Category: Life

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Adulting For the Home Home How To Life

5 Common Household Bugs To Be Aware Of

common household bugs

No matter how hard you try, there will be instances where you find an unwelcome critter in your house. This might alarm you, especially if you’re scared of bugs, have children, or have pets, but it’s important to remember that not all creepy crawlies are bad, and some are even to be expected. There are a handful of common household bugs you might find in your home, and knowing how to deal with the situation will help put you at ease.

Common Household Bugs

1. Dust Mites

Dust mites naturally live in every house, and generally, they don’t cause issues. When there’s a lot of them, though, they can cause a range of symptoms including:

  • Rash
  • Itchy eyes
  • Cough
  • Sore throat
  • Runny nose
  • Sneezing

Dust mites typically can be found on fabric such as carpet, curtains, bedding, and other plush surfaces. You won’t be able to keep them out entirely, but you can certainly minimize their effects by washing bedding, curtains, and soft items frequently, as well as vacuuming weekly.

2. Woodworm Beetles

Dampness is a common issue that many homeowners face in some capacity, and generally, it doesn’t cause major damage. Certain types of damp can attract bugs like woodworm beetles, though. Woodworm beetles can be destructive, but they’re relatively easy to spot and treat.

There are a few types of woodworm beetles, the most common being the common furniture beetle which is brown and roughly half a centimeter long. They don’t usually cause any harm to humans or pets, but they can damage furniture and skirting boards. To avoid woodworm beetles, you need to avoid dampness in your home.

The beetles are attracted to damp wood, so you need to tackle the root cause of dampness first. If the affected area is only small, you can dry out the wood with the use of a heater, or you can inject a vinegar-water solution into the boreholes to drive the remaining larvae out.

3. Fruit Flies

We’ve all had instances where we’ve left fruit on the kitchen counter a little too long past its recommended eat-by date and it’s attracted flies. One or two fruit flies aren’t a problem, but they multiply really fast and things can get out of hand fairly quickly. No one wants to eat fruit that’s got fly larvae in it, so to avoid it, you should store fruit in the refrigerator and get rid of it as soon as it starts to turn bad.

4. Ants

You’re more likely to have an ant infestation in the warmer months, and most of the time they’re not a problem aside from the fact they’ll eat their way through all your snacks, but some types of ants can be potentially dangerous in the sense that they can sting and bite.

If you spot an ant, watch it carefully to see where it’s coming from and apply ant-killing solution. Keep in mind that some ant-solutions can be harmful to children and pets.

If you don’t want to use ant powder, you can try ant traps which are a safer option for those with children and pets. To avoid ants altogether, it’s a good idea to store any loose food like cookies and cereal in airtight containers.

5. Silverfish

silverfish, common household bugs

These pesky creatures are very small and hard to see, but they can cause a lot of damage to fabric, wallpaper, and books. They’ve been known to also eat glue, oats, and flour, so there’s not much these wingless insects won’t go for!

Since silverfish eat anything, it makes treating them hard, especially when you consider how hard they are to see. The best solution is usually sticky traps, but sealing up food, reducing the amount of clutter in your home (letters/newspapers, etc.) and sprinkling diatomaceous earth can also work.

common household bugs

Common Household Bugs To Be Aware Of

Hopefully, you don’t have the misfortune of encountering these creepy crawlies any time soon, but if you do, use the ideas suggested here. Have you had a problem with any of these household bugs before? If so, tell me about it in the comments!

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Adulting Health Healthy Living How To Life Parenting

3 All-Natural Ways To Battle Insomnia as a Parent

battle insomnia

Insomnia is one of the most frustrating chronic health issues that a person can experience. Insomnia means that you have problems sleeping, meaning that you can’t seem to fall asleep often. It affects your day-to-day life and can interfere with your career and relationships.

Many moms begin to experience insomnia after having children. This trouble for sleeping for moms is because our sleep patterns become distorted when feeding babies during the night and getting our kids into healthy sleeping patterns. When the kids begin sleeping through the night, some parents struggle to do the same and often turn to different methods to get a good night’s sleep. Fortunately, there are ways parents can help with trouble sleeping, whether it’s looking for sleeping pills or getting the best organic Kratom using the latest Kingdom Kratom coupon code to promote a good night’s sleep. 

In this blog post, we will look at three ways to battle insomnia once and for all. Not every method works for everyone, so make sure to check with your doctor before you go ahead with any of these tips!

Battle Insomnia, overcome insomnia
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Ways To Battle Insomnia

1. Use natural sedatives like CBD

Taking prescription sleeping pills is something many people avoid, simply because they aren’t healthy as a long-term solution. While sleeping pills aren’t inherently bad for a person, it can be harsh on your digestive system to take high doses every evening.

Natural sedatives, on the other hand, are excellent solutions to insomnia because they don’t produce many adverse effects on other aspects of your health. CBD oil products like the Dream CBN Tincture from Bloom Farms Wellness can help you to fall asleep easily while producing no ill side effects.

2. Get hypnotherapy

For long-term solutions to insomnia, it’s time to get serious. If you want to tackle this thing head-on, you should consider hypnotherapy to battle your insomnia. 

How does hypnotherapy for insomnia work? Hypnotherapy basically involves re-organizing the way your brain associates with certain things. For example, if you have trauma-based around a car crash, your brain might associate screeching or crashing sounds with extreme fear or injury, causing panic. Hypnotherapy can recalibrate those associations to make life easier for a person.

For insomnia, hypnotherapy can stop your brain from associating nighttime with long periods of lying awake and stressing about your lack of sleep. 

3. Change the way you get ready for bed

Sometimes, the best solution is the simplest one. Insomnia can sometimes be triggered by a stressful, chaotic, or irregular nighttime routine that disrupts your mind’s natural patterns of waking and sleeping. 

If you are experiencing insomnia, make sure you are paying attention to your nighttime routine. A few ways to relax before bed are:

  • Turn off all electronics for at least thirty minutes before getting into bed. 
  • Stretch or do gentle yoga before climbing under the sheets for rest.
  • Have sex. Sex is a great way to relax your brain and tire yourself out before sleep!
  • Listen to gentle, relaxing sounds, such as wildlife sounds or an audiobook.
  • Tidy up your space in a calm, organised manner. Wandering around and putting things away during the evening can be a truly relaxing activity that many people overlook.
Battle Insomnia, overcome insomnia

Ways To Battle Insomnia

If you are struggling with insomnia as a mom, make sure you use this guide to help you sleep better!

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Adulting For the Home Home Life Parenting

4 Reasons To Think About Moving Your Family To an Apartment

Moving Your Family To an Apartment

Downsizing is a concept that more and more families are open to, and knowing the reasons may make you think about moving your family to an apartment. Before, it used to be an idea that was reserved for when your kids had flown the nest. Then, mom and dad would sell the big family home and move into a smaller place that’s easier to manage.

Now, families are considering moving to smaller places a lot sooner. In fact, a lot of families are looking to swap a traditional house for an apartment. 

You don’t have to do this, and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with living in a house (I do!). There are a few benefits of living in an apartment with your kids, though, and they have even made me consider it.

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Reasons For Moving Your Family To an Apartment

1. More Social

Being in an apartment building means there are lots of other people and families living in the same place. You and your kids could meet new people, making it a more social place for them to grow up. If the apartment has a shared yard or is close to a play area for kids, they’re bound to make lots of new friends in the area. In a house, you are around fewer people and there isn’t always a social element to your neighborhood. 

2. Easier to Maintain

Apartments are naturally easier to maintain than houses, largely because there’s less space. Even in big apartments, though, it’s easier as you have no stairs to traverse – and also because you don’t take care of the building.

Things like your windows and the yard will be taken care of by the building owner. Also, if you’re renting instead of owning, lots of maintenance tasks are covered by the landlord. So, it gives you less to worry about and makes it easier to maintain a lovely home. 

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3. Fewer Pests to Worry About

Living in an apartment means you’re less at risk of running into any pests. Granted, apartment pest control exists for a reason – pests aren’t completely free from apartment buildings! Still, the chances of you encountering rats or mice are greatly diminished when you’re in an apartment.

Perhaps it’s because of the way apartments are made, or it could be because of good upkeep and regular maintenance. Either way, people rarely complain of pests in apartments, at least when compared to pests in a traditional house. 

4. A Better Location

Apartments tend to be in optimal locations for families. You will rarely see an apartment building in the middle of nowhere or out in the suburbs. Instead, they’re close to all of the action!

Your family can be within walking distance of your job and the kid’s school. You could be near public transport, right next to grocery stores, and so on. If you want more convenience in your life, then moving to an apartment could be a better option for your family. 

4 Reasons To Think About Moving Your Family To an Apartment Moving your family, moving to an apartment, benefits of an apartment, benefits of apartments, move with your family, tips for moving, apartments, reasons to move to an apartment #moving #movingyourfamily #movingtoanapartment #apartment #benefitsofanapartment #move #movewithfamily #tipsformoving #tips #apartments #reasonstomove

Moving Your Family To an Apartment

While there are definite benefits to living in an apartment, this isn’t intended to force you to move out of your house. If you’re happy where you are, that’s absolutely fine. There are advantages to living in a house over an apartment as well, and perhaps that article will be written in the future! Still, if you are thinking about moving your family to an apartment, these benefits should help you with your decision.

Which do you prefer? Living in a house or an apartment? Leave a comment and let me know!

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Adulting For the Home How To Life

3 Reasons Smart Homeowners Are So Obsessed With Sealing Their Homes Up

smart homeowners, seal up your home,

These days, the vast majority of homeowners want to live in properties that consume as little energy as possible. They believe their houses should be like frugal hybrid cars, keeping their fuel bills to a minimum. To achieve this, smart homeowners use certain methods for sealing their homes up.

Some homeowners are using all kinds of clever technology, like triple glazing, roofing insulation, and cavity walls. And they are spending thousands of dollars on the way. Interestingly, though, there is a technology that is even more powerful for reducing bills than all these features. Plus, it works in a much simpler way too. It’s called airtightness, and smart homeowners focus on it when sealing their homes up. 

Smart Homeowners
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What Is Airtightness and Why Do Smart Homeowners Swear By It? 

Airtightness is the idea that you can make your home more energy-efficient by blocking off all your drafts. It means more than just shutting your doors and windows. Usually, it works by sealing your property with plastic sheeting, preventing gaps and holes from allowing cool air to enter. 

There are several types of airtightness technology currently available on the market. The simplest just uses builder’s tape. Handymen go around your property, installing tape behind walls to prevent air from moving in and out. 

The most advanced airtightness procedures usually involve fitting a large membrane to the rear side of a cavity wall, preventing any of the micro-pores in the masonry from releasing warm air. 

These systems aren’t perfect, but they do increase the effectiveness of all your energy-saving investments. So if you do decide to spend money on triple-glazing, getting airtightness might be something you want to consider at the same time. 

Why Smart Homeowners are Obsessed With Sealing Their Home

Apart from the obvious, airtightness produces a host of benefits. 

1. Lower Heating Bills

The first reason for getting on board with sealing your home is because it lowers your heating bills. When less air can escape, the warmth stays in your home for longer. That means that your boiler or furnace doesn’t need to work so hard, and your bills go down. 

2. Prevents Bugs From Getting Inside

Airtightness helps keep creepy crawlies out of your home. Things like spiders, ants, and other annoying bugs can make their way inside and begin to multiply. Sometimes numbers can build up so much that you need to call in the spider exterminator. Sealing off your house, however, gets rid of the small gaps that creepy crawlies use to enter.

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3. Makes Air Conditioning More Effective

Think about it: heat exchange happens when there is a difference in temperature between the inside of your home, and the outside. So when the outside is warmer than the inside, hot air molecules travel through gaps in the structure of your home, heating the interior. The air conditioning unit has to work harder in response. The solution? Close off these gaps and prevent hot air from getting in.

Why Smart Homeowners Are Obsessed With Sealing Their Homes Up

Now that you know why eco-conscious people and smart homeowners are becoming so obsessed with sealing their homes. It helps to save energy, makes your home more comfortable, and prevents unwanted pests from entering.

Have you sealed up your home? What are some of your best tips? Let me know in the comments!

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Adulting Healthy Living How To Life Mental Health Our Family Parenting

7 Smart Tips for Parents to Stop Feeling Like a Headless Chicken

Tips for Parents

There’s no doubt that being a modern parent causes a busy lifestyle, so tips for parents are always helpful. Whether you’re a working parent, a stay-at-home parent, or something in between, you always have plenty to do. You might have support from a partner or friends and family, but it still feels like you have a never-ending to-do list.

With lots of different things to do both at home and out of the house, juggling it all can be overwhelming. Getting organized can help, but it doesn’t necessarily eliminate any of the tasks you must do. If you feel like you’re constantly running around like a headless chicken, you need to find ways to lighten your load, and these tips for parents can help.

Tips for Parents
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Tips for Parents to Stop Feeling Crazy

1. Make a List of Everything You Do

Do you know how much you do for yourself and your family? Making a list of all of your responsibilities can make it clear just how much you have on your plate. It might be a little frightening at first, but it can also be a good starting point.

Creating a list of everything you do could be a way for you to get the help you’re not getting. Does your partner insist they do just as much as you do when you know they don’t? Showing them your list might just convince them to start doing more. Creating this list can also help you recognize when you need to ask for help.

Another advantage of making a list is that it can show you which tasks are really necessary. It can help you decide which tasks could be altered, and which you might be able to cut out completely.

2. Adjust Your Standards of Tidiness and Cleanliness

Whether you’re a working parent or not, housework takes time. Even when you split household tasks with your partner and kids, it can still require a chunk of your time.

Being a parent does mean that you will probably feel like you’re always tidying up and cleaning in some way. One way you might consider changing things is by reassessing your idea of what clean and tidy means. Having extremely high standards might not be particularly realistic, especially if you want to get some of your time back. Decide what you can be happy with so you can keep up a standard that works for your family.

3. Hire a Cleaner/Housekeeper

Another option for saving time is to hire a cleaner or housekeeper. Some people feel reluctant to do this because they feel like it’s their job to maintain the home. If you can afford to hire someone, though, there’s no shame in getting help.

You don’t necessarily need to have someone come every day. A housekeeper visiting for a few hours each week can make a difference and save you from some time-consuming jobs.

4. Have Things Delivered

Tips for Parents
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Do you feel like you’re always going from place to place buying things? You have to do grocery shopping, clothes shopping, visits to the drugstore, and many other things.

If you’re always going from store to store and running errands, you must find ways to stop doing so much. One possibility is to get things delivered whenever possible. This can work best when you know exactly what you need.

You can order repeat prescription delivery for any medications or order your groceries online. Some things are better to buy in person, though, like things you should try on.

5. Create a Family Schedule

Tips for Parents
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If you have a long list of things to do but you’re never sure when you will have time, you might want to think about making a schedule. Instead of having one just for you, it can be for the whole family.

Begin by filling in certain things that are scheduled each week. Then, look for free timeslots that you can use for anything else that needs to be completed.

You could have a digital calendar, a weekly printable, or even a whiteboard. It gives you a sense of order and can be a way to get everyone helping around the house.

6. Stop Overscheduling

As a parent, you and your kids are likely always busy. You want to ensure your kids get to participate in extracurricular activities. Plus, you’re involved in lots of things too, from yoga class to the PTA and everything in between. Many of these activities are totally optional, and you might be giving everyone too much to do.

For every activity your kids do, you have to make sure they get there and have everything they need. Not only that, but your child might be tired from being overscheduled too. Remember that your kids put in a full day of school work, so extracurricular activities make their day even longer. Then, you have to plan for dinner after the activities, too.

Even though you want to ensure everyone has opportunities, sometimes you all need time at home to rest. Spending time together as a family unit is important, too.

7. Say No to Things

If there’s too much on your plate, it’s not necessarily all your own doing. Some things just have to get done, while other things can be requested of you from others. Remember that just because someone asks you to do something, it doesn’t mean you must say yes.

There are times when the best option is to politely refuse. Whether your refuse because it would interfere with your health or you have no time, don’t feel bad. If the thing they are asking would interfere with family time, you should also consider saying no. Reluctantly doing something isn’t going to produce the best results anyway, so learning to say no can really help you.

Tips for Parents, headless chicken

Tips for Parents to Stop Feeling Like a Headless Chicken

When you feel like you’re always running around trying to get things done, you need to slow down and lighten your load. Use these tips for parents to stop feeling like a headless chicken. Take control of your life and make sure you do things that make you and your family happy and peaceful.

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Adulting Health Healthy Living How To Life Meal Plan

3 Common Mistakes When You Are Trying to Live a Healthy Life

Live a Healthy Life

While most people want to live a healthy life, many struggle to stick to it. Others find it hard to begin living a healthy lifestyle at all. Those who fail at sticking to a healthy routine likely struggle with giving in to temptations. Those who can’t seem to begin at all tend to have this problem because they are constantly procrastinating.

While it can be a struggle to get up and hit the gym or cook and eat healthy meals for a whole week, there are mistakes you could be doing that may limit you from getting your desired results. Such errors aren’t evident because everyone thinks they are doing what is suitable for their health.

Here are the top health mistakes you are making trying to live healthily, to help you get a better insight:

3 Common Mistakes When You Are Trying to Live a Healthy Life Common Health Mistakes, Healthy Life, Healthy Living, How to Be Healthy #healthmistakes #health #healthy #healthylife #healthyliving #howtobehealthy #behealthy #stayhealthy
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1. You Fail to Commit to Your Health Goal

Everyone has different health goals that may include improving their overall health, living longer, reducing weight, building muscles and abs, following a healthy diet, sleeping better, and healing from a specific illness. While such goals may change with time, most people fail to commit to them.

You fail to commit to your health goals if you continually procrastinate on things like going to the gym or drinking a gallon of water daily. Failing to commit also happens when you have set unrealistic fitness goals for yourself. The best thing to do is set SMART healthy goals, which means that they should be specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and time-bound to help you commit.

2. You Don’t Take Breaks

Research shows that taking a break is the best way to help reduce stress and maintain excellent performance. You can take a break from work, life, and a romantic relationship. You can also take a break from your health routine as a way to recover lost energy, stretch and get relief.

While following a healthy routine, you must take breaks, and there is no limit to how you can do this. For instance, you can relax by using homegrown cannabis, which also helps achieve personal enjoyment.

If you don’t yet grow this plant, it would be best to start doing so and ensure you use the best rosin press for better results. These machines are highly reliable for extracting rosin from your cannabis in high concentrations.

There are also some traditional methods you can try when you need to take a break. You can take a long rest, go a day without exercising, or even take a vacation!

3. Sticking to What Doesn’t Work

Another mistake you might make while trying to sustain a healthy lifestyle is doing what doesn’t work. With a busy life schedule, you are prone to doing things that may not have effective results. For instance, if you are busy with work or taking care of the children, you are more likely to have limited time for exercising.

With limited workout time, you may do light exercises that give mediocre results. The best thing to do is find something that works for you. Or, have a specific schedule that suits your lifestyle. By doing this, you can have enough time to find the health routine that works for you and ensure you stick to it!

3 Common Mistakes When You Are Trying to Live a Healthy Life Common Health Mistakes, Healthy Life, Healthy Living, How to Be Healthy #healthmistakes #health #healthy #healthylife #healthyliving #howtobehealthy #behealthy #stayhealthy

Bonus Tip For Living a Healthy Life

There were only supposed to be three tips, but there’s one more common mistake you may make when trying to live a healthy life –

Pushing Yourself Too Hard

The more stress and pressure that you put on yourself to reach your goals as fast as you can, the harder it’s going to be. It’s not a race against anyone in the world, so it’s okay to take your time. Focus on the next goal that is in front of you, and work on getting there at a healthy pace. For example, if your next goal is to kick an addiction that you may have then getting help may be the best possible idea, but you need to break it down. You can look at how to find a good addiction therapist online, and that’s the first step. Then, you can take the second step now that you have achieved something and feel good about yourself for doing that.

Recap: Live a Healthy Life

Sticking to a healthy lifestyle can be daunting, but it is easier than you think to live a healthy life. The reason most people fail to start or stick to it is that it does take hard work and dedication. However, the above mistakes also contribute to the cause.

Make sure you stop doing the things listed above so that you can live a healthy life. What health tips do you swear by? Share them in the comments!

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Adulting For the Home Home How To Life

3 Easy Ways to Get Rid Of Nasty Smells In Your Home

get rid of nasty smells in your home

We have all been in a situation where there’s a horrible smell in our home but can’t quite seem to get rid of it. Where is it coming from? Why does it exist? More importantly, how on earth can you stop it from stinking up your home and making you uncomfortable?! If you’re currently suffering from bad smells in your home, use these tips to get rid of nasty smells in your home.

Get Rid Of Nasty Smells In Your Home
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How to Get Rid Of Nasty Smells In Your Home

1. Don’t try to mask the smell with air fresheners

Your first instinct is to pick up a can of air freshener and spray it everywhere when there’s a bad smell in your home. In reality, this does nothing. If anything, it makes the smell worse as it now mingles with the air freshener.

When you do this, you’re not dealing with the problem at all. The smell still exists, you’re just attempting to cover it up. It’s literally like seeing a crack in the wall and putting some sticky tape over it! So, save yourself time and money by not spraying air freshener everywhere. 

2. Identify the cause of the smell

The correct way to approach things is by identifying the cause of the smell. Here are a few of the most common causes of bad smells in your home:

  • Moldy food
  • Stinky trash
  • Pet poop
  • Dead animals
  • Clogged pipes

You have to start figuring out if any of these things are the source of the terrible smell in your home. It sounds like a hard task, but you can quickly rule out some of the potential issues. For instance, if you don’t have any pets, you know that they aren’t the cause of the smell!

Nevertheless, the best place to start is with the plumbing system in your home. Go to the bathroom and see if the smell gets stronger – particularly if you sniff near plug holes and drains. The same goes for your kitchen and any other areas of your home with pipes. If you don’t smell any strong scents coming from these areas, the chances are that you don’t have a plumbing problem. Of course, if the smell intensifies, it’s a pretty decent bet that clogged pipes or drains are the issues. 

If you check the plumbing and don’t notice any problems, your next step is to hunt around your kitchen. First, check the garbage – if it reeks, you know that it’s causing the smell! This is so common, and you can easily solve it by taking the trash outside. However, if the trash isn’t the issue, start opening cupboards and looking for any signs that the smell intensifies. If it does get worse, check that area for moldy food.

For most of you, these two steps will identify the source of your smelly problem. Plumbing issues and smells coming from your kitchen are highly common.

If you still can’t find the source, there’s a high chance a small animal might have died in your home. Particularly if the smell has gotten worse over time, and you see flies buzzing around areas of your home. Mice, rats, and birds can get into your home via the attic, ending up trapped. So, if the smell gets really bad as you go to your attic, you know this is the problem. Generally, it’s quite easy to tell if a dead animal is the source of your smell as they have a very distinct odor.

3. Removing the source

After identifying the source, you have to remove it. This is the only way to get rid of the smell for good, and then you can freshen up your home. For any plumbing issues, always get a local plumber to handle them as you want to avoid making the problem even worse. Thankfully, most issues can be solved within a few hours, so your home will start smelling better. After any blockages are cleared, it helps to pour some bleach down plug holes, further freshening things up. 

For smells in the kitchen, begin by removing any moldy food and throwing smelly trash out. Then, clean the area where the scent was found, using disinfectant to kill the smelly bacteria. This will go a long way to removing the scent from your home.

Obviously, if dead animals are causing the smell, you need to call a pest control provider to deal with it for you. They’ll help you find out where the smell is coming from before removing the animal for you. This should have an instant impact on how your home smells. If pet poop is the problem, remove it, clean the area, and teach your pet to not poop inside in the future.

Get Rid Of Nasty Smells In Your Home

Get Rid Of Nasty Smells In Your Home

By following all of these steps to get rid of nasty smells in your home, you will now have a clean and fresh home. Open all of the windows to air out your home and get rid of any lingering smells. Once the smells have disappeared, then you can use candles or air fresheners to make the rooms smell nicer.

Do you have any tips to add to this list? Let me know in the comments!

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Adulting Home How To Life

4 Helpful Ways to Overcome The Challenges Of A Long-Distance Move

Long-Distance Move

A long-distance move is something many people dream of. There are so many beautiful places in the world enticing people to move, and some people choose to move because they want to have better opportunities. While this idea can be exciting, the process itself can come with some challenges that you will need to overcome.

Long-Distance Move
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How to Overcome The Challenges Of A Long-Distance Move

1. Moving Your Possessions

Moving all of your things to a new place is hard, but it is especially challenging when moving long-distance. You can’t take things like furniture on a normal passenger plane, making it worth looking for companies like Sky Van Line to go through this process for you. Using vans, boats, and planes, you can move all of your possessions to your new home easily.

Another option is to sell your large furniture and buy new once you get to your new home. When deciding which route you want to take, consider the cost of each option.

2. Finding Work

Finding work in a different place can be a daunting prospect, especially when you factor in the cost of moving. You can find a job before you move, with options like online freelance work for those with the skills. If your move is a while away, you can consider starting a blog and monetizing it before moving.

Other times, you can get hired by a company before your move, with a start date after the move. Some employers will even be happy to help you move if it means that you can work for them.

3. Finding A Home

Looking for a home when you don’t speak the language or can’t visit the place can be tricky. It leaves you in the hands of your real estate agent. Thankfully, modern technology has solved this sort of issue, with virtual viewings being possible from a wide variety of companies.

You may need to look for options that offer this service, but it will be worth the search. With this service, it is easy to get a feel for a place before you decide to move.

Consider mortgages as well because getting mortgages in a different country can be difficult. It is worth talking to your bank about this ahead of time, too.

4. Keeping The Family Happy

Keeping your family happy through this process should always be a priority. It is important to make this decision with your partner and discuss it thoroughly. When it comes to your kids, the best time to move is before they have started school and made friends. You can still move if your kids are older, though, but you should enable them to maintain their old friendships.

Long-Distance Move

Overcome The Challenges Of A Long-Distance Move

A long-distance move should be exciting, so make sure you prepare to overcome the challenges. If you follow these tips, you will feel ready to take on the challenge of a long-distance move.

This process can be great, giving you new opportunities and a chance to enjoy a new life. It will also provide your family with experiences that can only be gained when you’ve lived in more than one place.

Have you ever moved long-distance? What are some of your best tips? Leave a comment and let me know!

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Adulting Decor For the Home Home How To Life

10 Common Tools To Help Make Your Home DIY Projects Easier

Home DIY Projects Easier

If you’re anything like me, you have some DIY projects planned for your home. Over the years, I have determined that it’s easier to get those home DIY projects done easier if I have the right tools. While you may think you can make do with what you already have, it would be better to invest in some common tools to help make your home DIY projects easier.

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Home DIY Projects Easier
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Tools To Help Make Your Home DIY Projects Easier

1. Utility knife

Utility knives have small, sharp blades that are often retractable. These knives are sometimes known as box-cutters, but they have so many uses beyond cutting boxes.

When it comes to home DIY projects, they can be handy for cutting wallpaper, slicing linoleum, trimming veneer, and even removing staples. These tools can save you from struggling with scissors, and they’re a much safer option than trying to use a kitchen knife. 

2. Adjustable wrench

When it comes to loosening and tightening bolts, you could invest in an adjustable wrench. With these tools, you can adjust the clamp size to fit any size of bolt. This saves you from having to sort through multiple wrenches, and it will allow you to do things yourself.

Situations that would call for an adjustable wrench include doing your own plumbing, assembling furniture, repairing bicycles and possibly doing mechanics on your car. 

3. Glue gun

Glue guns can be useful for all kinds of fixes around the home from putting back loose trim to repairing broken decor. You can even use them for joining wood together when you don’t want to use screws.

There are clearly limits as to what you can use a glue gun for (you can’t fix a shelf to a wall with a glue gun), however, you would be surprised by the number of tasks that can be achieved with one.

A hot glue gun is the best option for heavy-duty DIY such as repairing furniture. Cold glue guns are safer but tend to be better for small crafts as they don’t offer quite as strong a bond.

4. Duct tape

Duct tape can come in handy during many DIY tasks. It can be a great tool for when you need a strong temporary fix such as repairing a broken shower curtain rail until you get a new one or patching up a leak on a pipe until the plumber comes.

There are various strengths of duct tape on the market that you can look into. Less adhesive tape such as masking tape is usually better suited for tasks like getting straight borders when painting or preventing paint from splashing onto a window frame or trim.

5. Circular saw

For times when you need to saw through things, a circular saw can take a lot of the time and effort out of cutting. Circular saws use a fast-spinning electric saw to make quick and efficient cuts.

There are lots of different types of circular saw on the market to choose from. Some are built for precision and have laser guides or rail guides to help cut in a perfectly straight line. Others are built for portability, and these tend to be lightweight and cordless. Consider which option you think is right for you. 

6. Electric sander

Sanding down rough surfaces manually can be a time-consuming task. Just as circular saws make sawing easier, electric sanders make sanding much easier.

These tools come in various shapes and forms. The most basic electric sanders tend to be orbital sanders with a single strip of sandpaper that rotates in a continuous motion, often around a square pad.

Random orbital sanders tend to be a little more expensive – these oscillate in a more random motion around a circular pad, which can reduce swirl marks. Some electric sanders are plug-in, while others are cordless. Some can be used with one hand, while others require both hands. 

7. Cordless hand drill

When it comes to inserting and removing screws, a cordless hand drill can be very useful. These drills are useful when a screwdriver isn’t enough to get the job done.

Cordless hand drills tend to offer a lot more maneuverability than plug-in drills and are the favored option. Most hand drills are built to hold multiple drill bits – you can buy these as part of a kit. It’s worth looking for a cordless hand drill that has a good charge for projects when you need to do a lot of drilling. 

8. Stud finder

When putting a screw or a nail into a wall, it’s important to avoid studs, pipes, and wires. Finding these without a stud finder can be done, but it’s not always easy.

By investing in a stud finder, you can easily avoid hammering a nail into a stud or pipe. There’s not much variation between different stud finders on the market, so don’t feel the need to spend a lot of money on one of these devices. 

9. Laser guide

Laser guides can be useful in a variety of settings. If you want to line up two light switches on either side of the room, you can do so with a laser guide. You can also use laser guides to make sure that you’re cutting in a straight line or to make sure two shelf screw holes are level.

Laser guides are sometimes fitted onto other tools such as saws. They can also be integrated into stud finders. Shop online to compare various brands on the market.

10. DIY apps

There are various apps that you can download onto your smartphone to help with DIY tasks. Spirit level apps for instance can be useful for checking that a shelf or a picture frame is level. Measuring apps meanwhile can be used if you don’t have a tape measure handy and you need to find the dimensions to a wall or surface.

Many of these apps are free and some may already be installed on your smartphone. Consider doing your research to see what other DIY apps are out there that you may benefit from.

Tools To Make Your Home DIY Projects Easier

DIY projects are great if you want to save money while updating your home. Having the right tools is essential to getting the job done correctly. What are your favorite tools to use for home DIY projects? Leave a comment and let me know!

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3 Effective Ways to Make Managing Your Family Home Easier

Make Managing Your Family Home Easier, positive parenting

Despite what social media might lead you to believe, no one’s home looks pristine all of the time – especially family homes. When you’ve got children and pets traipsing through the house, things are bound to get messy and even broken sometimes. There are ways to make managing your family home easier, though.

While this is often the norm for families, it doesn’t make it any less annoying and draining. Constantly having to try and keep on top of everything can be overwhelming. If you’re struggling with it, just know you’re not alone.

While I can’t promise these tips will put an end to the mess and sense of disorder in your home, they just might make things a little bit easier. When you’re a parent, every small win counts, so why not try these and see if they save you even just five minutes a day.

Make Managing Your Family Home Easier
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How to Make Managing Your Family Home Easier

1. Fake it ‘til You Make It

What I mean by this is while it’s nice having natural grass in your garden, it’s a lot of effort. So, one thing that could make all the difference is by saving up and investing in artificial grass. It has a reputation of being hard, fake-looking, and generally a plastic nuisance, but that’s not the case anymore.

In fact, fake grass is often very realistic, super soft, and hard-wearing. Gone are the days of tackling the lawnmower every weekend, spending hours each week watering the grass, and keeping children and pets away while you apply weed killer. You also won’t have to spend 10 minutes scrubbing mud off the floor when the grass is wet.

That’s not to mention the time spent trying to get stubborn grass stains out of clothes. With fake grass, you’ll find managing your family home becomes a whole lot easier in several aspects. So, rather than wasting time cleaning up a mess and maintaining the lawn, you can spend time with those who matter the most.

2. Function Over Form

Sure, we all want a house that looks nice, but sometimes, that’s just not possible. Parents of small children will know that baby proofing can take over the house. So, instead, lots of people choose to do the essentials and leave the rest.

For example, you might have really nice glass decor that ties your living room together perfectly, and you might be reluctant to move it. Instead, you might move it only when your child is in the room and put it back in the evenings or while they’re at school. While this might still allow the house to look good, it isn’t convenient and not always foolproof.

Hot hairstyling tools could be another example, as could a side table in the hallway. Teaching your children to respect their surroundings is important, but you should also consider that children need room to play. Rather than making your house a show-home, try making it child-friendly so that it works for everyone who lives there.

Automate Everything

Make Managing Your Family Home Easier

The great thing about technology is that it can make life a lot easier, especially in the home. If you haven’t already, invest in automatic lights and heating. If you come home with shopping bags in your hands and kids running around, looking for the light switch can be a struggle. Instead, voice commanding the lights to turn on could make your life just a little bit easier.

The same goes for the heating. Rather than rushing to warm the house up when you get home, you can monitor the temperature throughout the day. You won’t need to deal with the thermostat when you get home, and your house will already be comfortable.

Make Managing Your Family Home Easier

Make Managing Your Family Home Easier

Do you think any of these three tips will work for your family? What else would you add to the list?