Spring has sprung...well kinda
Bonjour!
The first day of spring has come and gone but that damn ground hog lied and its cold, windy, and the other day it actually snowed for like a second! Those who know me know that I HATE COLD & SNOW. I literally use my cars seat warmers all year long or until its so hot that it burns my buns. It's funny to because I am kind of a sweaty person especially since I went all hippy and switched to all natural deodorant (maybe TMI?) but I don't mind the heat...Ok so that's kind of a lie and maybe I do hate it but only when I have a full face of makeup on and I start to melt. Any girl can understand that right?
Spring is a wonderful time of year despite the bi-polar weather we have in VA. The days get longer, flowers & trees start to bloom, my grass starts to grow (and by grass I mean weeds but whatever it's green), and I can finally open up the windows and air out the house a little. It also means spring cleaning! I used to really enjoying cleaning. It was always rather therapeutic for me to just tear apart a room and put it all back together perfectly spick and span and smelling great! Well thats until I got these two fatties....
As you can see they make themselves right at home on any surface they choose. I know this is my fault but since we got the second one it's gotten out of hand. Not to mention he is white and we think he is mixed with collie so he sheds white hair EVERYWHERE! At any given time I have tumble weeds of dog hair floating about in the air. I have hardwood floors threw most of my home but I have to sweep everyday to keep it under control. Everyone always says "its easier to maintain hardwood floors"...I think the hardwood floor people made that up to sell you on the idea of hardwoods, like they magically clean themselves. I know carpet gets gross and all but at least it tends to stick to it and not blow around when you open a door or window! So if I invite you over don't wear black..or any other dark color for that matter. Don't say I didn't warn you!
OK back to cleaning...
Over the last year I have really started to pay much more attention to my cleaning products. I always just used what my mom used and that was whatever store bought Clorox/bleach/disinfectant combo that came in a spray bottle. After doing a bit of label reading and researching I found that most these products contain toxic chemicals that can cause major health risks for your family and your pets and are certainly not good for the environment. Now that going green has become more "hip" there are a ton of all natural, biodegradable products on the market now. For example, Seventh generation, Dr. Bonners, & Meyers are some great brands I've tried in the past. Now I know what your thinking...that stuffs so much more exspensive. Well that may be true but so is cancer. I discovered a website called thrivemarket.com where you can purchase all kinds of products that are better for you and the environment and not just cleaning products. They offer a great selection of food, baby stuff, personal hygiene and more all at a discounted rate. BUT if your totally against that you can literally make your own. A little warm water mixed with baking soda OR white vinegar is safe to use on just about any surface. I even make my own powder laundry detergent which took me all of 20 minutes, $20 bucks and lasts me about 41/2 months which is a long time considering I do at least one load every day! You can even use white vinegar in place of fabric softener. Sounds weird I know and the smell you ask? It dissipates in the dryer, leaving your clothes and towels soft and fluffy. If you do like a nice smelling towel, use dryer balls with a few drops of essential oils of whatever scent you like. The dryer balls work great to remove static cling and keep items separated so they dry faster replacing the need for dryer sheets which are highly toxic! The only problem Ive found is when drying sheets, they get tangled in the fitted sheet...
I'm still experimenting with creating other products and will add more of those finds later after they have been tested. If you want to try your own laundry detergent, I found my recipe on Pinterest which is a fantastic resource for any DIY cleaning ideas. Or just a g good way to waste an entire afternoon creating endless boards of random things you will probably never look at again!
Happy Pinning! Happy Spring!
