Handy Tips for Homemakers

Ever wake up and think, "I just need to tear something apart?"  Happens to me all the time.  Perhaps it's the 5 year itch, 5 years of my quazi-retirement, 5 years of pent up work, 5 years of toy cars and Dr. Seuss...but today I saw this corner of my bedroom and knew what my next victim would be. 

By the time Axel crawled out of bed this morning his only greeting was, "We're gonna need the pry-bar."

"It's called a Wonder Bar, Mom."

Here's what happened before noon today.

Because I'm all about turning a "honey do" list into a "honey I'll do it" list, I've decided to let you in on the five P's of carpet removal.

Pull - Grab the carpet in on corner and literally pull it back.  Start a roll along one wall and it is literally like making a Swiss Cake Roll.

Peel - Like peeling a scab, it feels so good to roll up both the carpet and the pad, revealing what you hope is an undamaged floor.

Pinch - There will be staples on the edges of the carpet pad, pinch them with a vertical pliers and pull straight up.

Pry - You will be left with nasty tack strips all around the edges.  Find a place to start – where you see a nail (going down into the floor) use your Wonder Bar + hammer.  (Notice my leather addition to the hammer...making it more nap-friendly...every good homemaker knows that you get "MORE DONE with LESS HELP.")

Polish - Although I cannot specifically recommend you do this (for liability reasons), use a bit of Pledge on your floors, especially the molding.  While it does create an incredibly slippery surface (no socks allowed), it will give a nice shine for your big reveal.

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"Do you think Dad will be mad?"

"No way.  Let's just do it."

This my friends is why my husband is a little afraid to go to work each day.  My projects don't always go this well.  In fact, there's often about 70% of the project to finish when he gets home.  Today he's lucky.  We succeeded, we've checked something off the list, all before noon...did I mention I was wearing a dress?