More Soapy Goodness

Here are some pictures from the final episode of my soap making marathon.  I might have to wait a few weeks or so before making some more.  All these soaps were made using the same recipe that includes palm oil, olive oil, coconut oil, avocado oil, castor oil, cocoa butter and shea butter and goat milk.

Toasted Almond ~ contains almond fragrance oil (one that actually smells like almonds instead of cherries).  Suddenly I'm craving marzipan....I wonder why?!

Kumquat ~  contains fragrance oil, orange peel, and mica  (and kinda looks like cheese).  Fruity and sweet.

Nature Walk ~ contains peppermint and tea tree essential oils, peppermint leaf, and green luffa powder.  It's fresh and invigorating!  Makes me wanna go hiking and build up a marvelous sweat....then go home and shower with 'Nature Walk'.

Peace ~ contains fragrance oil blend (saffron & honey), red kaolin, yellow oxide, & calendula petals.  More peaceful and sensual than nature walk...a very calming, gentle scent.

I hope you've enjoyed them.  I sure had fun making them.  Soap making is a perfect blending of science, cooking & art and I just love it.

Oh, Soapy Day!

The girls went on another 'field trip' yesterday to work with Daddy.  So......I decided to make a little soap.  Here are some pictures of my new bars fresh cut this morning.....

                                                               

Shampoo Bars ~ palm oil, olive oil, coconut oil, wheat germ oil, castor oil, hemp seed oil, and cocoa butter w/ egg yolk and honey added.  Fragrance is a blend of grapefruit, lavender, rosemary & ylang ylang essential oils.

Faith Soap Bars ~ Palm Oil, Olive Oil, Coconut Oil, Castor Oil, Avocado Oil, Cocoa Butter & Shea Butter.  Goat Milk, Cinnamon, Nutmeg & Annatto Powder Added.  Contains a fragrance blend of 'basmati rice' fragrance oil & frankinsence and myrrh essential oil.

Seashore Soap Bars ~ Same carrier oils as 'Faith'.  Goat milk and bentonite clay are added.  Seawater strip contains micas, oxides and green luffa powder, and tops are sprinkled with cosmetic glitter.  Contains 'Seashore' fragrance oil.

Kaleidosoap ~ Same carrier oil blend as 'Faith' and 'Seashore' with goat milk and titanium dioxide added.  Color swirls contain micas and activated charcoal, and cosmetic glitter is sprinkled on top.  Fruity fragrance oil blend contains white grape, banana, black cherry and apples.

I hope you enjoy!  Four more batches are on the schedule for tomorrow.

Something to think about......

I want to leave you with something to think about today.  I have been really thinking lately about commitment.  It seems where everywhere I turn, people aren't doing what they say they are going to do. 

They go back on their word.  (Sorry, I got busy...it was hot so I decided to go swimming instead....I had alot to do...I got busy)  I had a friend agree to teach the girls a skill.  Two weeks in a row, she just never showed up.  No call or anything.  My girls spent hours running to the window looking for her.  They made her gifts to give her on her visits, but they never heard from her.

Some refuse to give their word in the first place. (I'll come by if nothing better comes up... I'll pick it up for you if I remember...I'll try....I MAY be by to help, but don't count me in....)  They don't commit.  No commitment, no disappointment.  Right?

But the truth is that when people commit to us, we feel loved, special, and important.  When they blow us off we feel that we don't matter to them.  We still feel disappointed.  We feel as if we aren't a special part of their lives. 

Sometimes we assume they are just bad people.  But they aren't.  They just don't consider the effect their actions have on others.  Sometimes they just don't know how to see beyond themselves.  This person who 'stood up' the girls.....they don't even talk about her anymore.  The items they made for her have disappeared.  It is a shame because I know she loves them, and she is a sweet person.  But I don't think she ever considered their disappointment. 

That is just an example but it seems that everywhere I turn, the same attitude of non-commitment is prevalent.  We are quickly becoming a civilization of people that is only concerned with living our lives for ourselves.  That is why our relationships are crumbling.  Our marriages are failing.  We have very few true friends anymore. (you know, the kind you could call anytime and they would be there for you)  Every kind of relationship requires commitment to work.  It requires sacrifice.  It may require helping to get up hay in the heat when you would rather be swimming and sipping cocktails. 

So I leave you with something to think about today.  It is a phrase that I have posted in my home to remind myself of daily.

                                     Commitment versus Obligation
                               
                         The only difference is attitude!


Think about it.

Tie Dye Fever has struck......Groovy!

Okay, after months and months we are starting to get settled at our new home.  Well, as settled as you can be when you are settling on a land that has been basically abandoned for several decades.  We have had plenty of time to become accustomed once again to luxuries like running water and a modern kitchen.  But we found we ran into a little problem during our year and a half 'in limbo'. 

Our girls grew up quite a bit in that year and a half.  Some of you know the vast difference in interests between a young girl of six, and a maturing girl of eight.  Kasi was so excited to for the first time be in possession of her own bed....even her own room!  But she would just grin and bear it when it came to her cutesy pink and animal print bedding and decorations she so adored as a girl of six.

I remember the pink  ballerina wallpaper that I had to endure for nearly ten years when it caught my fancy as a girl of five.  I never even took dance, so I don't for the life of me know what triggered my choice.  But...anyways....I digress.

So Kasi has become a 'big' girl, with big girl interests.  What to do?  What to do?  I did what any other totally hip and slightly wacky crafty mom would do.  I pulled out the tie dye kit!  "Let's tie dye some curtains for you", I say.  They turned out amazing if I do say so myself.  While we were at it, we tie dyed pillowcases, t shirts and bandannas.  Now when the girls go to a sleepover, their pillow will be easy to spot.  And we are all extremely stylish (and easy to spot) as well. 

I purchased an old, high quality, white cotton sheet at Goodwill the other week for $2.  I'm thinking about tie dying it (sshhhh, it's a surprise!) and cutting it in strips to include on the quilt I am going to surprise her with......one day.  Since it will only be a twin, maybe it won't be too far in the distant future.  Most of the fabrics I have selected already are batiks.  The would go great with some tie dyed strips.  

Well, I'd better run.  Once again, the girls are away....so I gotta play!