Found Not Lost

This is my dismal looking backyard in winter. Everything is dead and our sad outdoor furniture, if you can call it that, is in bad need of repair. The weather is nicer now and our backyard is greener, but the same old junky looking furniture is still there. Our backyard really needs a makeover.

I must say, the aquarium turned coffee table gets noticed a lot. They call it junk art

How do you clean the mini blinds in your home? Do you take them down from the windows, take them outside, hang them then power wash them with the garden hose? OR Do you take them down, put them in a tub full of soapy water, scrub them down then hang them to dry before putting them up on the windows again?

Those are the tried and true methods of cleaning them especially if, like me, you’ve procrastinated about cleaning them up and they’ve started to look grungy. The best way to clean them is by maintaining them and not let the grease and dust build up, I think. If you keep them dusted and clean, you won’t have to do the inevitable washing required to keep them looking like the day you put them up.

Although today is a bit rainy and gray, you can just tell from all the greening and blooming happening that summer will soon be here. We’ve already dragged out the grill and have started dusting off the lawn chairs, and the husband is again talking about building a gazebo (he’s talked about this every summer for the last three ).

If our gazebo ever gets built, I think a new set of teak outdoor furniture would be the perfect gazebo warming present. Don’t you think?

With warmer weather, which I love, unfortunately also comes bugs, which I hate. As much as I hate bugs though, I can’t stand the smell of Raid! I don’t know why that is, but pesticide smells just does something to my sinuses. I end up having to go outside until all the odors dissipate.

I found this comprehensive list of home remedies for combating pests around your home that may just solve this problem. Most of the remedies use common sense and products normally found in your pantry. My mother in law used to have borax handy all the time. Now, I know why. You can use it in a variety of ways to control ants and cockroaches and other bugs in and around the house. I’ll have to go get me some.

We are a consumer driven society and we will always consume a good deal from our environment. While many would like the consumption of natural resources to stop, we all know it is impractical. So it is up to individuals and businesses to conduct themselves responsibly in order to sustain our resources for future generations.

Pacific Wood Preserving is a leading supplier of treated wood products in the western U.S. How does treated wood products help the environment? When products last longer because they are made from pressure treated wood, the less likely that they will have to be replaced as often. For example, the wooden decks most of us have in our backyard. If treated correctly and maintained, they can last as long as 15 to 20 years. However, left untreated, you’d be replacing them within 5 years if that.