DIY Liquid dishwasher detergent: Pulled an AB muscle...so spending all day in my kitchen!

Somehow in the past two days I pulled an AB muscle. It either came from my crazy 600 rep challenge from bodyrock followed up by an extra AB workout or the hills I ran yesterday. I got the idea to run hills from my friend's blog: http://runcheuricerun.blogspot.com/  and the workout she posted on March 22. If you run hills, it takes time off your run. I figured if runners use this to better their times, I could just use it to better my fitness level and running skills. So I ran a long (very long) hill by my house last night with the hubsters. We took turns running/ pushing our munchkin up and down the hill in his stroller. I took the stroller up the first hill and after that was just going to let my husband push it, but he said I needed practice for when I'm alone. I made it up and down 6 times before I couldn't breath from my allergies and now this afternoon I feel as though I pulled an AB muscle. Must have been from all that hard pushing! So here are the products of spending the whole day in my kitchen and resting my ABS.

DIY LIQUID DISHWASHER DETERGENT: finally found a way to get rid of that film.

This is super easy, very cost effective, and safe for your children and the environment. I found it on this blog. Most recipes you find are for powder detergent, but I wanted one for a liquid because it's better for your dishwasher. This recipe is an exact replica of hers except with the secret ingredient to remove the film.

Recipe:  This is her recipe, but I quadrupled mine and it almost filled a 1 Gallon container. It made about 3 1/2 quarts which left me enough room to shake it up.

1 1/2 cups water
1/2 cup distilled white vinegar
1/4 cup liquid castile soap (you can find this in the body wash/ soap section; just look for the all natural products and you'll find it)
2 tablespoons pure lemon juice (not concentrate)
2 tablespoons salt
1 tablespoon washing soda
1/2 tbsp borax (this is optional)

SECRET INGREDIENT: To cut the film, you must use 2-3 drops Dawn dish soap in the same container you place the detergent in. Do NOT use more than that because your dishwasher will flood over. My dishwasher is really old and does a really poor job at washing dishes not matter what detergent I use (always have to super scrub the dishes before I put them in). If yours is newer you may be able to just get away with the vinegar as the rinsing agent. Try and see first! If there is a film, it tends to only be on plastics like: tupperware, plastic glasses or bowls, and non stick pans. If you only use glass items, you should be good to go!

**10-15 drops antibacterial essential oil, if using an unscented castile (I added tea tree oil to it even though I had a scented castile)
 
Extra white vinegar for the rinse cycle (you can either fill your rinsing agent container or just pour some in the bottom of the dishwasher)

In a small saucepan, combine water and vinegar over medium heat. Bring to just boiling and then reduce to low heat. Add each additional ingredient, one at a time, whisking as you go. Make sure everything is dissolved before removing from heat.
Allow to cool and then transfer to a storage container. When completely cooled the solution will separate into two layers, so shake it up really good before use.

Have fun trying this and let me know how it goes! I will continue to rest my AB muscles.