Establish Rules #4: Toilet

Once upon a time, Zoe and Zach (The Z's) happily flushed the toilet with giggles.  However, it took just one visit from their older brother to break their perfect habit. He never flushes the toilet and the kids harangued him about keeping the toilet clean. Proudly, my step son announced that it was not environmental friendly to keep flushing all that water away and that he only flushes once a day at his home. The Z's love to save the planet and embraced their beloved brother's behavior. After a couple of weeks, they began screaming at me to clean the toilet because it looked "DISGUSTING".

I took my cue to teach them about flushing in a "environmentally" safe way by using non toxic chemicals:

1. Flush the toilet after every use
2. You can clean it since you guys created the "DISGUSTING" bowl
3. Here is 1 cup of vinegar ... Pour the vinegar into the toilet
4. Set the timer for 30 minutes
5. After 30 minutes, take this toilet brush and 1/2 cup baking soda AND scrub away to remove the stains

To get a sense of the prowess of vinegar and baking soda, I have the "BEFORE" picture here:

If you prefer to avoid vinegar, BORAX is a great alternative and can be discovered at the below hardware stores:

• Euston Hardware in the Village at 6955 Tomahawk Rd (913-262-4737)
• Westlake Ace Hardware at Corinth Square located at 4049 Somerset Dr (913-381-7750)
• Waldo Hardware in Kansas City, Missouri at 126 West 75th St. (816-523-2244)