Miraclean – 803.984.9383 | Tag Archives: money-saving

10 reasons you shouldn’t clean your own house

Posted on August 9, 2014 by Kristin Posted in General Announcement .

You are busy! We know that. That’s why we don’t think you should have to clean your own house. Imagine that. To walk in to your home knowing the bedsheets were all changed, the showers are clean, the floors are no longer sticky. Isn’t that nice? And now you can have some time to yourself before the hubby and the kids come home and destroy it all in a matter of minutes. (Because, face it, that’s what’ll happen.)

Here are a few reasons why you shouldn’t be cleaning your own house:

1.) Be honest, how many arguments have you and your family gotten into regarding cleaning? It’s like trying to pull teeth. No one wants to spend their limited weekend time scrubbing toilets. I’m not saying you should let your family trash the house to avoid an argument of cleaning, but straightening up a bedroom or playroom is not the same as cleaning a bathroom. Of course, kids should have some responsibilities depending on their age and how much they can handle, but seriously, how many times have you and your hubby argued over who did the last load of dishes? Avoid the argument completely by having someone else do the work for you!

2.) As stated earlier, you only get a matter of hours over the weekend to spend it with your family. Enjoy that time. Go out to eat or take a weekend trip away. Maybe go to Carowinds for the day.

3.) Try something new. If one of your major complaints is that there isn’t enough time in the day, give yourself more time. By hiring a cleaning service, usually a team can complete an entire house cleaning in about three hours. Take those three hours and meet a friend for coffee, or try a new restaurant that just opened. Go skydiving! The possibilities are endless but wouldn’t you rather do any of those things than clean your house?

4.) Take time for yourself. Could you imagine getting a massage or a mani/pedi, then coming home to a clean house?! You could get a head start on that best seller you’ve been dying to read!

5.) This is probably the most important piece of information I tell our customers, so listen up. Some people think there is a real stigma to hiring a cleaning company. Here’s my advice. How much is your time worth to you? Think about it. If you can pay between $80-$100 per cleaning and you can have fresh bedsheets and clean bathrooms in less than three hours isn’t that worth it knowing that it will probably take you all day to do what we can do in a matter of hours? How many times have you been cleaning an area and two minutes later your kids dump a box of Legos on the floor. What is the saying? Cleaning the house when the kids are home is like trying to brush your teeth while eating Oreo’s.

6.) Get rid of that, “I swear I JUST cleaned this!” feeling. You know what I mean. You sweep and mop the kitchen floor and in run the kids, “I’m hungry! She’s looking at me! He won’t let me in his room!” Before you know it you’ve got crumbs all over the counters and little footprints all over your freshly mopped floor.

kids interfere with cleaning

7.) I don’t know about you, but occasionally I find myself asking “How can we live in this mess?” Not that my house is disgusting, but yes there are areas that get cleaned more than others. Summertime in the South means that my fans are on high circulation constantly! It’s those times where I flip I switch and realize there is about a pound of dust on each fan blade and jeeze someone should clean that. Then the germaphobe in me kicks in “Oh wow, we’ve just been breathing in this mess for weeks! How can we live in this mess?!” Hiring a cleaning company can help because they follow a guideline to make sure areas you don’t think about, like ceiling fans, get dusted on a regular basis.

sheldon

8.) Who wants to clean? Seriously. After taking the kids to and from school, soccer practice, dance lessons, cooking dinner, going grocery shopping, doing laundry, planning the upcoming week, who has time to clean anymore? If you find yourself thinking, “if only there were a few hours more in a day,” then we are the cleaning company for you!

9.) This is the excuse I used to tell my mom when she would have me make my bed in the morning. “Why? I’m just going to sleep in it again tonight?” I’m 28 years old and I still don’t make my bed….ever….because of this same reason. So what’s the difference between that and the rest of the house? Why clean when it’s just going to get messy again, right?

unmade bed

10.) Lastly, leave it to the pros. There is no stigma in getting some extra help around the house. We know you are busy and we know you are responsible for an ENTIRE family! That’s a lot to keep up with nowadays! Take some stress off your plate and let us help. We use a 66-point checklist to make sure your home is sparkling clean. (Here it is, if you don’t believe me.) Plus, our customers say we clean their house better than they would any way.

And there you have it. Ten reasons why you shouldn’t be cleaning your own house. We would love to take some stress off your plate! We use all-natural products that are safe to use around kids and pets. All of our employees are bonded and insured. We have tons of references and we are probably already cleaning someone’s house in your neighborhood! Schedule your free estimate today by calling Kristin at 803-366-1766.

How young is too young for kids to have a cell phone?

Posted on July 27, 2014 by Kristin Posted in General Announcement .

While cleaning a customer’s house the other day, she did something I had never thought of doing.

Her kids, all in elementary school, were planning on walking to the park with their friends. She gave them a walkie talkie and simply said, “Keep in touch. Let me know if your plans change.”

Cool, right?! She said it was her way of keeping them “cell phone less” for a little while longer. What a great idea!

My niece recently celebrated her eighth birthday. When I asked her what she wanted, her requests were: “a cell phone, an iPad, a Nintendo DS” pretty much nothing under $100. Of course, she has no idea the value of these items. She sees her friends on a phone, so she wants a phone.

So, do you give in and buy the kid a phone?

How independent/responsible are your kids? Do they need to be in touch for safety reasons or social ones? Some folks have been ditching the old home phone. If you work and your child needs to check in with you once they arrive home from school, then it may be time to get them a cell phone. Make sure you limit the options of the phone. Start with a simple plan, one that only makes phone calls and allow them a certain amounts of minutes.

Does your kid understand the concept of minutes and apps downloaded?

Speaking of apps downloaded, depending on what age your child, are you ready to open them to the portals of the Internet? Cyberbulling, location sharing (which raises questions about children being stalked), and being on-call to all of their friends are a few concerns parents have when deciding if they should buy their kids a smartphone.

WedMd suggests not considering a cell phone until your child is in middle or high school, as the younger kids are more likely to be with you. Before you add a line to your current plan, consider establishing rules and punishments for breaking the rules.

WedMd suggests six cell phone rules for your kids:

Buy them a basic phone: Yes, you can still get a phone that doesn’t include a camera, Internet access, games, and texting. If you’re passing one of your phones down to your child, turn off all the extra features. And if your child complains, remind her that phones are tools, not toys. It’s about safety, not social status or games.
Set limits: Most cell phone companies allow you to cap the number of texts a user can send or receive as well as the number of minutes the cell phone can be used. If a child goes over the designated plan amount, have her pay the extra charges. (Older teens can be responsible for their entire cell bills.) You also can block Internet access and calls from unapproved numbers on most phones.
Set more limits: Designate times that the cell phone needs to be turned off — for instance, during family meals, after 10 p.m., and during school hours. If your teen is a driver, insist that he or she not use the phone when driving. Some families don’t allow cell phones in children’s rooms at night to keep kids from texting or making calls after bedtime. Insist that your child answer your calls and texts right away, and teach your child not to answer or return calls and texts from people they don’t know.
Follow the same limits yourself: Let’s face it: You have to walk your talk. If you don’t want your child to use the phone during meals or while driving, follow those rules yourself. If you don’t want him or her to compulsively check the phone, don’t do so yourself. You are your child’s No. 1 role model, whether your child admits it or not.
Create some distance: For now, until the radiation risks are clearer, use ear phones instead of holding the phone up to the ear. Also, don’t let kids sleep with their phones under their pillows. He also advises against carrying cell phones in front pants pockets, due to a potential radiation risk to the reproductive system.
Teach good behavior: Children aren’t born knowing the rules about how to use cell phones respectfully, including not using them to spread rumors, not taking (or sending) photos without people’s permission, not sending inappropriate photos or texts, not having personal conversations in public places – and, of course, never communicating with strangers, no matter how they present themselves. It’s up to you to teach them.

According to a recent Kaiser Family Foundation study, 85% of those aged 14 to 17 — have cell phones. So do 69% of 11-14 year olds and 31% of kids aged 8-10. That’s twice as many kids who had cell phones in 2004!

Be responsible. You know your kid and you know their maturity level.

What are your thoughts? How old should kids be before they get a smartphone? Tell us at www.facebook.com/Miraclean

Money-saving gardening tips

Posted on June 30, 2014 by Kristin Posted in General Announcement .

Last night my mom sent me this picture of her herb garden. I love that she said Take #1. Green thumbs don’t run in this family!

This week’s blog is for my mother.

Here are some cute and handy ideas for your garden:

1.) Use an old ladder as a growing support for cucumbers, beans, and tomatoes.

2.) Check out these cool plant potters! Use glow in the dark paint and place the potters around the edge of your patio or garden.

3.) Speaking of paint, paint a few rocks to look like strawberries. Place the rocks near your berry patch to chase the birds away. They hate pecking on stones and they will assume all the berries are hard.

4.) Use left-over coffee grounds to acidify the soil of acid-loving plants like azaleas, rhododendrons, camellias, gardenias and blueberries. A light sprinkling of a quarter-inch applied once a month will keep the pH of the soil on the acidic side.

5.) Another awesome use of coffee filters are to use them in the bottom of your potted plants to keep the dirt from leaking out of the drainage hole.

6.) Turn a rake or other long-handled tool into a measuring stick. Use a permanent marker and a tape measurer to write inch and foot marks on the handle. Perfect for those plants that need space!

7.) Create natural markers by writing the names of plants on flat faces of stones of various sizes and place them at the base of your plants.

8.) Keep your garden twine handy by placing it in a small clay pot and pull the end of the twine through the drainage hole and set the pot upside-down in the garden.

9.) Dry your herbs by arranging them on a sheet of newspaper on the seat of your car. Roll up your windows and close the door and they will be perfectly dry. Plus, your car will smell great!

10.) Next time you boil or steam veggies, let the water cool and use it to water your potted plants. You’ll be amazed at how the plants respond to the veggie soup!

Do you have tips to add? Tell us about it at www.facebook.com/Miraclean.