I Know How to Get Chocolate Ice Cream Out of Clothes!

And there is only one way...

Sometimes I'm shocked that it's 2009 and there are billions of people on the internet, and yet when I google something as simple as how do I get chocolate ice cream out of cotton? I don't find the answer. So, this post is a public service announcement, because tonight I figured it out all on my own.

Sophia loves chocolate ice cream. So much so that when we stopped at Ben and Jerry's at Fisherman's Wharf, and I let her get some even though she was in her new Mini Boden dress, she declared "this is the yummiest vacation I ever did been on before!" Sophia is also the world's messiest eater. I can feed Amelia, age 2, and Sophia, age 4, each a big plate of spaghetti - Amelia will be spotless at the end of the meal and meticulously wiping the one tiny sauce spatter off the table, and Sophia will look like she just engaged in spaghetti sauce mud wrestling.

So, let me tell you from experience that you cannot get chocolate ice cream out of cotton children's clothes with Shout or Spray and Wash (even the Advanced or Resolve Power). Or with Oxiclean. Or with dish soap. Or with Tide or Clorox 2. Or with clorox bleach (can you believe it?!)

But you can get chocolate ice cream out of clothes by doing the following:

1. Immediately after returning home from your ill-fated ice cream adventure, remove the clothing and douse the stain with Zout.

2. Let it sit for 5 minutes.

3. Soak the clothing in HOT water - really hot. I come from Europe, where we practically boil all of our clothes... considering your clothing will be permanently stained otherwise, trust me on this (it didn't shrink or stain her Boden dress, although I would only advise this for COTTON fabric!)

4. Wring it out, add more Zout to the stain and scrub the stain by rubbing the fabric together over the stain until it is gone, dipping the clothing in the hot water and adding more Zout as needed.

5. Wring the clothing out again, then wash as normal. You may want to add an extra rinse to get all the Zout out.

Now, her dress was pretty much covered in chocolate stains - including the back! - but I used almost half a bottle of Zout doing this. And my fingers are kind of raw from the scrubbing. But it was a glorious victory, because chocolate ice cream has won too many stain battles in my household!

You're welcome.

By the way, I also know how to remove a bead, pebble, marble, bean, etc. from a toddler's nose.