Mom Life in the PNW

Simplify Spring Cleaning With the Shark 2-in-1 Blast & Scrub Steam Pocket Mop!

Simplify Spring Cleaning With the Shark 2-in-1 Blast & Scrub Steam Pocket Mop!

It’s that time of year when the flowers start to bloom, the weather warms up, the birds chirp and the sound of lawn mowers give us a morale boost to get busy decluttering our homes and yards.  Boy, do I not like all the spring cleaning, but I do enjoy the end result.

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Having a little one to take care of 24/7 that now involves a constant tornado with the trail she leaves behind her, results in an overly tired mom who just wants to do things simple.

One thing I hate doing is mopping. It’s gross, takes too much time to ring out the hand held mop, and you get to redo it over and over until the floor is semi clean. I say semi, because a mop and bucket just transfers the dirtiness right back onto the floor which is why I wanted something that was going to produce sanitary results, like this fancy Shark 2-in-1 Blast & Scrub Steam Pocket Mop.

I have 3 bathrooms to mop, 2 of which are linoleum, the other ceramic tile, a linoleum kitchen and a hardwood entryway. It’s A LOT of mopping, so I definitely needed something more simplified yet effective and this Shark 2-in-1 Blast & Scrub Steam Pocket Mop is just that!

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I first started with my ceramic tile bathroom because I wanted to try it out in the shower as well. It was pretty easy to get going. All I needed to do was plug it in, fill the water in the front tank up to the fill line, push the spray button on the tank to either low or high and off I went. This thing moved smoothly and it was super easy to get all the corners and around the toilet because the mop head swivels.

My end result was this… IMG_1306

and that was just with one cleaning.

There are lots of things that I like about this steam mop

  1. The pad is machine washable.
  2. The pad has 2 sides, one with this softer mop head type feel (shown above), and the other side has strips that are like a scrubbing pad with cotton in between for a more deep clean.
  3. Is lightweight and durable construction with swivel steering for enhanced maneuverability
  4. Converts into a handheld steamer for above-floor cleaning

The last one I am pretty excited about because the top of the fridge gets dusty and grimy from grease, so converting it into the handheld to get on top of the fridge clean has been a lifesaver since nothing seems to make it better other than a crap ton of chemicals that I am trying to limit in the house. I feel like I can pretty much steam everything now and have confidence that my home is more sanitary for my little one to crawl around in.

This steam mop just uses water, no harsh chemicals and it should only be used on sealed flooring. You don’t want to warp or damage your flooring because they’re not sealed.

This worked great on our linoleum, lifted up a bunch of dust that apparently my broom missed. And also worked great on the hardwood flooring at the entryway which gets a lot of traction.

Spring cleaning doesn’t get any simpler than this folks.

…Fill it up with water.

Plug it in.

and off you go.

Our First Trip to the Portland, Oregon Zoo

Since it was the only nice day on a weekend that we’ve had so far, we decided to plan a trip to the zoo. Unfortunately, so did everyone else in the area. It was crazy crowded! You’d think it was the only thing to do on a nice day in the Portland area. Lol

But we endured the crowds in order for our little one to get a glimpse at animals she’s never seen before although she was more curious about all the people instead.

Some of the animals that were up close and easy to see she enjoyed, like the porcupine and goats and chimpanzees.

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She also got a kick out of the elephants; smiled and squealed with excitement which is what we’d hoped for when going.

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All in all it was a great day. A little expensive with food and whatnot since we didn’t pack anything. Almost wished we had cause ordering food almost ate up an hour of our time since everyone else decided it was lunch time too. After we got our food, it pretty much cleared out. Oh well, next time we know to either bring our own food in, eat beforehand or wait and go to one of our favorite restaurants over in Beaverton.

I love family days. And I love seeing my little one grow and learn. She’s amazing.

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10 and 11 month old update

I’ve been so busy with Etsy crafts and everyday life that I skipped past her 10 month.

Starting at 10 months and continuing on, she’s started walking around while holding onto things. She’s getting good at balancing herself without holding onto anything now at 11 months, so I imagine she’ll be walking by herself in no time. But, I’m still in no rush. I want my baby to stay a baby forever! 😛

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She’s got quite the personality. I don’t know if terrible 2s start early or if it’s pretty normal for little ones to fuss and fight about putting clothes on and getting diapers changed. It’s a struggle everyday it seems. Hell, I’d just let her roam around naked, but I don’t feel like chasing her around with the carpet cleaner because she WILL poop and pee, and having to clean up the cat barf on the rug is bad enough.

She is a little sassy pants; already yelling at me when I take stuff away. I feel like I’m in for a rude awakening. Please tell me this is not what’s to come? Lol

We had a rough week a few weeks ago when she caught hands, foot and mouth disease from her cousins. Luckily, she didn’t get it very bad, but she was miserable for a couple days with a high fever. She didn’t want to eat, not even breastfeed which I now realize is because she was getting her 2 front teeth in at the same time as she caught the illness. Triple whammy, no bueno!

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11 months today

She has been starting to say ma ma more now for the past couple of days. Mainly when she’s tired and or cranky. I seem to be the only one she wants, most likely because I have the boobs and dad doesn’t. So I get tired of not having much of a break to do me time. But I suck it up, because it’s all I can do. And if I do happen to get a break, it’s to do work on the blog, craft stuff for etsy/fb groups sells and whatnot. No relaxation for me is going to drive me bonkers, but surely it’ll get better… I hope, at least.

We even bought a ps4 a couple months ago and I haven’t even been able to play it once. When you have kids, there’s no time for video games, but husband knew I wanted one for when uncharted 4 came out, so he snagged it when he opened a Best Buy credit card.

Hopefully I get a chance to play. No play makes Jenn cranky.

Get Back $5 with ibotta for Purchasing LUVS Diapers!

Get Back $5 with ibotta for Purchasing LUVS Diapers!

Being a new mom comes with unfamiliar territories, like middle of the night leaks while you’re trying to keep your eyelids open with toothpicks. Something all moms experience a time or two or 100. Ugh! I don’t know how many times I’ve had to deal with leakage so far with my 10 month old baby girl, lets just say it has been A LOT!

My sister told me about LUVS and not to go for the more expensive name brands like I have been because LUVS is just as effective, but a fraction of the cost. I have to say, she was right! In the last month I have started using them, we haven’t had any leaks and I have more spending money to use on other baby necessities. That’s because Luvs locks away wetness 2x better than Huggies Snug & Dry and turn diapers into dollars by saving up to $150 per year.

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LUVS has leak barrier leg gathers and a leak guard core, which makes it their largest absorbency ever. This is nice for busy moms by helping to keep leaks in the diaper where they belong, so our babies stay dry and comfortable.

LUVS stands behind their product. If you experience any leakage, they have a money back guarantee. They feel so strongly that their diapers will keep your baby leak-free that they’ve guaranteed them!

In partnership with LUVS, ibotta is offering up a $5 Rebate Offer when you purchase a 54ct or higher box of LUVS diapers.

If you’re unfamiliar with ibotta…

ibotta allows you to earn cash each time you shop. Here’s how:

Before shopping, choose your offers by completing tasks in the ibotta Product Gallery. Choose your earning level for each product offer by completing as many tasks as you like such as reading a fact, answering a trivia question, watching a video, etc. Once you complete at least one task per product offer, the product offer is automatically added to your shopping list on the ibotta app so you can earn money for purchasing the item. This one is my absolute favorite since it has so many different offers to choose from and at different stores. I’ve earned a total of $49 cash back using this app so far. All you have to do is unlock the offer by doing the simple task, verify the product to make sure it’s what is actually listed on the app and then snap a photo of the receipt. Usually they’re approved within an hour and once you reach $10, you can cash out to PayPal or Venmo instantly. If you’d rather convert your earnings into gift cards, you can certainly do that as well!

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Follow these four simple steps to unlock the Luvs Diapers $5 rebate offer through Ibotta:

1. Download the free ibotta app, available on iOS and Android. Search “Luvs” and you will find the offer!

2. Print this .50 off coupon.

3. Go shopping for your Luvs diapers at any participating store.

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4. Verify your purchases by scanning product bar codes and submitting a photo of your receipt.

5. Save money and earn cash back! Your $5 cash back rebate will be deposited into your Ibotta account within 48 hours.

Luvs diapers are available in sizes newborn through 6, and can be found at mass, discount and grocery stores where baby care products are sold.

For more information on Luvs diapers, visit www.luvsdiapers.com or the brand’s social media channels on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube

 

Disclosure: This is a sponsored campaign created in collaboration with the Luvs & iConnect. All opinions are 100% my own.

Ozeri 3-Piece Pan Set Review

Ozeri 3-Piece Pan Set Review

When my husband and I got married in October of 2012, we never officially had a wedding wedding or a reception because we ran off to Vegas with a couple friends a couple weeks after he proposed. I didn’t feel right having a reception since we didn’t have a ceremony with our friends and family, so basically we didn’t get any gifts or things we might need to start our adventure together. But he had some miscellaneous pans from a previous marriage, which we kept and made work, but I hate them because everything sticks to them, which in turn makes me loathe cooking.

I had reviewed one of their 8 inch pans previously, so I knew I’d love the 3-pack in 8, 10 and 12″ sizes.

When I recieved Ozeri 3-Piece pan set, they were different than the previous pan, as in they had a divot grooved bottom and the other pan was smooth. The only difference I find when cooking with the grooved bottom is that eggs tend to stick. They’re supposed to be nonstick but eggs don’t do well in them.

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Cooking hashbrowns is tricky because they slide all over the place when trying to flip. You’ll need a wide spatula for these non stick pans. Bacon turned out evenly cooked and didn’t stick either.

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I do like these pans despite the egg sticking issue. They’re nice and heavy duty, and even after using them for over a month, none of the coating has came off, even after using a sponge scrubby and going through the dishwasher.

I also like that they come with cloth insert protectors for when you stack them inside each other to help protect the inner coating. Nice feature that I haven’t seen with any other pan set, not even high priced sets.

Thanks ozeri for yet another great product.