So fresh and so clean

Bug has been having trouble with Excema lately. At least, that’s what we think it is. The patches on his skin are barely visible but he scratches all the time. It’s been a busy few weeks with Little Bear turning three but some initial research on Google led me to find some articles indicating detergent as a leading cause of skin trouble.

Unfortunately, a little more research illuminated an important, yet discouraging, point.

1. Detergent is in everything. Literally.

2. “Detergent” is not just one ingredient.

3. People use the word “detergent” when they don’t actually mean it AND

4. Not everything that has detergent in it is labeled detergent.

Again, I haven’t done a ton of research on this but while I did, I came up with two laundry options that are both detergent free.

One is Zote soap flakes. They can be found at Wal Mart and are about $2.60/box (at least that’s what they are here). Several washes with this and several wash cycles with no soap left both clothes and cloth diapers smelling, well, like clothes. Even the diapers were totally fresh. I was initially a little worried because they have quite a strong citronella smell out of the box but it dissipated by the time the clothes were out of the dryer.

When I had a tiny bit more time on my hands, I followed this recipe from “Nature’s Nurture” for making my own laundry soap. This is an awesome blog but once again, the author is using the word “detergent” for something that is, finally, not actually “detergent.” Which is great for me! Anyway, it was easy to make, other than the fact that my arm got tired after grating the bar of soap (that’s a little bit sad, isn’t it). Also, all of the ingredients could be found at Wal Mart.

Now, I do want to note here that I am not in love with that specific store BUT my husband and I work full time and it was important to me to be able to find things locally. The ingredients used added up to probably less than $8.00 but I don’t remember exactly.

 

In any case, the castille soap comes in packages of three so I made two batches. I actually sort of miss the smell of the Zote, though, and as a bonus, it’s already shredded, so I might use that instead next time. And as for Bug? His skin actually seems better. Of course, there’s still the detergent in shampoo, sun screen, hair products, makeup, dish soap….

…but we’re getting to that.

Big girl, big girl room

With another, even littler bear, on the way, we’ve been talking about moving Little Bear into her own room. We’ll keep the nursery the way it is and let her, I mean me, have fun decorating something from scratch. It clearly hasn’t happened yet, though, so in the meantime, her nursery is growing with her. Here are some recent pictures.

Now that little bear is potty trained, we finally got rid of the changing pad. Good thing because whoever thought it was a good idea to get a cream colored cover was an idiot (that would be me). So now her dirty clothes go up there. Socks and medicine/nail clippers, etc are stored above, along with a few diaper things that I haven’t moved elsewhere yet. The uggggly (and uncomfortable) glider is still there but I’m hoping that someone gets me a new one for baby #2.

For the closet in her big girl room, I’m thinking we’ll do one low shelf on the bottom, high enough for one of those bins. Then a bar or two all the way across, with the bottom one at least being kid height. Then maybe more shelves up high, out of her reach. I really like not having doors on the closet but as you can see, I still haven’t hemmed the curtains. That’s what summer is for, right. Some toy storage is on the shelves to the right but it’s kind of half hearted.

And then, of course, the big girl bed. She loves it and has slept all the way through almost every night since we got it. The alphabet cards are getting a little worse for the wear. This summer, once she moves out, I think I’m going to Mod Podge them onto balsa wood. I also need more on that wall but it doesn’t look so bad with the crib there. The shelf by the bed is a recent addition that I’m not sold on but, again, we’re repurposing things.

And that’s it for tonight. :)

Hurricane Little Bear

Clean rooms must mean Hurricane Little Bear is asleep and Mama has some quiet time on her hands because these rooms certainly don’t look like this during the day (and, honestly, don’t look like this some nights!).

Today I feel like I have a toddler.

New project (are you surprised?)

I partly blame Papa because he is the one that enables me on all my projects. Meanwhile, the house literally looks like a tornado hit it. But, despite my lack of time and, more importantly, sewing skills, I’ve decided to make a crib set for Little Bear. By “crib set” I mean bumper, skirt, window valance, curtains, and maybe sheets if everything else goes well. Ooh, or maybe a baby blanket… I didn’t think of that before. Anyway, this is as far as I got tonight. Pretty good, if I do say so myself!

This is the pattern I’m using:

And these are pieces of the bumper that I have cut out so far. I’m replacing the flowers in the pattern with buttons (in case the next little one is a boy) but other than that, everything is the same. I’m excited to see how it all turns out! (All the fabric is inside out… I didn’t notice that until just now!)

Of course, at the same time, I’m already planning out what her “big kid” room will look like when baby #2 comes along (not anytime soon, don’t panic). I am sort of opposed in principle to “bedroom sets” but I love love love this one from Target!

Hurricane Little Bear

Little Bear got to spend some time tonight playing in her new play corner in the family room. I say “play corner” but obviously she just spreads out wherever she feels like it! She definitely likes her new toy box, though not for it’s intended purpose as much as for it’s handy height for standing next to.

Redecorating, Target style

I’ve decided lately that my bedroom needs a facelift. When we moved in here, I decided I wanted somewhere cheerful to wake up. Light yellow walls, medium tone wood furniture, flowered bedspread, happy pictures… but since I’ve had Little Bear, I find myself needing a little less “cheerful” and a little more “relaxing.” Like a hotel room. So with some of my Christmas money I went out and bought a new bedspread set from Target. It was inexpensive, but I think it’s elegant and it will do the job. Am I grasping at straws? Maybe. Have I been overzealous with the pillows? Maybe. Now, I just need to pick some new paint, swap out some of the pictures, and add some artfully placed candles and decorations. It will be my haven, amidst all the baby clothes, board books, and plastic toys.

Ok, the carpet is still teal and the kennel is still in the corner, but it’s something, isn’t i? And for that, I am grateful.

Finally caught up.

Well here it is day three and I’ve caught up with my 365 project. I promise, I won’t talk about it all the time. However, as I said before, it is a way for me to write and photograph (two things which I enjoy doing) more often. Today’s photograph is of our family room decorated for Christmas. I have sort of a love/hate relationship with my house. We bought a foreclosure that needed a LOT of work. Mostly cosmetic things, which is what I told myself when we bought it, but we don’t have a ton of money to throw at it all at once so lots of those cosmetic things still need to be done. I know, we are trying to “live like no one else” but it’s hard sometimes, not being able to buy new furniture, carpet, landscaping etc. Anyway, Papa recently got a great deal on Craigslist for some used IKEA furniture and we were able to rearrange our family room. With the wainscoting finally up (that one wasn't put off because of a lack of money, it was because of a lack of time and energy!) and the Christmas tree decorated, I actually love the room! This is a big thing for me. I love spending time by the roaring fire, cuddling up in the (used) recliner, and watching Lily play on the floor. New furniture will come later, but for now, I’m happy.