Monday Moments - The best cleaning tool...that really sucks!

They come in all shapes, sizes, power levels, and colors. But it doesn't really matter...you just need to get one...or two...or three!

I love my hand vac or vac's! It's my absolute, can't do without, cleaning tool. I have 2, wishing I had 3. I keep one in my kitchen and one up stairs in the hallway. I use it every day after I blow-dry my hair to clean up all the "hair-shed". I use it after breakfast, lunch and dinner...well...because I have a toddler. I clean up crushed cracker, crumbled cookies, dropped raisins, spilled cereal...the list goes on. If I had to pull out my giant Dyson and haul it up and down all three levels of my house every time I needed sucking power, I'd have a soar back and about an hour less time in my day. Now that would really suck :)

Bottom line...if you don't have one, you should put it on your "must have" list immediately! If it's any incentive, one of my friends purchased one last year after a conversation we had. A few weeks later she thanked me. Not only did she love the convenience of a hand vac, she said her kids all loved it as well. They now fight over who gets to clean up any mess that occurs. That sounds like reason enough to me!

As for my hand vac recommendations:

My newest hand vac is the Black & Decker 18-Volt Pivoting-nose Cordless Hand Vac. It's definitely a more expensive one. My husband bought it for me last year as a Mother's Day gift. (I did ask for it...otherwise he wouldn't have given me a cleaning item as a gift. I'm crazy like that.) Anyway, before he bought it he did a ton of consumer research and found it to be rated one of the best hand vacs on the market. It has amazing sucking power, it's easy to clean, and it's still going strong after a year...my cheaper ones have usually needed to be replaced each year. I use my hand vacs to death...

This vac usually runs anywhere from $50 - $80 ish. But I went to Froogle.com and found it HERE for only $35.

My other hand vac is a Dirt Devil Scorpion 6 volt Cordless Hand Vac. I got this one to replace my upstairs vac when it died on me a few months ago. We had actually paid about $55 for our Back & Decker so I wanted something cheap and found this on clearance at Target for $12.99. My upstairs one isn't used quite as much and mostly just for hair and dirt when I clean the bathrooms etc... so I wasn't concerned with having "the best". But I must say, even though it isn't quite as powerful, it works great and I haven't had any problems. It's also a lot smaller than my Black & Decker, so Reese loves to use it. At 19 months old, I already have her vacuuming.

I couldn't find this one on line for the same price I paid, but I'm sure if you shopped around you could find something similar. Bed Bath & Beyond and Target have always been where I purchase my hand vacs. You can usually find a good selection at Bed Bath & Beyond and then use one of those 20% off coupons that come every other week in the mail.

If you are only planning on purchasing one hand vac, I would go with a more expensive, high volt vacuum. They will have the best sucking power and last the longest. Then if you want to purchase a couple more, for other area's in your house, you can buy the cheap smaller models. Those can also be the ones that you let the "kids" clean with.

Hope that helps, let me know if you have any other questions.

Monday Moments - Hard Water Headache!

If you have hard water...you know what I'm talking about. I hate hard water! It's so "hard" on everything in my house. From the dishwasher, washing machine, sink, shower, toilet bowls. It leaves it's mark everywhere it goes. But I have found the cure... other than installing a water softener. Lemi Shine is the shine in my cleaning kit. I love this stuff.

Did you know that hard water mineral built up will reduce the effectiveness or your dishwasher and washing machine? Over time, hard water build up can also lead to major repairs on your household appliances. Not to mention the film it leaves on your dishes and the stains it creates on tile, toilet bowls, faucets etc...

Have no fear, Lemi Shine to the rescue. It's amazing stain fighting power will remove that film from your dishes, deodorize your garbage disposal, remove film from bathroom shower doors and tile, clean your toilet, and tackle hard lime scale in your tub and on water fixtures. That's why this stuff is a must!

Lemi Shine is an all natural product made from lemon juice, citrus oils, real fruit acids, and fragrance. You can find it at your local Walmart and most grocery stores. It comes in the package pictured below, but it also come in a box with individual pouches for cleaning the washing machine, dishwasher etc. You follow the instructions on the box or bottle (they are different for each application).

If you have hard water...run to the store as soon as possible and get this stuff! You will be amazed!

*As a side note, I was not compensated in any way for this testimonial. I really do use Lemi Shine and just wanted to share how great this stuff is. If you live in Utah, you can purchase this at any Walmart or Target location. But if you don't live in Utah and want more information on Lemi Shine and/or need to find a distributor near you, click HERE for information. This site also contains detailed instructions for cleaning all the different items around your house.

Monday Moments - Never scrub a pan again...

I heard about this trick quite awhile ago and I use it all the time. I don't know the science behind how it works...but it does!

If you have a pan that looks like this...

or if its a casserole dish, crock pot, or any burnt on stuck on dish that you might normally let soak for hours before attempting to exhausted your arm muscle's scrubbing it clean...

Scrub no more!

All you need is one of these...

Or any generic fabric softener sheet will also work.

Fill the dish or pan with hot water. Put one fabric softener sheet in the water and allow to soak for 5-15 minutes (time depending on how stuck on or burnt the food is). Then simply use the sheet to wipe all that stuck on grime away. You will be amazed! All the grime will wipe away like a breeze.

It really works and it's amazing!