What to do when it rains...

So today started a LONG weekend for us.  Big E is off of school today, tomorrow and Monday.  Of course today its windy, cold and rainy!  So what to do with two active, crazy boys on a windy, cold, and rainy day...watch Star Wars movies!  But when mom can't take any more Star Wars, then what do we do?  We break out the games!  My kids are not really big board game kids, but we try!  We did play a rousing game of Slap Jack, but I couldn't really remember all of the rules so we just made some up!  Then I found a puzzle of the United States, that we hadn't done in a long time.  Big E loves to do puzzles, but Little N gets bored easily and finds them difficult.  So while Big E and I worked on the puzzle Little N decided to get the cards out again and play with them.  So wonderful!  When we had finished the puzzle of the United States, we talked about our state, the state we will be visiting for Thanksgiving and then the state that their Nana and Papa live.  That was a great geography lesson.  Even Little N got interested in it.  He was very excited to see where Nana and Papa live on the map.  It was also really fun to talk about the states that we will be driving through to see our cousins (my brother and his family).

Last night we were cleaning out some drawers and found some Highlights magazines.  These are the Highlights that talk about the United States.  There is one book for each state and we have about half of the states at this point (maybe more).  So we decided to take with us on our trip some of the ones of the states that we will be driving through.  I think this will be lots of fun for Big E, to be able to check out some of the facts about these states while we are driving through them. 

Over the past few days I have been doing some research on homemade laundry detergent.  In hopes to save us some much needed cash!  I was amazed at how much information I have found, and how cheap those ingredients are!  I went to Wal-Mart today and spent a little less than $8 and got everything I needed to make my own laundry detergent, cloth diaper detergent, and dishwasher detergent. I was a little worried that I wouldn't be able to find what I needed at Wal-Mart but I found everything in the same isle and right by each other!!  Score!!   I just did laundry yesterday, so I didn't have any of our clothes to wash, but I did have some cloth diapers to wash.  So ran some through using the homemade detergent.  They seem to have come out clean and smelling fresh!   Now we just have to see if they irritate our skin or if they are ok!  So below I have included the recipes for the detergents that I found, I will also include the links to the websites that I found them at.

Laundry Detergent:
2 Cups Fels Naptha Soap (finely grated, you could also try Ivory)
1 Cup Arm and Hammer Super Washing Soda
1 Cup Borax

Mix well with a spoon and store in an air tight container.
Use 2 Tbs. per load

Cloth Diaper Detergent:
Same recipe as above
1 Tbs. per load for a light load
2 Tbs. per load for a heavily soiled load

Dishwasher Detergent: I found two different recipes for this one, but I am just trying one this time.
Recipe #1
1 cup Arm and Hammer Super Washing Soda
1 cup Borax

Recipe #2
1 Cup Baking Soda
1 Cup Borax

For the recipes above mix thoroughly and store in a plastic container, use approximately 2 Tbs. per load. Use vinegar in the rinse compartment as a rinse agent to help prevent residue.  You also need to be sure to use the vinegar for every load of dishes.

A tip they gave on the website was to add a few drops of liquid dishwashing soap to the powder compartment when you add the powder.  They also suggested cutting back the amount of soap used, if you are using 2 Tbs., try using 1-1 1/2 Tbs per load. 

**Disclosure-I have only tried the laundry soap on my cloth diapers, I have not tried the dishwasher detergent or the laundry soap on our clothes.  Please do your own research and know that it will take a lot of trial and error to find the right combination for you and your type of water.**

UPDATE: (September 2012)
I have recently stopped using the dishwasher detergent because it left quite a funny taste on our dishes, so I didn't think that was  good thing!

I have also switched to a different laundry soap, this recipe is easier than the other one and makes more.  I am only making it once every month and a half instead of every week or so.  Here is the recipe (which is not my own, but I can't remember where I found it!)

Cloth Diaper/ Clothes Laundry Soap

1 55 oz. box of Arm and Hammer Super Washing Soda
1/2 cup Mule Team Borax
2 Cups Oxygen Cleaner- Sun is recommended
1/2 cup Simple Green
1/2 cup Calgon Water Softening Powder (I have never been able to find the powder, so I use the liquid and it works just fine)

Dump all ingredients in to a bucket (I use a 5 gallon one) and mix together with your hands (I use a big wooden spoon). You need to let it air dry for about a half hour and come back to stir it and loosen up any clumps that might have formed.  I then let it dry a bit more for about another 15-30 minutes and stir again.  After it is dry and few clumps are left I pour into an air tight container and store in my laundry area.   Use 1 1/2 tablespoons for diapers, 2-3 tablespoons for clothes.