I love folding clothes.

Yes, it is probably a personality aberration on my part (considering that I will never be the recipient of “Housewife of the Year” thanks to the distinct lack of cleaning/tidying  genes in me)

So my piles of cloth nappies (diapers) fulfil something in me which is somewhat akin to the gratification one would get from, say, eating chocolate cake… or running 20 miles… or volunteering to help starving orphans: it’s a primordial joy.

Second to the gratification of folding clothes is the satisfaction of making my own laundry liquid: we have “hard” water and on our last baby this caused endless problems with detergent build-up in nappies despite trying different brands and solutions. This time around I had been making my own for a while, and so far have had no build-up, and no problems. When I have cloths that need extra attention, I soak them in a dilute Hydrogen Peroxide (H2O2) solution and that works brilliantly.

A word of warning though should you decide to make your own laundry liquid: if you like heavily scented, or frankly: scented in any way, clothes, this is not for you!! I usually put in some essential oils, but there is no evidence of this when they are washed (and I continue to do this: why??!) Clothes smell clean and if they have been line-dried, deliciously fresh.

This recipe is the one the Duggar family make (dontcha just love them?!) apart from a bit of fiddling with quantities (Well, this is me we are dealing with here) So:

Laundry Liquid (detergent)

4  Cups – hot tap water
1   bar of soap: I use Dr. Bronners Pure Castille soap
1 Cup of washing soda/ sodium carbonate
1 Cup Borax

- Grate the bar of soap and add it to a large saucepan with some water. Stir continually over medium-low heat until soap dissolves and is melted.

-Fill a 5 gallon (approx 20 litres) bucket half full of hot tap water. Add melted soap, washing soda and Borax. Stir well until all powder is dissolved. Fill bucket to top with more hot water. Stir, cover and let sit overnight to thicken.

I have used it this dilute until now (when I re-read the Duggars original instructions and they dilute it again, half and half with water. Wow!!) Anyway: mine works a treat, although I will be seeing how it washes if I add another 50% water to the mix. 

To finish, I fill the conditioner drawer with (cheap- I buy it in 5 litre bottles) white vinegar- it softens the water and rinses clothes really well. 

* * * * * * *

Well, I suppose I had better return to what I spent the day doing: I edit, typeset and design the quarterly newsletter for the Irish Home Education Network, and this blog post has been a welcome distraction!! I always get halfway through the newsletter (it is anything between 24-44 A4 pages), and need to divert my mind for a while. So, off I go!

(In the mornings, my son, Michael, makes me tea while I nurse our little one beside the stove. What a sweetie!! Edited to add: the funny little face in the background was made after our little girl dunked a biscuit in my tea, forgot as she was mid-dunk, and just as the photo was taken the biscuit melted into the tea… after all my warnings to her!!!!!)

A few days before our Little Man was born I ended up in hospital with a rotten infection- I spent the days in isolation (with my own TV!! We don’t have a television at home, but the novelty wore off after about ten minutes when I realised there was nothing on any of the nine channels; didn’t stop our children’s channel-surfing every time they came in though) After four days of IV antibiotics fluids and stuff to take down my temperature (they weren’t sure what was wrong with me and my temperature went completely mad for three days before it came down to normal) I ended up having a C-section… 

Thanks to all that, my insides were in flitters and both Baby and I ended up with candida :-(   …

(and I with several other mad, crazy things)

I’ve been using homeopathy with great success, and have been using cloth nappies (diapers) to help clear the nappy/diaper rash (coconut oil on his skin also- anti bacterial and anti-viral; gosh how I love that oil!!)

 I had hoped to use cloth from day one, but what with having the C-section that was put on hold until I could organise myself properly. When Baby developed the diaper rash, I promptly began using cloth, but came up with a problem: I had no wraps small enough for him. Hence, Necessity being the Mother of Invention. 

My good friend, Bernadette, mentioned making wool wraps, (also anti-bacterial and super-breathable) and so today I went looking for my stash of felted jumpers. I found two arms of a jumper (thanks Terri, that jumper has had many lives since!!) and whilst changing our little sweetpea I cut out and fit this wool wrap. It was very easy, and once I had it cut out only took a couple of minutes to sew up on the machine. 

A quick tutorial!

My plan was to make a pair of wool “shorts” (I know as my beloved mother reads this she is having palpitations at the thought of wool next to her skin… but truly, it is soft and completely non-itchy!) so I cut the arms to approximately 10 inches long 

(Measure? What? Me?!) 

There was a bit of a seam which I cut out and made a slit to the top of the cuff.

I turned one leg right-side out and lined up the other leg inside it. 

With the machine I sewed from where the waistband would be, to the other side. 

As the body looked a bit wide, I re-sewed a centimetre or two in to make a snugger fit.

Thankfully I still had the neck band of the jumper, and so measured how wide the waistband needed to be, and sewed it on, stretching the ribbed neckband as I sewed

I think the wool shorts look hilarious, but most importantly they do the job perfectly.

(look at those skinny little legs!!!)

Tomorrow I am going to make another wrap based on a triangle of wool fabric (Even easier than this one, typically I only found the pattern online after I made this one) 

Oh, who can resist a fluffy cloth bottom?!

I’m almost finished a four-year Homeopathy course, and I’m now insured to take cases under supervision. We have always used Homeopathy, and have only needed to bring our little ones to a doctor twice, no, three times I think, in the past twelve years, for diagnosis only. It has been, quite simply, a life saver, and I don’t know how anyone could have children without it… 

And yesterday I was honoured to be asked to give a class on Homeopathy in Pregnancy at a Spiritual Midwifery Course in Co. Clare. It was a great day, we had a fantastic discussion. It is great to know that there are so many people out there using Homeopathy effectively, quickly and safely, and seeing the extraordinary results, especially during pregnancy and in childhood.

So after an hour or two case typing, I had to take a break. (As a quick adjunct here: we have been using cloth nappies for over a year and have found them fantastic. Until recently, that is, when our little one seemed irritated by them So after a chat with my Nappy-Expert, dear old Gertie, m plan of action was to wash the nappies with a dishwasher tablet to take out any detergent, and then wash with Dr. Bronners. I’ll let you know how I get on…) Why I came to telling you this was because when I took my break I went out to hang out clothes on the washing line, in the sunshine! Needless to say the weather has been simply glorious these past few days. And running around in the sunshine was our little dog, Pebbles, looking rather delightful, don’t you think in her red bandana?

(She needs a good grooming… a little bit felted here and there, I’m afraid…   )

Fergal and the boys are getting our hen-run ready for the imminent arrival of a few hen this week. Their fencing has been re-inforced, house cleaned and readied. Water, food, laying boxes, perches… My friend Mary is donating a rooster to mind his ladies…

 Oh, I cannot wait.