Chemical Free Cleaning

Whenever I have a sick child (or in this case, children) I go on a cleaning binge. I boil toothbrushes, disinfect door knobs and light switches , wash linens in hot water, and clean toys. And then repeat-many, many times!

However, with a baby and Layton's mild asthma, I also worry about all of the chemicals in that Lysol and other cleaning products. I am probably wierd this way. I don't worry about buying organic fruits or vegetables but I do worry about Lysol... However, those same chemicals in the cleaning products tend to be what make those products WORK. Take laundry detergent for example. I have tried many organic, natural, and "safe" detergents. I have then thrown away perfectly good clothing because the spaghetti sauce, grass stains, and chocolate did not come out of them. I have three children-two of which are messy eaters and one who has problems controlling his bowels. I need Tide. Nothing can replace it. Oh, and these new thingymajigs?

WORTH EVERY PENNY.

Anyway, so I decided that Tide chemicals are chemicals that my family depends on for purely cosmetic reasons. I am at peace with that.

But I did find some items that I have been using that are completely chemical free. The first was introduced to me by Jen. It is called The Ultimate Cloth and it promises great things. I have been using it for about a week now in the place of my usual Magic Eraser. I have an abundance of hand prints on walls and scuff marks on my wood floors and base boards. I get good results using the Magic Eraser, however, I don't like how it can take the paint off my walls. The Ultimate Cloth is fabulous for walls-food, hand prints, grease splatters, ect... all disappeared. The only thing it did not take off was the scuff marks on my base boards. My favorite use for it is in my bathtubs and fiberglass shower. I have one of those see through showers in my bathroom that is beautiful to look at put a pain in the rear end to clean. I also have hard water and hate it! The cloth worked much better than Scrubbing Bubbles or any other cleaning product I have used. I just wet the cloth and it took off the water spots and other buildup.

The second product is the Monster Microfiber cloth. I found this by accident. We bought a plasma screen television at Best Buy and the sales person told us we could only clean the screen with a microfiber cloth. We bought the one that he suggested and found that it does work great on all electronic screens. It works even better on furniture. I have bought cheaper cloths at Walmart, but found that after several washings they do not pick up dust as well. The Monster cloth I wash constantly and it still works like a brand new cloth nearly a year later. I use it dry and just wipe furniture down with it. I am always shocked at how dirty it gets!

The last thing I have started doing is using vinegar and water. I have heard many times that this is one of the best things to use when cleaning appliances, sinks, counter tops, ect... It gives the kitchen a fresh smell and I don't worry about our food getting traces of chemicals from other cleaning products on them. It isn't antibacterial so I do use Lysol or Clorox wipes in the bathrooms several times a day as well as in the kitchen when I am cleaning up after meals.

OOPS

If you recieve a card with pictures of my children on it but no names or greeting written...it is from me.


MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

My brain is completely fried. I can't believe I mailed cards without a greeting on them :)

To add to my current state of crispy fried brains, I took all three children to the dr. this afternoon. This is what was said:

Layton: "You can't give me a shot! You can't give Will a shot! He is too cute! I will give YOU a shot!"

Laura Grace: "My stomach hurts really bad. See? See how I am pushing on it and saying it hurts? Do you see that?"

The verdict was that Laura Grace has strep, Layton has bronchitis, and Will is off the charts in weight and height. We got home and then I did the mother of all stupid things. Even dumber than mailing Christmas cards without names on them. I MADE MY CHILD WITH STREP EAT SPAGHETTI.

You can imagine the results.

Thank goodness for home carpet cleaners, hot water, Tide and Lysol!!

Lysol, anyone?

Laura Grace and Layton are sick. Fever, body aches, coughs, and sniffles. You can imagine the whining involved.

Cuddling, Lysol, and Sprite go a long way- there is still some whining and moaning, but at least they are loved, hydrated AND disinfected.

Meanwhile, Will has learned that he can talk. Well, try to talk. He is now cooing and making other noises that resemble "HEY" and "DA" :) He is even making them in his sleep which made for an interesting night.

This afternoon Will has his two month well baby check up. Complete with shots. The big kids are also going to be seen...should make for a fun afternoon!

Christmas Recital

Laura Grace is performing in The Nutcracker tonight. These are pictures from dress rehearsal Thursday night and last night :) I was so proud of my big girl! She is so graceful on stage and loves dancing!

Discipline

Laura Grace has developed a habit of talking back and attempting to bargain or negotiate when told to do something. I know this is typical for her age, however, it is also a behaviour that must be nipped in the bud. Disciplining her for every incident was only causing anger to build in everyone involved.

I realized that I needed to do something beyond spanking, time outs, or taking away privileges. We do spank our children, but I prefer that spankings be the last resort. We reserve them for the most serious offenses. When it comes to timeouts, I have realized that they do not work anymore. She has gotten to the age that six to ten minutes in the corner are no big deal to her. She cheerfully complies and comes back just as obstinate as before. Same thing with taking away privileges. The loss of television, her Leapster game, and going to bed early was difficult because she does not have a firm grasp of time. She would also just shrug her shoulders and say, "Oh well, I will just play outside." We can't ban her from playing altogether so I was left with my mouth hanging open and boiling with rage. Not a pretty picture.

It hit me then that Clay and I were not doing a good job with picking our battles. We were correcting every little detail rather than focusing on the big picture. If Laura Grace and Layton are wiggling in their chairs at dinner BUT are still eating without complaining and are staying in their chairs we should just ignore the wiggling. I was forgetting that my children are not robots-they are children who are going to act like children. Secondly, I was forgetting to praise good behavior. It is so easy to get caught up in what needs to be fixed, rather than what is being done right. Using the same dinner time example, when they are sitting still and using their table manners I should praise them for it. Not generic praise. Not "you are so great!" praise. I should be using specific language such as, "Laura Grace, thank you for sitting still and not spilling anything. I am proud of you!"

Praise and rewards are an essential part of disciplining and training your children. However, this is so hard for me because I find myself only looking at the negative. I expect my children to behave appropriately and when they do I ignore it! That doesn't make any sense because ALL behavior should have consequences. Some children are not motivated to make good choices out of a simple desire to please or do the right thing. I believe that this desire comes with maturity and with some it takes the Holy Spirit! They have to be coached to make the right choices and taught that positive choices equal positive consequences.

Now, I am not saying that I am all for the philosophy of "Positive Discipline". In fact, I am very much against many of the ideals. People who practice PD rarely enforce negative consequences. They use redirection and praise to steer a child's behavior. I firmly believe that this is a serious lack of discipline and guidance. Redirection has its place, as does punishment and rewards. But there should be a BALANCE, not a neglect of any of these elements.

With all of this in mind, I first talked to Clay. We both admitted that we had fallen behind in telling our children what they were doing right. We committed to looking for the good and telling them when we found it. I also set up a rewards system. I have a large mason jar and a bag of craft pom pom balls. Every time Laura Grace uses her manners, is kind, shows self control, obeys without argument, does a chore, finishes her homework, ect... she gets to put a pom pom in the jar. When the jar is full she gets to have a sleepover. The next time the jar is full we are going to take her to a movie. When we are away from home I keep a mental tally for when we do get home.

I did find that Layton is too young for this. He doesn't understand the concept of filling the jar in order to obtain a fun reward. For him we are using more verbal praise and more immediate awards. For example, he was very sweet to Will this morning. I told him he could play with his Leapster for fifteen minutes because he acted like such a big boy. As he gets older we will adjust according to his maturity and personality.

I am not saying that I will now have perfect children. Laura Grace is a sweet, spunky little girl who has to work very hard at controlling her tounge. I understand this battle because as an adult I STILL struggle with this! Layton is still Layton. He is three years old and with this age comes passionate tantrums and lack of self control. In fact, while the jar will hopefully teach Laura Grace that obedience and self control has rewards it is more for me! I want to be more encouraging and more positive. This jar is a tangible way of reminding ME to be excited over the good behavior. It also shows me that it does happen far more than I noticed before. I have sweet children who are so eager to please. I need to focus on THAT and nurture this trait in my children rather than tear them down. After all, the most basic part of training is encouraging.

Calgon, take me away!

A baby that has been nursing every hour for two days and nights, a three year old who has taken whining to a new level, and a six year old who came home with a red light because "it was more fun to disobey today" made for a really bad day yesterday.

Today has been worse. Today was one of those days that you call your husband in hysterics because you have utterly failed as a parent. Somewhere. You are not sure where but surely if you were a "good" parent you wouldn't have a crying baby, a screaming three year old who is obsessed with television despite the strict time limits in your home, or a six year old who when told to behave herself at school gives you a skeptical look and says that she will "try" in a tone that says she will do anything but.

Oh, and Flip the elf fell from a shelf and Layton screeched, "SANTA CLAUS THREW FLIP ON ME!! SANTA HURT ME!!!"

Looking on the bright side-I do have dinner already made, Clay is going to be home early so I can get Laura Grace's hair and makeup done for her dress rehearsal tonight, and I found out that the rehearsal will only be two hours instead of four. I also have cookie bars waiting to be eaten tonight. It is the small things.

But, for now, I must go calm a screaming three year old and feed a baby that is convinced he is starving. Again.