Giveaways Reviews

The Five Stages of Dirt

We have a saying in my house: Dirty clothes mean you’re having fun!

Before having kids, I didn’t think you could have a parenting philosophy about dirt, but I’ve since learned better. It’s not that I’m a fan of being muddy myself, but over the years, I’ve made my way through the Five Stages of Dirt.

What, you’ve never heard of the Stages of Dirt? Well here you go!

  1. DENIAL:
  2. “Those can’t be grass stains on your brand new jeans!”

  3. ANGER
  4. “Grrr. I told you not to play in the mud!”

  5. BARGAINING
  6. “Listen, if you can keep your clothes clean today, you can have a popsicle after dinner.”

  7. DEPRESSION
  8. “Nothing will ever be clean again.”

  9. ACCEPTANCE
  10. “It’s okay. Dirty clothes mean you’re having fun!”

My girls come home from school every day with dirty knees and bums from clambering all over the playground equipment and playing in the sandbox. They have paint on their shirts from art class. Mud on their socks (and in their shoes) from puddle jumping. They play with their friends and ride their bikes after school which piles on more dirt and occasional smears of bike chain grease. Dinner means more spills and stains, and sometimes a little bit of sauce in their hair.

The kids know I might sigh a bit, but I won’t get mad about it. After all, dirty clothes are a sign of a good day!

But along with the fun comes a lot of laundry, and I need help to get out all that ground-in dirt, grass stains, and kid-shaped grime. OxiClean™ is my go-to tool for helping me get my kids’ clothes clean so they can go out and do it all over again the next day.

The OxiClean name is best-known for its classic Versatile Stain Remover powder. I’ve used OxiClean powder in my wash for years – there’s a reason it’s the #1 stain fighter brand in Canada! – but did you know OxiClean makes pre-treat products too? When my girls come home covered in mud and grass and grime, OxiClean’s MaxForce™ Spray and MaxForce Foam Laundry Pre-Treater help save the day and keep my kids’ clothes stain-free and looking newer for longer.

Curried beef stew – yummy but stainy!

I don’t do laundry until I have a full load to go in, so I really appreciate that I can leave these to soak in until laundry day (up to 7 days!) without damaging clothing. MaxForce Foam has extra grease dissolving power, and the foam format is easy to apply only where you need it which makes it perfect for tough bike stains or greasy food stains.

And then there are the times that life gets in the way and I don’t even notice the stain until laundry day. Ugh. Luckily, OxiClean takes life into account. I can spray or foam to get out those dried-on stains even if they’ve been sitting in the bottom of the laundry basket (or for some bizarro reason, under the bed) for a few days. Just spray, let soak for at least 5 minutes, and wash as normal.

All clean and ready to play again!

OxiClean can be purchased at your local Loblaws or Real Canadian Superstore. Follow OxiClean Canada on Facebook for product news and updates.

Take the Power of OxiClean Challenge!

Tell OxiClean how you fight stains and you could win a $10,000 Laundry Room Makeover in the Power of OxiClean Challenge Contest! Visit for your chance to win one of eight weekly prizes of OxiClean stain fighters or a grand prize of a laundry room makeover by HGTV’s Sarah Baeumler.

No purchase necessary. Contest ends November 10, 2017. Limit 1 submission per day/per person/email. Odds depend on the number of entrants. Skill-testing question required. Go to www.oxicleanchallenge.ca for how to enter, official rules and regulations, and full prize description.

Win an OxiClean Prize Pack!

But wait, there’s more! I’ve got another fun giveaway here for you. Enter in the giveaway widget below for your chance to win a $100 Loblaws gift card and an OxiClean Prize Pack, or 1 of 2 secondary prizes of a $50 Loblaws gift card and an OxiClean Prize Pack. That’s 3 chances to win!

Click here to check out my other open giveaways and be sure to follow me on Facebook!

OxiClean Challenge Giveaway

Disclosure: I partnered with YMC and OxiClean and have received compensation for this post. All opinions in the post are my own.

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2 Comments

  • Great philosophy! I think I’ve been stuck on bargaining for a long time and it doesn’t work so I guess I should move on too. 😀