Big changes in the {not so} clean house

We had a big and exciting change around here.  Two weeks ago, I started a new full time job and I love it.

What does that mean for the blog?  Well, as a working mom, I'll be focusing on that more, but not much should change.

What have I found so far?  Well, in a way, it's easier to keep the house clean.  I mean if there's no one here all day, there's no one to mess it all up.  But at the same time, we still have the same amount of laundry, dishes, etc but no one here all day to do it.  So I've had to manage my time better, which is NOT one of my strengths at home.

Ah well, we'll figure it out.  And if I don't, you'll get to read all about it!

My newest Norwex favorites

Ok, so I know I talk about Norwex a little bit.  Ok maybe a LOT, but I really love it!  And no, I don't sell it.

This past January, I hosted a Norwex party and got a TON of free stuff.  January is the Hostess Free Mop month, and yes, I got enough sales and got my free mop!  But the mop isn't what I want to talk about.

Along with the free Antibac Cloth, and window cloth, and lint mitt, and hand cream, I got a few fantastic items.  The Optic Cloth is amazing.  I used it a few days ago to clean my glasses and OMG it was like seeing the house with new eyes.  Like seriously clean.  And I've been wearing glasses for almost 25 years!  I did the same yesterday with my sunglasses and was SO impressed.  I got one for my hubs for Christmas since he always used our window cloth and I could never find it.  Great stocking stuffer and now he has his own cloth for his glasses.  Well when I needed a few more dollars to get the free mop, I added the Optic Cloth so I could have one of my own and I'm SO glad I did.  AMAZING!

I also got the dust mitt.  Makes dusting SO easy.  AND I got the kids package, that comes with a kid-sized antibac cloth, window cloth and dust mitt.  M LOVES cleaning the windows with her own cloths, and dusting.  In fact, sometimes she'll make fingerprints all over the windows just so she can clean them up.  I don't mind, since she's cleaning them!

One item I've been very skeptical of is the cleaning paste.  I've heard great things about it, but I found that baking soda worked so well that I didn't want to invest in that.  BUT when I had free money to spend, I decided to give it a try and OH.MY.GOODNESS!  So I won a bath mitt at the party, and whipped out the paste to clean the shower last week.  AMAZING!  When I would have to clean the shower again about 5 days later after cleaning with baking soda, I don't have to do it yet with the paste. And the mitt makes it so easy.  Norwex was genius when they decided to make the cloths in a mitt form.

Keep an eye out for a review of the Norwex mop, and maybe a Norwex giveaway!!

Let's Talk!

February 12th is 'Let's Talk' Day with Bell.

Found on the Bell Let's Talk Website:

For every:

• 1
  Text message sent^*
• 2
  Long distance call made^*
• 3
  Tweet using #BellLetsTalk
• 4
  Facebook share of our Bell Let's Talk image

Bell will donate 5¢ more to help fund mental health initiatives across Canada.

So as a Bell Customer, and someone who suffers from mental illness, I'm doing my part.

In the Spring of 2010, I started medication for mild-moderate depression.  I had studied psychology at school,  I knew what depression was.  But, as said with so many different topics, it's SO different when it's you.  Life just gets overwhelming sometimes, and that's no one's fault.  Due to a chemical imbalance, some people have a harder time dealing with that.  It's nothing that can be controlled by the sufferer.  You can't expect a diabetic to not take medication, just as someone who suffers from mental illness needs them to balance things out.

When I started the medication, I decided that I needed to tell my staff.  I was a manager at work and had many staff working for me, and I needed to be honest with them.  I told my district manager who knew what I was going through.  Along with many of my staff members.  I was shocked that so many others had been through what I was going through.  And honestly, it made it all so much easier.  Not only to have them be a tad more flexible to my daily emotions, but also to offer support.

And that's what 'Let's Talk' Day is all about.  The only thing harder than going through mental illness is going through it alone.  So don't.  Let's talk about it!

Head to my facebook page and share the Bell image.  Or tweet using #BellLetsTalk.  Or if you're a Bell customer, text all day long, and make some long distance calls!  Connect with some friends!  Let's talk!

I just need the accountability

Well, I haven't posted in a bit.  And my house shows it.

I have no idea why my cleaning habits seem to correlate to how often I post on the blog, but I'm using this Monday to get myself back on track.  Especially since the hubby is home sick today so I can have {some} help with the kids.

I've also noticed that for the most part, I'm pretty good at getting the daily and weekly stuff done, but I haven't ventured into the monthly stuff.  So this week, I'm going to just focus on the normal tasks and hopefully I can start adding the bigger stuff soon.

One plan is to get up earlier.  I was up at 4am this morning to go line up for kindergarten registration, so hopefully I can start getting up before the kids, at around 6am and get a head start.  I'll see how it works!

Olivia's Room Dryer Ball Review and Giveaway

Ok so I took a tad longer to get this up than I had planned.  We passed our 10k pageviews and are now at 12k!  I love my fans and we're going to celebrate with a few giveaways. 


First up is a set of 4 dryer balls from Olivia's Room Boutique.  

Do you use fabric softener?  Do you know how bad it is for you and for the environment.  Here's a quick article.  

Ok, so now you're wondering how to soften your clothes.  Enter dryer balls!  Not only do they make your clothes softer, but they reduce static and drying time.  

Here's what Brittany, the owner of Olivia's Room Boutique, has to say about her wool dryer balls:

Dryer balls are amazing! Wool dryer balls are even better. With just 4 dryer balls in a load of laundry, it can cut your drying time by 40%! More balls, better drying time! By using wool dryer balls, it can eliminate the need for artificial softeners also, which are not recommended for use on your child's bedding or clothing. Keep in mind, that when using artificial softeners, it builds up on your clothes and in your washer/dryer, reduces fire retardancy of clothing, reduces absorbency of towels, and can cause allergic reactions in those with sensitive skin. My wool dryer balls are made from 100% wool, with the core being all natural wool roving, and dyed or natural wool yarn for decoration and durability. I make every dryer ball by hand, and each are needle and wet felted to ensure proper felting of the wool. Felting is what keeps your dryer balls together, so I double up just to be safe!! I am a [work at home mom], so when you purchase my products, it helps my family! I also stand behind every one of my products, so if you have an issue, you contact me directly, not a huge company who might defer your concerns down the line.

Olivia's Room Boutique has a Facebook Page and an Etsy store.  Feel free to check out her great products!  I would like to extend a huge thank you to Brittany for sponsoring this giveaway.  Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Little Things

I've been using lists, and more recently Apps, to organize my house cleaning and I think I've found a schedule and a system that works.  And the most important part of that is staying on top of the small things.

I always know that the bathrooms need to be cleaned.  Or that the floors need to be swept and mopped. And those are fairly easy to remember, and quick to get done.  It's when the small things start to pile up that I REALLY start to feel overwhelmed.  So I've found that if I have to skip any task, I have to stay on top of the small things.  Today, my 'small tasks' include checking and restocking the toilet paper in each of the bathrooms and changing the hand towels.  Other small tasks include cutting the kids fingernails, wiping down the front of the cabinets in the kitchen and bathrooms, and quickly tidying up each room.  Sometimes THAT is as easy as running around the house and picking up all of the dishes, or laundry, and even just doing that makes a huge difference in how clean the house feels.

I'm glad that I've split up all my tasks into daily items and if I can stay on top of it all, my house is a lot easier to maintain.

What small tasks do you need to get done today?

Starting the Spring Cleaning Early

Christmas is great.  Mad rush to organize the house, lots of food, family and fun.  Lots of gifts.  And then the aftermath.  Cleaning everything up.  Finding room for all the new clothes, toys and more.  Figuring out how you got all the decorations in the boxes last year.  We decided to get some new shelves for the kids rooms, so they can have some books, toys and stuff in there, and keep the playroom less cluttered.  I also wanted to get some hooks for the entryway so the kids could hang up their own coats, instead of throwing them all over the place.

Well, today was the start of the Spring Cleaning.  Some other friends are doing mass organizing in their homes and I decided to follow suit.  I got the hooks for the entryway and tidied that up. Will have to wait for the hubs to do that though.  I don't want to risk missing a stud or damaging the drywall.

Next step is to get the shelves for the kids rooms and organize all the toys, books, puzzles, games, cars, trains, AND MORE!

Well, I should put away the laundry first.  And then the groceries.  Then the Christmas decorations.  Then.....