Celebrating green cleaning on Vinegar Friday

Photo by Shari Weinsheimer

TGIVF! 

It's late in the day for me to be writing a post, but somehow the day slipped by and I just didn't have the opportunity. So, how has your Vinegar Friday been? 

Today, as I worked in my office, I was so happy to be free of any chemical smells as my daughter, Jess, cleaned my bathroom. She is still at it right now, washing the floor. 

A few years ago, before we knew any better, I would have to leave the house when she cleaned because the smell of Scrubbing Bubbles would literally make me sick. I don't know how she survived inhaling that stuff for so long. Now, we both better. If she's not using a steamer or a Norwex cloth (both with plain water), she's reaching for the jug of distilled white vinegar. When she's done, the bathroom is sparkling and germ-free. And I no longer have to leave the house.

I'm grateful for my green-cleaning daughter, who exchanges favors with me for cleaning. I watch Laura, she cleans. She borrows the car, she cleans. It's a good deal ... at least for me. Especially now that she does it without the use of toxic chemicals that trigger a) my asthma, b) a migraine and/or c) my Epstein-Barr, which is particularly sensitive to chemicals. 

Vinegar has literally changed my life. You see, I used to use products containing ammonia, bleach, glycols, naphthalene, lye, petroleum distillates and formaldehyde. It makes me cringe just thinking about it. 

When's the last time you took a look at the ingredients in your cleaning products? If you haven't made the switch over to vinegar, maybe it's time to do so... especially if you have small children in your home. The American Association of Poison Control Centers' annual report released figures for 2007 stating that over 14,000 children were poisoned by chlorine bleach. That's a startling figure, don't you think?

The list of issues I have with the above mentioned chemicals goes on and on. If you want to find out more about the dangers and the alternatives, I suggest picking up a copy of Vinegar Fridays on Lulu.com (where through midnight today you can get 70% ground shipping) or Amazon.com.

In the meantime, you can peruse this site for the uses for vinegar ... after all, the Vinegar Fridays feature has been around for a pretty long time now.

Enjoy what's left of this beautiful Vinegar Friday and have a fabulous weekend.

Keeping it green with vinegar,

Hana