Search Results for: blog the winter season

A Tote for All Seasons

I am a sucker for a good tote bag. I love stuffing things in a tote and carrying it all with me. I keep a tote in my car to fill with items for field trips, groceries, extra clothes, or blankets during the winter. I struggled with totes that were flimsy or small until I found the Large Utility Tote from Thirty-One. On the day I took this picture my Large Utility Tote helped my daughter carry all her art supplies to the park for a fun arts and crafts day. The tote works full time in my home so … Continue reading →

Off-Season Savings

Reset your season and save. Shopping against the season for goods and services is one of the best ways to save on practically everything. Why? Because when other people aren’t spending money on certain items or services, companies need to up the incentives to generate interest. One big example of seasonal savings is on travel. You’ll pay a lot less for travel in the off-peak seasons. For example, you can pay up to 80 percent higher for accommodations at Disney World during the Easter or Spring season as you will during the value or off-peak season. This makes sense since … Continue reading →

Three Ways We Lower Winter Energy Costs

We have been experiencing some pretty cold weather here, with slow, sleet and wintry wind chills that make it dangerous to be outside, unprotected, for any length of time. Naturally, as we use more energy to heat our home, our costs for this month (and the next few) will be higher than normal. A couple of years ago, we installed new energy-efficient windows and insulated the attic and the basement, two moves that really helped our bills. Still, each year, there are some simple methods that can be used to reduce the winter energy costs even more. They don’t require … Continue reading →

Winter Inspiration

Old Man Winter is relentless.  As if the bitter cold weren’t enough, now we’re dealing with a wicked ice storm that’s threatening to bring our city to a standstill. Of course, as I sit here and complain about our latest round of putrid weather, there are likely some people loving every minute of it.  I suppose the ice is pretty to look at as the moonlight glistens off of its surface… provided that surface doesn’t belong to the power lines that help keep the lights on in my home. Believe it or not, I am not a winter hater.  I … Continue reading →

Affordable Winter Escape

  Camping is one of the most affordable ways to enjoy a family vacation.  However, during the winter months most clans retreat to warmer venues, even though the season is a terrific time to get outside and commune with nature. If you are game to camp in the snow and cold, be prepared to do your homework first.  For starters, you should never set-up camp in a remote location during the winter. This is especially true if you are roughing it in a mountainous area.  Avalanches kill hundreds of hikers, skiers and campers each year.  Before erecting a tent at … Continue reading →

Affordable Ways to Combat the Winter Blues

So much for my New Year’s resolution. I’ve been consuming carbs at a frightening pace while battling severe allergies. Truthfully, I doubt the two are correlated.  Rather, I am blaming the wicked winter weather.   I’d bet a hundred bucks I wouldn’t be tempted to gorge on donuts, French toast and cinnamon buns if I were basking on a beach right now… in a bikini. Winter is brutal here in the Upper Midwest, which is why so many people suffer with seasonal doldrums.  The winter blues can strike family members of all ages, including children.  Consequently, it’s a good idea to … Continue reading →

Developing a Seasonal Cleaning Plan

Living in Wisconsin, I get to experience all of the seasons.  Of course, some last longer than others but I honestly wouldn’t give up the chance to sweat in summer, rake leaves in the fall, bundle up in the winter and observe new growth in the spring. One of the opportunities I take advantage of, because I get to experience these seasonal changes, is cleaning.  Now who thinks of cleaning as an opportunity, right? Seasonal cleaning allows you to concentrate on certain areas you don’t traditionally get to.  But you do it at a time that makes sense.  That is … Continue reading →

Keep Pets Safe from Outdoor Seasonal Dangers

Oh, the weather outside is frightful! People who have one or more pets that primarily live outdoors need to take extra precautions to keep them safe as the weather gets cold and miserable. VPI has created a helpful list of 10 seasonal dangers to outdoor pets. When you go out into the snowy, Winter, weather, you probably bundle up. Most of us wear warm coats, gloves, hats, and scarves if we are expecting to be outside for more than a minute or two. Your pets can’t do that. This could lead to a very serious, and tragic, situation. You might … Continue reading →

Warm-Up Winter Driving Skills

  Winter Driving Tip #1:  Don’t use the wind as an alternative to snow brushes and ice scrapers.  Get off your lazy behind and remove the snow from your car before you hit the highway. So, yeah, the meteorologists were right.  We got dumped on a couple of days ago.  The first significant snowfall of the season and now drivers in these parts are being forced to warm-up their winter driving skills after a long hibernation. Unfortunately, many motorists I followed yesterday morning must have overslept or couldn’t remember where they stored their brushes because I got pummeled with sheets … Continue reading →

Seasonal Parent-Child Bonding on the Cheap

A winter storm watch has been issued for my neck of the woods.  Meteorologists are predicting nearly eight inches of the white stuff will fall in less than 24 hours.  As a parent, who was born and raised in Hawaii, and despises the snow and cold, I am really not looking forward to dealing with icy roads and below freezing temperatures.  Still, my kid is a Wisconsinite, so I have to do what any good mother would do—suck it up. Sacrifice; it’s the hallmark of good parenting, right? Winter presents a unique challenge for many parents.  Some days, Mother Nature’s … Continue reading →