BEING a parent is a rewarding job – but almost every mum would admit that the daily grind can be infuriating.
From a constant stream of odd and lost socks to grubby whites that are seemingly impossible to clean – not to mention the sweaty PE kits ponging out the hallway – the list of pet peeves can be endless.
Thankfully, there’s some simple hacks to solve those daily dilemmas and make life easier.
Here, ‘mumfluencer’ and mum-of-four Casey Major-Bunce and Smol sustainable cleaning guru and mum-of-three Catherine Green share the problems that drive them mad – and what you can do to solve them…
As most parents can probably testify, there really is nothing more annoying than trying to get grubby socks white again.
Catherine says: “Who made school socks white?!
“Luckily, you have two great options here.
“Wash them at 40°C with one or two dishwasher tablets, no need for extra detergent.
“Or, if you don’t have dishwasher tablets, soak them in a bowl of warm water with a few tablespoons of bicarbonate of soda.
“Then rinse and wash as normal.”
Casey adds: “You can also keep kids whites looking white with a denture tablet.
“Pop all the whites in a bucket of water and pop in one denture tablet and soak.”
There are other pesky marks that are tricky to clean out of kids’ clothes too, like grass stains.
Casey Major-Bunce says: “Get a bucket of cold water and pop some dish washing liquid in – around three squirts.
“Add the kid’s clothes to it and leave for 24 hours to soak.
“For really tough stains add the dish soap directly to things like grass stains and leave for three hours.”
Alternatively, Catherine says: “Grass can be one of the toughest stains to get out but a good quality biological detergent or stain gel should remove most marks.
“If the grass stain is really stubborn though, sit the shirt in a solution of one part distilled white vinegar to one part warm water.
“After half an hour, rinse the shirt and then wash as normal.
“For stains like Weetabix – this stuff is like cement.
“My top tip is NEVER leave it to dry.
“Wipe tables or highchairs immediately after feeding and don’t leave bowls or cutlery in the dishwasher for the day.
“If you aren’t going to wash it up at the time – leave it to soak and save yourself hours of scrubbing!
“And if it’s on clothing – soak them in warm soapy water so the food can be softened and removed before washing as normal.”
Football boots, damp cross country kit, sweaty gym shorts… no wonder our kids’ games bags can smell so bad, even after the kit is cleaned.
Catherine says: “Add a tablespoon of vinegar and one of bicarbonate of soda to a warm cup of water.
“Rub the solution over the inside of the bag with a cloth.
“The vinegar gets rid of bacteria and the bicarb is a great deodoriser.
“For an extra boost, sprinkle extra bicarb in the bag and leave it over the weekend, then shake it out into the bin and give it a quick wipe.”
Casey says: “You can also add a dryer sheet to the bottom of the bag and keep it smelling lovely for a few weeks.”
Another baffling issue is how to stop school lunch boxes from stinking.
Casey says: “On a Friday night add two tablespoons of baking soda, no water, and then close and fasten the lunch box or bag.
“Give it a shake and leave over the weekend.
“Wash out on a Sunday, and it will be completely odour free.”
The age-old problem – little finger prints all over your lovely, clean windows and mirrors.
Catherine says: “Aside from regular hand washing, it’s pretty hard to prevent our little ones’ sticky smears and fingerprints.
“But washing up liquid is your friend.
“Fill an empty, clean spray bottle with warm water and a small squirt of dish soap – you’ll only need about a teaspoon or so per 500ml of water.
“Spray sparingly onto the marks and wipe with a dry microfibre cloth.”
It’s always a total mystery how two socks can go into the wash, only for one to emerge after, but it happens regularly.
Casey says: “Attached to my laundry basket is a laundry bag with a peg, so the kids can pop their socks in the laundry bag.
“I then wash the socks all together in the laundry bag.
“This stops it getting mixed in with all the washing, and I then dry them the same way – so we never lose a sock again.”
How often have you searched high and low for something, only for it to have rolled – out of reach – under your heavy, hard to move sofa?
Casey says: “How I solve this is using a cheap £2 pool noodle.
“I half it in size (depending on the sofa) and I stick it under so you can’t see it but toys won’t go to the back and get lost.
“That way you can easily remove them without lifting your sofa.”
Another common problem is sitting down to relax in front of the TV after a long day, only to discover the TV remote is missing.
Casey says: “I attach a velcro strip on the back of my remote and also a velcro strip on the side of my sofa.
“That way I can attach my remote to the sofa so it doesn’t fall down the side and get lost.”
