Homemade Bath Bombs

I love LUSH bath bombs. Unfortunately fortunately for my wallet the closest one is about 3 hours away. I have wanted to try my hand at making my own.

 

It was actually extremely easy. Mine don't look as pretty yet (I haven't used special molds, just the bottom of cupcake liners) but they sure smell and work fantastic. I told you I was having fun with my essential oils!

1 c. baking soda
1/2 c. citrus acid
2 T. epsom salts
1 t. water
3 T. coconut oil
several drops of essential oils of your choice 
 Food coloring or natural dye (optional)

Mix the dry ingredients in one bowl. Mix the wet in a separate bowl. Add wet to dry and incorporate. Mixture should feel like wet sand, if you need more moisture add a few more drops of water until it feels right. Pack down tightly into molds (I used muffin liners set in a muffin pan). Let sit overnight or for about 24 hours. Take out of molds and store somewhere dry (I store mine in a glass jar). Place on under running bath water and enjoy.

I used a relaxing blend of essential oils and the smell is divine. The possibilities are endless. I plan to mix and match with colors, scents, and even add dried flowers this summer. I was able to make 9 bath bombs for around $4, where the LUSH bombs are about $5 each. You can find the oil as well as the citrus acid on Amazon: 
 

Scent Booster

There is a reason that products such as laundry scent boosters exist. I admit that I love the scent of dryer sheets, Downy, and all those other yummy smelling products. When I get a strong whiff of fabric softener on someone's clothes I enjoy it just as much as an expensive perfume. I try not to use these types of products as I know that they are artificial scents and not healthy to be soaking our clothing in. 

In the summer it's easy enough for me to avoid these as the scent of fresh sunshine on my clothing from hanging it on the clothesline is the best smell ever. In the winter it's a little more difficult. Our laundry can smell a bit blah with no scent at all.

Which is why I am having so much fun with essential oils! Adding scent, which is natural, is a fun way to liven up the senses. I read about using this Insect Shield from Plant Therapy

as a scent booster in the laundry. While the ingredients in it are great for mixing up your own bug spray (which I plan to do this summer!) they are also similar to Young Living Oil Purification blend which is amazing for freshening up the air, carpets, clothing, etc. It smells like Nels Fatha soap to me. Adding just a couple drops to a washer load of clothing (along with your usual detergent) leaves everything with a delectable scent.  
  

Essential Oils

Essential Oils have been the rage for several years now. While the "hippies" have been using them for decades, the rise in popularity really started when the multi-level marketing companies Young Living and doTerra oils were founded. All of a sudden my Facebook feed was filled with sales pitches and advertisements but guess what...those oils are expensive!! Multi-level marketing always is - because the company is selling the oils and paying the marketers as well.

You can get pure essential oils at a reasonable price. I googled and researched and finally settled upon Plant Therapy oils, which are high quality oils at a great price (this is not a paid endorsement for them!). 

I'm learning my way with oils and will share along the way with ways that I'm finding them useful. The oil I am most familiar with is Tea Tree oil. It's a great disinfectant so can be used in most household cleaners. It's also great for teenage skin or anyone who has troublesome blemishes. My new favorite recipe is Natural Toilet Bowl cleaner. 

 

All you need is:
1/2 c. baking soda
1/4 c. distilled white vinegar
10 drops of Tea Tree Oil

I pour the baking soda in the toilet bowl, add the drops of the oil, then pour the vinegar in. I shut the lid as it fizzes and cleans and about 10 minutes later go back to scrub and swish the bowl and flush. It leaves a sparkly bowl which is disinfected. 

If you have a lot of lime build up in your bowl you will need to deeply scrub the first time around, or even use a pumice stone. But after getting it sparkling the above recipe will take care of your toilet bowl if you use it on a weekly basis! 

Something to Wear

Something you want... Something you need... Something to wear... Something to read...

Those are the four Christmas gifts that we purchase for the kids. When it comes to the wear aspect I like to pick up something original. For the older kids original can be a challenge as fun items don't always come in larger sizes (and they may not want to wear anything a little off the wall!), so hats or cute socks fit the bill for them. 

For Amy I can go a bit wild and have fun. I've run across two new designers that I just love this year. I try to support work at home mamas. While the items will be more expensive than ones you will find in stores, they are handcrafted, made in the US, and because of their originality they often have an awesome resale value. This is not a sponsored post, I just wanted to share two favorite stores of mine! No referral links included either. ;)

The Measure has such adorable sundresses. I purchased their grab bag last month and loved the dresses I received. The styles are classic ones reminiscent of my own childhood when sundresses were a summer staple. The dress pictured below is perfect for layering for winter, where as the others I have are a light material perfect for our hot summer days.     

Nook's Design uses vintage linens, lace, and buttons by up-cycling items. You all know my love of vintage linens...so to find a business that makes dresses out of thrift store finds is amazing!!! I ran across this designer on Kidizen and purchased the dress below at a fraction of what it cost new. It fits Amy perfectly as a tunic and the material is amazingly soft!!!

I'm keeping a lookout on her shop because her items seem to go quick and I've fallen in love with several pieces that are sold out (rompers with real mink collars! dresses make from vintage quilts!). 

Support homemade if you can this holiday season!

Trim Healthy Mama Cookbook

I recently reviewed the Trim Healthy Mama Plan and now have the chance to review the cookbook. While I do have the 600+ page original book I do like how the separate books make this plan easier to research and follow.

What I especially enjoy about this updated cookbook is that the pages are glossy (perfect for in the kitchen!) and there are pictures, which I always love in a cookbook. Some new tried and true recipes from those on the plan have also been added to the book. 

While I appreciate that a lot of the recipes are thrifty the thing I dislike, and noticed years ago when I first started the plan, is some of the special foods that are included in the recipes are expensive and/or hard to find. Items like mct oil, ghee, pressed peanut flour, etc. While these items can be substituted with other items, they won't be so "on plan" then. The authors actually have a baking line for sale now and I feel they press these items a little too much, when the previous cookbook was more about finding alternative and cheaper products.

I do look forward to trying more of the recipes now that I can see photos of the food - it makes the recipes seem more appetizing so that is a good thing! :) 

This book was given to me by Blogging for Books in exchange for my honest opinion. 
 

Create!

The cooler, rainy days have lead to some creative inspiration recently. Probably as a way to "fluff the nest" for the upcoming months stuck indoors due to cold and snow. Make pretty things and it won't be so difficult to be stuck indoors? One can hope.

I bought this large frame at a garage sale for $1 and intended to use it in Amy's room with her initials inside of it. But then, as I contemplated a way to keep my jewelry organized I decided instead to use it for our bedroom. 

A sheet of wire from the garage. Some S hooks and clips for hanging the jewelry. Perfection.  

It looks pretty on the bedroom wall and is quite functional. I just need to buy a few more hooks for the rest of my necklaces to be hung up. 

I'm beginning to get my Etsy shop stocked back up with goodies for the Christmas rush coming in late fall. You can follow my Facebook page to get updates of new items.

I had to start on a cuff for myself first, as the words have been tumbling around in my brain.   

A reminder at hand (literally) to truly LIVE LIFE...every single day.
 

A Snappy Side Table

This past spring I picked up this beverage cart at a thrift store for $10.

I had plans on painting it white and using it on the porch for potted plants. It sat in the garage waiting for some inspiration to hit.

This past weekend I moved some furniture in the living room around and realized that I was now in need of an end table. 

Inspiration finally hit.

I put hubby to work on "my project" (yeah, it pretty much was his project as he did all the work for me!). 

I wanted a shabby chic feel to it and love the color of the paint he chose and the distressing that he did.

It fits in with our shabby chic little corner (I'm not sure what's up with the lighting in this photo...I couldn't turn the lamp on or there was too much of a glare...so just roll with it. :)

I'm going to find the perfect little basket for underneath and this is where we can store books and magazines. 

The nice thing is that this little side table can easily be rolled out to the middle of the room and it's sides can be expanded to make a large table for movie night. Add a tray of drinks and a big bowl of popcorn and it will come in extra handy. 

$10 table, a $3 can of spray paint, and a little imagination goes a long way.
 

We Made It!

It's 2:50 on a Friday afternoon and we just finished our first week back to school. I feel a sense of relief as this week was like a roller coaster - lots of ups and downs.

It's an adjustment to go from the freedom of summer to a routine and if one child is up to par one day they often aren't the next. Soon it will even out to smooth sailing but I'm just so happy to mark week one off the calendar! :)

This week was lots of review, and lots of books. Both Amy and Joe studied farms this week (Amy with her little farm activity pack from the library and Joe's science focused on "Spring on the Farm" with seeds and how they grow) so we also toured a dairy farm with a friend who also homeschools. 

They learned that Kangaroos like bread for snacks and that it's best not to get near the daddy Kangaroo.  

They each were able to bottle feed a calf. Amy enjoyed petting "her calf" more than feeding it as it was only 24 hours old and didn't have the hang of the bottle quite yet. 

The kids were able to shake up a bottle of heavy cream to make their own butter. They poured the buttermilk out of the jar, rinsed it with cold water to make it set, added a bit of salt, and snacked on crackers spread with butter (or in Amy's case, ate it straight off the knife).

They were able to see a brand new calf walk on it's shaky legs, try milking a cow by hand (only Joe was brave enough to do so), and see where the milk and cheese and ice cream is processed. As well as choose a small tub of ice cream all of their own. 

Hands on learning is always the best!

The Time Garden

When I first heard about "adult" coloring books my immediate thought was "ain't nobody got time for that!" Fast forward a few months later when I saw so many friends coloring in the coolest books and I changed my tune to "that looks fun!"

The thing is, I'm not very artistically talented. If I drew something it may rival my first graders work. Yet I love art. I wish I could draw. Coloring, to me, is the next best thing because you can take someone's drawing and bring it to life. 

The Time Garden by Daria Song is such a beautiful journey, all about a little girl who discovered one magical world after another through her father's cuckoo clock.  

The pages literally take hours to completely color. It is a form of mediation to me, like knitting may be to others. Imagine waiting in a waiting room, long car rides, stressful moments. Times when your fingers may be itching to do something...why not use it to color?

My oldest daughter got into it too...coloring and chatting alongside me. A unique bonding experience.

Watson Guptill publishes these particular coloring books and the pages are thick and the covers are sturdy. Nothing like the coloring books of our childhood!

This is a page I worked on in another coloring book, "Enchanted Forest". Coloring isn't just for kids! ;)

This book was given to me by Blogging for Books in exchange for my honest review.
 

Precious Life

Losing three important people in my life in a three year span:

*My 83 year old Grandma who lived a full life

*My dad a day before his 61st birthday...not old enough to be called old

*My sweet 8 year old

It showed me how precious life is. How short it is.

I won't get a second chance - this is my one wild and precious life. Today is the last day I am this young. Today is also the first day of the rest of my life. I can either look at that as a depressing thought or I can see the opportunities that it gives me.

“It’s not enough to wish, dream, hope. Even children know this. We must set sail into the sea of uncertainty. We must meet fear face-to-face. We must take our dreams as maps for a greater journey. Dreams, to come true, need a good story. So go live one.”
― Vironika Tugaleva


 

A Space of Their Own

When we were at Faith's Lodge everyone was drawn to the art room. Crafts were at the ready, paint and brushes were accessible for ease of use. Having it there, right at your fingertips, makes creation flow.

So I decided when we returned home that we would have a little corner of our own and got to work creating a space that is open to the kids. As long as they clean up their mess when finished they are free to use whatever, whenever, if it's on/in this desk. 

Like moths to a flame they flocked. 

Amy got her paint on.

Joe and Amy worked with markers and stickers.

While Becca said the desk is too small for her she loves the ease of grabbing an art medium and running to her room to create.

I look forward to switching up the crafts on the table. Letting the kids explore with clay, watercolors, pencils, beads, and more.  Watching the budding artists emerge.
 

Fresh

Being gone for 5 days in July means returning to a bounty in the garden (as well as a bounty of weeds!). 

It's amazing just how quickly things can grow and change in the garden.

Look at the giant cucumber! It was as long as Amy's legs! It actually still tasted good too, no bitterness or giant seeds in it.

One night I tried to make as much of our meal out of the garden as possible. I ended up with:

*Open face bagel sandwiches. They were whole wheat bagels, a slice of tomato (from the garden), bacon, and cheese.

*Green beans and onions (from the garden) and bacon

*Cucumber and green pepper (from the garden) salad

*Strawberries

That is a summertime meal! Yummy! 

Create Porch Decor

When I bought a mirror with a pretty blue frame at a garage sale for 50 cents I had plans to put it up in the girl's room. It would match the yellow one already in there quite well.

Plans change when the mirror got broken (shhhh...don't tell Joe about the seven years of bad luck!). I decided to re-purpose it into a craft for the porch.  

After buying the letter F at Wal-Mart for $1.95 I had Ben paint it grey with paint that we already had. Then I used yellow washi tape that I already had to make stripes. We Hubby then hung them separately on the siding. A very quick (less than an hour) and inexpensive (total was about $3) project!

Instead of throwing something away, look at the item in a different way to see what it could be turned into instead. You know, when life gives you lemons...make lemonade. Or when children brake mirrors, get creative... 

Edited to add: a close up of the letter for Gill who asked in the comments. Excuse the raindrops on the letter...we had a huge thunderstorm right before I snapped the photo.

 

By the Book

This summer I've seemed to hit the jackpot on books at thrift stores.

This pile will nurture my art and soul. ;) A perfect find on a gloomy day. 

And this pile of workbooks was bought for only $2.50 and will get us through the summer and beyond. 

As a homeschooling family, curriculum purchases fall on the parents. Both the financial burden, as well as the burden of choosing a complete year's worth of educational materials. Some families buy sets of books, others pick and choose workbooks and materials, and others put together their own system. Whatever works for their families.

It can get expensive though. Especially when you are teaching several grades. All materials, such as art supplies, science experiments, etc. also come out of the parent's pockets.

So far I've done the complete school curriculum sets. I've done the mix and match of curriculum. The latter works for our family better than the former. I'm thinking this summer, as I organize all our school materials, I may realize that I have enough to put together our own curriculum for the year, supplemented with books from the library. I have some fun books (like a history book based solely on the Little House Series books). I have a home economics book that is popular among homeschoolers. Both bought at thrift stores for under $1. I have Alice and Jerry readers. Piles of workbooks. Plenty of chapter books. Art supplies. School supplies. I'm excited to set aside a day or two to go through our school items and come up with a lesson plan to meet our needs for the year...and possibly save hundreds of dollars in the process as well as use up the items we have on hand.

I'll highlight what I've come up with later this summer, but given that the beginning of the school year starts just a little over two months from now I need to get on it, because if I do need to order a few pieces to complete the year then they will need to be ordered soon.

A homeschooling mama's work is never done! 

Nature Heals

The past few months my face has broken out horribly, especially on the chin area. I don't know if it's stress, hormones, bad eating, the heat, or a combination of it all. But it was bad. 

I tried everything in my cabinets. Acne spot cream, the generic form of ProActive, face masks, and more. Nothing worked. My face just got dry and peeled, along with more acne and more redness. This is embarrassing at the age of 32! All those products used to work for me but not this time.

Then I remembered the homemade deodorant in the cupboard.

 Tea tree oil and coconut oil are both powerful antiseptics and healing oils as well. I started to apply this to my face in place of all the other creams and within just a few days I noticed a drastic difference. It's been close to two weeks now and I haven't had new breakouts and the old ones are healing and close to gone! I could do without the baking soda in it (my next batch, solely for the face, with be just the tea tree and coconut oils).

A simple, cost effective beauty routine! If you don't have a source for tea tree oil or coconut oil a good place for both is Swanson Vitamins. I just restocked my supplement and medicine cabinets with several items from there and have always been happy with my orders (as well as the prices!). Use this link for $5 off your first order!  
 

Wall Art

A month ago I bought two cute little quilt blocks at a garage sale. I think I paid a whole 15 cents for the both of them.

I had plans to make pillows with them. 

But my plans quickly changed with I decided to make some wall art with them instead. I just taped them to the wall and added some washi tape as stems and leaves. They bloom next to Amy's toddler bed and add lots of whimsy and color to her corner of the world. :)