Who doesn’t know the 5 second rule? If you drop food …but pick it up within 5 seconds, then the food will not be dirty (i.e. – not contaminated with bacteria and germs.) And my family has put an extra spin to this 5 second rule; if you pick it up and kiss it up to God, then the food will be safe too (i.e. pick it up, kiss it, and raise it up in the air as if you are asking to be protected from any harm that can come from eating the food.)

And I can’t lie, there was once a time that I was a believer in the 5 second rule (only in my own home, though.) But not anymore, since I’ve come to learn about all of the disgusting things that can be found in a kitchen. Now, if I see one of my little ones trying to eat something off of the floor, I instantly turn into a baseball player trying to slide into home plate as I dive across the kitchen and swat the contaminated food from their hands.

By the way, the Clorox® Ick-tionary™ (which is my go place to for all things ick related) has the perfect term for eating off of the floor. They call it Floormét Dining.

You may think that I am over reacting, but if you read this study by NSF International that reveals the germiest places in the kitchen, then you would know that many surfaces in the kitchen (such as counter tops, dish clothes, the refrigerators and the blender) contain E. coli, salmonella, yeast and mold, and listeria…..all things that could get your little ones very sick.

I realize that you can’t go through life being the dropped-food police. And that no matter how many times you tell your toddlers not to eat off of the floor…they are going to try it anyway. So the only thing that I can do is to keep my kitchen as clean as possible with Clorox and pray to the good Lord that my kids don’t get sick.

Check out the Clorox Ick-tionary, a wiki for everyday ick – that will make you laugh, commiserate, and conquer the icky situations that everyone goes through. Then let me know below which terms you can relate to.

Tell me about one of your back-to-school ick moments for a chance to win $250 from Clorox! Visit www.icktionary.com to learn the new language for ick and how Clorox® cleaning and laundry products can help you tackle the next icky situation in your home, play games and win coupons while supplies last!

This post is brought to you by The Clorox Company. I have partnered with them to spread the word about Clorox’s Ick-tionary program. To share Ick-tionary terms and real life messes, visit [www.icktionary.com]. All opinions and stories are my own.