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Mom, housewife & life hacker! Corporate drudge escapee writing recipes, tips & discount alerts. Still bring home the bacon & cook it up in 101 healthy way. You’re also going to find out that I’m a total Disney geek. I don’t know if it started with the Read-Along records (“When Tinker Bell waves her wand – bbblllliiiinnnggg – turn the page!”) or the Disneyland book my grandfather gave me around age 3, but however the innoculation happened, it was very effective. I’m happy that my kids share my passion, and I’m even happier that Portland has one of the fancy-shmancy new Imagination Park Disney Stores!
Photo credit: Daniel Ferenčak / Foter / CC BY-NC-ND
We’re past this stage with the kids, thankfully, but there was a time when there were serious concerns about the mysterious regions known as Underbed and Closetback. You see, that’s where the monsters lived.
There were a few rough nights, there, I’m not too shy to say.
“Mom, I’m not tired.”
“Mom, I’m still thirsty.”
“Mom, I’m scared!”
I try to stay on top of “life hacks” because I think they just make life easier. You may remember my life-changing tip to put a tape tab on your credit cards or ID so you can pull them out of your wallet easier. Well, that’s small potatoes compared to what I saw this morning. I watched this video three or four times with gaping awe, and a tiny smidge of irritation: That’s so simple – WHY DIDN’T I THINK OF THAT?!?!?
Of course, I say that about a lot of things. And sometimes when I use these hacks, I feel bad for the ingenious people who created some gimmicky item that wouldn’t sell if everyone realized they had something lying around the house that would work just as well. However, I do feel pretty clever when I use one very casually and astound my family and friends with my genius.
I am definitely a Do-It-Yourselfer, and sometimes I try to do more than I should, but I love it when I come across useful “wow, why didn’t I think of that!” tips. Here are a couple that I came across in a recent Family Handyman magazine (yes, I still read magazines – call me old-fashioned).
I love my dogs, but I don’t love the little mini-pets they leave around the house; you know, those 
clumps of hair that could pass as gerbils. I have pet hair brushes, clear tape, blah, blah, blah, but they all seem to be a lot of work. One alert reader accidentally discovered that the rubber-dipped work gloves will just roll up the pet hair. I have tried latex gloves and they don’t work as well, but the rubber on the work gloves is slightly sticky, so they work much better. Thanks for sharing!
The other little hack uses silicone, not rubber, but to the untrained (like me), it’s practically the same thing. Like this other alert reader, I’ve lost one of the little rubber “feet” on my laptop, so when I set it on the table it rocks just enough to irritate me. I haven’t wanted to take it in to get it fixed, and now I don’t have to. Following this guy’s suggestion, I got some black silicone, filled the hole, then scraped off with a toothpick (if the hole goes all the way through the shell, be sure you put a little piece of something over the actual hole to keep from filling the inside of the computer shell with silicone!). 
The next morning, I sent out a heartfelt mental “thank you!!!!” to this alert reader.
Have any seemingly simple life hacks? Please share!
August means hot days, the return of football season, and the Back to School Blues. We’ve always loved shopping for school supplies (slightly sick, I know), and new backpacks were part of the deal. However, my kids are getting to the age where they’re carrying heavier stuff, and the fun character backpacks are just not holding up anymore. When I was in college I carried a Jansport backpack, which was a bit expensive, but when the zipper broke and the college bookstore replaced it – no questions asked – I realized it was worth it. I bequeathed it to an underclassman when I graduated.
Cashing in on the warranty isn’t quite that easy any more, but several companies do offer lifetime warranties on their backpacks (be sure to read the fine print). And some very fun designs! Check out Jansport’s here, The North Face’s here, LL Bean’s here, and Lands’ End’s here. Here are my tips for choosing bags:
1. As with any piece of luggage, choose a lightweight piece when it’s empty. The stuff the kids carry is heavy enough, so you want to start as light as possible.
2. Choose one with padded straps, and encourage your kids to use BOTH straps. I’m terrible about carrying a heavy bag on one shoulder, which causes sore muscles and a lopsided gait. Backpacks are designed to distribute the weight, so take advantage of that!
3. Whichever one you choose, I do recommend monogramming – just to deter “sticky fingers.”
Do you have a favorite brand of backpack? What other back-to-school equipment tips do you have?
The right way and the wrong way to haul your backpack – USE BOTH STRAPS!
There are lots of useless kitchen gizmos out there these days. The ones advertised on television are often the worst offenders, setting up false problems you need to “solve” by purchasing their Greatest Slicer Ever or the Single Hot Plate That Will Replace Your Whole Kitchen. Of course, there is one perk to the commercials. I always feel much more capable and competent after I watch some of those folks attempt to operate a tomato!
These things can’t make a bad cook into a good one, or a poorly laid out kitchen functional. But there are some small devices you can add to your daily duties that can really elevate your cooking. Little things that can take a regular dish and punch it up.
So I guess it’s time to confess. I’m in love with my pepper grinder.
All my friends know I love the OXO brand of products because they’re easy to use when your hands are damp from washing or accidentally slicked up with olive oil, and their pepper mill is no exception. It’s easy to fill, easy to adjust, and comes with a little base to keep stray pepper off the counter.
But the brand almost doesn’t matter. Use any type you like. The key is the pepper! Fresh really is best for nearly every application. Since pepper corns are dried berries, they start to lose essential oils as soon as they’re cracked, so using it fresh gives a better hot, bright flavor than the pre-ground stuff that’s been sitting in a tin for who knows how long. Add it later in the cooking process so the scent and taste stay assertive and your taste buds will thank you.
My friends and I love to do a sort of potluck picnic when the weather is good.
Here’s a pic with my little picnic tablecloth in the center — this pattern inspired my blog theme design.
Picnics are such a great way to have get-togethers without spending an arm and a leg on restaurant bills, and usually the food is much healthier than if we’d gone out somewhere!
When I was a kid, my family and I used to do picnics all the time. In fact, each time we had a roadtrip of any length, my mother would pack us a picnic meal.
How is it that we’ve gotten out of the habit of picnicking? This is a sort of retro life hack that’s well worth bringing back.
When I was a teenager, I played outside, went to the lake, “laid out,” fretted over my dreadfully white skin. Sunscreen was practically unknown then, so I was no stranger to Noxema (which seemed to be the sunburn treatment in that generation). I kinda laughed at my grandparents and even parents who mowed the yard wearing long-sleeved shirts and wide-brimmed hats. As I got older, I heard them talk about skin cancer checks and suspicious moles, but that sort of things was still years in my future. Read More→
I’m not a consistent April Fools’ prankster, but I do always enjoy reading or seeing good pranks – as long as I’m not the victim! Here are some of my favorites.
Ok, I will admit it: I am a Bag Lady. I have a weakness for all kinds of bags, from reusable shopping bags to purses to wallets. You’ll be hearing more about this subject, have no fear of that! Today I’m focusing on an aspect of almost every wallet I own: they don’t want to give up my driver’s license. Maybe you’ve experienced this, too – a clerk asks to see your ID, and needs it out of the little window for whatever reason (usually because the name is obscured). Even if it has a little hole that supposedly helps you slide it out, you still end up doing a little dance to remove it. Well, no more. I want to share a little “fix” that someone showed me this week that just made me ridiculously excited. Read More→
Housewife and DIY mommy blogger! Corporate drudge escapee writing recipes, tips & discount alerts. Still bring home the bacon & cook it up in 101 healthy ways. 🙂
