Did you know that Monsters hate sugar and lemons? They do. This Instructable contains all the ingredients you will need to rid any home of pesty, stinky monsters.

Around the time my first child was born, my husband and I purchased a fixer-upper on the northwest side of Chicago. A red brick Georgian in need of a tremendous amount of work, but lots of potential. I can honestly say I loved that house and its creaky floors, squeaky doors, bumps in the attic and bangs in the basement. My daughter found its charms frightening.

We went through the MONSTER IN THE CLOSET stage. At first we tried the realistic approach: There's no such thing as monsters. This didn't work for us at all. We tried showing her the inside of the closet and the underside of the bed. Didn't work. We tried to convince her that Daddy was a world class champion monster fighter. No luck.

At dinner one night, she says to us, in her little voice: Why don't you believe me? Wow!

I believed that her fear was very real and changed my approach. I decided to give her the power she needed to vanquish monsters from her life for good. We mixed up a concoction of Monster Repellent that is guaranteed to keep even the scariest, most stubborn monsters at bay.

Step 1: DECORATING SUPPLIES:

FOR THE BOTTLE:
Used spray bottle - recycling
Glue
scissors
8.5 x 11 paper
cardstock or light cardboard
google eyes
Anything you have to decorate the bottle - felt, pipecleaners, puff balls

Step 2: MAKING THE REPELLENT:

REPELLENT INGREDIENTS:

1 cup hot water - because monsters hate to be hot
1 cup cold water - because monsters hate to be cold
1 teaspoon sugar - because monsters hate anything sweet
lemon juice - because monsters hate anything more sour than they are
soap shavings - because monsters hate when things are clean
1 teaspoon pepper - to make monsters sneeze
onion skins - to make a monster's eyes water
food coloring - because monsters hate pink, blue, green, whatever color your little one picks.
strand of hair - we picked daddy because monsters are afraid of daddys
blob of toothpaste - monsters hate clean teeth
1 teaspoon salt - to make monsters itch
alka-seltzer - to give monsters a tummy ache *Keep the bubble action a secret*

Step 3: CREATING a MONSTER:

I found that the 8.5 x 11 paper, when wrapped around the spray bottle, is the approximate size of the pattern you will need. I used an old Windex bottle. I chose to make a back with arms that wrap to the front. Feet for the bottom and a belly.

Pipe cleaners to make a tail and the eyes. Little puff balls for extra decoration and oversized google eyes.

I used the cardstock to give the felt some structure.

Step 4: BUBBLES:

I told my daughter that the alka-seltzer was the last item to add and that it gave monsters terrible tummy aches, but didn't mention the bubbles. However, I told her that if we had made the repellent correctly, that something amazing should happen.

I also didn't tell her about the on/off twist cap because I didn't want her spraying this stuff all over her room. She just THOUGHT she was spraying =)

Within a short time, the monsters had left our home never to return. Turns out all she needed was a little power. Well, extra strength power.

Step 5: FINAL THOUGHT:

I am sure you all know these things, but I just wanted to mention it.

Children will want to play with this bottle and parents won't want it sprayed all over. As a parent, you need to be in control.

Don't place it high on a shelf in your child's room where they will be tempted to climb to get it. Don't leave it around or you will risk the top getting unscrewed. Don't add any harmful ingredients. I'm sure you can think of other potential problems.

Take it with you after tucking your little one in bed. Put it out of sight and keep the top nice and secure.