DIY Spot Cleaner for Upholstery and Clothing

If you have kids you know that messes are a big part of life. With a baby on the way I have started nesting a little earlier than usual because I know how fleeting time can be. So during nap time I decided to try a cleaning trick!

I have wanted to tackle Emma's car-seat for a LONG time. With juice and food spillage and it sitting in the heat of a car

<<<<<<<<< That's what were left with!

Yuck yuck yuck!!!!!

The majority of the seat only needed a little vacuuming and spot cleaning, but this pad was downright gross! I was determined to make it spotless before our San Diego trip.....so off to Google I went. I found a tutorial that recommended specifically the blue Dawn dishsoap. Well I didn't have the blue Dawn because I prefer to be frugal....I.E I won't spend $5 on a teeny tiny bottle of dishsoap. So I thought to myself I would try it with my Ajax dishsoap and see how it goes. Heck, it would probably be cleaner in the end anyways than it was before. So off I went to start my little adventure.

Here's what you need:
Dish soap (any kind that is a degreaser)
baking soda
hydrogen peroxide
toothbrush

Mixing Instructions
Step 1: Mix one part dish soap with two parts peroxide in your chosen container.

Step 2: Then add 1–2 tablespoons of baking soda, making a paste.

Cleaning Instructions:
Step 1: Pour a generous amount of liquid onto the stain. Using a toothbrush or garment brush, rub stain remover into the stain. I used a generous amount and used circular motion to really get the dirt out of the seat pad. **If your cleaning a clothing item be sure to do the same to the underside of the garment, where the stain may have bled through. It is important to treat both sides of the stain.**

Step 2: Let the item sit for at least an hour (more for really tough stains), and then wash according to the clothing label.

Step 3: Check the clothing item to be sure the stain is gone before you put it in the dryer. Dried on stains are harder to remove. Repeat the process until the stain is gone, then dry accordingly.

After the first scrubbing and washing I noticed a little area that didn't completely come out so I did another round just in the areas that needed extra love. Each time I washed it with towels. Once I was satisfied I just let the pad air dry.








Now for the reveal!

DUDE!!!!!! I was so impressed with this that I am going to treat every garment that the new baby girl will wear that has some spit up stains on them, and even do Emma's keepsake clothes! It's not perfect, but it looks almost brand new and I just used my on hand dish soap! Woohoo!

Baby #2 Bumpdate: 24 Weeks

What's baby up to this week? She is the size of an ear of corn, measuring over 12" long and weighs one and a third pound. Her brain is growing quickly and taste buds are continuing to develop. Her lungs are developing "branches" of the respiratory tree as well as cells that produce surfactant, a substance that will help air sacs in the lungs inflate once she hits the outside world.

What's been going on with mom? Daddy was out of town for three days so I was all by my lonesome in the evenings. We had dinner with my mom, but I flew solo for everything else. Honestly I was having issues at first, but it went smoothly. Emma's pretty easy going, just bedtimes are always a challenge....especially when your a sleepy preggo lady.

Symptoms: Braxton hicks are kicking up a little....sometimes it hurts quite a bit. But since it's up high on my tummy I know it's just that. Oh the heartburn.....please go away! Also I am getting pretty bad hip cramps at night....I had to break out the preggo pillow much to Darin's dismay.

Yummy/Icky: Focusing on trying to eat better. Dry cereal snacks instead of cookies and fruit salads with chocolate milk for desserts.....ice cream sounds so much better though. Mealtimes are hard as nothing really sounds appetizing.

Clothing: Maternity pants to work, with my tees and mostly pjs at home....anything cool and comfortable.

Movement: Her kicks are still really low in my abdomen and they seem to occur after mealtimes mostly. She's still shy to kick when Darin tries to feel.

Belly Button In/Out: In

Wedding Rings On/Off: On

Best Moment this Week: We finally settled on a name! We will be announcing it soon!

Looking forward to: Our trip to Sea World!!!!!!

Week 24 with Emma!

Breastfeeding and A Dairy Intolerance

I mentioned when Emma was very small about how she had a dairy intolerance, but I never really went in depth on the scale in which I had to change my diet in order to continue to have a breastfeeding relationship with our baby girl.

Around 3 weeks new, we noticed that Emma had green mucous stools. While sometimes it's considered normal to have green stools, mucous is not. We already had her 1 month appointment scheduled so we just discussed it with the doctor at her appointment. The doctor tested her stool and it came back positive with trace amounts of blood. Not looking like a good thing already, she asked that I keep the next 3 days of stool diapers and bring them in for further testing. Same thing occurred. Sigh. She told me that Emma had a dairy intolerance and that in order for her to be a happy baby (meaning no colic and tummy issues) I would have to cut all dairy from my diet.....ALL DAIRY. Which meant label reading. You have NOT A CLUE how much we eat has dairy products in it until you have to cut it all out. She also put Emma on an antacid to help calm her tummy. She then proceeded to give me a full sample of a dairy free formula stating "you should start giving this to her now because you will get sick of this diet." Well that put this momma in bear mode as I felt like she was telling me that I couldn't do it! Not this girl.

Being able to breastfeed was something that I was GOING to do. I went home and read every label on every product in our house. Determined that I couldn't eat anything and went to the store to get fruits, veggies, dairy free bread and lunch meats to tide me over. My main snacks had consisted of fruits, cheese and yogurts so I had to completely revamp my entire diet. I also did a survey of our favorite eateries to determine where I could eat out.....very limited.

I went to our local whole food store and got coconut milks, yogurts, dairy free chips and popcorn and granola bars. I was pleasantly surprised that some of the dairy/gluten free options available were actually quite tasty. After about a month of this Emma's tummy seemed to continue to get worse....I noticed after I had peanut butter especially. Once particularly crabby/screamy day and three puking episodes that I just needed to take her in. While there was no blood in her stool the doctor determined that perhaps another round of antacid would help soothe her tummy and prescribed a different kind. So now mom was eating basically nothing and baby was on two medications to help her poor tummy.

You're probably thinking "why didn't you just switch to formula." Well I wasn't giving up. Breastmilk is the best thing for my little one and I was going to do what was best for her. At her next doctors appointment our pediatrician told me to cut out eggs, fish and nuts as well. SIGH! I did it, and with the mix of both the antacids and my very strict diet her little tummy was healed by the time she was 4 months old!

What am I trying to say here? I guess that you can breastfeed your little one so long as you have the patience and drive to read labels and know what you can eat. I did a ton of research and while I ate a lot of things at home I was able to go out and enjoy restaurants as well as a lot of them provided options for a variety of diet limitations and discovered some foods that I liked that I never would have tried before.

Use this helpful guide when reading labels to know that just because it doesn't say "contains dairy" on the label may still have dairy! Just a couple of tips.....french fries are a huge source of dairy but Oreo's are dairy free. Try health food stores like Whole Foods, Trader Joe's and Sprouts as they usually have more gluten/allergy friendly options. It's best to make your own meals, as packaged foods use preservatives that contain dairy, this way you know what your getting....and it's healthier for you and baby. Just remember that you are not alone in this and most (not all) infants will grow out of the intolerance.

Should you choose to switch to formula, consult with your doctor on which formula is best for you baby as a lot contain dairy and or soy. All we want are healthy and happy babies! :-)

Backyard Bench Makeover

When we bought our house we inherited a three decrepit looking benches and a collapsed firepit in our backyard. It was nice to have some seating back there, but upon inspection they were in need of a strong sanding and a deep clean. I thought to myself...."self.....these could use some sprucing up." So I did what anyone else does.....ran to Pinterest for some inspiration.

There was lots of inspiration for building benches, or just cleaning them up, but I wanted something a little different. After searching for sometime I did find a cute inspiration, but the colors were just BLECH! Since we have these and some kids adirondack chairs already I knew I wanted to stick in the blue family. SURPRISE SURPRISE!

I enlisted the hubby to do the sanding and I would do the painting but he chose to do work on this project in 100 degree heat! Took the whole thing apart, sanded each board down and even bought new hardware to re-attach it. He asked if I wanted to paint the boards and I politely declined to stand in the 120 degree garage and paint....so he did it! This project was all him with a little direction from me. I love it and can't wait to see the next bench complete!

Now to find a clearance fire pit so we can dump the old one and have a great conversation piece in the backyard. projects for fall and spring.....fix the sprinklers and paint the deck! Then to remove the old "fish pond" and plant something around the deck and in the planters. Lots of projects!

Baby #2 Bumpdate: 23 Weeks

I'm seriously confusing my weeks lately and I thought I had pre-written this post already.....preggo brain strikes again!

What's baby up to this week? She is the size of a mango, measuring 11" long and weighs almost one pound. Her sense of movement is well developed and soon we will start to see her kicks and punches instead of just feeling. Blood vessels in her lungs are developing to prepare for breathing and her hearing is becoming more keen.

What's been going on with mom? Aside from being tired and irritable? That's pretty much it! We got a portable a/c unit so that's helping with my irritations at home.....and my sleep....a little. The weather has cooled a little, but a warming trend is on its way! I have been working on getting my steps in.

Symptoms: HEARTBURN!!!!! Go away! I hate you! Emotional and crabby. Sleepless nights are becoming more prevalent as well.

Yummy/Icky: Cookies and brownies are on the hit list lately, but I have been trying to avoid them. Chocolate milk is right up there as well! YUM! Cannot drink any bottled water except Smartwater. It all tastes just gross!

Clothing: All maternity on the bottom.....rotating the same two pairs of maternity jeans and a pair of crop jeans all the time. At least at home I have some maternity shorts and yoga shorts with BIG baggy dance tees.

Movement: She's been pretty consistent, but I am anxiously awaiting the really big movements and kicks! I want to watch the belly dance!

Belly Button In/Out: In, but semi-shallow

Wedding Rings On/Off: Off......summer swelling does not help the situation. Hopefully in October they can go back on for a bit.

Best Moment this Week: Being cool!

Looking forward to: Dwindling down the name list!

23 weeks with Emma!

Baby #2 Bumpdate: 22 Weeks

What's baby up to this week? She is the size of a spaghetti squash, measuring 11" long and weighs almost one pound. She is starting to look like a miniature newborn! Her lips, eyelids, and eyebrows are becoming more distinct and tiny tooth buds are developing. Her eyes have formed, but the irises still lack pigment.

What's been going on with mom? I'm feeling GIGANTIC! I was not this large with Emma at this point in my pregnancy. I started doing laps at work so that I can curb some calories....but my sweet cravings aren't helping. I have discovered that my iphone health app records your steps without even setting it up. I have been setting a goal of hitting 7000 steps before I leave for the day. I have accomplished it once and most of the time by 5pm I have hit 6k steps. It's an improvement.

Symptoms: EMOTIONAL! Everything makes me cry. Moody....which I think goes hand in hand with emotional. Tired. I can't sleep past 5:30am, but I think that's because of our oh so considerate neighbors that like to let their dogs bark ALL MORNING LONG!

Yummy/Icky: Sweets......I have been craving brownies. Too hot for the oven so I haven't indulged, but ice cream is right up in there!

Clothing: Materity bottoms, lightweight pj bottoms with baggy shirts or yoga shorts. I'm just plain HOT all the time.

Movement: Mostly feel her after meal times. I do feel her regularly on my drive home from work too. I love lying in bed and feeling her wiggle around.

Belly Button In/Out: In and awkward looking.

Wedding Rings On/Off: I retired them to the chain for the summer. My hands swell when hot usually so I just don't want for them to get stuck. Maybe I can put them back on when the weather cools down.

Best Moment this Week: Booking our trip for a mini vacation to Sea World!

Looking forward to: Picking a name!

22 Weeks with Lil Birdie

Baby #2 Bumpdate: 21 Weeks

What's baby up to this week? She is the size of a carrot, measuring 10 1/2" long and weighs three quarters of a pound. Her eyebrows and eyelids are present and her vagina has begun to form. She's also beginning to produce the lovely meconium that daddy will have to deal with! Haha

What's been going on with mom? Was still SUPER sick all week. It would not go away. Blowing my nose and running and feeling just run down. It SUCKED! The heat index is rising also which is making sleep even harder to come by. Slept most of the day on Tuesday and again on Thursday to try and beat this illness. I hate being sick in summer.

Symptoms: Starting to have trouble sleeping just because of getting comfortable as well. I may need to bust out the pregnancy pillow, but it's TOO HOT! Heartburn is coming back.....have tums in my purse for after lunch since I can't seem to find anything to eat. Having pretty inconsistent cramping high in my tummy, and the doctor said I should be feeling braxton hicks already so that explains that. Round ligament pain is pretty bad when you are coughing and sneezing and then your bottom half feels like it wants to separate from you. UGH! Second baby is no joke!

Yummy/Icky: Watermelon is back on the list. The tea cravings have waned a little and I really want root beer and ice cream.....maybe because its so hot! Other than that my sweet tooth is just raging and I want to try and curb it.

Clothing: All maternity on the bottom for work but trying to find something comfy to wear to sleep in is difficult. Did manage to get a couple pairs of shorts, a pair of capri's and a sweater that was on clearance for the fall/winter.

Movement: Definitely feeling her rather consistently. She gets shy when daddy tries to feel her though. I think she senses when I am home. When I was off on Thursday she kicked and kicked consistently all day. Like she knows when I am relaxed and not at work. Mostly get movements at lunchtime and after dinner....typical. But sometimes she kicks early in the morning and in the car on the way to work.

Belly Button In/Out: It's in but it looks weird in shirts. Very hollow and taking on a strange shape.

Wedding Rings On/Off: On but tight.....typical when the summer heat rises.

Best Moment this Week: Hearing her heartbeat (146) at my doctors appointment and hearing that she is growing perfectly! Makes momma happy.

Looking forward to: Settling on a name. I am set on a middle name, but it's coming up with a first that both daddy and mommy like. Hey we may just dump all the contenders in a cup and let Emma pick! Haha.

21 weeks with Emma!