Radio Show: Clean Green Talk - Tips for making your move easier

Marie Stegner joined Leslie Reichert on Clean Green Talk Radio. Listen in for even more tips and ideas to make your move easier.

http://www.greencleaningcoach.com/?powerpress_pinw=1608-podcast

Moving can be one of the most stressful things in your life, and not being prepared for it can make it even worse.  Leaving things for the last minute can sometimes be a disaster just waiting to happen.

To make your move easier, organized and less stressful, create your own personal moving check list.  Sticking to your list can make all the difference in the world.

Here are some very important things to include on your moving list:

Give yourself plenty of moving time.  Do not wait until the last minute to move.  Doing so can cause unneeded chaos right from the start.  Make your move easy on yourself by being organized.

Start creating your checklist.  Start your list as early as you can.  Organize your list any way you want, whether it is by family member, items classification (clothing, pet, food), or room by room (kitchen, bathroom, kids room).  Add to your list if you need too.   

Create a file and track moving expenses, estimates, and budget.  Make a spreadsheet that will help you track all costs, budgets, moving expenses, phone numbers and any other important information that you might need to make this process smoother.  This spreadsheet will make your life so much easier and will soon become your best friend throughout this process!  Keep track of the estimates for moving trucks, packing supplies, moving boxes and even tape!

Create a folder just for receipts.  Anything related to the move should be organized and kept in a folder.  Include all receipts and brochures related to the move.  This way you can find the items easy if you need them.

Save your money!  Plan on saving as much money as you can for this move so you are able to pay off all your bills quicker.

Write-offs.  Being able to get some of the money you spent on moving back would be wonderful.  Check the IRS moving expense guidelines to see if you can deduct any of your moving expenses on your taxes.

Inquire.  It doesn’t hurt to check with your doctor, pediatrician, and veterinarian to see if  they possibly have recommendations for you at your new location. This could save you some time and frustration when trying to find a doctor in your new location.

Gather up moving supplies.  Ask friends, family members and even local stores if they have any boxes or other packing materials that you need for your move.  If you start asking early enough, you just might get them for free.

Address change.  Forward all your mail to your new address by going to the post office and filing out a “Change of Address” form.    

Shut off utilities.  Contact the electric company, water company, and phone company early and let them know you are moving so you don’t get billed for any services you did not use.

Your personal checklist is your guide to an easier, stress-free move so make sure all your moving needs are included on the checklist.

Happy moving! 

Spring Cleaning - Get the Family Involved

Spring cleaning will go a lot faster if you have some help. Having a clean house isn't just to your benefit, it's something the whole family can appreciate. So get them working with you and you will see that winter dirt disappear in no time.
Make a Plan

The best way to make sure everyone is working is to have a plan. This will keep everyone on track. If you have children who are prone to comparing their workload, ensure your kids have their own tasks. Then they can complete them without comparing time.

Have the Right Tools
By making sure that you have the right tools you can make your tasks much simpler as well. Vacuuming will be easier with the right attachment, steamers will get dirt out of grout and showers, microfiber mops and cloths make water the only cleaning solution you need, and using a cycle in your dryer to get the dust off of your curtains will save hours of washing. The microfiber cloths especially work perfectly for young children. Just hand them a spray bottle filled with water, one of the cloths, and set them to work washing any glass doors, windows, or mirrors. It's a simple but useful task where they won't get hurt or make a mess. 

A "Ten Minute Tidy"
If you can't coerce your family into a whole day of cleaning, you can use one of my favorite techniques, the "ten minute tidy." I get every member of my family to clean the same room for ten minutes. Each person has their own tasks, and since I have five in my family, it's just like I cleaned for 50 minutes. It takes a lot of time off of my workload. 

Moring Living on Martha Stewart Living Radio

Maybe I'm crazy but I love talking about cleaning, no matter how early it is.Yesterday I got up really early to talk about green cleaning with Betsy Karetnick from Martha Stewart Living Radio's Morning Living Show. It was like finding my long lost sister! Betsy likes to talk "cleaning" too! Our plan was to talk about spring cleaning and how to get started. I recommended making a list - and as Betsy said - make sure it's on paper so you can CROSS things off it! Nothing feels better than crossing things off a list.  To start off your cleaning I think you should start with your windows. I gave Betsy one of my green cleaning recipes from my book.

Here is the glass and mirror cleaner:

2 tablespoons white vinegar

1/2 corn starch

2 liter bottle of club soda

You mix the corn starch in the club soda until it dissolves then add the white vinegar and put it into a spray bottle.

We also talked about using my favorite "tool" which is the Blue Cloth. This is a special microfiber cloth made especially for glass and windows.  All you do is wet it with water and wring it out really well and just wipe the window. You don't have to dry it - it will dry on it's own with no streaks, smears or lint. Betsy agreed that this sounded even easier than using the DIY recipe. I said that if you like to spray and wipe, just use a bottle of water and dry the window with this cloth. You will save time and money (no paper towels) with this one simple cloth.

Lastly we talked about how to clean the floors. I told Betsy about my system for cleaning floors without a bucket. Instead I use a microfiber mop and a few covers. Just wet the covers in the sink using hot water and wring them out so they are damp. Then just put a small amount of your floor cleaner in a spray bottle and add lots of water. It will be the same concentration as if it's in a bucket. Spray the floor with the cleaner and go over it with the microfiber mop. Replace the cover when you feel like it's full of dirt. Don't rinse out the cover, just place it in your washing machine and get a new clean mop cover from the sink. This prevents cross contamination! And your not spreading dirty water on your floor.

We wrapped up our 20 minutes by talking about how satisfying it is to look around see what you've accomplished. Cleaning can be fun - when you have the right tools - and someone you can share it with - right "sista"!

Day 12 - Get the pantry ready for Thanksgiving

A few years ago I downloaded a basic shopping list that I found on the Real Simple Magazine site. Since then I use it to make sure I don't forget the "basics" for Thanksgiving day. Nothing is worse than realizing that you need Sweetened Condensed Milk while trying to get the pie in the oven! (been there - done that). But before you can start stocking the pantry-we need to clean it out. Take a few minutes to go through the pantry or cupboard that is going to hold your "basics" for the day and make some room. Throw out those old bags of noodles that are probably stale anyway - you really aren't going to use them and you need the room. Make sure that while you have the shelves emptied, you give them a good wipe with a microfiber cloth and some soapy hot water. Now you are ready to shop! And if you need a basic shopping list, here is the one from Real Simple. http://bit.ly/3x6byf

Eco Dorm Necessities

We are putting together "Eco Dorm Kits" for college kids to take to school. Since my daughter was a freshman in college last year - I have the "pulse" on the green things they need at school. Here is a quick rundown of some cool products. You can check the links for more info and we'd would love to help you with any questions.

Skoy Cloths- instead of paper towels
Charlie's Soap -a great laundry soap that is green and earth friendly. One bag with last the semester
Eureka stick broom - vacuum without electricity- uses a rechargeable battery.
Mrs. Meyers green cleaning starter kit - a perfect size for a small dorm room
Fresh Wave Dorm Kit - Most college kids use Fabreze to "clean" their dorms. A better- all natural product that removes smells is made by Freshwave and they just came out with a Dorm Kit- actually it's called a Stinky Dorm Kit!
EVA shower curtain so you don't have any VOC's in your bathroom!
And if they really want to be green, you can give them a copy of the book: The Joy of Green Cleaning- which is a recipe book for going green.

Buy yourself some tissues made from recycled paper products at Whole Foods or Trader Joes and you are set to take the trip to college!

Guest Post-Chelsie Hill from Declutter Your Life dot org

"Many of us love to recycle, but it’s so hard to separate things without creating a big mess under our kitchen sinks!"

Contain It! I like to use bathroom size garbage cans for my recycling items. I keep a couple under my kitchen sink and label them so everyone knows which one is used for what. The smaller ones work easier because you can fit more under there than the larger ones. I have found that grocery sacks just don’t look neat, and it’s easier for items to fall out.

Dump It! In addition to bathroom size garbage cans under my sink, I have regular garbage cans in my garage with the same labels as the smaller size cans. Since the little cans don’t hold very much stuff, every day when I dump my trash cans I also dump what is in my recycled garbage cans into their larger garbage cans in the garage. When I’m going to do my recycling, I just put the larger cans in my back seat. Works for me!

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Write It down- Thanks Chelsie for these great tips. I also like the journal for other great green organizing and cleaning ideas. You can see more at declutteryourlife.org.

Three Tips to Save You Time While Your Cleaning!!

1. Use your appliances to help you clean. If you can't enlist your family, recruit your appliances. Your dryer is a great tool to remove dust in your curtains. Just pop them in for five minutes and they are dust free. Your dishwasher removes all the build up on collectibles as well as removing grease from your stove hood filter. Use your washing machine to remove the mold from shower curtains. Just put the plastic curtain in with some towels and Oxygen bleach. When it's finished washing, pop it in the dryer for 3 minutes and hang it up immediately.

2. When you are going to do spring cleaning- use a apron. Just like a professional carpenter, you need all your cleaning tools right with you! Here is a picture of my favorite cleaning apron. It has lots of pockets for all your "stuff".

3.Try new technology - Microfiber clothes and mops make cleaning so much faster and you really only need water to clean most everything. A microfiber mop and a spray bottle of water is a great way to dust your walls! But it is very easy and won't leave any marks.

103 things you need for college

103 Things you need for college
flashlight suntan lotion bulletin board clock/radio
batteries hair dryer comforter floor lamp
dish liquid curling iron hammer light bulbs
paper clips hair curlers address book extention cord
paper plates hair "things" egg crate mattress
paper towels blanket telephone
napkins camera answering machine
sugar film wall calendar
plastic spoons coat bedding
plastic forks playing cards bathrobe
plastic knives shoes socks
television sneakers underwear
clock books paper supplies
garbage bags raincoat desk lamp
radio umbrella shower caddy
cd player paperwork detergent
cds beach towel fabric softener
tapes kleenex quarters
walkman jewelry stamps
pillow makeup writing paper
toothbrush mini/tampax milk crate
toothpaste iron pictures for wall
razor ironing board fan
shaving cream money school catalog
shampoo visa card ID card
conditioner checkbook water bottle
bandaids padlock room key
brush power strip waste basket
comb push tacks step stool
deoderant velcro curtains
antibioitic lotion two way tape rug
For a pdf of this list just send us an email at info@vacuumlady.com