Search Results for: blog good home smells1

How to Keep the House Clean in the Summer

With a flurry of kids coming in and out of the house all summer long, how do you keep the dirt, the mud, the sand, and yes, even the water out of your home? Sometimes I will settle for just getting the dirt cleaned up enough that it doesn’t permanently damage the carpets or flooring. Beside the damage from spills, carpets can become matted and hard floors can become scratched by dirt and grit. There has to be a balance between having a relaxed summer home and spending all of your time cleaning up. We want to reduce the clean … Continue reading →

Things to Do on a Rainy Fall Day

I’m having one of those nesting sort of days. It is rainy and a bit colder outside. I’m still recovering from a nasty bout of bronchitis that snuck in with the weather change. Our youngest child, still at home, is particularly rambunctious, despite waking up with his own runny nose this morning. It is definitely a day for home comforts. One thing that makes me feel better on days like this is giving a little extra attention to our home to make it a nicer place to be. This might involve venturing into the scary recesses of my kids rooms … Continue reading →

How Can I Take Care of a Quilt?

Whether your quilt has been passed down for generations or picked up at a country store, you should handle it with care. Here are some tips on how you can take care of a quilt. Mr Golden Sun Sunlight or even strong artificial light can fade a quilt over a number of months, let alone years. While you don’t have to live in the dark, you do want to try to keep your quilt out of direct sunlight and away from bright overhead lights or lamps. Getting it Clean Delicate quilts and be destroyed by efforts to get them clean. … Continue reading →

How to Choose a Christmas Tree Skirt

Luxurious or simple, traditional or modern, the Christmas tree skirt that you choose can enhance the beauty of your Christmas tree or stand out like a sore thumb. Here are some easy to remember guidelines that will help you choose the perfect tree skirt for your Christmas decorating. The first thing to determine when choosing a tree skirt is the size of it. How many of use forget about size and just choose something that looks good to us. But size does matter. You don’t want a skirt that is too big or too small for your tree. The skirt … Continue reading →

The Scents that Get You to Buy

Your sense of smell can tell you a lot about your world. It can also bring up memories, create wonderful pictures and yes, influence what you buy. Retail research has proven that a store can make you spend more when it offers pleasant smells that are targeted toward you purchasing certain products. Anyone who has been in the mall and has found themselves wandering over to the Cinnabon, the Auntie Ann’s pretzel stand or the Baskin Robbins ice cream shop knows that yummy smells can make you hungry. But did you know that baby powder, lilac or coconut can make … Continue reading →

Creating a Family Calendar

Having a family calendar in your home can go a long way to reducing the chaos and the stress of daily life. After many failed attempts to keep a family calendar going, I finally became a convert and made a commitment this year to do just that. It has really given us more breathing room and allowed us to be more organized. Another benefit of the family calendar is that we can limit the running around. We aren’t a running around family and much prefer to stay home and take care of things close to home. With clear commitments on … Continue reading →

Why I Don’t Buy Microwave Popcorn

These days it is so easy to fall into what appears to be “normal.” Take microwave popcorn. It is so popular that we assume that whenever someone makes popcorn, this must be the way it is made. But not in my house. The neighborhood kids tend to gather at my house after school on Fridays. With no homework, everyone is ready to play, and ready to eat. I find that popcorn is an inexpensive snack that satisfies. Also, no kid I know seems to be allergic to it. The first time I got the pan out and started heating the … Continue reading →

The Midnight Visitor and the End of Summer

My husband and I stayed up way too late last night. This is even more true when you consider the fact that our eldest son had to be delivered to his before school Lego Robotics club at 7:30 am, and I needed to get up by 5 am to catch up on work. Still, there was too much to get done around the house. Somewhere about half past midnight, we both met in the family room, to collapse on the couch to talk and zone out for a few minutes of TV in preparation for bed. It wasn’t long before … Continue reading →

Holiday Declutter

Today is Rosh Hashanah. This means that the kids have the day off from school. And since we aren’t Jewish, we don’t have any traditions to honor the day. That doesn’t mean that I don’t have some plans for the time, though. The kids have been working hard to get back into the school routine. But they could use a little extra responsibility back in their lives, after the carefree days of summer. And all of us could use a neater house. So, while I’ll let the kids play and blow off steam for most of the day, a few … Continue reading →