Nontoxic Toaster Oven

What? Toasters are toxic? What am I talking about???!!!

Well this story begins when I wanted a new toaster oven for my birthday- simple enough request, right? Who would have thought it would become quite a production?! I did some shopping and decided on a KitchenAid Toaster. It was pretty and new and shiny and when I turned it on for the first time it STUNK up the house SO BAD that my husband and I had headaches and I had to open all the windows and turn on the ceiling fans for hours!

A little research online revealed that other people were complaining of this from this toaster too. So I researched other brands and found the same complaint. WHY are these ovens stinking so bad? Well more research gave me the answer. Nowadays toaster ovens come with a nonstick interior and are covered in protective oils for storage which leads to a noxious smell when used and from the complaints I have read lingers every time they use it for quite some time.

Well what to do? Keep the smelly toaster? With all the hype about nonstick cookware being not good for you I kept thinking about any damage I was doing to my family by turning on this toaster oven. Nonstick cookware fumes are toxic to birds- if you have a bird as a house pet they tell you not to use them. Well if its not good for birds, how good can it be for people? I got rid of my nonstick cookware a few years ago and opted for more healthy stainless steal pots and pans, why then would I want a nonstick toaster oven? I didn't...I don't! So back to the store it went and I was back on the search for a new, new toaster- one that would not make my family sick!

Which one did I FINALLY decide on? Well as far I could find WARING is the only company that has toaster ovens that DO NOT HAVE nonstick coatings inside. Once I read and did extensive research (much more than I feel should have been necessary for a toaster oven) I decided to purchase it. Once it came, we took it out and plugged it in and did a test run as the manual suggested and guess what? NO SMELL!!! Yes! So short version- if you are looking for a nontoxic, non-smelly toaster oven check out the Waring Pro® WTO450.

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Spring Cleaning: the Living Room and Den

OK so now we are onto the den and or living room.

As always start from the top and work your way down.

1. Remove all curtains and wash them.
2. Start dusting from the top down.
3. Move all furniture and dust behind it. (you'll be amazed at how much dust accumulates back there.
4. Now is a good time to empty out cabinets and drawers, wipe them down with a rag and go through what you want to keep/toss.
5. I toss all throw blankets in the wash to refresh them.
6. Sprinkle the couches and carpets with baking soda, let sit for 15 minutes and then vacuum it up to freshen them and remove odors.
7. Wash the windows.
8. Then rehang your curtains.
9. Enjoy your clean room.

Simple Sugars

I recently ordered and received this wonderful product called Simple Sugars. Simple Sugars are all natural body scrubs made for people with sensitive skin that smell fantastic and make your skin feel great! It works by exfoliating and removing the dead skin while moisturizing the new skin. Use it at often as you like, it is safe enough for everyday use. They use only the highest quality ingredients, some of which are organic, with NO artificial preservatives. They offer facial scrubs, body scrubs and foot scrubs. I was sooo impressed with the results- it even cleared up my eczema on my hands!!! I ordered the strawberry and vanilla flavors, but there are plenty others to choose from. So if you are in the market for a new, all natural skin care product, check them out! (I have NOT been paid for this- just really like the product and thought I'd share).  :)

Laptop Lunches By BENTO-WARE

Knowing that in the fall my son is going to need a lunch system I decided to start researching them now and was pleased to find and purchase this Laptop Lunch System from Bento-ware.

I decided upon this system as it offered a way to keep his lunches contained and cool and it also had many green features. The company boasts:

Safe! NO lead, BPA, phthalates or PVC

Cost-effective - pays for itself in just 3 weeks

Reusable - lasts for years

Recycled & Recyclable

Easy to Clean

Waste-free

Food containers made in the USA

Also the containers and lids are all dishwasher safe and the containers (not lids) are also microwave safe. I was very happy with the quality of the product and many of the reviews said they have had these for several years and are still going. They are a bit more expensive that regular lunch systems, but if they last several years, I feel they are worth it, plus the knowledge that they are as safe as I can get also gives me peace of mind. So check these out of you are in the market for new lunch boxes!

How to get the Musty Smell Out of Your Towels

Well if you have been following along it will come as no surprise that my secret weapon will once again be Vinegar!

I recently went in to my dryer to get a load of laundry out and it smelt like the laundry had been in there for days and I know that it hadn't. So I rewashed the load, sprayed the inside of my dryer with vinegar and wiped and then ran a towel dampened with vinegar through a dry cycle. When it no longer smelt and the laundry was washed I redried them and they smelt fine. Now several days went by and I opened the dryer, this time to a load of towels and I smelt the musty smell again. This time the answer was staring me in the face- the towels!!! So I put them in the wash, this time after adding the laundry detergent I added roughly 1 cup White Vinegar (I eye-balled it) to the load. This time they came out with no smell and when I dried them the dryer didn't smell- YEAH! So the moral of the story- always wash towels in HOT water and add 1 cup vinegar to keep them smelling clean!
Happy Laundering! :)

How to Clean Windows

For the purpose of this post we are strictly speaking about cleaning your windows from the inside.
First grab your trusty spray bottle of... you guessed it.. VINEGAR!

Spray the entire inside of the window with vinegar and wipes with a paper towel. I bring a small garbage bag with me and toss dirty towels in there so I don't get things messy as I go. Use a Q-tip for any tiny, hard to reach spots.

If your window has the capability to open in for cleaning then follow the same directions as above and clean the outside of the windows while you are inside. If not then you'll clean the outside when you do outdoor spring cleaning.

Spray the window sills last and wipe clean.

Once a month, especially in Spring and Fall when insects seem to want to invade, you should spray all around the window openings with vinegar on all your windows and doors and then wipe dry. The Vinegar smell deters them.