Journey to Debt Free

Shawn and I have decided (albeit reluctantly on my part for fear of the unknown) to follow the Dave Ramsey plan to becoming debt free. The idea is that we pay off our debt starting with the smallest and then putting that money towards the next smallest and so on until they are paid, in full. That involves budgeting, spending money wisely, and cutting back.

The hope is that we can pay off cars and student loans in the next 2-3 years.

This got me started thinking about and researching the things we can do to save a few bucks here and there. Tonight was my first project!

I found a cleaner on Pinterest and decided to give it a try. I am sucker for advertising and tend to not hesitate to buy a fancy cleaner. After we got married and I moved in, I went on that womanly cleaning spree (Shawn keeps a clean house, but we all know women have that extra eye for things, including hidden dust bunnies and hard water stains). I bought some fancy shower cleaner, followed the directions and it became a little more clean. But I could still see it, mocking me, every day, with every shower.

So when I saw this I almost laughed. Dawn soap and vinegar? Really?
It seemed too simple.
And yet, it worked. Wonderfully.

Knowing that dawn soap is used in my hospital and for animal rescues, I know it is safe. And vinegar smells bad, but that is about he extent of it. I recommend opening your windows and throwing a fan on pointing out of the bathroom so you don't inhale it the entire time.

I went ahead and used 3/4c warmed vinegar and 3/4c blue dawn detergent. Sprayed it on and waited a little over an hour.

I ended up taking a second shower for the day because I found that it dried up, leading to a lot of good ol' scrubbing to get it clean until I started rinsing it. So I hopped in and it was a ton easier to get all the grime off with the shower running. Less elbow grease makes this one happy girl.


Here is my before-- and please note that these photos do not even do it justice.
But you can see the stains and grime. Even after it is "cleaned."

And here is the after. Like I said, hard to see just right, but BOY is it clean!
I will never again buy that expensive cleaner.
It even cleaned the soap scum off of the glass door (though I didn't take a photo) and it is clear as can be.

My only other advice is to make sure you mix it gently. I shook mine too much and it became awfully foamy.

Pretty good, huh?
Plus...
-It's a fraction of the cost (great for our budget!)
-It doesn't have a ton of those harmful ingredients that store-bought has
-It works a whole lot better!

The Journey to Debt Free has begun!