The kitchen is the heartbeat of the home, but too often our kitchen counters can be messy and cluttered which can lead to us feeling stressed and overwhelmed. A clean kitchen is a happy and productive place to be! I shared last week about how I had completely cleared off my kitchen counters last summer, and the big difference that it made in my life. And if you follow me on Instagram you probably noticed that I spent most of a recent Friday sharing my process of clearing off my … [Read more...]
5 Ways Clearing Off My Kitchen Counters Changed My Life
Around this time last year, I completely cleared off my counters. As in, I removed everything from my counters except for soap by the sink and a small aloe plant. It was AMAZING. One night when my hubs and I were taking a walk after dinner, I told him that I thought completely clearing off the counters had changed my life. He chuckled and told me I was being a little dramatic. But I was serious. It really did change a lot of things about my life that were causing me stress and making me … [Read more...]
Is a Vinegar and Baking Soda Mixture Effective for Cleaning?
You sprinkle and pour and watch the satisfying bubbles rise up. You watch the bubbles pop and feel proud that you're using a safe and non-toxic cleaning solution. The bubbles fade away and you scrub down your sink, toliet, tub, or counter. But do you really know what you're actually scrubbing around and how effective it is? I learned something interesting last month when I wrote a post over on Keeper of the Home about vinegar not being a great non-toxic cleaner. Some people love their vinegar … [Read more...]
Conquering the Laundry Pile: Catch Up and Create a System that Works in Just One Week!
I think we've probably all been there at some point in time - standing at the bottom staring up at Mt. Laundry and wondering how we're ever going to conquer it. When we have so much laundry to do, we feel like we will never get caught up, much less keep on, our family's laundry. Because we all know what happens when we have a lot of laundry to do, while we're working on getting caught up, the piles just keep growing and growing. I recently found myself in this exact place. After finally … [Read more...]
Tame the Toy Chaos: Setting Up a Toy Library
*Emily's note: Elizabeth and her family have been on a journey to simplify and minimize their stuff around their home for the past few years and back in September, she shared with us her plan for taking your home from Madness to Managable in just one weekend. In that post she mentioned her family's toy library, and we received a lot of comments and questions asking more about how to set one up, so she's sharing her family's toy library system with us today, perfect for getting control … [Read more...]
How to Make Homemade Disinfectant {Green in 365}
This is Day 300 of the Green in 365 series! By Sara from Your Thriving Family, Contributing Writer The seasons and weather are changing again and with that comes coughs, sneezes and germs! We all need a kid safe way to keep our homes clean and family healthy. What better way to KNOW your products are safe than to make them yourself?! Making a homemade disinfecting spray is as easy as mixing some essential oils with a carrier liquid in a spray bottle. When using essential oils … [Read more...]
Green in the Life – Hanging My Clothes On the Line {Green in 365: Laundry}
This is Day 288 of the Green in 365 series! I've been line drying our clothes for several years now, since we first put up a clothesline the summer after we moved into our current home. We've had warm, even hot, weather this fall so I've been trying to take advantage of the chance to line dry our clothes before the winter weather sets in. (Which, ironically, is suddenly this week - with cold and rainy days. Why does it always do that - jump straight from hot weather to cold and gross? Where … [Read more...]
Choosing a Clothesline that Works for You {Green in 365: Laundry}
This is Day 286 of the Green in 365 series! Guest Post by Becca of The Earthing's Handbook: *Emily's Note: This is the second of two guest posts from Becca about line-drying your laundry. (Read the first post here.) We're coming to the end of the season for line-drying clothes outside where I live, but I am really hoping to finally figure out a good way to line-dry clothes indoors this winter. Hopefully these questions will help you find a line-drying system that will work … [Read more...]
Organizing Soccer Clothes {Green in 365: Laundry}
This is Day 284 of the Green in 365 series! By Renee from Joyful Mom, Contributing Writer Life and laundry was so simple when it was just my husband and I. A weekly load of whites, a load of darks and sheets/towels. I could have the chore of laundry completed in just a few hours. How I long for those days now! With the birth of my first son, laundry was a increased by the cloth diapers. He was born in August so he really didn't wear more than a diaper and those gowns to sleep in--he … [Read more...]
Green Cleaning with Lemon Essential Oil {Green in 365}
This is Day 221 of the Green in 365 series! Guest Post by Krissa of More Than Mundane: If you've been following along with the Green in 365 series, you've likely heard some about the dangers of cleaning with conventional cleaners that are loaded with harsh chemicals. There are many all natural alternatives to cleaning that are just as effective as conventional cleaners, but that don't cause irritation to your skin, eyes, and airways and that you can feel safe using in your … [Read more...]
