day home providers - and mommies

boyohboyohboy wrote: I currently have three of my own sickly, runny nose kids in the house, along with three other kids I baby sit during the day who are also sickly and runny nose kids..

what do you do to clean the numerous amounts of toys that are covered in the germs? and do you do it daily?
and if so, how the heck do you find the time to clean all those toys daily?

has anyone used the clorox anywhere spray? does it work?
can I make my own solution and just spray it on and let it dry or does the bleach solution have to be washed off???

moped replied: Oh I have 2 really gross sicky snotty kids here too - I spray the lysol that is safe for kids on things at the end of the day, BUT keep in mind that using anti bac stuff can sometimes do more harm because it doesn't allow your bosy to build up immunities and then you get it even worse.......

boyohboyohboy replied:
I shouldnt put this in writing but with 6 snotty nose kids with all their not so sweet temperments right now...
I would be willing to spray THEM with the lysol!

moped replied:
Yeah, I know this one is really nasty - it actually brought Jack down a bit which rarely happens!

boyohboyohboy replied: we started out with rotavirus, (we think) only one kid has that, and the others have resp. colds.

just the slime in the house..is horrible.

mammag replied:
I've had times like that myself!

My sister just started working at a daycare. She said they spray the toys and then stick them in a hanging net to dry. I bet that's what the spray is. I know it sounded like a good idea to me. She said it doesn't take much time for them to dry and then they put them back in the toy mix.

I always thought it might be a good idea to try what the montessori school Cade went to for preschool did. They had a play mat and they had to play with things on that mat. You could always do that and then when they were ready to put away the things on their mat, just spray and hang and then put back.

Hope all the kiddies are better soon so you don't have such a hard time!

boyohboyohboy replied:
thats what I was thinking today, maybe just rotating out a few toys a day so that the clean up wasnt so large..
but just getting started this week is going to be fun! I already quarentined them to one bathroom.. and one couch...6 kids on one couch..cant you just imagine it.."dont look at me." "dont touch me" "mom, she is looking at me"

oh its fun.

lisar replied: I would say the kid friendly lysol also. Thats what I use when mine are sick

MommyToAshley replied: I bought that Clorox anywhere spray (that's the one in the blue spray can, right?) when it first came out without reading the label. Well, when I got it home, it said not to let kids put stuff in their mouth or use on counter tops or food surfaces without rinsing before you use it. Kind of defeats the purpose, huh. I believe they have changed the label since then, but I still don't trust using it without rinsing it.

lovemy2 replied: Kid friendly lysol and I also run things through the dishwasher that can withstand the heat that is....that and lots of lysol wipes - I seriously wipe my wood end tables, etc. with them - but they aren't brand new or anything so....

Boo&BugsMom replied: I wipe down big stuff with Clorox wipes. I soak small things that wont get harmed from being wet in a water and bleach solution in the sink. Depending on what it is, I may use a spray bottle with the bleach and water solution and wipe it down with a rag. I use Lysol occassionally, but it really doesn't work as well on germs like bleach does.

cameragirl21 replied: not a fan of bleach over here, it's too harsh on the environment.
here is a little known secret that cleans and disinfects better than bleach--use vinegar and peroxide BUT NOT TOGETHER...spray or soak in one and then immediately in the other, or you can spray both at the same time if you have a two nozzle/compartment spray bottle. Best and safest way to kill germs that is easy on humans, animals and the environment.
Btw, another option is to use 2 spray bottles and fill one with vinegar and the other with peroxide...you can spray both at the same time, just don't store them together in one container.

Bamamom replied:
I have to tell you (and I mean this to be funny so nobody jump on me) - we've had the stomach bug for over a week and at this point I'm saying screw the environment! I just want the vomit germs (and smell) out of my house

Boo&BugsMom replied:
I know how you feel. When I did daycare and preschool and a huge bug was going around, that's exactly how I felt.

CantWait replied: I say put all the toys away, except the easy to clean and the ones they really like to play with. Clean those first, and then get to the rest later, but wait to put them out till they are better. And good old soap and water and a bit of bleach will do the trick. I use to do that all the time when Anthony was sick. And wipe down all surfaces including table, chairs, door knobs, and light switches etc....with lysol or clorox wipes.

Nina J replied: I just spray a bit of glen 20 around, lol. I wipe down the surfaces in the house and everything like that every 3 days or so, so in between that I just spray glen 20. I like the smell, mainly.

If we are sick though, I just mainly make sure the snotty tissues are gone. It's better in winter because you can burn them in the fireplace, lol.

PrairieMom replied: When Al was getting thrush all the time I would take her hard plastic toys, like teething rings, and pop beads and things like that and run them through the dish washer. That worked pretty good for us.

Personally, I would not be spraying their toys with cleaners, But you know me, all green and what not... I have a recipe for a good home made cleaner that is safe and non toxic...


This is a Green all purpose spray.

32 ounce plastic pray bottle.
2 cups water
1/2 cup distilled white vinegar
1 teaspoon pure castile soap
3/4 cup hydrogen peroxide
20 drops tea tree oil
20 drops lavender or lemongrass essential oil.

I use this on my counters, windows, i modify it a bit for a floor cleaner, and toilet cleaner as well.


Here is why not to use bleach... From my book Gorgeously green, which is my green Go to reference book.

Chlorine bleach is a poisonous gas. It is a hazardous chemical. Never mix it with acid or ammonia containing cleaners, because it gives off a highly toxic gas.
When it disappears down the drain, it produces organochlorines which could be carcinogenic, studies have shown that chlorine bleach could also contain immune system , reproductive, and neurological toxins. It is corrosive an can seriously irritate the skin, eyes, and lungs.

cameragirl21 replied:
thanks for the recipe, Tara, I am going to try that. how do you modify it for floors and windows?
I read that you should not store vinegar and peroxide together as they have a chemical reaction once mixed that is by and large what disinfects (not a bad chemical reaction) and if you store them mixed then they lose their effectiveness...have you ever heard that?

PrairieMom replied:
I heard bout hte chemical reaction, but I THINK that the % of peroxide matters, and I just use the stuff from the pharmacy section of my grocery store, and I think that diluting the vinegar before adding the peroxide helps too.
For floors I use HOT water, and more vinegar, no peroxide but the rest of the stuff, and for toilets I use just vinegar, no peroxide and the rest of the stuff.

boyohboyohboy replied: and where do you get all these ingrediants? like the castele soap?
I think i can get the tea oil and the lavender at the grocery store in the health food section.

PrairieMom replied:
castile soap can be found at I know Target for sure, a brand name is Dr. bronners. I think you can get it where you would find tea tree oil and stuff like that, like, in the organic section of stores, I bought mine at our local health food store. Here is what you are looking for...



http://www.vitacost.com/Dr-Bronners-Organi...permint-2-fl-oz