How To Make Your Own Toothpaste

I recently started making my own toothpaste. It saves money, and it seems to work really well for my sensitive teeth.

I found several recipes while searching the web, but I basically ended up making my own recipe, based on my personal preferences and tastes. If you decide to give it a go, feel free to scale the recipe down so you can experiment with mixtures and tastes before making a full batch.

Here's how you do it!

You will need:

1/4 cup baking soda
1/4 cup glycerin (available at most pharmacies - vegetable glycerin will also work)
1/4 cup xylitol (a sweetener found in most health food stores)
1/4 teaspoon of spearmint essential oil (you can also use peppermint)

A bowl and spoon
A zipper-sealed plastic sandwich bag
A small cup or glass
A spatula
A pair of scissors
A small travel bottle (found near the travel size toiletries, usually used for shampoo or lotion)



1. Mix the baking soda and xylitol in a bowl.



2. Add the glycerin and essential oil. Stir until the mixture becomes a paste.



4. Take the plastic bag and place it in the cup, turning the outside edges of the bag out and around the edge of the cup, as in the picture.



5. Using the spatula, scoop the toothpaste into the plastic bag.



6. Release the air from the bag and seal.



7. Snip off a small corner piece of the bag, making sure the opening is small enough to fit into the travel bottle.



8. Place the travel bottle into the cup to keep it steady. Place the opening of the bag in the bottle and squeeze the toothpaste into the bottle.



9. Enjoy your toothpaste!

World Autism Awareness Day

This is a difficult subject for me to approach right now. Our son, Jett, is in the process of several evaluations and therapies, with a diagnosis of an autism spectrum disorder on the table. Having grown up with a special needs sibling, I am especially aware of those struggles that a parent faces when they have a special needs child. Honestly, it terrifies me.

We know that Jett has speech delays. We started speech therapy last week, and we're hoping to see some improvement pretty soon. However, during his speech evaluation, the speech pathologist pointed out something that we hadn't quite picked up on. She noticed that he went up on his toes a lot, and tensed up his arms when he got excited - signs of overstimulation. She recommended an occupation therapy (OT) evaluation, believing that he may also have a sensory processing disorder (SPD).

During his first speech therapy session, she noticed a few other things as well: he takes object and spins them instead of playing with them normally, he lines up like objects in rows, his eye contact is extremely limited, and when he gets frustrated, he bites his fingers - behaviors that could be signs of an autism spectrum disorder. I had picked up on a few of these, and I planned to bring them up at our OT evaluation, hoping that maybe it wasn't indicitive of any further issues and we wouldn't need OT. I also kept hoping that the speech therapy will help his speech, and he'll grow up to be a normal, neuro-typical boy with age-appropriate speech and developmental skills.

She (our speech therapist) brought up developmental pediatricians after noticing these behaviors. That's when I really started to worry. I thought this is real. He could have something more serious. How am I going to give him the special care he needs? I'm not strong enough to parent a special needs child.

It keeps hitting me in bursts. I'll start thinking about it, and the word "autism" pops in my head, and I just start crying. My greatest fears are that A) I somehow failed as a parent already, and I caused this, and B) I'm not a good enough parent to handle this - if I haven't failed already, I'm going to.

We don't have a definitive diagnoses yet (other than speech delays), but I'm calling tomorrow to schedule an evaluation with the developmental ped. Our OT evaluation isn't until May 26, and we probably won't see the developmental ped until after that, even. We're hoping for some answers then. The wait will probably drag, but at least I know we're getting the ball rolling.

Right now, I'm reading The Out-Of-Sync Child: Recognizing and Coping with Sensory Processing Disorder. We don't have a formal diagnosis of SPD, but several people have recommended the book, and we're fairly certain he has some sensory issues. I'm hoping to find some helpful information there.

I've also started a new blog specifically dedicated to Jett - Ready, Jett, Go!

Thanks for reading. I know this wasn't exactly a coherent collection of thoughts as much as a splatter of emotions and run-on sentences. I'm hoping it gets better from here. :)

The After Picture

I've just begun my weight loss tracking blog. Please stop by The After Picture and give it a read. I know the first post is long, but the following posts probably won't be as long winded. Thanks!

Why Coke and Laptops Don't Mix.

My lovely Dell Inspiron laptop finally went to laptop heaven just shortly after Christmas. It's really amazing that it lasted so long, considering some of the abuse it's taken. I spilled on it twice (the second of which was the final blow), and I slammed the top down too hard once, resulting in some malfunctions, and later on, just before the final Coke-tastrophe, the screen completely blew, requiring the use of an external monitor. I think that may have been related to the top-slamming incident.

Well, now we have a brand new desktop, complete with a 22-inch monitor. I'm preparing to study medical transcription online, so I wanted to have a good computer system to work with. I'll also be using it to work from home once I finish the training program.

So, I'm back online, and I'm hoping to start a couple new special interest blogs - one for weight loss, once I start my weight loss journey, and one that will follow a very new road for our family - Jett's upcoming speech therapy and upcoming occupational therapy evalution. The path of speech delays, sensory processing disorders, evaluations, and organizations is becoming a very scary one for us, and I think I could use a specific outlet for some of my fears and concerns. I'll post here when I get those blogs rolling.

Spinach Quiche

I threw this together last night, and it turned out pretty good! I thought I'd share the recipe here - well, as best as I can, since I do a lot of eyeballing without actually measuring.



For the crust, you can buy a frozen or pre-made crust, or you can use this recipe:

1 1/3 cup all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup shortening*
4-5 tablespoons cold water

Mix flour and salt. Add shortening and mix until crumbly. Add water by the tablespoon and toss with a fork until a ball forms. Roll out until the dough is the proper size for your pie dish.

*I have also used unsalted sweet cream butter in place of the shortening. It made for a very yummy, buttery crust. Butter flavored shortening would probably have the same effect.

Quiche Filling (set oven to 400* F)

6 large eggs
1 small package frozen spinach
1/2 an 8oz block of cheddar cheese, shredded (you can add or subtract according to your taste, or use a blend of cheeses)
1/2 a lb of cooked ground beef or sausage (I actually cooked up several frozen meatballs, then crumbled them up - they had a sausage-esque flavor to them)
1/4 cup chopped onion
Spices*
1/2 tablespoon salt
1/8 teaspoon cumin
1/4 teaspoon basil
a pinch of rosemary and thyme
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

*The spices are approximate. I'm a pinch of this, little of that kind of cook when it comes to spices. I have a blend that I pre-mix and use on a lot of things, so I did my best to figure the measurements of what goes in it.

Crumble and cook the ground beef or sausage in a frying pan. While it's browning, beat eggs, then add cheese, onion, spinach, and spices. After meat is thoroughly cooked, drain grease and allow meat to cool slightly. Then add meat and mix thoroughly. Pour and spread mixture into the crust. Bake at 400* F for 45 minutes or until crust starts to brown lightly.

Homemade Pizza

I thought I'd give this a try, and we all really enjoyed it! I hadn't made homemade pizza since I was a kid. I made a really simple, yeast-free dough, and pretty much improvised from there. I think we'll make this a weekly thing. It was good.

Here's the olive oil and mozzarella pizza:



I made a broccoli and tomato pizza:



The crust was simple:

1.5 cup unbleached flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 cup + 1 tablespoon water
2 tablespoons olive oil + some for the base

Mix dry ingredients, then add water and oil. Knead until soft and elastic, about 5 minutes. Divide into two halves if you like thinner crust, or one if you like it thick. I like mine fairly thin. Brush with olive oil, then add your favorite toppings. Bake at 425* until the cheese is slightly brown and bubbly (about 15 minutes for me).

Doggysitting and More

I'm watching a friend's chihuahua, Callie, while our friend is at the beach with her husband and a few other friends (I was invited, but there's no way we could afford a trip right now).

So far, Callie has pooped in the house three times and peed twice, even though I did make sure to take her out regularly for potty breaks. I think anxiety is getting to her. First of all, she's away from her family and home. Secondly, we have a cat, which is a new, weird thing for her. Third, we have small children. 'Nuff said. Bless her little heart.

I set up a bed for her with her blanket from home and a pillow, but she refused and insisted on waking me up to sleep under the covers with me, in my bed. I'm a softy, so I let her.

I know very little about caring for dogs on a regular basis, but I do love dogs, so I'm enjoying the learning experience. The potty accidents and trips outdoors for breaks, however, are solidifying my appreciation for litter boxes, though they're a pain to clean. Even so, I still think I'd like a doggy someday, maybe when we own a home with a nice yard.

Of course, I took pictures.

This is Callie:




Doggysitter Dax:




Tim let Jett walk her in the park:




Dax and I (not a super flattering angle for me):




Dax:






It's been fun, Callie!