For the Home

We are living in a society where the bar gets raised higher and higher every year, and where today's splurge becomes tomorrow's necessity.

If either of you already has the basic kitchen, bathroom, and dining necessities, resist the urge to dump everything you have and start all over again.

Plants calm you, help you concentrate, help you breathe better, they even help with the creative process.

On that rare occasion that he actually gained a pound or two, my father would watch what he ate for two days and – poof! – he was back to his wedding weight again.

Just a single word can sum up one of the most disturbing trends that continues to sweep our supermarkets: downsizing.

Ahh, the mornings. A time of peace and serenity, for sipping a cup of coffee while catching up on the morning news. Or perhaps you use the time to bake fresh healthy cookies for the family’s midday snack. However, if your mornings are better described as rush hour compounded by nagging warnings, here are a few handy steps to create a stress free routine.

The best way to prepare your child for the best year possible is, of course, by preparing.

Want to make sure you don’t forget your lunch as you head out to work? Stash your keys in the refrigerator, right next to your meal.

Of course, before you even start the party, you will probably want to make sure that your house is guest-ready, which means tackling those unpleasant cleaning jobs that we all try our best to ignore.

Perhaps we can teach our children to give, instead of take... to become contributing members of the community.

This summer, why don't we try to do better and cool off without blowing our retirement fund?

The kids are coming! The kids are coming!

Whether you are staying home for Pesach or going away, it is nice to have something new to enhance this special Yom Tov. With rhinestone monograms now so readily available you can turn many household items from ordinary to extraordinary.

Invest in some good cleaning habits, along with a good solid dose of planning and prevention.

What to do with all this time?

However, as soon as the tickets are booked, the next big question is: who can watch the children?

I would be amiss if I did not mention the old classic, chalk. There are so many ways to combine chalk with a city sidewalk.

The Readers Digest lists several unconventional jewelry cleaning techniques, and while I have yet to try any of them, they do sound interesting.

Not that I am in any way trying to rush Pesach out the door, but once it is time to get back to reality, it makes sense to streamline the turnover as much as possible.

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As much as I am all for economical meals, Pesach is definitely the time of year when I find myself making more roasts.

She wasn't talking about folding the regular loads of laundry, she was talking about huge plastic bins.

I am a huge fan of shared family experiences...

Given the subject matter, it seems appropriate for this cookbook to open with a chapter on food safety since giving your family food poisoning by feeding them spoiled ingredients is definitely something to be avoided.

It’s interesting how small things change our perspective. Shabbos is always 25 hours, but with a longer afternoon, we call it a long Shabbos.

So what is the game plan for the upcoming yomim tovim? I'm so glad you asked!

If done properly, painting a room can be done in just a few hours with minimal cleanup. The key is, of course, preparation.

Does standing under the chuppah signal the end of our dream of romance and beautiful sunsets?

So often, when it comes to furniture in a home with children, there is a tug of war between functionality and beauty. Either get the industrial strength dining chairs that are ugly but never stain, or the elegant chairs that will force you to exercise your vocal cords all the time. There are those, of course, who get the beautiful chairs and cover them with industrial strength plastic, but they're not fooling anyone. I personally prefer the happy children.

Glob on the sunscreen, break out the darkest chocolate you can find and let the sun shine in!