Ugh. I just cleaned up after having a couple of my 2 boys’ friends here. I came to the conclusion I come to nearly every time we clean up toys. We have too much stuff. It’s ridiculous. And we really have no one but ourselves (meaning my husband and I) to blame. Now don’t get me wrong, we don’t go out and buy toys all the time, by any means – and we do limit what they get and when. But we do somehow accumulate. Some of it is good, some of it WAS good at some point but has lost pieces, and much of it was and always has been just plain old junk.

Every few months or so I really dig in (when the boys are out, of course) and get 2 bags – one to give to charity, and one to just throw out. And it’s all well and good for a couple of months, then the junk starts creeping back in. It’s like rabbits – it seems to multiply. We get one cool game, but then start losing a couple of pieces. At first we find them all each time they get scattered and dutifully put it back where it belows. Then slowly, the pieces start getting lost. And we now have a true piece of junk. Or we go to a birthday party and get the standard bag of junk to take home and add to our piles of junk. The progression of junk returns.

It makes me think. What kind of society do we live in where we have so much excess? How is it that we can so easily accumulate such levels of “stuff” while so many nations have so little? Why do we consume SO much compared to other nations?

Our advertising spend as a nation is nearly triple that of any other nation. Even when you look at it on a per capita basis, it’s enormously out of whack. When and how did this happen?

I still have kept off 3 of the 4 pounds I lost on the Perricone diet – despite the numerous chocolate Joe Joe’s cookies I’ve consumed. So there is something to be said for that crazy diet after all!

Well – I’ve been known to do many things on my own that friends remind me can easily be bought at a relatively inexpensive price. Like for instance my annual peach jam making fiasco. I absolutely LOVE peach jam. And homemade is just the best. But by the time I have purchased the peaches, destroyed the stovetop and kept the boys out of the kitchen for the day, I do often wonder if I’m sane. My friend has been known to say “you know, Kristin, they do have peach jam at the store already made and you can buy it for about $2″ Meantime, I have spent probably $8 or $10 per jar to make it, not to mention the time I spend. But then I taste it – and to me (and only me in this house, I might add – with some disappointment…) it is worth the effort.

My other example is laundry detergent. I have been making (yes – really) my own laundry detergent for a couple of years. It all started when I was trying to figure out why I was having some tingling and numbness in my hands and feet (a story that I will spare you of). I did some research online – which is always a bad idea if you have any medical issue. And of the millions of scary things that I learned about – thankfully none of which has been applicable in my case – I found that ingredients in laundry detergent are not only potentially harmful to the environment, but also to your body – particularly your nervous system. So I searched for alternatives and found a recipe to make it. And you know what? As crazy as it sounds – I actually am pleased with it. Happy with the results. I enjoy the process of making it (it’s like some weird elementary school science project). And I feel good that I’m doing one tiny thing to help this earth and my family’s potential (underscore that since much of what I read is likely unproven) health.

So for any of you brave enough to try it – it takes only about 10 minutes and one batch lasts my family 1 month or so – I have included the recipe. I would LOVE to hear from anyone who tries it. It takes awhile to get used to since it becomes a thick gel and you throw a glob of it into the laundry. But it has worked very well. Oh – and by the way – it costs about 75 cents to make a batch to last a month. Not bad!!!

One more thing – I now also use white vinegar instead of fabric softener (put it into the dispenser in my washing machine) and those funky bumpy blue laundry balls in the dryer. It all works great!

Homemade Laundry Detergent

3 Pints Water (48 oz – doesn’t have to be exact)
1/3 Bar Fels Naptha Soap, Grated (again – doesn’t have to be exact, and any bar soap works)
1/2 Cup Washing Soda (Arm & Hammer – NOT baking soda, it’s in the detergent aisle)
1/2 Cup Borax (also in the detergent aisle)
2 Gallon Bucket
1 Quart Hot WaterHot Water

Mix Fels Naptha soap in a saucepan with 3 pints of water, and heat on low until dissolved. Stir in Washing Soda and Borax. Stir until thickened, and remove from heat. Add 1 Quart Hot Water to 2 Gallon Bucket. Add soap mixture, and mix well. Fill bucket with hot water, and mix well. Set aside for 24 hours, or until mixture thickens. Use 1/2 cup of mixture per load.

It does get thick – I use a plastic cup to scoop it out. There’s always some liquid left in the bucket as well. Have fun! As for me, I’m off to make some more detergent and eat a piece of toast with plenty of peach jam!