Adventures in Homemade Products - Dishwasher Detergent

So in my new addiction to Pinterest I came across a pin about making homemade dishwasher soap.  So after a little research and the realization that I could really save some money, I purchased the required products at the store on Friday.  Here is what you need:
1/2 of a 4lb 12 oz box of Borex
1/2 of a 4lb box of Baking Soda
6 packets of unsweetened lemonade drink mix
Mix together in a tightly sealed container ( the mixture will clump up in moisture gets in). Use approximately 1/8 of a cup in your dishwasher.  
This batch makes about 70 "servings" or washes.  I made the smaller batch to try it out and make sure it really works.  You could do a whole batch with the full boxes of both the Borex and Baking Soda and not have to worry about it for a while.  
Totally cost: $4.17
Cost per load: $0.06


Compared to:
Electrasol: $0.18
Cascade: $0.27


Additionally I discovered that instead of Jet Dry as a rinse agent - just use Vinegar!  Again a much cheaper alternative. 


Woohoo for saving money!!!

Perfect Mommies - What's the sacrifice?

How do these I'm all put together Mommies, perfect hair, perfect nails, and matching clothes do it everyday?  Or frankly any day for that matter? I'll be honest some days getting up and putting on "normal" clothes is difficult.  This isn't because I want to stay in bed, it just seems that little extra time or effort to change from comfortable yoga pants and a t-shirt into adult "normal" clothes just isn't in the cards. Some times when I take the kids out and I see these "super" moms I wonder what am I doing wrong?  Why can't I leave the house like that?  Oh that's right - I'm not willing to sacrifice one minute of my precious sleep to get up earlier than the kids, and making myself look "perfect" isn't something I can do with 2 children looking for my attention.  I have learned in the last year to value every moment of good quality sleep I can get.  Yet here I am at 11:45 on a Friday night writing this blog and watching Private Practice just so I can enjoy a small amount of quiet time to myself.  So back to the question - how do these Mommies do it?  What are they giving up or how are they better planning than I am?  This blog is my vent and exploration into the Perfect Mommy world.  I'll be honest though I'm pretty sure I will never be that - all put together, doing it right Mom - and I don't know that I'm all that broken up about it. Just saying.

Why the Blog?

I have to admit over the last year and a half I have read a lot and I mean a ton of different blogs. Everything from general parenting, cleaning, organizing, home management, and cooking. And while I will admit of I have learned a thing or two from these blogs, I also discovered one thing - in my quest for "perfection" - I'm not the perfect wife, mother, cook or housekeeper, yet my husband and children still love me. So why do we as mothers strive so hard for this perfection? Why have we allowed this stereotypical depiction of mothers to be created and continued? Am I a bad mother because my house isn't always clean?

Don't get me wrong, some Moms seem to have this whole thing down and maybe I'm just missing something about how to achieve this, but in the mean time I'm going to continue on my imperfectly perfect journey in parenthood.

My blog will cover the crazy day to day journey, adventures, and craziness of parenting 2 small children, and still having time for my husband and myself (which I have to really work on).

I welcome any feedback or blog ideas.