Extra Personal Touch on Gifts

Guest post written by Renee Tyler

      Giving gifts is all about expressing your love and appreciation for someone, so I think that making sure that a gift has an extra special touch only makes the perfect sense. I love going above and beyond in gift giving and I really get to flex my creative muscles around the holidays, which I love!

      I'm always looking for inspiration online for little touches that I can put onto all of the gifts that I give people. A few weeks ago, I was bored and online one night looking for some inspiration for gift presentation when I saw some stuff about a wireless internet service and decided to click here and change my internet service over to it.

      I love making my own homemade gift wrap and actually do it in bulk with plain colored paper and spray paint. It gives an extra special touch and I also like topping off bows and name tags with trinkets like costume jewelry or something along those lines for fun.

We Got our Birch Trees Trimmed

Birch Tree infront of our living room

      Few days ago, we got our two Birch Trees trimmed. It's been like more than a month that my husband have been calling at least three Tree Trimmers but none of them called us back. Fortunately, he found somebody that will do the job. My husband spotted him and his crew trimming trees in the neighborhood while he was taking his routine daily walk one early morning.  

Birch Tree infront of our dining room

       It is really hard finding somebody to do a small job. They usually don't call you back or hang up on you. They should not advertise in their flyer that they will do any jobs no matter how small they are unless they will do it. 

Getting My House Ready for Winter

      Getting through the cold winters can really stretch a family's budget in these poor economic times we are facing today. Here are some steps you can take to help your family enjoy a warmer and cost-effective winter.

Furnace Maintenance

       Furnace maintenance is the first step in preparing for the cold months ahead. Before you use the furnace for the first time you need to make sure everything is working properly. Radiators valves need to be bled by opening them up slightly and then close them when you see water. Changing the furnace filter should be done regularly once a month and before turning the furnace on again for winter.

      It is a good idea to have your furnace and ducts checked out by a professional unless you are sure you can do it yourself. You will need to make sure all ducks are still properly sealed. During summer months, or if you have combination air and heat furnace, the ductwork can separate from the changing temperature.

Outside Preparation

     Cleaning out your gutters can eliminate leaves and other debris from blocking the gutters. This can lead to water and snow turning to ice and expanding. This may not keep your home warmer, but it can lead to damage from moisture getting into your home.

     Sealing up the exterior like cracks in the foundation, caulking around doors and windows, and of course using plastic on all windows even if you have storm windows. You will be amazed at how much heat your home will retain and how much you will save on your heating bill.

     These are just an example of some basic tips and if done properly you will have a safer and cozier winter. So put on the popcorn and cozy up in front of the TV youll get after looking at this Directtv comparison for some family time watching a movie on your satellite TV. Yes you can now afford it with the saving on your heating bills.

Post contributed by Toni Jensen

Yellow Rose Plant

     It's been awhile since I last participated in Mellow Yellow Monday. My entry today is about a Yellow Rose plant we bought at Armstrong I think more than a year ago. 

     Aside from orchids, roses are also one of my favorite flowers. Me and my husband has been trying for several times to grow roses but we're just very unfortunate. We followed all the direction but they are all ended up dying or else very weak. So, we decided not to grow roses for awhile not only because it is very expensive to buy rose plant but also it is very frustrating after you give a lot of your effort trying to grow one and yet at the end it will just die.