Tuesday, January 7, 2014

Hoover Heaven

Here's a fun fact you may not know about me. I have scrubbed the toilets of some of the richest and well-known people in our country; People like Tiger Woods, Payne Stewart, Chris Rock and oodles of other pro sports figures and entertainers. Yep, it's truly something to be proud of!

OK not really, but I am proud of the fact that I supported myself throughout college by working my ass off doing construction cleaning in the 100+ degree FL heat.
I actually did it for 6+ years total. Some people may have stories of walking 5 miles to school in the snow, but mine will all be about scraping paint off windows on ladders 3 stories high in the blistering sun. And just for the record, said toilets being cleaned had not yet been "christened", since it was all newly built construction. Somehow, that made it more bearable.

The other good, or maybe bad thing, doing this type of work also did was turn me into a huge CLEAN FREAK!  Actually, it started with my mom, who also cleaned houses for a living while I was in elementary school, but it definitely progressed once I did it as a job every day. I have tried to shake the habit of being so darn anal, but I just can't help it people. I like shit to be clean!

To this day I'm always trying to find the best possible way of cleaning every single nook and cranny imaginable. Enter the Hoover Floor Mate Spin Scrub Hard Floor Cleaner & queue the angels singing!!!



Truly beautiful from every angle isn't it? I've known about this awesome device for quite a while but had never owned one myself. A mop with water and vinegar is the most cost effective way of cleaning tile safely, and it's actually what most pros use when cleaning homes. I was also admittedly sucked into the whole "steam mop" craze that the evil people at Shark vaccuums created with all of their infommercials showing the oh so powerful cleaning power of steam.

Besides the fact that EVERY SINGLE Shark vaccuum I've ever owned has lasted about 1.5-2 years tops before suddenly dying out of the blue right in the middle of cleaning (pisses me off every time!), I'm officially not sold on the whole steam mop thing. I've come to the conclusion it seems like it's cleaning because you see steam being emitted, but really there is just a whole lot of scooting dirt around and not a lot of picking crap up...outside of what's left on the flat mop pad. No way it's cleaning anything substantial out of your grout either. Lame. Well, Shark can kiss our business goodbye, because Hoover has taken over the market share in this house.

My new toy arrived in the mail last night and I was absolutely floored (pun intended) at what it produced...


Um, yeah. This is what was still on our floors AFTER mopping just 2 days ago apparently?! I had 3 dirty reservoirs filled with nastiness by the time I was done. And double bonus, which I've never gotten with mopping or steam mopping, was NO STREAKS whatsoever...


Seriously, Hoover should start paying me, because I'm going to be telling everyone I know about this gem of a device. We are also, by the way, HUGE fans of the Hoover Max Extract carpet cleaner too. Hubby just got done steam cleaning carpets in our whole house this past weekend, and if only I had taken pics of the nastiness from that one. We've been pretty much trapped indoors this whole winter, so it's all about breathing some clean air at this point. We may be hermits, but at least we are hermits with good air quality and clean feet. :)

Not much else going on, other than trying to take it easy. This is the most activity I've done in weeks and have pretty much been treating my body as though I'm still post-IVF transfer for the most part. As quoted by my MFM (maternal fetal medicine specialist), "Just keep doing what you're doing and don't change anything. If you're standing on your head every night, just keep standing on your head."

Alrighty then. Hubby has been a big help around the house, and also with helping to reassure me amidst the pesky worrying that inconveniently creeps in every time I over analyze a symptom or lack thereof. Every single morning I get on my hands and knees and just hand it all back over to God, but it really does take a conscious daily effort through reading scripture, praying out loud, journaling to our future baby(ies) and re-centering myself into a calm place where there's no room for worry or doubt. I'm reminding myself daily that you can't have faith and worry at the same time & that I am choosing faith!

32 comments:

  1. Oh Emily all of this makes me want to just cry (not the vacuum part obviously..haha), I am so so happy for you!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Amie. You are so sweet to be so happy for me. :)

      Delete
  2. This post just made my heart fill to the top! What a beautiful story you have. As far as the vacuum, I am stoked you wrote about it, because it just so happens that my Hubby and I are on the hunt for a new one! This just made our search that much easier!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Morgan. The vaccuum is pretty awesome. This Floor Mate is actually last year's model, which they are kind of phasing out and so the best place to find it is online through amazon or Home Depot. Hubby actually bought me the new "deluxe" model for Christmas but I had him return it and I got this one instead. I read a ton of reviews when shopping and the regular model I used above actually had some features I liked much better, like a much longer cord and also much wider cleaning path (6 rotating brushes vs. 4 with the new model). Just a couple things to consider. I read lots of reviews on Amazon but bought it at Home Depot online so I could return it in their store if there were any problems too. Good luck in your search!

      Delete
    2. Thank you! It's quite sad that I am super excited about buying a new vacuum :) Thanks for the tips!

      Delete
  3. Still so excited for you! And hooray for a good floor cleaner! I have a weim who tracks mud and dirt in the house no matter what I do... we have a rule that his feet get cleaned with a warm washrag every time he comes in and yet the house is still a mess. When we get more square footage, a good floor cleaner will be a must!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm excited for you too Amanda! It's amazing how filthy shoes and animals get everything. Most of ours comes from shoe traffic, cat hair of 2 cats & cooking. I'm constantly sweeping, but it is still so nasty!

      Delete
  4. I.Love.Cleaning!! My mom is a self proclaimed clean freak and my friends always joked around when they came over that we had the cleanest floors ever! I would agree. I also used to clean houses in high school for extra cash...it was more convenient than working at a fast food joint ;) I will be checking out this hoover device you speak so highly of! It sounds A-Mazing!!!

    Also, faith over worry or doubt is always, always the better choice :) A daily choice, but a better choice :) hugs!

    waitingforbabybird.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh, you will be amazed at the filth on your floor when you use this thing Elisha. You will be hooked! haha! Indeed, that cleaning was a good job with really good pay ($20/hr at that time was a sweet gig!). Plus, it really keeps you in great shape. I do not miss cleaning other people's toilets though!

      Delete
  5. I'm so glad you're choosing faith :). I can't wait to hear more about your journey throughout your pregnancy. XO

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks my dear! I'm mostly tracking pregnancy stuff in a separate tab for now. Maybe I'm paranoid about being respectful of others or maybe I'm just paranoid that if I talk about it too much it will end somehow. It's all so new and still kind of scary, although exciting of course. My emotions are definitely fluctuating with how I feel about everything. I am focusing on trying to choose the faith and joy aspects to enjoy each moment, but at times it's hard not to worry about losing something I'm becoming so attached to already. I'm sure I'll feel it's more fitting to talk about it a little more as time goes on. Thank you for being interested and being such a kind supportive friend. :)

      Delete
  6. I am beyond excited for you! I hope you're not standing on your head every night but hey whatever works :) It takes a conscious effort every morning to give your babies over to God that he will keep them safe and sound. It's strangely freeing to give your babies to God each day and know that He alone is responsible for the lives growing in your belly.

    Thanks for the recommendation on the steamvac! I've had mine for over 7 years and it may be time for a new one :) I love your updates on your pregnancy!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. So true on the morning quiet time. I bought a few devotionals to help me with specific week by week prayers, and then of course I just speak from the heart. I want our children to be shielded with His protection every second of every minute of every day. Thanks E!

      Delete
  7. So glad you are doing good!
    That Hoover may be the next cleaning purchase for us. It sounds fabulous! They should be paying you a commission!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm saying! They really should! The Shark and Swiffer people could learn a lesson from Hoover too! he he ;)

      Delete
  8. I was just screaming about my hard wood floors being covered in salt residue this morning- Im second from ordering this lol!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I haven't tried it on my hardwood yet. The cleaning solution used in the machine cleans all types of floors too, which is nice because you don't have to use something separate for wood or tile or whatever else. Get one! Get one!

      Delete
  9. Ahhh! Thank you for sharing this! Good heavens, I can't even imagine what that thing would pick up in my house ... LoL! You keep up that faith, girl. You got this. xoxo

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's pretty scary what it down there! Thanks Love!

      Delete
  10. I LOVE seeing those first nasty reservoirs after cleaning the floor with a new gadget. Makes me feel like the investment was worth it!

    ReplyDelete
  11. As someone who has been SUPER disappointed with her "magical" steam mop (and we did research to find one that was supposedly better than Shark), this makes me want to run out and buy one of these! Ha, you know you're an adult when items like this land on your birthday/Christmas wish lists.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Those steam mops are such a letdown! Oh, and I agree... Whoever said you shouldn't buy a vacuum for a woman as a gift didn't know me! My husband got tempurpedic gifts from me too, so I guess we're really old!

      Delete
  12. Always love your faithful spirit! Glad you have nice shiny floors to start the new year. ;)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Awe thanks Jessah. I am not always as faithful as I could be, but it's a WIP!

      Now, if I can make this a weekly thing and start each week with shiny new floors, we'll really be in business. Might have to fire the toy up again today! ;)

      Delete
  13. Girl we could totally hangout and clean with each other. I used to clean myself silly. It was one way I discovered I had extreme OCD. I am doing really good now still cleaning but not going crazy with it. Does this thing work on hardwoods?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It does clean hardwoods Charity! It's pretty small to store too....very NYC friendly for you. :)

      Delete
  14. I am so flipping excited about your find! As soon as I saw your post I called my hubby to tell him about it. He wasn't as excited as I was lol, but he admitted that it sounds like a really great purchase for us. Hopefully we'll get one soon, I can't wait to try it out! Thanks for sharing :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hubby not excited about a vacuum?! How dare he! ;) I think you will love it Sara. Feel free to report back and let me know if you find it equally amazing!

      Delete
  15. I was looking for… this kind of post from long time. Thanks for sharing..
    Glass Scratch Remover

    ReplyDelete