Thursday, December 6, 2012

Mommy's little helper (giveaway).

This is what our iRobot Mint picked up in ONE room of our
house, 5 days after I had cleaned the floors myself. Gross!
GIVEAWAY WINNERS: Congratulations to our January iRobot Mint winner, Jenny P. (commented on January 11, 2013 at 10:24 AM). I sent you a message, but please email me with your name, email address, and postal address so we can get you your prize! Also, congratulations to Beth Harrison Meyers, who won an iRobot Mint back in December.

Original Blog Post: One of the things I absolutely despise doing is trying to keep the hardwood floors in our house clean. If you have hardwood floors all over your house, as we do, you can probably relate. We don't even have pets, but with a 15-month-old, it's unbelievable how much food, dirt, hair, etc. collects under the couch, in corners, and basically all over our home. That's where "mommy's little helper" (AKA the iRobot Mint) comes in handy. This little robot actually sweeps and mops my floors for me, allowing me to spend that time playing with my daughter! I run our Mint every couple days to keep all of the stuff our floor collects at bay, and even featured this product this week on TWIN CITIES LIVE. Any help I can get keeping up with the mess our little family of three creates (it's amazing how messy we can be), I'll take it! This product really it a time and sanity saver.



119 comments:

  1. I sprinkle all my carpeted areas with a carpet refresher before I vacuum. This gives the room a fresh clean scent. I have also started using Scentsy plug-ins in the bathroom to keep that room smelling fresh.

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  2. With two kiddos (3 years old and 4 months) I am always looking for time saving cleaning ideas!! Since I saw you on TCL talking about this product I have been researching it as I would LOVE to have one as I think it would save me so much time!! Currently I would say my time saving idea/cleaning tip would be to get your kiddos involved. My 3 year old LOVES to help so whenever possible I include him and then its a win/win! I get some cleaning done and I get to spend time with him and keep my toddler entertained!

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  3. One of these would be amazing! I would say to take it one room at a time and not cluster all your cleaning together so you don't get burnt out on cleaning

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  4. I would kill for one of these!!!

    My favorite cleaning tip is that every evening, no matter what, I do one load of laundry and also make sure the kitchen (countertops and sink) are clean. It's amazing what kind of difference that can make when it comes time for actual "cleaning/laundry" day!

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  5. this looks amazing and would love to win one! i found a daily 'cleaning schedule' on Pinterest that i try to stick to. It lists a few things to clean each day so it never seems overwhelming to try to get ALL the cleaning done at once.

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  6. I am definitely always looking for cleaning tips and help! We have a toddler, 3 cats and a dog so there is always something to clean up. My favorite tip I've recently started using is for carpets and even wood floors. I use peroxide, dawn and baking soda to pull stain or junk out of the floors. It works great. Smells great too actually.

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  7. My cleaning tip is to do something each day. Monday evening I vacuum, Tuesday a load of laundry, Wednesday sweep the sidewalks, etc. Then you never have an overwhelming day of chores to worry about!

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  8. My cleaning technique is to invite someone over so that I'm forced to make my place look presentable!

    This would be amazing! I'm in an apartment and I don't have much room to store a vacumn cleaner so it's all mops and brooms for me!

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  9. I like to automate cleaning. For instance, I use Scrubbing Bubbles Automatic Shower Cleaner to help keep the shower sparkling!

    (I also tweeted about your giveaway.)

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  10. Do a small load of laundry everyday. Whites on Mondays, Dark clothing on Tuesdays, Towels on Wednesday, Sheets on Thursday, Light colored clothing on Friday. I used to let it pile up and thought that by doing it all at once that it was caught up. Once I accepted that unless we go naked, laundry is never truly all caught up because as soon as we put clothes on, the cycle starts all over again. Small loads more often make it not so overwhelming.

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  11. My cleaning tip to save time is to do a little bit every day so that it doesn't just dump on you all at once! And I like to keep my cleaning supplies well organized so that when I need something I can just grab it and be done.
    lily25210507 at gmail dot com

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  12. I crank up some music real loud and then go at it...the music makes it fun when I clean...I also save the folding laundry for night time when I am settling down and watching tv...I fold the laundry while watching tv..I always feel like I can be productive while mindlessly watching a show

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  13. I tweeted the giveaway @lily2521
    https://twitter.com/lily2521/status/276712536353693696
    lily25210507 at gmail dot com

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  14. My cleaning tip? Hiring a cleaning crew to come 2x per month! :)

    Ahem... with three cats, however, that doesn't even begin to help with all the shedding. Wood floors are conducive to cat-hair-tumbleweeds, so I vacuum and sweep nearly every day. *sigh* I would love this thing! (I think my cats would too!)

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  15. Besides hardwood floors in my house I also have a Glass shower door! HATE! Water spots are the worst and take forever to keep clean! To save time I try and use a magic eraser -bathroom one- every other few days to keep it at bay between cleanings so that when I have to do the big job it's a little easier.

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  16. Pick me! Pick me! With a 4 year old, an 80 pound black lab, and a husband who doesn't quite help out I could really use one of these little helpers!

    My husband and I have people over on a regular basis. This is our motivation to keep the house clean! Other than that I just try and do a little bit each night so it doesn't pile up. I especially try to keep the kitchen clean. It's amazing the difference that makes. I feel if the kitchen is clean it doesn't seem as obvious the rest of the house isn't quite as neat.

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  17. My cleaning tip is to take 10 minutes a day and THROW away the garbage! I have a habit of just setting it aside to go through later. Just TOSS or donate the papers and other things that accumulate that you NEVER use! LOL.

    With a husband and 4 kids, this would be amazing! :) Thanks for the chance to win!

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  18. My entire house is hardwood, and with my cat that sheds crazy amounts, I am under couches, desks, and beds every single week with the vacuum. This would be super helpful!

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  19. Tweet: https://twitter.com/4649miranda/status/276719389917724672

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  20. Facebook share: https://www.facebook.com/miranda.welle/posts/456876691037445

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  21. Oh, I'm taking a shot in the dark here, out of desperation! Our floors are my #1 BIGGEST headache - constantly dirty and never time to adequately clean them.

    My only time-saving cleaning tip is a lazy one: the Swiffer 360* duster is a lifesaver for getting at our floorboards, ceiling fans, and even a quick dust over the furniture every few days. It doesn't deep-clean, but it rids things of dust in about 5 minutes flat so the house at least looks presentable during the week :)

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  22. My number one cleaning tip, is I use a Norwex microfiber cloth. They are amazing and can clean up almost anything!

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  23. 100% pure therapeutic grade essential oil products from "Young Living" my favorite is the "Thieves" line, they have many essential oils to solve cleaning dilemmas and for over all health!

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  24. I agree with the norwex comment! Also, I save my used dryer sheets to dust with. Another tip I have is using a lemonade packet to clean the dishwasher. Just put it in the soap dispenser and run an empty load.

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  25. I want this iRobot mint So, SO, SO, bad! My home has all hardwood flooring. We have a dog with health problems that create excessive shedding. Right now the biggest time saving tip I have at my disposal is the swifter. Winning this would make my life so much easier.

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  26. I make my 7 year old mop the floors for me. This would save both of us time.

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  27. I like that you can use re-usable cloths with iRobot. I use Norwex products and vinegar and water on my floors and surfaces.

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  28. Do 10 minutes of cleaning in each room or area so your not overwhelmed!

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  29. My cleaning tip is to clean up a little every night when the kiddo goes to sleep (at least clean that day's destruction!). That way, you wake to a semi-clean house and well, there will be less of a mess at the end of that day. So, not very helpful afterall. THIS would be helpful to our household. We have FOUR furkids and one almost 2 year old who likes to pull the fur off the furkids.

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  30. I would love this thing!

    I tried the Pinterest thing - took a dish scrubber and filled half of it with dawn dish soap and the other half with vinegar. I used it on the shower doors when I was in there and it worked great and was super easy!!

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  31. I would love this for my wood floors! My cleaning tip is to buy a black and decker dust buster. It is portable and my kids love to use it! Best investment with two little kids.

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  32. 2 kiddos + 2 kitties = messy floors!

    My cleaning tip: Use a 3M Pet Hair Roller (the kind with the wide disposable strips of tape) on your lamp shades, curtains, fake plants, corners of area rugs that you don't want sucked up in the vacuum cleaner, and best use of all - when the little ones spill glitter all over everything (works like a charm!).

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  33. I love my Norwex cloths.... no chemicals, just water and works the BEST on windows.

    I have always wondered about how well a robot vacuum would work. Like you I have a large area with hardwood floors. But with cats....will the hair clog up the wheels?

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  34. Boiling water and vinegar in the microwave to get off the "gunk".

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  35. spraying your kitchen counters with mrs. Meyers lemon verbena spray. Leaves your kitchen smelling amazing!

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  36. Cleaning tip: turn on Pandora on the TV, throw baby in the high chair and go! My son loves to watch all the action and bop along to the music, so we'll put him in his chair for lunch, my husband will vacuum and I'll follow with the mop. It's really a time based game because you have to be finished before the baby starts flinging his food (aka letting us know he's finished). We'll usually let him crawl on the couch with us until the floors are dry - then it's back to life :) (email in case of winning: galleacct@gmail.com)

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  37. I like to use a cleaning schedule. It keeps my stress level down and makes it so I can enjoy the rest of the time playing with my son without thinking about it. I also like to vacuum crumbs and clean counter tops right away since we constantly have ants here in Hawaii. Also, Oxyclean works great for stained kids clothes along with the sun!

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  38. I have attempted to make it my goal in 2013 to become more organized and find a better schedule to cleaning! I love picking up the days mess when my daughter goes to bed, and with three dogs and a 16 month old, this irobot would be simply amazing!

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  39. I always do towels on Tuesday...otherwise I forget and never change them. Towel Tuesday. Easy to remember!

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  40. Wow! What a wonderful giveaway! I try to clean every day so I don't have to spend tons of time at once, just a little a day seems more bearable to me :)
    alaineelise at gmail dot com

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  41. I take 20mins every evening after putting my lil guy down to straighten up and fold a load of laundry!! Helps a lot!

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  42. What a great invention! Would be thrilled to win this! Thank you for the chance!

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  43. I boil a cup of water in the microwave before I clean it...everything wipes out with out having to scrub it clean! The water loosens all the junk stuck in the microwave so it is very easy to clean!

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  44. I will share 2. One I just saw on Pinterest and the other I learned from my MIL. The Pinterest tip is after using a blender add some hot water and dish soap. Blend it and your blender is CLEAN! My MIL tip is putting the kitchen sponge in the microwave. Wet of course. I do 40 seconds then I can easily wipe my microwave clean ans the sponge is disinfected. Hope this helps someone!

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  45. https://twitter.com/theleakysippy/status/277205061191495681

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  46. https://www.facebook.com/theleakysippy/posts/383388258409748

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  47. My cleaning tip is microfiber cloths - they are good for cleaning, scrubbing, and dusting. I bought mine in a huge pack at Costco (in the automotive section)!
    This would be great for my hardwoods :)

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  48. I try to do a little bit every day so it doesn't get overwhelming. I do some tidying every morning and try to make sure the kitchen gets cleaned promptly so the dishes don't pile up.

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  49. I tweeted
    https://twitter.com/OliviaLasting/status/277224777326923776

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  50. Do you know those dish sponges that hold the soap in the handle? Put cleaner in the handle instead and leave it in your shower. Those pesky shots you see while you are in there don't stand a chance!

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  51. Tweet

    https://twitter.com/jillyrh/status/277301995252109313

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  52. There is only three of us, me my husband and my 2 ½ year old, but man do our carpets get dirty!! The dirt we can't see is even scary. We love to sprinkle a powered on our carpets before we vacuum to help make not only our carpets smell good but also that room!!

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  53. Magic Eraser works great on crayon marks, marker, pencil marks, etc. Kindergarten teacher tested in the classroom on many occasions! At home, I enlist the help of the entire family to make the jobs go faster. Everyone has to help!

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  54. What an awesome giveaway! I am vacuuming everyday now since my little one is crawling. I make it a game with her: it gets her exercise and practice crawling and I get the floors clean.

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  55. I try and clean just a little everyday so it doesn't pile up.

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  56. Our children are young adults now, but...we have three small, very furry dogs. I would love to have this to help keep up on the puffs of fur on our wood floors!

    ~Lanae
    Social Networking Nanny

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  57. I have all wood floors in my house. My only tips is that if you have pets (cats or dogs) get a Furminator! When my pups are shedding, I take them outside and brush them until there are piles of fur. It really helps keep the fur off the floor and out of my little guys hands and toys. Ick!

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  58. With 2 dogs and 2 kids under 4, I vacuum twice a week to keep the fur in check! Would love this little helper robot!

    ~Kristine

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  59. Well I don't have any kids but I have a cat and a dog who shed like nuts. What I do everyday is when I go from room to room I make sure that I pick up something whenever I get up. Pretty hard with all of my dogs toys but I make it manage. He usually gives up after six time of me putting his toys away.

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  60. This would be so great to sweep up after the dog.

    lovelydomesticdiva (at) gmail (dot) com

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  61. Dedicate 15 minutes every day to some kind of chore. Doesn't matter what. Just stick to it for 15 minutes and that chores list will be MUCH shorter at the end of the week.

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  62. I have four kids, two cats, and a dog. I would love to win this just so I could keep up with my floors!! I don't have any cleaning tricks, I just like to do the cleaning during nap time because my house will actually stay clean longer than 10 minutes :) Ha!

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  63. Not a salesperson for them but I do love the Norwex microfiber rag especially for cleaning the toilets of my 3 little boys that don't seem to know how to aim :-)

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  64. I absolutely hate cleaning out the microwave, especially when something has exploded in it! But I've found that if you put a glass mug of water and heat it for a few minutes, the steam loosens up all the nasty stuff stuck in the microwave and it's super easy to just wipe down! Works everytime!!!!

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  65. My favorite cleaning tip is to make sure to have your kids help you! My toddler LOVES to help wash the floor!

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  66. My four year old helps by putting his folded laundry away. I can't think of who would enjoy this more: me since it would clean my floors, or my kids and dog who would probably be totally entranced by it!:)

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  67. I use a swiffer vac on the hard wood floors every three days. We have a dog that sheds more than any other dog in the world. I hope I don't get too overstressed about the clean floors when the baby comes in June! I already stress enough about it now.

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  68. A bowl of hot water in the microwave, run on high for 2 minutes, leave sit with door closed for 2 more minutes after running, steams crud off, wipe clean and you're done!

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  69. posted and tagged on Facebook, and twitter!

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  70. My hardwood floors are only clean for 10 minutes after the cleaning lady comes! In between cleanings, I sweep sweep sweep, all day long. Sweep sweep sweep while I sing this song ;) Love all these great tips!!!

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  71. lately my favorite cleaning products are any kind of wipes...because I can hand them to my kids and say dust?clean something! Little ones love to help clean and its a easy way for them to help!!

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  72. My favorite cleaning appliance is the Dyson pet vac. Amazing!

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  73. My Favorite thing for cleaning is my Norwex window cloths. i know i can clean everything with them, but i wash all my mirrors, and glass with them and just water. its amazing that it can clean better than windex but with only water. i love my norwex!!

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  74. My favorite cleaning supply is bleach....probably a nurse thing but i know it will kill the worst of the worst germs in our gouse


    Andrea "Sogla" Iverson

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  75. Favorite cleaning appliance is my 2 children and my husband...make them help!

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  76. Favorite cleaning products are from the Mrs. Meyers line - love their scents!

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  77. We like Pledge...it can not only be used on all of our wood furniture, but it is also great at cleaning fingerprints off our stainless steal appliances and shining the rims on our car :D

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  78. Just a paper towel to pick up hair off the bathroom floor, but I would LOVE an IRobot

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  79. My favorite cleaning appliance is simply our dishwasher. I cannot imagine life without one with our family of five!

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  80. I hate cleaning! And the hubs does most of it thankfully! But I love using wipes. They are so easy to use and get ride of!

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  81. My favorite tool is the Mr. Clean magic eraser. I really feel that it is magical with all of the stuff it cleans. I'm always taking one to the walls (with two little ones the dirt seems to accumulate quickly.)

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  82. My favorite appliance is our Dirt Devil Versa Power Stick. Here in Hawaii we have all of our windows open all day, creating a lot of dust and debris. I also have a 14 month old son who drops tons of crumbs all the time. I actually use it at least once a day on the whole house and sometimes a second time. It just picks up more on the hardwood floors than our bigger vacuum can.

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  83. Alcohol. Rubbing alcohol takes the stain out and a good glass of beer or wine makes cleaning more enjoyable. :-)

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  84. Someone else mentioned Norwex... I was just introduced to Norwex in December. I'm hooked! I have an enviro-cloth for each room (bathroom, kitchen, familyroom, etc.) and with just a little water I'm off and running. I also use the enviro cloth body on Dalton which is amazing because i'm not putting chemicals on him to clean him up. Just water and wipe away!

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  85. Right now my favorite cleaning tool is my swiffer vacuum because our dog sheds more than any other dog in the world. I have to do our floors every other day. When our baby comes in June it might have to be everyday!

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  86. Disinfecting wipes - hands down. They are so quick and easy for anything that is needed.

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  87. My favorite appliance is my Dyson vacuum. It's amazing what it sucks up. With three kids and a dog I use it everyday sometimes 2 or 3 times!

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  88. My favorite cleaning products are Norwex cloths.

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  89. I mentioned the 3M Pet Hair roller for several purposes in my earlier post, but I need to add the Pledge Pet Roller. You can have pet hair-free furniture (and area rugs) in about two minutes (when the unexpected call comes that a visitor is "in the neighborhood and wants to drop by"). Very, very handy!

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  90. I love my Shark Steam Mop. It's the only thing I have found that doesn't leave visible streaks on my hardwood floor!

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  91. my favorite appliance is the dishwasher, hands down! And honestly, my least favorite chore to do around the house is washing the kitchen floors, so winning an iRobot would be absolutely amazing. Thanks for the chance to win!

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  92. water + vinegar or baking soda usually does the trick!

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  93. My favorite cleaning product would have to be the clorox wipes that have the two sides. One is rough for those tough clean ups and the other side is smooth. I use them all the time in my kitchen and bathrooms! With 3 dogs and 2 kiddos I would LOVE the iRobot to help clean my floors clean! My floors do not stay clean for very long!

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  94. My favorite cleaning appliance is hands down the dishwasher! It's a portable, yet still gets the job done and allows me to do something else!

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  95. Vinegar, water and a rag are my go to's for cleaning.

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  96. My vacuum...we have 4 pets and a messy boy...wouldn't want to live without it =)

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  97. My norwex cloth is my favorite cleaning product. No chemicals! No paper towel waste.

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  98. My favorite products are scrubbing bubbles for the showers and sinks and windex multi-surface for everything else. I keep that and a roll of paper towels under the sink in the kitchen and all of the bathrooms. I've been looking at the irobot because I'm tired of cleaning my floors constantly. I have a golden retriever and 3 boys and one being a crawler. By the end of the day my poor son looks like a swifter pad.

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  99. My current favorite cleaning product is Swiffer. With two kiddos and two dogs, it's the only way I can keep my floors clean. :) I'd LOVE to win an iRobot Mint - that would make this momma's life a little easier. :)

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  100. I love my Dyson vacuum and Norwex cloths! You can clean everything in the house with the cloth and water! I like that my kids can help clean without using chemicals.

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  101. We have a new puppy (a lab puppy) which means our wood floors are ALWAYS dirty! My time saver is to just leave them be and only clean them once a week, even though it drives me crazy! I would love this robot helper!!!

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  102. I discovered that the liquid dishwasher detergent is great for cutting scum in the bathtub! You just rub it on and let is sit for a while as you go about cleaning other things, and then when you come back to it, it just washes right up.

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  103. I love the swiffer systems. Hard wood floors get so dirty in the winter and swiffer makes them easy to clean and quick which is needed when you have 4 kids!!!!

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  104. I LOVE Norwex products! They work awesome and do not have the harsh chemicals!

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  105. Nowex cleaning cloths. streak free windows!

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  106. I just get the job done as quickly as I can with whatever I have on hand.

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  107. My favorite cleaning products are baking soda and vinegar!

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  108. I love my Shark Navigator Lift Away vacuum!

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  109. My seamer is my favorite thing ever! With 3 kids and a large dog it is out and being used almost every night.

    fritzfacts at gmail dot com

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  110. I have some hardwood floor and I hate cleaning them. All the crumbs, hair, dust etc. I feel like I am cleaning them every day!

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  111. My favorite cleaning product is anything from the Method line. Having a new baby in the house has made me more aware of the negative impact harsh cleaning chemicals can have, so I love that the Method products are all natural. Oh...and I also LOVE my Dyson, sometimes I find myself vacuuming just for fun. Lame, right?!

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  112. My fave appliance is for sure my dishwasher!! =)

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  113. My favorite cleaning appliance was my Hoover Floormate. We have all wood floors and vinyl in the kitchen. No carpet anywhere. It worked great, but after a year it started leaking water everywhere! I was so bummed. It worked great when it was actually working. Now it is back to the old fashioned broom and mop.

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  114. Would love one of these to clean up the paw prints from our 3 little furbabies :-)

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  115. My newest favorite cleaning products have been the Seventh Generation natural products- we have switched to using their dish soap,bathroom cleaner and toilet bowl cleaner. I feel better using natural products, especially with my little one moving around and his new found interest in the bathroom and all things Potty! I would LOVE to have the irobot to help me get the floors clean so I can spend more time playing with the kiddos and NOT cleaning! :)

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  116. Ahhh I want this so bad!! I love Clorox wipes! So quick and easy!

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