In short
The “What Fresh Hell” episode is about “small items, big changes”—one purchase (or a few) that dramatically improved daily life, especially for parenting and household routines. Guests/hosts also trade listener-submitted “joy-to-cost ratio” upgrades.
Guests (hosts)
Amy and Margaret Ables (co-hosts). They discuss their own family experiences and solicit listener stories.
Key claims
High value comes from purchases that create quality time, reduce mental load, or solve recurring annoyances. Buying used (e.g., a ping-pong table) and choosing the right “comfort” tech (sleep temperature, bed comfort) can be life-changing.
Notable examples
Pandemic hot tub; used $250 ping-pong table (Facebook Marketplace); large sticky “post-it” sheets for door whiteboards; smart/dimmable porch lighting; packing cubes; travel toiletry bag; crock pot; Ember heated mug; BedJet “air conditioner for your bed”; compostable plates; outsourcing laundry; large puppy training pads for diaper changes; daylight alarm clock; cushy latex mattress topper; Roomba/cordless vacuum; Blackstone griddle; separate toothpaste; Skylight digital calendar; air fryer; sock-color system; medical-grade car puke bags.
Written by AI. May contain mistakes. Listen to the episode to check what was said.
Chapters
Tap a time to open that second in VOSmall Purchases That Change Lives
0:48 to 2:52
Amy and Margaret discuss how small items can significantly improve life experiences.
“We have a rock from 18 years ago and that should be enough.”
Family Bonding Activities
2:53 to 4:55
They share experiences about using a ping pong table and hot tub for family bonding.
“We recently were on a vacation and we went to Atlantis in the Bahamas.”
Listener Input on Game-Changing Items
4:56 to 7:10
The hosts read listener suggestions for small items that have made a big difference in their lives.
“So we went to our listeners and we asked them to tell us like, what is one thing that you've gotten that's made a huge change?”
The Importance of Light and Packing
7:11 to 9:06
Discussion includes the significance of proper lighting and the utility of packing cubes for travel.
“Save yourself the cost of bringing in an electrician to rewire your home.”
Travel Preparedness and Cooking Ease
9:07 to 11:26
Hosts talk about the benefits of a travel toiletry bag and the convenience of using a crock pot.
“She says we only use them once or twice a year, but they make packing so much easier and helps keep clothes where they belong on vacation.”
Ember Mug and Final Thoughts
11:27 to 14:02
Discussion wraps up with mentions of the Ember mug and how small items can enhance daily life.
“Like I have a, you know, the plastic thing that you put your toiletries in.”
The Power of a Mini Crock Pot
14:02 to 15:57
Discover how a mini crock pot can enhance gatherings with warm appetizers.
“And when you have like people over for the Super Bowl, you put like the cheddar dip in there.”
The Power of a Mini Crock Pot
16:05 to 17:54
Discover how a mini crock pot can enhance gatherings with warm appetizers.
“That's quince.com slash fresh for free shipping and 365-day returns.”
One Thing That Changed Everything
18:44 to 21:35
See how various products can transform daily life for parents.
“All right, so I want to be clear that we did not put a price limit.”
The Benefits of Compostable Plates
21:35 to 22:50
Learn how compostable plates can make mealtime easier and eco-friendly.
“Faith says putting paper plates on Amazon, subscribe and save.”
Show all 23 chapters
Outsourcing Laundry
22:50 to 24:11
Discover the pros and cons of hiring laundry services for busy parents.
“it's a little league season and nobody's and it's too much.”
Creative Solutions for Diaper Changes
24:11 to 27:26
Get tips on improving diaper changes in public with smart products.
“I recently was at a friend's house and she was with great shame being like, don't ask what I'm doing.”
The Value of Comfort in Sleep
27:26 to 28:00
Explore the importance of comfort in sleep with mattress solutions.
“You know, I'm always speaking against disposable world.”
The Importance of a Comfortable Bed
28:00 to 32:25
Discover why investing in a good bed setup is essential for quality sleep.
“I don't believe so because I wake up at like nine and it's been light and we have our windows open.”
Awesome Mom Hacks for Summer
33:11 to 34:02
Get practical and humorous tips for parenting during the summer.
“Listen, hot dogs are a completely acceptable dinner at least five nights a week.”
Cleaning Tools and Strategies
34:02 to 37:12
Explore various tools and strategies for efficient home cleaning.
“This has been Awesome Mom Hacks for Summer from the What Fresh Hell podcast.”
Gift Ideas and Kitchen Essentials
37:12 to 39:47
Find out about practical gift ideas and useful kitchen tools.
“Yeah, I have one and it just like, it runs out.”
Calendars and Time Management
39:47 to 42:02
Understand the value of digital and paper calendars for family organization.
“It's a gift that keeps on giving because you'll be eating smashed burgers.”
The Benefits of Paper Calendars
42:02 to 43:30
Learn how using a paper calendar can enhance family organization and communication.
“We do keep a paper calendar in the kitchen because I just think sometimes it's right there where we're eating.”
The Air Fryer Revolution
43:31 to 45:05
Discover how air fryers simplify meal prep and make cooking fun for families.
“So that's my only issue with it is like it makes amazing broccoli that's kind of roasted and crispy, but I can't do enough for four people.”
Sock Management Solutions
45:06 to 46:58
Explore creative strategies for dealing with unmatched socks in a busy household.
“I keep a cookie jar that every spare sock, every sock that doesn't have a match gets thrown in that cookie jar.”
The Game-Changing Disposable Puke Bags
46:59 to 47:42
Learn about a clever solution for managing car sickness with disposable puke bags.
“There are times to save money, but beds and puke bags are not them.”
The Game-Changing Disposable Puke Bags
47:51 to 48:13
Learn about a clever solution for managing car sickness with disposable puke bags.
“We try to make it totally worth your while and send you stuff that's interesting.”
Transcript
Automatic transcript. May contain errors.0:01Mornings have a rhythm. You can hear it, feel it. And at Quaker, we fuel it. With 100 % whole grain oats. And a good source of fiber in every bowl. Helping you turn that rhythm into your soundtrack for a great day. Fuel to start whatever's next. Quaker, official sponsor of FIFA World Cup 26.
0:32Amy Wilson:Roomba! What fresh hell. Laughing in the face of motherhood. It's a little gross, but I'm telling you it's a game changer. With Margaret Ables and Amy Wilson. The dryer will like return it to you eventually. A podcast that solves today's parenting dilemmas. So you don't have to. We have a rock from 18 years ago and that should be enough.
1:01Hey, everybody. Welcome to What Fresh Hell? Laughing in the Face of Motherhood. This is Amy. And this is Margaret.
1:07Amy Wilson:And this week, we're talking small items, big changes. Okay. So small things that you've purchased, acquired, were found in a dumpster that have made huge changes in your life. Because I'm such a believer in this. I mean, I've talked before about the fact that during the pandemic, we bought a hot tub. It was$5 ,000. It's not a small purchase. Right, right. Not a small item. But we have gotten$450 ,000 worth of enjoyment out of it. And the other thing that, again, is not a small item, but for my big birthday, shall we say, I bought, when I was in LA, I had a convertible. And then when I had kids, I traded in for a minivan.
1:55Amy Wilson:and then when my kids were grown, I re-bought a convertible, used, you know, not a Lamborghini, but like, you know, an investment, a car. It's not a small purchase. But I'm very big on the ratio of expense to joy, you know? And I mean, if someone had given me, I don't even know cars, a Bugatti 9000 that was 150 ,000, I couldn't enjoy it more. You've been in my bug. It's just a Volkswagen Bug convertible. Like there's nothing like driving around the top down. It's the greatest feeling in the world. It has. I like purchases that have a high joy to cost ratio. And many of these items, some of them are a little bit pricey.
2:40Amy Wilson:Some of them are like, so cheap, you can't believe it. But they're game changers. Yeah, it's not that they're small. It's that they were so worth it. Right. They were like, you can't believe how worth it. This purchase was. Joy to cost ratio. We recently were on a vacation and we went to Atlantis in the Bahamas. Do you know about it? Yes, I do. It's like a Disney world, but it's just the beach and it's huge. I don't know how many tens of thousands of people were there and they had a ping pong table. And one of my children and I on the way down, he's like, oh, do you want to play ping pong? And it was one ping pong table for the entire resort and it was free and we played the most competitive game of ping pong I'm pretty good and he's pretty good and we played every single day we would just like go there and there'd be like a little kid playing with their mom and we would just stand there and stare them down until they left it was such a bonding thing with my kid and I went on Facebook marketplace and for 250 dollars I bought a used ping pong table I mean we've already had $3 ,000 worth of fun.
3:47Amy Wilson:Right. I think especially as your teens get older, finding things, the hot tub, the reason I like the hot tub is it's so much like this. We all just sit in it. And like, when else do you not have phones? You can't have phones, you're in the water. Can't have phones if you're playing ping pong. And you chat and you laugh and you just have quality time with your kid. So my recent small item game changer, buy it used. Let me tell you, you cannot imagine how people on Facebook are looking to get rid of a ping pong table that is taking up room in their garage. We also went on a vacation, Airbnb, there was a pool table.
4:23Amy Wilson:And that was like intergenerational fun, which was fun. Like my dad, who's 90 could play against the youngest kid in the family. But a pool table is very expensive. And I was sort of like, you kind of have to have a completely different you have to have a house with either finished basement. I put the ping pong table, it folds. It's in our garage. If it's nice, we roll it out in the sun and play outside. Otherwise, if it's raining, we play in the garage. Hours of fun for the whole family. I mean, can't recommend it highly enough. All right. So we went to our listeners and we asked them to tell us like, what is one thing that you've gotten that's made a huge change?
5:03So let's go back to something small. Melanie says, post-it notes, but the big ones. She says they have large sticky sheets. They're like whiteboards. You can use whiteboard markers on them. I have them on three of my kitchen doors and we use them for notes, reminders, games, Epic Hangman, family FYIs. We have had them for years and they're the best.
5:22Amy Wilson:I have one on the wall right behind me and I used it for our production calendar back in the day and I didn't keep up with it, but I think I accidentally wrote on it with permanent marker at some point and ruined it. But they're like, it's a whiteboard that can stick and come down. Because sometimes you don't necessarily want. I mean, our whiteboard is permanently in our kitchen, but it's also not that big. So I love the idea of hangman. You can play games on it. You can write notes. It takes me back to our college days. Like back in the olden times, we had whiteboards on our doors so that if you went and knocked on somebody's door, you couldn't text them.
6:03You If they weren't there, you'd say, hey, hey, Meg, it's Amy. Catch you later. And draw a little, you know, bunny. And then that would stay up there for like a month on your whiteboard outside your room.
6:12Amy Wilson:It was sort of like hacky sack. We're meeting in the quad at two. Right. That was the version of texting that we had back in the day, walking 10 miles and then writing something on someone's whiteboard. I think I'm going to get one of these from my about to be college student. Make your whole door a whiteboard that people can write stuff on. And these are fun. You can take them down. You know, these are easy. Right. College kids don't have whiteboards anymore. No. Why would you? You just text me. I don't need to leave you a message. I mean, do some. Yes, I suppose. But it's not. Yeah. It's not how they communicate anymore.
6:44The kiddos. But they will now. They will now because our kids are bringing it back.
6:49Amy Wilson:Yeah. You're like, we're going back in time. Amanda says smart light bulbs. I am too dumb for smart light bulbs. I'm so confused by the concept. She says connect to your Alexa app and instantly have dimmable lights or change colors. You can set them to timers as well. Our porch lights are programmed to go on from sundown to sunup. $10 each. Save yourself the cost of bringing in an electrician to rewire your home. I think a light bulb is so important. I have light sensitivity and I hate like the dentist office light or like grocery store light. Right. Like the fluorescent office lighting. Yeah.
7:29And now like thanks to LED light bulbs being it, like half of people's houses look like that, too. And I feel like people don't see it quite the way I do, but I'm very sensitive to light. Anyway, I have found I think they're like ten dollars each an LED light bulb. But it has like soft yellow light that looks like a nice like, you know, lamp at sundown and a old fashioned house would look like it's not too much like it isn't orange, but it also isn't white. and getting that light bulb right has it gives me happiness every night that I don't have dentist office light in my house. So I'm with you in the light bulbs.
8:01Amy Wilson:All things lead me into a screed about my home, but the lighting is so weird. Our house was kind of built by a maniac. God bless them. I mean, I think it was someone who built it themselves. Nothing about it makes sense, you know, like weird angles and it just there's light bulbs everywhere. I just, I can't see it. You mean, it's like there's a track, like you have high ceilings. There's a track, high ceilings, track lighting, but then like track lighting in one area. And then the whole, our house is shaped like a triangle. What kind of triangle is our house shaped like it? What one side is flat?
8:38Oh, that's an isosceles.
8:40Amy Wilson:Isosceles. Right. So one side is straight and then the roof goes from the top of the straight side to the floor, to the ground. For reasons, just for reasons. For reasons. I mean, thank God we got it for cheap for a reason. But I don't think that LED light bulbs or any kind of light bulbs are going to play a role in my life. But we do have porch lights on a timer, but they're just my husband bought like a timer at Home Depot that somehow makes them know when the sun goes down and they turn on. And I do like that. Delaney says packing cubes. I'm with you on this, Delaney. She says we only use them once or twice a year, but they make packing so much easier and helps keep clothes where they belong on vacation.
9:20I try to get the rest of my family into these. Like they're amazing because you pack all your when you get where you're going, you pull out your T-shirt packing cube and drop it in the door. You pull out your underwear and socks packing cube and you drop it in the door. It takes you 15 seconds to unpack, 15 seconds to repack, and you can fit more stuff.
9:35Amy Wilson:I have never used a packing cube. So walk me through it. You don't vacuum suck them and make them tiny. Yeah, they have those. These aren't those. Those are just these are just little like, you know, they don't weigh anything. They're just categorizing. You zip them up, but you can stuff just because you can kind of pack it down and zip it up. You can fit a little more stuff in there. OK. So just while you're packing, instead of just putting right in the suitcase, you put, you know, like with like into these packing cubes first and then you put them in the suitcase. You can fit more. They're already categorized.
10:02They're great for kids. Like when you go to Disney World, you can pack your kid's suitcase, too, with packing cubes. And like this is your Monday outfit. This is your Tuesday outfit. This is your Thursday outfit. And they can dress themselves.
10:12Amy Wilson:You might as well be being like, you can go to Mars if you just get on a spacesuit and have 350 years to spare. My daughter uses packing cubes for camp and she's very into them. But I kind of thought they were just like a TikTok thing. But now you're making it sound like they make sense. No, they're really they're really good. And then you get one like then you turn one into the laundry packing cube while you're there, like throw the old underwear and socks into that packing cube. And then that stays away from the rest of your stuff. And that I would like because I hate the feeling of I have a one suitcase with a zipper, but it's too small usually by the end.
10:48Amy Wilson:I don't like to put the dirty clothes in with the clean clothes. Guys, our birthday's coming. Packing cubes. Mara says, and this is something I aspire to and I've never done. I bought an extra hanging toiletry bag, the kind with multiple pockets. I keep an extra thermometer, pulse ox, key prescription medications, flu and COVID tests, band-aids, and basic over-the-counter medicines for the family. We travel a decent amount and it always gets packed. No more worrying what to bring or having to go out late night on vacation to find something. It's always packed and ready to go. It takes away a big mental load when we travel.
11:29Yeah. Have that ready to go. Do you do this? I do this with my toiletries. Like I have a, you know, the plastic thing that you put your toiletries in. I just throw in all the samples I get at the department store or whatever. That's ready to go. And I if something runs out, I try to remember when I get home, like, oh, the shampoo bottle needs more shampoo. But I don't I never unpack that. So that part of packing is just packing cube of toiletries. Throw it in the suitcase.
11:51Amy Wilson:This is on my lifetime. Never done. Have always thought I would do list is have a my good friend is a reporter. So she'll get a call and it's like you need to go to Ohio in the next three hours. and so she keeps a whole packed bag with like her you know a couple changes of clothes a full toilet for everything she needs so when they call her it's like a go bag it's by her door she just picks it up and goes to the airport and gets on the next flight and I thought I don't quite need that level but I it would cost so little to have a travel toiletries bag packed that then I wouldn't have to spend the last 45 minutes after packing being like, oh, my God, I have everything.
12:34Amy Wilson:And Amy can tell you where's the first place we always go when we're traveling together. The CVS or equivalent. To buy the toothbrush, I forgot, the deodorant, I forgot, whatever it is I forgot this time. This would, again, help my life immensely and I'll never do it. Why? Because I just, I think of it right now and I'll never think of it again. What about a crock pot? Erica says that that purchase has changed your life so much easier to make dinner when we have many activities in the evenings and often have to eat separately. I have to say, for me, a crock pot is the equivalent of the George Jetson, oldie locks alert, back in my day, button where you push in dinner's ready.
13:13Amy Wilson:Like I'm always so delighted to come home and be like, oh, crock pot, you did it again. You made us dinner. I mean, I do put the ingredients in, but somehow it still amazes me that I get home and dinner's ready. The only thing about the crock pot is for me, it's winter only. Like I don't want to eat crock pot food in the summer. Soupy, stewy. I've fallen out of love with the crock pot. I need to get it back in rotation. I tried to go Instapot and I think I'm ready to commit to getting rid of my Instapot. I liked the idea that you could see it. Like I love a hard sear, really hard sear on a pot roast and then you crock pot it because then you get the crunchy outside.
13:50Amy Wilson:I don't like soggy. Pressure cooker can go soggy. Right. It's ready in five minutes, but it might be a little soggy. I'm out. I'm out on the Instant Pot. I'm all in on the crock pot. And I also love now here's something that I got a mini crock pot. It's like the size of a big coffee cup. And when you have like people over for the Super Bowl, you put like the cheddar dip in there. And then all day you got a little warm cheddar dip for people to dip stuff into. My sister made homemade pretzels. We had that crock pot full of cheese going. We could have stayed there for 10 years. It was amazing. This is interesting.
14:29My husband's birthday is in a couple of days. I got nothing. Of course, I have nothing. But he does love the, we've talked about this before, this purchase that makes a big difference. The thing, what is it called that keeps your coffee warm? Ember. An ember. It's a like mug with an app that keeps your coffee at exactly the right temperature indefinitely. He loves that ember. And so I need to go to the store and find this and then figure out what little sauce. It wouldn't be cheese sauce. He's too healthy for that. He wouldn't eat the cheese. Something that keeps things warm. He does love that kind of stuff.
14:58Amy Wilson:Keep it warm. We might have solved a problem for you. And for everyone else, we're going to solve so many more problems. We'll be right back. So I just did the closet swap, right? I got out all my summer clothes and I immediately thought, huh, a lot of this I didn't really like last summer either. So you know what I did? I headed straight to Quince. Quince offers a wide range of high quality essentials, but without the luxury markup. I just got the linen pajamas from Quince. They are super cute and they look just enough not like pajamas so you can walk the dog in them in the morning, which is amazing.
15:31Amy Wilson:Love a pajama outing. Everything at Quince is priced 50 to 80 % less than similar brands. They work directly with Epical Factories and cut out the middlemen. So you're paying for quality, not brand markup. Quince has become a destination for essentials across home, kitchen, bedding, and beyond. Whatever your needs, you can find elevated quality goods at Quince. Elevate your summer wardrobe. Go to quince.com slash fresh for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns. Now available in Canada, too. That's quince.com slash fresh for free shipping and 365-day returns. Quince.com slash fresh. After an afternoon at the pool, my mom's skin needs a hydration reset.
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17:18Amy Wilson:Get 10 % off your first order site-wide with code FRESH at OseaMalibu.com. That's code FRESH at O-S-E-A Malibu.com. You know, it's that time of year when I'm usually driving with two pairs of glasses, my prescription glasses, plus regular sunglasses over them, because otherwise I'll burn my retinas. But this year, I gave myself a summertime glow up with new prescription sunglasses from Zenni. I love this for you, Amy. At Zenni.com, you can get prescription glasses, sunglasses, blue light lenses, all starting at under$30. Go to Zenni.com, pick a frame, upload your prescription, and they'll ship it to your door.
18:00Amy Wilson:No appointment, no going to the store, no upsell at the counter. I also used Zenni's virtual try-on to see exactly how my new tortoiseshell square sunglasses would look on my face before I ordered them. Let me tell you, they looked super cute on the virtual try-on and super cute in person. And with frames at under$30, I got a second pair just because. If your glasses are overdue for a refresh, now is the time. Go to zenni.com slash podcast and use code podcast15 for 15 % off your first order. These styles sell out, so don't sit on it. That's zenni.com slash podcast, promo code podcast15. All right, so I want to be clear that we did not put a price limit.
18:48Amy Wilson:It's one thing. One thing that's changed everything. And so I don't think small. I mean, I don't consider a hot tub a small thing, but its ratio is divine. It's the one thing that changed everything. For$5 ,000, we've spent 5 ,000 hours of quality time, like nailed it. Okay. Two different people, Marianne and Kristen, mentioned the bed jet. Do you know what this thing is? No, I saw that and I was like, I need to find out what this is. Marianne says, I thought my husband was crazy, but from postpartum to perimenopausal sweats, It's life clap changing clap. Is that how you read that? Yeah. I mean, you know how it is.
19:29Amy Wilson:It's like, I want to be snacking or whatever. Like you put this hand claps in. I just loved hearing you render it in a listenable form. Life clap changing clap. That's like when I try to use sling around my kids. We've gifted it to several friends and family, and it is unanimously loved by men and women of all ages. So I looked it up. It's like an air conditioner for your bed. I'm getting the chills thinking about this. It's blowing like chilly air between you and the sheets. I feel like I need to understand it better. But my preference, as I've discussed, is to sleep in a 52 degree bedroom wrapped up in the warmest comfort I can find.
20:13Amy Wilson:And as summer approaches last night, I had to for the first time in the year. And it's always a sad day for me. I had to jettison my warm comforter because our air conditioner doesn't get the bedroom cold enough. And then I have to sleep under like a thin summer. I hate it. In the summer, it's the worst. People have bigger problems, Amy. I'm not trying to say this is the worst thing that could ever happen to a human being, but it's the worst thing that can happen to me. It's terrible. You're not even like, how can I sleep under this like thin blanket? It's not, you need something heavy, but then you'll be hot.
20:46Amy Wilson:It's such a dilemma that there's people right now doing a TikTok trend that's like my top five horror movies. And it's like peanut butter and jelly with too much jelly. Like, it's just silly things. But mine is sleeping under a thin blanket in a cold room because now I'm just cold. Now I feel like then I can't sleep at all. I mean, our air conditioner stinks. So I'll get a bed jet. I might get my husband a bed jet for his birthday. Does he sleep cold? He likes a cold room. Yes. Oh, he could lie under his bed jet and eat nacho cheese out of his crock pot. He would be in a whole new level of new new person.
21:27Amy Wilson:Oh, that's funny. Yes. Yes. Let's do that. I'll just see him like skipping down the street and I'll be like, she must have come through. Faith says putting paper plates on Amazon, subscribe and save. Now, I have some ethical, you know, I don't like waste. Yeah. It makes me crazy. But I have found a new happiness in compostable plates because we compost and we have countywide composting. So for our compost, if you home compost, there's a lot of stuff you can't put in it. Yeah. Because your small personal compost will not break down, let's say, bones like chicken wing bones. County compost gets to like thousands of degrees.
Read the full transcript
22:12Amy Wilson:You can put anything in there. You could put like a whole chicken in there. Like you can put anything in it. And so with compostable plates, I do find I get the big compost bag at the end of dinner. Everyone throw their compost plates in. I wouldn't do with plastic plates because I couldn't sleep at night. And I wouldn't do it with paper plates because I don't like a messy garbage. But a compostable plate, I'm feeling it. I'm afraid someone's going to write in and be like compostable plates are not real. and they're actually ruining the environment in a horrible way. But please don't tell me. I'm enjoying my life with my compostable plates.
22:49There are seasons, you know, like maybe Faith isn't a, you know, it's a little league season and nobody's and it's too much. Like, I think we've definitely talked about that, that there are times when these are the right decisions for you and paper plates on subscribe and save means she's just getting more.
23:03Amy Wilson:Well, I do think that some of the subscribe and save options, I find the problem with subscriptions is that I either have too few or too much. Like it's hard to get the right amount. And so I get my laundry detergent through subscription. But again, it's like sometimes it feels like we have 400 pods and then we have none. And I'm like, oh, I can't do laundry. Because also there are people in this world who do laundry like every two days. But I am not one of those people. I am one of those people. Yeah. This surprises me not at all. What? I am a person who does 45 loads of laundry every two weeks.
23:44Amy Wilson:Like I it's really subscribe and save is like get my name out of your mouth. This is not a me problem. This is a you problem. Like if I did laundry on a consistent basis, the subscription would make more sense for me. Molly says last month she started outsourcing her laundry. The laundry lady picks up on Fridays, delivers on Sundays. Everything is folded about$60 a week for three people. For me, it's worth it. it's a couple hours of your time back. Seems like a reasonable choice to consider. I recently was at a friend's house and she was with great shame being like, don't ask what I'm doing. And there was a million things of laundry in her kitchen.
24:20Amy Wilson:And I was like, laundry? Worse. I'm outsourcing my laundry. Like what kind of person can't do their own laundry? And she's a single mom with two kids. And I was like, you like, it's totally fine. I will say I used to do this in the city because we did not have a washer dryer in my apartment oh wow yeah the laundromat is basically then you just have to commit six hours on a saturday to sitting at the laundromat and then like if the washer isn't open then you got to come back it's just a thing back in the day we did wash and fold and they seemed to be using like chlorine acid on everything It just it wore down the clothes really fast.
25:05Amy Wilson:Like they came back folded super flat. I mean, it was incredible. It was like a work of art, the way that they fold. It creases in them from how tightly they were folded. But I found the like it felt very chemically to me. I don't know. It wasn't as pleasant. But I believe these things you may have to shop around a little bit, but wash and fold can be a zinger. It's for me leaving the house and then remembering I just had to get some, you know, the covers on the couch done and I dropped them off. And I was so proud of myself after driving them around in my trunk for six and a half weeks. They got a nice tour of all sorts of wonderful places.
25:44Amy Wilson:I finally dropped them off. And then the idea of picking them up was so overwhelming to me. It took me like another six weeks. So it's not for me, but I can see where it's a good idea. I love this idea. Kelly says, get large puppy training pads for diaper changes in public restrooms. It's so smart because then otherwise you're using that mat that comes with a diaper bag that's like barely big enough for your baby to be on. And then that's kind of gross. So you just get the wee wee pads, they're called. And it's huge. And those are like 16 inches by 16 inches or something. They're large. So just have one of those in your diaper bag for the gross gas station bathroom and throw the whole thing out when you're done.
26:22Amy Wilson:very smart and then keep them around if you do diaper free potty training because we basically were like we're taking off your diaper today and you're never getting a diaper again that's how we potty trained and they're very useful you just put them on everything because the problem is you don't want to be cleaning pee off of your couch and so the rule was like here's your little pad you bring it and sit on it everywhere you go. And then, you know, hopefully it's also a reminder to use the bathroom. But man, the thousand one uses for the again, I did not do we did toilet training the long and drawn out, you know, three M &Ms because you sat for three minutes away.
27:06Amy Wilson:It worked. We're all here. We're all here. That's one way to do it. The other thing is that they make reusable ones and they fold down small. So if you are able to change the baby with no problems, otherwise you can fold it up dirty side in, stick it in a side pocket of the diaper bag, and then you can wash it. So then you don't have to feel like you have to bring disposable world. Disposable world. You know, I'm always speaking against disposable world. Emily has something for you. She says daylight alarm clocks. Those of us who are not even a little bit functional in the morning, get up more easily with those alarms than anything else we've tried.
27:42It's the ones that slowly make the room light. I don't have one, but Emily seems to think they make getting up easier.
27:49Amy Wilson:I mean, for me, I would never, ever wake up. Like, I'm not a light. I don't wake up for the light. I do. I wake up as soon as a little bit of light. Your brain wouldn't notice like, oh, it's slowly getting lighter in here. I don't believe so because I wake up at like nine and it's been light and we have our windows open. Like, I don't think it would do anything. Yeah, you don't need darkness to sleep. You don't need anything to sleep. No, I don't need any darkness to sleep. To fall asleep, as we've established, I need 800 things to work simultaneously in my favor. But once I'm asleep, it's hard to wake me up.
28:22Okay.
28:22Amy Wilson:This is Caitlin's again, this is not cheap, but it's joy to cost ratio. And I am such a big believer in this. She says a cushy latex mattress topper, it's a few hundred dollars, kept me from spending a few thousand dollars on a new mattress when my 2009 mattress got uncomfortable. Add cotton sheets, and I still think, man, this bed is so comfortable every time I get in. And my good sleep helps the households. And I am a firm believer. I had a friend in college, and as one does, we were out one night and I was like, oh, I'll just stay over at your place. And I got in her bed and I said, what dreamland have I entered?
29:06Amy Wilson:Like, what is this magical place? And she had a probably mid mattress. Like it was college. She didn't have some like Serta 8 million, you know, but she had a pillow topper. Like it was like a comforter that sat on top of the bed. it's probably winter in New York. I got into that thing with like a cozy comforter on top of me. And it was just like sleeping in heaven on the clouds with the angels. And ever since that moment, I feel like I had a conversion. I fell from the horse, like Paul on his way to Damascus, Saul really on his way to Damascus became Paul. Saul became Paul. Long story. But I have now become very committed to the idea that your bed is worth spending money on.
29:56Amy Wilson:Like your bed is the most important place in the house. You spend a tremendous amount of time there. I inherited a bed from my mom and dad, which I'm sure they spent a lot of money on. It's super comfortable. Unfortunately, I love the guy, but my husband sleeps warm. So I originally had that fluffy the heaven bed and he got in it and was like, I die. Like he was sweating to death. He likes to sleep. It's funny. We are so opposite like this. Like he likes his iPhone, like no case, no nothing. He likes his wallet to just be like a folding thing. He wants everything. Military. He like wants to live in an Apple store, basically.
30:35Amy Wilson:Yeah. Apple store barracks is his. He's an engineer. and I think like clean lines is his North Star. We have found some compromises, but I find bed set up, it's really worth committing to. You spend, I don't know, what is it? Half of your life? It's not quite. It's a third of your life. Third of your life in bed. Make it the most comfortable place in your home. I mean, make it. It is something I need to hear because you go to a hotel like, oh my God, this bed is so comfortable and you're using like 15 year old pillows at home, right? Yeah. And you don't have to get a new mattress, Just get a new chunky thing to go on top.
31:09Amy Wilson:We're Irish people and we're like, tweet, tweet. We don't need a pillow. We have a rock from 18 years ago and that should be enough. I'm this way about towels. Like just get new towels every couple of years. Give the old ones to the dog pound if you're worried about making garbage. But you're worth it. You said a mouthful there, but I have a rebuttal. We're going to take a break. I'll be right back. Oh, Amy, between swimming and sweating, summer is basically bad hair season at my house. But we found a solution. It's Nutrafol. Nutrafol is the number one dermatologist recommended hair growth supplement brand.
31:47And it's the number one hair growth supplement brand personally used by dermatologists. Nutrafol's hair growth supplements are peer reviewed, NSF certified for sport and clinically tested.
31:58Amy Wilson:And what I love is it's not a one-size-fits-all approach. Nutrafol offers multiple formulas for men and women tailored to different life stages like postpartum or menopause and lifestyle factors such as a plant-based diet. So you get the support that's right for you. Let your hair be one less thing to worry about. See visibly thicker, stronger, faster-growing hair in three to six months with Nutrafol. For a limited time, Nutrafol is offering our listeners$10 off your first month's subscription and free shipping when you visit Nutrafol.com and enter promo code laughing. That's Nutrafol.com spelled N-U-T-R-A-F-O-L dot com.
32:42Amy Wilson:Promo code laughing. Study. And play. Come together on a Windows 11 PC. And for a limited time, college students get the best of both worlds. Get the Unreal College Deal. Everything you need to study and play with select Windows 11 PCs. Eligible students get a year of Microsoft 365 Premium and a year of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate with a custom color Xbox wireless controller. Learn more at windows.com slash student offer. While supplies last, ends June 30th. Terms at aka.ms slash college PC.
33:17Amy Wilson:And now, awesome mom hacks for summer. From the Wet Fresh Hell podcast. Listen, hot dogs are a completely acceptable dinner at least five nights a week. Ice cream is also an acceptable dinner. Also acceptable Tostitos. Totally fine. Anybody who says they're bored has to clean the playroom. Except for mom. Mom is exempted from the boredom rule. Pick a light novel, as in not heavy, because you won't actually be reading it. You'll just be carrying it back and forth to the pool for two months straight. Spray sunscreen directly into your child's mouth on the first day of summer to get them used to the taste.
33:54Carefully label your children's clothing for camp so that the kid who takes the sweatshirt home can wonder who the heck is Sophia Conroy every time they wear it for the next year. This has been Awesome Mom Hacks for Summer from the What Fresh Hell podcast.
34:11Amy Wilson:I agree with you get new towels, but here's the point you said that I fall down on. Get rid of your old towels because I don't get rid of my old towels. And then I have like two nice towels and four towels that have like bite marks from the cats, like holes in them. They literally are raggedy and scratchy. And then we all fight over the two nice towels. You got to do the clean out if you're going to get new things. I try to do that with my clothes and shoes and stuff too. Like when I get a new pair of shoes, I live in New York City. I have like a pretty nice closet, but I live in New York City.
34:47I don't have like basements and attics and extra rooms to be putting clothes in. So I buy a pair of shoes, a pair of shoes has to be given away.
34:55Amy Wilson:Amy, tell me about your vacuum game. What does it look like? Roomba. I know one of our listeners suggested a Roomba. I love a Roomba. It's kind of my laundry approach. I sort of always have a load of laundry going maybe every other day. But yeah, I just want to have a load of laundry going in the background because it's easy. Roomba, clean it out, you know, stick it in a room with a door closed and let it run till it dies. And then the next day do that in a different room and your house is getting clean while you're not thinking about it. I love it. Our Roomba has been broken for quite a while and we haven't replaced it.
35:28Amy Wilson:I feel like we're a little too messy to be Roomba people because there's always stuff on the floor that Roomba is eating that she shouldn't be eating. We have old style like couches from the 70s because I got them for my mom and dad. They have like the upholstery flaps that cover the legs. Roomba tries to eat those. I wish I was happier with a Roomba. And then I got a Roomba mop for the kitchen I was so excited about. Doesn't really work. Meh. It was very meh. Bridget says she got a stationary floor vacuum for the kitchen. The kids use a broom and sweep debris to the front of it. A sensor turns it on and it sucks up the mess.
36:11That sounds kind of good. Yeah, that could work for me.
36:14Amy Wilson:I have a shark wet jet and it is doing wonders for me. It's a vacuum, regular vacuum, but it has like a pad on it. So it vacuums and then it spurts out cleaner and then you Swiffer it kind of. Yeah, there's a Swiffer wet jet that I think is the same. But does it have a vacuum? I feel like the Swiffer wet jet is just a stick that shoots water. This vacuums because the worst is when you're trying to use the Swiffer wet jet and there's a lot of crumbs and it's just gross. This vacuums up all the crumbs and then it's shark makes it. and it's a vacuum. I used it at my mother-in-law's house and I was like, amazing.
36:59Amy Wilson:And then of course I bought it and it worked amazing. And I just, I don't feel like cleaning the floors, Amy. Yeah, it does. I want a robot to do it, but my robots have failed me. The one thing I am committing to after this episode is a really good cordless vacuum. I feel like the cordless vacuum. Yeah, I have one and it just like, it runs out. Like I can't even get 30 seconds of use out of it. And a sucker because I just saw on TikTok shop like a super vacuum. I want a really, really powerful cordless vacuum. So if you have recommendations, please let me know. I bought my mother when she was sick.
37:37Our favorite item ever, she had a tray that she would eat on.
37:41Amy Wilson:And then it was called Crummy and it was shaped like a ladybug. And it was a little vacuum that you could clean the tray off of with. And we were like, it's time for you to shine, Crummy. Like what the waiters have? It was like a mouse pad that you could just clear the table of crumbs. You know how at a really fancy restaurant, they come up and they... Yeah, they have a little, like a mouse. Back in the day, they had like a little like scraper and they would scrape your crumbs. This crummy, first of all, it's a ladybug. It's adorable. And then it, you have to move it with your hand. It's not a robot, but you just take crummy and you get all the crumbs off the table with crummy.
38:21Amy Wilson:And I'm a believer. I wouldn't leave her if I tried. I think that sounds pretty good. What about a Blackstone griddle? This is interesting. Julianne says, get a Blackstone griddle. A good friend of mine has sung the praises of it, that it's like amazing that you can make like 36 pancakes at once. And I'm like, but I don't want to start making pancakes all the time. I don't think I want a griddle. Used mine last night. Yeah. I don't use the plug-in kind because I find cleaning the plug-in kind challenging and annoying. I use a stovetop griddle, so it has handles. It's the same griddle size. It's the most useful item in my kitchen.
38:58Amy Wilson:I mean, knock out pancakes for the whole sleepover, and then knock out 12 pieces of bacon. And then last night, fajitas for the whole family. I mean, I love the griddle. And I bought my husband a griddle top last Father's Day for his grill and a smash burger set. So it has like this heavy iron so you can make smash burgers. Delicious. Another good Father's Day gift. This is my problem that my husband's birthday is at the end of this month and it's always hard on the heels of Father's Day and then also our anniversary. It's all within like a three week period and impossible to buy for. but like a smash burger set for the grill he does enjoy the grill the griddle okay i'm feeling this i think a trip to bed bath and beyond is in the griddle can do like fajitas you do the smash the smash burger set is really fun it's got like the it's got like a little thing that you can spritz oil on the grill and then it's got the like circle with a handle on it yeah it's really cast iron heavy so you could smush the burgers and uh i'm telling you we're loving the smash burgers.
40:07Amy Wilson:It's a gift that keeps on giving because you'll be eating smashed burgers. This is so good. Megan says the one thing that's changed everything for her was buying herself her own tube of toothpaste that's just for me to use. Now, if my husband leaves the lid off the toothpaste or squeezes it wrong, I don't care because I have my own. I think that own toothpaste is the key to extended marital bliss. I agree. Separate all that stuff. Yep. I'm more of the villain as usual. Are you a squeeze from the middle or? As if I have to ask. Are you a squeeze from the middle or a roll up from the bottom? Chaos Muppet.
40:43Amy Wilson:I'm a Madden man. And my husband is more the yo. Like he likes it done correctly. I am. We have solved this a little bit by going to the non-tube kind. It's like a little squeeze bottle kind of. Yeah, I like those too. They're not as messy. This is one of those problems that I've tried to solve a million times. I have one kid who is a toothpaste. Like, as far as I can tell, he loads his toothbrush by putting a high powered fan in the kitchen and then squeezing toothpaste in front of the fan and then trying to catch some on his toothbrush. But I've bought a lot of the like caps and a dispenser.
41:20Amy Wilson:It seems to just be an us problem. But those little squeezy bottles are a little bit better. I agree. Yeah. Kylie, hail to our sponsor, says Skylight Calendar. I never thought I could do digital and I love it. Our skylight calendar, it's one of my favorite things that I own. I was gifted it by the skylight people. But first of all, I love the pictures going by all day because when it's not on calendar, it's a photo frame, which I just love. Like there are nights where we'll just sit and have a cocktail and be like, oh my gosh, remember that when he went as wild kratts for Halloween? That was so much fun.
41:56Amy Wilson:And then it has everybody's calendar. We also keep a paper calendar in the kitchen. Someone else mentioned that they prefer to paper calendar. We do keep a paper calendar in the kitchen because I just think sometimes it's right there where we're eating. The skylight calendar is in the living room. The paper calendar, I do think can be very helpful for like everybody's eating and you're kind of talking through the day and it's like, oh, go add that to the calendar, especially, you know, June is our season of every five minutes. There's a different event. I think you do need to have like the month at a glance in some format, right?
42:37I actually have one on my Remarkable, which is, you know, the writing tablets. I have the calendar on there and I read it in because it's really because I'm the one who needs to see the month at a glance. Like, no, no, the only weekend free in June is X. Because if you get to in the weeds in your phone And day by day, you don't scroll back and be like, wait a minute, we're out every night next week. You need to be able to see a larger block at a time, I think, too.
43:01Amy Wilson:Amy, talk to us about the air fryer, as you have already. But Bridget and another user, quick dinners, it's made it easier for the kids to cook for themselves. If we lose power, we can still use it on our generator. Like, they're loving the air fryer. I mentioned already, I got the air fryer attachment for the Instapot, and I think that never really delivered the same results. I think you need a full air fryer. I love the air fryer. My husband got one for Christmas from one of the kids. It's like a good for two air fryer. So that's my only issue with it is like it makes amazing broccoli that's kind of roasted and crispy, but I can't do enough for four people.
43:38You have to do it in batches. That's my only beef with the air fryer. I think it's amazing for heating up leftovers or for like can of chickpeas. You dump that in the air fryer with a bunch of like salt and chili powder and whatever. And it's like it's better than anything that's in the pantry. And it took five minutes. It's really kind of fun. I agree. It's fun. It's not messy. You get like you can get coffee filters for it, sort of. I guess you could probably just use coffee filters. But they're of parchment paper. So you don't have to clean the air fryer. You put the like chicken and tomatoes in the parchment thing and it holds and it doesn't make a mess.
44:11I love it.
44:13Amy Wilson:Yeah, I feel like I'm like, I don't know. It's something else to learn. I don't want to deal with it. Annalisha has one that is a dilemma, Amy, that we've been trying to solve since day one of this podcast. And I don't know that this is the solution, but I thought it was clever. All the same color socks for each member of the family. No more matching socks. All the socks go in a bin. You'll never even know if a pair is missing. I mean, these sock systems, We've tried them all. It's really, really, the socks are the bane of our existence. I like this idea, but to commit to... One color. Like, who gets red?
44:49Amy Wilson:To commit to getting rid of every sock in the household and starting again is too daunting for me right now. I'm just, this can't be fixed. I think it's a good idea for the kid going off to college, though. Like, just get them, like, 24 pairs of white socks, and then those are your socks. And then they just match, because that is a chance to start fresh. I have the cookie jar system that I keep with the laundry. I keep a cookie jar that every spare sock, every sock that doesn't have a match gets thrown in that cookie jar. And I just had one of my kids like, here, you fix this, clean this out. It was like 18 months worth of.
45:22Amy Wilson:A cookie jar. I would need like a human coffin. I have five billion unmatched socks. You have three kids at home. Yeah, they're all still at home. And then I'm like, I'm going to throw it all out and start again. and then I do and it's just as bad as it was the day before. I don't understand it. If you hold on to them long enough, you'll find like half. I'm like, oh, here's the match. Like if you, the dryer will like return it to you eventually if you just keep the other one in the cookie jar for a while. And then we started getting into like, as long as it's Christmas themed, it's a match and it's not good.
45:51Right. That's what he was doing. It was like sight rhymes. He's like, this is close enough, which I have no problem with, but his sister disagreed.
45:57Amy Wilson:I am going to give you this last one. It's a little gross, but I'm telling you it's a game changer if you're me or you have a car sick kid. They sell on Amazon. We've linked to them before. We'll link to them again. Kristen says disposable puke bags in the car backseat. They actually make an item. I think they sell them for hospitals and it's got a plastic ring at the top and then a plastic bag. They're foolproof. Like a plastic bag is not foolproof. Right. You need to have a couple of plastic bags. It's just it can leak. And also there's an aim issue and there's a lot going on. I finally committed and bought these medical grade, basically, like it's a plastic ring with a long bag.
46:41Amy Wilson:You can fit 10 of them in the back seat. And, you know, I've learned the hard way. Do not rely on anything else. We've got two pukers in the family. One of them is me. And for my own sake, for everyone else's sake, puke bags in the car at all times. Get the good puke bags. And commit to the good ones. It's like a good bed. There are times to save money, but beds and puke bags are not them. Let me tell you something. There's another one thing that's going to change everything for you, and that's signing up for the Webfreshel newsletter. Because if you do, if you do, you're going to get the links to everything we talked about today.
47:15But you've got to get the newsletter. You've got to get the newsletter. The next newsletter, I'm going to put the puke sock for the backseat, the bed jet. We're going to find this stuff, and we're going to put it in the newsletter for you. We send out a newsletter once a month with usually lots of fun stuff that's not on the show. Actually, we have big news, big reveal this month. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.
47:33Amy Wilson:You got to get the newsletter because there is big reveal exclusive news only available. And it's really exciting. Plus the bedjet link and the pew bags. And to get our newsletter, all you have to do is click the link in the show notes for this episode or go to whatfreshelpodcast.com and sign up in the sidebar. You're going to get the newsletter. It's once a month. It's worth it. We try to make it totally worth your while and send you stuff that's interesting. And you want to talk joy to cost ratio. It's free. It's free. It's free. But how much do I have to pay for this? You might be asking. Nothing.
48:03It's free.
48:03Amy Wilson:But wait, there's more. Yeah. It slices, it's dices, and it's free. So sign up for that. Thanks for all these awesome suggestions from our group. And with that, we will talk to you next time. Thanks, everybody.
48:25This Father's Day, when you ship UPS Air at the UPS store,
48:29Amy Wilson:Your items arrive on time with your money back, guaranteed at no extra cost. It's like the father of all shipping services. It shows up to the airport way too early just to play it safe. It's overprotective about all the things that truly matter. And it's always prompt, especially to be with family. Make it your first choice to celebrate your dad. Ship UPS Air with our money back guarantee. Exclusively at the UPS Store U.S. retail locations. Visit the upsstore.com slash air shipping for full details. Terms and conditions apply.
From the publisher
What's the one thing you've purchased that has delivered outsized returns in joy and ease? We asked our listeners to tell us the one thing in their lives that has really overdelivered. From travel hacks to sleep upgrades, from time-savers to towels, here are some of our favorites.
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