Product Review: Rubbermaid Reveal Mop

Before I start, I want to state that I was not asked or paid to write this by any person or company. I purchased this item on my own with my own money.


After the death of my Shark steam mop, (and by death, I mean explosion) I went to Home Depot looking for some sort of replacement. Not necessarily another steam mop, but something to quick clean the floors between scrubbings. The only thing that initially came to mind, and what first ended up in my cart, was the Swiffer and a pack of the wet wipes. I can't even begin to describe the knot that appeared in my stomach over this. I'm probably a bit more neurotic than your average person...ok a lot more, but the thought of those chemicals in my house left me feeling extremely uneasy. Not to mention all of the waste. My husband suggested finding a reusable cover for the Swiffer and just not using the bottle of spray chemicals that came with it. That sounded like a better idea and we were off to try and find something that would fit. Unfortunately, there weren't any appropriate options. I was still feeling a bit defeated when my husband pulled down a Rubbermaid Reveal Mop. After looking it over, I realized this was the perfect product for me. It is a spray mop with reusable cloth cleaning pads that velcro onto the bottom and an empty bottle to fill with whatever cleaning solution you prefer. Vinegar and water in my case! All my problems were solved at once! No waste and no chemicals!

The mop itself is self explanatory. Pull out the bottle and fill with cleaner, replace. The mop handle is a comfortable length and the spray handle is convenient and easy. The cloth pads are absorbent and were able to scrub away grime with ease. My toddler's food-throwing is no match for this thing. Afterwards, I threw the cloth pad in the wash with a load of towels and it came out nice and clean. It's extremely lightweight and can be stored anywhere you keep mops, brooms, etc.

I would most definitely recommend this product over any other mops on the market. I never did like Swiffers, anyway. I never felt like they really cleaned. The Reveal does.

The Great Cloth Diaper Change 2013

This was the first year I attended The Great Cloth Diaper Change on April 20. What it is is a grass-roots movement to bring awareness about cloth diapering. It is an event that happens all around the world where an attempt is made to have the most cloth diapers changed. It started in 2011 and the 2012 turnout broke the 2011 Guinness record for most cloth diapers changed at one time.

Here are the guidelines for participation:
 Each participant (adult over the age of 18) must be paired with one child 39 inches or shorter. 

 Each child must be changed into a cloth, reusable diaper that can be purchased online, at a brick & mortar store, or is offered through a diaper service.  It does not matter what type of diaper a child arrives in.

 At the sound of a loud start signal, all participants must remove their child’s diaper and properly put on a 100% reusable cloth diaper.

 Before the signal to start, each participant should hold the clean diaper they will change the baby into high in the air.  The photographer should take “before” shots.

 At the signal to start, each participant should change his or her child’s diaper.  No photographs or video should be taken at this time. 

 When the diaper change is complete, each participant should hold their freshly changed child in the air.  The photographer should take “after shots”.  The timekeeper may determine when all diaper changes have occurred.  There is no set amount of time within which the change should take place.

 Any participant who does not properly complete the task must be deducted from the total.

At our Syracuse location, put on by Basic Baby in the Shoppingtown Mall in DeWitt, there were 48 participants. It was really exciting to see all the other parents cloth diapering and wearing their babies around the mall. I don't get out much and I don't encounter other parents often so it was really nice to see other parents with similar values. I even spotted a couple babywearing daddies. In addition to the change, it was a baby expo. There were lots of vendors for new and expecting parents. We even picked up a new pocket diaper to try by Anibums. (if you click the link, it's the flames diaper!) The woman at Basic Baby assured me it was one of her favorites. It's locally made in Cicero, NY.

Unfortunately, the official numbers for the Guinness record won't be completely totaled until Friday.

DIY: Stay-dry Cloth Diaper Liners

We have been cloth diapering since my son was a few weeks old. It's had its ups and downs and we've learned a lot along the way. With pocket diapers and other modern diapers, wetness isn't an issue, but we were using prefolds and covers and every time he got slightly damp, he screamed in discomfort. This wouldn't really have been a problem except he was peeing every half hour, it seemed. I desperately searched for some way to alleviate his discomfort for a little while longer and discovered stay-dry liners. I purchased a 6 pack for more money than I should have paid. And since they are one use before they need washed, 6 just wasn't enough. I did some research and found that blizzard fleece works just the same way. It allows liquid to pass through and keeps baby's skin separated from the wet diaper. It's quite remarkable how the top stays completely dry while the diaper is soaking wet underneath.

I ended up getting the blizzard fleece from Jo-Ann Fabrics. I purchased half a yard of the white and I had a 50% off coupon. The price per liner ended up being a few cents. I ended up getting about 16 13"x 5.5" liners out of the half a yard. Way better than what I initially paid for the 6. I surged around the edges but that isn't necessary. It will just help them last longer. You could just zigzag stitch or do nothing at all.

Here you can see how nicely the size fits over a prefold in a diaper cover. The size also allows for bigger babies since there is a few inches tucked in.

DIY: Reusable Sandwich/Snack Bag

I've been wanting to make a reusable sandwich bag for a long time now. Not only will you save on plastic bags, your lunch will look a whole lot cuter. It took me a while to finally sit down and make one. I was mulling over the course of action to take for the entire week. There are quite a few different ways to make these and to be honest, I just winged this. I am happy with the way it turned out and I learned many lessons along the way. I will share what I learned with you so that you can bypass the learning curve.

I started with a color coordinating PUL fabric and regular fabric. Any woven cotton should be fine. My fabric is a printed duck canvas I found in the scrap bin at Hobby Lobby and the PUL can be found in the Babyville section at your local Jo-Ann Fabrics. You don't really need the PUL if you can't find it or don't want it. The purpose of it is to make your bag waterproof. If you are only planning to use your bag for sandwiches or snacks you shouldn't need it. Things like fruit or veggies, you might want to consider adding it.

To make mine sandwich-sized, I cut 7" by 17.5" rectangles, but you could make any size you want.

The next step is to place your fabrics color/print side together and pin around the edges. This is the first place I encountered a problem. I first tried to sew with PUL side down. Unfortunately, the white side of the PUL is a plastic. It stuck to my sewing machine and bunched. Luckily I caught it before it did any damage to the material. Then I tried it reverse, with the PUL up and the canvas down. Still not quite good. I don't have a walking foot, so I used a rolling foot. It still wasn't super, but it worked a bit better. So, if you are going to use the PUL, i'd recommend using a walking foot, or just skip the PUL altogether.

Sew about a quarter inch or less around the entire perimeter leaving about a 2-3 inch gap on one of the long sides. This is where you will be turning your fabric right side out again. When you are done, flip right side out and push the corners out gently with a pencil or chopstick or something shaped like that.

This is the next point where I made a mistake. I forgot to sew on the velcro. This made the very last step of my bag extremely difficult. But put it on NOW! Sew a strip of the loop side to the bottom of the print side, leaving about 1/4" from the edge. Flip your bag and sew a strip of the hook side to the opposite bottom on the PUL side, leaving 1/4" as well. 

Now fold PUL sides together to make your bag shape, leaving the flap where the velcro is. Fold in the bit you left unsewn and top stitch down the sides of the bag.

Now you have a sandwich bag! Just add a sandwich!

To clean your bag, simply toss it in the washing machine with any load. Turn it inside out and connect the velcro. I would recommend letting it air dry but you can also put it in the dryer on low.