Laundry Soap

I have probably mentioned that I was planning on making some homemade laundry detergent. It took me a little bit to find the ingredients but I now have success. It really is very easy to make. Took me about 15 mins to make (my very first try, so hovering over the instructions with three kids in the kitchen too).

I have been asked why I was doing this-
I replied, "oh cuz I'm cheap and poor."
"Is it really cheaper?"
"uhhh, I think so"

So I did a little math and mine comes out to (keeping in mind that I had to buy online and pay shipping -sigh) $1.24 for a bucket for 64 loads. So yes it is totally cheaper! hurray for my craziness

next up: I will attempt homemade dishwasher soap (it uses most of the same ingredients)

For anyone crazy like me who's interested here is the recipe:
ok, i'm just linking the site I used so I don't have to type it out. click here

Cuteness

I just wanted to share some pictures of the kids. So what do you all think- the boys ready for bunk beds or what? They set it up all by themselves.





This picture is a little silly, but I promised my mom a picture of my new dress and the kids just really wanted to be held.

For Lacey

Since Lacey likes videos I thought I'd toss another one up.

Our Family Life

So we've all heard the phrase a picture is worth a thousand words. well, maybe a video is worth a thousand pictures. So here is your thousand pictures:

Eek I've Been Tagged.

So my beautiful sister-in-law Camille has done a very terrible thing. You all remember the days of the rotten chain letters right? Well, today's version is to be tagged. I have been so tagged. And so you all will ask, why? why not ignore said tagging? You see I have, many many times and I've come to realize- if you can't beat them, join them. So here I go:


If I tagged you here's what you do. Post the words in all caps below and fill in info about yourself. Then, at the end you tell who you are tagging & go and tag 5 friends on their blogs. It's just a way to get to know fun little things about people.

TEN YEARS AGO......I was 14, angry at my brothers a lot (or at least my journal so tells me), muttered a swear word under my breath for the first time, and about peed my pants when the guy I had the biggest crush on asked me to dance. only to stop dancing in the middle of the song and walk away. ( ok, it wasn't really his fault, the song did sound like it was over) --- here's a big shout out to Ben Cummings- or at least the people who do know him.

FIVE PLACES I HAVE LIVED..... In order of my favorites... 1. Japan 2. North Carolina 3. California 4. Utah 5. Italy

FIVE THINGS ON MY TO DO LIST...... 1. Taxes (ok this is really something my husband needs to do, so it should really say, 1. get Frank to file tax return) 2. find the stinky diaper that one of the kids hid in the living room and throw it away- (gross i know) 3. get the mail (I haven't gotten it in a week or so) 4. clean off the table from dinner 5. do some more sit-ups so i can complain about my muscles hurting again.

I ENJOY.....reading, blogging, world of warcraft, and sex.... (well, it's true)

THREE BAD HABITS..... 1.cleaning dinner up the next morning (ok, I do try to put the food away at least, but not the dishes)
2. picking at my kids' noses and ears
3. popping husbands zits
(ok, seriously who picked this category- who on earth wanted to know that about me?)

FIVE THINGS YOU MIGHT NOT KNOW ABOUT ME.....
1. I'm really nosy (some of you may say, yes I already know that, but i mean I'm REALLY nosy, as in DO NOT Leave your journal around me- even hidden or I will read it. same goes with passwords to e-mail accounts)
2. I still get scared watching Lost and have to hold Frank's hand thru parts of it.
3. I love planning school schedules (that aren't mine)
4. I secretly think people who get epidurals are whimps. ( totally unfair to think, but i think it anyways)
5. I HATE the movie Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and if I have to watch it one more time I will
go insane......so Mom, really really don't buy that movie for my kids.

FIVE JOBS THAT I HAVE HAD..... fast food work, custodian, prep course coordinator....... all preparing me for being a mom... i still make food, i still clean up and i still coordinate everyones lives.


I am going to tag...
NOBODY -HA take that chain letter wannabe!

Three Kiddos

I finally took a picture with all three kids together. When you tell Derek to say "cheese", he thinks that means you have your hands pretend to take a picture. So that's what he's doing in this picture.

Goodbye Pres. Hinckley

As, I was sitting here reading about the life of our dear Prophet, President Hinckley with my children playing happily next to me, I felt a need to write out how grateful I am to be part of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I'm afraid I would be terrible unhappy if I didn't have it's guiding. I am very grateful of the man Pres. Hinckely is and how he dedicated so much of his life to the church. May he be blessed and loved.
I am so thankful to be a mother to these three wonderful kids. They make me smile and laugh every day. On Sunday Derek told me, "I'm very excited for some muffins." Needless to say, I made him muffins after that comment. After telling Joseph I loved him he replied with, "I love you too." Sometimes it's the smallest things that make my day. And Lorelei is just so Stinken cute she melts my heart.

Yellow and Purple

Cheese

Oh What a Christmas

We've had a most wonderful Christmas. Here's a few pictures of the last month.
You are all probably sick of these pictures of her in the swing, but I just can't get enough of her!
First smile on camera- smiling at Grandma McQuade and Daddy.
"Dad, I don't think I'm big enough for this walker"
"See, I told you."
Christmas eve we all made Gingerbread houses out of graham crackers. We had a lot of fun making them. I tried really hard to let them be as creative as they wanted. I had to bite my tongue as they dumped the sprinkles out to make piles.


Don't be fooled by Frank's poor house. He was the mastermind behind the boys houses. He helped them so I could make my own.
Ok, so this is the calendar that Frank got me. I LOVE it, but I'll admit that it isn't the most practical as the actual calendar part is only 6 inches big or so. I just really like the pictures. Frank saw how much I liked it and knew that's what i had to have. Now, if only we had found just an Orlando Bloom calendar....
Derek looks pretty somber with his Elmos. It was hard to capture his first reaction on the camera. Joseph saw it and yelled, "TWO ELMOS!" and ran to the bedroom to get the old one.
Joseph has soo many Disney Cars that he is in heaven. He played quietly by himself for over 5 hours with them.
You'll have to imagine him strutting around in this stuff. Joseph really likes to put the sword down the back of the armor- samurai style. Derek isn't into the armor quite yet- but he does really like the sword. When he gets it, Joseph runs away quickly- smart kid. Derek can be brutal with the thing.