Gadgets, a Clean House & Other Vices

I'm all for gadgets. I've got the Gizmo can opener (thanks, Natalie!). It makes living off canned goods sound exciting. Sadly, I read most canned goods are high in sodium, so I feel guilty when I feed them to the kids. Anyhow, the Gizmo's not the only cool gadget out there. My new fave is the steam mop. Mine is by Bissel, and thanks to them, I've been getting more excited than I should be about mopping. No cleaning solution necessary, just good old agua. (Side note: I'm a bit distracted by Nate shoving Chuck E. Cheese tokens in my pockets. "More coins in pocket Mommy? More coins in pocket Mommy? More coins in pocket Mommy?" - you get the idea)

My mom is probably the most devoted cleaner of the home in the world. When I picture her in my mind, she's usually cleaning the kitchen. When we were young, and still to this day, she cannot sit to watch a show unless she can be folding clothes, ironing, cleaning the kitchen & watching from a distance or polishing the glass coffee table (a busy-bee trait I carry, as well). I think her dedication to keeping a clean home is part of the reason I don't feel completely relaxed or "happy" without my house being clean and fairly orderly. It could be a control issue for me, or most likely, a way for me to feel like there's some order in my chaotic life. Maybe my mom felt she needed some order, too.

I ordered my mom a Roomba. The robot vacuum designed in Heaven. I thought it'd be chinsy and suck with minor vigor. However, it's a lovely little machine & worth the cost. Rick would roll his eyes (Mr. Old-fashioned-who-needs-a-gadget-when-you-have-a-broom) if I brought it up, but I really want to get one for our downstairs. The entire 1st floor of our home is tile. With two dogs & two kids, I end up sweeping or vacuuming the floor at least once a day. I might see if I can find one on craigslist. Rick (Mr. If-you-could-ask-for-anything-why-would-you-want-a-household-item) thinks our two older vacuums are doing a dandy job, and they are okay, but have you seen the Dyson vacuums? I think about them all the time. Can you tell I'm a stay-at-home-mom & like a clean house? I was reading reviews and one lady said hers sucked so hard it lifted the carpet as she went. In my mind, I'm thinking "awesome!" and I'm totally picturing it now. Nice. Really nice. I figure I could have worse vices than stressing over the cleanliness of my house.

My other vice is the Children's Orchard & bargains in general. I have a poor memory except for prices of items I got great deals on and horse & dog stuff. Don't ask me what the last movie I saw was or how the last book I read ended, because I couldn't tell you a week later. Ask me about the Huggies baby wash on clearance for $1.09 from $4.47 that I got for $.09 because I had a $1 off Huggies wash coupon, and I'll tell you the details in 10 years. I know it's hard to believe, but that was a real deal!! And The Children's Orchard is my favorite store. They buy children's clothes, toys, gear, books, bedding, etc. and resell it. It's fun to find great deals and the bonus is, you sell your stuff back when you're done. I clipped a "Get an extra 40% on your stuff when you sell it to us coupon" and have an appointment for March 4th. You've never seen a lady try to dig up stuff to sell so fast!