DIY Laundry Detergent

You can save a ton of money on laundry soap.  At Sam's Club we could pay $25 for 180 loads worth of Tide but making this recipe only costs about $3 for 5 gallons!  Making it takes about 10 - 15 minutes and it's not complicated.  HERE is a video of the Duggars making their laundry soap and saving lots of money in other ways.  HERE is a thorough video of the process.

You will need these three ingredients and a 5 gallon bucket, a long stirring stick or spoon, a pot, a whisk and a measuring cup.  At Walmart each bar of Fels is $1 and the Soda and Borax might be $3 - $4 each, but you only use a little for every 5 gallon bucket.  Because the Fels is only $1, I buy a few bars so that I never run out of detergent at the last minute.

 Grate the bar of soap.  From what I understand, you can use any bar of soap.

 

 Melt down the soap in hot water on the stove over medium heat stirring constantly until no chunks remain.  If the temp is too high or you neglect to stir, then the soap will boil over.

Add diluted soap, 1/2 cup of borax & 1 cup of washing soda to a 5 gallon bucket.  Some recipes use different amounts of borax & washing soda but all are fine and good.  Fill the remainder of the bucket with hot water. If you like to add scented oils, now is probably the time to do it.

 Stir.  Place the lid on top and allow to rest overnight.

 In the morning, stir again to break up the gel-like consistency.  You're done.  I use a cup for every wash load.  I've found that it works best in hot water washes.  It works just fine with our cloth diapers and doesn't seem to irritate Shiphrah's sensitive skin.

Joseph Update: 6 Weeks

Joseph is such a cute little baby.  I've noticed he's darkened up a little bit since birth so that now he's beginning to look a little more like Moriah.  He's been smiling a lot more and now he's started cooing at me!  :-D  It's so precious; I love it!

At his one month checkup he was 9 lbs. 10 oz., a gain of 2 lbs. 10 oz., and 22 inches in length, a gain of 1.5 inches.  He's already outgrown his newborn clothes, but he doesn't quite fit into 3 months just yet.

It's a whole new adventure having a son.  The diaper changes are the most significant difference.  Instead of changing the diaper fast because I have other tasks to do, the change is now a race to see if I can finish before he pees everywhere.  :-)  He also belches identically to an adult man, deeply from the belly.  I'm excited about the other boy-ventures that may come along through the years: trucks & trains, tree-climbing, frogs & lizards, and building things with Daddy.