The Amazing Dryer Balls

Has anyone out there tried these?

My mom was buying herself some and kindly thought of her daughter, the Laundry Queen. So I was the proud owner of the Amazing Dryer Balls.

The packaging states that these little blue rubbery nubby balls have the following features:

• Naturally soften fabrics without the use of harmful and irritating chemicals
• Made of PVC plastic to withstand high heat
• Cuts drying time by up to 25%
• Reduces lint and ironing
• Safe for ALL fabrics - jeans, towels, even your delicates

So I declared Thursday to be the Offical Greene Family Dryer Ball Testing Day(known in some circles as the OGFDBTD) with my laundry room serving as the Official Facility.

What do I think? Well, I think they work okay. I'll examine the above features:

1. "Naturally soften fabrics without the use of harmful and irritating chemicals." Well, they did seem to somewhat soften the fabrics. Everything seemed, well, kind of fluffy, and definitely less wrinkly. There is a picture on the packaging of a stack of towels dried with and without the fabric balls. I did two or three loads of the towels and they didn't triple in size like in the picture but they seemed a little fluffier and kind of soft.

2. "Made of PVC Plastic to Withstand High Heat." I didn't test what they were made of. They did seem to withstand the high heat just fine!

3. "Cuts Drying Time By 25%." This one was hard to test. My dryer just tells me when my clothes are dry, and if I happen to look at the time right when I start the dryer and right when it's done, I know how long it took. But since some loads take longer than other loads (towels and jeans take longer, large loads take longer, and cold wash loads take longer), it was hard to assess how much it cut the drying time. That said, I got about 2 more loads done total than I can usually do in a school day (I think I did 7-8 loads, when usually I do 5-6). So I'm pretty sure it was faster.

4. "Reduces Lint and Ironing." This, too, is hard to quantitatively assess (the lint anyway). I didn't really notice my lint screen looking particularly empty. As for the ironing, everything seemed much less wrinkly. I don't actually EVER iron ANYTHING . . . but that's another subject and I don't want to digress that far.

5. "Safe for All Fabrics: Jeans, Towels and even your Delicates." I didn't have that many delicates but I did use the balls in all the loads (and in all the loads I have done since then) and nothing was destroyed.

Other points:

• The dryer balls seem kind of loud at first, like you are drying tennis shoes, but the rubber softens as they heat up and then you can't hear them.
• Some online users complain that the balls got stuck in pants legs and sleeves, and even in large hems, stretching them into a round ball shape. I didn't have to search for the balls at all so this wasn't a problem for me.
• Use both balls at once. I saw the package and thought, "cool, I love 2-packs" and ran the first load with only one ball. Then I figured out that they are supposed to be used together. Darn.
• Since the point of the balls is to soften your clothes without using the chemical-laden dryer sheets, some people are comparing how your laundry comes out compared to the dryer sheets. Obviously the balls aren't going to make your clothes smell like Spring Blossoms or Mountain Springs since they are just plain rubber. So you might miss the fresh smell of dryer sheets. However, as a parent of Children With Eczema, I never use dryer sheets anyway.

I think that these balls work pretty well and would be a good buy. Using them would save money in several ways: (1) the cost of the dryer sheets and fabric softeners, if you use them (2) decreases your drying time, therefore reducing your utility costs. They are ecologically friendly and of course will not irritate my babies' or other childrens' skin.

I give this product a thumbs-up. I think they cost about $10 at drugstores.

Anyone else have any thoughts or experience with these Amazing Dryer Balls?

Grandmommy

Well, if there is anyone left checking this blog, it's a MIRACLE!! I know I have been gone for a long time and haven't posted in TEN days!

My last post was Monday, December 3rd. On Tuesday, the 4th, I lost my grandmother. I will miss her so much. She was battling a number of conditions, but none (we thought) immediately life-threatening. Diabetes, thyroid, Grave's disease, some short-term memory loss and a nearly-healed broken ankle.

Grandmommy (as we grandkids called her) was such a special lady and the one who spoiled me the most as a child. When I wanted to run away, I imagined running to her. When the world seemed to be turning on me, I knew she loved me with a love that was fierce and strong and proud and unconditional.

It's hard to lose someone who loves you that much.

Though she had lived in Midland since I was born, just recently she moved to a nursing home in Conroe to be closer to my aunt. I vowed that since I had missed visiting with her enough due to the many miles between us, that I would go once a week and visit her. After a few trips (1 hr 15 minutes each way) that I took on my days off work, I was thinking selfishly, "wow, that's kind of a big commitment, I sure am driving a lot, etc.). I had no idea that my visits were very numbered.

My last visit with her was Saturday, three days before she died. Though previous visits had been difficult (sometimes she knew me and the kids well, sometimes she did not), that visit was the best I had seen her since she had moved to Conroe. She was a die-hard Aggie football fan, and I asked her, "Grandmommy, wasn't it exciting? Those Aggies beat those Longhorns!!" She said, "I know, and they are getting a new coach! Where is he from again?" Just like the Grandmommy that I had always known and loved!

I think God gave us that last good visit. It was a wonderful gift and a memory that I will hold dear forever.

Goodbye, Grandmommy. We sure will miss you but I know we will meet again.

Blog-watching friends out there, thanks for listening. I couldn't just go on with my blog like it hadn't happened. Lighter fare is coming.

Tomorrow's post topic: The Amazing Dryer Balls!

Another Kind of Christmas List

Well, on Friday evening (right after my last post with the List of Things I Love), I realized I had forgotten that I LOVE . . . . CHRISTMAS!!!!

And there are SO many things I love about the Christmas season that I feel it warrants its own list!

1. Decorating the tree(s) with my kids (I especially love the wonder and joy of pulling the ornaments out one by one)

2. Living Hope's Christmas play!!!

3. Going to Santa's Wonderland and Tombstone Texas (should we organize a LH night or hayride through the lights?)

4. Taking pictures for making our Christmas cards.

5. Putting the cards together assembly-line style: I sign the card, a kid puts the picture in, another kid puts the letter in, another kid licks the envelope, another puts the address labels and stamps on.

6. Christmas eve candlelight services

7. The "sibling exchange" (I take all the kids to the dollar store and give them five dollars each to buy a $1 gift for each of their five siblings. Then we go home and each child has to wrap them themselves. Then one evening shortly before Christmas we make a big occasion out of opening the Sibling Gifts. It's hilarious what they pick to give each other. Last year Marshall gave Monica a hot glue gun, which she though was crazy-funny!)

8. The amazing Christmas specials on TV.

9. Listening to Christmas music non-stop both in the car and in the house.

10. Making what we call "holiday popcorn." (recipe below)

11. Reading the REAL "Christmas story" aloud out of the book of Luke, and listening to the kids read it aloud.

I'm sure I'll think of many more things that I love about the season!

Oh, and here's how you make that Holiday popcorn:

1. Pop two bags of microwave popcorn. Pour them into a giant bowl and make sure to weed out the unpopped kernels.

2. Melt one package of white almond bark (available near the chocolate chips at the grocery store) in the microwave. It melts pretty fast - cook about 30 seconds at a time and stir in between.

3. While the almond bark is melting, add two-three cups of "filler" to the popcorn. I like to use pretzels and rice krispies. Peanuts and almonds are good in there too.

4. Pour the melted almond bark over the popcorn and other ingredients. Red and Green mini M&Ms are good, or mini chocolate chips but you have to stir that in after the almond bark cools a little. You can also stir peanut butter into the almond bark before pouring it over.

5. Spread the holiday popcorn in a single layer over wax paper. You have to wax paper a pretty large area to get it spread out. I like to sprinkle red and green sugar crystals or other christmassy sprinkles at this point.

6. Let the popcorn cool completely and then break it up into a large bowl. YUMMY!!

This makes a great inexpensive gift for teachers, neighbors, classmates, etc. I put about a cup of the mix into those clear Christmas goodie bags and tie with curly ribbon.

Enjoy!

Now it's your turn to share. What's your favorite holiday tradition? Or recipe?

Mindi

My list

OK, I so have been intrigued by the incredibly popular "To-Do List" blog that became a book and is now a best-seller. So I went to the blog to take a look around. The author claims that a list says a lot about a person.

I have not posted in forever and a day. I had to get over being sick, and then have Thanksgiving, and since we got home from Ennis (where my brother, mom and dad live) I have been playing catch-up. And besides, I couldn't think of a topic.

So since it's too late to make a "Things I'm Thankful For" list, I'll just make an impromptu list of things I love.

So, in no particular order, here are some things that Mindi loves!!!

1. The obvious! The triune God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and the Bible so we can read and learn about Him
2. Another obvious! My awesome hubby, my awesome beautiful six children, and extended fam.
3. Still another obvious! My amazing friends, and the fact that I have so many people who care about me (as I found out when I was sick . . . my phones were ringing off the wall, er, nightstand). A MILLION thanks to the many many people (my mom called them "Mindi's Angels) who chipped in with food, childcare, running kids, etc.
4. Yada yada yada . . .. this is getting boring but of course my house, my car, my computer, my phone.

OK, now for the little things:

Beautiful sunny fall days
The smell of Myla's neck
Hot kettle corn (the real stuff, not microwaved)
How it feels to crunch dead leaves
Friends (the TV show), Survivor, Grey's Anatomy, and Jeopardy
Google
Loud, hard thunderstorms that rage when I'm home for the night and while I sleep, but clear up to a clean wet world by dawn's early light.
Just-bathed baby toes that are wrinkly and pink
Giving someone a present that I KNOW they will absolutely love
Pictures of my kids when they were babies
The look and feel of a slight sunburn at the end of a day on the lake
Wings 'n' More pickle chips
Sitting at the edge of the ocean, staring out and wondering where I would end up if I went straight out
Diet Cokes (fountain) with REAL cherry flavoring, not sugar-free cherry flavoring that tastes like bad cough syrup
A roaring fire in the fireplace on a freezing night
Texas A&M Football and the Dallas Cowboys

OK, that's enough for now.

What do you love?

Mindi

I survived!!!

Well, I am back among the land of the living! Thank you to everyone who prayed for me, called to check on me, emailed your concerns, etc. Some of you kept my kids, drove them around, and cooked me dinner!!! Thank you thank you thank you!!

My goal for Friday was to get out of bed and make it to the living room couch. Once I got to the couch, I felt much better and by Friday night was up and dressed in real clothes! My mom felt okay about going home at that point (she had been staying with me and helping with the house and children).

By Saturday I took a REAL shower (standing up!) and put on jeans. Matt declared me well enough to go to Red Lobster and to go see a movie. And Sunday I went to church, and today I am at work!!!

So, praise God, I am well!

Mindi's Horrible Illness By the Numbers:
2 trips to medical facilities
3 IV attempts (2 successful)
3 bottles of Advil taken
1 spinal tap
1 chest xray
2 sets of bloodwork
8 days in bed
3 cans of chicken broth
3 packages of jello
104.3 - highest recorded fever

Tomorrow I will write something more exciting to read about!!
Thanks, friends, for being there for me!!

Mindi

hey friends . . .

Hello friends.

Please please pray for me. I am really sick and have been sick since Thursday night. I spent 6-7 hours at the Urgent Care Clinic today getting blood drawn, painkillers, and IV rehydration. With some debate the doctor let me go home but I am absolutely miserable.

Please pray that this is not meningitis or something that will take a long time to recover from, and pray that my kids/hubby don't get the same bug, whatever it is.

I cannot get my fever down despite prescription painkillers/fever reduces and 4 Advil every few hours. I just got up (it's nearly 4 a.m.), thinking my fever might have finally broken since I feel a little better, and I just took my temp (oral) and it's 102.1.

I am SO sad now that I realize that I will not be able to go to church tomorrow.

And yes, you did see me at the concert on Friday night. It was probably a big mistake. I just couldn't not go. You might have noticed, though, that I was wearing Matt's pajamas for a shirt and dressed in layers and shivering despite the 80 degree weather.

Again, please pray for me. I rarely get sick and just don't know what to do with myself. The staff at S&W thought it was funny that I had only gone to the doctor (for illness) once in my adult life that I could think of.

OK, I'm dizzy. I would like to go to bed but I keep having febrile convulsions racking my whole body for 30-40 minutes and as a result my entire body is so sore, and I have such bad heartburn (I guess from the convulsions/chills) that I can't lay flat.

Have a great day. I sure miss you guys already! (since I won't see you tomorrow).

I'm going to go try attempting sleep in my rocking chair . . .

Mindi

Vote for a Real Man of Faith

OK, I need to admit something.

I'm somewhat of a political junkie. Especially when Presidential elections are involved.

But I have actually been avoiding all talk of Presidential candidates, not being thrilled with any of the choices that I knew about. I also can't stand the thought of any of the Dem candidates actually being voted in as President . . . it literally makes my stomach turn to think any of them could WIN. And since all signs have been pointing to a Dem win this time around, I have just decided to avoid watching or reading about the race at all. I didn't even watch the debates.

However, for some reason today I felt an urge to find my candidate. Right now!!

I believe that the number one issue for us should be abortion. The Bible speaks clearly and often about our duty to protect the widows and orphans. I believe these orphans include unborn babies, a creation of God without anyone to fight for their rights to take their first tiny breaths. We are commanded to take care of them.

Our Republican forerunner, Rudy Guiliani, is pro-choice. He states (I'm paraphrasing here because I'm too lazy to look up his actual quotes) that although he is against abortion personally, he doesn't think it is right for the government to make the decision. So although I think he might be the candidate most likely to actually win (based on popularity, name recognition, and his middle-of-the-road stance on a lot of issues), I canNOT in good conscience vote for him. I think I might actually NOT vote or vote for a 3rd-party candidate if Guiliani wins the primary.

While Mitt Romney seems likeable enough, he is Mormon. I cannot get around that. Although his values seen strong and align with mine for the most part, his Mormon-ism bothers me.

So I started looking at some of the other candidates . . . including reading comments on the Values Voters website, and lo and behold I found my DREAM candidate! Not only do we agree on everything politically, but he is a strong Christian!! Who, when asked if he would let his personal faith influence his decision-making, he replied, "My faith doesn't influence me . . . it DEFINES me." This former Baptist pastor and youth minister is Mike Huckabee.

I could go on and on, but here is a short video of Mike:

I don't think that link will work, so here is a URL link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lt6sxY6LaW4

Go and read about Mike. I hope you like what you see.

If you like it, please click on this link which takes you to his website:

http://www.mikehuckabee.com/index.cfm?FuseAction=VerticalDay.Home&l=BB8FF93781DD6D298959C71CC9A59397

If nothing else, PLEASE PLEASE pray about this election and the leaders of this country, and do your research about the candidates yourself before casting your vote.

God Bless America!!

Mindi