DIY Bug Killer

Do you have millions of annoying buys lining your patio? We have had horrible buys this year, I was talking to my neighbor about it and she suggested I try getting ride of them with homemade bug killer. At first, I didn't think it would work but I was wrong...it worked like a charm!  

DIY Bug Killer

1 Spray Bottle Full of Water

1 T Dawn Dish Soap

I know it seems too simple to be true right? It really worked!!! Any bug that got in my way over the course of an hour was sprayed....it killed box elder bugs (pictured below), beetles, ants, daddy long legs, grasshoppers, and spiders.  It worked quickly too.

I also tested this a grassy areas to see if it hurt the lawn.  If I sprayed it the lawn was fine but in the area I poured the remains of the spray bottle out the grass yellowed a bit.

I let my little guy help spray these annoying box elder bugs and he had a ball.  I didn't even have to worry about him because the spray is just water and dish soap. 

Hope you find this as helpful as I did!

30 PVC Pipe Ideas for Kids with Tutorials

I bought way to much PVC pipe when I did this little project and immediately started thinking of additional projects I could make this summer. As I looked for some inspiring ideas of what to do I found myself wanting to not only use my leftover pipe for some fun projects but I wanted to go buy more.  Here are some of my favorite PVC pipe projects:

Marshmallow Guns 

 

Summer Reading Teepee @ Tater Tots & Jello

Cozy Little House @ Sweetest Littles

Soccer Goal @ This Old House

Puppet Theater  and On the Ground Sprinkler @ She Wears Flowers

Loom @ Simplified Building

Bike Rack @ Hostess with the Motzes

Simple Upright Sprinkler @ Crafty Sisters 

Deluxe Kid Wash and Cool off Zone @ Family Fun

Bow & Arrow @ You Craft Me Up

Bubbles @ Play Counts

Target and Golf Game @ Whatever Dee Dee Wants

Cars @ Strawberry Chick

Bowling & Tunnel @ Lowe's Creative Ideas

Sand/Water Table for Kids @ Creative Works

Summer Camp Chairs @ Simple Simon and Co.

Telescopes @ Obsessively Stitching

Water Station @ Preschool Palace

Ball Shoot @ Play, Create, Explore

Canopy Bed @ Brandy Crafts

Movie Screen @ Geek Dad

Phones @ Classroom DIY

Bottle Rocket Launcher @ Crafty Yourself

Play Tent @ Apartment Therapy

Pipe Building @ Homemade Toys

Now I am off to buy more PVC pipe!

How & Why to Clean Bath Toys!

We have tons of bath toys and have made a habit of squeezing the water out of each one after each bath but they still get disgusting.  My kids started breaking out in a little rash after their baths and someone mentioned it might be because of mold in their bath toys.  I gathered up all the toys and cleaned them really well and threw a couple of the really nasty ones away. No more rashes!!

I wondered what method of cleaning bath toys worked the best and so I tried a few.  Here is what I tried and how it worked:

Vinegar Cleaning

Vinegar is a wonderful natural disinfectant and is safer than bleach and so I gave this a try first. I mixed 1/2 cup of white vinegar with a gallon of water and let the toys soak for an hour.  I scrubbed the toys down with a sponge and squeezed the water out of each toy and let them dry. This released some of the mold but not all of it so I repeated it again with the same results.

Bleach Cleaning

 I also soaked the toys in 3/4 cup of bleach with one gallon of water. I let the toys soak for an hour, scrubbed them down and squeezed the water out and let them dry.  This seemed to release more mold than the vinegar.  I rinsed the insides of the toys multiple times to rinse the bleach off. 

 These next couple photos are gross but I wanted to show what was in the bath toys.

 This photo shows what came out when I squeezed the bath toy after cleaning....YUCK!

Some of the toys didn't seem to get clean, this is what they looked like after I cleaned them. I obviously threw these away.

After spending a couple hours cleaning these bath toys I put a  little bit of glue on the holes of each toy to prevent water from getting in them and me from having to clean them again.  This has been wonderful!!! It has now been 3 months and the glue has successfully stayed on all but one bath toy.  This is seriously the best thing you can do...I would do it as soon as you get a new toy and then you won't even have to worry about cleaning the toys!

FYI: I cleaned 20 bath toys.  I ended up throwing 3 away because I couldn't get the inside of them as clean as I wanted them.  I then glued the holes on the remaining 17 toys. It has been 3 months and I have only had the glue fall off of 1 toy! 

Cut a Watermelon in Less Than 3 Minutes

We watched a chef cut a watermelon...it only took 1 min! I was so amazed that I had to share. Here is his technique...I have done it multiple times and it took less than 3 minutes!!

1- Lay the watermelon on a cutting board.


2- Cut both ends off the watermelon


3-Place the watermelon upright sitting on one of the cut ends


4- Cut green part off in 4 cuts


5- Cut corner of green part of in 4 more cuts


6-After 8 cuts the watermelon should be rim free


7- Slice watermelon about every half inch


8- Take slices and turn to side then repeat step 7


9-Take long sticks of watermelon and cut into cubs


10- Put Watermelon in bowl and enjoy

I hope this makes the job of cutting up watermelon a little easier and gives you more time to enjoy summer!

Here is a little printable to print off if you want to give this a try but aren't going to be by the computer. Happy Summer!! 

To print you have to options:

1-Simply right click on picture and save to computer then find where you saved it and print or to re-size open in a word document.

2- Click on picture below and it will put it into a document for you...all you have to do is click then push the print button.

Cleaning Blinds

Oh, how I dislike cleaning blinds!  I spent hours cleaning blinds in our bathtub this past month only to find that they still looked dirty.  I decided to try out a different method and found one that works!!! It took 1/4 of the time and the blinds looked much cleaner when I was through. I have never used a dry eraser on blinds before...it worked like a charm!!

This is what I did:

1- Lay blinds out extended on a flat surface

2- Take broom and dust blinds off

3- Dampen a Dry Eraser and wash blind slates (You can do about 3-4 slats at a time)

4- Dry with a towel or let air dry

#30- Paint

This seems like it would be more of an indoor activity right? We took a giant piece of crate paper and rolled it across the lawn and I let the kids paint away. It was fun because I wasn't worried about them getting it all over the house.

If your not sure you want your kids to be around paint grab some sifted flour and decorate the lawn....they will love it! Details at Pink and Green Mama

#29- Movie on the Lawn

This can be a very simple activity or a big one.  We were invited to watch a movie on the lawn with some friends and they had the whole set up including projector, screen, speakers and treats.  You could also make it very simple: spread a blanket out on the lawn and watch a movie from an I-pad or phone.