Over the weekend...

Over the weekend my parents came up for a visit and we all went over to Cullman county on Sunday afternoon. We visited Clarkson covered bridge. It is the only covered bridge in Cullman county. I have visited the site several times, but this was the first time for my parents. My mother is a huge history/genealogy buff. She and my father seemed to really enjoy the trip.

The road does not travel through the bridge anymore. It is only only open to foot traffic.]

Below is a picture of an old mill in the park. The park also included several picnic tables that sit on the edge of a nice creek.

This is an old cabin in the park. It is a really neat building. It has a dog-trot through the middle. The building now houses the ever important indoor plumbing and drink machine. Here is a link if you are interested in more history about the bridge: http://www.cullmancountyparks.com/clarkson.htm

We also visited Water Valley Flea Market. Here are a few of my finds: several vintage linens that I plan to use a insets for aprons, 4 snuff glasses, a glass juicer, and Wilton dog cake pan. I am a sucker for dogs. Isn't he cute.

I also made some laundry detergent. This is the first laundry detergent that I made independently, but it turned out very good. My sister-in-law help me make it the first time. She has been doing it for quite sometime now. We both use it in our front loading washers, and it works just fine. It is also CHEAP to make!

You need the following:

Hot Water

1/2 cup washing soda

1/2 cup borax

1/3 bar soap (grated) I used Zote. It make a pretty pink detergent.

1. In a large pot, heat 3 pints of water and dissolve grated soap. Do not let the solution boil.

2. Add washing soda and Borax, stirring constantly. Dissolve powder and remove from heat.

3. Pour solution into a 2 gallon bucket and add 1 quart hot water. Fill bucket the rest of the way and stir well. Use 1/2 cup per load. Shake before each use.

I use vinegar as fabric softener, and it works great. No vinegar smell is left behind. As you can see, I reuse milk jugs and a soda bottle with the bottom cut off for a funnel. Yields 2 gallons.