You know you’re a mom when …

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…you get super excited about buying a new vacuum.

The vacuum I’ve been using for the past 4 years is one that Jake bought right before we got married (without consulting me on said vacuum purchase). Since I probably am the one vacuuming 99% of the time … shouldn’t I have 99% sway on the decision?

Anyway, he got a basic Hoover Windtunnel on sale for $60 — good deal. And the thing did last a while. The drywall dust finally did it in and the weekend we got back into our house it died.

My mom was visiting and she recommended that I buy the same vacuum she owns (a canister!) and turned out that line was on sale at Sears that weekend (and I got an additional 5% with my military ID)! We quickly drove over to the mall, paid for the vacuum and went downstairs to pick it up. Unfortunately they sold me a vacuum that wasn’t in stock and wouldn’t be in for several days — insert very sad Monica face. I went FIVE DAYS without a vacuum, it nearly killed me.

After using the vacuum for a couple of weeks, I LOVE IT. It only took 30 minutes to go through the first bag since the carpet is brand new, cheap, and shedding like crazy (see the picture below).

New vacuum

Cheapo carpet fibers are overflowing!!

But now that I’ve gotten into a routine, it is amazing. I never thought I’d like a canister vacuum….but I do.

PROS:

  • Easy to maneuver (cuts corners easily)
  • Since there is so bulk on the top like my old upright, it gets under furniture much better (I can vacuum completely under Noah’s crib without moving it.)
  • Easy to change the attachments — I can do this one handed while holding Noah
  • Pet attachment is awesome for furniture and stairs
  • Canister moves easily behind me
  • Telescoping wand is awesome
  • Floor brush makes cleaning the kitchen and entryway easy (great for picking up all of the little crumbs from Noah’s meals)

CONS:

  • Total weight is heavy but since it’s distributed between two parts, not too bad
  • The hose retract is very sensitive (have to have the cord straight before hitting it)
  • Bags are kind of expensive — they recommend the cloth over the paper bags and they are twice as much!