Bubblicious

Bath products are expensive and most of them are filled with harmful chemical fragrances and skin-irritating detergents.

Well, there is good news! You can make your own from all-natural ingredients and it won't cost much at all! These make EXCELLENT gifts, too!

From Apartment Therapy:

What You Need

Materials:
4 cups of Water
4 oz Castille Soap (like Dr. Bronner's which you can buy scented or unscented and it's totally green and can be used for cleaning around the house and your body)
3 oz of either Glycerin* or Coconut Oil (both lather well and are skin softeners)
Essential Oil (use your imagination to come up with fun and exciting combos!)
Container for your concoction (non glass is best for near the bath)
Bath Tub

(you can also add a couple-- and I really do mean just a couple, because too many could stain the bathtub-- drops of food coloring to the mix to make the bubble bath just a little more fun)

*Glycerin is any pure soap, normally a transparent bar, made without synthetic detergents. You can buy it online or sometimes at the drugstore. Pure vegetable glycerin is usually available at Whole Foods Market. If you buy drugstore or craft store glycerin, be aware that it is likely petroleum based.

Instructions

1. Mix water with castille and glycerin or coconut oil.

2. Add 4-5 drops of your choice of essential oil.

3. Mix well.

4. Pour your bubble bath into the container. It should keep for quite a while.

5. Fill bathtub with water and pour in a couple of ounces of bubble bath.

6. Take a deep breath and soak.

Playful bathrooms

A friend of my mother's was recently in her homeland of the Netherlands, and she gave her this item upon her return. It really got me thinking about a few things... 1) how in the heck do you use it? (we brainstormed and got it figured out) and 2) wow, it is really time to do something about my bathroom!!

I don't want to do too much... no changing fixtures or anything, because I know someday we will make the bathroom bigger and then I can do a big overhaul. But I need to do something for the interim to spice it up and make it a bit more pleasant. As much as I long for a chic spa-inspired bathroom where I can languish for hours in hot bubbles watching Oprah or reading Jane Austen, I have to come to terms with the fact that my life just isn't like that. I haven't taken a bubble bath in more than four years and it would be a little tough with "Bathtime Buzz" staring me in the face anyway. I share a tiny bathroom with a grown man and two four-year-old boys. So, I've decided I want the bathroom to be a fun place that gets us energized in the morning and won't look silly with a few rubber duckies strewn about.

I could definitely paint the vinyl linoleum in the bathroom to replicate this look:

There is definitely something that is simultaneously fun and classic in this look:

"Raindrops keep fallin' on my head" is a much more pleasant thought when the raindrops are rainbow-colored:

Although I can't fit this in now, someday I would love to have a little toilet nook in the bathroom:

The Short List revisited

Paint trim for the boys' room
Paint stripes in the boys' room
Paint chalkboard wainscot in the boys' room
Clean and turn on the heater
Buy area rug for living room
Strip and paint trim in master closet
Strip doors
Hang succulent baskets on front porch
Build compost bin
Paint dining room walls
Begin door repairs
Strip door frames

I managed to complete a fair amount of stuff on my short list before my parents arrived. It is raining in Los Angeles now, and might be for most of the week, so we might not get too much done on this visit, but it is the holidays, so I'm happy to have some relaxed family time!

It's Alive!

Next year, I am going to consider renting a live Christmas tree... they drop it off and pick it up 30 days later and keeps right on growing!