It was a regular laundry day, didn't expect anything major to come my way...then it happened!!!! I took my clothes out of the washing machine and in to the dryer, mid-way through the transfer, half of a big, red crayon fell to the floor. I thought to myself "Phew, thank God that fell out before I put them all in the dryer"....little did I know the other half was still in my sons pocket.
I have only myself to blame because i'm severely notorious of not checking pockets.
But seeings how half of a big crayon fell out on to the floor, and knowing my kids, they do not own a single INTACT crayon, I figured I was in the "safe-zone".
Boy oh boy how I was wrong!
It came time to get the clothes from the dryer....my heart stopped when I opened the door to find that the ENTIRE load was streaked and covered in RED CRAYON.
I panicked, I freaked, I cursed the inventor of crayola!
Finally after regrouping, I jumped on the internet, found a few different remedies and combined a couple together to see if I could get this pesky red from our load of laundry.
The MOST helpful of sites I came across was from this awesome blogger:
http://mommidiary.blogspot.com/2010/05/getting-crayon-out-of-washed-and-dried.html
Here's what worked for me-
What you'll need:
-Dawn dish soap(or a heavy degreaser soap)
-a toothbrush
-vinegar
-your regular laundry detergent
Directions:
-Spot treat the areas on your clothes that have the darkest crayon marks on them. Put dish soap directly on to the darkest spots, and let it sit for about 10 minutes. After your ten minutes has passed, scrub those areas with your toothbrush (or any scrub brush you have available). [I feel like I shouldn't even have to say this, but do not use the same toothbrush you use to brush your teeth with].
-Add your regular laundry detergent, 1/2 cup of vinegar, and I added about 6 tspns of dish soap to your washing machine as it fills with HOT water.
-Fill your washing machine up with the hottest water possible. I did add a pot of boiling water to the machine.
-stop the wash cycle before it begins to shuffle.
-Add your clothes, allow them to soak in the hot water for about 30 minutes.
-Start the washing machine cycle back up....allow it to run a regular cycle!
Check your clothes, MOST if not all the stains should be gone...if there are still some stains, repeat the cycle again.
90% of my clothes came out clean after doing this process ONE time. There were only two shirts that needed to be repeated through this entire cycle...and after the second, they were good as new!
I wish I had thought of taking a before and after picture of my clothes before writing this blog....sorry, I do not have any pictures for proof...but since I am a mother of five children, i'm sure this will not be the last episode of the "crayon saga".
Tuesday, June 25, 2013
Friday, June 21, 2013
Remedy for Biting Deer Flies
Here in Hyde county, NC, this year has been the WORST for deer flies in quite some time.
My kids get maybe a two week to one month period where they can play outside with no worry of being eaten up by mosquitoes, but this year, we have yet to see the first skeeter, NO...NOW we have deer flies, which has caused us to become prisoners in our own home :( We can't even go to the screen door without the deer flies trying to bombard us through the screen. I can't even begin to put in to words how bad and numerous the deer flies have become.
I saw something online the other day, I can't remember where I saw it, but thought since we've tried everything, and NOTHING was working, we might give this a try.
Amazingly and proudly I tell you....THIS WORKED SO WELL!
You'll need:
-A dark, plastic flower pot or something of similar composition, something lightweight that can sway in the wind, the movement of the sway attracts the flies. (The darker the better because it omits heat from the sun which attracts the deer flies)
-String of some sort (we used fishing line)
-A super sticky substance, something preferably the same consistency as the glue on the fly traps you hang from your ceiling in your home. (We used Lucas oil). (Some alternatives you could try that aren't as expensive as Lucas oil are regular motor oil, or Tangle Foot[an organic compound])
Directions:
-Tie one end of the fishing string to the pot, tie the other end from a tree limb, leave it hanging approx 2-3 feet from the ground.
-Using a brush or cloth, spread a thin layer, covering the entire outside portion of the pot with your sticky material you've chosen.
-Step back and watch the magic happen, almost instantly.
Find the area of your yard that is the most populated with the flies, we chose all the trees around our house. Another good spot is around your outdoor garbage cans because they release CO2 from the decomposing trash.
We did this, and within the first hour, we had to clean the first pot off, and cover it again with some clean Lucas oil because our pot was completely covered with biting flies.
We did this everyday for about 6-7 days, and am glad to announce that our kids are able to play outside again without being tormented and bitten!
If you try this, I would love to hear your success stories!
One of the pots we have hanging from the tree next to our slider door on the side of our house-
Example photos of what deer flies looks like: photo courtesy of https://insects.tamu.edu/extension/youth/bug/bug142.html
( photo courtesy of http://bugguide.net/node/view/695231/bgimage )
My kids get maybe a two week to one month period where they can play outside with no worry of being eaten up by mosquitoes, but this year, we have yet to see the first skeeter, NO...NOW we have deer flies, which has caused us to become prisoners in our own home :( We can't even go to the screen door without the deer flies trying to bombard us through the screen. I can't even begin to put in to words how bad and numerous the deer flies have become.
I saw something online the other day, I can't remember where I saw it, but thought since we've tried everything, and NOTHING was working, we might give this a try.
Amazingly and proudly I tell you....THIS WORKED SO WELL!
You'll need:
-A dark, plastic flower pot or something of similar composition, something lightweight that can sway in the wind, the movement of the sway attracts the flies. (The darker the better because it omits heat from the sun which attracts the deer flies)
-String of some sort (we used fishing line)
-A super sticky substance, something preferably the same consistency as the glue on the fly traps you hang from your ceiling in your home. (We used Lucas oil). (Some alternatives you could try that aren't as expensive as Lucas oil are regular motor oil, or Tangle Foot[an organic compound])
Directions:
-Tie one end of the fishing string to the pot, tie the other end from a tree limb, leave it hanging approx 2-3 feet from the ground.
-Using a brush or cloth, spread a thin layer, covering the entire outside portion of the pot with your sticky material you've chosen.
-Step back and watch the magic happen, almost instantly.
Find the area of your yard that is the most populated with the flies, we chose all the trees around our house. Another good spot is around your outdoor garbage cans because they release CO2 from the decomposing trash.
We did this, and within the first hour, we had to clean the first pot off, and cover it again with some clean Lucas oil because our pot was completely covered with biting flies.
We did this everyday for about 6-7 days, and am glad to announce that our kids are able to play outside again without being tormented and bitten!
If you try this, I would love to hear your success stories!
One of the pots we have hanging from the tree next to our slider door on the side of our house-
Example photos of what deer flies looks like: photo courtesy of https://insects.tamu.edu/extension/youth/bug/bug142.html
( photo courtesy of http://bugguide.net/node/view/695231/bgimage )
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