Rarely do I gush. But gush I do over my Eufy Cordless Stick Vac. Can’t help it. Eufy is so handy, easy to use and serves us so well in our home, office, garage and alas, my husband’s woodworking shop.
Eufy HomeVac Lightweight Cordless Upright-Style Vacuum Cleaner (NOT to be confused with the Eufy Duo 2-in-1 Cordless Vacuum Cleaner, of which I am not such a fan) is not a broom, not a mop and not even a substitute for a good vacuum cleaner.
Eufy is sorta’ (kinda’) like an electric broom that picks up dust, dirt, hair, fur, cat litter and all manner of debris from hard surface floors and from the surface of low-pile carpet.
Eufy is cordless, super lightweight with a swivel head and sports a Lithium-ion battery that holds a charge like … forever!
Eufy stands up alone, unlike most of its competitors. It’s just awesome. And inexpensive. But even Eufy cannot go very long without a decent cleaning and a good bath. Read more
From pet odors to the smell of cigarette smoke, rotten food, burned popcorn and all manner of other stinky stuff, there’s no getting around the fact that we live in a smelly world. And when stubborn odors invade our living space we need to know how to take care of them quickly and efficiently.
Odor elimination is not the same as room deodorizing. One takes it away, the other covers it up. Perhaps you’ve experienced this. There’s just nothing like a terrible odor mixed with the artificial smell of flowers or soft Polynesian breezes.
It’s been many years since a terrific product called Nok-Out and I found one another. Our friendship has deepened to the point that I can’t imagine living without it. There’s just nothing like Nok-Out.
Related: It’s a Smelly World Out There
Our big household trash can doesn’t smell anymore because I routinely wash it out and then spray it down with a dilution of Nok-Out (one cup Nok-Out to one-gallon water).
I didn’t have to send a fairly new upholstered chair to the landfill due to an unfortunate accident involving a sick grandchild, thanks to Nok-Out.
The horrible stench of a large bag of disgustingly rotten potatoes hiding behind a storage rack in our basement (how did that happen!?) made me gag when the source of that odor was finally discovered. But not a problem. Nok-Out completely eliminated all traces within only a few hours. Amazing.
And I’m not the only one in love with Nok-Out. Every week I hear from readers who have experienced a Nok-Out rescue.
I often wonder why is it that weeds have no problem at all with drought-like conditions. They don’t require a thing—not water, fertilizer or protection from pests and predators.
Weeds don’t even need soil. They’re happy to grow in cracks in the sidewalk—even asphalt.
Weeds don’t complain, don’t need to be babied and do their best work under the worst of circumstances—the hotter the better! Weeds never give up. I wish I were more like weeds.
Still, weeds are the bane of every gardener; a problem for every homeowner. Read more
This summer, a cash shortage need not eliminate the idea of a family vacation. Clever and creative parents can turn time off work into an amazing vacation experience, without leaving town.
The idea here is to take a stay-at-home vacation or a “staycation.”
Make a plan
Determine the dates of your staycation. Create a schedule and itinerary that includes activities and meals. Make a big colorful chart and allow the kids to participate in the planning.
The point of a staycation is to make it feel as much like a real family getaway as possible, without leaving home. So, to make sure the whole family is on the same page, it is good to establish ground rules that everyone can agree on.
Save the date
Start with deciding exactly when your vacation at home starts and ends. Make sure these are dates you clear of all regular life, just as if you and the family were leaving town for a period of time.
Establish guidelines
Set a few guidelines for what your family may and may not do during this time. These could include all or some of the following: Read more
Just this past week I heard from my dear reader Penny who is frustrated in the face of needing to purchase a new dishwasher. She writes:
“Our dishwasher is more than 20 years old and every time I think I have decided on a new one and read the reviews, I back out. I know that you recently purchased new appliances. What brand dishwasher did you go with? How does one filter all the reviews, good or bad?”
My husband and I have just completed our big kitchen remodel. It’s been nearly a year since we started planning so you can be sure I’ve been researching appliances ad nauseam.
Here’s my conclusion based on credible evidence, product reviews and long conversations with appliance professionals: They just don’t make ‘em like they used to!
These days you won’t find a dishwasher with an expected lifespan of 20 years. The best we should expect from new dishwashers is 8 to 10 years, which is by design. Industry insiders call this “planned obsolescence.” And we have to assume that those will not necessarily be trouble-free years. It’s sad but true.
Nearly all appliances these days come with a one-year warranty. Most appliances pros will tell you that if an appliance is going to fail, it is most likely to do that during the first 90-days, so a one-year warranty is supposed to be sufficient. Anything beyond that is called an extended warranty, which brings up another matter, altogether. Let’s just say it gets complicated.
Related: Best Inexpensive Stick Vacuum—Finally!
There are two brands I suggest you stay away from—Samsung and LG. While their appliances are lovely when they’re in good working condition, these companies do not have a solid infrastructure for service and repair in the U.S. That means you’ll have a difficult time finding someone to repair them whether they’re under warranty or not. And when you do, you could wait weeks for parts to arrive from overseas.
On the other hand, the Whirlpool family of appliances (Whirlpool, Maytag, KitchenAid, Jenn-Air, Amana to name a few) are made in the U.S. Whirlpool has a reputation for making good appliances with repair, service, and parts readily available.
With all that being said, I do have some really good news—and a solid recommendation, which may surprise you. Read more
Got more time than money for family entertainment this summer? No problem. There are lots of things you can do with the kids that are completely (or nearly) free. No kidding! Check out these ideas:
GO GEOCACHING
Geocaching (pronounced gee-o-cashing) is an outdoor treasure-hunting game in which the participants use GPS to hide and seek containers (caches). A typical cache is a small waterproof container concealing a logbook or “treasure,” usually toys or trinkets of little value. More than 750,000 geocaches are registered on various websites devoted to this pastime. If you have a handheld GPS or a GPS-enabled cell smartphone, you’re ready to get started.
First, read The Ultimate Treasure Hunt—Geocaching with Kids, to get inspired. Then go to Geocaching 101 to get a great overview followed by this 75-second video, What is Geocaching?
To get started, you’ll need to register, but it’s free. Once you’re ready to start treasure-hunting, just type in your zip code and start exploring! Geocaching is the ultimate treasure hunt and kids love it! Be sure to learn simple geocaching protocol and etiquette before you head out on your first adventure.
SUMMER READING PROGRAMS
Public libraries and retail booksellers across the nation are offering wonderful free reading programs for kids this summer. What a great way to encourage your child to read over the summer months while at the same time having so much fun! Many of these programs offer the kids freebies—free books, coupons for free ice cream or other goodies. Summer Reading Programs 2018 offers a list of Summer Reading Programs for Kids that give free books, money and more.
VISIT A MUSEUM
Many museums and galleries throughout the U.S. offer free admission on special days or weekends.
For example, The California Science Center, new home to Space Shuttle Endeavor, is always free. Chicago Children’s Museum offers Free Family Night on Thursday evenings, 5 to 8 pm. The Bowers Museum in Santa Ana, Calif. offers free admission on the first Sunday of every month. Contact the museums in your area to see when they offer free admission.
Planning for their parents’ end-of-life expenses is about the last thing most adult children want to deal with. At least not right now.
A traditional funeral costs about $6,000, although extras like flowers, obituary notices, acknowledgment cards and limousines can bring the total to well over $10,000. Families often overspend on a funeral or burial because they think of it as a reflection of their feelings for the deceased.
Dear Mary: My comment is in response to Where to Keep Money for Mom? and Bonita in South Dakota who was looking for input on how to invest $10,000 for 62-year-old mother who has no savings, life insurance and lives on disability.
I would recommend they go to any funeral home and work with the person there who handles pre-paid funerals. Essentially, you are purchasing an insurance policy to cover the funeral costs. We did this for my dad before he moved into a long-term care facility, which was going to drain his remaining assets to $0. A pre-paid funeral policy is excluded from the asset base, is protected once the assets are gone and a person goes on medical assistance.
With all the other drama that comes with aging parents, it is nice for my sister and me to know that the end is covered and won’t create another drain/strain on everything. Molly
Dear Molly: Thanks for this wise advice. In fact, many elder law attorneys advise prepayment as a way to invest in assets that will not be countable by Medicaid or SSI.
However, I want my dear readers to know that there are pitfalls on the road to pre-paid end-of-life arrangements, which they need to know about in order to avoid falling into them. Buyers beware. Read more
At the tender age of 11, I made a solemn vow that when I grew up I was going to be rich. My plan was simple: Marry well.
I bless the day I married my husband, a man who is rich in character and unfailing love. I assumed his money would follow.
While waiting for wealth to descend upon me, I made the tragic error of spending as though I were already rich. That 12-year descent into the pit of financial despair landed us in so much trouble, it took 13 years to repair.
The experience taught me a very important principle: How much you spend matters much more than how much you earn. It’s the money you don’t spend that gives you the freedom to build wealth and live the life you love.
But let’s get real. If it were that easy, wouldn’t everyone be fabulously wealthy? There has to be more to it, so I asked financial experts for their best tried-and-true rules for building wealth.
No matter where you are in your financial journey, start following this advice right now so you can keep more of what you earn. That’s the way to grow rich.
Rule #1: Live Smarter
Enough is enough. ”Living below your means is the secret to prosperity,” says Michelle Singletary, nationally syndicated personal finance columnist for The Washington Post. “In this country, we define rich as having a lot of material things. Look at what you have already and say with confidence, ‘I have enough.’ You don’t need to borrow more money to get more stuff, because all that means is you’ll have to work more to pay for it.”
Stop trading up. Jonathan Pond, in his book, You Can Do It! The Boomer’s Guide to a Great Retirement, he says, “Over 40 years of car ownership, someone who trades in a car every 10 years will have almost $500,000 more in the kitty than someone who trades in their car every three years.”
Related: Rules for Buying a Car for All Cash
As I glanced at the day’s news headlines, I flinched when I read that a prominent U.S. politician (who shall remain nameless) had 10 people show up at a recent town hall meeting. Ten! That’s what I call an empty room and the fear of every speaker—that no one shows up because no one is listening.
Before I bring up the subject of my email inbox, I need to tell you again how much I love to hear from my readers! I take every letter, note, and message as an affirmation that I’m not speaking to an empty room. I love your tips, stories, questions, corrections, and challenges.
Now about my inbox—it fills almost faster than I can read, so I create file folders for varying subjects. When a folder gets full I know it’s time to address that subject in an upcoming post.
Once again, I’m working to clear out the folder labeled “Best Inexpensive Qs” where hundreds of messages land that go something like this: “Please tell me exactly which [fill-in-the-blank] is the Best Inexpensive™ option.”
ROOM DEHUMIDIFIER. If you live where it gets unbearably humid this time of year, the way to lower the humidity inside your home is with a good dehumidifier. My pick for the overall best inexpensive 70-pints-per-day unit is rated for up to 2,500 sq. ft. is FRIGIDAIRE Energy Star 70-Pint Dehumidifier It will keep your home comfortable and also protect it from mold, mildew and airborne particles that can make breathing difficult for some people. About $240.
More: Humidity—Not Too High, Not Too Low, But Just Right
SEWING MACHINE. Two choices here. For the beginner: Janome Mod-15 is a sweetheart of a basic mechanical machine ideal for a beginner of any age who shows great promise with sewing, but has not yet proven the need for a more advanced machine. About $150. For intermediate to advance: Janome Mod-100 is a remarkable top-of-the-line computerized model that has everything an advanced sewist would want, with a price you’d expect for a beginner machine. About $275.
HANDHELD GARMENT STEAMER. Housmile garment steamer is a portable fabric steamer brush for clothes. Perfect for travel because it’s lightweight, comes with two styles of brush heads and produces excellent steam. I much prefer its performance over the more traditional style of garment steamer. It’s great! About $35.
Don’t Miss: Father’s Day 2018 Gift Guide
Want to learn more ways to save time and money every day? Your fellow readers are ready to share their best tips. Get ready, you’re about to say it more than a few times—what a great idea!
PROJECT FREE PAINT JOB. My car is 7-years old with 127,000 miles—and paid for. I wanted to get it painted to last me another 3 years but didn’t want to spend the $700 I was told it would cost. I have a friend who is a teacher at our a local BOCES school (a training center for adults and high school students) and he said they would do the job at no cost—the only thing I would pay for is the paint. I checked into it and learned that many trade schools that teach automotive painting need cars for student projects. They were happy to get my car for the students to learn on and they did a masterful job, with teacher oversight. John
SEE CLEARLY TILL THE STORM PASSES BY. Rain-X Windshield Treatment is a product that repels water from a car’s windshield. It really works. I can still see well, even when a truck passes me splashing water, mud and slush over my windshield. You have to really rub hard to get the streaks off and the windshield must be totally dry when you apply the Rain-X. Being able to see at all times during a blinding rainstorm saves me much more than money. Brittany
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