My little one loves to wash dishes. She does a good job. She may decide to spend ten minutes on one fork but it will be the cleanest fork in the west. She may also decide to place it in the sink once she is finished rather than the dish rack. No matter, she is just as happy to rewash the fork for another ten minutes. Once she has completed the fork she will move onto a bowl. A bowl is big time for this little girl so she may pay this one extra attention and take fifteen minutes or so. In the meantime, I will clear the table put dishes away, or file my nails all in an attempt to encourage her to be helpful in the kitchen. Having older children as well I know the importance of starting children off young on chores.
Finally I make my way back to the sink and she is finally finished. It is time to run the disposal so I flip the switch. The sound of an unhappy garbage disposal fills my kitchen like thunder. How did I forget to check it? I allowed a preschooler to wash a few dishes and I forgot to double check nothing fell in the disposal. I will pay for this mishap. Hopefully, I won’t be paying a plumber. I stick my hand in the disposal (after turning off the electricity, please do not forget that very important step) and find a plastic toy and plastic spoon from a child’s tea set in the disposal.
Why is all of this important? It is important because I found a great solution and had to share it with you. The concept is simple but brilliance often comes in simple packages. Allow me to introduce you to Dispose It Guard. Dispose It Guard is a nifty device that has prevented plastic tea set spoons from making their way down my disposal. The device fits snuggly in your disposal yet does not plug the sink but strains anything that comes in its path. The only thing going down your disposal is what you put down there. The best part of Dispose It Guard and the main reason for sharing is the safety poker on the other end of it. The safety poker is a cool way to poke around your disposal without using your hands. You can also use it to scrap your sink. I love anything that is multipurpose. Yes, simple but a garbage disposal drain that fits securely and acts as a safety poker and sink scraper is a must have in the kitchen. Take it from someone who has two little ones doing the dishes for fun!