I think that it is safe to say that spring has died and summer has arrived in southern Oklahoma. Today it is 99 degrees F and feels more like 115 degrees F (according to weather.com). HOT! But at least it's a dry heat. Humidity is what kills me more than the heat.

I have a friend who is sending me some dried lavender for my bar soap making. I am going to plant a couple of different kinds of lavender as soon as my husband builds me a raised bed for it.

My mother-in-law's turkeys are getting huge and the chickens aren't far behind. Around September the youngsters should start laying eggs and then we'll be up to our ears in them!

Summer veggies are starting to grow. Squash, zucchini, okra, and soon tomatoes. At the end of July we'll have blackberries and I'll be making cobblers and jams. The heat isn't all bad. lol 

I thought that there would be more going on when I started this page but self sufficiency takes time to achieve.

So to start off with, I am going to provide a recipe for laundry soap that I have been using successfully for over six months now. Not only is making your own laundry soap more cost effective than buying stuff like Tide, All, or Gain. I have found that you use less, it lasts longer and gets your clothes cleaner.

Laundry Soap (dry)

2 cups Borax powder ($3 per 4 lb box)

2 cups Washing Soda ($3 per 3 1/2 lb box)

1 Fels-Naptha stain removing laundry bar grated ($0.97 per bar)

Mix all ingredients in a lidded container and store in a dry place. Use 1 to 1 1/2 tablespoons for a regular load and for clothes that are heavily soiled use 2 to 3 tablespoons. You can still use fabric softeners if you want to.

You can find all of these ingredients in the laundry soap isle at Wal-Mart. I have also found them at Dollar General and local grocery stores. One box of the borax and washing soda are usually good for three batches of laundry soap!
Please note that with this recipe there will be little to no suds in your wash. Suds don't really do anything except look impressive and the chemicals used to create them can cause some of the skin allergies that people develop from laundry soap. (This also applies to bar and liquid soaps as well.)

I hope that this helps you save some money and that you enjoy it as much as my family and I do. 

    My husband, my mother-in-law, and myself are all embarking on a journey to return to a more simple and self-sufficient way of life. I will be recording our exploits as well as recipes and directions for all the things that I am to be doing.

   I will be making my own soap (including shampoos, bubble bath, liquid hand soaps and bar soaps), baking my own bread, making my own candles, and when we get a cow I will be making cheese, butter and all sorts of other things. I will also be making bath oils, body scrubs, lip balms and lotions eventually.

   So far, we've started with chickens. We have five Black Astrelorp (not sure if I'm spelling that one right) hens and next spring we will at least triple that number. We are also getting rabbits and turkeys next spring. Levi (my husband) wants to get two or three pigs next spring as well. The cow probably won't happen until the year after next.

   We are also going to start building a house soon. We would like to install a windmill and drill a well when that happens...but that is still a little ways off.

   Please join us on this journey. There are sure to be triumphs and mishaps, laughter and tears. And maybe I can be a help to others who want to do what we're doing...