Have you ever heard of Borax? In all honesty I have been using it for years. With four kids in this house (not to mention a husband) our laundry needs all the help it can get. A lot of people call me "crunchy," in other words I like to use things that are natural or organic. Borax is completely natural! Borax is the common name for sodium tetraborate....it's a substance that occurs naturally by the the constant evaporation of lake water. If you think about it, nature often makes the perfect things for us....whenever they occur naturally I think "hmmm, there must be a reason why nature made it." When you use Borax you can rest assure that nothing is added to it...nothing! No chemicals, no chlorine, no phosphates, no sulfates. Borax has many uses too! I posted on our Facebook page "I've heard of people using Borax in their laundry....what else do you use it for? Today I added a 1/4 cup to my dishwasher and ended up with spot LESS glasses!" I was shocked by all the responses I got. … [Read more...]
Borax Crystal Snowflakes…FAIL
I have no idea why this week turned out to be a FAIL week for our projects but sometimes life just is that way. We promised to share our failures along side our successes. So here is another FAIL. This is what you SHOULD end up with photo courtesy of About This is what I got What I did wrong---I estimated rather than measured Here is what you will need measuring cup and spoon Borax 20 mule team bowl (pint size) boiling water pencil string pipe cleaner food coloring (optional) Cut a pipe cleaner into three equal parts and twist together Attach string to each snowflake and hang using a pencil, make sure they do not touch the side or the bottom of the jar Fill the jar with 1 pint of boiling water and carefully MEASURE 3 tablespoons of borax and stir until disolved. (you may add a drop or two of food coloring at this point). Set them aside for 24 hours and when you come back to them you WILL have pretty crystal snowflakes. Just in case you … [Read more...]
Glurch or Slime
Messy fingers? No way! Not with this recipe! Glurch, a.k.a. slime, is a HUUUUUGE favorite in our home for the kids AND for the mom. Here's why my kids love it: it feels really cool it's is easy to make it makes great "farting" noises (yes, my son made me promise to share that one) Here's why I love it: it's easy to make it's cheap it is sticky, slimy and ooey gooey (oops...the kids should be saying that) it does NOT stick to things (no messes on hands, no messes on tables and it washes right out of clothes) it is the perfect combination of slime and goop but no matter how hard you try it won't leave a mess Here is what you need: 1 bottle of white glue (4oz) 1/2 tsp Borax ("20 mule team")- found in the laundry detergent aisle water Directions: In one plastic bowl mix the glue and 3oz water, stir well. In another bowl mix Borax and 1/4 cup of hot water (add a drop or two of food coloring here to give it a color of your choice). Pour glue and water mixture into the … [Read more...]
