For oil, make sure you’re working with dry fabric; pre-treatment, water will just trap the stain in the cloth. Blot up as much grease as possible. Then rub in some of your favorite dish soap. (Hey, it’s designed to wash away grease.) Let sit for five minutes. Rinse with warm water, then wash in the hottest water possible with detergent and Oxiclean. Air dry, check for stains, and repeat process if necessary. Don’t use a dryer until the stain is gone.
For candle wax, let harden and scrape away as much as possible with a spoon or butter knife. Heat an iron to low heat. Sandwich stained fabric between sheets of brown paper or paper towels and iron until the wax residue is gone. Replace paper as necessary. Wash with detergent and Oxiclean.
Dollar Store Deals
It’s winter. The nights are long and cold. Your kids haven’t been outside in a week and your sanity is slipping. Salvation is at hand! Head to the dollar store, my friend. Here’s what to stock for simple, inexpensive activities that will keep everyone happy.
- Check out the selection of miniature cooking tools for your play kitchen and pick up a few sets of tongs. Have your little one sort pompoms by color using mini tongs to strengthen fine motor skills. Challenge everyone to clean up the living room without touching any toys with their hands. Design a wacky race. Everything is more fun when you’re using a knipper!
- While you’re there, grab some measuring cups and spoons, dish basins, and maybe some strainers. These are great for sensory play with any material, be it water, sand, snow, or something more exotic. Oh, and take a few cookie sheets. They’re perfect for magnetic play, especially in the car, and they also help contain painting messes.
- Moving on to the food aisle: Pick up cornstarch and baking soda for slimes, snows, and science experiments of all sorts. You’ll also find coffee filters here. Use them for snowflakes, flowers, butterflies… There are a gazillion things you can do with thin, precut paper circles. If you’re brave enough to allow food coloring as a craft supply, take a box, but know that it’s exceedingly non-washable.
- Toiletries next! Buy lots of shaving cream. Use it to keep the little ones happy at bath time, and feel free to keep dispensing as you read Mishpacha beside the tub. (Guilty!) If you’re a sensory-play sort of family, get conditioner and baby oil, for making cloud doughs, clays, and snows.
- Check out the office-supply and craft-supply aisle, making sure not to miss the stickers (I like the boxed rolls in the school section), and if you’re up for painting projects, the canvases. Take a look at the coloring and activity books to see what works for you.
- Before you leave, find some spray bottles (check the utility, cleaning, and hair-supply sections). Have the kidoodles “help” you clean, stage a bathtub water fight, or add food coloring and paint some snow — the possibilities are endless!
(Originally featured in Family First, Issue 721)
