What's Really Important?

Everyone sets New Year’s Resolution, but I think it’s imporant that before we look at changing ourselves supposedly for the better that we look at what is important to us. Here are some things that are most important to me:

• having a loving relationship with my husband
• following God’s will through relationship with Him
• being healthy
• investing time in friendships

These aren’t my “resolutions” for the new year. These are things I would like to accomplish during the next 10 years.

• owning our own home
• starting a family
• go on a mission trip
• find a way to regularly volunteer with homeless children
• go on a vacation, just Joseph and me
• buy a new car for Joseph (and by new, I mean that slightly used is ok)
• publish a picture book
• become skilled with fondant
• perform in a musical
• be fluent in Spanish

Homemade Laundry Detergent

Last week I read about 12 Things You Should Stop Paying for in 2012, which you can read here, too! Most of the ways were either impractical or thins we were already doing.
However, it makes me really mad when I go to the grocery store to buy more laundry detergent and have to shell out big bucks just to wash my clothes. Really!? I think. Why does this have to cost so much? I already hate laundry because I do it like a college student – wait until I have no clothes left and then clean ALL THE THINGS!
So I decided to follow their easy recipe and make my own!
First I got all the ingredients:

Bar of soap, baking soda, water, and grater

Then I grated the bar of soap. I think it looks kind of like a container of white chocolate, which made me hungry…

Afterwards, I boiled some water, and added the soap shavings. I heated 2 gallons of water in a giant pot on the stove as well. Once the soap melted, I poured it and 2 cups of baking soda into the hot water.
I’m storing it in the empty Tide bottle I had just finished up.
My kitchen smells amazing, and I’m hoping my clothes will too! I’ve got a load of towels in the wash right now – so we’ll how it goes!