We must apologize for our absence these past few weeks!! Tami is once again back to work and as many of you know, going back to school means adjusting to a whole new schedule (and way of life!!). I think we are finally back on track after a few weeks of being a little hazy and very tired. Much caffeine was required!! We couldn't go any longer without sharing this great recipe with you!
Recently I was talking to my sister-in-law, and I was sharing with her a little about our blogging adventures. I was telling her about the homemade detergent & glass cleaner; well, she said that she makes her own antibacterial cleaning wipes! So, of course, we had to make some and share the results with you. I did try it (both anti-bacterial & the bleached wipes), and I really do like them; plus they are so much cheaper! You can buy generic wipes at most super stores. However, I didn't make it to our local super store. I bought my wipes at a local store called Marc's (generic - 80 wipes for $1.79/each). Most small generic tubs of antibacterial wipes are only 45 wipes and with no coupon cost over $2.00! Here is the exact recipe from Pamela, my sister-in-law. Try it and let us know what you think!
ANTIBACTERIAL WIPES
The best value and the thickest cloth that I have found is the Value brand from Walmart. You can experiment with what you like best. This is a money saver, because there are many more wipes in the baby container.
1. Fill the container with water and let the wipes soak for 10 minutes.
2. Drain the water, take the wipes out, and squeeze them dry. Then repeat this process.
3. When the "baby wipe smell" is gone, remove the wipes from the container and set to the side.
4. Fill the container 1/3 of the way with water.
5. Add 1/4 cup of all purpose anti-bacterial cleaner. I used Mr. Clean but generic would work as well.
6. Mix the water and cleaner, and then put the wipes back in.
7. Let these soak overnight, and then drain the extra fluid.
8. The wipes are ready to use.
*I also make bleach wipes using 2 tbsps of bleach instead of cleaner. You can also make windex wipes using Windex with the same process!
Posted by Kim on Aug 31 10 | Comments (0)
Categories: Products,
I've mentioned before that my husband and I are coffee drinkers. We love our coffee and make sure we have it with us before we head out the door each morning. We have some very nice stainless steel travel mugs that begin to smell quickly from the milk/creamer we put in our coffee each morning. The water and dish soap was just not helping get rid of the smell. Therefore, I found a solution!
Pour approximately one Tbls. of baking soda and 1/4 cup of vinegar into the travel mug and filled with a small amount of water. It will fiz for just a few seconds and then you can fill up the rest with water. Then set the lid to the side and make sure the opening to the lid is shut tight. Pour a very small amount of baking soda and vinegar into the lid and lay it to the side. Allow the mug/lid to sit for about 2 hours and then washed both with dish soap and hot water. VOILA!! The smell is gone and you have a fresh clean travel mug once again. Try it out!
Posted by Tami on Aug 10 10 | Comments (0)
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Spider webs and dirt collect quickly in the corners of the every room. Therefore, we must make them GO AWAY! This is something that should be done more than just the spring and fall. Simply take a dust wand such as this Swiffer Duster and begin by going all around the room where the wall and ceiling connect. Then take the duster down the corners of each wall from top to floor. I go over the woodwork, too as well as any spots on the ceiling. The light fixtures and the tops of my curtains can use a quick cleaning too. You can also use the attachments on your vacuum cleaner. I use the round brush on the end of my attachment and go over everything. It's amazing when you start looking for these dust collector spots, you think to yourself, "how do they get here? I clean every week!" Good thing it really doesn't take very long to get rid of them!!
Posted by Kim on Aug 2 10 | Comments (1)
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I love love having a clean kitchen. I do not love love cleaning the kitchen. It just seems like there are so many nooks and crannies and appliances PLUS there is the floor that is usually pretty dirty. As I was thinking the other day about how I clean my kitchen I surmised that we could gain a lot of knowledge by sharing with each other how we clean certain rooms in our house. I know it's not rocket science and that there is no WRONG way to clean a room, however I thought it might be helpful to share what and how we clean the room. This brings me back to the kitchen. I thought it might be a great place to start. Over the next few months we'll be sharing a little about how and when to clean items in each room of the house. So here it goes!
Step One: I begin with my counters. I use a damp rag with comet or an all purpose cleaner and scrub all counters and light switches.
Step Two: I then move to appliances.
- Microwave - I use an all purpose cleaner and thoroughly wipe off the front and inside of the microwave. If the tray inside is too dirty I wash it in the sink. I then dry it off with a cloth or paper towel.
- Oven - I have a glass top oven. Therefore, I use my homemade glass cleaner and wipe off the top, the knobs, and the front of the stove. I occasionally use a special "glass top" cleaner, but for the most part as long as I wipe it off daily and scrape any burns off, it stays clean. If you have the coil stove, you take each part off and wash in the sink with water and soap if necessary. Then reassemble. Ok, here comes the shocker. I DO NOT have a self cleaning oven and I hate it!!! I wipe out the oven with my all purpose cleaner and promise myself that I'm going to REALLY clean it soon, but then don't. So, I promise a post soon about how I cleaned it and it's shiny new!
- Dishwasher - I wipe off the inside and outside with my damp cloth.
- Refrigerator - for my weekly cleaning I simply wipe off the refrigerator with a damp cloth. Go here for more details on giving your refrigerator a good and thorough cleaning!
- Other appliances - I am a minimalist when it comes to keeping appliances on the counter. However, I wipe down any appliances (hello coffee pot!) that are on top of the counters and clean underneath them.
Step Three: Sink - I pour some comet in the sink and scrub real good! Then I wipe it out with a damp rag.
Step Four: Floors - I move out all of the chairs, sweep and scrub with soap and water! I switch every other week between on my hands and knees or the Swiffer. My mom just purchased the Shark Vac and Steam and I must say I am very jealous! She got a super good deal at Kohl's with her 30% off!! Hopefully she'll be telling us more about it soon!
Extras - There are still other extras that you can do such as wipe down any pictures or other items you have hanging in your kitchen and clean the lighting if you'd like. I need to be honest and say there is no way I have time to do these every time I clean the kitchen! I'm lucky if I get on my hands and knees and scrub the floors.
CONGRATULATIONS YOU ARE FINISHED!
So do tell us. How do you go about cleaning your kitchen?
Posted by Tami on Jul 26 10 | Comments (2)
Categories: Kitchen,
Everyone these days is trying to find ways to trim money in the budget. A little here and a little there can really add up to a lot of savings! Who doesn't like that idea? When it comes to cleaning supplies, the cost can add up very quickly. This got me to thinking about ways to cut costs when it came to using cleaning products in my home. I had heard rumors that making your own homemade cleaning products could save lots of money. Therefore, I started experimenting with homemade cleaning products and so far its a success! I most recently tried this homemade recipe for glass cleaner from instructables and was pleasantly surprised! It didn't streak as I thought it would and it took the fingerprints out of my patio doors instantly. I was also quite surprised at how well it worked on my glass shower doors. I showed it off to my husband and he seemed pleasantly surprised!
The recipe is listed below. I'm not going to lie, I made the recipe much stronger than suggested. I only used one 32 oz. spray bottle with the same recipe, which means I used a lot less water. I will admit this was COMPLETELY by mistake (perhaps I need to follow directions more carefully), but I liked the results A LOT so I think I'm going to stick with it.
What You Will Need
2 32oz Spray Bottles (or 1 if you are crazy like me)
1/2 C. Rubbing Alcohol
1/2 C. Vinegar
1/2 Liter Water
1 T. Lemon Juice
3-4 T. Dish Detergent
Mix
Mix together alcohol and vinegar in a container.
Divide
Divide the water into the 2 water bottles.
Divide and Add
Divide the alcohol and vinegar mixture and pour into each bottle.
Add
Add the lemon juice and detergent. Shake the bottles.
Here is the break down as far as cost is concerned (when I say store brand I am referring to generic):
1. Store Brand White Vinegar - $1.08
2. Store Brand Rubbing Alcohol - $0.99
3. Store Brand Dish Detergent - $0.99
4. Store Brand Lemon Juice - $1.69
Total - $4.89 with tax
The white vinegar and rubbing alcohol will make at LEAST 3 batches of glass cleaner and the dish detergent and lemon juice will last a very long time. Therefore, you can make 1 container of glass cleaner for approximately $1.00! The cheapest glass cleaner I found in the nearest Kroger was $1.99 for 1 32 oz. container and the name brand Windex was $3.79 for 1 26 oz. container. I also love the fact that the recipe took less than 10 minutes to make!
If there is one thing I do not like about the homemade glass cleaner its the smell. As I continue to make batches (yes I like it that much) I will work on getting a more pleasant smell from the product. The good news is that the vinegar smell goes away fairly quickly and does not linger.
If you give it a try let us know what you think! I hope you have as good of results as I did.
Posted by Tami on Jul 19 10 | Comments (0)
Categories: Products,
