Busy Wife

CarryWell 10-Piece Reusable Grocery Bag Set

This post went up earlier than planned this week (I forgot I’d scheduled some posts ahead of time). I’d yet to update the text, so I’m doing that now. 😇

I received this Carry Well Grocery Bag System to review and I love it.  It’s really the only way I plan to shop for groceries from now on.  I know there may be a few occasions where we stop unexpectedly, but these will be the new standard for Team B Henry’s weekly grocery trips. 😉

Brandon was never a fan of using regular grocery bags and, although it took me a while, I eventually adjusted to his preference.  Initially, I liked having bags to use for smaller trash containers and random household tasks, but I’m at a point now where I just don’t like having them around– there’s never a good place to store them and we always end up with SOOOOOOOOO MANY!

Flashback to my life in NC:  I adored my Harris Teeter shopping bags and had a regular routine of shopping with my reusable store totes. I lost a good bit of my old faithful bags when my car was flooded in Mississippi.  I used to leave them in the trunk so that I always had them on hand when I went to the store, and the flood destroyed them. 😦

Fast-forward to present day:  I’ve included a series of photos from one of our recent grocery trips with the bags in action. 

The bags arrived in this box.  You can see the actual chevron pattern through the cardboard.

I’ve used reusable grocery bags before, but I’ve never had any that came with a bag to carry and store them all!

This liner goes in the bottom of the bag.  When not in use for storage, the chevron bag is purposed for carrying glass or wine bottles.

These produce bags come tucked inside the outside pockets on each side of the chevron patterned bag. You can also use these pockets to hold coupons, your shopping list, or your wallet.

Heading to the grocery store!

I love buying veggies in the summer, but hate the store bags. I filled up the two produce bags with fresh corn.  This is a snapshot of our cart in the checkout line.

I brought all those bags in in ONE trip. They’re just that sturdy and really helped me distribute the weight evenly. And this trip included 10 ears of corn, a 1 gallon jug of Simply Lemonade, a gallon of milk, 2 containers of Cool Whip and whole lot more!

 The bags also made me plan ahead in the checkout line to make sure that my frozen items were all together for the freezer bag and that like items were bagged together. 

As a result, I was able to unload the groceries and put everything away in under 30 minutes–Having everything pre-grouped meant a quick transfer to the fridge/pantry and then the bag was back on the utility rack!

One last feature of the system, the strap includes a snap wrap that allows you to hang the bag from your shopping cart handle while you’re completing your purchase (that way the bags don’t take up space in your cart). It’s hanging from that wrap in the photo below. Isn’t that neat!?! They thought of EVERYTHING! 

www.FixItWithFran.com

Green Cleaning Made Easy: Tile Grout Cleaning Tips

I’ve started what will be the first of many Pinterest cleaning experiments.

I know we all pin various tips, but how often do we ACTUALLY try them?  Few and far between, right?

I have had a good bit of success with the pointers I find on Pinterest.  That may be sheer luck or coincidence, but I like to think that my critical thinking skills and knack for analysis allow me to complete a quick review of a potential pin and eliminate those that aren’t going to work.  (It’s probably just chance, though 😂).

Since I’m working on posting more frequently,  I’ll share those tips that work really well and those that work after I make a few adjustments.

One of my most recent experiments was cleaning our guest bathroom floor tile grout.

When I saw the ingredients to this cleaning aid on Pinterest, I was hopeful that it would resolve my issue. Here’s the recipe:

  • 2 tsp. Baking Soda
  • 4 Tbsp. White Vinegar
  • 1/2 tsp. Dish Detergent
  • 2 cups of Water

You can purchase a cheap spray bottle to use to create this solution or reuse an empty bottle (like I did). 😉

The baking soda and vinegar have a natural chemical reaction, so I recommend mixing this with the bottle in your bathroom/kitchen sink.

The tile grout in this particular bathroom has been off-colored since we moved into our home. Despite my routine cleaning, nothing seemed to help the strange stain. I was about to clean the bathroom recently and decided it was time to try another method.

Here’s my process in photos:

The floor stain before:

I used a toothbrush to really work the solution in. If you look closely, you can see the dirt beginning to move! 😄

The before (left) and after  (right):

It worked!  The grout looks soooooooooooooo much better and I’m sure it will continue to lighten with a few more scrubbing sessions!

The baking soda does leave a bit of a residue on the tile, so I recommend using this spray and allowing it to dry overnight and mopping the floor on the following day.

Book Review: After the Boxes are Unpacked

This text is so timely for me. Over the last 4 years,  I have done two moves, crossing multiple-states and each experience was so trying in its own way.

I now live in a new city and state, far away from many of my loved ones and family and friends. The experience was painful at times, but God has and continues to use it to produce good fruit in my life and the overall process of relocation and resettling helped me to mature significantly while focusing on God and my faith as the consistent thread of my life despite seasons of constant change and uncertainty.

I greatly appreciated the author’s take on moving, relocation and taking up residence in a new city while incorporating biblical principles and encouragement from the scriptures. Moreover, I truly valued these from the perspective of a new/young wife as this was the cause of my most recent (and prayerfully final) move.

I would recommend this text to anyone looking to find peace in the midst of the chaos that is moving. What I have also learned is this truth: After the boxes are unpacked, there is sometimes a feeling that something is “still missing” — despite our labor to have all of the curtains hung and every item in place.

There is a sense of place and belonging that God gives us through that quiet study time and reflection that we must always remember to carve out time for, DAILY. This book is a great tool to use during that time.  After the boxes are unpacked, rest, re-center, and seek God’s direction for this next chapter of your life.

I’m praying for you.

I received a free copy of this text this with the understanding that I would provide my honest review and unbiased opinion via a review that I would post to this site. I am very much dedicated to providing high quality, honest and thorough reviews and plan to update this post in the future if my continued use of this product causes my critique to change in any way.

Sweets for My Sweetheart — The Semi-Homemade Way!

This muffin pan kit arrived just in time for Valentine’s Day!  My husband is a pretty simple man, all he desired for Valentine’s Day was his favorite dessert: Yellow Cupcakes with Chocolate Icing! Our schedule was jam packed, so I used one of my “semi-homemade” recipes (Cake mix with a little something extra– read through the post to get my baking tip).  The cupcake pan is super cute and I loved that this really came with everything you’d need to make cupcakes (short of a bowl and the ingredients).

The liners were attractive and of good quality and I was able to support the pan with a simple cookie sheet or you could choose to use a shallow baking dish or a pizza pan if you don’t have a cookie sheet in your baking collection.  This would be a cute gift to send to a college student or a friend for a “galentines day” token of appreciation.  Overall, I was very happy with this item.

Here’s my “Semi-Homemade” Baking Tip:  I use Betty Crocker Super Moist Butter Recipe Yellow Cake Mix cake when I’m in a pinch– and to make it taste closer to homemade, I add in a box of Vanilla Jello Pudding— nothing extra– just make the cake according to the cake box directions.

The pudding really does make a difference!  You’ll thank me later!