simple.green.organic.happy.

Author: Robin Strong Elton

  • Dr. Bronner’s OK for HE Washing Machines!

    We got an Energy Starred, HE washing machine close to a year ago. According to the instruction manual, it is of vital importance that you use the correct laundry detergent in these things or else something dire will happen, and more importantly, you will void your warranty. So I dutifully gave away the dozen or so bottles of Purex I had stocked up (it was a GREAT sale) and started buying Sun & Earth Ultra Laundry Liquid.

    Now, Sun & Earth works great and smells even better, I highly recommend it if you can find it. BUT I’ve been buying Dr. Bronner’s by the gallon, and I try to multi-task it as much as possible, so that I have less plastic coming into the house.

    Now, Dr. Bronner’s lists a million uses for their products on their bottle, but nothing specific on front loading, HE washers. ( I’ve had these bottles for a looong time, though. For all I know, they’ve updated their packaging.)

    I was nervous about using Dr. Bronner’s in the HE machine without some reassurance, so I emailed the company, but I didn’t really expect anything to come of it.

    Lo and behold, a prompt reply:

    Hi Robin,

    Thanks for writing. Both the castile soap and the Sal Suds work well in HE washing machines. For the castile soap, use 1/8-1/3 c. per load, for SalSuds use 1 Tbsp. You can add 1/4 c. of baking soda for an extra boost. Please let me know if you have any further questions.

    Yippee!
    One more reason to love Dr. Bronner’s…customer service!

  • Relax- No Spiders Today

    It seems to me
    we can never give up longing and wishing
    while we are thoroughly alive.
    There are certain things we feel
    to be beautiful and good,
    and we must hunger after them.
    -George Eliot

  • Summer is in Session

    Today was the older kids’ first official day of vacation. What did we do? We lazed around, cooked a bunch, and went to the library to sign up for the summer reading program. Yes, we are bookish uber-nerds, but we are bookish uber-nerds as a family, and so that is OK.

    We have lots of plans for this summer: a couple of camping trips, some time at the beach, some local gardens and museums, maybe NYC or DC to visit with friends, making friends with local farmers, hiking some state parks. In addition: keeping up the victory garden, learning to cook local meals that are not salad, and making good on our pledge to become backyard naturalists.

    Maverick is captain of this endeavor, and to that end he took out a number of field guides from the library to supplement the ones we already own. On Saturdays he will post about whatever backyard flora and fauna he has identified and the results of any “experiments” he conducts.

    Sundays Jacob will be posting “Postcards from Al”. This is something we started and abruptly halted because we lost Al. (By “we” I mean “most emphatically not me.”) Jake recently went to the Franklin Institute on a field trip and took ten dollars of his saved allowance for the gift shop. What did he buy? Well, obviously an Albert Einstein action figure; only narrowly beating out Ben Franklin. What does one do with an Albert Einstein action figure, I wondered. Clearly, one takes him on wild outdoor adventures and photographs the ensuing craziness for internet postcards.

    This is Mr. Einstein. We call him Al.

    The idea is, with the kids posting, that I will be able to step back from the weekends and take time to work on posts that are a bit clearer, better written, and (perhaps) more level-headed.

    And also, that this blog will be more of the family project that I originally intended it to be.

    And, OK, admittedly, a way for me to ensure the kids are happily engaged in reading, research, nature, and writing.

    But truly they are amazing people and I hope you enjoy getting to know them a bit better.

    To keep them motivated, please comment freely on their posts! They will be thrilled to learn that someone is listening.