Tips and Recipes Week

Whether it is with window crayons or with homemade window clings, the picklets love to decorate our windows during the holidays. I have found that the decorating goes much better with clean windows. The below recipe works wonders and is all we use.

Window and Mirror Cleaner

1/2 tsp liquid soap
3 Tbs vinegar
2 cups water
spray bottle

Combine all the ingredients in the spray bottle. Use like window cleaner.

One big key to streak free windows is to use as little cleaner as possible. A couple of sprays on a normal dirty window is plenty. The damper the window the streakier it will be. Plus we always use newspaper to clean our window and mirrors. We find this method is less streaky and cheaper than paper towels.

Tips and Recipes Week

As we prepare for the holidays, I thought everyone can use tips and recipes thus "Tips and Recipes Week" was born. Yesterday I posted my sausage burgers and avocado creme. If you get the chance to make them, do so! They are quite good.

With all the holiday baking our oven is getting to the point that it needs a good cleaning. I absolutely HATE the oven cleaner sprays. Cool swears by them but I would prefer NOT to use them. I started using the below method and found I don't dread cleaning the oven nearly as bad as I used to.

To clean the oven preheat to 200 degrees then shut it off.
Pour 1/4 cup ammonia in a dish and place in oven.
Let sit overnight.
In the morning dispose the ammonia. (I flush it down the toilet)
Wipe the oven clean.

This method works quite well without the spray and fumes that always made me sick. I hope it works for you.

As always, be careful and be sure to read the labels.

Honey-Do's

I have a perpetual Honey-Do list for Cool. Most of the time it doesn't get done. I'm not saying Cool doesn't do things around the house by any means. He cooks supper at least three times a week, he does the dishes those nights, cleans the porch, does laundry and picks up the nights that I am not home. But when we are both home, I want him to relax. Now, that could be because I want to relax myself and seeing that he is relaxing makes me feel less guilty for relaxing. Regardless of the reasons why, the relaxing ultimately makes the honey-do list long and intensive when we finally decide that it can't be put off any more.

To take a pro-active stance on this whole list making and accomplishing business, I have decided to make shorter honey-do lists for Cool. Two or three things, tops. That way it isn't labor and time intensive and maybe, just maybe things will actually get done.

This weekends list consists of:
hang pictures in Sweet's room
hang pictures in hallway
take extension cord out of bedroom
hang curtain rods back up

OK, so that is 4 things but it shouldn't take more than a couple of hours tops. And if these things get done then the house will be that much closer to being what we might consider done. Of course, probably by the time we get to the point we consider "done", I will decide it is time for a change and the process will start again. Oh well.

~~Happy Trails~~

(c) 2008-2010 Wicked Pickles-Homefront Lines

Windows and Showers

If you windows collect condensation like ours, sometimes you will notice a mold like substance that appears on the caulk. Mix up this solution, spray and clean. Safe and works. :-)

1 spray bottle
1/2 cup vinegar
water to fill bottle

Put vinegar in bottle and fill with water. Shake gently to mix.

This also works well in the shower and around the tub.

Cleaning

Rules we have adapted.

Get rid of it if:

• have duplicates
• don't like it
• don't use it
• don't wear it
• don't need it
• don't want it
• out of style
• needs excessive repair
• in cupboard/closet for 6 months or more without using
• pieces missing
• doesn't fit
• don't do anything for me
• tired of it
• don't have room for it

Keep only if:

• love it
• use it
• need it
• fits
• have room for it
• holds a deep memory

And....if something comes in, something goes out.

Sweet's Brilliant Idea

One of Sweet's chore is to mop the bathroom floor once a week. It is a little bathroom and it takes way less time to scrub it by hand than it does to get a mop out. Sweet didn't like having to wash it by hand so she took it upon herself to wash the floor a different way.
8 Clorox wipes later and the bathroom floor was relatively clean. The skates didn't fit in back of the toilet or in the corners but they did a pretty good job.

© 2008 Wicked Pickles-Homefront Lines

End of the School Year

The last visit with the Supervising Teacher indicates the end of the school year, for the state that is. It doesn't mark anything for us except the mad rush to get the house cleaned up...lol.

While the kidlets were "cleaning" the livingroom I heard LOUD music and lots of comotion. What did I find? I guess we can consider it music appreciation and physical fitness...don't ya just love unschooling??? LOL!

©2008 The Homefront Lines