homemade baby wipes

Got this one from Kashi. They have a great website full of super cool ideas, and products. Check them out if you are a visual person and need to see the pictures. It's located under natural living.


Posted by Kashi Read more eco-friendly, frugal living, healthy living, how-to, living responsibly, and simple living

It’s easy to make your own baby wipes at home—all it takes is time and a few simple ingredients.

GETTING STARTED
You can make your own baby wipes using items you probably already have on hand—baby wash, baby oil, pure clean water and fabric scraps or recycled paper napkins or paper towels.

WHAT YOU’LL NEED
20-25 fabric scraps that have been cut into 6”x6” squares OR 80-85 recycled paper napkins OR 1 roll recycled paper towels (We used a recycled flannel sheet.)
2 ¼ cups water
2 tablespoons natural baby oil, such as Baby Bee Apricot Oil by Burt’s Bees
2 tablespoons natural baby shampoo or baby wash
1-2 drops essential oil, such as lavender or tea tree (optional)
Resealable airtight container, approximately 3” tall by 4” deep by 7” wide
. Step 1
Bring 2 ¼ cups water to a boil, remove from heat, and gently stir in 2 tablespoons baby oil and 2 tablespoons biodegradable baby shampoo or baby wash. Add 1-2 drops essential oil, if desired. Let cool.

. Step 2
If using cloth, cut fabric into 6”x6” squares and fold them in half. Or, if using recycled paper napkins, fold each napkin in half. If using recycled paper towels, tear individual towels from the roll and fold to fit your container. (Paper towels vary in size depending on the manufacturer.)

Tip — If you’re buying new fabric to make diaper wipes, flannel made of 100 percent cotton is a good choice because of its softness. Or, consider recycling worn-out sheets, towels or T-shirts instead. If you plan on washing and re-using cloth wipes, you can prevent fraying by machine stitching the edges of your 4”x8” fabric pieces before using them, or you could sew two pieces together for added durability.

. Step 3
Stack fabric scraps or recycled paper napkins or recycled paper towels in the resealable airtight container.

Tip — If you have previously purchased commercially made baby wipes, you can wash and reuse the container for your homemade eco-friendly wipes.

. Step 4
Slowly pour the cooled mixture of soap, water, and oil over the wipes that have been stacked in the resealable container.

. Step 5
Close the lid of your resealable container and let the liquid mixture soak in overnight. The next morning, your wipes will be uniformly moistened and ready to use.

Suggestion — If you’re using cloth diapers as well as cloth baby wipes, you can soak the used wipes in your diaper pail along with the diapers.

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homemade herbal honey!!

By Shanna ohmes as seen in "Natural living" on FB.

Herbal honeys have been used by traditional cultures, wise women, grandmothers and mothers for thousands of years. Herbal honeys are culinary, medicinal and delicious. They are made by cutting or chopping fresh herbs and mixing them with honey and setting them out to infuse for several days or weeks.

Honey

Raw honey is favored because it also has its own medicinal qualities. It has been used for thousands of years as food and medicine and even as a preservative. Honey has been used by the Greeks and Egyptians for most ailments and good health. In fact, in Egyptian texts, out of 900 remedies listed honey was one of the ingredients in 500 of the recipes.

Honey is antibacterial and heals infections. It has been used for skin, intestinal and respiratory infections. Honey loves water. It holds moisture in place, so use it for wounds, sore throats, bruises and burns. Honey absorbs water-soluble compounds of the herbs and pulls the volatile oils from the herb into the honey itself so now it becomes even more medicinal as well as a food.

Honey provides energy. It counters depression and promotes healing inside and outside of your body. It strengthens the immune system with the abundant vitamins B, C, D and E.

*Remember, do not feed honey to children under 1 year old because they do not have the stomach acid to digest the botulinus spores found in honey. Older children and adults do not have this problem.

Herbal Honey

We know herbs are used not only for flavoring foods but also their medicinal qualities. When you add an herb to honey you have powerful medicine. You can enjoy herbal honey as a tea, by the spoonful and even spread on toast with the herb. Herbal honey is used to treat colds, flu, prevent and treat infections and inflammation and to soothe a sore throat.

Here is a list of herbs commonly used to make delicious herbal honeys:

Cayenne—use for aches, pains, arthritis, coughs, fibromyalgia and even as a heart tonic.

Chamomile—use for burns, eczema, depression, digestion, insomnia, stress and toothache.

Cinnamon—use for colds, flu, digestion, diabetes, nausea and fungus infections.

Dandelion—use for bladder infections, increase your memory and focus, bronchitis, colds and digestion.

Fennel—use for arthritis, congestion, cough, gout, digestion and menopause.

Garlic—use for bronchitis, respiratory, colds, flu, excellent for sore throat, sinusitis and a heart tonic.

Ginger—use for colds, flu, fibromyalgia, heart tonic, arthritis, nausea, digestion and IBS.

Lavender—use for anxiety, burns, colds, depression, hypertension, insomnia and nausea.

Lemon Balm—use for colds, as a heart tonic, nausea, sore throat and laryngitis.

Peppermint—use for anxiety, bronchitis, chronic fatigue, colds, flu, cough, congestion, and respiratory.

Rose Petal—use for sore throats, infections, heart tonic, wounds, sores, and menopause.

Rosemary—use for arthritis, chronic fatigue, bronchitis, colds, respiratory, gout, and a heart tonic.

Sage—use for increasing your memory and menopause.

Thyme—use for congestion, cough, respiratory and toothache.

How to Make an Herbal Honey

You’ll need:

1 cup or more of raw honey

8 oz. Glass canning jar, wide mouth

Your favorite herb: I’ll use rose petals as an example.

Fill the jar most of the way with rose petals. Slowly pour in the honey. Use the handle end of a wooden spoon or a chopstick and press and stir the honey and petals until all the petals are soaked and the air pockets are released. Add more honey and stir again until the honey comes almost to the top. Cap tightly and label.

This will now set out on your cabinet and infuse for about 6 weeks. Each day turn the jar over so the honey oozes through the petals and keeps them soaked. You can begin using the honey within a few days but it will become more medicinal over time.

Herbal honeys should keep about 2 years, but since they taste so good will probably be used up within a month or so.

How to Enjoy Rose Petal Honey

Put 1 tablespoon of petals and honey in a cup. Pour boiling water over and stir to dissolve. Sip and enjoy.

homemade cheese

In my latest effort to get away from processed foods, I stumbled on a local group that puts organic farmers in touch with local consumers and I couldn't be happier. They are such a great group of people! They have so many ideas, and products. everything from fish emulsion fertilizer to goats milk and everything in between and beyond.

That being said, One of the ladies sells goats milk for 3 dollars a gallon. Cheaper than whole milk in the grocery store!! While I'm not sure I would want to drink it, the thing that intrigues me is cheese. I LOVE cheese, and cannot give it up, so I'm thinking this is a good alternative.
One of the ladies posted a recipe that I will share below. Another suggested the CHeese Queen website which I still need to check out.

this is from a person who made it:
Made Goat Cheese So easy and so good! In a boiler, bring 1/2 gallon of milk to 185 degree F. on medium temp. Remove from heat, add the juice from two lemons and stir while it curdles. Add 1 TBS of Sea salt. Pour mixture into cheese cloth and hang in refrigerator over night. I added a little Italian Seasoning to mine. Awesome on salad!

this and that

I tried the homemade laundry detergent. I used Fels Naptha and just super washing soda, no Borax. It turned out great! My bucket isn't a true 5 gallon bucket, so its a lil more solid than it should be, but thats ok. It's really gentle, and lasts forever, which is quite awesome!!

I've been watching the PBS show a place of their own lately. It's a show for caregivers to children, --in other words, teachers, parents, grandparents, etc. They have soem really great ideas for kids. Everything from advice to help reduce/eliminate temper tantrums to creating a ball maze out of empty cardboard rolls from toilet paper, paper towels and gift wrap. Good stuff... you should check it out if you have kids!

I will soon be working on making the cloth diapers... I admit I am quite nervous about this adventure.. and pray I do alright!
I'm sure I will have more recipes and stuff in the near future. For now, school is beating me up, so this will be a short post.

homemade Sangria (non-alcoholic!)

This recipe is from one of my FB friends from Venezuala.. it sounds divine!

You need grape juice from red or blue grapes, marinate fresh peaches, chop in slices one orange unpeeled, one stick of cinnamon bark and if you have a few strawberries to boot, well that's only better. Let marinate in the fridge at least 24 hours. You can mix it with club soda to give some bubbles to it. use organic fruits,

wine bottle tiki torch!

here is very simple instructions for a wine bottle tiki torch.. you can make it for about 5 bucks! Gotta love that!

http://www.gerardotandco.com/blog/recycled-bottle-torch/

natural remedy for gas in babies

as always I try to post good recipes that bear preserving for one reason or another. I know not everyone needs this, but we all pretty much know someone who is pregnant or who has an infant.. and its good stuff to know so you don't have to give them mycelon drops all teh time!

1/4 teaspoon fennel seeds boiled in 3/4 cups water...warm a teapot by rinsing with hot tap water. Place all seeds into the warmed pot and cover with boiling water. Steep for 5 minutes and allow brew to cool