Favorite Homemade Cleaner #3: Bathroom Soap Scum Remover

For the last five years my husband and I rented a home that was built in 1969 and was mostly the original appliances/fixtures. Including a bathtub that had been converted to a shower as well. And there were dark rings in the tub that I have never been able to remove. I've tried Ajax, Comet, Total, Soft Scrub, SOS pads, Scrubbing Bubbles... nothing has ever gotten that tub white again.

Right before we moved, I was deep-cleaning the bathroom and ran across this soap scum remover recipe posted by Passionate Penny Pincher and decided to give the tub one last try.

I couldn't believe it. It worked. I called my mom. My mother-in-law. My friends. My sisters. I've cleaned toilets with it, other bathtubs, rings around sink drains... and it just keeps on surprising me by working!

Going to warn you, since it contains a lot of vinegar, it is strong. But worth the smell. Just open a window or turn on a fan. And be amazed!

Thanks, Passionate Penny Pincher!

Road Trip Food: Homemade Cereal Bars

What would a road trip be without some kind of yummy snack? So my fun "extra" to take along with us are some homemade cereal bars.

Back in the fall my husband and I were brainstorming some healthy snack options... we both love granola bars (I've loved making our own over the last year), but I have a sweet-tooth and those don't always quite meet the craving. I like the various trail mix & cereal bars, so I decided to try making some at home since I've found great deals on boxes of cereal with coupons/sales. Basically using the Rice Crispy Treat recipe on the bag (1 bag of marshmallows melted w/ 3 tablespoons of butter, mixed with 6 cups of cereal), I've come up with all kinds of combos.

Today I made a batch using Kashi's GoLean Crunch Toasted Berry Crumble (is that a long enough name, or what?). And they taste amazing... I would add a little bit more cereal next time since they are gooier than usual, but overall it was a hit. I added sprinkles on top just to make them special for the kids.

Other cereals we've used have been Cheerios Multigrain, Cheerios Multigrain with Peanut Butter, Cinnamon Toast Crunch (regular & peanut butter), Cheerios Medley something... Basically, whatever you think sounds good. Some of the things I have added (not all these at once... just a few in a combo at a time) are:

- chocolate chips
- chopped almonds/pecans
- raisins
- dried cranberries
- dried banana chips
- cinnamon
- a few tablespoons of peanut butter mixed in with the butter/marshmallows
- chocolate drizzled on top
- nuts crushed across the bottom of the pan (before the mixture is poured, so it creates a crunchy crust)

What would be some other fun additions? Do you have a good cereal bar recipe?

Road Trip Food: Homemade "Uncrustables" (Frozen PB&J Sandwiches)

After a morning on the beach and getting hot & sandy, neither preparing nor eating lunchmeat sandwiches sounds good, so instead I'm using it as a great reason to make another batch of Homemade "Uncrustables", or for those of you without kids under the age of ten, frozen peanut butter & jelly sandwiches without crusts, that thaw and are ready to eat by lunchtime

I make these probably once a month, they make such easy toddler lunches (and to be honest, mommy/daddy late night snacks) and since we are currently living with my parents during our time of transition from Ohio to Texas, I got to use her Pampered Chef Cut-N-Seal... it worked AMAZING and I have added it to my kitchen wish list. :-) Or the Wonder sandwich cutter mentioned here. Anyway, before I just cut them into squares and crimped the edges with a fork. This was a gazillion times faster and neater... Oh, and I discovered in my last batch (seriously, trial & error teaches me so much!) that it is also really easy when I use the squirt bottle of jelly...

One more day until we're on the beach! Maybe, just maybe, "mommy" is as excited to get away as the kids...

Road Trip Meal Plan (Beach Edition)

So we're getting away for 24 hours this week to have some family time and introduce our kids to the gorgeous Texas Gulf Coast... well, it's not exactly the Caribbean, but it's sandy beaches and salty water. And since I'm a native Texan, I can't wait to introduce my kids to some local spots I visited in my childhood.

Keeping this trip on the frugal side, here's the meal plan for our five meals on the road:

Breakfast #1: Homemade "Egg McMuffins" (me and my husband, Nathan) and whole wheat banana nut mini-muffins (the kids)

Lunch #1: Homemade "Uncrustables", chips, and oranges

Supper #1: Barbecue Pulled Pork sandwiches in the crockpot (warming during afternoon quiet time in the hotel), carrots & dip, homemade cereal bars

Breakfast #2: the hotel continental breakfast

Lunch #2: lunchmeat & cheese sandwiches, chips, grapes & apples (heading home after lunch)

Supper #2: DiGiorno pizza at home so we can unpack and clean up! :-)

CVS Facebook Freebie: Coupon for FREE full-size bottle of body wash

This won't last long: Head over the CVS Minute Clinic Facebook page and sign up for a FREE full-size bottle of body wash!

Thanks, Passionate Penny Pincher!

Road Trip Food: Homemade "Egg McMuffins"

We have been in a countdown the last week for our beach trip... My anxious 3yr. old son keeps asking, "Are we going to the beach now?" And today I got to tell him "Two more nights!"

We're squeezing in a 24 hr. beach trip later this week... Trying to catch some sand time before it gets blazing hot here on the Texas Gulf Coast, and before all the schools are officially let out everywhere. We're trying to make this a super-frugal trip, so I'm planning out meals and snacks to take with us.

I really, really love stopping for breakfast at McDonald's when we take road trips. But they don't have toddler-friendly breakfast items, and we could get to the beach quicker if we don't stop. Not to mention save some money. So I'm trying these Egg McMuffin sandwiches I saw on Pinterest... I tried the ones where you bake the egg in a muffin tin, then freeze, but didn't like how they tasted when they were thawed. So I'm trying  this new recipe...

I'll let you know how they turned out when we warm them up Thursday morning! For the kids, I'm packing some of their favorite banana bread mini-muffins... I know those will be a hit!

Favorite Homemade Cleaner #2.5: "Little Helper" Cleaner

If you have a little toddler who likes to "help" you around the house, try mixing some "cleaner" for your little helper. I am trying to learn how to include my son and daughter with tasks around the house, especially because they often want to help. I would be crazy to tell them no... Within reason, of course. But simple things like wiping counters, their little plastic picnic table, toys (Levi apparently thought his race tracks needed cleaning), etc... they can help.

Buy a cheap spray bottle (look in the travel section at Target or Walmart and you can find them for $1).

Mix 1 cup of water with 1/4 cup of white vinegar in the spray bottle.

Give them a rag or paper towel and let them work alongside you. Vinegar will be perfectly harmless if it gets on skin or is taste-tested by your helper...

I'm working on looking at my kids' hearts. Daily tasks often take longer with their "help" but I'm trying to find creative ways to invest in them. Got to take it one day at a time!

Favorite Homemade Cleaner #2: Homemade 409

I have two toddlers, 18m & 3 yrs. old.

In this season of life, depending on the day, I deal with lots of germs, sniffles, sticky fingers, spilled messes, along with the normal house cleaning that goes with keeping places like the kitchen and bathroom tidy. And I have two tiny tots who love to "help" me in those tasks.

So since I'd already gotten my feet wet in the world of making my own laundry detergent, I figured I could try this 409 recipe I saw over at the Frugal Girls... I now had Borax, which meant I had all the ingredients on hand! That felt like a first! (the other ingredients are white vinegar, Dawn dish soap, and water)

And I love it. I clean my kitchen counters, tile floors, bathroom counter, the kids table, their toys, outdoor stuff... it's kind of an all-purpose mess-cleaner and germ-killer!

And if you don't have any Dawn dishsoap on hand, go buy some. Don't skip that and try using anything else. Dawn seriously kicks-butt when cleaning. Other soaps just don't work the same.

My favorite spray bottle is from the gardening section in Target. They're $1.99, and I love them because the suction straw on the inside bends all the way down to the bottom of the bottle so you can spray at an angle and not spray air when you're getting low. But any 16oz spray bottle will work.

Thanks, The Frugal Girls!

Groupon: Houston Chronicle Sunday Subscription $25 or $49

I have been searching for a fantastic deal to subscribe to the Houston Chronicle Sunday newspaper. And Groupon just released it:

- $25 for 26 week Wednesday & Sunday subscription
- $49 for 52 week Wednesday & Sunday subscription

That's a little under $1 a week, so $4 a month. Since I regularly use coupons, that will pay itself off in just a few shopping trips! And I love just having the paper come on Sunday so I don't forget to stop and buy it...

Have fun!

* This post contains my Groupon affiliate link.

Favorite Homemade Cleaner #1: Powdered Laundry Detergent

If you had told me a few years ago that I would be making my own laundry detergent, I don't know that I would have even laughed. I probably would have just said, "Really? You can make laundry detergent?"

Well, I have been making my own detergent for almost a year. I originally was introduced by some friends who were making liquid laundry detergent, and with two small toddlers keeping my hands busy 24/7, that sounded too messy & time consuming, not to mention if my daughter pulled one of her magic tricks and got into the gunk (she is amazing at getting into things she's not supposed to, and taste-testing whatever she finds).

While hanging out with some other moms last year, a friend told us about the powdered laundry detergent she's been making for years. And since we were at her house, she decided to show us what it looked like and how to make it... It was so quick and easy I decided I had to try. Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:
- 1 cup of Borax
- 1 cup of Washing Soda by Arm & Hammer
- 1 bar of Fels-Naptha soap, grated

Directions: Mix those three things together in a small air-tight tub. Use 1 tablespoon per load of laundry. If it's a really dirty large load of laundry, I'll use 1.5 tablespoons. But you seriously don't need more than that.

I was glad that my friend showed us what those ingredients looked like because I had never bought any of those items before... So if you're like me and might wonder where in the world you will find them and what they look like, that's why I included the picture above. And just for fun, I counted approximately how many tablespoons are in one batch: About 50. So that does 50 loads of laundry...

Here's what it looks like finished...

If you want to add extra scent just for the fun of it (but it adds to the price), you can sprinkle in 1/4 to 1/2 cup of Downy Unstoppables or Purex Crystals. But the mixture smells good without it, too. I had a free full-size sample of the Downy, so I decided to throw that in to some of my batches! (that's what those little blue dots are in the mixture)

So are you wondering where I bought this stuff? I bought all three things at Walmart. I've also seen the Borax & Washing Soda at Target, Giant Eagle, and HEB. All three things would be found in the laundry care section of a store.

The other question I'm asked about is the cost... I'm going to say it costs maybe $.03-$.04 a load w/o the Downy? It really depends on how much you spend on the ingredients. I am still on the same boxes of Borax and washing soda that I bought last summer.

If you've made homemade laundry detergent before, what ingredients do you use?