This is a favored selection of time and money saving tips. Most of them are geared to country life and home.

• A sealed envelope – Put in the freezer for a few hours, then slide a knife under the flap. The envelope can then be resealed.
• Use Empty toilet paper roll to store appliance cords. It keeps them neat and you can write on the roll what appliance it belongs to.
• For icy door steps in freezing temperatures: get warm water and put Dawn dish washing liquid in it. Pour it all over the steps. They won’t refreeze.
• To remove old wax from a glass candle holder, put it in the freezer for a few hours Then take the candle holder out and turn it upside down. The wax will fall out.
• Crayon marks on walls? This worked wonderfully! A damp rag, dipped in baking soda. Comes off with little effort (elbow grease that is!).
• Permanent marker on appliances/counter tops (like store receipt BLUE!) rubbing alcohol on paper towel.
• Whenever I purchase a box of S.O.S Pads, I immediately take a pair of scissors and cut each pad into halves. After years of having to throw away rusted and unused and smelly pads, I finally decided that this would be much more econom! ical. No w a box of S.OS pads last me indefinitely! I have also noticed that the scissors get ’sharpened” this way!
• Blood stains on clothes? Not to worry! Just pour a little hydrogen peroxide on a cloth and proceed to wipe off every drop of blood. Works every time!
• Use vertical strokes when washing windows outside and horizontal for inside windows. This way you can tell which side has the streaks. Straight vinegar will get outside windows really clean. Don’t wash windows on a sunny day. They will dry too quickly and will probably streak.
• Place fabric softener sheets in dresser drawers and your clothes will smell freshly washed for weeks to come. You can also do this with towels and linen.
• Candles will last a lot longer if placed in the freezer for at least three hours prior to burning.
• To clean artificial flowers, pour some salt into a paper bag and add the flowers. Shake vigorously as the salt will absorb all the dust and dirt and leave your artificial flowers looking like new! Works like a charm!
• To easily remove burnt on food from your skillet, simply add a drop or two of dish soap and enough water to cover bottom of pan, and bring to a boil on stove top.
• Spray your TUPPERWARE with nonstick cooking spray before pouring in tomato based sauces and there won’t be any stains.
• Wrap celery in aluminum foil when putting in the refrigerator and it will keep for weeks. Also, place a paper towel in a zip lock baggie with the mushrooms, onions, lettuce, etc. The towel will absorb the moisture.
• When boiling corn on the cob, add a pinch of sugar to help bring out the corn’s natural sweetness–or, you can cook it in a microwave–3 min. each ear.
• Cure for headaches: Take a lime, cut it in half, and rub it on your forehead. The throbbing will go away.
• To get rid of itch from mosquito bites, try applying soap on the area and you will experience instant relief.
• Ants, ants, ants everywhere … Well, they are said to never cross a chalk line. So, get your chalk out and draw a line on the floor or wherever ants tend to march. See for yourself.
• Use air-freshener to clean mirrors.! It does a good job and better still, leaves a lovely smell to the shine.
• When you get a splinter, reach for the scotch tape before resorting to tweezers or a needle. Simply put the scotch tape over the splinter, and then pull it off. Scotch tape removes most splinters painlessly and easily.

Now look what you can do with Alka Seltzer……..

• Clean a toilet. Drop in two Alka Seltzer tablets, wait twenty minutes,! brush a nd flush. The citric acid and effervescent action clean vitreous China.

• Clean a vase. To remove a stain from the bottom of a glass vase or cruet, fill with water and drop in two Alka Seltzer tablets.
• Polish jewelry. Drop two Alka Seltzer tablets into a glass of water and immerse the jewelry for two minutes.
• Clean a thermos bottle. Fill the bottle with water, drop in four Alka Seltzer tablets, and let soak for an hour (or longer, if necessary).
• Unclog a drain. Clear the sink drain by dropping three Alka Seltzer tablets down the drain followed by a cup of Heinz White Vinegar. Wait a few minutes, and then run the hot water.

On the night of February 14th – both Valentine’s Day and our 5th Wedding Anniversay – our basement caught fire at around 2:30 am.

We all made it out – and this is not without it’s own very long story – except for my awesome orange tabby boy. He’d come to me as a kitten in a way that made me think he was a gift from God himself, that he was destined to grow old with me, so I’ve had a very hard time ’settling’ the matter in my mind – that he is gone. Forever. I miss him more than I miss my childhood photos, more than I miss the jewelry handed down to me from my grandmother. More than anything.

But let’s get back on track…

In our corner of the country side we don’t have a fire department. When a house fire starts you either put it out yourself or you stand there and watch it burn. By the time we knew of the fire it was too late. We had about 6 minutes to get whatever we could out – and after the first 3 minutes you’re not thinking clearly anyway.

The smoke that gets in you doesn’t just fill your lungs, it screws with your head. In retrospect I never would have run back in for “just one more thing” after my daughter and dogs were out. With that said of course – where was my orange friend?

Popular online right now is a video about a fireman reviving a house cat after a fire. I can’t even bear to watch it, my own pain too great to be joyous for another’s triumph over a fire.

Our house burned for 4 days. Mostly because of the oil tank. There’s nothing like having a full tank of oil in your basement (especially at these prices) just to have it burn so slowly and waste.

Today we’re at ‘The Lake House‘ – a friend’s rental home just 40 miles from our own house. We’re trying to regroup as a family. Trying to discover our next plan of action. Trying to heal over our loss.

I’ll write more another day, but for now I just wanted you to know where I’ve been and why I haven’t written in so long.

Laura Childs

It began with freelancing, then consultation only for a select group of clients (most of them a spillover from my freelancing assignments), then business registration and creating my own mini-empire on the farm.

Yes, there was a spell in there (and secretly it always drove me a little nuts) when I’d work one-on-one with friends helping them to create hobby websites that they had no motivation to turn into a little income generator for themselves.

It’s sad really to see the knowledge inside of them that could have been put online to benefit others or to give them a second income – only to be lost to lack of motivation and discipline. Available time has nothing to do with it either since I know full well how many hours they spent in front of the idiot box every night or fretting about being late for their scrapbook meetings while their husbands slaved in the bush all day!

The relationships I didn’t mind developing website for were the ones built for friends who ‘got it’. They understood what an online presence could do for their offline business, that it was practically free advertising, that, if done correctly, could bring multiple repeat buyers into their stores every week.

I love those who have drive and determination to make a success out of themselves. It’s not that I loathe the non-driven person – in fact it is more that I grieve for them. They hate (or at best, tolerate) their jobs, their personal and meaningless ruts (like the ranting mother-in-law fretting over missing the most important appointment of her week – the scrapbook meeting!).

They hate or loathe the commute, leaving their children with baby sitters, and so on – but they can’t see that there’s a better way. Their way works for their friends, worked for their parents, works for their neighbors – but does it really? Does it really work if every one is simply tolerating or loathing their 40 hour a week existance?

Having my own online business for the past 9 years I’m well aware of the opportunities and growth potential, and the freedom that an online, semi-automated, business represents. I’m also well aware of the sacrifices in getting it going, keeping it going and sticking with it.

But lately, I’ve had an itch for a new type of business. One that’s not so secluded, one that involves a team where the entire lot doesn’t all fall on my shoulders anymore. Perhaps I’m getting tired but I think I’m just learning to work smarter as the years pass.

Oh, this business will still be internet related. And it will still focus on helping the business-minded (they’re my passion) and the ones who may not have the experience but definately have the drive. I’ve just got to find the time to get it off the ground.

I’ll also have to consider, before I begin, a smart exit plan that still supports the team even though I won’t physically be here – since one of my goals is to move 3 provinces away in the next year.

Living on a farm doesn’t hold many days like this, especially when you’ve bought and are trying to fix up an old farmhouse before the hard winter winds hit.

There are always animals to attend to and train, firewood to be chopped and piled, windows to prepare, and inside the house – walls to prep and paint.

Country living is a good life, but it’s a busy life.

Such was our day – we’d planned on tuning up the bicycles and packing a lunch and taking off for a ride through our countryside.

Those were the plans anyway…

When we opened the garage door however we were deflated and knew we’d be delayed. Not to mention there was no way we’d get around it – one more sort, organize and renovate, chore was going to be added to our list!

We did make it out to our day (although late) in the country, but as we rode I was distracted by my action plan to clean up that garage!

Garage Organization Plans

Since our outside gear has been tossed all over the place in the garage – on the floor, thrown into corners, popped into the old drawers and onto shelves without concern over how to ever find anything again, this was going to present a huge challenge and perhaps a few days work.

My friend Sally had gone through a similar ordeal a few years ago – after a year long illness – and I considered asking for her help in organizing the garage or at least getting some ‘how to start’ tips.

I knew the first step I’d need to take was to purchase some cabinets and shelves and block off some time on a day when we wouldn’t be expecting rain.

Every since item in that garage was going to come out and be sorted into categories, systematically. Then the cabinets and shelves would need to be installed. And finally the categorized objects placed into a garage – followed by a stern talk with all memebers of the family (so we don’t find ourselves in that position again!)

Sporting gear, tools, gardening tools, needed to be hung on peg boards in organized clusters.

The truck would have to be backed up to the garage door opening and all the junk we hadn’t used in years, or were waiting to be repaired (one day) would need to be sent to the dump. (That should rid 1/2 of it!) Go ahead and be ruthless about throwing this stuff away – ’someday’ seldom comes. If you haven’t repaired something in two years chances are good that it won’t ever be repaired.

After organizing, sorting and throwing away those unwanted items you will be surprised to see your garage floor and corners again – and maybe we can start parking the car, truck and tractor in the garage again!