love to talk about that don't revolve around our children! Don't get me wrong, I love raising these boys together, but I really do love remembering all the things we had in common and enjoyed doing before we had babies.

In all reality, our vacation could not have come at a better time. This entire year has been exhausting but the intensity of the past couple months has been overwhelming. Last week, as we processed the devastating news about the girls (I'll get back to that in another post), I almost felt like the world was crumbling around me. But, in the midst of that, I was reminded of the enormously blessed, happy life I have been undeservedly given. I have the two most amazing little boys who call me mama. I have an incredible husband who I get to do life with. Together, we have been blessed beyond measure. We still have a lot to deal with in regards to the girls and need to pray about the future of our family. But, the best part is that we both feel more rested and relaxed that we have in months and finally feel equipped to deal with the excited and difficult things that lie ahead!

A broken dream

This is a post I've been putting off writing for several days now. I simply don't have the emotional fortitude to go into detail right now, but our adoption process has come come to a stop. On Wednesday, I was told the girls were going to be moving out of their current foster home and into another temporary home. There are several reasons why this can't be our home. After processing that change of events, we had to back ourselves up away from the picture and take a seriously hard look at ALL the pieces of the puzzle. And that is what brought us to a stop. Please pray for us as we prayerfully consider where to go from here and what the plan for these beautiful girls is. I know that's all very vague but it hurts to much to think about, let alone put in words what is going on. I did want to share this latest turn of events, though, because so many of you have been supporting us in amazing ways and we need your love, support and prayers now more than ever.

After having a little get-together for Noah's birthday on Sunday, John and I are "going off the grid" so we can enjoy our much anticipated 3 night vacation. Please pray that it will be the time of relaxation and fun that we really want (and I think I can say NEED) and that we would be able to continue processing where to go from here with the girls.

We are so very grateful for the love and support of our family and friends!

Noah Wesley

Noah. My little dude. You were a surprise from the moment you were conceived and have surprised us in one way or another just about every day of your tender little life. You came into the world the most serene, easy going baby.  Right from the get-go, you peacefully napped in a hospital nursery full of screaming babies. You let us sleep pretty well right away, you easily fell asleep in our arms and were just an easy going little guy. And then your spice started showing up....you crawled at 8 months, walked at 10 months and were running by your first birthday. As soon as you could move, you were always after your brother or looking for something to get into. You developed this little personality that was constantly in awe of the world around you. You would point your chubby little finger and "oooooooo" at just about anything that caught your eye. You would giggle every time your brother came near or your papa walked in the door.  And even as you started getting sick so often, your sweet and spicy personality still shined through.

We went through a few long, difficult months with you when we wondered and agonized over what was going on with your little body and prayed that it was nothing catastrophic. It broke our hearts to see you in such misery so often and not be able to take the pain away from you. You were such a champ dealing with all the doctors visits and needle pokes, and entertained nurses, techs and doctors everywhere we went. Once we had a diagnosis, we continued to plug along through our sleepless night and your pain. And through it all, you managed to head right into your terrible two's at the tender age of 18 months. But, we wouldn't have it any other way, my sweet boy.  We love you more than you can imagine and are so excited to see what the Lord has in store for your life!

Melting hearts

This morning's visit was a long-time coming. John and I were anxious and excited as we drove over to see little M and A. And what happened when we got there was exactly what I expected and hoped for...it was mutual love. Once M showed me all the new things she can do since the last time I treated her and we were down on the floor with them, they soon discovered just what kind of amazing guy he is. They were fascinated with some of the cool gadgets in his pockets, loved his creative ideas for building things with blocks and the fact that he's a pretty cool jungle gym.  The whole time we sat and played with them, I couldn't stop thinking, "Oh, sweet ones, if only you knew how much we already love you and what this man would do for you....you will NEVER be hurt again".  

One of the things that the girl's foster mom has frequently said to me is, "M can really be a handful sometimes...she gets pretty wound up sometimes". While we were playing with them, M got a bit "riled up" and was throwing some toys around, and thus she was gently corrected by her foster mom who then gave me the "see what I mean?" look.  I couldn't help but chuckle and think to myself, "Clearly, you have never met my biological offspring!!! This is NOTHING!!!". Granted,  I would never presume that her little moments we witnessed this morning are as amped as she can get, but I just couldn't help but think how well they would blend in with our boys.

So, now the next big step is for the boys to meet them. That will either happen this weekend or next Tuesday morning. THAT will be a big deal!!!

Oh, and ps....I'll be back soon to post about this feisty red-head's latest undertakings and my adorable boys! So, stay tuned! :)