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Spring Cleaning After a Long Winter

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Quite honestly I hate cleaning. Almost as much as I hate folding laundry. But unless you are someone who would be a good candidate for a horrifying reality TV show, you can’t put it off forever. If I’m going to suck it up and actually do some of the cleaning that I’ve been avoiding I want it to be as easy and quick as possible.

This spring, I’m using OxiClean™ Versatile Stain Remover as part of my Spring cleaning routine. I had a baby this January. This Winter has seemed endless and my enthusiasm for cleaning has been… low to say the least. But I am starting to feel more like myself again. Which means I still don’t’ really want to clean, but think I should at least a little.

OxiClean VSR

Here’s my Spring Cleaning list and how I’ll be tackling it this Spring.

  1. Clean the Entryway Mats – I don’t think about cleaning my entryway mats very often. And it shows. After suffering through the snow, slush, sand and road salt my mats are looking a little worse for wear. Apparently they not only look bad when they are like this, they don’t work as well either. Which makes the muck and mud of spring more likely to track into the rest of the house. I’d like this mess to stick to the entryway so I’ll be soaking them in warm water with a scoop of OxiClean™ Versatile Stain Remover for 6 hours and then washing it out. (Remember to always follow manufacturers care instructions.) 
  2. Sorting Through Clothes – I’ve already started this process but I have a long way to go. The summer clothes are being checked for size and the winter clothes that the kids haven’t outgrown will be washed and put away. Winter jackets in particular always seem to get really grimy so I’ll be pre-treating those with OxiClean™ Versatile Stain Remover to help really get them clean.
  3.  Organizing Cupboards – Cleaning the parts of your house behind closed doors is usually a low priority. Who can see it anyway? But when those areas of the house are in order, I know it makes it way easier to keep the other areas from getting messy. Hopefully that will help with my counter top problem. And my buffet problem. And my kitchen table problem. (What do you mean, you’re supposed to use the kitchen table for eating?)
  4. Cleaning up Outside – Our backyard didn’t really get cleaned up before the snow hit. Let’s just say it’s a big of a mess. Now that it’s nice enough to really enjoy hanging out in the yard again I have some work to do. I’m going to organize the toys and get rid of the broken ones, clean the patio furniture and put the chairs and things where they belong for a summer of playing outside and having barbecues.

That’s what’s on my spring cleaning list right now, what’s on yours?

OxiClean™ has numerous products that can help you around the house including OxiClean™ Liquid Laundry Detergent, OxiClean™ Extreme Power Crystals™ Dishwasher Detergent Paks as well as OxiClean™ Versatile Stain Remover.

OxiClean Dish OxiClean Laundry

I am a brand ambassador for the 2015 year with Church & Dwight. As part of this program I receive monetary compensation as well as products to review. 

Love and Loss: How to Help Someone Who is Grieving

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Love and Loss: How to help someone who is grieving My special needs brother passed away this summer. He’s been a big part of my life for the last 30 years and he’s taught me a lot. Even right at the end, he has still helped me become a better person. I know that I will now be a better friend to someone who is suffering a loss that I would have otherwise. I have learned so much about what is helpful and that is something I will be able to carry with me for the rest of my life. I have had amazing support from family and friends and I really can’t thank them enough.

  1. Bring Food

    Although you sometimes hear derisive comments in popular media about expressing sympathy in the form of tuna casserole, if there is one thing anyone can do to help, it is by bringing food. It can be really hard to get yourself organized to plan meals, get groceries and cook them. Having people bring food by is a life saver. Make sure you ask about any food allergies or preferences first and it helps to make a note in some way that the food doesn’t have dairy (for example). I also highly recommend sending the food in a form that could be easily frozen and to not send it in dishes you need to get back. If you do, try to label them.

  2. Play to Your Strengths

    There is no one right way to help. If you are someone who likes to make meals, do that. If you like to bake, do that instead. If you would rather stay out of the kitchen, that’s okay too. Pick up some frozen meals, grab some buns and sandwich meat, put together fresh fruit and vegetables, drop off a gift card or get some food delivered instead. All of it will be welcomed.

  3. Set up a Schedule or Bring Things Later

    If you are part of a family or group, setting up a schedule for dropping off food can help focus people’s efforts and prevent everything from showing up at once. If you’re not part of a large group, consider bringing things later on. Most of the help will tend to come right away but that’s not the only time it’s needed.

  4. Treat Them Normally and Don’t be Afraid to Talk About Normal Things

    No matter how sad you are you can’t be sad all the time and you sure don’t want to cry all the time. At the beginning of your visit you can tell them how sorry you are, and talk about what happened but for the most part just talk. You dont’ want to avoid the subject and you want to be open to listening if they do want to talk though. Don’t treat them like they may fall apart at any moment. It can be a huge relief to talk about something else and just be normal for a while.

  5. Propose Easy Outings

    It can be hard to get the energy up to go out but taking your mind off things can be helpful. Try proposing outings that are specific, short and soon. It may also be helpful to present it as more of a statement than a question. eg. “I was thinking of picking you up to go get a milkshake at Peters.” Be prepared for your invitation to be declined.

  6. Offer to Drive

    If you know your friend has to drive somewhere or you are inviting them out, offer to drive. This is particularly helpful if they are not totally comfortable driving in the first place, are going somewhere unfamiliar or are driving to do something emotionally difficult.

  7. Drop off a Sunshine Basket

    Flowers are traditional pick me up. They are beautiful and will certainly be welcomed. The one problem that I have come to realize with flowers is that, well, they die. This can be kind of sad when you are mourning a loss. As an alternative, consider putting together a sunshine or pick me up basket with little things to help brighten a sad day. Candy, lotion, notepads, candles, bath products – it doesn’t have to cost a lot to mean a lot.

  8. Suggest Ways You Can Help

    Even when you really need help it can be hard to figure out what you need. Suggest something specific that you could do. It can also be hard to not default to saying no. You may be able to improve your success by framing it less like a question and making it seem really easy. Eg. stand by the dishwasher and say, “I was thinking of doing your dishes, is that okay?”

  9. If You Know Something Your Friend Struggles With – Help With That

    Everyone has something that they need to do in their day to day life but struggle with or hate doing. It may be making phone calls, or mowing the lawn, or picking up groceries. Whatever it is, it’s going to be much much harder to get it done when you’re grieving.

  10. Manage Your Expectations

    Be okay, with having your invitations turned down. Don’t worry if you send a message that doesn’t get a response. Or send over some food and don’t’ receive a thank you. Your kindness is certainly appreciated even if that may not always be obvious.

  11. Just Show Up

    It doesn’t have to be a big gesture. Just being there can be enough. Show up at the funeral, send a card, send an e-mail expressing your condolences.

Is there something you would add?

Girls Night in With Mattel #GameOnParty

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My family loves board games. Many evenings, particularly over the holidays, you can find us around a table playing our new favorite. My brother even co-hosts a local annual gaming event. Yeah, we have a lot of family game nights.

When Mattel offered to help me host a Game Night, I thought I’d try something a little different and invite some of my girlfriends over.

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They sent me a box of games that was personalized based on my Gameology sign. Mattel’s Gameology Facebook App determines your game sign by asking you some questions and tells you what time of games fit you best. You can find out if you are an Activus, Strategicorn, or a Socialie like me by trying out their app at: Follow this link to determine your game sign: Apps.facebook.com/gameology. (You can also win some prizes!)

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I have to say, the app was right on the money. Most of the times when my friends get together we talk and talk and talk and eat. So social games are a perfect fit. Inside the box was Mad Gab, Apples to Apples, Uno, Phase 10 and Skip Bo Dice Game. We spent most of the night playing Apples to Apples (well, that and talking). It’s a great game for a group, is quick and easy to play and doesn’t put you on the spot. It can also be pretty funny.

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I had a great time trying out these games with my friends, but I’m really looking forward to hosting another family games night so we can play our new games.

DISCLAIMER:  Mattel sent me the Game On box to review, but all opinions and comments are my own.

Why shop for it when you can swap for it? #shopswap

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When you look at the comparison between what I swapped (what I brought) and what I shopped (what I went home with) you might think this was a pretty bad deal. But actually this was one of the best things I have done lately.

A few weeks ago, one of my friends proposed doing a toy swap. This could not have come at a better time for me. I have been in the process of decluttering – our house is small and we have been more or less using the basement as storage. As our family has gotten bigger we need to reclaim the basement as living space. One of the hardest things for me to cut down on has been the toys. I always wonder if maybe they will like the toy later even if they are not playing with it now, or maybe my daughter will like it even though my son didn’t. It was hard for me to get rid of things on behalf of my kids even though I don’t have a lot of trouble with my own things.

Having a deadline and a place to take all my things really helped. It forced me to sit down and take a hard look at the toys we had. I managed to whittle the toys down to the point where they fit our house as it is right now, not our house as we are hoping it will be in the future.

My main goal was to get rid of our extra toys and make our house more livable, but I was also looking forward to picking up a few new things up too. We had a pretty loose set up. We roughly organized the toys into different types and then we just picked what we wanted. No tickets or maximum number of tickets and no hard feelings. This saves a lot in terms of organization but does require everyone to be on board beforehand. It works best if everyone going is prepared to walk away with nothing and is only bringing toys that they just want to get rid of.

I found a few things that my kids are going to love and also won’t take up a lot of room. We are having a small Christmas this year so I decided to wrap up these toys for the kids’ Christmas presents. Although I might not shop exclusively at a Shop Swap next year, I would definitely pick up toys for Christmas again.

After the 7 of us had picked the toys we wanted to take home we still had a lot (a lot a lot) of toys left over. These toys were donated to WINS in Calgary (who will even pick up!)

You can read more about our Shop Swap experience at my friend Heather’s blog.