Home & Garden

We have a small front porch, but it gets a good breeze and provides a nice place for the baby and dogs to play outside. Outdoor living spaces are important to me — so our front porch is the first place I decided to tackle with a makeover! See how I transformed our small boring porch into a cabana-like space — complete with porch curtains, a walk-through baby gate, wireless speaker, area rug, and much more.

See how I made some really inexpensive PVC pipe curtain rods to hold long, sheer porch curtains for around $15. After getting all the supplies at Lowe’s, I was able to measure, cut, and install the outdoor curtain rods and hang the curtain panels on my front porch in about 1 hour myself. They are holding up perfectly (even after storms and heavy gusts of wind). And they look great!

Are invasive species of insects eating your plants — maybe even starting to take over your garden? Instead of using chemicals to control pesky garden insects, here’s a list of beneficial insects you might want to release into your garden. They will naturally get rid of the pesky insects for you! Or, if you don’t want to release live predatory insects, then see our list of plants that attract beneficial insects naturally.

See why I think Beau’s Dream Dog Park at Buchanan Park is the best off leash dog park in Lancaster PA. If you’ve never been, you’re missing out! These are my must-know tips for enjoying this beautiful dog park — and what you can expect before you go to this Beneful dog park for the first time.

We have 3 dogs and 2 vehicles. We use the 2-in-1 iBuddy dog cargo cover / dog car hammock to protect the inside of our SUV from dog fur, dog drool, and dog toenail marks. See why I mostly use this dog seat protector as a cargo liner — and why I love it!

I have both, an A8 model and a V8 model of the iLife robot vacuum. (They’re about half the price of a Roomba iRobot vacuum!) I use the A8 upstairs where most of the rooms are carpeted, and I use the V8 downstairs where we do most of our living with 3 dogs in the house (and have mostly hardwood flooring and lots of throw rugs). Here’s my list of the pros & cons of a robot vacuum cleaner vs. a traditional upright vacuum cleaner, and how well the wet mopping feature works on an auto vacuum cleaner.

See how we repurposed our collection of old glass jars and lids from food items AND organized our garage workspace at the same time! Here’s our tutorial with photos showing how to build a shelf organizer using glass jars and lids.

Packing to move into a new house soon? I’ve moved… a lot! And I’ve got some unique tips when packing boxes for your move that will help you save time and stay organized!

One of our first to-do projects in our new house was to create a happy laundry room. Yes, a laundry room which inspires one to want to “happily” do laundry. My new laundry room is 5×9.5 feet, has a great washer/dryer configuration, lots of storage for household cleaning items, a place to hang freshly laundered clothes, a big table area to fold clothes, and some music! See before & after photos + the details of how we tackled this DIY laundry room makeover.

Have a mixed breed dog? (Me too.) Here’s a list of mixed breed dog names — so you’ll know what to call cross breed dogs other than mutts! According to the American Canine Hybrid Club, this is the official list of recognized hybrid dog breeds and their unique mixed breed dog names. These are all cross breed dogs with unique names that were created by combining 2 popular dog mixes. (Some call them designer dogs or designer dog breeds.) Pictures included!

Knowing the symptoms of dog bloat could actually save your dog’s life — because bloat comes on quickly and can kill a dog within hours if left untreated. Here’s what you need to know about the signs of bloat in dogs, risk factors that predispose your dog to getting bloat, and tips for preventing bloat in dogs. These are all things I wish I had known before my dog died of bloat.

Portable vacuum cleaners are better than ever these days, but a central vacuum system has the winning edge! See why… Here’s what I’ve learned about central vacs, including the cost and DIY installation info too.

I’ve always wanted a bidet toilet… I finally got one. Hubby installed the DIY Superior Bidet attachment, and our rear ends have never been cleaner! To help you decide if a bathroom bidet makes sense for your family, read through my list of pros & cons of an add-on bidet first.