Love It – Scrub Daddy
I got a Scrub Daddy for Christmas. It has been a big help when washing dishes. When I first got it I wasn’t sure how well it would work, but I love it.
It feels pretty hard when you first take it out of the box. As soon as you run a little warm water over it the Scrub Daddy becomes more pliable. It works awesome on our smoothie cups because it gets all the way down in the cups and around the edges really well. While it is soft like a sponge in warm water it is firm when you use it in cool water.
It is safe to use on wood, plastic, stainless steel, non-stick coatings, glass, counter tops and more! The Scrub Daddy works great on spoons, spatulas, straws, and more kitchen items. The kids think it’s neat because it has a smiley face! It has been nice having around when it is time to wash the dishes! You can pick up a Scrub Daddy at a local store or on Amazon!
“Love It” is a series of posts on items that I use regularly in my household that I love! There are some items in our daily lives that make life more enjoyable, efficient, or just plain fun. I will be sharing with you some of the products that have been given to us (or to me) that have made it to the top of my list. It’s my way of giving a huge thumbs up!
Our Unusual Toilet Paper Thief
The other day I came home from grocery shopping and heard our robotic vacuum, Neato (or “Runner Runner” as the kids call it) beeping. After further investigation I found it in the girls bathroom. I had to laugh at what I found! It managed to catch the end of the toilet paper and stretch it out across the bathroom.
I’ve had the vacuum for over a year now and this is the first time it has gotten stuck in the bathroom. I guess it is inevitable that someone would eventually leave the toilet paper in its zone. Usually it gets stuck on a toy or clothing article someone left on the floor. Thankfully, it only sucked the toilet paper a couple inches before it stopped and started beeping.
The vacuum is awesome! It does a thorough job so it’s not a big deal to come to its rescue when we happen to leave items in its way (even if it may be toilet paper).
Love It – Neato XV Signature Pro Vacuum (Robotic Vacuum)
Last year for Christmas my husband got me the most AMAZING gift ever!!! Seriously!!! I LOVE our Neato XV Signature Pro! It has been the best gift that continues to be a blessing in our busy household.
I never thought I would get so excited about a vacuum….until I had this one! The Neato XV Signature Pro is a robot vacuum that has been a huge time saver for our family. I absolutely love coming home to freshly vacuumed floors! It makes me so happy! 🙂
If you are looking for the perfect Holiday, Birthday, Anniversary, Wedding, or another gift for that special someone I cannot recommend this vacuum enough. We have been using it for a year now and it is still going strong as well as a huge help when it comes to cleaning around the house.
I have been asked for more information and some feedback from various family members, friends, and guests who have seen our vacuum! I LOVE the Neato vacuum Jake got me for Christmas! As long as the girls pick up their little items like toy necklaces, bouncy balls, etc…. it works beautifully. Occasionally, it doesn’t make it all the way back to the charger, but that isn’t very often.
Jake did quite a bit of research prior to picking the vacuum he got for me – Neato website. He choose the Neato Signature vacuums because they are more advanced and have a more powerful motor than the other ones. The ‘Signature” line is the one you’ll want to go for if you are looking at getting one. He got the Neato XV Signature Pro for us which has been awesome! The Signature ones only come in black.
The Neato XV Signature Pro has an extra brush and filter (which gives you two types of brushes) – it basically adds the Pet & Allergy Upgrade Kit, but really any the Signature vacuums would work because they have the better motors.
The Roomba’s are really popular too, but after reading a ton of reviews my husband went with the Neato (and I am glad he did). Amazon has a lot of reviews which were really helpful if your trying to decide between different ones.I LOVE our vacuum!!!! 🙂
I am not sure how well it works on the hardwood floors, but it has been AMAZING on our floors (carpet, tile, and linoleum)! It has worked awesome for the carpet. The kitchen floor gets more stuff on it so I still have to spot clean, mop, and do the edges at times, but it gets the majority of items off the floor. It does a great job downstairs on the tile too. I still need to do the edges with a broom or vacuum every couple of weeks, but otherwise it does everything for me. Occasionally, it will miss something, but overall it is pretty thorough. I love having clean floors!
The only real problem we’ve had so far is the first battery wouldn’t hold its charge for more than 30 minutes and it should last an hour or so. We emailed them right away and got a new battery within a couple days. Every once in awhile it will get stuck on an item (usually in the kids rooms) or lost, but that doesn’t happen very often. I seriously have considered running it daily because I love having the clean floors. Right now, we have it scheduled to vacuum 3 times a week, but you can have it vacuum any time in between those scheduled times as well.
It does take it longer to vacuum than if you did it yourself, but it saves you time in the long run because you don’t have to do it yourself. If company is coming soon it would be quicker to do it by hand or better yet plan ahead to have your Neato XV Signature Pro vacuum earlier in the day so it is it clean before company arrives. One positive result so far – the girls have been keeping their rooms cleaner and more picked up because they don’t want “Runner, Runner” (the name given to our Neato vacuum) to eat their toys, ha!
I know you’d love it too! It really is wonderful, now if we can only get a robot to cook meals, clean toilets, etc…! Never thought I would be so excited about a vacuum cleaner, hehehe! If you have any additional questions you can comment, contact me or check out the Neato website.
Honestly, the biggest negative is the initial cost of the vacuum. However, if you are already in the market for a vacuum it really is worth it. Also, I have seen it listed on “deal” sites and Amazon has been known to have it on sale as well. If you have some Swagbucks accumulated you can use them to help purchase your Neato XV Signature Pro from Amazon too!
Hope you enjoy having freshly vacuumed floors as much as I do! Now I am off to clean something else while our robot vacuum takes care of the floors for me! Happy Cleaning!!!
“Love It” is a series of posts on items that I use regularly in my household that I love! There are some items in our daily lives that make life more enjoyable, efficient, or just plain fun. I will be sharing with you some of the products that have been given to us (or to me) that have made it to the top of my list. It’s my way of giving a huge thumbs up!
Intentional Living: Weekly Goals
Last week Jake was traveling the majority of the week for work and we had the girls 7th Birthday Party. It was neat celebrating, it’s still hard for me to believe that my babies are 7 years old.
Here is the update on last weeks goals:
Family Goals
Spend 1-on-1 time with each child everyday- Read a book to the girls everyday – we had a couple later nights this week
Have each girl read 1 book to myself or Jake 5 days this weekGo on our Date Night with the GirlsCelebrate with family and friends at the Girls Birthday PartyPick up the girls new glassesSchedule Appointment with Chiropractor
Personal Goals
Exercise – walk at least 5 days this week- Go to bed by 10:30 pm or earlier Monday to Thursday – need to work on this one
Finish reading Everything Romance by Todd HaferRead and listen to the next section of Desiring God: Finding Complete Satisfaction and Joy in God by John Piper (our church Community Group is going through this book together).- Finalize Upcoming Travel Plans – got most of the travel itinerary done, just a couple minor details to be worked out
Home Management Goals
All laundry for the week washed, folded, and put away in one dayWeekly Dinner Menu planned and written by MondaySpend 30 minutes every day picking up / cleaning the house- Dinner ready by 5:30 PM (Monday through Thursday) – with several doctor appointments after school dinner was delayed
- Spend time re-organizing and de-cluttering the Master Bedroom & Bathroom – this didn’t get done this week
Business Goals
Pay all bills that come in the mail this weekWork on ideas for upcoming blog postsSpend 10 minutes a day cleaning and organizing my desk- Write a Guest Blog Post – working on it
Schedule Meeting with Accountant for Business Taxes
Ministry Goals
Email our weekly Community Group update including upcoming events on the calendar, praises, and prayer requestsMeet a friend or family member for Breakfast or LunchEmail Alms & Legs Ministry Team with the Meeting Notes
Financial Goals
- Stay within Budget on Groceries $40 for 4 – went over a little this week with the girls birthday party, Valentine’s Day & Date Night
- Emergency Fund – save 3 months worth of living expenses – working on it
- Complete our personal 2011 taxes – getting closer
- Put money aside for upcoming trips – have some of it set aside
- Pay for Jake’s College Classes – cash set aside for the first 6 months
Here are my goals for the upcoming week:
Family Goals
- Spend 1-on-1 time with each child everyday
- Read a book to the girls everyday
- Have each girl read 1 book to myself or Jake 5 days this week
- Go on our Date Night with Jake
- Celebrate Valentine’s Day
- Celebrate Brina & Karlie’s Birthday
- Spend time together as a family
Personal Goals
- Exercise – walk at least 5 days this week
- Go to bed by 10:30 pm or earlier Monday to Thursday
- Finish reading When Work and Family Collide by Andy Stanley
- Read and listen to the next section of Desiring God: Finding Complete Satisfaction and Joy in God by John Piper (our church Community Group is going through this book together).
- Packing “To Do” List
Home Management Goals
- All laundry for the week washed, folded, and put away in one day
- Weekly Dinner Menu planned and written by Monday
- Spend 30 minutes every day picking up / cleaning the house
- Dinner ready by 5:30 PM (Monday through Thursday)
- Spend time re-organizing and de-cluttering the downstairs Bookshelves / Desk / Dressers
Business Goals
- Pay all bills that come in the mail this week
- Work on ideas for upcoming blog posts
- Spend 10 minutes a day cleaning and organizing my desk
- Write a Guest Blog Post
- Finish 2011 Business Taxes
Ministry Goals
- Email our weekly Community Group update including upcoming events on the calendar, praises, and prayer requests
- Meet a friend or family member for Breakfast or Lunch
Financial Goals
- Stay within Budget on Groceries $40 for 4
- Emergency Fund – save 3 months worth of living expenses
- Complete our personal 2011 taxes
- Put money aside for upcoming trips
- Put cash aside for 1 year of Jake’s College Classes
I think it is important to share and encourage each other as we seek to improve our lives and the lives of those around us. I want to live intentionally not just hope all my dreams and goals come true. When I focus on small steps of improvement I am able to see results as I get closer to my goals. Some weeks I get closer to the goals I have in my life and other weeks a take a few steps back (life happens, emergencies occur, people get sick). Once the goals are written down and shared it provides a guideline for what I aim to accomplish this week.
Why Share My Goals?
- To keep me accountable
- To share a piece of my life with you as I strive to be a better Child of God, Wife, Mom, Friend, Homemaker, Entrepreneur and the many other roles I have each week
- To have my goals consistently written down so I can gauge progress more accurately
- Create healthy habits in my life
- To encourage you to share your goals with me as you continue to grown and learn
How did you do this week on your goals? Feel free to share or link to your list of weekly goals.
The picture above is one that I created for my own purposes, however, The “SMART” acronym was originally coined 30 years ago by Peter Drucker in his classic work, Management by Results
Intentional Living: Weekly Goals
It was a busy week and I got sick (that doesn’t happen very often) so that slowed me down a little bit but I was able to make some headway on my goals. Thankfully I was able to get some rest and don’t have to postpone too many items.
Here is the update on last weeks goals:
Family Goals
Spend 1-on-1 time with each child everyday- Read a book to the girls everyday – I fell asleep early one night and didn’t wake up until after the girls were in bed so the book didn’t get read
Have each girl read 1 book to myself or Jake 5 days this weekSchedule a Date Night with the Girls & Re-Schedule My Date Night with Jake- Finalize the Girls Birthday Party Items – working on it
Set up a dentist appointment for the girls– scheduled and went to the dentist, no cavities!- Pick up the girls new glasses – picking them up this week
Personal Goals
- Exercise – walk at least 5 days this week – with being sick I didn’t get this one done this week hope to get back on track soon
- Go to bed by 10:30 pm or earlier Monday to Thursday – not every night
Finish reading Crush It by Gary VaynerchukRead and listen to the next section of Desiring God: Finding Complete Satisfaction and Joy in God by John Piper (our church Community Group is going through this book together).Set up an appointment to get updated on shots / vaccinations– went to the doctor and got my shots, wasn’t too excited about this one, but it was necessary for upcoming travel!- Finalize Upcoming Travel Plans – dates set / plane tickets purchased / visa – my visa has arrived and tickets are purchased, waiting on Jake’s visa!
Home Management Goals
All laundry for the week washed, folded, and put away in one dayWeekly Dinner Menu planned and written by MondaySpend 30 minutes every day picking up / cleaning the houseDinner ready by 5:30 PM (Monday through Thursday)- Spend time re-organizing and de-cluttering the Master Bedroom & Bathroom – the time I had allotted to do this was taken up with being sick and trying to get better, hope to get this done next week
Business Goals
Pay all bills that come in the mail this weekWork on ideas for upcoming blog postsSpend 10 minutes a day cleaning and organizing my desk- Write a Guest Blog Post – deadline was postponed with sickness
- Schedule Meeting with Accountant for Business Taxes – scheduling this week
Ministry Goals
Email our weekly Community Group update including upcoming events on the calendar, praises, and prayer requestsMeet a friend or family member for Breakfast or LunchEmail Alms & Legs Ministry Team regarding our upcoming meetingPut together the Alms & Legs Meeting Agenda
Financial Goals
Stay within Budget on Groceries $40 for 4- Emergency Fund – save 3 months worth of living expenses – working on it
- Start working on our personal 2011 taxes – we have started the taxes
- Put money aside for upcoming trips – putting aside some of the money
Here are my goals for the upcoming week:
Family Goals
- Spend 1-on-1 time with each child everyday
- Read a book to the girls everyday
- Have each girl read 1 book to myself or Jake 5 days this week
- Go on our Date Night with the Girls
- Celebrate with family and friends at the Girls Birthday Party
- Pick up the girls new glasses
- Schedule Appointment with Chiropractor
Personal Goals
- Exercise – walk at least 5 days this week
- Go to bed by 10:30 pm or earlier Monday to Thursday
- Finish reading Everything Romance by Todd Hafer
- Read and listen to the next section of Desiring God: Finding Complete Satisfaction and Joy in God by John Piper (our church Community Group is going through this book together).
- Finalize Upcoming Travel Plans
Home Management Goals
- All laundry for the week washed, folded, and put away in one day
- Weekly Dinner Menu planned and written by Monday
- Spend 30 minutes every day picking up / cleaning the house
- Dinner ready by 5:30 PM (Monday through Thursday)
- Spend time re-organizing and de-cluttering the Master Bedroom & Bathroom
Business Goals
- Pay all bills that come in the mail this week
- Work on ideas for upcoming blog posts
- Spend 10 minutes a day cleaning and organizing my desk
- Write a Guest Blog Post
- Schedule Meeting with Accountant for Business Taxes
Ministry Goals
- Email our weekly Community Group update including upcoming events on the calendar, praises, and prayer requests
- Meet a friend or family member for Breakfast or Lunch
- Email Alms & Legs Ministry Team with the Meeting Notes
Financial Goals
- Stay within Budget on Groceries $40 for 4
- Emergency Fund – save 3 months worth of living expenses
- Complete our personal 2011 taxes
- Put money aside for upcoming trips
- Pay for Jake’s College Classes
I think it is important to share and encourage each other as we seek to improve our lives and the lives of those around us. I want to live intentionally not just hope all my dreams and goals come true. When I focus on small steps of improvement I am able to see results as I get closer to my goals. Some weeks I get closer to the goals I have in my life and other weeks a take a few steps back (life happens, emergencies occur, people get sick). Once the goals are written down and shared it provides a guideline for what I aim to accomplish this week.
Why Share My Goals?
- To keep me accountable
- To share a piece of my life with you as I strive to be a better Child of God, Wife, Mom, Friend, Homemaker, Entrepreneur and the many other roles I have each week
- To have my goals consistently written down so I can gauge progress more accurately
- Create healthy habits in my life
- To encourage you to share your goals with me as you continue to grown and learn
How did you do this week on your goals? Feel free to share or link to your list of weekly goals.
The picture above is one that I created for my own purposes, however, The “SMART” acronym was originally coined 30 years ago by Peter Drucker in his classic work, Management by Results
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