Not quite June Cleaver...but i'm working on it!

First off, HAPPY THURSDAY! It's almost the weekend, hooray :)

So lately i've become obsessed with saving money and making things homemade. Sadly i'm anxiously awaiting the day I run out of laundry detergent for the simple fact that I am dying to make my own. I have accumulated numerous recipes for homemade cleaners, soaps, even diaper wipes and diaper rash cream. Who knew!?!? My plan is to document in how-to form (with pictures!) my attempts at becoming the 'homemade housewife' if you will. So far I have concocted a mechanic's hand cleaner (similar to GOOP) that I gifted to my dad and father in law for father's day. Unfortunately I did not document the experiment with pictures but I assure you it turned out MUCH MUCH better that I expected--and it made my hands really clean!

Here is the recipe for the Mechanic's Hand Cleaner for those of you that are interested:

Mechanic's Hand Soap Recipe
You'll Need: 1 c. ground soap; 1 c. borax; 1-2 t. pure turpentine; 1 t. sweet orange essential oil.
To Make: With very clean hands, work the turpentine and essential oil into the borax until there are no lumps left. Work into the soap. Put in a wide-mouthed jar or tin that's easy for him to open when his hands are greasy. Gift wrap and add a nail brush as a bow!
Special thanks to Bluebird Gardens for this great recipe

*tips*
Mom and I were able to find turpentine at Michael's in the painting section, they also sell small vials of essential oils in the soap-making section. Buy two vials--I only purchased one and ended up going through mom's extracts to add a more pleasant smell (turpentine is not so pleasant!)
Purchased the Borax at Wal-Mart, along with Ivory soap that I grated with a simple kitchen grater (**coupon for Ivory soap comes out in this Sunday's paper making a 3-pack only $0.47!!)
We also picked up two small containers with easy-open lids in the kitchen section.Don't buy a container that's too big, remember each batch only yields two cups. Since it is a dry mixture and doesn't quite resemble the actual GOOP cleaner I added orange food coloring for fun. This is a quick, easy and CHEAP gift idea!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

And for those of you looking for an easy and delicious homemade recipe here are the the yummy pancakes I made for breakfast this morning. Sometimes you just want pancakes and I did not have any mix on hand, and had I realized we were almost out of syrup I probably wouldn't have made them but they were great without it! And of course I must add CHEAP!! Anyone who bakes occasionally should have all of these ingredients on hand-Thanks to AllRecipes.com

Good Old Fashioned Pancakes

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon white sugar
• 1 1/4 cups milk
• 1 egg
• 3 tablespoons butter, melted

Directions

1. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Make a well in the center and pour in the milk, egg and melted butter; mix until smooth.
2. Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium high heat. Pour or scoop the batter onto the griddle, using approximately 1/4 cup for each pancake. Brown on both sides and serve hot.

*I used a 1/2 cup for each pancake and it made 8, I also added a splash of vanilla

Well I'm off to do something a little more productive...gotta take advantage of every single minute of Mason's nap time!! If you'd like me to blog about a particular subject, leave me a comment!! I am open to any suggestions. I am currently researching solutions for my 'Homemade Clean' blog so be on the lookout! Hope everyone has a wonderful day!