Cleaning post: Take 2

I've been a huge blog slacker, I apologize.  Not like many follow me anyway,  but, you know...

This fall I got some new "toys" to clean with.  One that I got really excited about was my new mop.  I know, I'm a dork, but here it is.

It's a Rubbermaid Reveal.  The squirt bottle attaches onto the wand and it has a trigger at the top so you can squirt the cleaner out.  Kinda like a Swiffer Wet Jet only you use whatever cleaner you want.  The bottle is refillable and the pads are washable.   It only came with one pad, so I made 2 more using my microfiber towels I had purchased for cloth diapers.  I had 2 new ones I wasn't using and turns out they work better than the pad it comes with.  Anyway, great for wood floors bc it doesn't let them get as wet. 

Also still loving the new Method cleaner with Thymol in it.  Favorite is the bathroom one that is spearmint scented.

Onto another cleaning related topic... we had a lot of appliances/household items bite the dust this year.

1. Attic fan #1 (squirrel nesting jammed the fan and burnt the motor)
2. Dishwasher
3. Mower
4. Oven touch panel
5. HVAC blower and circuit panel (actually got wet from a leak from the condensation drain pipes and caught on fire/shorted out)
6. Attic fan #2 (squirrels again... I'm seeing a pattern here.  Maybe we *ahem Brian* should put sturdy wire mesh up instead of screen)
7. Microwave (now borrowing one from Katy and Doug and it's about to die too)
8. Washing machine
9. Vacuum (which I suppose still "works" but has lost 50% suction and has lots of issues and duct tape on it)

No, I don't wanna know what's next because, let's face it, there's not much left.  While I was a bit bummed each time something broke, most of these things have been fixed by Brian with little cost or replaced with the best deal we could find at the time.  The mower isn't replaced yet, but we're waiting till spring to do that.

Without further ado, here's my other new toys ;)

This was a steal with the 30% off coupon they sent me in a paper and my $20 Sears GC from the Coke Rewards site that I won without even drinking one Coke.  This is a Kenmore canister.

This one from Home Depot was 20% off on sale and we got 10% cash back from Discover.  It's an LG front loader.

Overall, I like my new washer a lot.  I have only done one load of cloth diapers in it.  I was leery of using it at first for cloth diapers, but I think it's working fine.  I've found ways to trick it into adding more water so I don't have to keep rinsing.

So it's been a hard year for us and appliances.  Knock on wood, the Volvo is still running smoothly, but is due for new tires soon.  Van has also been reliable and I'm just hoping nothing else breaks!  I'm going to risk sounding old when I say "they just don't make 'em like they used to."  It's totally true.  I feel like nothing lasts anymore unless you spend $$$$$ on it.