Norwex Microfiber Introduction

 

Norwex sells cleaning products with a mission of radically reducing the use of chemicals while saving you time and money.  Sounds too good to be true, right?  After TONS of research and using the products myself I am a believer!

 

Take a look at the very robust Norwex catalog.  The amount of products is a bit overwhelming so lets start with the very basic information related to the microfiber BacLock products.  The cornerstone product is the Envirocloth (pictured below).

There are two very important things that set Norwex microfibers apart from the ever growing competition.  So exciting, I know!

 

In order to be considered microfiber the fiber itself has to be 1/6th the size of a human hair.  Norwex fibers are 1/200th the size of the human hair.  Why does this matter?  The smaller the fiber the more that can be woven into each cloth.  If you were to unravel an Envirocloth the fiber would stretch from Canada to Mexico- crazy!!!!  With so much fiber in each cloth the surface area to pick up dirt, grease, bacteria and dust is incredible.  As soon as the microfiber touches a surface it sucks the dirt deep into the fibers leaving the surface clean!

 

BackLock- the best part!  Norwex microfiber is spun with silver.  Silver is a natural antibacertial agent.  This means that as the fibers go to work pulling dirt and bacteria into the cloth the silver kills and prohibits the growth of bacteria.  

 

The Envirocloth can be used for 90% of the cleaning in your home and the best part is you are cleaning with only water!



Indoor Snow Fun

We are having a major snow storm in NY and my kids keep asking me to go outside and play.  I am not a fan of the cold (subzero temperatures, no thank you) and inevitably I will bundle the kids up for about 5 minutes of play before they realize that they don't like the cold either!  Here is my solution...

Supplies Needed:

- Baby Pool

- Waterproof Mattress Cover OR Large Garbage Bags

-Towels

- SNOW

- Toys

 

Penny Project- little kid friendy

This one is so easy and super fun!  My 3 1/2 year old son was able to do the majority of the project with just a little assistance from me with the glue gun.  Sorry, I only have a picture of the finished piece for this one but honestly it is very easy to do.

 

 

Supplies:

- Canvas (I prefer the 3x3 canvas that you can get at JoAnn Fabric)

-Paint

-Pain Brush or Little Fingers

-Spare Change

-Glue Gun

- Pipe Cleaner (optional for hanging)

 

Directions:

Have your child paint the canvas and once it is dry simply glue the change in whatever pattern (or non pattern) they want.  We glued a pipe cleaner to the back of the canvas so that we could hang it.

 

For extra fun you could pick out change with important years on it...birth years, graduation, wedding and so on!

 



Suncatcher Craft- Little Kid Friendly

 

My three year old and I had so much fun with this craft!!!

 

Supplies Needed:

- White Glue

- Food Coloring

-Wax Paper

- Ribbon or Wire (something to hang suncatcher with)

- Glue Gun

-Cute Kid - optional

 

We decided to do heart suncatchers so I started by outlining hearts in glue on wax paper.  You could do any shape you want!

 

Coffee Spice

To say that I love coffee is a massive understatement; like most people I can't start my day until I have a hot cup of coffee in my hands.  Because I drink so much of it I can't justify spending money on the more expensive brands of coffee at the grocery store so I resort to the generic options.  Honestly, the coffee isn't bad but it is most definitely lacking...until now!  This week I tested a bunch of different spices (and sugar) to see what impact they had on my daily cup (err cups) of joe.

Monthly Money Check In

The new year is great motivation to get your finances in order and set goals for the upcoming year. I am sharing the spreadsheet that my husband and I use to keep track of  our investments each month.  It's a pretty simple concept but I find it helpful to understand where you sit financially each month so that you can make the best decisions around spending. 

	INVESTMENTS	Jan-15		Feb-15		Mar-15
SHORT TERM	Capital One 360	1000.25		750	-250.25	813.94	63.94
MID TERM	Fidelity	1500		1500	0	1575	75
LONG TERM	401k	10752.65		10250.89	-501.76	10498.75	247.86
COLLEGE	NYS 529	750		765.78	15.78	783.25	17.47
	TOTAL	14002.9		13266.67		13670.94
	SHORT TERM	1000.25	7%	750	6%	813.94	6%
	MID TERM	1500	11%	1500	11%	1575	12%
	LONG TERM	10752.65	77%	10250.89	77%	10498.75	77%
	COLLEGE	750	5%	765.78	6%	783.25	6%

We have been tracking our investments for four years now and it is really interesting to see our savings patterns!!

Mini Craft Kits

If your kids are anything like mine then they love crafts!  We recently had a few friends over which included 8 children.  I was going to break out the craft box but worried that my house would be covered in sparkles and beads within minutes.  My son and I decided to put together mini craft packs which reduced fighting over supplies and it kept my house nice and tidy.

Each mini kit fit inside a sandwich bag.


Craft Kit #1- Fuzzy Caterpillar

Put the following in each bag: (2) pipe cleaners, (1) tongue depressor and (2) googly eyes