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Remember last year when I posted about back-to-school lunch ideas that were frugal and healthy? Check out that post if you haven’t seen it…lots of great ideas in there! Muffins, smoothies, snack ideas…it’s all there.

Today I wanted to post about some back-to-school breakfast ideas. Sure…a bowl of cereal is always fast but it isn’t the healthiest choice. And with a little bit of planning, you can have delicious, healthy breakfasts without all the hassle in the morning.

1. Muffins.

My kids love muffins, for breakfast and lunches. Did you know that you can make up the muffins, then freeze once they are cooled? When you do this, they will taste fresh once defrosted. Everyone can grab whichever kind they want that morning, pop in the microwave for 30 seconds and there is breakfast! If you don’t want to do this, you can also mix up the muffin batter, then freeze in the muffin cups. There was a PYP post on this subject you can read about HERE.

2. Breakfast Burritos.
This is fast and simple, even to make from scratch. Mix up some eggs, seasonings, sausage or bacon, etc together, cook, and put into a tortilla. But if you don’t want to do that make some ahead of time and freeze. Then the morning of, all you have to do is pull one out of the freezer, defrost, and eat.

3. Breakfast Sandwiches.
This is also fast and simple. Toast an English muffin, then put inside eggs, cooked sausage, and a little cheese. So delicious! This is one of our family favorites.

4. Omelet for a crowd.
You can make this omelet the night before, and just pop into the oven the next morning. Just make sure you plan ahead for cooking time. This is actually a Christmas morning tradition for us, but it would also work for busy school mornings!

Breakfast Omelet
18 eggs
1 c. milk
1 c. sour cream
1 tsp salt
1/4 c. chopped green onions
2 c. grated cheese
2 c. cubed ham
(add in any topping you want…bacon, corn, etc)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Beat the eggs, milk, sour cream, and salt in a bowl. Add in onions, cheese and ham. Stir together, and pour into a greased 9×13 pan Bake until set, about 45 minutes. Cool at least 5 minutes. Cut into squares, and serve hot.

What do you make for breakfast on a busy school morning?

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If you want to get your children to look @ your camera, this idea is sure to help. Simply take a hair scrunchie and decorate it. Put it on the lens of your camera and there you go! The kids know where to look and the cute scrunchy faces are sure to get some smiles.
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I used to be a HUGE couponer. My stockpile was massive with almost everything, most especially laundry detergent. I haven’t been such an avid couponer the past few years, and just last week I ran out of laundry detergent! First time in years. I haven’t bought laundry detergent for such a long time that I about DIED at the price when I went to the store. I just couldn’t bring myself to pay for a large container of good detergent! I did my research online and decided to make my own. I have thought about doing this for years, and decided now was the time.

There are a lot of recipes out there for homemade laundry detergent. I went with a recipe my friend Heather shared on her blog. It looked easy, which was key for me! Plus, it is supposed to make enough for 8-9 months, which I liked.

Here is what you need to make your own laundry detergent. All of these I found together at Walmart in the detergent asile.

3 bars Fels Naptha Soap (grated)
1 three lb 7 oz box Washing Soda
1 four lb box Baking Soda
1 four lb 12 oz box Borax
3.5 lbs Oxi Clean (or the store brand equivilant)

First, grate the Fels Naptha Soap. I used a hand grater, you could use a food processor. It smelled great and was really easy. Kind of looks like grated cheese! Don’t worry…it dissolves just fine in the washer. I usually use cold water and I have not had a problem.

Next, get a large bucket or container to mix everything in really well. I used two tubs and just divided everything up in half and mixed it up together really well. Worked great and smelled great!

This is what it looks like when all mixed up.

This recipe makes about 2 gallons of detergent. I didn’t want to spend extra money on a container, so I just used two empty ice cream buckets I had and labeled them with a sharpie. Walmart does carry 1 gallon glass containers if you want something prettier.

Now here is the best part….you only need 1-2 Tablespoons of detergent per load! Isn’t that amazing? Homemade detergent doesn’t have all the fillers that store bought does so it stretches much further. I have used this detergent this weekend 3 times in color loads and whites. The clothes have come out smelling great and are nice and clean! I am very pleased so far.

Here is the cost breakdown of this detergent recipe. I got everything at Walmart in the detergent asile.

3 bars Fels Naptha Soap (grated): .97 each, $2.91 total
1 three lb 7 oz box Super Washing Soda: $3.24
1 four lb box Baking Soda: $2.12
1 four lb 12 oz box Borax: (I already had this on hand, so I don’t have the exact price)
3.5 lbs Oxi Clean (or the store brand equivilant): $7.52

TOTAL: $16.74 (minus the Borax, but that is around $3)

So for about $20, you can have 8-9 months worth of detergent! It works out to be meager pennies per load. Now so you know, the Oxi Clean is an optional ingredient, but if your kids are messy or you have lots of stains and heavy washing I recommend adding it. My Walmart was out of the store brand Oxi Clean, which was cheaper.

I figured this was worth the investment to try it out. I do between 35-40 loads of laundry a month, and that is only increasing! Have you ever made homemade laundry detergent? How has it worked for you?