Stains, spills, gooey messes. Oh my! How to make clean ups easier.

Since becoming a parent I have a new respect for those individuals that keep an immaculate house while having children and the accompanying pets. We love to go to their houses because we are too deathly afraid to allow them into our own without 2 weeks notice. We also leave their house feeling like miserable excuses for parents or house keepers. I have a friend that cleans her carpets once a week and her kitchen floor..well, let's just say I would confidently eat off of it. In my house the floors are usually the last to get done and before I get to it even the dog looks at a dropped morsel as if deciding if it is really worth death to have a taste of people food.

With children, come pets. It's inevitable. For some reason we all think that our child needs a puppy to grow up with or a goldfish to stare at (and eventually swallow if they are anything like my son). Kittens and puppies are as cute and cuddly as our children. However, they are also as messy as children.

I am an animal person and I think that it is important that children learn to respect animals. I currently have 12 cats, thanks to my one barn cats turning out to be a girl with working female parts. I have 3 dogs and a domesticated skunk. I am a completely and utter failure in the face of a cute and desperately abandoned animal. I admit it. My son on the other hand is worse. I can only imagine what it is going to be like when he's out traipsing through the neighborhood.

What sorts of negative things can we look forward to with the addition to animals? Odors. Dirt. Hair. Poop. Urine. Dead mice as offerings. Dead animals as bathing technique (my dog found a deer carcass today. Oh joy). However negative these parts of animal ownership with small children, there are enormous benefits too. There is nothing sweeter than seeing your son or daughter curled up watching a movie with a dog half on top of them and a cat curled in their laps. My son has some serious conversations with his dog and my dog recently pulled my son out of a pond that he so gracefully fell into.

So, I gratefully deal with all of the mess that goes with it. I've learned some tricks that I will share with you.

Vinegar

Vinegar is a very useful for cleaning. Especially after animals and children. When I have a stain on my carpet I usually mix up two (2) tablespoons vinegar and one (1) teaspoon dish soap with one cut hot water. It has taken up coffee, ketchup, jelly, dog vomit of all varieties, poop from cats, dogs, and my son, as well as eradicated all odors. Want to hear something else? The smell of the vinegar will also keep cats off certain surfaces like your kitchen counters. My dogs don't like the scent of vinegar and would not poop on my carpets after I added vinegar to the cleaning mixture in my carpet cleaner.

Baking soda

Baking soda is also good for cleaning and deodorizing. It is uncommonly cheap by comparison to other deodorizing materials. I buy a box at my supermarket for less than a dollar! The best way I've found to efficiently kill odors in my carpet is by sprinkling it with baking soda and letting it sit all day. Walking on it is encouraged! It will only be worked into the carpet. Then, before you go to bed just vacuum it up! You can also apply it to your animals! I like to sprinkle my dog and then comb the dog as usual. My dog needs it as she is a long haired German Shepherd and it seems like she is always getting into something that makes her fur smell awful. This is especially helpful to wet dog smells. Baking soda can be put in your cat's litter box as well. I use it in the litterbox for both my cat and my skunk. My skunk needs it the most!

If these two natural remedies do not work then pulling out the big guns is necessary.

Fizzion and Spot Shot

I personally like Fizzion the best. It was recommended by my veterinarian and works like nobody's business! Right behind it is Spot Shot. However, Fizzion is far more affordable and does not contain any toxins or dangerous chemicals to affect you, your children, or your pets.