I am in love and his name is Baking Soda!

I must say I LOVE the smell of clean!! But I have recently come to appreciate a few of the basics that our Mothers cleaned with, back in the day. It all started when we were packing up and getting ready for our recent move. We had boxes everywhere and were feeling like we were making major progress by packing up so early. One afternoon, my kids went downstairs to the play room to watch a movie. It was a quiet moment for Mom to relax and maybe get a few things done.

I tiptoed down the stairs to peer in on my precious ones and found this:

JB = My 2 year old guilty son. He found a loose Sha*rpie lying around!

Wall = OMgoodness
Futon = Yikes
And Buzz = the least of my concerns! Cue the exhale! :)

So I realized quickly that my spray bleach cleaners were of no help to me. I was in need of real help! I began googling to find a cleaning product, for removing Sha*rpie ink, and was amazed at some of the simple suggestions.

The first one was BAKING SODA!!! You know the stuff you can buy BIG boxes of for $.35?! There were other suggestions but I tried this one. I took a baby wipe and baking soda and began my doubting journey of exploration. Guess what - it worked! I know it says on the box - for cleaning but I never used it for a cleaner. The only problem was the wall was so beautifully decorated that I had too much to scrub. So we did paint the wall instead. But the baking soda took the Marker right off of the Futon with little effort.

With my new love for Baking Soda fresh on my mind, I decided to use it when cleaning my tub or to remove scuff marks. My newest discovery is my new love and, I must say, I have about 4 boxes of the stuff lying around now! I am going back to the basics! I used the Baking Soda to scrub my tub at our prior home and it never looked cleaner. I wanted to leave the tub with a sparkly clean, so I followed with a towel, dried off excess dampness and sprayed Windex. My tub actually went 'Ding' when I looked at it! haha No, but really it shined! I felt freed from the $2 and $3 a bottle cleaners.

At our new home we have the baking soda in the pantry, ready for a mess, and Ammonia! Ammonia gives the clean smell I like but, once again, it is cheaper than the other stuff. Ammonia is my disinfectant and baking soda is my stain remover! Counter-Top Disinfectant recipe = 2 Tbsp. ammonia, 1/2 cup rubbing alcohol, 1/4 cup vinegar, and water. Put ammonia, alcohol and vinegar in a spray bottle and fill with water. **NEVER NEVER NEVER USE AMMONIA WITH BLEACH - THIS CAN TRULY BE DEADLY!!!!***

I mean really! Who can not love a product that is so economical and useful!!! And the ammonia is the same - economical and useful. Have you read the label on a bottle of Ammonia lately?? They boast of cleaning all areas of the kitchen and bathroom, as well as windows, washing machines AND dryers. You can use it on woodwork, painted walls. Put it in the oven overnight and spills should just wipe off with ease!! Not to mention both products are safe for using with laundry! I tell you I'm smitten!

As with any new relationship, Baking Soda and I are still learning things about each other. I tried my new love on our green hard surface luggage, to remove smudges, and it took a bit of work to get the white discoloration out of the grooves. After several attempts to wipe clean with water, I tried Windex and then we finally had luck with Armor All. So you may not want to use Baking Soda on dark colored surfaces, it isn't easy to wipe off without a touch of residue remaining.

As for my son's art work, both my son and the surfaces came clean with a little scrubbing and Buzz... well, we needed to keep him as is, for a souvenir!