Where Did I Go?

Cold weather hit and I went into hiding again.  It seems to always happen.  I get so so depressed and try to work it out.  But there are times I just want to pull the covers over my head.  Yesterday I did just that for the whole day.  And you know what, I don't regret it at all.  Did I get a dang thing done?  Nope....but I rested and today I can deal a lil better with life.

This last weekend we did bust booty around here.  We cleaned and rearranged 3 rooms of the house.  The dining room, living room and master bedroom all have fresh looks. I love the extra cleaning aids I have too.  My new favs are:

 I have a new rub a dub dub scrubber for my tub and tile, the Libman Power Scrub Brush.  This makes it so much easier on my wrist, especially with me having rheumatoid arthritis that screams when I am scrubbing.  When I was using this one to clean out the bottom of my shower I did not even cry, once!  And the shower floor sparkled too.

 The same concept works with the Libman Curved Kitchen Brush.  This was so so so needed for my scrubbing.  It hurts so to have to scrub a dish when you fingers get all knotted up.  Now I can hold the handle and let the brush do the majority of the work for me.  Thank you Libman for putting ergonomics to work.

And last but not at all least is my pair of Scrubbing Bubbles/Libman 2 in 1 Kitchen & Dish Sponge set.  These are microfiber on one side and have scrub dots on the other.  They are also machine washable so I can clean them and use them time and time again.  I can use them on my pots and pans as well as my glasses as they are scratch free.  Don't forget you can sterilize your sponges by popping a damp one in the microwave for 2 minutes.  Check it out on WebMD to see how it works and better than using the dishwasher to do so. 

I want to thank Libman for loving me (cause they do, just ask anyone) and sharing these new products.  They were just love gifts and so I wanted to share with you too.  Oh speaking of love gifts, there are more.  You betcha.  Aunt Rene was a dear, honestly, and lifted my spirits with sweet scents.  Yeppers, she sent me a plug in Scentsy with three different scent packages.  Now I did not have a Scentsy....I know the last person on earth not to have one, I am sure.  Thank goodness Aunt Rene was a dear to fix this situation.  And oh my goodness, the house smells fantastic!!!  Her niece Sarah at Small Town Girl is a Scentsy rep and she ordered from her, you can too.   This is what mine looks like, so Texas with the Lone Star on it.  Oh and also the wonderful scents of Baked Apple Pie Scentsy Bar, French Lavender Scentsy Bar and Sunkissed Citrus Scentsy Bar.  If you have not started your own Scentsy habit then I suggest you get one really soon.  If nothing else your home will smell fantastic.

And my last but gosh not least is my love from one of my favs, Captain Dumbass over on the Canadian side of life.  Well he has a very empty wall in his cubical at work.  So he asked for us to send him postcards.  In return he would send one to us.  I sent my favorite card I had made at UPrinting of my pink flamingos.  And he sent me a great one of Vancouver Canada.  I loved the back too, where it says Hi to me from his whole crew, including the baby gurgling. 

Now I started off saying I was depressed, but gosh how can I be with all of this love sent my way.  Silly girl that I am....I am so lucky to have so much support from so many.  Both close by and far away.  Companies and individuals.  Oh and not to forget, the Other Mother, is making homemade cheese cake for me right now.  Cheesecake with homemade booze in it.  Just to lift my spirits before the next ice storm hits, TOMORROW!

The Crazy Cat Lady

Image via WikipediaI have an adorable friend that was ever so kind as to "adopt" me as her home away from home mom.  You know what an honor that is don't you.  She is 19 going on 67 if you ask me.  Why?  Well at 19 she has moved 1/2 way across this big ol country all by herself...has her own apartment...works full time and begs for more and more hours way past what she should be doing...and is mature beyond her years.  Ok that only makes her 19 going on 40 right? But no that is not all.  She is also the Crazy Cat Lady.   Yeah that is the extra 27 years right there.  Wants all the kitties she can handle.  And currently I think the count is 4 in a one bedroom apartment.  Oh wait, I did not tell you this is in the one and only 'high rise' there is in this town.  So the sweet Meowers do not get to go outside at all.  Only perch on the windows and watch the pigeons on the window sills.  (Oh how hard is that one!)

Image via Wikipedia
Now they have their litter box and it is cleaned daily.  Not a issue.  But The Crazy Cat Lady (CCL) had some very ill kittens for a short time being.  Short...well they were really sick and just did not make it.  Had come from a litter that was never healthy to begin with.  And these lil kittens messed up the place pretty bad.  Yeah you can imagine.  The carpet was awful.  CCL cleaned it with soap and water.  Nope.  She tried vinegar and baking soda.  Nope  She did the pet cleaners from the store.  Nope.  All a lil better but not good enough.  So she came to Mom (aka Me) and asked what to do.  I passed on my Resolve Deep Clean Powder and Resolve Pet Stain Cleaner.  I have found it to be one of the better products out there.  Oh and I gave her a scrub brush!  LOL
Well I waited a week to give her time to get to work.  She told me that she started off with the spray.  And with some of the spots she was down on her hands and knees making sure to get the spot scrubbed up.  Next she blotted the place with a white towel (they bleach out).  This way she could see the stain coming up and out of the carpet.  Blot, turn towel, blot, turn, blot.  Till all of the stain is gone.  Granny M said she would use a low heat iron on the towel to help lift a stain too.  After it was all dry then she used the wet powder to clean the complete floor.  Vacumn it all up and then she was done.Image via Wikipedia

I waited a week so she would have time to do it all.  Then popped by for a visit.  You know what she was so excited.  Told me she was the CCL with a beautiful apartment!  And no odor either.  The cats where happy to have another lap to sit on too.  So now she is dropping in age...we all know that CCL tend to have smelly apartments.  I think my new 'daughter' is now in her 20's again!

DISCLOSURE: I received a complimentary bottles of Resolve to facilitate this review. No other compensation was provided.

Related articles

• Basic Things to Know About Owning a Cat (brighthub.com)
• How to Get Rid of Odors in Your Apartment (gomestic.com)

Real Clean Up Help

I have told you that we are pet lovers. Really big big big pet lovers. More than you can imagine. OK, OK, if you do not tell anyone.....anyone....well we have 5 dogs and 5 cats! EEEEK!

Well, it started off small. You know a dog for College Girl when she was Teen Girl. Then another for me. Well Grandma was given one from CG when she left for school. And we inherited another (really, in the will and all). Then CG found another she just had to have......so 5 dogs. Then the cats....sorta the same. One was being cat sitted by us then we sorta kept it. And another was a stray. She had kittens and we kept two. Oh and our grandbabes gave us one as a gift. Yeah, 5 cats too!

We love them all. They sorta just hang with us. The dogs have a great shaded yard that we 'clean' every morning. Cats, well cats do pretty much what they want. It is relatively OK. But. With 10 animals we do have an occasional accident. So we clean it up. But over time we decided to take out the carpet due to the thought of what was there. You can shampoo but never really sure it goes away.

And still there is an occasional accident every now and then. We mop and disinfect. But? Are we still getting it all cleaned up? Yeah! We are now. And we are sure because we started using Bio-Pro Research Urine-Off. Bio-Pro Research’s line of new household cleaning products use a specially developed formula of enzymes and friendly bacteria that actually “eat” away the stain. Bio Pro Research likes to think of their cleaning as a “natural workforce of 1 Billion” (enzymes that is) working hard to clean up your stains, leaving clothing, home surfaces, furniture and carpeting stain-free. The products are made with nature-based, non-toxic, biodegradable ingredients. Do you know how I feel knowing that the bacteria is really gone? There is even a urine finder flash light. Really! Bio-Pro Research Urine Finders are engineered to produce that specific wavelength of UV light, so they simply work better than normal store-bought black lights and make the task of locating urine deposits easier. So I have been able to really check for stains and then treat them. Later I have gone to the same spot and not been able to find them at all. And there is not any odors, stains or toxins left either.

DISCLOSURE: I received a complimentary bottle to facilitate this review. No other compensation was provided.

Just Another Manic Monday

Back to being me again! At least that is how I am finally beginning to feel. This has been one very full week. WHEW! So where to begin. Again.



Do you feel like that when you have been away from your home? Especially if everyone else was still at home. I walked into laundry, dishes, messy rooms and the such. Felt like I was suppose to put on apron and just get to work. But was too tired to do it. Friday evening was just more of collapse and catch up. Saturday we all worked on the yard and house. Cleaning, planting, still laying flooring. Have to clean, clean, clean this week before the Crazee Scotts arrive. Yesterday I took CG back to school. We picked up her poppa and lil sissy for the trip. Finally made it back home and took a good restful nap. DH came in from work. Said we needed take out, so Sonic provided dinner. I did manage to finally get the dishes done.

Now this morning we have much awaited rain coming down. We need it and welcome the water. I know that if it rains good then I hope to get in the garden we share with Nessa and pull weeds. Besides that I plan on moving my hunker of a desk so I can finish off the floor tiles there. If so the living room will finally be done. I also have to get back to Curves and exercise. Easy to get out of that habit.

I just feel like I need to be back in "mom" role of caring for hearth and home. And still feel like I am in some jello moving time warp at the same time. BTW, I am hoping to see pics at Nessa's site. She had a Werther's Chocolate Party this weekend. YUMMY!

Life is. . . ?

Please take the time to visit
my 50 toy give away and
my mothers etsy shop.

Life is what you make it. And I want to make mine...........


Hummm, Rich? So I can pay the bills?


Pretty so I have a nice house to look at?


Organized so I can find anything at anytime?


Loved so I am always safe in my DH's arms?


Hummmmm? You know I really don't know what I want in my life right now.


Oh no, is this the mid-life crisis? CG is away from home, I have tons of free time, DH always working----oh and let's not start on the hot flashes and confusion.

Kitchen Cleaning Frenzy REDUX

Please take the time to visit
my 50 toy give away and
my mothers etsy shop.

My dear sweet friend and neighbor posted this blog.

• Kitchen Cleaning Frenzy

I have to say that I did go and help. Actually she does not know how much I enjoy being with her. She is the closest thing I have to a sister, friend, confidant, partner in crime, blog buddy, expert advice giver and many many other roles.

But I died laughing when she said I came over loaded with cleaning supplies.

She answered the door and I told her I brought the cleaning supplies. She was confused as she has plenty. Then I held up the "box o' wine". I told her it was alcohol and it would disinfect anything. But that I thought the cleaning would go better with a little loosing up of the joints. Boy did my joints get loose. I consumed 3 large wine glasses of the "cleaning" agent.

Photo from franzia.com

Well, I hope you have a good friend. Especially one who brings the booze to the cleaning party!

Clean Sweep

Please take the time to visit
my 50 toy give away and
my mothers etsy shop.

Well life here is still quiet. Not much doing. I keep thinking I need to de-clutter my home. I have even ordered a book from PaperbackSwap.com to help me. I am fighting the urge to just start throwing away tons of stuff. And to take everything off the walls. Sometimes it just feels like the stuff is taking over. If I can get rid of it all then the house will feel clean and right.

None of this makes sense since my home is not dirty. Lived in yes! And there does not matter what I remove it will still just be an old house. I am not sure why everything feels so overwhelming here. I think it is all due to my finances.

I am use to always taking care of all the bills. And having had childcare before to help pay them worked out. I have not had that in 6 months. I am now having to depend on others to have enough money to do it all. It is not working well enough. I really need to make more money and I am unsure as to what to do. This is more than likely why I feel so overwhelmed with "things" and want to purge it all.

Do you feel that way at times? How do you handle stress of bills? What is your "quick" fix when your unsure as what to do?

NOT FLYING YET

50 Toy Give Away Blog
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Drawing on 2-25-09

Well I took it easy last night and just nibbled on candies while playing games online. And today I was off and running with cohort Nessa. She joined me at Curves and then treated me to lunch out. How I enjoyed. I know I kept her from doing her daily housework and should be beat with a wet noodle for it. But it was lovely to have the sun shining on us and to do a girls day out. After lunch we stalked a local antique mall and found some wonderful deals. I even found my gifts for my DH and CG for Valentine's Day. Thanks Nessa for the loan to get them. I will giving you your money back tomorrow. (yeah I got out without my wallet)

Tomorrow I want to start my routine of being more organized and efficient. Hoping to get more done around here. At least better at it. My DH laughed and asked if he had to do any of it. I said "No, of course not!" Nessa says that I could not get more organized but I know I can do a better job of things. I am adapting "Flylady" to my own home. Do you fly?

What kind of things do you struggle with? Me, myself? Personal care. It seems if I am to take care of something for someone else--great! But as far as I go--hummm-well, I tend to just over look myself. Going as far as hardly ever even looking in a mirror at myself. I can brush my teeth and hair and never look up. Amazing isn't it?

I also want to be better about cleaning the areas I miss. Like the baseboards, ceiling fans and door jams. They always look so grungy. I am good at a quick spit and a polish but look just a bit more and you would say "What does she do all day?" So I m putting myself on a schedule and seeing if it works just a bit better.

How do you do it all? What are your down falls? How have your achieved your goals in caring for your home? ANY SUGGESTIONS?

Just Another M.... ...... and going!

50 Toy Give Away Blog
Enter Here
Drawing on 2-25-09

Just another Manic Monday---as the lyrics say. But I have to say I am finally all caught up. Whew!

I worked hard Sunday while all was working and gone to church. Finished 6 loads of laundry. So this morning when I woke at 5 am (as usual) I knew I had to stay on the ball. Jumped up in high gear and made the bed, put up last of clean clothes. (Did not want to wake hubby last night to do it) Cleaned up me, cleaned up bathroom at same time, dressed and came out of bedroom with all the dirty clothes from the night before. Shut the door and know that room is finished for the day. Threw in laundry, let dogs out, fed and watered pets, cleaned guinea pig cage, cleaned the litter box and washed myself up again. Let in dogs, fixed coffee, put up clean dishes from last nights dinner and sat down at my desk. Breathed!

Whew! 6 am and my chores for the day are done. It is not like I can't find more, much more to be done, but the main ones are over already. So yes a lil Manic this morning but so glad to be over my foggy bottom days.

What are you up to this Monday? Don't forget to sign up for the 50 toy giveaway too! (See box on top of left sidebar).