Vinegar, Lemon and Baking Soda...Ahhhh clean with no synthetic chemicals

Look where you keep your cleaning supplies and count how many different chemical cleaners you currently have.  You probably have Windex for your mirrors and windows, Pledge for your furniture, an all purpose for your horizontal surfaces, a bathroom cleaner and probably bleach.  What are these cleaners made from?  Most likely the ingredient lists contains ten or more chemicals that you cannot even pronounce.

I hated cleaning products because for one thing they are expensive.  Secondly, they often gave me headaches when I would use them.  While on my "get chemicals out of my house and life" kick, I started looking for alternatives to all those bottles of chemical cleaners.  My research led me to three simple ingredients:  vinegar, lemons, and baking soda.

I currently have three bottles under my sink for cleaning.  A bottle with half vinegar and half water, for windows, mirrors and my hardwood floors.  A second bottle of vinegar infused with lemon peels that I use as an all purpose cleaner.  I will often mix this all purpose with baking soda to clean sinks, toilets and tubs.  Finally, I have a bottle of vinegar, lemon juice and a tiny bit of olive oil for furniture polish. 

I love these cleaners and will include recipes for them down below.  They work so wonderfully well and my house just smells clean and fresh not like chemicals.  My husband would argue that the house smells like vinegar when I am cleaning, but I cannot smell it and it dissipates quickly :)

Another wonderful benefit is the cost.  A gallon of vinegar goes a long way and costs a little over $2.00.  We use the lemon peels from our fresh squeezed lemons that we use for homemade lemonade (I will post another blog on this soon!)  A large bag of baking soda is less than $7 and lasts for nearly a year.  So with a few simple, inexpensive ingredients you can rid your home of unnecessary, expensive chemical cleaners.

Maybe this all sounds too simple but I really have been cleaning this way for the last five years and I love it!

Recipes:
Windows, Mirros and Floors
1 cup distilled white vinegar
1 cup water
Pour into spray bottle and shake.  That's it and that's all!

All Purpose
Take squeezed lemons and place peels in a large glass containers.  Fill container with distilled white vinegar and cover.  Allow the mixture to set for at least 24 hours.  Finally, strain the lemon infused vinegar into a spray bottle and it is ready to go.

Furniture Polish
1 cup distilled white vinegar
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 Tablespoon EVO
Combine ingredients into a spray bottle and shake well before each use.  Also be sure to test this one in an inconspicuous area to make sure it is compatible with your furniture finish before spraying in a visible area. I have never had any problems, but wouldn't want to be the source of ruined furniture!

Happy Cleaning!

Goodbye Microwave - I don't miss you at all!

The microwave is an essential appliance in every American kitchen.  Right?  Right.  We received a great little Samsung microwave for our wedding and it lasted 9 years.  When it failed to heat any longer we purchased a new Kenmore microwave.  We have a toddler whom I will call "Little Dude" throughout the blog.  Little Dude tends to be really rough on things.  For example, he will break toys that have been handed down for ages and held up to years of play.  He is just a rough little boy!  He thoroughly loved to open and close the microwave door and it turns out all of those slams weren't so good for it.  Who knew?  So the new microwave (less than 9 months old) failed to work unless we slammed the door as hard as possible and then held it closed. 

Instead of replacing the microwave again we just decided to see if we could live without it.  My husband was skeptical, but we gave it a try.  And you know what?  We don't even miss it!  We discovered that we only used it for three things:  defrosting meat, making popcorn and heating up left overs and my son's milk (I know, it's terrible and we shouldn't have been doing it anyways). 

I have an air pop popcorn maker and so our favorite evening snack became even more delicious with melted butter and salt.  It really takes no extra time to make it this way and it tastes so much better! 
The biggest challenge has been defrosting meat.  I have to plan dinner first thing in the morning just to have the meat out and thawing.  A minor inconvenience, but now that I am used to it, it isn't so bad.  If I forget, we get to have breakfast for dinner. Who doesn't love waffles and eggs for dinner?

A few added bonuses are that food cooked and reheated on the stove or in the oven just taste better, may be better for you and I have lots of extra counter space for my cookbooks :)

So, there you have it, we have been microwave free for almost three months now and don't miss it at all! 

What do you think: could you live without your microwave? 

**Check out this article on why Microwaves may be bad for our health **
http://www.realfarmacy.com/why-did-the-russians-ban-an-appliance-found-in-90-of-american-homes/

Little Changes - Cookware

Our journey to healthier, more natural living started with some small changes in our home when an acquaintance casually mentioned all the chemicals we were poisoning ourselves with daily.  Wait... What?  I knew that everything (from household cleaning products, to shampoo, to our food storage containers) were comprised of synthetic chemicals along with natural elements.  However, I had never taken the time to learn about these chemicals or the effects they were having on my body.

I will admit I am an obsessive researcher.  If I hear something that disturbs, interests, or challenges me I will research it until I know every detail inside and out about the subject.  This acquaintance had mentioned Teflon, BPA and Parabens and that is where my research began.  For several days I studied Teflon noting all harmful effects it can have on a person.  I studied until I was convinced that it would be best to get rid of the old scratched up Teflon pots and pans and replace them with the safer, harder to clean stainless steel option.

So why is Teflon or polytetrafluoroethylene(PTFE) so harmful? Actually the man made chemical  polytetrafluoroethylene isn't the problem, it is the chemical perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) that is used in the process of making PTFE that is dangerous.  This chemical is unknowingly consumed when the Teflon pan is scratched and tiny particles break away into the food being cooked.  Fumes can also be released into the air when food is cooked at a very high temperature. 

The EPA and American Cancer Society websites have some good information about PFOA.  While there is not conclusive evidence that it is detrimental to human health there is enough evidence of harmful effects that  "EPA and the eight major companies in the industry launched the 2010/15 PFOA Stewardship Program, in which companies committed to reduce global facility emissions and product content of PFOA and related chemicals by 95 percent by 2010, and to work toward eliminating emissions and product content by 2015."  -- http://www.epa.gov/oppt/pfoa/

After hours of research, I decided it would be best to toss those old pots and pans and search for a healthier option.  After looking at all the cookware options available, from aluminum to cast iron to stainless steel, I decided stainless steel was the best option for our family.  Stainless steel is considered one of the safest materials for cooking.  The drawback is that it they are definitely not non-stick and take greater effort to clean.  Cast iron is also a very good option and I do use a cast iron griddle.

I would encourage you not to just take my word for it, but to do your own research and see what you discover!