Green Cleaning

I have found a huge spider in my house which if your anything like me, it would completely freak you out. I get the feeling that bugs are crawling all over me after I see any spider. This feeling made me go to find pest controls that are natural.
Ants for instance are just annoying. We haven't found alot of them but even a couple is too much for me when I have a baby crawling around that likes to put everything on the floor into her mouth. Put lemon juice on door thresholds and windowsills or really anywhere you might think ant might enter. You can also place lemon peel slices outside around your main entrances. This also works with cucumber.
Fleas will keep me scratching just thinking about them. Take the juice of 4 lemons and 1/2 gallon of water and wash your floors. Also, washing your dogs bed in salty water will help repel the fleas.
I haven't had many problems with mosquitos this year but if your out grilling throw some sage or rosemary on the coals to repel them. If your thinking of doing some landscaping marigolds would be great to add since they repel most insects from their fragrance.
I'm already itchy from just writing about these bugs!

7 Dirtiest Areas In Your Home

Yesterday I was out running some errands with a friend when we got to talking about the dirtiest and germiest areas in a persons home. This had me thinking the rest of the day of what I thought they would be and what I would find when I would research it. Every website you go to has a different list of their top ten or top five so I have put my personal list along with some that I found and I'm going to tell you how to keep those areas cleaner and safer for your families without the use of chemicals.

1. Kitchen Sinks-so lets think about the last time you cleaned your kitchen sink. You probably can't remember when that was considering people think that its clean since you wash dishes there. This is at the top of almost all lists. Use a mixture of vinegar and water (I already use one for about everything in the house) spray down and wipe down the sink to kill bacteria.
   
2. Kitchen sponges-my thought was I use these to clean with so they have soap in them but let think about how they sit in their compartments with water still in them so the mold and bacteria just spreads. You can easily fix this problem with putting them in the microwave for ten seconds or putting them in the dishwasher on sanitize cycle.
3. Carpets-Carpets collect not only odors from cooking or pets but also all the dirt and little bugs that like to live on your pets. To clear the odors you can pour baking soda on the carpets and vacuum it up after you have let it sit for awhile. To get rid of all those lovely bugs and dirt that comes from traffic through the house you can choose to have them steam cleaned which is probably the best choice but more costly or you can mix 1/2 c. baking soda, 1/2 c. borax, and 1 c. cornmeal sprinkle the mixture over carpet and rub with cloth, then you need to let it set for a couple hours or overnight then vacuum.
4. Beds-Bedbugs are real! You should wash sheets once a week or more depending on if your a person that sweats while sleeping. Wash them in hot water and use a mattress cover that you should also wash often. Vacuum the mattress while the sheets are being washed.
5. Bathtubs-Yes, I said bathtubs before toilets but if your like me anything in the bathroom needs to be sanitized regularly. Just think of the bacteria growth when the water just sits in some spots of your bathtub. And we put our kids in there?! Use the mixture that you use for everything 1 part vinegar and 1 part water, spray and wipe down. You can use this mixture after every shower/bath.
   
6. Hand-held Appliances-I had to put this all in one category to fit all my personal choices for dirtiest places down to 7. This includes phones, remotes, mouse, keyboard, and anything of the sort. People chew nails, eat, sneeze, and who knows what else before touching these appliances so you can imagine the bacteria. Use a microfiber cloth, spray your vinegar/water mixture on the cloth, then wipe down. You can use a pin or toothpick to get the small areas. Be careful with toothpicks near the microphone/speaker on phones as you can puncture them.
   
7. Wooden Cutting Boards-Most people wash these but are you washing them correctly? Do not immerse in water as this will cause cracking when it dries. Clean off with hot water then use a soft cloth to wipe down with vinegar to kill the bacteria.

For some reason I now feel this need to clean the entire house!

Detox Your Home

Did you know your indoor air can be up to five times worse than the outdoor air pollution? Formaldehyde, lead, and asbestos that are found in many homes can cause allergies and asthma. You can reclaim your home with a few tips to follow.

Start going through the cleaning supplies you use throughout your house. Are there chemicals used in these that will enter the air to be inhaled or a surface that will be in contact with your skin? Consider switching to all natural products or making your own with vinegar, baking soda, lemon juice, and lemons. Then by adding some houseplants that will help clear out other air pollutants. Also, check to see if your house was built before 1978, as 80% of homes in that time period contain lead based paint. The paint chips and dust can be inhaled or ingested. You can get brocures from your county on ways to get rid of lead paint in your home.

You should keep rooms properly ventilated and open windows regularly. Replace air-conditioning and furnace filters and keep air ducts clean. This removes bacteria, mold, viruses and pollen. Also, remove shoes at the door as this will keep fewer toxins from being tracked through the house.

Most people use air fresheners not realizing the artificial fragrances can cause problems with allergies. Choose to freshen your home naturally with hypoallergenic products in non-aerosol containers. You can make your own fragrant spray by filling a mister bottle with filtered water then add a few drops of your favorite essential oils.

Budget Friendly Green Cleaning Products

I don't know about you, but I don't like the smell of chemicals in my house after a day of cleaning. Of course, I do want it to smell clean but now that I am 7 months pregnant smells already bother me and then for them to be harsh just makes it worse. There are three items in your house that you probably didn't even realize can be used instead of these horrible smelling cleaners. These items are baking soda, vinegar, and lemons.

The first of these, baking soda, is one of the most amazing product you will find. You can use it for to freshen up your carpet, sprinkle the powder over your carpet, let it sit for about 15 minutes and vacuum up. Also unclogging a drain, take 1/2 cup baking soda and 1/2 cup salt, pour down the drain followed by boiling water. Let it sit over night then flush it out with regular tap water. I'm sure baking soda will definitely come up again in some of my other blogs since it just seems like endless possibilities with that little box.

Vinegar is a great disinfectant and deodorizer! Mix 1 part vinegar and 1 part water in a cheap spray bottle for an all purpose cleaner that can be used at anytime. You should make sure it is diluted as vinegar can be acidic and should not be used on marble! You can use undiluted vinegar in the bathtub, toilet, sink, stove top, and also as a fabric softener (which is great for families that have skin problems). To use as a fabric softener put 1/2 cup in during the rinse cycle it is very effective on breaking down laundry detergent.

Lemon juice can dissolve soap scum and hard water deposits, it can shine brass, and copper. It can also be mixed with vinegar or baking soda to make a cleaning paste. My favorite in reading about this great product that normally just sits in my fridge is you can mix 1/2 cup lemon juice with 1 cup olive oil for a furniture polish! I was paying so much for furniture polish that seemed to be gone in weeks since all the furniture we have is wood!

I personally have used many of these for the bathroom and kitchen but I can't wait to get to my cleaning this week just to try out the furniture polish and to find even more ways these products can be used!