Many commercial dishwasher detergents contain petroleum based ingredients – Yuck!   While any trace amounts that may remain on the dishes is negligible, the grey water containing them still goes down the drain, into the environment.    A great way to be sure you aren’t using harmful chemicals to wash your dishes with is to make your own, using 4 simple, natural ingredients.

Here is an excellent, simple, eco friendly dishwasher soap recipe you can easily make in just a couple of minutes. This will save you a ton of money and clean, and get your dishes shiney, spotless and clean.

2 parts borax
2 parts washing soda
1 part citric acid
1 part kosher salt

OR

1 part each of:   Borax, washing soda and Lemi Shine®.   

That’s it!  Easy, huh?

Mix together and store in a covered container. Use one rounded tablespoon per load.

Use vinegar in the ‘rinse agent’ compartment.

The ingredients:

Borax is a natural material that is mined. You’ll find it in the laundry supplies aisle at the grocery store.

Washing soda, aka sodium carbonate, has been used for generations. It’s a natural material, comprised of salt and limestone.

Kosher salt is simply pure salt.

Citric acid can be substituted for unsweetened lemon-aid koolaid.

Lemi Shine® is  100%  natural, made only from fruit acids and oils.

If you’re more ambitious, you can make them into tablespoon sized balls by spritzing them with a little water , the same way bath bombs are made.(be very careful, too much water and they’ll fizz up on you) .    Just enough water to make the balls hold together when compressed.    Let dry and you’re done.   Be sure the shape of your balls can fit into the dishwasher’s soap container.

Although they seem to cost a lot, when you compare the one time cost of buying custom cloth diapers to the ongoing cost of disposables, cloth diapers are a lot less expensive.

We love it.

It’s barely any longer than a single stroller. In fact, with the new baby in the back seat, people didn’t even know he was there until we pointed him out. The stroller is so compact that without noticing the two sun visors, people assumed it was a regular stroller.

It’s the same width as a single stroller, so the Kids Cargo Double Jogging Stroller is perfect for our walks uptown to shop.

There is plenty of room in the front seat for older kids, and the back seat is a comfy spot for infants. One drawback is the backseat doesn’t have a lot of leg room.

You can lock the swivelling front wheet in place, which comes in handy for both very smooth rides and very bumpy ones.

One thing that is missing is a hand break. I love to have a hand brake because it makes going downhill a lot easier! We’re going to buy a bicycle handbreak and put install it ourselves.

There’s a handy pouch behind the backseat, which even has a little pocket for bottles. Of course, we use ours for our own water bottles.

The basket underneath provides some extra storage, which we like to have for shopping.

All in all, the Kidz Kargo Discovera Tandem Double Jogging Stroller gets a pass from us and a big thumbs up. Costing half as much as similar strollers we were considering to buy, it delivers all we wanted with the one exception of a hand brake.

Kids Cargo Discovera Tandem Double Joggins Stroller facts:

· 5 point safety harnesses
· Two position footrest
· Cushion and footmuff
· Front swivel wheel
· Back seat suitable from birth
· Front seat suitable from 6 months
· Roomy shopping basket
· Raincover
· Multi position hood with clear viewing window
· Wrist strap safety feature
· Rugged easily removable wheels
· Compact and easy folding
· Both seats suitable to 15kg, 33 lb
· Handle height 41″
· Size when erect: 47″ x 22″ x 41″
· Size when folded: 24″ x 22″ x 41″
· Front seat width: 14″
· Back seat width: 17″
· Net weight 14kg, 30.8 lb
· Fibre: Polyester 65% Cotton 35%,Filling: 100% polyester

The stoller we chose was the Kidz Kargo Discovera Tandem Double Jogging Stroller. It’s made in europe, but fairly easy to get in America, providing you like to shop online! We just ordered one from ebay.

There were a few reasons we picked this particular tandem stroller.
- It’s very small – the Kidz Kargo Discovera Tandem Double Jogging Stroller isn’t much longer than a single jogging stroller!
- It comes complete with footmuff, rain cover, and adjustable canopies . We need the raincover here and the footmuff is perfect for my new grandson. Just slide him in and he’ll be all ready without having to wrap him in blankets, first.
- Swiveling Front Wheel. Great for easy maneuvering.
- Wrist strap for added safety. I always use a wrist strap when we’re on inclines.

We ordered it on ebay, and are very excited about it. I will definitely be posting a review after we’ve had a chance to take Kidz Kargo Discovera Tandem Double Jogging Stroller through the paces!

Our ferret has lived through many close calls with our 3 year old. I swear that ferret has had more lives than a cat, and he still loves to play with her. He’s been held underwater during her bath so she can wash him, he’s been stuffed inside a plastic bag, he’s been stuck head first in a boot and almost suffocated…

I would suggest that anybody who is considering getting a ferret should wait until the youngest child in the family is at least 6. Old enough to understand that ferrets are not teddy bears, but are real, breathing creatures.

For older children, ferrets are almost an ideal pet. They interract with us, they play, and they will go back to their cages for a nap when we need them to. There is a forum about Ferrets, for anyone who is interested in learning more about these wonderful pets.

I had her favorite preschool websites bookmarked, and she would find them, click on the one she wanted and then play the games on the sites.

To make things simpler for her and for me, I’ve created a little website for her. It’s Sammy’s Site. Using a simple template from www.oswd.org, I put up a few pictures of Sammy and her nephew (my grandson), and make links to all her favorite sites.

I then made an easy to find link to her site, so her browsing couldn’t be simpler!

Every so often, I’ll add a new site for her to try out. She absolutely loves it, and it’s saved me a lot of time, since every site opens in a new window, should something go wrong, she can return to her homepage and click on another link.

If you are going to use the stroller for shopping, one thing you really need is a good sized basket underneath. Room for things you buy, your diaper bags and whatever you buy while you’re out!

If you’re going to do any “off roading” with the stroller, you’ll definitely want to buy a jogging stroller. The big wheels make a huge difference, and the handbrakes most have make going downhills a lot easier – safer, too.

We go on a lot of long walks – hikes – and with a regular stroller, the poor kids got a noisey, bumpy ride on uneven terrain, such as nature paths or gravel roads. After we switched to a jogging stroller, we found a huge difference in the quality of the ride. The big, air-filled tires on jogging strollers make the ride smoother and quiet and much easier to push. The only drawback we found with jogging strollers is the basket space underneath tend to be small.

The sollution for the small storage space is to buy a bag that is designed to hang behind the seat, on the handle bars. It’s also a good idea to look into getting some kind of cup holder for the strollers.

When buying a jogging stroller, a feature that we have liked is a front wheel that swivels, making turning all but the sharpest corners possible without having to lift the front wheel off the ground. This may not sound like a big deal, but believe me, it will save you a ton of energy! These swivel wheels are very stable, keeping the stroller straight until you push it into a turn.

In summary:

1. Storage is important – either find a stoller with a good sized basket, or invest in an attachable bag.
2. Even if you aren’t a jogger, a jogging stroller makes for easier pushing and a much quieter, smoother ride.
3. If you buy a jogging stroller, we recommend finding one with a swivelling front wheel. It’ll save you a lot of energy around the corners.

Luckily, my other daughter was spending the night at my house, so the expectant parents loaded up their 1 year old and drove him over so Joc could babysit him and my 3.5 year old daughter, while I rushed to the hospital with them. I consider myself a very lucky woman that they both wanted me in the delivery room again this time.

Little Michael, 8 pounds and 6 ounces, and a full head of dark hair, was born after a fast and smooth labour at 6:50 in the morning.

My other daughter is expecting a baby in June. I can hardly wait!