Friday, September 28, 2007

33 uses for an old toothbrush

Here's recycling/reusing at its best.

33 uses for old toothbrushes:
1. ring cleaner
2. eyebrow shaper brush
3. jewelry cleaner
4. nail brush
5. carpet cleaner
6. shoe cleaner
7. comb and brush cleaner
8. tile grout cleaner
9. cleaning small grooves in the car
10. remove stains out of fabric
11. cleaning around sinks
12. cleaning around the toilet
13. cleaning around faucets
14. garlic press cleaner
15. scrubbing the part of coffee pot where coffee is dispensed
16. dusting the lint catch in the dryer
17. dusting the lint catch of hair dryer
18. cleaning between fork tines
19. cleaning dog poop from shoe soles
20. cleaning sliding door encasement
21. cleaning computer keyboard
22. cleaning inside of bottles
23. make a toothbrush bracelet
http://www.hgtv.com/hgtv/cr_occasions/article/0,,HGTV_3268_1382191,00.html
24. clean shower tracks
25. clean can opener blades
26. brush your cheese grater
27. clean silk from ears of corn
28. waffle iron cleaner
29. hair dye applicator
30. clean gunk from appliances
31. clean telephone receiver
32. clean light switches
33. clean corners and seams

Monday, September 24, 2007

Sweet Jesus!

We decided to go to church Saturday afternoon at 4:00 PM instead of Sunday morning. The girls sometimes get very active and irritable and antsy during Sunday morning mass. That's why we opted to try it out on Saturday afternoon.

Big mistake! These girls were so wild. I didn't take into account that they didn't eat before we went. Neither one would sit still. This isn't surprising, but please sit for at least one to two minutes at a time.

MM wanted to walk. So, I walked with her down the side aisle. She wouldn't let me hold her hand so she would drop to the floor and have a tantrum. She has never done this before. Why does she have to do it now in church? Not only did she do this once or twice, but about 10 times in the one hour of mass. I decided to walk the girls to the back of the church in the candle and statue area. This was fine until I hear Kaplunk!

Guess what happened? One or both of them were playing with the last supper statue and dropped it. Jesus' head broke off. Of all the statues for them to break, it was this one.

At the end of mass, FG and I felt obligated to tell Fr. Ian. He was so fine with it. He just requested that we glue Jesus' head back on and return it. I was quite relieved that he was so nonchalant about it. Not that I was expecting him to be angry, but not so laid back about it either. So, the deal is that SG has to help me put Jesus' head back on.

Now on to another mess the girls made. I was in the laundry room ironing. I figured something had to happen because I don't iron very often. I hear SG say, "Mom, we made a big, giant, huge mess." I see tiny white foot prints all over the floor. I follow it and there it is. The girls got into 2 containers of powder. Powder is everywhere. Luckily it is mainly contained in the my bathroom.

I wanted so badly to be strong and angry, but I busted out laughing. It was the funniest thing. A fine thin layer of powder was everywhere throughout the house. I am still cleaning powder. It looked like it snowed in there. The girls were covered in powder snow. I think my favorite part was the tiny white feet prints everywhere there was wood flooring.

As you can see from the picture, they put a towel and my dress down to clean up before I got in there. It made it worse. Mischief at its best!

Wednesday, September 19, 2007

Reusable Bags Help us to Go Green

Like many people I know, I feel bad about all the plastic bags brought home from the grocery and every other store. I have been looking into purchasing some reusable bags, trying to decide what size and how many I would need.

Help could be on the way. Amy at Crunchy Domestic Goddess is giving away reusable bags. " Reusable Bags has offered up two of their best-selling reusable bags to one lucky winner :
the Workhorse Style 1500bag workhorse bag cottontote
and the Lightweight Recycled Cotton Tote with Dual Handles, both made by ACME Bags."

Hop on over to Crunchy Domestic Goddess and enter!

The Bird Watcher

Yesterday I was trying to find something to do with SG outside. I asked her what she wanted to do. I heard a shocking reply. She said she wanted to bird watch. This is so out of character for her. How often do you hear from a three year old, "I want to bird watch."? She certainly took me by surprise.

So, that's what we did. The great part was that the weather was exceptional Tuesday. It was in the low 70s with a cool breeze. We pulled out chairs in the backyard and bird watched. We have a bird nest under our carport with doves. Though, they weren't too exciting. Over on our neighbor's tree, there were two birds that were having a grand ole' time. These were the birds we were watching. I guess I need to get a book out and learn about the birds in our area since my daughter likes to "bird watch".

They were chasing after one another, flying around the tree, singing and chirping, and hanging out on the fence. I am still amazed that SG sat quietly and patiently for at least 45 minutes. She truly enjoyed watching. She did say she was relaxing. Wow! New vocabulary.

I guess next time I am looking for something to occupy her time, I will suggest bird watching.

Monday, September 17, 2007

Befores and Afters

Lately, I have been doing a lot of reorganizing. I save all the cleaning for my husband. I'll spend a couple of hours reorganizing a cabinet or drawer. He comes home and asks "what have you been up to all day?". I will say cleaning drawers and cabinets. He says "all day?". Yep!

So, to document my latest tasks, I have pictures to prove what I have been up to. I am sorry to say I don't always remember to take the before picture, though. I think it is just a case of "mom brain" being forgetful. Hey, at least I remember the important things.

First is my little sweatpea's room. It has been so bland and boring. I decided to jazz it up a bit.



She now has a garden.


Okay, now this was a big project. I didn't realize how disorderly one tiny room can get. I think it was a case of embarrassment when I thought to take a before picture. This picture is so much better looking. I guess to most people this still looks a mess, but hey, I can see the tabletop and walk without tripping on anything. As you can see, I organized my crafting/wrapping paper area. I can actually use the table to wrap gifts.

This has been a work in progress. I had been meaning to get my hair cut for the last 6 months. I have been wearing my typical "mom" hair-do, pinned up or in a pony-tail.

Next is the mad-crazy-I-can't-do-anything-with-this-hair look.

Finally, a hip-mom hair cut. Lots of layers and up with the latest hair trend.

Wednesday, September 12, 2007

Order in the House

This morning I woke up early as I always do since school started. But today was different. Instead of going directly to the computer and spending about 45 minutes online, I actually did some housework. I have accomplished so much this morning. (Okay, I have to admit it is a habit I need to break, but I did go straight to the computer but only for about 10 minutes).

Today is a busy day. I guess things happen much more quickly when under pressure. I have three appointments lined up today. At 9:30 AM the A/C repairman will be here to replace the leaking coils in my less-than-a-year-old A/C. 12:30 PM is when the pest control technician will be here and the famous window time frame of 12:00 PM - 4:00 PM is reserved for the annual termite renewal inspection.

The house has been picked up and cleaned the quickest in a long time. I have just been tired and not feeling like picking up. I cannot tell you how many times a day I pickup after the kids. The good thing is that SG is getting older and I am teaching her about responsibility. Therefore, she is learning to pickup after herself. So, it doesn't happen as often as I would like, but this is a start to the learning process.

Tuesday, September 11, 2007

I don't like to complain, but...

Okay, so we were at church on Sunday and there was so much that bothered me. First of all, I am a firm believer in dressing appropriately for church. I guess that's why people refer to the term "Sunday clothes" or "church clothes" when they are referring to nicer duds. I have been seeing too many people wearing clothes that look like they strolled in right from the night club. I am talking tight knit cotton jersey; chest bearing, cleavage showing stretchy camisoles; pants so low you can see their butt crack and hip bones. Come on! Where is your dignity?

Pet peeve number two is noises that should be avoided. This is why we have vibrate mode on cell phones. A couple of cell phones went off during the quite moments in mass. These weren't your typical ring-ring. These were loud obnoxious songs certainly not appropriate for church.

Next is the toy that the mom allows her child to bring in church. I am not sure about other mom's, but I bring quiet toys such as colors, coloring books, books, etc. This child was playing with a talking doll. Come on now! Have a bit of sense. If anything it is for the common good of the congregation.

I know, I am being a bit rough, but these are things of common courtesy. People have forgotten about manners and respect for other people.