It’s important to know that this is not a sponsored post. I have used  Bac-Out for years to clean the bathroom, and get the odors out of mattresses — and, after so many people asking me about bathroom odors, I just wanted to share how much I love this product. However, after researching enzyme cleaners for this post, I was surprised to find so many people enzymes as a powerful all-surface cleaner — floors, glass, etc. So, today, I put the cleaner to the test. I have a stainless steel sink that is impossible to keep clean. I greeted it today only to find “dried cheese” staring at me… one of the toughest grimes known to my sink. The enzyme cleaners, people say, eliminate the use of elbow grease. Caked-on cheese screams of elbow grease power —  – or a good, long soaking. If enzymes passed this test, I’d start using it for all of my cleaning.

I sprayed the cheese, and the sink with the enzyme cleaner, Bac-Out. Do I wait? Do I dare to just wipe it off right away, just to prove it’s not that powerful? I couldn’t wait. I wiped it right off… and I mean, that caked-on cheese came right off. See photos of my dirty sink, transformed with a few wipes, to a shinny sink.

One dirty sink… with a serving of hardened melted cheese.

Voila! Just a few squirts of enzymes, and one dirty rag later… And, not until I wrote this post, did I ever realize what a cleaning machine I had under my sink!

Hmmm… I just might have to look into those making your own enzyme recipes…

Funny that I pick Super Bowl weekend to post the answer to this long-sought after question. (Yes, people ask me this all the time.) To get your bathroom clean, you have to get it clean. I know you’ve tried that — but it’s not working. You’ve used bleach, ammonia, baking soda and vinegar — and your bathroom still has an “odor.” I know exactly what you’re talking about — I have four boys. The problem is not you, or your lack of thoroughness — it’s with the type of cleaner you’re using. Your goal is to remove odors, rather than mask them, by cleaning the source of the odor. Thankfully, you don’t need a “harsher” chemical. The key is in the enzymes.

Enzymes are a biodegradable, non-toxic cleaning agent that are quite effective at removing odors because they break down the grime causing the odors. Detergents do not do this. Enzymes also work faster on stains than regular chemical cleaners, by breaking down dirt and urine into their basic elements: oxygen, hydrogen and proteins.

Yet, they do this without damaging your surfaces, and pretty much eliminate the scrubbing. So, yes, you can safely clean the walls, ceramic tiles, and all of those surfaces (the ceiling) where the boys “splash.” And because this cleaner is not a harsh detergent, but yet still an aggressive cleaner, it’s perfect for grout and tile surfaces. Enzymes are actually “green cleaners” — but not all products
labeled “green” are enzyme cleaners.

So, you do not need a “harsher” chemical to get rid of those smells — you need an enzyme. Where to find them? You can usually find them in pet stores (for pet odors) but those products usually smell awful — and I’m not sure how well they work. The one I use is Bac-Out, which is usually on the shelves at Kroger (organic section) and Whole Foods. This one has a great citrus scent. I also use this to spray the mattresses the morning after an accident — and it does eliminate that horrible odor.

If you’re ambitious, you can also make your own enzyme cleaner…For that recipe, click here. There are also more tips on how to use this cleaner all around your house — including glass — which I had never thought of before!

If you hand me a string of words, and say, “Make something out of this,” I could create a masterpiece. A Quilt of Words. If you handed me a house, and said, decorate this, make this a masterpiece. I would fail miserably. Fortunately, I have friends who can do that for me… simple things, like telling me where the desk should go. Right now, my husband and I are in the market for a new paint color for the kitchen. Our “research” has been to visit favorite restaurants and “analyze” those colors. Then, armed with “favorites,” my friend picked this color: Sherwin Williams Dovetail Gray:

this color will match our countertops, “perfectly.” And it does. It’s funny that this is her “final answer.” She doesn’t wonder if maybe green would work, or brown… this is the “right answer,” and she knows this. Just like, I know how long the sentence should be. This one should be short. And the one that follows should be, and will be, quite long:

Enamored with her talent to pick colors, I found this website… which creates an entire

palette for you from nature, or found objects. I am so intrigued with how this works that I can barely contain myself. You can pick your own colors with a palette picker,

(Isn’t it just amazing… how all of those colors are RIGHT there.. and I can’t even see them– until I see this?!)

and it fetches an entire color palette.

schemes for you…

or you can pick a type. Like this vintage red, that I just love…

it screams “kitchen” to me…

Since NBC dubbed me last night officially as a “recipe tester” (I AM NOT!)

(My kitchen… my moms with blogs friends ((we are not mommy bloggers!!))… my gifted friend’s mugs.

Visit them here: Momofali, and Rachel (awesome for you gadeners!). Amy, you know her. And my new friend Wenderly. And of course, Mikaela, from NBC.)

I thought I would give you the low-down on those lettuce wraps that I created for the babysitter.

I found the recipe last summer, on, of course…Pinterest… and I had not realized it at the time, but I learned later that this is a low-fat recipe for lettuce wraps! You wouldn’t know it… it’s delicious.

You can find the recipe on IowaGirl eats, here:

But here’s a rundown of the ingredients:
Ingredients:

1lb ground chicken breast

1/2 medium onion, minced

salt & pepper, a dash of each

2 large cloves garlic, minced

1 inch nob fresh ginger, peeled & minced

1 Tablespoon sesame oil

2 1/2 Tablespoons soy sauce

1/2 Tablespoon water

1 Tablespoon natural peanut butter

1/2 Tablespoon honey

1 Tablespoons + 1 teaspoon rice vinegar

2 teaspoons chili garlic sauce (or more if you like it hotter)

dash of fresh pepper

3 green onions, chopped

1/2-8oz can sliced water chestnuts, drained & chopped

1/4 cup peanuts, chopped

10-12 large outer lettuce leaves, rinsed and patted dry

The only thing I do differently is to double the amount of sauce. To adapt this for the crockpot… I simply used already cooked chicken breasts that I had leftover from another meal. (Want to know how to quickly shred your chicken? Use your mixer… not kidding… it’s works, amazingly.)

Then, I added the chicken to the crockpot… and then just threw in the sauce ingredients… skipping the microwave step. I left out the peanuts… and saved them to sprinkle on at the end.

Turned the crockpot on low, and after about an hour, I lifted the lid to stir up the ingredients throughout the chicken. It was technically “ready” at this point, but we weren’t ready to eat… the extra simmer time just deepened the flavor.

Then, we pulled off the lettuce leaves, wrapped, and enjoyed.

Prior to our visit to Chicago, I was scrambling around trying to find a babysitter. The girl I normally use for overnights was going to be out of town… but her boyfriend wasn’t! The boys already knew him… he’s a biology major, and KNOWS WHERE TO FIND FROGS… even when we’re not at the lake!!! What a score!!!

I was rest assured that the boys would be throughly entertained… no problem there… but what would they eat? Frozen pizzas and Two BOX TOPS can only get you so far…

So, I decided to package up some of the boys favorite meals, precooked, as slowcooker meals. This plan worked like a charm:

Here are my notes to the babysitter:

Your crockpot will be your friend this week. It helps to rub the bottom and sides with a bit of olive oil before you start to keep things from sticking. To clean the tough stains, let is soak with a paste of baking soda and hydrogen peroxide. (Both are under the sink.)  FYI: The garbage disposal switch is under the sink.

Meal 1: Lettuce Wraps

Pour contents in crockpot. Chicken is pre-cooked. Cook on high 3-4 hours.
There are two heads of lettuce in fridge. Use peanuts to throw on top.
Serve with baby carrots, and fruit in fridge.
Keep leftovers in a ziplock bag in the freezer.

Meal 2: Turkey Sandwiches.

Place contents of ziplock bag in crockpot. (Turkey is pre-cooked)
Cook on low 3- 4 hours.

Cook frozen vegetables in microwave for 2-3 minutes in bowl with a green glass plate as a lid.

Meal 3: Sweet potatoes.

Pierce sweet potatoes with a fork.
Place sweet potatoes in crockpot and cook on high 3-4 hours.

Meal 4: Pork Burritos.

Pour contents into crockpot (pork is precooked) and cook on low 3-4 hours.
The kids can grate the cheese for you.
They can build their own burritos.
Serve with baby carrots, pears and broccoli cooked in microwave.

On a whim, we have created a new “think inside the box” way to exchange gifts this year, and it turns out that we like this so much that it will probably end up being a family tradition that will last long after the boys have cleaved to their new wives and set up families of their own. This year, it is called the Altoids Tin Challenge. In successive years — we may choose other containers for the challenge.

Altoids Tin — currently in progress of having its paint removed with acetone.

Here are the rules:

• Each person receives 5 Altoids Mint Tins. (Six people in the family.)
• You may eat your own mints.
• Create a gift for each one of the family members that fits inside the tin.
• You may decorate the tin any way you wish.

Because I’m Chief Elf, I get the inside scoop on what everyone is creating — as I offer assistance.

The origami maker has already decide we each get our own crane that will fit perfectly in the tin.

The origami maker is getting this little paint kit, containing at least all the primary colors, from his brother….

Shhhhh. Don’t tell!

I’ve been enamored with the beautiful

advent calendars that have been showing up on Pinterest.

But what to do with each day’s treasure? Won’t everyone just get tired of the same, old chcolcate candy coin or candy cane by December 13?  I think so.  And, do I really want to buy a bunch of junk just for Advent?

So, I googled advent calendar ideas, and found a whole slew of ideas. Of things to do — like go ice skating,

build a snowman, make hot chocolate, take a walk in the snow. Sounds good, and armed with the list, I began imposing the activities onto our Advent Calendar, and hence, onto my family.

However… I’m learning that with four boys (five, including my husband), what I think is a great idea, may not be!

So, at Thanksgiving this year, we will each write down four “Christmas activities”

to be incorporated into our advent calendars. Four times 6 is 24 — so that should cover all the days.

If someone picks the same thing twice — so be it — we must really enjoy that activity. Half the fun will be seeing what someone else picked — especially with all the varying age groups here. 8, 9, 14, 16, 45 and 49!

So, after the Turkey is put back to bed into the refrigerator, and you are full of pie, sit down with your family and make a list of what you’d like to do this year, together for Advent… and fill your calendar!

It’s true. Surprisingly, decades of studies by National Institute’s of Health have revealed that the tiny insects, fruit flies, which, thankfully, bear little resemblance to people, share, alarmingly, much of our genetic heritage.  The list of human-related topics fruit fly researchers are currently working on is surprisingly broad in scope: cancer; birth defects; development of the respiratory and circulatory systems; cardiovascular development and disease; taste, sight, smell and hearing; learning and memory; brain disease; sleep; drug abuse; aging; and diabetes.

Fruit Flies are multiplying like crazy this year. Once I get rid of them in the house, they come home with me every single time I come home from the grocery store with a bundle of bananas, grapes or apples.

The grocery store is full of them, and I even see them in restaurants. I cringe when the waiter leaves the bottle of wine sitting open on the table. I just know those fruit flies, those tiny red-eyed animals — known to scientists as the species Drosophila melanogaster, are heading for my wine.

This fall, I’ve also noticed quite an increase in the number of google searchers looking for rememdies. The search string people type in makes me laugh:

How to catch fruit flies with honey?

I guess it goes from the adage that you can catch more flies with honey than vinegar? Perhaps. Actually, honey can play a dominate role in catching the fruit fly. You can trap the fly into your empty wine or beer bottle, and dab some honey around the top rim of the bottle to “catch” the fruit flies as they try to crawl out. That’s a yummy proposition. I’m ruthless when it comes to fruit flies, because, after all, researchers now know that flies don’t even have hearts.

What do fruit flies do when I’m sleeping?

Really? This is what concerns you? Maybe, this person was merely driven to madness trying to get rid of hte fruit fly… because they are so tenacious, and figuring out what they do at night, could give the searcher some insight. Interestingly,  Joan Hendricks, a sleep researcher at the University of Pennsylvania, has turned to Drosophila to study sleep. Information that has demonstrated a nearly identical set of working parts in higher organisms such as mice and people, by studying the circadian rhythm of flies. Hmmmmm.

Why are Fruit Flies attracted to Mirrors?

Good question. Because, they are always on my bathroom mirrors. Maybe they’re vain? But take advantage of this — put some poison, the Diatomaceous Earth on the mirrors, as you’ll know that’s where they’ll be walking. All you need is a thin film… a bit messy, but oh so effective.

Can an Exterminator Get Rid of Fruit Flies?

Interesting. I think you would have much better luck with a good plumber, to clean your drains, and heading to your hardware store for some  Diatomaceous Earth.

 The Scoop: How to Get Rid of Fruit Flies

• The ultimate fruit fly trap is still, a dark beer or wine bottle, with a bit of fruit, or vinegar inside as bait. Forget about covering the top with saran wrap, and sticking pin holes in them. The fruit flies will crawl right out. Instead, cover the top of the bottle with a sprinkling of Diatomaceous Earth. You could do the saran wrap thing with pin holes, just be sure to give the saran wrap a sprinkling of the DE.
• Clean your drains with baking soda and vinegar.
• Wipe a thin film of Diatomaceous Earth on your mirrors.
• Diatomaceous Earth is harmless to humans. Feel free to sprinkle some of the powder on the bannans you bring home from the store that are sitting in your fruit basket.
• Repeat every time you go to the grocery store.

The rats and mice used in research may be waning, as scientific labs are increasing the number of fruit flies used in research. Perhaps, those of use plagued with fruit flies could open our kitchen up to scientific labs who could have a field day working with the flies we have. Are we expecting a “fruit fly” activist group to stand up to protect their interest?

We needed a place to store the dried snail shells, driftwood that comes in cool shapes, the drawings of snakes and the drawings of the occasional pet dead fish that shows up in my freezer. (I found him, by the way.) And, a lot of rocks. Some of these rocks are purported to be Geodes, and all kinds of rare treasures that are worth upwards of a million dollars.

So, we ate our pickles, washed the jar out, and painted a canning jar lid with chalkboard paint, and labeled the jar. Our treasure chest is really just an old pickle jar.  

This is part II of the reorganization. It’s a  process. I wanted to stop and share this clever way I came up with to store sugar, baking soda, and all of those powder things you need to have quick access to around the kitchen.

Rather than a sugar bowl, why not have a sugar “jar.”  A recycled wine/pop bottle, and a cap, and a simple label with a permanent marker. (I can’t find the awesome chalkboard Chalkboard Contact Paper
I’ve been seeing on Pinterest… wouldn’t that make an awesome label?)

Seems simple, but can I say how nice it is to be able to pour sugar into my tea cup, without having to dip a spoon into the whole canister?  And who can ever get their measuring spoon into the baking soda and have it come out without that gap in the corner where the baking soda falls out, because of gravity?

Ahhhh…. using these bottles is making my life so much easier.

If you have a GMail account, I hope you’re taking advantage of google documents — a virtual word processing package that lets you create documents, presentations and spreadsheets that you can share over the Internet. Now, you can even upload your videos to google documents… which makes them much easier to send via email. Once the video is uploaded, you can simply share the url of the document page, and send to your list.

If you want to share this video on your blog, things get a bit more tricky. There is currently no way to pop it onto YouTube. Your only option is to grab the embedded code from google docs and paste that into your HTML file. Yet, the google docs default size is 640 in width — way too wide to post on your blog, without covering up your sidebar.

Here’s how to fix the code so that it can fix on your blog.

When you grab the embed code from the google docs page, it’s on the right hand side of the screen when you click on the video… and says “embed.”

Click on the bottom right hand corner of the embed window so that you can see the entire code.

There are two places where the size of the video are located — you can see them where the red arrows are pointing.

Both sets of numbers need to be changed for this to work.

Copy the embed code, and paste the code onto your blog in HTML mode. Change the size numbers — a good proportion of numbers is 425 for width and 349 for length.

Change this on both areas, click save, and post. Your video now fits nicely on your blog.