Laurie's Everyday Notions

My son become a teenager last fall and has since had to battle with teenage acne. At first he seemed to wear it with pride. His acne was a sign for all to see that he had made a passage from boyhood to manhood. This "rite of passage" has grown old and has been replaced with another rite of passage. Vanity. He's willing to try all the acne products at Walmart despite the way his mother freaks out as she reads the labels. Not to mention the cost. Thus began my search for a natural, homemade acne treatment for my dear man-child. Common sense told me to start with tea tree oil and witch hazel. Tea tree oil is antibacterial and witch hazel is a natural astringent. Both helpful in treating acne. Ingredients: Water Witch Hazel Tea Tree Oil Cotton Rounds Mix: 1 cup water 1/2 cup witch hazel 10 drops of tea tree oil Place cotton rounds in a container (I happened to have a small glass jar that the rounds fit perfectly in!) and top with mixture.

When I began this blog two years ago, one of my goals was to share recipes and tips that were: Environmentally friendly Better for the health of me and my family (and those in my daily care) Frugal Over the years I've done a fairly good job of ridding my home of products that are filled with harmful (for both the environment and my family) chemicals. But sometimes I let my guard down and those things that were formally banned from my home make their way through my door. Last summer my daughter was in a car accident which meant that I stayed in the hospital with her during her three weeks of care. The day before we returned home, my sweet husband {although I don't approve of his cleaning supplies, I am so thankful for his thoughtfulness!} went to the store to buy cleaners so that he could do a quick clean up of the house for us. He didn't have a clue on how to use my homemade cleaners (besides he isn't quite on this bandwagon with me). So we "acquired...

Rescued from a stack in my office supplies of used/never used notebooks. Mostly likely bought years ago for 12 cents.  I've tried using binders for my various bible studies however are big and bulky to carry/store and they also use a lot of lap/table space when I'm writing in them. I'm trying something new for all my note taking. One notebook instead of five binders and/or notebooks. I am hoping that having everything in one place will be convenient and easier for me to stay organized (I've gone to bible study with the wrong binder before....I hate that!).  So this is my first week with my notebook and I love it! I brought it to church with me and instead of writing notes on the small piece of paper in the bulletin (I always run out of space!), I took notes in my notebook. The half sheet of paper that I used to take notes on usually got lost or thrown so now I have my notes in a spot in which I can refer back to. I've been using the notebook for my daily bi...

I'm not a coupon clipper, although the thought intrigues me. It seems when I do look for coupons I only find coupons for processed foods. I'd rather save my money in other ways. I've also found that being frugal can naturally lead to living green and eating healthier. 1. No paper products except baby wipes and toilet paper because, to put it into simplest terms, I don't like dealing with poo. Which means I still haven't switched to cloth diapers for my daycare babes. I use cloth napkins and washable hankies made from old t-shirts . For day care licensing the kids are to have "single use" towels to use after washing hands. Instead of using paper towels I have a basket of wash clothes that are used for "personal" hand towels. If I entertain for a crowd larger than my supply of dishware, I do buy paper plates and napkins but otherwise I try to make do with my washable stock. 2. No canned foods (or limited). I make my own "cream of...

So  "No Grocery Week" also means no money spent on anything that can be lived without.  As mentioned in my " No Grocery Week ", I did buy apples and bananas. I also bought toilet paper...and milk....and formula. Only the essentials necessary to get me through the week and as a child care provider that list of items are necessities. Although I was out of dishwasher detergent and the ingredients to make more, I figured I'd hand wash dishes for the week........until I started to run low on dish soap. Not to mention I spent some time in the kitchen yesterday and had tons of dishes. Time to alter some recipes to make do. The dish washing detergent recipe that I finally found and like includes citric acid. I'm out of citric acid. Hmm....I do however have a few lemons. I made my recipe without the citric acid, added a tablespoon to the dishwasher, cut a lemon in half and squeezed! One of daycare helpers enjoyed this task. The powder I used was equal p...

This morning, as I cleaned up the breakfast dishes, I did the prep work for dinner and my lunch. My lunch is often different from the children's lunch. I usually have soaked oats or a smoothie for breakfast, veggies (most often a mega-salad) for lunch, and then for dinner I eat what I fix for the family (this usually includes meat). I'm not inclined to be a vegetarian but I am working towards eating more vegetables. No meat at lunch means that I focus on filling up on veggies. This week the grocery budget is tight.....like zilch. I did pick up bananas and apples because I was out of fruit. So no lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber or my favorite, avocado. I am always amazed at what I can create when I make the best of what I have to work with. It's fun and I like the challenge. So after breakfast I started the soup for tonight's dinner, during which time I started thinking about what I would eat for lunch. Dinner was fairly easy thanks to the freezer full (now half full) of...

I caught myself thinking the other day, "If I get money back from taxes (This is highly unlikely. I'm fantasizing here, as I know I will be paying in), I'm going to buy an ipad and one of those cool litter boxes (you know, the ones that do the scooping for you)." Funny how the prospect of receiving unexpected money changes my mindset. Instead of using the money to pay off a credit card or to finally get the roof fixed, I'm ready to spend it frivolously. Why is it that we  I think that "extra" money should be spent on wants? For months I've been debating about getting rid of the monthly internet payment so why would I need a new computer? In all honesty, I have decided that I would die without being able to check my email daily so the internet stays. However, my sometimes-trusty, old computer works most of the time. No need for a new computer. So as long as my computer continues to work, an ipad would fall under the category of a want rather than a n...

http://rochestermagazine.com/laurie/byrne/green/freeze/story-837.html THRIFTY OR GREEN? I don’t know which desire came fi rst, but striving to be a “non-consumer” has led me on a journey. With my small efforts, I know that I am not only saving money but also saving the planet. I’m practical in my dress and keep a simple wardrobe. Most of my clothing comes from consignment stores, Goodwill, or garage sales—but I buy pieces that look brand new. In the last couple of years, I’ve been experimenting with making my own beauty and cleaning products out of simple ingredients, such as baking soda or vinegar. My window cleaner and all-purpose cleaner costs so little and is free of stinky, harmful chemicals. I save over $100 a year by making my own laundry soap. I also make my own shampoo, conditioning rinse, and lotion (which doubles as facial moisturizer, hand cream, and body lotion). Not only do I save money, but I also save many bottles of plastic from ending up in the landfi lls bec...