It seems neverending. Something is always broken or near breaking. I just replaced my washer a few months back. Yesterday we had to buy a new dryer. With a family of 6 we wash constantly. UGH!

We have a 5 bedroom house in a urban city. There is always a "rule" about living in the city. You can't have a trash can without a lid. Now you have to use the cans they provide. They are mini-dumpsters. It turns out that we could often use 2 or 3 of them. But we only get one...

And the gutters need a cleaning. I'll have to figure out who or how to do it.

We just recently updated my 15 year old daughters room. My, my, my. Days of painting, stripping, re-sheet rocking, etc. But in the end it looks great. I'll post some pictures.

My main thought with this blog is to get the word out. If there's a tip that you use to make a hard household job easier PLEASE comment back with your tip. I'll be posting tips as the come and as I find them. I'm a "do-it-yourselfer".

Enjoy and come back to see what we're fixing.

There are tons of vacuum's available for consumers today. There are upright vacuums, bagless vacuums, cannister vacuums, handheld, and more. I've had quite a few different vacuums.

I had the Kirby G4. It was one of the best vacuums that I've ever had. Of course I paid a mint for it. It definately has good cleaning power and many options. It had a steam cleaner, a drape cleaner, furniture cleaner and a hand held attachment. I loved it. I literally wore the wheels off of it. I had to replace the wheels once during the 5 years that I had it. The downfall for me was that it was heavy and had a lot of attachments to store. If someone had not stolen it, I would still be using it. I've found them for around 250 on ebay.

I've had the Hoovers, DirtDevils, and Black and Deckers. I've spent under 100 bucks for them. I've found them to be about the same as far as function. I've had about the same luck with them as far as duration of the life, clogging, belts breaking, etc.

Right now I have a Ryno. It's been the best one I've had since the Kirby. It's been very dependable. I'm going to go with this one for now.

http://www.thesandshack.com/ I saw some awesomely priced lawn/garden type stuff here. There's much more than I can blog about. Check it out if you have time. She's a fellow "mom-packer".

Hubber With a Great Hub.

^{http://www.septicremedy.com/?aid=CD199_8fe649f1e10ce8a9942f30bb701344c2_CD1294}A free sample of septic system cleaner.

http://www.flexitiles.com/sample.htm You can get a sample before you order.

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Man, I love those things. I have had several of them. We actually wear them out using them. It's an easy quick clean up. I am very impressed with their over all function. I'm not happy with the cost of the swiffer pads though. I've used other brands when I've had a coupon and the pads all seem to work about the same. I found this article with the authors name withheld, I'd like to know who came up w/ this though. I'd like to thank him/her. Check it out:

Ways to Make Your Own Swiffer

Buy microfiber cloth and cut it to fit.

Use old socks, slide them over the Swiffer, toss when done.

Use old wash cloths, toss them when done.

Use old clothes, flannel works best. Watch out for things that might scratch.

Use paper towels, the heavier duty ones.

Use old towels.

Rinse/re-use Swiffer pads.

Rubberband a Mr. Clean Eraser to the Swiffer.

Let me know if you find anymore!

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Remodeling can be fun but can also be a headache. Here's a site to help take some of the pain away. Kitchen Remodeling

I do not have a green thumb! I found some sites that offer tips for easy gardening and other things outside and even inside.

Planting ideas

grow your own pineapple from one you buy at the grocery store.

http://www.learn2grow.com/projects/containers/planting/GrowYourOwnPineapple.aspx

Succulent Container Gardening

http://www.learn2grow.com/projects/containers/planting/SucculentContainers.aspx

Quick and Easy Compost

http://www.learn2grow.com/projects/quickeasy/outdoors/quickeasycomposting.aspx

Simple Terrariums

http://www.learn2grow.com/projects/containers/planting/SimpleTerrariums.aspx

Grow a variety of herbs right on your kitchen counter. Aerogarden

SFI-great opportunity to build your business.