Whatever Wednesday is when we explore all the different ways that What-EVER! spray can be used around the house. It is an amazingly versatile little workhorse and because it is so safe and friendly, the uses are endless. If you'd like to share the unique ways you use What-EVER in your life, post a link in the comments or email me kate at cleanhappens dot com and tell me about it.
I know this may seem a bit strange with 7 kids, but I'm a little new to the whole stroller scene. We've never been particularly fond of them and make the kids walk as soon as they can anyway. They are just so cumbersome and kind of a pain for us. Don't get me wrong, we have had a stroller. Back when the twins were babies we had this monstrosity.
It was extremely useful and versatile, but Sweet Valley High! that thing weighed a freakin ton. And it didn't fold up anywhere close to flat. But, it definitely served its purpose.
Then we were shocked to find out we were expecting again when the twins were only 6 months old. I panicked at the thought of a triple stroller and wept when I saw the price tags, so we settled on a much easier system with him. The twins went in the stroller and baby went in the sling. Perfect.
As baby got older we ditched the monstrosity, because in edition to the 60-70 lbs of kid weight the stroller itself weighed 900 lbs. So, you know, it was h.e.a.v.y. We instead went with the wagon + trailer option which was really quite efficient. (Pay no attention to the baby mullets)
Then we had a hand-me-down jogger that I used around the neighborhood. But, mostly we stuck with this.
Things changed with Baby Huckleberry. He was a BIG baby. (23 lbs at 6 mos) I couldn't sling him for any length of time no matter which carrier I used. So for Christmas, Santa brought Huckleberry a stroller. A nice small, light weight, foldable, stroller. I'm a big fan. Never dreamed of anything so simple. We use it all the time. But after having this stroller for almost a year, it's gotten pretty cruddy. So, I took it outside to give it a scrubbing.
First, Humphrey cleaned up any leftover goldfish crumbs.
Then I sprayed it down with the hose and used a very soft scrub brush and a bucket of diluted What-EVER! and went to work. I sprayed it down a second time and then left it to dry in the sun. Voila!
Posted by Kate Frowzy on October 12, 2011 3 Comments
Whatever Wednesday is when we explore all the different ways that What-EVER! spray can be used around the house. It is an amazingly versatile little workhorse and because it is so safe and friendly, the uses are endless. If you'd like to share the unique ways you use What-EVER in your life, post a link in the comments or email me kate at cleanhappens dot com and tell me about it.
yes. yes. I know microwaves are not radioactive. But, I'm a child of the 70's! Microwave ovens were new-fangled.
Y'all know me by now. You know that this is not fresh. You know darn well that I haven't cleaned out the microwave in at least a month. And you know the male members of the Frowzy Family don't think twice about the consequences of just throwing something in there without a plate or a cover and just microwaving the bunk of it.
So, there you have it. Those splashes are dried on. I wish I had better video capability, but my poor little Macbook is too full to make that happen. I promise a new computer and new video in the future (when Powerball smiles upon me.) I want to show you how super easily it all just wiped off. Yes, there was a stubborn drip here and there, but for the most part it was literally "Spray and Wipe."
What I love about using What-EVER! on any of my kitchen surfaces is that I don't have to worry about any of the toxic chemical residues that are left behind by conventional cleaners. When I think about the days when I used that other cleaner that has the "Green" in its title, and the fumes it let off, I cringe thinking about enclosing food in there and then cooking it! blech.
Posted by Kate Frowzy on September 21, 2011 0 Comments
Whatever Wednesday is when we explore all the different ways that What-EVER! spray can be used around the house. It is an amazingly versatile little workhorse and because it is so safe and friendly, the uses are endless. If you'd like to share the unique ways you use What-EVER in your life, post a link in the comments or email me kate at cleanhappens dot com and tell me about it.
I don't know if this scenario has ever happened to you, (even if it hasn't just smile and nod) but every now and then when we have a spontaneous bunch of friends over, we go to gather around the dining room table. And inevitably we are one chair short, so a guest innocently and helpfully decides, "No big deal. I'll just unstrap the booster seat from this chair and sit here." And before you can leap across the table and tackle them to prevent this from happening, the booster is removed and the dried and rotting remains of 3 months worth of mac and cheese, strawberries, spilled smoothies, and green beans is exposed to the world.
No. That's never happened to me either. *cough*
Since things like that don't ever happen to us, I went ahead and "dummied" up a chair to replicate what that might look like.
(errr...to make it look authentic, I also dripped some milk onto the side of the refrigerator and let it dry. You can just ignore that part of the picture.)
I wiped off the stray crumbs with a wet cloth and then sprayed the seat with What-Ever! all-purpose spray. Most of the seat cleaned up quite easily including the black gunk off to the left there. I'll admit the 1/4 inch deep puddle of milk that had dried at the back of the seat took a little of work. But a couple of extra sprays and some minor scrubbing with my loofah sponge and it was definitely fit for a guest's bottom.
Posted by Kate Frowzy on September 14, 2011 0 Comments
I know for the most part, all you guys see is the glamorous part of my job, but sometimes I have to just look at reality for what it is. I write about cleaning stuff. and cleaning products. And as much as I try to put on the whole Happy Homemaker voice when writing, the reality is that on my best days, I'm a Half-arsed Homemaker. Though I try to chirp about how how having clean floors will give you a sense of accomplishment and pride and everyone will love you more, what I really want to tell you is, "Well, at least if your nosey neighbor dropped by today, your baby's pants won't be black from crawling around the house like they were the last time she came over."
All this is to say, that when Tim called me up to tell me that they have put together a Better Life Floor Cleaning Kit for Home Shopping Network and that I should come by and pick one up so I could try out the included mop, my lazy self said, "Great. Mopping the floor is exactly what I had in mind for this beautiful day." Luckily, my practical and bill-paying self said, "Pay checks are good." So, I headed over to pick up the kit.
When I got the kit home and opened it up, I'll admit I was impressed. I've written before about my love for Simply Floored. And i do love it. The scent is fabulous, and the no residue, no streaking, super clean-ness really won me over. But when I heard this kit included a mop with telescopic handle and two microfiber mop pads, I was picturing what I had used in the past. Mop handles than my "man hands" managed to snap in two within a couple of weeks and mop pads that were either too skimpy so they didn't absorb anything or else were too plush and therefore were hard to push around on the floor. But, like with all the other things that Better Life has figured out how to balance (like safety and effectiveness) the mop is sturdy and the pads are really high quality.
The mop pads are super sized and attach with nice, strong velcro.
But here's what I really like about this mop head. Yes, Better Life includes two machine washable microfiber mop pads so that most people will be able to use one while the other is being laundered. And that apparently is sufficient for most households. But, you've seen the pictures of my laundry issues that I have posted on Facebook. I would probably need 5 of those pads to make sure that I had enough to have one clean at all times. But, this mop head has some fabulous versatility. You see those 4 circles near the corners, you can take a microfiber cloth and tuck in into the little grabber thingies in the circles, and voila! laundry day mop pad. This is also a great way to clean up spills without dirtying a whole mop pad.
I told you it has a telescopic handle, which is really cool. Completely customizable. And completely kid-friendly. When it is down at the smallest size, it is nearly-3-year-old sized.
When it is at it's completely extended it is freakishly-tall-people sized. (Which I, obviously, am not. I'm 5'5" ish)
This is all well and good, but how does it clean? I going to be completely honest here. The Better Life guys nailed it. The mop moved smoothly, which is huge for me. (Am I the only one who has problems with the mop heads flipping over while mopping with them? I hate that!) The pads were super absorbent and instead of pushing the dirty water around the floor, like my other reusable mop pads for that other mop do, these pads soaked the dirty water right up and off the floor. See, my kitchen floor is the bane of my existence, y'all. I wash several times a week and still I'd have to rinse the old mop pad and go back over the floor to get all the dirty water up. Not with this mop pad. Check that out. Slurp!
So after all my bluster at the beginning of this post, I must confess it. This mop rocks. If I had known, I would have been, dare I say, excited to mop the floors. It's a good value and just like Simply Floored, it can take on every floor surface and dirt issue with no sweat. It will make your life easier. Everybody may still think you're a chump, but your floors will shine! (whenever you get around to using the kit. Which will be more often than now, because it isn't the chore-you-used-to-dread any longer.)
You want one of your very own? You can catch our Mad-Skilled Chemist, Kevin Tibbs, on HSN Tuesday, September 13th at 6am and 9am EDT, or pick one up on HSN.com along with our Whole Home kit that includes Wow!, What-EVER, and Even the Kitchen Sink plus 3 product specific microfiber cloths.
Oh What the heck! Let's give one away, too! Leave a comment below telling me how you feel when you have clean floors. Get an extra entry when you're our fan on Facebook (You'll love our Facebook fans!). Contest closes Friday September 16 at 11:00pm CST
Posted by Kate Frowzy on September 12, 2011 96 Comments
