Homemade Cleaning Products

Making my own cleaning products almost makes me excited to clean.  Almost.  I've never liked using a ton of chemicals in our home with two little ones, so making my own allows me to control exactly what is being used to get rid of germs!  It's fun to make cleaning products and much more eco-friendly, not to mention cheaper!  I've recently started making all of our own cleaners.  White vinegar is the best cleaner ever! I use it for everything!  You can make almost any type of cleaner from some basic ingredients:

--original Dawn dish detergent

--white vinegar

--washing soda

--baking soda

--Borax

That's all it takes for most cleaners!  Those are some cheap ingredients that will make tons of awesome cleaning solutions! A lot of homemade cleaners also use ammonia, but I try to avoid using that stuff.  Yuck.  The first cleaner I ever made was the bathtub/shower cleaner that I swear by.

The next time you're out, pick up a few cheap plain spray bottles from the store or do what I do and reuse those old, store-bought bottles!  I also use old, cut up t-shirts as cleaning rags because I'm crunchy like that!  Here are a few of the recipes I use to make my own tried and true cleaners:


Homemade Window Cleaner
½ t mild dish detergent
3T vinegar
2 cups water
Put all of these ingredients into a spray bottle.  Shake this up and use it just like the commercial variety.

Homemade Stain Remover

1 part baking soda
1 part hydrogen peroxide
2 parts water
Mix it all in a container to spot treat or just add straight to laundry if pre-soaking. Shake before using each time.

Homemade Fabric Softener

1 part hair conditioner
1 part white vinegar
2 parts water
Pour it all in your new fabric softener container and stir (don't shake because it will foam a little) and the mixture will thicken. Use like normal.  I use an old coffee creamer container to hold this. This is safe for HE machines because it does not create a lot of suds!

Homemade Bathtub/Shower Cleaner
White Vinegar
Original Dawn
Mix equal parts in a spray bottle.  Spray down shower/bathtub, let sit for 2 hours.  Wipe away all scum and grossness!

Dishwasher Cleaner
1 cup White Vinegar
Baking soda
Put one cup of white vinegar on the top rack of your dishwasher.  Run the dishwasher with just the cup of vinegar in it on a hot cycle.  When that is done, sprinkle  baking soda all over the bottom of the dishwasher and run another cycle.  Your dishwasher will be fresh and clean!


These are my favorite cleaners!  I plan to make our own laundry detergent once our endless supply of cheap All Free & Clear runs out that I got with coupons.  Do you make your own homemade cleaners?  Have an awesome natural cleaning tip?  Share in the comments!  I'd love to hear!

Too Attachment Parenting?!

J graduated preschool tonight.  Ohhh, there were so many tears shed.  I can't believe my big boy will be in kindergarten in a few months!  He is such a precious, wonderful child.  Why do they have to grow up so quickly?

L was with us at the graduation ceremony tonight, of course.  Someone made the comment that he's "spoiled" because he wants to be held a lot of the time and has a bit of stranger/anyone-other-than-me anxiety.  Excuse me?  L is spoiled because he loves me and wants to be cuddled up next to me?  Wow.  I didn't realize that loving my baby was a negative thing these days.  I love that L knows that he can trust me.  He's never, ever, ever "cried it out" or anything of the sort.  This has allowed for a strong, loving relationship to form between us. L knows that he can count on me if no one else in this world and I love that.  I would also like to add that he will be six months old in just a few days and he has been entirely nourished by my breastmilk.  That is pretty amazing, in my opinion. I never thought we would make it to six months.  Now I'm excited to try for a year of breastfeeding.  Breastfeeding, to me, is like an extension of the umbilical cord outside of the body.  He received his nourishment from the umbilical cord in my womb and now receives it from my milk.  That is incredibly beautiful.  I love his sweet, satisfied sighs as he eats.  When he finishes eating, he pulls off and looks up at me with those beautiful, deep brown eyes and smiles with his whole body.  It's so beautiful and wonderful.  I know his needs. I know his cries.  I know his heart.  I know everything about him and exactly how to take care of him like no one else could ever know.  If that's "spoiling" him, then so be it.  He will be a spoiled, satisfied little boy.

Love,
Supermom

How to Live on One [Modest] Income

I've had a LOT of people ask me how I am able to stay at home with my boys and how we are able to live solely on Superdad's salary.  I'm here to tell you... if you truly want to be a stay at home mom, it's completely possible if you are determined enough.  We worked very hard to make it to this point and I'm proud that we are able to set and reach goals as a family.

Here are 10 of the top changes we made so that I could stop working and we could have a second baby:
1. I coupon.  All the time.  For everything.  We never pay shelf price for anything.  I consider us to be extremely informed consumers.  We never make big purchases until we have thought them through for at least 48 hours.  We think about every purchase we make, big or small.  When something is on a great sale, I stockpile it.  Our laundry room is like a mini-drugstore filled with toothpaste, toothbrushes, soap, laundry detergent, cleaning supplies, deodorant, and a thousand other things.
2. I shop for Christmas/birthdays year-round.  When I find a good deal on something that I know someone will like, I get it and put it away for Christmas.  That way, we aren't struggling to fund Christmas and we don't usually have to run out and buy last minute birthday gifts for parties that J is invited to.
3. I call our cable/internet service providers and negotiate our rate every 6-8 months.  They always lower it when I say I'm not happy with the price and bring up the economy.  Works every time and takes 5 minutes, tops.
4. Turn up the thermostat in the summer!  Turning it up 2 degrees saves about $12 on our power bill each month.  We live in SC, so it's ridiculously hot. I turn it on 75 and we are perfectly comfortable all summer.
5. I buy tons of stuff from secondhand stores. I wish I could say that I go to yard sales every weekend and find awesome things, but I just can't get my lazy butt ready and drag our entire family out of the house that early every Saturday.  We're lucky to make it out the door by noon on Saturdays. Consignment and thrift stores are amazing. I buy almost all of the boys' clothes there and a lot of Superdad's clothes, as well as my own, when we need something. I shop for the boys like it's my job.  Superdad & I have enough clothes. :]  The nice clothes and matching clothes that the boys wear come from retail stores, but I try to keep costs to a minimum. They grow so quickly.  It's ridiculous to pay full price for their clothes.  I've also purchased and refinished furniture from thrift stores and Craigslist. Reduce, reuse, recycle!
6. Cloth diaper!  Seriously.  I've couponed and gotten disposable diapers for pretty cheap, but it's hard to have enough disposables that way.  Cloth diapering is wonderful in so many ways, for our planet and for our wallets. If we have another baby, he will be set for diapers and clothes!  I can say "he" with almost certainty.  I don't think Superdad and I are capable of producing girls.
7. I use Swagbucks to earn points towards Amazon gift cards to buy things I would never allow myself to spend money on, like my expensive hair products that I love.  Swagbucks is a search engine that you can use.  Searches randomly give you points. You can also do a daily poll, use their coupons, and complete special offers to get points.  I try to earn $25 per month in Amazon gift cards. Those are my fun money.  :]   You can sign up for Swagbucks here and find out more about the site!
8. I make a lot of our own household cleaners.  Vinegar is awesome and cheap. I plan on making our own laundry detergent once our stockpile of laundry detergent is gone.  I'll make another post solely on household cleaners soon. Promise.
9. Eat at home!  Cook your own meals!  I am a pretty fabulous cook, in my opinion.  I think a lot of the things that I cook are better than restaurant food.  :]  When we do go out, we go somewhere with specials and/or coupons.  Moe's always has a BOGO coupon in the Penny Saver here, and on Saturdays kids eat for $0.99.  Our whole family can eat for $11 on Saturday.  Winning!
10. The biggest life change that allowed us to become a one-income family was using Dave Ramsey's plan for a long time before I stopped working.  We worked hard and saved every penny and paid off debt.  The only debt we have is my car [which will be paid off soon] and our mortgage.  Dave Ramsey's plan is amazing.  I strongly suggest looking it up if you're the least bit interested in getting out of debt. With the DR plan, we are set to pay off our mortgage by 2020, twenty years ahead of schedule!


Many sacrifices have been made, but it's been totally wonderful! I don't mind being creative with our funds nearly as much as I minded working full-time and missing time with my babies.  I was totally miserable while working and I couldn't be happier now.  If you are interested in becoming a stay at home mom or even just reducing your work hours, try some of these steps.  You'll see your money multiplying and your happiness increasing every day you get closer to your goal.

Until next time...

xoxo,
Electric City Supermom