The Superbowl, Editing & My Toe

So, as I'm sure you well know, the Patriots lost the Superbowl.  It was sad.  They did not play well.  And in case you are wondering, I WAS cheering for the Patriots (they are my husband's team after all)- and as long as they aren't playing the Packers I will cheer for them.  But it didn't help.  And it wasn't a pretty scene around here...Joe was not impressed that they lost to the Giants again...in much the same way that it was the Giants again that essentially knocked us out of a Superbowl with the Patriots.  Maybe it was just the Lord trying to protect our marriage!:)

And while the game may not have been super enjoyable to watch (at least the end was painful) we did have a great time celebrating the big game at our friend's house- and enjoying the incredible spread of food that Steph put on!

And on that note....I snapped this picture while in the process of taking another picture of the football cupcakes I made for the party.  Isn't she beautiful?

The picture is SOOC (straight out of the camera)- with no editing.

But...right now I'm taking an online photography editing class (it was my Christmas gift from my parents).  I am enjoying the class and learning a lot, but it's sort of kicking my butt (in a mostly good way, but most of the time I feel like I have steam coming out my ears)!  So, here is the edit I did of this picture last night for my class...

And here's one more I did for the class...the picture is of the road going down Cadillac Mountain in Acadia National Park (which, by the way, is incredibly fun to bike down)...it's a more subtle edit.

SOOC

Final (subtle) edit

And as I sit here posting these photos I have my feet up.  That's because I had toenail "surgery" this morning.  The doctor said it went well, but it sure wasn't very pretty (though towards the end even I was able to watch a bit).  The worst of it was the nerve block in my toe- I was thankful for it but it hurt more than I was expecting.  And now I'm just nervously waiting for the nerve block to totally wear off!  I am happy that it's over and hopeful that this will be the last of it and I'll be totally back on my feet very soon.  In the meantime Joe is taking good care of me and the kids (even managing to make some homemade bread while he's at it)!  Happy weekend...I'm going to sit here and rest some more!

Nifty & Thrifty in 2012: Laundry Time!

As you can see from the picture above my laundry "system" was non-existent.  In fact, the corner of our basement devoted to laundry was a total disaster (to match the rest of our basement).  It's a small thing, but I knew that if I could get organized that I could probably save us a little bit of money in our pusuit of clean clothes!:)  Thank you so much to those of you who sent me messages, emails, and comments on Facebook to let me know of all your money saving laundry tips.  I couldn't help but smile every time I got one of them!  So now I want to share the wealth.  I'm not using every one of these tips yet, but here are some of the great ways that I have found (or you have found for me) to save a little bit of money on laundry:

Get Organized:  The very first thing I did was to get organized.  That meant doing A LOT of laundry and finally catching up on the many piles I had going on (I had things that had been waiting a very long time to be washed).  Then I cleaned the whole area, cleaned the machines, and got everything ready.  Now it might be very far from my dream "laundry room" but for now this little nook in my basement (with old machines and random laundry baskets) will have to do.
Less Laundry To Do:  Let's face it, no matter what I do there is always a lot of laundry to be done.  Some days it feels like Eli goes through at least 3 outfits!  The laundry pile just builds and builds.  But I've started to cut back on that pile just a little bit.  Now instead of just automatically throwing the days clothes in the laundry (or picking them up off the floor 2 days later and throwing it in the laundry) I am inspecting them all at the end of day to see if any of them can be worn again.  And I'm not ashamed to say that we are trying to get as much wear out of our clothes as possible.  So if you see one of us in the same clothes you saw us in the day before don't be alarmed, we're just trying to save money!:)  And it's working- it really is cutting back on the laundry mass.  In the past the kids used to wear a new pair of pajamas pretty much every night, but now most of the time I can get at least two wearings out of a pair for Eli and more for Lily.  And the other day I was able to save Eli's whole outfit to be worn another day...crazy!  Now that's not normal, but for that day it was great!  And Joe and I are making the same effort with our clothing...and it's working!
Sorting:  Okay, I confess that I really wasn't a laundry sorter before.  Colors, whites...everything just got thrown in together as I grabbed it and away I went. Now I am sorting them into four baskets: whites, fleece and other lightweight fabric, items that can be washed in cold water, and items that I think need to be washed in warm water.  This is helping me because...
Cold Water Works:  I read that much of the cost of doing laundry comes from heating the water.  Back before we had kids I did most of our laundry in cold water, but since having the little ones I sort of got in the habit of washing everything in warm water (because that seemed to help get their very messy clothes clean).  But now that I am actually sorting our clothes I can determine which clothes really need to be washed in warm water and everything else (about 3 out of 4 loads) is being washed in cold water!
Homemade Detergent:  And really this is where it all started for me.  I was intrigued by the idea of making my own laundry detergent which got me wondering if there were other ways to save money doing laundry.  So with the help of my mom I have started making my own detergent.  Here's what I'm using:
2cups Borax
2cups Washing Soda
16oz shredded laundry soap (my mom is a soap maker and I am using hers)
Mix and store in a container and use between 1-3TBSP per wash (I've been using 2 level tablespoons)
So far I am really enjoying the homemade laundry detergent.  It seems to be getting our clothes clean just fine.  The only problem I've been having is that when I wash in cold water it tends to leave a few little white balls on our clothes (I think it's from the laundry soap).  It all seems to shake off in the dryer just fine so I don't think it's too much of a problem, but I'm trying to figure out how to solve it (so I get the most out of my homemade detergent rather than leaving little bits of it on our clohtes).  If any of you have any advice on this I would love to hear it.
Also, this is another, very similar, recipe I have heard that many use for homemade laundry detergent (in case your mom doesn't happen to be a soap maker):
1 bar Fels Naptha Soap- grated
1 cup Borax
1 cup Washing Soda
Mix and store in a container.
Hold The Dryer:  I knew that one of the biggest ways I could save a few bucks doing laundry would be to cut way back on how much I use our dryer.  During the warm summer months I do hang some of our laundry to dry out on our laundry line, but the rest of the year (and even somewhat during the summer) our dyer is going full speed.  I knew that had to change.  And it has!!!  I never really thought that I could dry laundry indoors on a line during the winter, much less in our basement, but I am!

Joe hung up a few rows of hooks in our basement ceiling so that I could hang clothes to dry.

And he hung a line in the basement so that I can hang small things like socks and rags.  Isn't my husband great?  But anyway...

Since our basement isn't heated I assumed that it would take forever for clothes to dry down there and I really expected that I would line dry maybe one out of every 4 loads.  But actually it's been working much better than that...most loads take about a day to dry.  I also separate out my fleece and other quick dry fabrics into one load and those usually take much less than a day to dry.  In a week and a half I have only put one load of laundry in the dryer for the full time- incredible!  Everything else I hang dry for a day or so and then toss in the dryer for about 15 minutes to soften and remove a few wrinkles.

Lint:  Even though I am using the dryer a lot less I am making it a point to empty the lint tray every other load...I've heard that this helps the machine run better (and maybe saves a penny or two in the process).  Not a big saver, but hey- everything adds up!

Fabric Softner:  I haven't tried any of these ideas yet (because I'm still trying to use up a box of fabric softner sheets we have), but when I do I plan on replacing those sheets with a homemade fabric softner:

Put 1/8th to 1/4th cup white vinegar in a Downy Ball (or add to your rince cycle) and add a few drops of essential oil.  Add to your wash. 

I'm going to try this one first, but another one I found is:

Mix 6c Hot Water with 2c Suave Refreshing Waterfall Conditioner

Add 3c Vinegar.

Put about 2TBSP in a downy ball or add to your rince cycle.

You could also use a mixture like this and make your own fabric softner sheets.  Just cut up some old fabric into squares and layer them in a used diaper wipe container.  Cover with the homemade fabric softner and let soak.  Throw one in with each load in the dryer.  And you can reuse them over and over again by re-soaking! 

Ban the Static:  We live in Maine and in the winter the static is INSANE.  Part of this is because we have a wood stove in our living room than runs almost all of the time during the fall/winter/spring.  It makes for some pretty dry air and tons of static in our clothes.  Drying my clothes on the line and not in the dryer the whole time is helping with this, but it's not enough.  I'm hoping that the homemade fabric softner will also help with this.  But I'm not stopping there.  As soon as the dryer sheets run out I'm planning to pin safety pins to a couple of old (missing their match) socks and throw about 3 of them in with each load of laundry in the dryer (even if it's just 15 minutes).  I've heard that this cuts the static charge and works really amazing.  I've also heard that balling up some tin foil and throwing it in the dryer does the same thing.  And finally, I've learned that wool dryer balls also really help with fabric softning and removing static (you can buy them online or make your own by felting wool into a ball).  I'm going to start with the socks and move from there!

So, I know that this might seems like a lot, but I have been slowly incorporating some of these tips over the last couple of weeks and really in the end it isn't a whole lot more work.  I also know that in the end it isn't going to add up to big money, but I'm really looking for lots of small changes that we can incorporate and really make part of our daily life.  It makes me feel so good to know that I'm doing my part to be wise with the way we spend what God has given us.  I want to be a good steward of all of our resources...even if it just starts with laundry!:)  So there you go....I hope that this might give you an idea or two (and if you have any more please feel free to continue to share).  Time to do some laundry!:)



Making the most of this winter...

As you know, I really love snow.  And thus it's been sort of a sad winter for me.  But over the last year I have really been feeling God call me to live a life of joy.  And that means choosing joy each day...even if I don't really enjoy the circumstances (whether that be something especially hard or something very quite little like not having much snow during the winter)!  So, we are choosing to make the most of this winter.  What is there to do outside in the cold, you might ask, without snow?  Well, we've learned that cold, snow-less weather is perfect for ice skating!  And actually I have to say that this worked out quite well since we were wanting to teach Lily to ice skate this winter anyway!  So shortly after Christmas we got Lily skates and Joe built her the skate-training-device thing you see in the pictures.  This was her first time skating and we had a blast.  We invited some friends and the conditions were absolutely incredible.  I've never skated outdoors on ice so perfect- and the creaking sounds the ice made from freezing were unreal (an older couple out skating said they had never heard the ice so loud in all of their lives)!  Once though the ice cracked right under me- it didn't split and it wasn't dangerous, but it was a little scary none-the-less!  Eli wasn't quite ready for skates but Joe fashioned some cleats onto the bottom of his boots and his did quite well with them (he even shuffled along like he thought he was skating)!  And it turns out that we may have a little hockey player on our hands- Eli really loved trying to hit the ice with the hockey stick!  Joe took the kids out once since then, but I think that we need to go at least a few more times this winter!

An Update and Cookie Dough

So, it appears that our little man shares our fondness for cookie dough!  Life is slowly returning to normal around here...and with it comes some baking and cookie dough...and Eli wasted no time making his way over to the mixer when I left it unattended!:)

Happily we seem to be on the mend.  Eli still has some gunk in his chest, but little by little it seems to be improving and it doesn't seem to bother him much anymore.  We are now just nebulizing him as needed (maybe every other day at this point). 

I have been feeling much better since about Tuesday.  I went to the doctor yesterday and my ear infection is almost all cleared up (just a bit red and still a bit congested)- hopefully a few more days and that will be all gone.  I am OFF antibiotics for the first time in a few weeks and that is very nice.  The bummer is that my poor little toe isn't doing quite as well.  I am schedule to have part of the toe nail removed (as in cut out) next Friday morning.  Fun times.  Anytime they have to use a nerve block it just doesn't seem like a good thing.  But hopefully that will take care of the problem and I can start using P90X with my hubby like I promised before just walking around became painful!:) 

Yep, I think we are on the mend (and now I wish I had some cookie dough on hand)!

Sick Daysssssss

These pics of Eli enjoying a snack while watching one of his favorite PBS shows (Curious George I believe) pretty much summarizes our last two weeks.  Eli I are still sick.  Still.  Ironically Eli went for his "well child" checkup a few days ago right about the time he took another turn for the worse.  He sounded just awful that day and sure enough the doctor confirmed that he had a lot of junk in his chest- so much that his oxygen levels were at 94%- no good.  Generally you want oxygen levels to be between 100%-98% and at around 90% (I believe) is where you would need supplemental oxygen.  So, Eli was somewhere in the middle (not needing to be hospitalized, but not good).  Thankfully he responds very well to his nebulizer treatments and we have been doing them daily ever since.  He is thankfully already sounding much better but Eli and I just can't quite seem to shake this darn virus.  And thus there has been a lot of laying around and watching train videos and Curious George (and he is mostly in pretty good spirits as you can see)!  We sure would appreciate your prayers that we might get well very soon.

Head to Toe

Some of you might remember that last summer my big toenail was ripped off while playing with the kids- it was horrible!  Well, ever since then the nail has been growing back pretty nicely until a few weeks ago.  Now the nail is ingrown and it got quite bad while I was away at our winter conference.  I waited until I got back to have it taken care of so that I could see my doctor and by that time it was pretty badly infected.  I'll spare you the details, but it's not a pretty picture.  I've been on antibiotics for about 10 days now and the doctor is just waiting until all the swelling is down to determine whether they will have to remove the whole nail to fix the problem (please pray that it doesn't come to this- I have no desire for the pain or the expense)!  So there's that....then a little over a week ago all four of us got sick with a nasty cold/flu/virus like thing. It started with Lily (and apparently a third of the other kids in her class) and spread to the rest of us.  The big bummer was that Joe was in Florida during all of last week while we were all sick.  It's not very common for him to leave us for that long, but he had some important meetings there for our Lifelines ministry (which went incredibly well, by the way)!  While I'm thrilled that the meetings went so well it was really hard being home alone with two sick kids while feeling quite sick myself.  Joe's mom came up to help for two days and that was an incredible blessing (and allowed me a little extra rest) and the rest of the week I just muddled through (and watched a lot of PBS with the kids)!  Thankfully Joe is back and most everyone is on the mend though they are still a bit worn out with coughs and runny noses.  I, on the other hand, am not fairing quite as well.  There was a day or two in there where I thought I was getting a bit better, but now it's worse again.  In fact, about an hour after Joe got home my ear promptly filled up and became very painful- and I woke the next day to a very congested right side of my face.  I was certain I had a sinus infection and while I still think there might be some of that going on the doctor tells me that I actually have a nasty ear infection. Did you know that adults can get ear infections?  Well, they can- and I have a doosy.  So now I'm on a much stronger antibiotic that will hopefully knock out everything.  In the meantime I am quite literally a walking head to toe infection.  Good times.

Bowling

With the cold, snow less winter upon us we have rediscovered our love for bowling!  Seriously though, did you know that I "won" our first date beating Joe at bowling?  It's a true story, but I'll save that for another time!:)  Somehow though we didn't bowl at all last winter so this outing was Eli's very first time bowling!  And he loved it.  He started off wildly tossing the ball down the alley, but after a while took a totally different approach and started rolling it incredibly gently (as in it would take 3 minutes to make it all the way down)!:)  Either was he was pretty adorable.  And Lily might have loved it even more (and yes, you might be able to tell from the last picture that she did technically beat me)!  It wasn't really my best game, but it was hard not to have fun with Lily jumping for joy with nearly every pin she knocked over!  And after this outing we also decided to spend our New Years Eve bowling (and we were literally the only ones there).  Happy Bowling!