Some smart homemaking blogs I love:

Below is the link to a couple websites that I have learned so much from.

 It all started a few years ago when I wanted to make homemade yogurt.  I Googled it and found this lady.  She has a lot of kids, and a lot of money saving homemaking tips.  I love learning this stuff.  From her site I learned about Nourishing Traditions, a cookbook of how and why food was cooked the way it was in the past.  Sally Fallon is the author, she promotes grass-fed meats and food fats, while giving a good argument against sugar and white flour. 

Last month I made homemade laundry detergent.  The stuff is awesome and so cheap.  Someone figured it about .71 cents per 2 gallons.  I make it in the powder form, my HE washing machine only uses 1 Tablespoon per load  (I spent about 10.00 to make a huge amount that will prob last at least 6 months if not longer).  It took a little getting used to, but I love the smell of Fels Naptha (one of the 3 ingredients).  I use vinegar in the rinse, and the sun to dry the clothes.  I actually don't hate laundry as much as I used to, it makes me feel like I am saving and being efficient.

Next on my list is homemade toothpaste.  The little girls brush their teeth a lot and love toothpaste.  When I read the label I am not comfortable with this.  I found a recipe which uses coconut oil, baking soda, and peppermint essential oil.  All common ingredients at our house.  I just need a good way to dispense it.  The funny thing is that I saw a recipe for homemade deodorant using these same ingredients. The other website is where I saw the deodorant recipe, she also has a cool lip balm recipe I would love to try. 

My favorite thing about the internet how much stuff you can learn from other people.  Its like having a really smart grandmother-teacher at the tip of your fingers....

http://homesteadinghomemaker.blogspot.com/
http://doublenickelfarm.blogspot.com/

A big thank you to the ladies from the above blogs and all the others who share there wonderful homemaking knowledge with us!

Cleaning ladies

This is what we call getting carried away with cleaning product......The Mrs. Meyers was gone, so we refilled with water.  Don't tell the cleaning ladies this please.

A little adjusting.

Here, let me help.

Pajamas, the preferred cleaning uniform at our house.

Should we do inside these drawers?

And they take there job very seriously!

If only everyone in my house liked cleaning this much!

Ranch Kitchen

Fall kitchen table, hubby made this table last year, its about 10 feet long.  He did use a salvage piece from an old army mess table, it is gorgeous old walnut.  I still need a really cool paint job on the bottom.  I may join the chalk paint craze.  Found the bench last month.  I used to have white chairs around it, but the look was congested (but would love bistro chairs like Dreamy Whites).  I wish I didn't have anything on the counters, but that's too inconvenient because you have to like um cook in the kitchen.  Too bad.

(needs pretty chandelier here)

Also, there is just something about this kitchen.  It is never clean.  I clean it but it doesn't stay clean for more than a minute.  What is the problem?  Bad Feng Shui?  I need a solution.  Ideas out there anyone?  Oh, I almost forgot, I am painting the cabinets white.  They have a really truly ugly cream on them, almost a yellow.  This kitchen gets BLASTED with light.  I love the white, just need to finish it.