Survival Candles

Something happened to me after I turned thirty.  The smell of all the good candles and plug-ins that I would get as gifts from my students would give me a headache.  Every single time.  We had a garage sale this summer and I sold countless numbers of Partylite and Yankee candles - since they were pretty useless in our house now with my new found reaction to the chemicals in them.  After the garage sale my husband posed the question, "So, what are we going to do when the power goes out?"

 

In steps pinterest.  I found a link to a "recipe" to make your own soy survival candles.  It sounded pretty easy, so I gathered the materials needed (thanks Amazon), and got started.

 

The original post shows Mason Jars, but he also advices that you can use old glass jars - so for a few weeks we saved old jelly, sauce, and salad dressing jars.

I soaked the jars in hot water hoping that would help with the label removal process.  The jelly jars were the WORST.  We ended up not using them.  The spaghetti sauce jars cleaned up nicely, but ended up being a pain later in the process when we tried to attach the wicks to the bottom.  (The bottom wasn't flat).  The best two jars were from salsa and our salad dressing.  Cleaned up nicely and had a nice flat bottom to attach the wick tabs to.

Here's what we needed: soy flakes, wicks (I read the comments on the original blog post and learned that you should use a thicker wick for a wider mouth jar and a thinner wick for a skinner mouth), wick tabs, and wick stickers (the original blog did not suggest these, but I found them to be helpful in keeping the wick tabs down on the jar as your pour the wax).  I choose to order a spool of wicks, because my jars were of varying heights.  All of this was found very easily on Amazon.

After reviewing the directions I realized there were no real measurements.  I love measurements.  Anyway, I just put some soy flakes into the the pot (that I got at Good Will specifically for making non-food items), and placed it on top of the boiling water (making a double boiler).  I also pulled some of our Mason Jars out to use, because I ditched the jelly jars after I could clean them off enough.  In the comments it was suggested that you warm the jars in the oven prior to pouring hot wax into them.  Our stove top gets pretty warm, so I just made sure to place the glass jars near the pots and they warmed up just fine and we didn't have any cracked glass incidents.

Then you wait for the wax to melt. It didn't take that long and here it is almost finished. The product melts down a lot, so you may think you have too many flakes, but you don't. I ended up doing this process three times to get enough wax for my jars.

 Once it's melted you'll want to pour the wax into a pouring container.  (I used a large Pyrex glass measuring jar.)  From there, slowly pour the wax into your prepared jars.  (There are no pictures of the preparation of the jars - basically, thread the wicks into the wick tabs, stick them on the bottom of the jar, and trim the wicks to fit the jar size.)  The spaghetti jars were a pain during this process because even with the wick stickers the wick tabs did not stick.  I taped pencils to the top of the wicks to help keep them centered. At this point I thought it might be fun to see if I could handle a "real" scent - so I added 4 drops of Vanilla essential oil to the littlest Mason Jar.  This candle will be kept out and not stored away for emergencies.  When you have to have candles burning for light, it's best not to use scented candles.

 

 

Then you wait.  This is what they looked like last night before I went to bed, about an hour after we poured the wax in.  They hardened up nicely - and even the two with the tricky wicks seemed to be okay.  (We'll see how they end up burning.) 

The next morning I trimmed the wicks down to 1/4 of an inch, placed the scented one in our bathroom, and put the lids on the others.  The plan is to add a book of matches to each so that we're always prepared for a power outage (at least for light)!

 

All in all this was a surprisingly easy project.  I now know which kinds of jars to save and which to just recycle (or use for some other storage).  The cost per candle is about $1.50 each - not bad for high quality soy candles - much cheaper than what you would buy them for in a store. 

 

In the future we might like to try to make candles from bees wax, but I've read that it's a pain to clean up - unlike the soy wax which washed away easily. 

Picture Day

Today was the dreaded school picture day. Well, dreaded by Quinn who claims the photographers are too bossy. (I'd have to agree. After years of working in a public school I've come to dread the directions of "turn your head a little bit to the left" "not so much" "put your chin down" "up a little" etc.etc.)

In the past (when I was working) I'd make it a point to go out and find nice new shirts for the boys for their picture day. Not this year. This year I looked in their closets and don't they just look adorable?!

Emergency Paper Towels

Liam's been feeling much better. Thank goodness. I was able to put away our one roll of paper towels we keep in the house for emergencies. Just about a year ago I stopped buying any paper towels, but then a few months after only using rags, Quinn got sick in the middle of the night making me curse my decision to be rid of all paper towels. So now we keep a roll for emergencies.

So, other than stomach bug stuff, we've survived almost an entire year using rags for our cleaning needs. Most of them are old towels or t-shirts, but I did invest in a pack of cloths meant for car detailing - those are my favorites. They're easy to wash (just don't use fabric softener), readily available, and have saved us money on paper goods.
We also switched to cloth napkins over a year ago - those just go in the wash with our dish towels. Easy peasy.

HE laundry soap

 

Awhile ago I found a recipe to make your own laundry detergent on Pinterest.  It took me a few days to gather all the ingredients needed... not everything was easily found at our grocery store, as was suggested by the original blogger.  I found Ace Hardware to have most of what I needed.  (They probably had everything... I just didn't find the baking soda.)  I changed the recipe a bit, because we have a High Efficient Washing Machine.  The original blogger suggested keeping the recipe the same and just using less, but after reading the suggestions for adding Borax, Washing Soda, or Baking Soda to HE washing machines I figured cutting back on the soap would be a good idea and then using the same amount per load.  I tested it out this weekend and we love it!  The batch made plenty of laundry soap, I was able to put the powder right into the dispenser meant for powder soap, and the clothes were not soapy after the wash (which is what happens when you use too much soap not meant for a HE washer). 

I choose a different bar of soap, because the soap she suggested had more chemicals than I would prefer.  I choose Grandma's Lye Soap - it was a bit more expensive then what she suggested, but the ingredients included lye and lard.  That's it. Another change I made to the original recipe was that I didn't use Oxyclean in the mix.  I decided to just add Oxyclean to any loads I thought needed the extra boost.  So.... here's my adapted recipe for an HE Laundry Detergent. 

 

Box of Borax (about 4 pounds)

Box of Washing Soda (about 4 pounds)

Baking Soda (about 4 pounds - I couldn't find a 4 pound box as was suggested, so I found a huge bag and used about 4 pounds of it.)

Two bars of Grandma's Lye Soap

 

Shred the soap (Mike did this and used our cheese grater.  We weren't worried about it - it's soap - simple soap - so we figured it would come clean and we wouldn't taste the soap.)

Mix all ingredients together.  This smelled wonderful and made my hands feel so soft.

You can store it however you like, Liam and I found this container and a measuring spoon meant for coffee at Target.  It works perfectly.  One tablespoon scoop per load is all you need.   

 

I'm excited to see how long our mixture lasts.  My estimated cost was $25 - and this picture shows about half of what we made. 

 

I'm not sure exactly how "green" or "organic" this is, but the waste from the boxes was all recycled and the only thing that went into the trash was the wrappers from the soap.  I feel comfortable with the ingredients - Borax, Washing Soda, and Baking Soda each only have one ingredient listed.  So - our laundry soap has only five ingredients.

 

I tested it out yesterday and am happy to report that our clothes came out of the wash smelling clean and clear of fake fragrances.  They look great too!

 

This might just be my next project.

 

Busy

I so wish I could have caught a quick nap in the car today.

I've never been the type to over-schedule my kids, or myself.  When choosing activities I'm always careful of making sure we don't try to do too much.  It seems that I just can't avoid this right now.  Between therapy appointments, doctor appointments, tests, and then the normal every day stuff that we signed up for months ago - the month of August is booked solid.

Today was one of those days. 

The boys and I left the house this morning with a picnic lunch packed - and returned briefly to leave Quinn at home with Mike while Liam and I finished up the day.

Come to think of it - we only had three things "to do" - but boy did it take a lot out of me (and Liam).

First - therapy - today was an easy day - just speech, so Quinn came along.  I'm beyond happy to report that Liam's speech therapist reported that he's making "quick progress" and she's already had to readjust a goal she just wrote for him last week.  Good news.  Very good news, in fact. 

I'm also happy to report that Quinn is content (and even happy) to have a solid hour to just sit and read a book - though he doesn't just sit - he's quite possibly the antsiest reader I've seen - but he's happy to have the time to just read and the book must have been good today because he was laughing out loud and sharing the funny stuff with me.

Then, we had a break in the day, but not enough of a break to make going home worth it, so we headed to a new-to-us park for some playtime and a picnic lunch.  (The benefits of packing a picnic lunch always outweigh the dread I have of making lunches - much cheaper than buying lunch AND much healthier than anything I could just "pick up".) 

After our picnic lunch we headed over to Chess Camp for Quinn (one of the normal things we signed up for months ago).  Liam and I made a quick trip to the grocery store and then spent the rest of the time playing at the park.

Finally, we headed home where the boys were able to veg for a bit in front of the TV until Liam and I had to leave for his doctor's appointment.

This one was with his pediatrician and was very interesting.  She shared with me that she's done a lot of research on what has happened with Liam and she truly believes the stroke was caused by the chicken pox vaccine.  We talked about a delayed schedule for this next baby.  She also told me about her own son's reaction to a vaccine just a few months ago.  He had just turned five and a week after having his vaccines started having accidents.  They did an EEG and found him to be having seizures.  These went away after about six weeks and she's traced it back to the MMR he had.  Crazy.  But nice to know she will understand our fear and cautiousness of moving forward with other vaccines.

That being said, Mike and I have also discussed looking for a different doctor.  Our doctor has always been open to our suggestions for postponing vaccines and offering natural remedies before drugs, but has never been the one to suggest anything like that.  When I saw a friend of mine the day Liam had his vaccines (four vaccines) she said, "Four!?  My pediatrician would never do four at once."  I would like a doctor that suggests things like waiting and natural remedies first.  I've been happy with a doctor that agrees with my suggestions, but I might like to have a doctor suggest things to me first.  Things I might not have thought of.

Of course now that I know the history of our doctor and she knows our history - the two of us might be able to better work together.  I think I will ask my friend for her pediatrician's number and interview him/her... just to see what's out there.

I didn't intend for this post to become one about vaccines, but I couldn't mention the doctor's appointment without mentioning what was discussed.  I am sure I will be posting more in the future about vaccines and what we've done in the past and what we'll be doing in the future.

Anyway... after the doctor's appointment Liam and I finally had some dinner and made it home in time for a bath, books, and bedtime. 

(Coming up tomorrow - Liam has an EEG to rule out any seizure activity - something that happens in some kids after a stroke.)

Great America (on a budget)

Taking a trip to Six Flags can really eat at your bank account.  Every year Quinn's school does a reading incentive program - read for six hours and earn a free ticket to Great America.  With regular ticket prices costing $62, parking $20, and kid prices at $42 - the cost to take your student to use his free ticket can really add up.
Luckily, being a teacher, I also usually earn a free ticket (for entering in the data required for my students to earn a ticket).  But still, to go I'd have to pay for parking and a ticket for Liam.  Also, this year, since I'm pregnant I knew I wouldn't be able to go on many of the rides with the boys - so we waited for a time when Mike could come with.

It could have cost us $124 just to get into the park! 

I searched online for "discount great america tickets" and found a promo code that allowed me to pay only $30 each for Liam and Mike - so it only cost us $80 to get into the park.

That's still a lot of money, but much better than over a hundred.

Anyone who has ever been to Six Flags knows that the most costly portion of the trip might not necessarily be getting into the park.  Once you're in you are bombarded with food, treats, souvenirs, drinks, games, and rides/attractions that cost extra.

The most important thing to remember when going to Great America is this - decide ahead of time that you will not be purchasing any of these items in the park.  Pack a lunch to leave in the car, snacks for a backpack, and water bottles.  This plan will only work if you explain ahead of time to the children (and the husband) that you will  not be purchasing any of the extra items in the park.

We took the boys this past Sunday and enjoyed beautiful weather.  The park got very crowded as the day went on, but we were able to hit some of our favorite rides in the first two hours with little waits.  I did break my "not buying anything" by surprising the boys with cotton candy (a very rare treat for my kids) and only because cotton candy from the zoo was promised to Liam after his angiogram, but every kiosk in the zoo was closed by the time we got there!

Liam's favorite ride was the "Scenic train" around the park and Quinn absolutely loved the Whizzer!  Both boys enjoyed the two water rides...

after Logger's run