OUR WASHER BROKE!

Broken Washer!

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A few months ago, our washer began making the most awful sound. I don't know if I can even describe it expect that is was loud enough that I was afraid to wash our laundry. Well, it turns out that the suspension rods had worn out. Luckily you can order replacements. So a week later we received our replacement suspension rods and were back up in working order.  I don't know about you, but I hate it when our laundry gets backed up. I'm the one person in our family who takes care of washing, drying, and folding our laundry regularly. So what was I to do when the washing machine is broken and I have an affinity for anything done the old way? Well, wash the laundry by hand of course! 

Unfortunately, I don't have a washboard and all my wooden buckets have a hole in them (sarcasm). It was summer and I didn't feel like starting a fire to heat the cauldron. The next best thing I had wash my bathtub and hands. I was able to use the lye soap I made last year to get the clothes squeaky clean. 

In case you need a tutorial, here you go:

Fill the tub with warm/warm-hot water. You can add laundry detergent at this time. Separate clothes into light and dark piles while the tub fills with water. Toss one of the piles in hot water bath. If you have clothes with stains use some soap or stain remover and work it into the stains to get them out. 

Now for the hard part, get out your guns and use your hands and arms like the agitator of your washing machine. This is extra terrible if is hot outside and you are like me and keep the thermostat at 80 degrees in the summer.  When your arms are burning and you are sweating like a hog, you're time to rinse out your clothes. 

Oh yes! You have more to do! Now, drain your tub and while you are doing that take your clothes, one by one and rinse them out. Once they are all rinsed out and soaking wet, ring them out. You can do this by twisting or squishing them. Don't believe for a second that your clothes will be anywhere close to dry. 

You'll have to put them in the dryer or out on the line. In my own opinion it is quicker to toss your clothes in the dryer although I did not try putting them outside. I did however, put my clothes in the dryer with about 6 dryer balls. I purchased these from Amazon, Wool Dryer Balls by Smart Sheep. They definitely help speed up the drying process. I actually use these with every dryer load and it cuts the time down significantly. 

After about 6 loads of laundry by hand you'll have tired arms and clean clothes. If you are lucky the suspension rods will arrive the day after you catch up on the laundry. Have fun!

Swing set replacement canopy DIY

DIY REPLACEMENT CANOPY!
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A year or two ago we purchased one of those swing sets that include monkey bars, slide, rock wall, and ladder. You probably know the kind (or have one). You also probably know that the canopy wears out after a few years or seasons in the sun, rain, and if you live up north, the snow.

I am a DIY person when it is possible and when it makes economic sense to do so. In this case, I was not about to spend one hundred+ dollars on a new canopy from the website or store. So I ran off to my second favorite store (number one being Amazon) with coupons in hand to find new fabric. 

I knew I'd need some sort of outdoor fabric and being May I knew Joann Fabrics would be well stocked. I found a colorful blue and red flowered fabric that I would like to look at. I knew the kids really didn't care and they weren't helping me so it wasn't up to them. 

This outdoor fabric was one of the thicker options. I didn't want it to wear out too quickly. I would compare this to a duck cloth but with more of an artificial feel.

This fabric came in a normal sized bolt which I figured would be wide enough to cover the area I needed if I hemmed it 2 inches on each side. I measured to make sure I had enough to cover the length of the canopy while accounting for the peak. I believe in our case, I purchased 4 yards and that was more than enough. I had originally thought I'd cut the fabric to the width I needed and then hem pieces together to get the length, however once I got the fabric home I knew hemming the edges would be easier. 

I didn't bother washing the fabric because I knew it was just going outside, but I did spray it with Rustoleum Never Wet to give it a bit of protection against the weather. It is probably recommended to wash the material first before spraying with Rustoleum Never Wet, but I'm inpatient. This product is VERY smelly. Make sure you do it outside in a well ventilated area. 

Next, I hemmed each length of the material. For this part I folded each end over one inch and then ironed it. I don't tend to measure or pin anything when I'm doing a big project like this as I don't need it to be perfect. After folding and ironing, I folded each side over again and ironed again. During the second ironing, make sure your fabric is stiff and has a good crease. This will help if you are like me and don't pin your fabric. If you can, put your iron on as high as it will go.
 If you are looking for a new iron, I highly recommend this one, Rowenta DW8080 Pro Master. I've owned several irons since I began ironing my own things and this one is by far the most powerful! I used to buy light irons and they did the job, but not compared to this. The Rowenta is much heavier than other irons I've had but I don't have to do near the amount of work to get a crisp, wrinkle free shirt or pair of pants. In fact, when I iron my hubby's shirts, I can get away with only ironing one side if they haven't been rolled into a ball after the dryer. It has several heat settings for different fabrics as well as a steam setting. You don't have to use distilled water either!

Anyway, back to making canopies. Here is what the canopy looked like ironed and hemmed.

I didn't worry about ironing the hem out of the middle because honestly I didn't care and it was just going outside. Our home is not on the Parade of Homes.

Once I got the fabric outside and I climbed onto the platform of the swing set, it was time to figure out how to attach it to the frame. I could have stapled it into the wood, but I was concerned that they wouldn't hold if there were high winds. I didn't want my fabric to rip so I decided to place grommets into the corners and then tie them to the frame.

I found this Grommet Tool Kit. The one in the photo is similar to the one in the link. I've purchased the one in the link for this and other projects. Pretty much any grommet kit you buy has the same parts and instructions. I used 1/2 inch grommets for this project. For starters, I put on grommet in each corner of the canopy.




To attach the grommet you first have to punch a hole in your fabric. If anyone has an idea on how to do with without putting a hole into cement or your deck let me know. The kit in the link comes with a little piece of wood that you can hammer into which is very helpful. Otherwise you end up with dents and little holes in your platform or cement patio.

Take the hole punch part and place it with the wood under the fabric. Use your hammer and give a good whack (or two or three) on the hole punch until you get a clean hole out of your fabric. You want one clean hole and one bigger or your grommet won't hold to the fabric.

You then take the base of grommet kit and put the bottom part of a grommet on top. Put your hole on top of the bottom piece of the grommet. There should be a piece that fits into the hole. Then take the top piece of the grommet which looks like a ring.

Put the top attachment piece (you can see it in the above photos) on top of the sandwich you've created. Now, take your hammer and give about three good hits. The piece that was sticking out of the bottom grommet should have squished down and is now holding the top ring in place.

I did these for all four corners of the canopy. I could have attached it to the top of the platform as it was but I had a lot of fabric left over and couldn't find a good spot to tie on the four corners. If you find that you measured your fabric correctly and your can tie each corner and the canopy fits snugly, then you can stop here. In my case, I decided to add four more grommets about 8 inches from the original and then fold the fabric over the frame and bring the grommets together and tie them.

If you decide to use any sort of synthetic rope, make sure you melt the ends so they don't fray. It is a bonus if you have a solid fire source and the wind stays away. I was fortunate enough to have an extra windy day hence the pile of matches in the background of the above photo.

Here is how I attached each side to the platform. I came to find out that no design in perfect. In this case, the part on the bottom collected water every time it rained and the fabric could have stretched out, but I just dumped the water quickly and this was not a problem. This year I may shorten the canopy so I don't have any fold over.

Here is the finished product! Overall, I'm very happy with how it turned out. The width was perfect (even without measuring) and even though the length was too long, it wasn't something that couldn't be fixed. It definitely helped keep the sun off the kids while they played and it was a lot more pretty to look at than the multi-colored rainbow ones or generic ones that are offered. I also made it for a fraction of the price.

Potty Training

The day my oldest (R) asked to sit on the potty, I was overjoyed! "YAY, no more diapers!" I hastily thought. Little did I know what I was really getting myself into. He had just turned two and I had heard from all my family, friends, neighbors, and experts not to expect him to train until at least 3, because "boys train later than girls". So, in my joy I broke out the underwear and decided to try the "3 day potty training method" I had read about.  After 3 days of cleaning up potty from the floor, couch, and rugs we were no closer to training than on day one. On the 4th day, when he began to refuse diapers, I rolled up all the rugs in our house and moved them to the basement. I spent the next several months setting alarms, watching for signs, and cleaning up poop and potty off the floor, chairs, and whatever else it landed on.

If you don't gain anything else from this post, please read and understand this-
POTTY TRAINING DOES NOT HAPPEN OVERNIGHT. IT IS A PROCESS THAT WILL TAKE A LONG TIME. YOU WILL TAKE 3 STEPS FORWARD AND 2 STEPS BACK. IN THE END YOUR CHILD WILL GET THERE, BUT IT TAKES CONSISTENCY, HARD WORK, AND DEDICATION.

I'm not sure if I've met a parent who loves to change diapers. Everything about them is a hassle- the diapers, the wipes, the mess, the rash, the paste, the cost, locating a changing table! Don't get me started on all the places that DON'T have a changing table of some sort! I don't believe that parents are necessarily excited about potty training, which is sometimes a bigger mess than changing a diaper, but the idea of not cleaning up your child's poop is motivating enough for most to give it a try. Then again, one does not simply start potty training, and if you do I hope it went smoothly. I find the most effective way to potty train your child is to start with research and a plan. I started with the first and our experience did not begin smoothly. From our trials and errors I have come up with some suggestions that may work for you.

The following are a few tips to get you and your child started potty training.

1.) Start early. There is no hard and fast rule as to when you should start potty training your child. Many people will suggest that boys will train later than girls, but there are always exceptions to the rule (my son began training when he turned 2 and was in underwear all day within 3 months).  When I say start early I mean start with little things you can talk about early.  When you use the bathroom, let your child watch and make a big deal about it. "Mommy (or daddy) goes potty in the toilet. I LOVE going potty in the toilet." Yes, I know it may not be that big of a deal to you, but if you are excited about it, your child is more likely to take an interest eventually. 

2.) Make it fun!

3.) Set a timer (for you AND your child). A friend of mine has a timer on her phone that quacks when it is time to use the potty. When her son hears it, he knows what it is time to do. 

4.) Rewards do not have to be food related (stickers on a poster board, a special activity, or get some small items from the dollar store). 

5.) Be consistent.

6.) Don't expect it to happen overnight.

7.) You might have setbacks.

8.) Make sure you have the appropriate supplies.

Our method

When our son turned 2 we had already been talking about using the potty. We would mention "big boys go potty on the toilet".  When he would fuss about getting his diaper changed I would tell him "You don't have to wear a diaper if you go potty in the toilet." We read some potty books and pointed out "when you use the potty, you can flush the handle".
About a week after his 2nd birthday he said potty and grabbed his diaper. Upon inspection, I noticed there was no potty and thus began our potty training adventure.
First of all, we had a plan.
-Allow R to wear underwear all morning until nap time at noon. This would allow for several hours and attempts at using the toilet.
-Tell him every 30-45 minutes "It's potty time!" and sing "going to the potty" on the way to the bathroom.
-Allow him to sit on the toilet for 1-3 minutes while I sang "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star."
-Give him lots of water and juice (we don't normally drink juice at all)
-At nap time and night time wear a diaper.

Supplies
You don't have to have all these supplies, but they may make transitioning easier.
-Potty seat for the big toilet or a small seat that sits on the floor
-Step stool for using the big potty and/or hand washing
-Underwear (you may have more luck if your child helps to pick these out as it adds to the excitement).
-Sweatpants or athletic pants with no buttons or zippers. This makes them easier to get up and down.

Updates:
Just before our daughter (A) turned 2 she wanted to try sitting on the toilet. She told us she did not want to wear a diaper anymore and wanting to be like her brother, was determined to figure out the potty thing. Trying to repeat our method with R, I would take her to the potty every 30-45 minutes and encourage her to go. This did not work for her- the child has a bladder of steel.  It took 2 days of accidents on the floor before she finally went in the toilet. After that there was no turning back for her. We did have 2 accidents in stores, but that was about it. After a few months (really only about 3) I noticed she was no longer wet at night. We took off the diapers at night and never went back. She was fully potty trained right after 2 years old.

Please note, child A was a completely different method than child R. A wanted to be like her brother; she was ready to be potty trained and had no desire to be left behind. I'm not saying we should have waited for R to be ready or could have pushed A earlier. I am saying you need to know your child. What works for one may not work for another. Be flexible.