9 Smart Cleaning Shortcuts That Will Save You Time

PLUS: 3 reasons your kitchen needs a smart speaker, the best salad to feed a crowd, and more. PLUS: 3 reasons your kitchen needs a smart speaker, the best salad to feed a crowd, and more. May 10, 2022 [View Online]( Good morning! For me, the only thing better than a clean house is having time to actually sit down and enjoy it. That’s why I’m so fond of time-saving cleaning tips, like the 9 new ones I’m sharing in Today’s Good Thing. Also in a new Tech Tip Tuesday, we’ll explore some useful things you can do in the kitchen with a voice assistant like Alexa. (For a disembodied voice, she sure knows how to lend a hand!) Jillee TODAY'S GOOD THING 9 Smart Cleaning Shortcuts That Will Save You Time [Photos of various cleaning shortcuts.]( Spend less time cleaning without cutting corners with these 9 time-saving cleaning tips. Call me crazy, but I don’t think keeping your house clean should take so long that you never get the chance to put your feet up and enjoy it. But at the same time, I don’t necessarily want to cut corners or do a haphazard job in the name of saving time. That’s why I always keep my eyes peeled for tips and tricks that can make cleaning faster without sacrificing great results. After saving them up for a while, I’m happy to report I have 9 new cleaning shortcuts to share with you today! Some of these tips are about particular cleaning products that get the job done fast, like a foam that will make short work of cleaning out your garbage disposal. Other tips will help you maximize your productivity or tackle a big job in less time than you ever knew you could! From shelves to showers, closets to floors, these 9 tips will save you time on cleaning tasks all around the house, so check them out at the link below! (Oh, and once you’re done with those, be sure to check out my previous installment of cleaning shortcuts by following the first related link!) [9 Smart Cleaning Shortcuts That Will Save You Time ➜]( Related • [11 Clever Cleaning Shortcuts That Will Save You So Much Time]( • [30 Things You Can Get Rid Of Today That Will Cut Down On Clutter]( ⚡️QUICK TIPS⚡️ • Struggling with Command hooks or other adhesives that won’t stay stuck? This guide has the answers you seek. [Read more ➜]( • Instead of relying on an expensive cleanse to reset your system or get rid of toxins, try these simple, natural alternatives. [Read more ➜]( • You probably won’t need all 11 of these tips for opening stubborn jar lids, but it never hurts to have options. [Read more ➜]( QUIZ CORNER OGT Pop Quiz How often should you deep clean your dryer to keep it in good working order? It's not the most exciting or glamorous job, but I'd rather vacuum out my dryer than burn down my house! (Scroll down to see the correct answer.) A. Once a month B. Every 3 months C. Every 6 months D. Once a year TECH TIP TUESDAY 3 Ways Alexa Can Help Out In The Kitchen [Photos of Jillee using an Amazon Echo speaker in the kitchen.]( If you have an Alexa-enabled speaker in your kitchen like I do, these tips will really come in handy. 1. Make A Shopping List. After realizing I’m running low on something while cooking, I used to assure myself I’d remember to put it on the shopping list later, but that almost never happened. But now I can just say “Alexa, add bread to my shopping list!” and it will show up on my shopping list in the Alexa app. 2. Convert Measurements. With Alexa, you can quickly and easily convert any measurement without having to drop what you’re doing in the kitchen. Just ask, “Alexa, how many tablespoons are in a quarter cup?” You can also ask more complex questions, like “Alexa, how much does one cup of flour weigh?” 3. Ring The Dinner Bell. If you have other Alexa-enabled speakers throughout your house, you can use them like a digital dinner bell. Just say, “Alexa, announce that dinner is ready,” to broadcast the announcement to every speaker connected to your system. (I much prefer it to hollering across the house!) Prefer Siri Or Google Assistant? Siri and Google Assistant can perform many of the same tasks as Alexa, including adding items to a shopping list and converting measurements. The same goes for making announcements, provided you have one or more of the same smart speaker (like Google Nest or Apple HomePod) in your home. COOKING The Magic Of Marianne’s Spinach Salad [A photo of Marianne's spinach salad.]( The real secret to winning friends and influencing people? Bringing this salad to dinner. My late sister-in-law Marianne had a knack for finding recipes that became family-wide food obsessions, and one of them was this spinach salad featuring cottage cheese, bacon, and mushrooms. The combination of tangy, creamy, savory, and sweet flavors makes this one irresistible salad! It’s the perfect dish to bring to any gatherings or potlucks you might attend this summer, especially if you're hoping to win someone over or make a good impression. There's nothing wrong with using good food to grease the wheels of friendship! Here’s how to make it: Rinse 2 bunches of spinach and 1 head of green lettuce, then pat them dry with a clean towel. Roughly chop the lettuce and place it in a large salad bowl with the spinach, then add 3 cups of grated Swiss cheese, 16 ounces of cooked and crumbled bacon, 3/4 cup of fresh sliced mushrooms, and 1/2 of a thinly sliced red onion. In a separate bowl, prepare the dressing by whisking together 3/4 cup of canola oil, 3/4 cup of red wine vinegar, 3/4 teaspoon of dry mustard, 1 1/2 tablespoons of poppy seeds, 3/4 cup of sugar, and 1-2 teaspoons of salt. Finish the salad by adding 16 ounces of cottage cheese to the salad and pouring the prepared dressing over the top. Toss to combine and serve. Serving The Salad Later? After preparing the dressing, transfer it to an airtight container, cover the salad bowl tightly with plastic wrap, and store both in your fridge. Just before you're ready to eat, add 16 ounces of cottage cheese and the prepared dressing to the salad and toss to combine. [See the full recipe ➜]( JILLEE'S PICK The Great Gatsby Meets The Godfather [An image of the front cover of ]( I hadn’t heard of [The Gold Coast by Nelson DeMille]( until I saw it mentioned in a review of another book I was considering reading. The book the person was reviewing, like The Great Gatsby, was set in 1920s New York, and the reviewer mentioned The Gold Coast was another of their favorites set in the same place and time. As you might recall, I read Gatsby not too long ago and really enjoyed it, so I decided to give The Gold Coast a shot, and I was not disappointed! The story centers on the lives of the super rich living on the “Gold Coast,” a famous stretch of the North Shore of Long Island. The status quo among the residents is upended when a rich Mafia Don moves into the neighborhood and brings his world of criminality and violence with him. Despite the book being more suspenseful than romantic, I definitely developed a “book crush” on the main character John Sutter. (Though after reading some of the reviews, it appears I'm far from the only one!) Sutter's delightfully dry wit is a mainstay of both his inner monologue and his dialogue throughout the book. In the end, I liked The Gold Coast so much that I also read the sequel to it called The Gate House. I ended up liking that one just as well, if not more! [See The Gold Coast by Nelson DeMille on Amazon ➜]( A FEW MORE THINGS... On This Day: In 1869, the President of the Central Pacific Railroad Company drove the final [“golden” spike]( into the tracks at Promontory Summit in the Utah Territories, signaling that the world's [first transcontinental railroad]( was officially open to train traffic. The completion of the coast-to-coast railroad proved a significant aid in the settlement of the American West. 🤣 LOL: During a stretch of his career, Houdini used a trap door in every single one of his shows. I guess you could say he was going through a stage! 🤔 Wordle: [Solve today's 5-letter word](. ANSWER D. In order to prevent a buildup of lint that could potentially cause a fire, it’s important to deep clean your dryer once a year. This involves cleaning the area underneath the lint trap and vacuuming out the duct to remove any lint that may have accumulated inside. You can find my full tutorial for performing an annual dryer cleaning, and learn what steps to take on a daily and monthly basis too, [in this blog post](. What did you think of today's email? [Not good]( | [Just okay]( | [Loved it!]( 🏠[Visit the By Jillee Shop]( 🤗 [Join OGT Free]( Let's connect! 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