Giveaway: $50 Visa Card

Favorite household tip: Vinegar through your coffee pot. If it’s dripping verrrrrrrrrry slow when you make your morning pot of coffee, run white vinegar through it a couple of times. (And then plain water after that.) Gets the gunk out and you’ll have faster coffee the next morning! And faster coffee is good coffee!

To keep the awful diaper smell from stinking up the house, when I change a dirty diaper, I put it in a ziploc baggie!

My favorite household tip is courtesy of my mother-in-law. She is known in our family for being able to get out almost any set-in stain on clothing. Her secret? Murphy’s oilsoap. She will let it set for a little bit, then scrub with a toothbrush, wash, and voila!

Favorite Household tip: To help towels dry quicker with my top loading washing machine: Make sure to shake them out so they aren’t all wadded up before putting them into the dryer. Instead of throwing them right into the dryer from the washer I shake them out so they look like towels again and just lay them in there. Now I don’t have to run them through the dryer cycle for ANOTHER time and make doing laundry take even longer than it has to.

I love to never waste a trip. In a split level house, you have to limit the activities. Grab and go.

My favorite household tips:

We eat a lot of bananas in our house, but we always seem to have one or two that end up getting too brown to enjoy: Take your bananas apart when you get home from the store. If you leave them connected at the stem, they ripen faster.

My son also doesn’t like all the “strings” on the bananas, so we do this: Peel a banana from the bottom and you won’t have to pick the little ’stringy things’ off of it. That’s how the primates do it.

Another vinegar tip - Do you have a bedwetter? (I do!) Use vinegar in the rinse cycle, you can put it in your fabric softener dispenser, and it will get rid of the urine odor. I use it in my HE front loading machine and it works great!

I always add baking soda to my kitty litter to help with the stinkies.

My favorite household tip, us vinegar in your laundry. I put it in a downy ball and use it a a softener for my clothes and it keeps my colors from fading.

Favorite household tip: Invest in scented candles.

Use (and recycle) your toilet paper tubes by using them to start seeds. Cut the bottom of the tubes and fold in to create a mini-pot. Plant seeds in soil and tend as usual. When the seedling is ready to be transplanted outside, just plant it in the tube–it’ll decompose as the plant grows!

If I forget my towels in the washing machine and they get that yucky smell, I just add some vinegar and then put them through the rinse cycle and they come out smelling fresh!!

My favorite household tip is that I have come up with a schedule to clean up my house. For example today, tuesday, I clean the bathrooms and tomorrow I clean the den and dining room. It has really helped with having 2 small kids to stay on top of the housework. Usually I clean for 15 min and then I am done!

My favorite tip is to use liquid fabric softener in pots and pans with cooked on food. Leave overnight and the food will lift off a lot easier.

My favorite tip is an organizational one. Instead of letting mail pile up on the counter, there are three baskets right by the door: one for important pieces of mail (bills, etc), one for things that need to be shredded (credit card applications, etc), and one that goes right to recycling. Since most of what we get isn’t important, it makes it so much easier to find the mail we really need and get rid of the rest right away!

Disinfectant wipes - - keep a small container of them under each bathroom and/or kitchen sink. It makes wiping down the countertops a couple times a week a breeze which means you can always have a clean sink area. So simple that your kids can do it; they just have to get into the habit.

Wow - great giveaway! My favorite household tip is to wipe the sinks/toilet down everyday to keep them cleaner in case of surprise company!

Baking soda and vinegar in stinky drains!

Favorite household tip- save all of those mismatched socks and use them as dusters.

I think my favorite tip is candles…they freshen your home, while making it “homey”!

Clean the sink every night before you go to bed, you will be surprised how happy this will make you to wake up to a clean sink.

Jenna
http://newlyweds.wordpress.com/

Another diaper tip - reuse those plastic grocery bags to wrap up those dirty diapers!

Dryer sheets–save your used sheets for all kinds of jobs around the house…getting soap scum off of your shower door, cleaning dust off of the TV, furniture, and blinds. Repel insects from your skin, freshen up your car and home, reduce static build-up in your hair.

My favorite household tip it Febreze. I don’t always have time to deep clean the house before company arrives. When I only have a little time, I spray Febreze and the house will smell fresh.

I reuse all my plastic bags from the stores for disposing of soiled diapers.

Something I’ve found helpful in keeping my storage bins organized is to number each bin, then on an index card, (one for each bin with the corresponding number on it,) I list the contents of each bin. Then index cards are stored in a recipe file box, that I use to hold address cards, rather than having an address book.

My favorite household tip: I use the minivac to clean up my 1 year old twins’ high chairs after each meal. It works like a charm!

Another vinegar household tip! Just like my grandmother, I use vinegar, water and baking soda in a clean spray bottle for most of my cleaning. It costs next to nothing, it’s safe for the environment, and most importantly it is safe around my children and pets.

My favorite household tip - use vinegar!! I use it for everything - cleaning windows, cleaning the shower, laundry….. Lots of uses and low cost!!

I pack a lunch for my husband every day and just rinse and reuse the zipper bags. For dry things (like nuts) I just repack, and for wet things (like veggies or apple slices) I just rinse it out before repacking. I throw them away at the end of the week. I did have to condition my hubby a little at first - he was throwing them away at work!

Wow, so many great tips. Here’s one of my favs. To clean a vase w/ a thin neck use denture cleaning tablets.

I see a lot of vinegar tips already! But my tip is: get your kids to help! I take a mixture of vinegar and water, put it in a spray bottle and let them go to town. I have 4 boys and they LOVE to help mom clean windows (I know… their wives will LOVE me someday!), they clean floors, tables, counters, milk splatters from cabinet fronts… And they can use all they want to, if they get it on their skin (or in their mouthes, it’s happened before!) then there is no danger of them getting sick or having to go to the emergency room (we do that enough!).

Also, you can’t be too picky… it’s free help and with several children, I say someone’s bound to get SOMETHING cleaned!

Grandmother’s Potion, gets out anything on laundry. My mother in law found it for me.

vinegar and baking soda to degunk your kitchen sink! plus it like a science experiment for the kiddos…

I use plain white washcloths (I bought them cheap at Walmart) as washcloths and wipe rags for my toddler twins. I use one to wipe them at the end of a meal, then wipe their highchairs down and put it in a bucket under the sink. Three a day, and they all get bleached back to white in the hot wash. They’re more sturdy than those teeny baby washcloths, and we go through a ton of them!

Hang clothes in the sun. It’ll brighten your whites and get rid of stains. Works like a charm on diapers.

Spray the entire inside of your microwave with water (with something like a plant spritzer) then put your microwave on for a couple of minutes. Next wipe down the inside of the microwave with a cloth or paper towel. This makes it much easier to clean.

Reuse your plastic bags from the store…. use them when pick up doggie “no-no” from the yard.

Sprinkle cinnamon in your child’s sandbox to keep the bugs away.

Favorite household tip…I line my vegetable and meat drawers in my fridge with a section of the newspaper. That way, when packages of meat leak, or my veggie drawer gets full of yucky bits, I just pull the newspaper out and have a clean drawer!

Two tips:

Ivory bar soap gets rid of 99% of stains

Cleaning wipes under each counter (I buy the Kirkland store brand from Costco, they come three to a pack, 1 kitchen, 1 guest bathroom, 1 master bath)and a scissors nearby in case a whole wipe is unnecessary.

clean as you go. Its a lot easier to face a small mess every day than a big mess every few days.

I put orange, lemon, grapefruit peels down my garbage disposal to give it a fresh clean scent.

I freeze my paintbrushes when working on projects. I can paint a while, pop the paintbrush in the freezer, and fix dinner. Let it warm up a bit and continue on my way. This saves me from washing paint down the drain AND a lot of time and energy!

Dryer sheets or lightly dampened paper towels are great at getting pet hair off of fabric. Dryer sheets can be cleaned off an reused as the dryer pulls the hair off of them and they still soften your clothes!

Wow! Everyone uses vinegar! I use it in my rinse cycle of the dishwasher, thanks to you, Amy! I also have started cutting my dryer sheets in half. And, my husband told me that when he was in college, his mom told him to put a little fabric softener on a wash cloth for a dryer sheet to save money. It works like a charm!

My favorite household and rejuvination tip is to use olive oil instead of KY for those special moments. When the kids are asleep in the bedroom or you can’t find it you can still be spontaneous! Or cleaning with vinegar I suppose

What a wonderful giveaway! My favorite household tip is to use the used dryer fabric sheet to clean the lint screen.

I clean as I go in the kitchen. I also straighten up the living room every night before going to bed so that I can start the day fresh.

Every time I change the handtowels in any of our bathrooms (every four or five days), I wet it down and wipe down all the surfaces in the bathroom… the towel gets disinfected in the wash and the bathroom looks a lot fresher!

I like the following advice that was found on the website:
I always rewrite the expiration date on my egg carton in black magic marker on the end facing the open refrigerator door. Then, when they are close to expiring, I can boil them so they don’t go to waste.

My favorite household tip is to hang baskets on your staircase - one at the top and one at the bottom. They can collect things during the day that needs to go up and down, and it’ll save you many a trips. Or, if you’re busy organizing the house and your help is doing something else, you can stick a backpack on your dog and have her carry things up and down the stairs for you =)

We keep small baskets in almost all the rooms for toys that seem to end up everywhere. At the end of the day all the baskets are emptied out where they go.

I use salt, lemon juice and ice to clean the glass pot to my coffee maker.

A great tip I don’t see here yet is for those crockpot/pans with stuck on food - put a dryer sheet in, fill it up with water and let it soak until morning -works like a charm to release all that gunk!!

Great contest by the way

I’ve recently found that a baking soda paste will take cherry kool aid out of an upholstered chair! This is the best thing I can think of.

I keep a container of disinfectant wipes on my kitchen counter. I use them very frequently to clean the counters and any mess the kids might make.

Darn, someone already posted my favorite. Using vinegar and baking soda to clean the sink. Sorry for the repeat!

To get your mirrors shining without streaks use newspaper instead of paper towel.

My favorite household tip: Use tools that can be used for more than one job. This saves time and money. My favorite examples of this is that I use microfiber cloths for everything and I use an antibacterial degreaser all over the house, including as a window cleaner.

I keep a dryer sheet in the bottom of all my garbage pails to help combat odors.

And we use denture cleansing tabs to keep the basket on our white coffee machine nice and clean.

I put all my cleaning supplies in a mop bucket (bathroom cleaner, windex, sponge, etc) and store it in one place. That way it is all together when you need it and it takes up less space (not one for every bathroom, etc).

I cut up old t-shirts for rags. They are so soft, the perfect size (since you determine the size) and of course free!

We use the plastic bags from stores as trash bags for dirty diapers. Also, Magic Erasers are great for taking off smudges from the walls!

Great giveaway, I wash the dishes every night before bed because in the morning dirty dishes don’t bring smiles.

Goo Gone gets out any oily stain (think butter, spaghetti sauce, etc.). I use it every ime I wash! Just squirt some on the spot, and wash as usual.

My favorite is using vinegar and water to clean. Makes everything look fresh and clean.

My favorite time saver is microwaving a bowl of water and letting it set for about 10 mins. Afterwards all the gunk in the microwave is loosened and so easy to wipe off! Such a time saver.

I love to add 1 cup baking soda to my liquid laundry detergent, it makes the laundry detergent more effective and the clothes smell better.

Ziploc bags! Some uses: puzzle pieces and picture from the front; felt board and pieces; different coin denominations (for wrapping or using for school); travel container for cotton balls and Q-tips; etc.; etc. I also re-use used bags for smelly jobs such as sealing up dirty diapers and cotton balls that are saturated with nail polish remover.

We use the plastic grocery bags for packing lunches for work. We can use them several times so it’s less wasteful than a paper bag. And if something spills it stays contained instead of wetting the paper bag.

For stinky dish-clothes in summer humidity, I just discovered putting them in a bucket w/ vinegar water to soak, then washing. Before this I would wash them and they would still come out stinking!

I love to use Baking Soda as a carpet cleaner. Sprinkle on, let set for a few minutes, then vacuum up! It leaves your house fresh and clean without a perfumey smell!

To get rid of pesky fruit flies, take a small glass, fill it 1/2′ with Apple Cider Vinegar
and 2 drops of dish washing liquid; mix well. You will find those flies drawn to the
cup and gone forever!

My favorite household tip is to get up early and start my day with the Lord in reading the Bible and praying. When I put God first in my day, He blesses the rest of it and I’m more productive around the house.

Invest in a basic breadmaker. They save you lots of time and money. You can use it to make bread, rolls, mix your dough for things like hot dog buns.

I use non-stick spray for more then spraying my bakeware. I spray in a measuring cup when I am measuring shortening, peanut butter or honey. I helps them to slide right out. I also spray it in plastic wear if I am storing tomato based products like chili, spaghetti or soups. It prevents that orange tint stain.

My favorite household tip: I make a list of what is in my kitchen cabinets and fridge/freezer. It’s basically an inventory so that I don’t buy something that I don’t need and so I’ll know what I have available for meals/baking. I put the list on the inside of the cabinet door so it’s right there. It’s saved me SO MUCH time and money. When something on the list gets low I add it to the grocery list. The little “locker-sized” dry erase boards work really well for this too if you don’t want to use paper.

Pour boiling water over the weeds in your sidewalk cracks to kill them off.

I love the fresh scent my clothes have when they are fresh out of the dryer but over time, the fresh scent goes away. I have an old wooden closet that has a slight odor about it and my clothes tend to pick it up. To keep my clothes smelling fresh, I tape dryer sheets on the bottom of my hangers and then hang my clothes over them.

I break up all my cleaning into 15 minute incriments. I set the timer and give it my all for 15 minutes and then walk away for a little bit. It doesn’t seem as daunting!

I used to hate meal planning. Then I found a system that works for me.

I made a huge list of every meal I like to make and eat. Then I divided that list into categories (this can be by meat or by preparation method, or type of cuisine, etc.). Then I made weekly groupings by taking one of each category. In the end, I have 8 lists of 6 meals each.

Then, when I’m about to go shopping, I can just look at the page and pick which of the 8 lists looks best to me for that week. For me, each list has one Mexican meal, one soup, one sandwich, one Italian meal, one Asian meal, and one American meal.

I hope that makes sense. It’s hard to describe without seeing what it looks like.

Invest in Kids n’ Pets cleaner, great on stained clothes, kitty puke/urine, add to laudry…works on just about anything!

Favorite tip is one my mother did and I always thought was crazy–she placed unopened cottage cheese upside down and it lasts twice as long. We did a controlled study and she proved right. Go figure!

I bought a one dollar photo album and then wrote on index cards what household chores I need to do on each weekday. I then use a dry erase marker to mark it off. Each day I flip to a new page and each week I wipe the pages clean and start over. I also have a few pages for once a month chores that, such as changing light bulbs and air filters.

Hanging on the inside of my kitchen pantry door, I have a cleaning schedule for the week. I break it down day by day so it doesn’t seem so overwhelming. If I want to get it all done in one or two days - great. But this way, I have small tasks assigned to each day of the week so I can be done in no time.

I put huge plastic sheets under my baby’s highchair. Buy ‘em at a fabric store - not the expensive printed ones you can buy at retail shops. Use ‘em for a week - toss scraps outside after each meal. Discard all together when soiled (usually a week).

Grits (white hominy) over ants. They expand upon contact with water and since ants are comprised of a lot of water…you get the idea. Once the queen is killed, the ants will disperse and so will your problem in the kitchen.

Favorite Household Tip:

WINDEX! It is AWESOME for spot cleaning carpet… even spots that have been there forever…AND for cleaning spots on clothes before you launder them…

It is my new best friend around the house.

Like Gus on my Big Fat Greek Wedding…’ put some windex on it!”

Invest in some of those eco-bags. I was tired of having a ton of plastic bags around the house and polluting the earth. I use them for everything - carry items places, my groceries, etc. They are very sturdy and carry quite a lot.

Something I did to make it easier for the kids (9 & 11) to take out the trash, I drlled little holes about 3 inches from the bottom of the plastic trash can. About 7 on each long side. This way, there is no fighting with the bag, no matter how full it gets. The holes make it to where the bag will not create a vacuum in the can.

I love reading everyone’s tips! I am another vinegar lover, in the coffeepot, down the drain with baking soda, in the rinse dispenser for my dishwasher (thanks for that one, Amy!)

I also use baby wipes and my dirt devil to clean up after my daughter-a quick suck and swipe in her highchair and on the tile underneath does wonders!

OOOOOOOOOOOH! A giveaway!! Gotta love those. Please include me — thanks so much. Joanne

A great household tip: If you have white porcelain sinks either in the kitchen or bathrooms, instead of pouring clorax in the sinks to get the stains out, pour some dishwasher detergent (Cascade). Only use a small amount either gel or powder and let set overnight and in the morning they will be sparking white!!

During the summer barefoot season my kids get splinters in their feet that they hate having me try to remove with tweezers. So, I use a banana peel instead. Just cut a 1″ square off a banana peel and place it on the splinter yellow side out and put a sock over it to hold it on. I usually do this during naptime or overnight. When they wake up it is easy to just scrape the splinter away - don’t ask me why.

We purchased a chair mat from an office supply store and put it under our son’s highchair when he was a baby…and is now under the chair he sits in at the table. It has saved clean up from numerous spills and messes on our carpet.

We also use white vinegar and baking soda to clean the kitchen sink drains. Works great!
Thanks!

Linen tip: Store all sheet sets together in one of the pillow cases! You’ll never have to search or mix and match when trying to make a fresh bed!

I LOVE to use Comet in the sink - it gets off everything. Also, I love to use the couponizer to store my coupons and map out my weekly purchasing.

I try to get dinner planned and organized before lunch. Also use empty diaper wipes tubs to hold plastic grocery bags. I keep them under the sink and in the car so a baggie is always handy. (The Mr Clean wipes container work for the car since it fits in the side compartment perfectly).

iF YOU HAVE COMPANY COMING OVER AND NEED A FRESH SMELL QUICK ………PEEL A ORANGE AND HIDE THE PEELINGS THROUGH OUT THE HOUSE IT IS A AWESOME SMELL !!!

If you haven’t tried Mr. Clean’s Magic Eraser and you live in an older home, you must and it will be your new best friend. It gets rid of stains and scuffs you thought were permanent, especially in a white kitchen sink or an old white bathtub.

One tip that I got for all those recipes you find in magazines, I cut them out and paste them on a sheet of paper and then put them in a folder (3 prong). This way when I want that recipe I saw and clipped, I have it readily accessible. I also have my husband’s favorite cheesecake recipe from his great grandmother written in there. It’s great.

One thing I don’t see mentioned here is about cleaning that hard water stain out of your toilet. You can use a pumice stone on it and it comes right out! Best thing is that it doesn’t scratch the surface.

My saving tip - Once a month I clean out my “cleaning closet” and put all the older cleaning supplies up front. That way I don’t have 4 boxes of something that I don’t need and will not put that something on the shopping list. My favorite cleaning product? Vinegar - I buy the big bottle!!

My household tip is to reuse the plastic bag where we get from grocery stores as a trash bag. Whenever I need to change dirty diaper and put it in and throw away. Then I won’t have to worry the smell come from dirty diaper.

a couple of ounces of dawn dish detergent followed by a pot of boiling water work wonders on slow-moving drains! what a great giveaway!!

My favorite household tip is to make toilet bowl cleaning as effortless as possible all you have to do is use toilet bowl cleaner mixed with comet cleanser and use your toilet bowl brush. That extra help from comet gets it clean in no time flat!

Organizing all of our children’s clothes by ages and boy/girl into clear plastic bins. With 4 children this has been essential.

seems all the good ones are taken i do have a tip but its for head lice hope it counts? after you wash your kids hair put a good amount(my kids have thick hair)i use 3 full squirts per child then massage thru hair i know this works cuz school had to get shut down even teachers had head lice and my 3 children didnt i swear by this i used to put lotion and powder but hair stylist said use only 1 cuz was knotting girls hair the hair it to slippery for lice to latch on good luck for a lice free school year

I like to use baking soda and/or white vinegar to get rid of stubborn stains, and maybe scrub with an old toothbrush if need be. This works great on stained coffee mugs (or you know, maybe I should stop using my bright yellow mugs and get darker ones!)

Baby wipe containers are great for recycling into holding small toys. Also, baby wipes are great for spills and stains on carpet/upholstered furniture.
Thanks,
Tara

My favorite household tip: Invest in a cleaning lady. haha. Seriously though. It is worth it to me to have a little less money to spend and a little more quality time with my kids.

Okay, a more hands on one is to put a cup of lemon juice or even just water in the micro for a minute. Everything will wipe off super easy.

I try to deal with each piece of mail in one setting. So I gather all my mail and either pay bills, trash it, file it or shred it. This also helps me avoid just putting things into piles which seem to just keep growing once they are started.

I’m with all the other baking soda and vinigar people,I love them indivdually and together for all kinds of things!!

My favorite household tip is for how to clean dirty sports clothes. For the odor, add a small dose of ammonia to your laundry. It gets rid of the stinky smell. For the stains, if it is mud then put laundry soap &/or stain remover directly on it and scrub the mixture in. Let it sit for 5-10 minutes before washing it in very HOT water. Add a little ammonia to the water too. For my son’s football pants, I put Spray n Wash, laundry detergent and Murphy’s oil soap on the mud & grass stains. Mix your stain removers together for a better result!! *Caution, never mix bleach & ammonia together, it is toxic!

Rinse or wash recyclable bottles and cans before putting in the bin. This keeps the insect problem at bay.

To cut down on the lingering stinky diaper smells, we drop diapers into the plastic sleeve the newspaper comes in (we don’t get the paper, but my aunt does, and she saves them for us), tie it shut and then dispose. We also keep a small dish of white vinegar hidden on a high shelf in the nursery and behind the garbage can under the sink in the kitchen to absorb smells.

Great giveaway!

I keep my recipes in a photo album. This way they stay clean and if something does spill on them (or I touch the page when I have something on my hand), all I have to do is wipe clean. I have made these before as shower gifts. New brides love having recipes that have been tried!

In the bottom of the kitchen garbage can we leave folded empty garbage bags to easily replace the one that is full Saves time.

I plan my bathroom cleaning days when I have something fun to do in the evening. Like on Thursdays, when I have volleyball league that evening. My least favorite chore is more tolerable when I remember what fun I will have later!

My favorite tip - to clean the microwave, boil a cup of white vinegar. Let it sit in there for a few minutes, and wipe out the grime. Easy!

When wash day comes around, I put all my 3 year old son’s socks in one of those net lingerie bags so that they don’t get lost in the washer or dryer and are easy to find to put away and sort after they’re out. Repeat for his little sister!

I’m loving all these tips! My favorite discovery for around the house is the Magic Eraser. I just made a well used white crib look brand new with one of these.

Wow! What a great giveaway! When the dryer cycle ends,I immediately remove the clothes from the dryer then fold and hang the clothes. This way, it saves me time and less ironing for me:) For the shower, my husband and I make it a point that whoever uses the shower last will run a squeegee on the glass door to prevent water and soap spots. thanks for a chance to win!

My household tip: I buy produce when it’s on discount even if I’m not going to use it that week. I chop it up and freeze it for later use. That way when I need that particular vegetable and it’s out of season, I don’t have to pay a ton for it. I just get it from my freezer.

Thanks for the giveaway!

I use baking soda and vinegar for EVERYTHING! To be honest, I have no words of wisdom to share, but I gained a lot of words of wisdom from reading these comments so, if that counts, please enter me! Marin

I do a quick 5 minute run through of each room each day to tidy up, vacuum, dust, or whatever needs to be done so it is at least neat in every room. Then, once a week, I’ll do a major cleaning of the house. I hate housework, so it’s not so overwhelming this way.

Favorite household tip: use hubby’s old white t-shirts as dusting rags when they’re worn out!

My favorite tip would be to touch it once! Once the mail comes in the house only touch it once. Trash the junk mail and pay the bills.

Great tips everyone! My tip is for laundry stains… rub “fels napa soap” on the stain, let sit, then wash. It works great for many types of stains (including grease).

My favorite household tip: lemon wedges in the garbage disposal! Every once in awhile, it starts to smell and the lemon gives off a great fresh and clean scent!

I use socks with small holes to dust furniture. I just slip it on my hand and dust away.
To remove odors from towels and dish cloths, I add a cup of vinegar to the wash cycle.

My favorite tip to clean wood floors is to have the kids wear some of their father’s old socks and have them dance to silly music… your floors will be clean before you know it!

My household tip: Plan your laundry. I have specific days that I do specific loads of laundry. That way I do one or two loads each day instead of dreading laundry day. It works great for our family.

My new favorite tip is to make homemade outdoor window cleaner with 3T liquid dish soap and 1T rinse aid, topped off with water. Use a bottle you attach to your hose, and this works to clean your windows outdoors. Rinse with plain water, spray with the recipe, then rinse again.

I use microfiber rags wrapped around my swiffer instead of always buying the refills.

Using hydrogen peroxide mixed with water will take out any pet “accidents” on your carpet, couch or bed….

Favorite House Hold Tip: placing fabric sheets in drawers. It gives even the messiest drawers and shelves a great clean smell!

I need some way to remember all of these great tips! I put a little cascade in my front load washing machine to clean it out & get out the smell if it has been closed for awhile.

Favorite Baby Tip: Instead of a bib, use an old T-shirt from an older child. Baby can’t pull it off and it covers pants, too!
Favorite Recycling Tip: Reuse those plastic rings from orange juice containers by painting or coloring them with markers. They make great rings for kids.
Favorite Household Tip: Wash those plastic shower curtain liners with your white towels using bleach. Takes all the soap scum off!

I learned this from my mom, NEVER use fabric softener in your towels and wash cloths, they won’t absorb liquids & therefore won’t dry as well.

Fabric Softener also will flatten your hair when you use it on sheets.

I have household of 7. We host 3 college age girls and have an open door policy. It seems as tho we have people over to eat ALL the time. In order for me to not go insane I’ve learned a few tips on hosting and kitchens. First - label things. I just reorganized my recycling and trash - EACH can has a label. Second - put a magnet on your dishwasher and have two papers - one marked clean, one marked dirty. Third - keep fridge organized with, continuing on with labeling - I tend to even use masking tape and mark containers letting people know that things need to be eaten.

Communication in any form is a must to keep this house running!

Thanks for including me.

Now if I win…oh, a spa trip sounds inviting!

Favorite tip - to get everything packed - my work bags and lunches for me, husband and kid the night before, clean the kitchen before going to bed so there’s not the overwhelming anxiety of cleaning and getting our crap together and out the door in time. Too bad it took me so long to get this one down pat!

Use shaving cream to clean the greasy gunk off the walls, microwave door, and oven knobs in your kitchen. Spread a thin layer on and wipe off with a damp cloth a few minutes later. Smells great & it’s safe to use with your bare hands (hey, your hubby puts it on his face!). It’s also good for taking greasy fingerprints off of walls & doors-but test in an inconspicuous spot first.

A small container of open cinnamon hidden in the pantry helps to keep the ants at bay!

Instead of buying those pricy disinfectant wipes, use baby wipes. They are a lot cheaper and are great to keep under the counter in the kitchen, after I wipe down everything I spray with the Clorox spray to disinfect if needed!

baking soda on rust stains in a stainless sink (or on silverware that have tough spots from the diswasher) fixes that right up

Household Tip - Vinegar acts as a cheap and eco-friendly fabric softener alternative. Fill up the fabric soften dispenser and put in several drops of essential oils if you’d like a scent. The vinegar helps to make sure all the detergent and other residues rinse out clean leaving your clothes softer and fresher.

I use a lint roller to clean off my lampshades - it gets them spotless!

I soak problem clothes in Borax and water before washing. It does wonders for clothes with stains or odors (especially pee). I just dump the whole bowl of clothes, Borax and water into the washer when the load is ready to go.

Do things as you go. If something takes less than a minute to do, do it right when you see that it needs to be done. If you let all the little things pile up, it takes a lot longer to get them all done.

My favorite household tip is for grocery ease. I keep a list on my fridge of everything that’s in my regular and deep freezers. It helps with meal planning, so I know when to pull things out to thaw and also lets me know how many backup items I’ve got before I need to make another store run to restock.

When I have a messy house, instead of trying to clean the whole thing, I set the timer for 20 minutes and do some cleaning. Then I take a 40 minutes break. I do this several times that day, and it’s amazing how much gets clean!

My favorite tip is on busy days use your crockpot! I have a few quick recipes that I use (chicken legs and a bottle of BBQ sauce on low for 8 hours…yum!)and try and keep the ingredients on hand. If a day looks busy, out come the crockpot.

I use baking soda and water to clean the bathtub. It works great and is cheap.

Ok, not a big tip, but super helpful to me… I keep 3 plastic bags in the bottom of my little garbage cans so that I can change out the full (or smelly) bag ASAP, without even looking. I know it’s little, but just this morning, I was thinking how nice it was to always have them right there at my fingertips. Thanks for entering me!

Have a clogged drain? Pour a can of soda down the drain….cleans it out quickly! Kinda gross to think if it can do that, what’s it doing to my body? But it’s good for drains!

I use a lot of the ones already listed. I also make a weekly menu before going grocery shopping. It cuts the grocery bill, cuts down on midweek trips to the store, and cuts out the stress of figuring out what’s for dinner every night.

My one and only tip: instead of wasting tons of napkins and paper towels, we use cheapo-washcloths and dish towels for everything in the kitchen. Once they are dirty, I throw them in a bin under the sink, and wash them all when it’s full. My favorite part about it is re-using the dirty ones for nasty spills/messes on our vinyl flooring - since the floor is already dirty!

I like to run sponges through the top shelf of the dishwasher to prolong their use!

A basket or cute container can hide a multitude of cluttering sins

My favorite tip is to wipe down the bathroom counters and toilet while I’m waiting for the water to heat up for my shower. It only takes a second, and then the bathroom is clean for the day.

For hard water stains in the toiled I use a pumice stone…works much easier and faster at getting rid of those hard stains.

I straighten up before I go to bed. Then when I wake up in the morning things look a lot nicer and I am a happier person.

I have a couple of tips to help in the kitchen. First, make a menu, whether it’s for a week or the whole month. I hate trying to decide what to make for dinner every day, so if I take a little time and plan it out, I no longer have to come up with something every day, it’s already done, I just check the menu to see what to make.
The other tip is to save leftovers in a bag in the freezer. Those little bits of meat and vegetables, anything that would be ok to have in a soup. Save them up and then create a freezer soup by adding broth or tomatoes and water and seasoning. It keeps me from wasting my little leftovers. I have been told that fish isn’t a good choice for this!

I cut dryer sheets in half so that I have twice as many…plus we line dry as much as we can, the sun is a natural odor remover and whitener.

My favorite tip is to put my 3 year old sons clothes in the lower drawers of his dresser so that he can reach his clothes by himself

Never leave a room empty-handed. And clean one room a day to keep the clutter and stress away!

To get rid of fruit flies, pour bleach down the drains. It’s important to put some down all your drains becasue they are connected. The flies like to live and multiply there and bleach gets rid of them!

My household tip is MICROFIBER CLOTHS! I get so many people commenting in amazement over my crystal clear windows and mirrors. I only use a damp cloth (damp with water) to wipe then a dry one to dry. My windows look like they are open all the time that’s how clear they are! Plus, I don’t have to buy any glass cleaner. I also use them on my glass table in my kitchen. People can’t get over how easy it is!

Lovin’ all these tips!! I’m going to try a lot of them out!

~melody~

I put items that need to go upstairs on the stairs. Ever time I go up stairs I take as much with me. It helps clear the clutter down stairs.

My favorite tip is for any kind of stain or pee-pee accident. Mix baking soda and salt and let it sit for a while, then just vaccum up and stain is gone.

Squeegee after every shower. Once you get used to it, it is easy and quick and you can go forever without cleaning the shower stall. Works on tile and fiberglass. Cheaper and more earth-friendly than using shower spray every time. I’m so glad my neat-freak husband got us started on doing this!

I always keep a small bin by my bed which is my donate bin. Anytime I find something we are not using I put it in the bin, and when the bin fills up, off it goes to Goodwill! It keeps things from cluttering up my house!

Throw in a load of laundry before breakfast, then put it in the dryer after breakfast, then put it away sometime during the day (or if you don’t have time, at least it is clean!)

I never have to scrub a pan or a microwave plate with baked on food again, I simply place it in the sink with a couple Tablespoons of Liquid or Gel Automatic Dishwashing Liquid and let it soak and the pans simply rinse clean. Works the same way for coffee pots and filter baskets- gets rid of all that built up coffee and tea oil.

I know someone already mentioned cinnamon repelling ants, but it also works for the strange bugs you find in your kids’ sand boxes! Just sprinkle some on top and bugs be gone!

Microwave soaking wet kitchen sponges, which helps clean the microwave, as well as killing bacteria in the sponge.

My household tip is regarding plain old ordinary vinegar. I live in a small town that is near a cement plant. Cement dust gets on everything….the cars, the windows, etc. This does not come off with soap and water…nor does it come off with the expensive fancy car washes…We use plain old vinegar and water and the cement dust comes off just like that and leaves a very nice shiny surface, especially on windows. I also use vinegar to occasionally spritz the carpet with as when it dries, it removes odors ( there is no vinegar smell when it dries). I also use it in my dish washer as a rinse agent. Vinegar is cheap and very versatile!!!

I receive newspaper delivery once a week. I hated just throwing away the plastic bag it comes in. I realized that if I save them, they are the perfect size to place shoes in before packing shoes into my suitcase. They protect the rest of the clothes and items in my suitcase from the dirt and grime on my shoes.

I pour a few drips of my favorite perfume, bath oil, scented oil, etc. on my vacuum cleaner bags, so when I’m vacuuming, I can enjoy the aroma instead of the nusty dust smell coming out of the vent.

Make cleaning kid friendly- use vinegar and baking soda (I know, lots of repeats). It save me work (sometimes) and teaches my children starting at an early age that everyone’s help is needed to run a house.

I have a laundry basket for each person in the house. When I do laundry if theirs is included the basket goes to the laundry room and sits on the washer or dryer. Once washed and dry…immediate sorting.

Also sheets/towels have their own basket.

It really saves time. My kids are 2 and under but sorting immediately helps especially if one child is sleeping. Its all ready to go ASAP.

Favorite household tip: cleaning the windows with vinegar.

My favorite household tip…

Charlies Soap…love it…for laundry and I like the liquid cleaner for everything else.

Those two products make my life MUCH easier.

Use plastic grocery bags to pick up after your dog.

To remove stubborn price tags from new dishes and glassware, I use a cotton ball soaked with rubbing alcohol. The alcohol dissolves the sticky glue and the sticker comes right off!

Favorite Household Tip: Use as little as necessary! You don’t need to use the full amount of detergent, dishwasher soap, dish soap, shampoo, all-purpose fill-the-bucket-with-water cleaner, that is recommended on the product label. Often you can get by with 1/2 the amount of even less–1/3 of a dryer sheet works fine in my laundry. Gradually reduce the amount you use and you’ll see that things still get just as clean.

My favorite household tip - I color coded my four kids. Dishes, backpacks, etc. It ended fights over what belongs to whom, and I always know who has left out their things!

Have a running grocery list posted on the fridge so the family can mark down when good run out. Instant grocery list! No more digging through the pantry wondering if you have beans or not.

My favorite is when you need to dry something in the dryer fast simply put in dry towels with it.

I love to clean with baking soda and vinegar! It’s an old tip but definitely the best!

Hmmm, my favorite tip. Whenever I am preparing dinner, I make double the amount needed and freeze the extra. That way I only have to cook half the time but I always have a fresh homecooked meal.

use vinegar in water to clean your home…more eco friendly

Reusable Shopping Bags!…. Yes you can bring home the groceries…. but they’re also great for a day at the pool, picking pears off our tree, and returning books to the library…. My favorites are the little zipper one from Target and the free one I got from Wishbone…. There are a million and one uses, and if I lose one or something happens they’re only $1 to replace!

Put clean laundry away in the drawers and dressers as soon as you fold it. Oh, and fold it as soon as it comes out of the dryer. Don’t leave baskets of clean clothes and linens sitting around. Put the stuff away right away.

I sprinkle cotton balls with a few drops of peppermint essential oils and keep them in a glass jar. I put the scented cotton balls in smelly shoes, trash cans, and under the seats of my car to freshen the air.

My tip - reuse those plastic shower liners by running them through the washing machine. I often put the shower curtain with a load of rugs or things to bleach. Then I tumble dry on low, but just for a minute. Do not leave the room! Then I just rehang and let air dry up the remaining droplets.

This is a great prize.

Grab a laundry basket and do a run through ‘pick up’ of my house. I sort it at the end. It’s motivation seeing a clean floor instantly.

Coat your bathroom mirror with a thin coat of plain dish detergent to keep it from fogging up during hot showers. When you first do this your mirror will look streaky, however after the first shower it will clear up and be fog free thereafter.

Have a pan with baked on food?? Pour some baking soda in, add some water to cover the baked on stuff, put it in the oven on 350 for 10 min, take out and it comes right off….works great on wire racks

I try to do at least one load of laundry a day - so that there is not a huge back-up!

My favorite household tip is for clogged or slow running drains - Pour in a bit of baking soda and then a bunch of vinegar. After all the fizzing is complete pour down some boiling water and your drain is (usually) restored to it’s less clogged self. (Doesn’t work on toys clogging the toilet, however!) WAYYYY cheaper than Draino!

While I’m in the shower, I take an old poof and some body wash and wipe it down. It makes for a much easier deep clean when the time comes.

GREAT - giveaway & tips already!
My favorite household tip: start ‘em young on chores. My 2 year old son LOVES to help me unload the dishwasher and we name the things as he pulls them out (spoon, fork, etc). I also keep all of his bowls, plates and cups at his level so he can set his highchair. His future wife is gonna love me!

My favorite household tip and my general rule I try to live by is to pick up general “clutter” (toys, pillows, etc), clean off counters, and make sure dishes are not in the kitchen sink before I leave the house. Just those couple of things make the house “look and feel clean” even if its not!

I have a three section net basket that hangs in my laundry room. When the kids have dirty socks, I fold each pair together and use one section of the basket for one child and another section for the other child. I unfold the socks when I’m ready to wash them and put a handful of pairs of socks in a lingerie bag.

Again, I keep one child’s socks in one lingerie bag and the other child’s in another bag. This saves me time from determining what sock is whose. I also mark their socks with a letter, shape, or number so that I can easily match the pairs together. This prevents from one sock being used more than another but allows for equal use.

Thank you for this great giveaway!

My tip is to make a housecleaning schedule. I definitely don’t stick to mine every week, but my house is still a lot cleaner and I don’t have to wonder about when the last time I cleaned the shower was.

Pick up a few things as you go each day and then the house will stay a little less cluttered and won’t be as overwhelming.

Every night when I get out of the shower, I wipe down everything. The steam from the hot shower makes all surfaces moist and easy to wipe off. With boys in my house, I still do the frequent deep cleaning, but, this tip allows my bathroom to look better each day. Plus, I don’t like water spots on my bathroom faucet and when I am done it shines!
Jodi

Mr. Clean Erasers work wonders on cleaning grout on the kitchen floor.

Windex gets stains out of carpet (without staining it blue)

Windex get stains out of carpet

One of my tips is to get those small brown scrapers from Pampered Chef. You can use them for everything. Getting food off that is stuck on any kind of pan/dish, getting soap scum off your bath tub and many more uses. They are great for so many things!
God bless,
Amanda

Since I’m a newer wife, I don’t have A lot of my tips have been taken. My favorite tip is, when all else fails, try the magic eraser. I’m amazed at some of the things it gets off that nothing else would touch. That and u