THRIFTY CLEANING AND ORGANIZATION TIP OF THE DAY 4/20

My husband works for the oil fields and is always getting gressy and muddy. But i have found that if you buy dishwaher detergent i get from the dollar store and dish soap and pour it on his coveralls when getting washed and a half of can of coca cola and they come out nice and clean. also i find it hard to clean everyday with my two little kids so i have a schedule where i do laudry one day and then clean bathroom and so on.

To break up cleaning tasks I do something everyday ie bathrooms one day, dusting the next etc. that way it never piles up.

Mini Blind Magic! I used to hate cleaning mini blinds. At times I wanted to throw them out and buy new ones. However, a friend taught me a great method. I take the blind down, take it to my tub and hold it while I spray both sides with foamy bathroom cleaner (like Scrubbing Bubbles). I just let it sit for a few seconds and then rinse. If you have a hand held shower spray it is super easy, or just use a small pitcher of water to rinse. You might have to fill the pitcher a couple of times, but it works great. No wiping, and from taking it down to putting it up, clean and fresh only takes about 10 minutes!

For organizing our linen closet, I purchased photo boxes from Michaels when they were on sale for 3/$5. I organized my small items into those boxes and labeled them. I also purchased cheap magazine storage boxes for taller items such as hairspray, etc. and labeled those as well. I seem to have so much more room in that closet now with those boxes and everything is easy to find.

One time, my toddler got a hold of a permanent sharpie marker and colored ALL OVER my piano…wood and keys! After bawling my eyes out for about 30 minutes, I pulled myself together and google searched out answers. One of them worked great! Simply sprinkle some baking soda on the permanent marker. Then wet a cotton ball with rubbing alcohol and scrub a little. I have found this works to remove permanent marker/paint/grape juice stains from wood surfaces without damaging them, plastic, wood and laminated flooring, walls, etc. Basically any hard surface. With 3 little boys and a 4th on the way, this bit of knowledge has been a lifesaver!

“The Saturday Box” was started at my house when I got tired of the kids leaving their stuff out. If I had to pick up their stuff (shoes, clothes, movies etc.) it went into the Saturday Box. They could have it back on Saturday or do an extra chores to get it back sooner.