Spic and Span Exploding Cleaner

There's a really great quick fix out there for almost any cleaning problem you might encounter. Unlike THE MacGyver, I choose to use this combination for cleaning, not propelling rockets.

Every good equestrian and most others that work with leather, know that vinegar works great to get rid of mold due to its higher pH level. But it also works great on so many other projects, especially when combined with sodium bicarbonate, more commonly referred to as baking soda.

Once a week, I scrub my shower and bathroom.I should probably do it more often, but once a week is all I can manage right now. It takes me about ten minutes flat to deep clean the entire thing. What's my secret? Vinegar and Baking Soda. I keep a spray bottle full of vinegar in my pantry for jobs like this... and for when the dogs pee on the floor... and for when Mr. M tracks in dirt and mud and god knows what kind of grimy grease on my floors. It comes in so very handy at so many moments, I'm  not sure how I ever lived without it!! Anyway, I start by spraying my shower, sink, and toilet with vinegar and letting that sit. The acid in the vinegar kind of breaks everything up a bit. Once that has sat for a while (I usually spray and then unload the dishwasher or fold a load of laundry), I come back and sprinkle baking soda all over my tub and sink. I have a textured bath and shower, so usually I can get enough to stick to the sides as well. What happens next is truly magical.

Do you remember building that volcano in science class when you were a kid? Remember how at the very end, after everything was all built and painted and perfected, your teacher poured in baking soda, topped it off with a little red food coloring, and then poured in vinegar to make this HUGE lava explosion? Anyone remember that? That's kind of what happens here.

After I liberally sprinkle my baking soda, I start gently spraying with the vinegar.This is the fun part.If you have kids, this is a good way to have fun with them while cleaning! Combining the acidic vinegar and the sodium bicarbonate forms a chemical reaction that results in a weaker, more unstable acid that breaks down further into water and Carbon Dioxide. Water and carbon dioxide (the same stuff we exhale). That's what's left. The carbon dioxide fizzes and sputters and continues to loosen all that soap scrum and grime that the vinegar we sprayed on earlier loosened up. When I do start scrubbing, it takes me so little effort, it's like a walk in the park.

Cleaning is so much less of a chore when you know how to get it done quickly, easily, and naturally with things you already have laying around instead of harsh, caustic chemicals that can harm you, your pets, your family, and definitely your nose and wallet! A bottle of vinegar at $1.89 and an $.87 box of baking soda will last me at least four to six months of shower cleaning. My only problem is that I love this combination so much that I use it everywhere. Still, at such low prices, you can stockpile like crazy and clean clean clean!!

Just remember- in almost any situation, from cooking to cleaning to everyday fixes, when in doubt, MacGyver it out!

Ms.MacGyver

Happy New Year, Everyone!! I'm so happy to be able to share 2013 with all my friends, family, and followers. Frankly, I'm just happy to see 2013!

Recently, Mr. M and I discovered my forgotten collection of MacGyver episodes. We spent ALL DAY today watching them! I hadn't remembered how bad 80's acting was. Gosh, MacGyver was so talented with his chewing gum fixes and makeshift bombs (I'll tell ya- watch the first eight episodes from season one of MacGyver and you'll be a bomb expert!). It reminded me a little of how things have always been taken care of on the farm. Oh, that saddle came loose? Here's a piece of baling twine, some ducttape, and a piece of leather thong. The truck won't run? Let me under the hood with a chewing gum wrapper and I'll jiggle it in there somehow! Mama Bear and I were always fixing things out of nothing. In short, we were MacGyvers ourselves, even though we had forgotten about the joy that is watching a goody-two shoes fixing life's major troubles with a tree branch, some twine, and a paperclip.

Mama Bear still enjoys my favorite childhood show. Mr. M is less impressed and much more inclined to point out that MacGyver probably couldn't have gotten away with free-climbing up a cliff face into an enemy encampment wearing a bright red ski cap and blue jacket to rescue a hostage and disarm a nuclear warhead with only a pocket knife, a parachute, and a flare gun. After all these years, I am still impressed.

Enjoy the frugal lifestyle our MacGyver-esque fixes enable us to lead... hopefully with a few laughs and other adventures thrown in for good measure.