Monday, January 05, 2009

I Can’t Live if Livin’ is Without You

It’s hard to be a homemaker. It’s even harder when you have four children, one of whom is a four-year-old bent on destruction, and they’re all into Legos.

I admit, I’m not the world’s best housekeeper. Or Utah’s best, or Orem’s best … you get the picture. But I try, and there are some products I’ve discovered that help me remain just a little bit saner than I otherwise would be, and I don’t think I could live without them. (Metaphorically speaking, of course.)

OxyClean I love OxyClean. This product has saved me so many times, I’ve lost count. Consider the glass of grape juice that was dropped on my beige living room carpet the other day. (You remember the four-year-old, right?) I mixed 1 t. of OxyClean with a cup of hot water, poured it on the juice and blotted it up with a towel. It was like magic—instantly gone, with no trace of juice at all. It’s also excellent for taking care of blood stains, and with another son who gets bloody noses, we’ve had many experiences with this phenomenon. Hydrogen peroxide is also great for blood, just in case you were wondering …

Febreze This is another must-have in my arsenal. I enjoy having fresh-smelling linen all the time, but it’s not realistic to wash every sheet and blanket each morning. There’s enough sheet-and-blanket washing going on as it is. Febreze takes the odors out of fabric and doesn’t cover them up with a heavy perfume. I use it on beds, curtains, couches, and frequently on my carpet as well.

Magic Erasers If you have not yet tried Magic Erasers by Mr. Clean, you are missing out! These incredible gizmos take off crayon, most types of marker, most types of pen, fingerprints—almost anything that lands on your wall, they’ll clean off. There is a caution that children shouldn’t use them, as the chemical might be irritating, but I’ve never had a problem with them personally and my skin is fairly sensitive.

Each of these products has a generic brand alternative, so it really doesn’t matter if you spring for the name brand or not. I tend to lean toward cheaper, myself.

If you’ve got tough stains or tough odors, give these products a try. They just might bail you out—I know they’ve made my life a whole lot easier and I don’t know what I’d do without them.

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5 comments:

Cindy Beck, author said...

Tristi,
I've used Febreeze, and it does work well. You can also spray it in athletic shoes to help with odor!

As for Oxy-Clean, I've never tried it, but it sounds like it's worth having!

Thanks for the great info.

Stephanie Humphreys said...

I can't live without those magic erasers. Our kitchen cupboards are white with a little texture. Just wiping them doesn't work, but the magic erasers make them shine like new. (plus a little elbow grease :)

Anna said...

I love magic erasers. If you can't get it off with soap and water, you can get it off with the Erasers.

Karlene said...

So, uhm, what about the Sham Wow? I think you should buy it and try it and let us know if it's all the commercials say it is. :)

Dallas Meow said...

love oxy-clean though have had to turn to something stronger for the white shirt collars.
also love magic erasres, but mine seem to only last three or four scrubs then fall apart... maybe I am treating them like a tough sponge [and I didn't realize they had chemical -duh-] I still use my bath and kitchen cleaners, maybe that makes them fall apart.
I used to be a cleaning fanatic but have gotten so lax it should worry me .....

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