Household Tips

Mother’s Day is right around the corner. Can you believe it? If your mom is like mine, she loves creative gifts — especially gifts that include photos of her grandchildren! PhotoWorks and American Greetings have teamed up to provide a full complement of interesting photo-laden gifts. I love this bucket bag!

PhotoWorks new Mother’s Day photo books ($39.95) include floral-themed designs for mother and grandmother that feature the expression “All About Love.” Scrapbook-themed designs feature expressions such as “Mother is the Heart of Our Family” and kid-friendly, polka dot designs feature expressions such as “Behind Every Great Mom are the Kids Who Love Her.” Each photo book design also features a special poem or sentiment on the title page that can be customized with names and dates.

Mother’s Day expressions are also available on 11 new PhotoWorks greeting cards ranging from traditional single-fold cards to tri-fold and poster cards ($2.07 - $3.47 per card). Examples include “Mommy, You’re the Best,” “What is a Grandma?,” “You’re a Wonderful Sister,” “Mother Memories,” “Daughter, You’re Very Special,” and more.

PhotoWorks also features a variety of unique gifts that can be customized with a personalized photo, including:

— Bucket Tote ($89.95) - This elegant, yet sturdy, tote features a zipper closure, multiple interior pockets and a key fob to hold everything from valuables to playtime snacks.
— Clutch/Cosmetic Bag ($49.95) - A microfiber clutch and wristband handle for her night out on the town!
— Wine Box ($29.95) - This maple wood wine box holds a standard-size bottle of wine.
— Personal Journal ($14.95) - Perfect for noting everything from favorite vacation memories to shopping lists.
— Recipe Cards (As low as $.95 per card in bulk) - Help Mom remember her favorite recipes by turning post cards into handy 4 x 6 inch recipe cards, $1.50 individually.
— Perpetual Calendar ($13.46- $14.95) - Keep Mom organized with this customized calendar.

PhotoWorks Mother’s Day photo books and gifts can be purchased online at http://www.photoworks.com; select items are available at more than 200 American Greetings and Carlton Cards stores nationwide.

And after you’re done shopping, check out Martha Stewart’s gift wrapping tips here!

My favorite hose attachement is the multi-nozzle sprayer.

I have one on the hose in my front and back yard.

The best thing about this nozzle attachment is that you can water grass in a wide path, and tiny little seedlings up close, you just use the mist mode.

This Scott’s Website discusses techniques for getting the most out of watering your yard.

Hines is on the mend. Slowly.

He has been on a diet of homemade chicken and rice chased with fresh water and pedialyte. Last night I gave him a quarter of one Pepto Bismol tablet because the liquid? He would not do. He returned it to me by blowing a raspberry of Pepto Bismol directly at my chest. I took that to mean that he would rather have the runs.

I have never been happier to find dog poo on my carpet than I was this morning! Hines is slowly regaining some regularity.

Because I have now dedicated two full days of readership to the maladies of my dog’s digestive system, I decided to do a little research about dogs and their intestinal problems.

Dogs can suffer from an occasional bout of diarrhea and vomiting for a variety of reasons. It can be as simple as a change in their diet, stress, or poison or a parasite. If the symptoms are minor and brief, chances are it was just an upset and nothing more. In my case, Hines is still hungry and eating, so it can’t be too bad. If a dog stops eating, take them to a doctor immediately. Refusal to eat is the number one sign that an animal is in distress.

Any changes in your pet’s habits are cause to be concerned. They are creatures of habit and therefore they develop a good amount of regularity in their habits and behaviors.

Intestinal Dog Health, read more.

But!

I have a good shower cleaner.

We just moved into our house last December and in the master bathroom we have a stall shower. It seems people either love or hate a stall shower. You definitely shouldn’t hate your stall shower simply because it collects soap scum and water deposits and looks dingy.

I’ve been using Seventh Generation, Natural Citrus Scent, Shower Cleaner. It costs less than $5.00 and has a very mild natural scent. I really hate some of the overpowering toxic smells from the stronger cleaners, and this one doesn’t make you gag or need to hold your breath.

I spray it on the glass walls of my stall shower and wipe it off with a paper-towel. There is no residue or streaks left behind and it leaves my shower clean and shiny.

I highly recommend this product.

Seventh-Generation is non-toxic and biodegradable. The cleansing agents are hydrogen peroxide for stain removal and citrus-oil for grease removal.

There is this particular spot just NEXT TO my cat’s litter box where he always like to “go”.

After many futile attempts of yelling at the cat, and not feeding the cat, monitoring the cat, and driving myself directly to loony-ville, I decided to try to attack the problem at the source. The carpet itself, not the cat’s behavior.

If you have cats, then, you KNOW. Cats will go where they have gone before. Cats will poop just outside the liter box for a variety of reasons. They will do it if the box is unclean, or full, or if they are mad at you for something. Once the smell of urine and poop are on the carpet, it is very hard to remove and the pets will consider that “their spot” and continue to “go” there.

I decided to implement the best tool I have at my disposal, my brain, which is far larger and capable of much more complex thinking than my cat, at least when I’ve had a few drinks and a line or two of blow. Am kidding. I never mix my alcohol with my blow.

I bought a bottle of Nature’s Miracle carpet cleaner and put it in an empty spray bottle. After vacuuming the carpeted area thoroughly, I sprayed the entire area and let it sit for about twenty minutes before vacuuming. The instructions on the bottle advise to use a brush to rub the stained areas, which I did not do this time. I was more concerned with getting the smell out of the carpet, hence, the thorough soaking.

This morning? Clean carpet. However, this experiment will need a few more days and perhaps weeks to truly gather all the results. I plan to scrub the carpet with a brush this week, in attempt to lift the stains from previous carpet cleaners.

To Be Continued ….

nature’s miracle, cat poop on the carpet, pet stains, carpet stains

It is easy to wash the outside of a car windshield, but it isn’t so easy to wash the inside with that squeegee thing at the gas station.

Recently, my Mom asked me something to clean her windshield with and I gave her paper towel wet with Windex Multi-Surface Cleaner with Vinegar.

It worked like nothing ever before!

I use this on my bathroom mirrors and faucets to make them shiny and ultra clean.

Jen gave you a hint about soaking the stain in milk. Ball point ink will come out with cheap hairspray, remember to put a towel under the part you are treating to keep from transferring it to another part of the garment. I use permanent ink and gel ink at work and I frequently get stains on my scrubs. These inks involve getting out the big guns. First try Goof-Off (not to be confused with Goo Gone another favorite product. Goof off removes Dried latex paint, glue, adhesives, candle wax, grease, gum, pen, marker, grease and crayon marks. My last resort is Mostenbocker’s Lift Off Stain Remover. Just follow the directions. Hope this helps Gayle and tomorrow I will tackle Jen’s sheet!

ink stains, Mostenbocker’s stain remover, Goof-Off, Goo-Gone, hairspray

Ronda wrote in to share this tip. I’ve listed Pam cooking spray in my favorite products and suggested spraying appliances and utensils before use to make cleaning them easy. Ronda says her favorite tip is to spray her Crock Pot before filling it so EVERYTHING washes away in the dishwasher. I plan to try this tomorrow when I take a dish to work. I remember when I hated to clean the crock pot, but that was before they had removable crock that could go in the dishwasher. Thanks for the Hint!

If your clothes, towels and linens are coming out of the laundry stiff, in spite of fabric softener, you are probably using too much detergent. Don’t use more than the manufacturer says to use. It will not clean better. Add a cup of vinegar to the rinse water instead of fabric softener to cut the build up and soften your laundry. Don’t worry, it will not leave any smell. Vinegar will also remove deodorant stains from most fabrics. Just soak the stain with vinegar and wash as usual.
[tags]vinegar, stains, detergent,[/tags}

I had some really nasty stains on a beautiful canvas handbag and was looking to remove them without discoloring. I remembered using shaving cream (not gel) to get small stains out of clothes on trips, so I gave it a try. Started with a stain on the bottom where it wouldn’t show. Spray on the cream, work it in a little with your finger, and let it set for 30 minutes. Go watch a sitcom or read a few blogs! Rinse with a solution of 1 part vinegar to 7 parts water and blot with a cloth. This is a great remedy for stains on upholstered furniture and fabric lampshades also.
[stains, upholstery, lampshades, canvas, shaving cream,vinegar[/tags]

Ya’ll know that Sam’s & Costco are two of my favorite places to shop. Well imagine my excitement at finding a twelve pound bag of baking soda which is one of my favorite cleaning products. Had to share that as well as another baking soda tip. Baking soda on a damp sponge will remove the orange residue from storing chili, spaghetti, or other tomato based foods from those plastic food storage containers.

baking soda, Sam’s, Costco, food stain

To make an ice pack, pour 1 cup rubbing alcohol and two cups water into a 1 quart Ziplock bag. (Double for larger bags) Squeeze out all of the air and zip closed. Toss in the freezer for emergencies or to take to sporting events, or even to prepare for a medical procedure that will require ice packs. The alcohol will not freeze , so it will freeze slushy and conform to any body part. Label with a Sharpie and refreeze and reuse several times.

ice pack, Sharpie, Alcohol, Ziplock bags

Multipurpose cleaners

1. Pour one cup of ammonia, 1/2 cup white vinegar, 1/4 cup baking soda into a gallon of lukewarm water. Mix well and use in a spray bottle for a great all-purpose clean. Label and keep out of reach of children. No rinsing is necessary.
2. If you use washing soda use one full cup ammonia, 1 cup washing soda and warm water to make one gallon. Label and put in a spray bottle to clean counter-tops, tile, appliances, vinyl floors, painted woodwork and even some painted walls
[ammonia, vinegar, baking soda, multi-purpose cleaners

My two favorite cleaners are baking soda and vinegar. Not only are they cheap, they are amazing. Use baking soda for scouring powder, it is non abrasive and will even remove coffee & tea stains from countertops and sinks. It is great for cleaning the stove top.
Burn something to a pan, wet it, pour on baking soda and let it sit for a few hours. You can then scrape the mess away with a plastic scraper and scour the pan clean. Add 1/2 to 1 cup of baking soda to the wash to boost cleaning power and have the freshest smelling laundry in town. I’ll give you more tororrow!

baking soda, vinegar, laundry, kitchen

You know how I love to share my favorite products. One of my favorite kitchen products is Pam!
When using your blender or food chopper, spray the blades with Pam before using. Clean up will be a snap. I also use Pam on the beaters when mixing , the grater, and my electric knife. It’s also great on the grill! (Indoor or outdoor type)

Pam, small appliances