I never realized the power of the baby wipe, until I became a mom. Yes, they’re critical when it comes to cleaning up messy diapers, but I had no idea how many other uses I would find for the quintessential baby wipe.

Here are just some of the uses I’ve found:

1. They not only clean dirty bums, but sticky hands and faces as well (and I’m not only talking about the baby’s).
2. Don’t have any makeup remover? No problem. Grab a trusty baby wipe and wash your makeup away.
3. They’re perfect for dusting. Admittedly, I don’t dust as often as I should, but when I do, the wipes help my surfaces shine. (This also applies to the dust that accumulates on my car’s dashboard. So while I’m waiting for my husband to run into the bank, or wait in the drive-thru line at Timmy’s I quickly wipe down the dash and then get on with my day.)
4. Leave a few in each bathroom of your house and use them to wipe down the counters and mirrors in between deep cleans.
5. I hate when I get to the office and see salt stains on my boots. Luckily baby wipes double nicely as shoe shiners.
6. The other day I noticed I had gotten makeup on the collar of my white coat (nothing says classy like foundation marks on clothing, right ladies?) I grabbed a baby wipe thinking I might be able to scrub a little off, and was shocked to see it all come out. This goes to show I wasn’t kidding about point #2.
7. I wipe down cart handles and seats before I put the baby in at the mall or grocery store.
8. And finally, I use them to wipe off crayon marks that my little Picasso leaves all over the house.

And the best part is that at only 5 cents a pop, this is an affordable solution for all of the aforementioned uses. I can do without my AMEX, but the baby wipes…? Forget it, I don’t leave home without them.