Mish-Mash

It has been a busy week around here. And with Dear Hubby working so hard on mastering the remote control....well let's say that I am going to be even busier.

Now I do the house work around here all the time. Some days it feels like all I do is housework. Mine and for others too! The other day it really got to me and I ended up in my own lil pitty party. Sad to say, no one joined me. Now if I had had a proper cocktail pitty party then I may have had some takers. But no, instead I had to put on my big girl panties and get to work. I think I am going to start a club....the big girl pantie club. You know one that has the motto "No G-Strings Allowed!" It does help to have the proper tools to clean with. I told you, ok, gushed about my Libman Freedom Spray Mop that I had one. Well, I loved it so much I had gone on the search for more Libman products to win. Hey, that is the way I afford some things. Needless to say.....I did just that. I won a Libman Precision Angle broom and dustpan at The Crazy Suburban Mom, Thanks Tracy and Libman!  BTW, Libman is doing a $500 Target Gift Card with their Money Mop Up on Face Book....just have to like them....might wanna try and get that.  I know I am trying! 
Well the broom works great too.  I have 5 dogs and tons of dog hair to sweep up every day.  I tease that I am a June Cleaver (wish I had her shape) and want to clean house in my pearls and heels.  Well it is easier to do if the tools actually do most of the work for you.  How is this for a one room clean sweep?  Yeah!  That was just the living room and the one area rug.  What a mess!

What else is going on?  Well we had Princess Emma here the day Dear Hubby came home from his surgery.  Of course he was so worried that she might bump into his feet.  So we needed her to stay occupied with other things.  Sure we did the coloring and all, but it is chilly outside and she is prone to ear aches so we had to stay inside.  But I am telling you Princess Emma did not move once while we were watching the PBS Kids Dinosaur Train, Dinosaurs in the Snow DVD.  I love this show, I think as much as Princess Emma. “Cretaceous Conifers” will broadcast on December 8, 12, 20, and 24 (check local listings).  It also helped that the DVD had coloring pages, interactive games and a dinosaur reference guide too!  With the 8 shows on this one we were able to while away a lil time and let Dear Hubby rest on the couch.  I am giving this copy of Dinosaur Train to Princess Emma since she seemed to love it so much!  And for you....go see the Dinosaur Train GeoCache program.  It is a great new adventure game that you can do with your kids. BTW, Thanks so to PBS Kids for sharing this DVD with me!

What else to tell you.  Well I have my Hershey's Pot of Gold candy here.  They were sweet to send it to me.  Last night all of us were enjoying the truffles so very much!  I do not know if I have a favorite yet.  I think I will wait til I get to the bottom of the box to decided!  Oh, and College Girl always wanted to tattoo Dear Hubby's chest.  She is worried that he may need it in case of an emergency.  Since he has a pace maker it makes a change in the way they use those paddles for a heart attack.  And with the pig values there they need to know that too.  So she drew it off on him.
I do not know if you can see it well....but it has place paddle here and paddle here in the circles.  And on the upper left of his arm is an arrow that says pacemaker and pig value.  Think that would work?    Oh and since he can not move around it is going to be hard to wash his hair.  Oh the joys of learning how to care for a bed ridden person.  So Princess Emma's mom was kind enough to fix Dear Hubby's hair.  Doesn't he have a lovely french braid now?

Oh and if this is not enough....go read about Eddie the Fish.....we all was laughing so hard.  Poor Dear Hubby could not go pee.....urnial time.....EWWWWW!

Tidy Home

As you all know I have pets....lots of them.  10 to be exact.  5 dogs and 5 cats.  Yet my house does not smell of them.  Whew!  I am so glad.  But that does take some doing on my part to keep it that way.  I wanted to share some tips on how to help keep your house clean and still have your pets. 

1. Clean your house from top to bottom every week, but instead of spending one whole day working your tail off, do one space every day starting on Monday and working your way to Friday. That way by Friday the place is spic and span, just in time for the weekend!  There are things I have to do daily though.  Every day I rake the dog yard of those pesky "bombs".  I also sweep and mop (or vacuum if you have carpet) all common rooms.  This cuts down on pet hair big time.  Also the cat box is cleaned every morning too.
2. Making cleaning a game makes it, well, a little more fun. Sure, you love a clean house but the cleaning of it, is not one of your favorite things. So make a game out of it! Get out your kitchen timer. Set the timer for 20 minutes and get cleaning; you’d be surprised how much you can get accomplished in that time frame!  I find I can clean any room in this amount of time.  Start at the top (ceiling fans) and work your way down to the floor.  Keep a basket that you can place things in that go to other rooms.  That way you are not running from room to room but staying put in the one room your working on. 
3. It is important that your home smells fresh and clean. But, many chemicals are unsafe for pets. Instead, try using essential oils. Specifically, try the terracotta lamp oil rings that you put around light bulbs. You just put a few drops of the scented oil on the ring, turn on the light and the scent emanates naturally.  Thankfully I am in a beautiful state and can keep the doors and windows open almost all year round.  This keeps my house smelling very fresh. 
4. Try to have plenty of seating in my home. Having plenty of comfortable chairs is better than having a few sofas. The number one rule of thumb is for every seat, you need a place to set a drink!  I also have old blankets and towels for the seats.  I keep these there so the pets can lay down.  When I am having friends or family over, I wisk off the covers, toss them in a basket and viola'!  All is ready to have company.
5. When trying to purge unwanted things, ask yourself three questions: Do I need it? Do I love it? Could it make me money? If I answer no to all of those questions, get rid of the item.  I have a tote for things that are in good condition.  If I am going to purge these items I place them in the tote.  Once it is full I take to donate at the local community store.  Now the broken items go straight to the trash.

Image via WikipediaI wanted to share this information in celebration with Tidy Cats.  Tidy Cats is announcing the Purina® Tidy Cats® “Search for America’s Most Welcoming Home” Contest that invites multiple cat owners to showcase their tidy, inviting, clean and comfortable homes. Cat owners can enter the contest at www.TidyCats.com from Oct 5 through November 16, 2010.  Pop over and see if you want to enter. 
One Grand Prize Winner will receive...

• $5,000 cash.
• A special Welcoming Home Party catered by a celebrity guest chef.

Short Essay: (200 words or less)
From the point of view of one of your cats, describe why your home is the most welcoming home in America including at least one example of how your home is kept Tidy, Clean, Comfortable, and/or Inviting.

Photo: Picture must include you and at least one of your cats in your favorite room in your welcoming home. You must own two or more cats to be eligible.

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