In a pinch, make your own dishwasher soap

I try to wait until I have a full load to run the dishwasher.  That usually happens every few days.  But I frequently fail to coordinate that with having enough dishwasher soap on hand.  So then I have to go out and get some, which can be annoying.  I could stock up, but that would be too simple. :-0

So I found a recipe online one day when I ran out and discovered that you can use Arm & Hammer Washing Soda, which I also use in making homemade laundry detergent, baking soda (for the grease) and lemon juice (to clean the spots off of glass) to make a very good dishwasher soap.  It works too!

Who knew? How to make your own lavender liquid castile soap

I have been a fan of Dr. Bronner's soaps for as long as I can recall. The fragrances are refreshing and wonderful.  The soap is versatile -- I use it as shampoo, for dishes, as handsoap of course, and just about anything else I can think of.

But it isn't cheap, especially when you use a lot of it.

So I began to wonder, more as an exercise in logic than as a necessity, if it would be possible to make my own version of this. The lavender scent is my favorite most of the time, so I focused on that.

Lo-and-behold, there are recipes online that can show you how to make castile soap, no less, as well as how to make liquid castile soap from a bar.  I didn't feel quite ready to tackle making the soap itself, but I remembered buying bars of Kirk's castile soap some time ago.  They sell for about $1 a bar, as opposed to a bar of Dr. Bronners which costs about $5.

So I went to Cub and bought 3 bars of Kirk's soap for about $3.  I shaved about a third of a bar and then put the shavings in a washed out bottle of a sport drink.   I filled the bottle with water and let it sit.  I turned the bottle upside down once a day.  In about five days the mixture was the consistency of liquid castile soap.  I then added a few drops of lavender oil, and voila...

And it smells almost as good as Dr. Bronners!

Make your own designer vaseline products...

Guess what?  I thought I had to buy Vicks or Mentholatum to have something to comfort my family and me when beset by a cold or coughs.  Not so.  Get some regular vaseline and add eucalyptus oil to it.  It smells wonderful and is very inexpensive.  You can also add a touch of a cherry oil if you like, for the wonderful cherry-vicks aroma.

I also happen to like baby powder aroma vaseline.  Don't have to buy that either.  Buy some inexpensive baby powder scented oil on ebay or wherever and add it to regular vaseline.  Ta-da....

Also, just guess what one of the secrets of the old movie legends was?  I got this straight from something attributed to Lena Horne, who happens to be one of my favs and lived to a ripe old age with glorious skin.  Vaseline!  You don't have to spend a fortune on the skin products that blur lines etc.  Just apply a bit of vaseline to your cheeks.  Not that they don't work -- they do; just that there is a cheap alternative.  Also, when I sit in a sauna or hot tub guess what goes on my face to moisturize it?  Yup.  Vaseline...

Love the stuff...

The Jockey Diet -- why it is such a good name!

When I started working with horses in 2008 at a therapeutic riding center in Minnetonka, I began to realize what good exercise horses can be -- not just riding them, but catching them and turning them out, feeding them (especially in the bitter winter), and, of course, tacking and untacking them --particularly throwing heavy Western saddles in an unheated arena in the five or ten minutes between therapeutic riding classes.

I realized that my appetite for junk food was becoming lessened and my interest in food that gives one strength and energy increased.  I also got in touch once again with my childhood dream of becoming a jockey -- which ended when I grew five inches in one year and towered over most of the boys in my grade school class!  Despite the challenges my height placed on my dream (not to mention not having a horse or having any experience riding the racing seat) I have continued in awe and admiration of those amazing 'bug boys -- and girls!" who do live it.  They are weighed before and after each race.  They have to maintain a weight under the weight they might be asked to carry in different races.  Every bite of food they eat must of necessity give them as much energy and stamina as possible.  Why can't at least I eat like a jockey, I began to ask myself?

So I devised a diet that consists of (1) morning oatmeal (usually) or other hot cereal in winter.  I add dried fruit and nuts, sunflower seeds while cooking.  On occassion I make muesli (cheaper than buying), which is typically dry oatmeal with slivered or sliced almonds, dried apricots and raisens, plus shaved fresh apple.  I eat these things with yogurt usually, and add fresh berries.

Then, for lunch, I make a smoothie with protein powder, banana, soy milk and ice.  This gives me energy for the afternoon and manages to control my appetite as well.  (Yoga also helps with suppressing the appetite -- and of course, horseback riding makes you forget about food altogether!).

Before going to the barn (these days to ride and take care of my own horse!) I usually eat a snack including peanut butter, sometimes motzah, and some fruit.  I take snacks with me, including hummus and baby carrots, which pack a lot of energy and fill you up, and trail mix made of raisen bran and whatever seeds and nuts plus a sprinkling of candy, such as M&M's or jelly beans or chocolate covered raisens.

In the evening, I will try to eat a regular meal, focusing on veggies and protein, but not denying myself anything that I want.

But nobody is perfect.  And after I ride or exercise, if I don't have enough good food I will eat whatever I can find -- usually cookies!  Not good.  But that brings me to my insight -- the Jockey Diet works not only because it gives one the food regulation (for those of us who, when stumped by too many choices, will just eat too much) and appetite suppression -- but when you fall off of it, you do just what a jockey does, and climb right back on!

Getting the Most out of Your Citrus...you'll be surprised...

I have come upon something that works really well for me, and helps with the long Minnesota winters when one can not get enough citrus.  I take lemons and limes already squeezed of their juice and let them sit in a pitcher of cold water in the fridge.  Orange and grapefruit work too.  This releases the oils of the skins as well as the rest of the juice and gives the water a lovely citrus flavor.  It has to be good for us.  In addition, water that has sat for a while does not have fleuride, as that is supposed to evaporate.  I use this citrus water alone as a free alternative to Perrier, or in making frozen orange juice.  Yum...

How to stop smoking when all else fails

I experienced a miracle some years ago. Every time I talk to someone about it, they say, you must have this published. Everyone needs to know about this....

I was unable to completely quit smoking, even though once I had stopped for nearly three years. The smell of the smoke always brought me back; usually a Gitaine French cigarette, or a Galois, that have the most aromatic smoke. So I cut myself back to just one cigarette a day, in the evening. My husband and I would stand out on our deck, no matter what the weather, and have a smoke before turning in for the night.

All my attempts to quit completely failed, so I stopped asking God for help and forgot all about it. Until I came down with a nasty sinus infection. I have been prone to them all my adult life, and know that if I go to see the doctor, I'm probably going to end up drugged out on prescriptions meds and still feel lousy. I wanted something 'natural'. A friend of mine told me about the neti bowl concept -- it seemed like fun. They said it was ok to use a baby bulb (a new one, of course), and to add canning and pickling salt and baking soda to water as hot as you could stand it. I didn't really measure correctly (1/4 tsp of each) and ended up with a strong mixture. As I shot it up my nostrils with the baby bulb I remember feeling as carefree as I had as a child swimming in the Long Island Sound. It felt great.

But the mixture was too strong, and for the next few days I had brown chunks of stuff coming out of my sinuses. It was really odd. But I kept feeling better. But when I went outside at night to smoke my daily cigarette I became terribly nauseus at the smell of the smoke. It was unbelievable. God had answered my prayer when I wasn't even looking.

It took me a few days to realize what had happened. For months after that, I kept expecting cigarette smoke to smell good again. But it never has. That was about eight years ago.

Frugal fashion -- the new 'black' is ... BLACK!

If you are trying to dress yourself on a tight budget, think black. You can buy one black skirt, or pair of pants, and wear it repeatedly, if necessary. Very little of styling really shows with black, so it can be repeatable if needed. Anything goes with black. Any top, any sweater, any jacket, will work just fine with black. You can accessorize an all-black outfit with simply a scarf that you like. Black is always fashionable. It is understated and can be formal. Black is a validating color, too. If you are not feeling rich, or thin, wear black. You'll be surprised how that will enhance your mood. Remember not to skimp on make-up, though; as black around the face tends to wash color, so add a bright (red) lipstick and some black mascara, and you will look terrific.