All Things Home - February 2012 by Publication Printer

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Index

February 2012

Featured Articles Rodent Proofing Your Home

The Dream of Owning A Home

The Housework and Clutter Equation 20

Featured Businesses Blinds and Shutters

Peg’s Blinds and Shutters

Redwood Inc.

Carpenters

Ringo’s Construction

Gary Beam Formica Countertops Goldstone Red’s Quality Marble Unique Kitchen & Bath

Electrician

Mr. Electric Zawadzki Electric

Handicap Modifications Access Mobility

Home Builders

Kevin Bearden Custom Homes Weld House Homes

Home Theater

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House Plans

Great House Plans

HVAC Contractors

Comfort Air Lochridge Priest Oasis Heating and Cooling

Insulation

Custom Stain and Scoring

PUBLISHER All Things Home™

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Flooring

Furniture Center

Grout Staining/Sealing

Custom Integrators

Countertops

Furniture

Anderson Glass Bullseye Glass

Grout Works of Central Texas 15

Building Materials

Glass/Mirrors

DEK Insulation

Insurance Agency

Terry Strickland State Farm

ART DIRECTION & DESIGN Jose Gonzales

TO ADVERTISE PLEASE CALL 254.709.6045

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Welcome to All Things Home If you have been searching for a custom home builder, remodeler, service provider, or just a tradesman to complete a small home project, then All Things Home is the only guide you will need. Inside you will also find helpful tips and suggestions for various home projects. Thanks for showing an interest in All Things Home.

Irrigation

Stein Lawn and Landscape

Metal Roof Supplies

Pioneer Steel and Pipe

Paint/Supplies

Wigley’s Paint Inc.

Plumbing Fixtures

Waco Winnelson

Roofers

Talbert Construction Wehrmann Metal Roofs

Real Estate Loans

Community Bank and Trust Loan Source

Remodeling

Kevin Bearden Custom Homes Talbert Construction

Wouldn’t you like to be a part of All Things Home and let people know about your services? To advertise in the next issue of All Things Home, please contact 254.709.6045 or email us at: allthingshomeonline@gmail.com

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After experiencing record breaking heat in Central Texas, cooler weather will be a welcome change. The arrival of cooler weather brings a new variety of woes-rodents such as rats and mice will also arrive at your home looking for food and shelter. Begin protecting your home now from these unwanted house guests. Rats and mice are commensal rodents. Commensal means “sharing one’s table”. Rats and mice have been sharing our food and shelter for hundreds of years. They build nests in walls, closets, behind cabinets, or in storage boxes. They are nocturnal animals, leaving nests to find food and nibbling on small amounts throughout the night. With uncontrollable bladders, tiny drops of urine are left wherever they travel. When active, they continually produce droppings. Rats and mice can and do contaminate your home and food with urine, droppings, or fur. The word rodent means “to gnaw”. Rats and mice, like other rodents have AllThingsHomeOnline.com 12

one pair of incisor teeth that continue to grow throughout their lives. They keep these teeth sharp by gnawing them against one another, but will also gnaw on various objects. They can damage the walls, floors, furniture, electrical wiring, and utility pipes in your home. In addition to obvious gnawing damage to your home, you can also identify rodent activity by their droppings, which are often confused with those of a cockroach. Rodent droppings are oblong with smooth edges, while cockroach droppings tend to be smaller, more slender and have ridged edges. Mice and rats routinely follow the same pathway

between their nests and food source, leaving dust-free runways along the floor or in the rafters. They may also leave grease marks from oil and dirt along the wall next to their runways. Mice can enter your home through an opening the size of a dime and rats can enter through an opening the size of a quarter. The best way to prevent them from entering your home is to exclude them. Seal openings around electrical wiring, air conditioning and water conduits, drain pipes, and vents. Use steel wool or copper mesh to stuff entry points or use expand-a-foam or mortar to form a long-term seal. Repair exterior damage to walls, eaves or windows. Check your roof to make sure that shingles are tight and use hardware cloth to screen vents and chimney openings. Use a metal kickplate to reduce spaces beneath exterior doors.

Ensure that your attic and closets are clean. Rodents prefer to nest in paper and cardboard, so sealed plastic containers for storage are ideal. Be sure to keep clutter and debris away from the exterior perimeter of your home. Prevent rodents from infesting your yard by keeping garbage cans and outside pet food tightly sealed. Never place meat or chicken scraps in outdoor compost piles. Elevate woodpiles and outdoor storage sites off the ground.

If you find evidence of mice and rats in your home, several different methods are available to eliminate them. A variety of traps are available such as the familiar wooden snap trap or larger, multiple catch traps. Place traps in the rodentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s pathway, usually along the edge of a wall, in a darkened corner or behind appliances. Rodent poison is available at your local hardware or feed store but should be used with caution to prevent accidental poisoning to children or house pets. For expert, safe, effective rodent control, contact The Pest Inspector at (254) 732-2927 or online at www.yougotemwellgetem.com

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Own a new home at cost with zero percent interest and zero down payment! The first step is to attend one of our mandatory homeownership orientations. In the orientation applicants receive additional information about the Waco Habitat homeownership program and details on how to apply and qualify. All orientations are held once a month at our downtown office at 220 North 11th Street at 7:00pm. Child-care is provided. Both English and Spanish orientations are available throughout the year.

SPANISH ORIENTATIONS

ENGLISH ORIENTATIONS

• June 28, 2012

• February 23, 2012

• September 27, 2012

• April 26, 2012

The following are a few of the basic Family Selection Criteria. More specific information is provided at the orientation session.

NEED FOR HOUSING

WILLINGNESS TO PARTNER

• Living in overcrowded housing

• Applicants must be willing to perform at least 300 sweat equity (volunteer) hours

• Living in substandard housing • Being a resident of public housing • Being unable to secure adequate housing through the private market

ABILITY TO PAY • Income: Income must be stable and fall between 30%-60% of HUD Area Median Income. • Budget: Your estimated mortgage payment should be no more than 30% of your income and mortgage and other debt combined should be no more than 43% of your income.

• Attend a series of homebuyer education workshops • Must have lived or worked in the Greater Waco Area for the last year • Have a commitment to a drug-free community and no serious criminal history For more information, visit www.wacohabitat.org, contact Waco Habitat at 254-756-7575, or email info@wacohabitat.org.

• Delinquent Debt: No more than $2,000 in delinquent debt within the past three years from the time of application • Bankruptcy: Must wait two years after being discharged and fulfilled the requirements of the bankruptcy AllThingsHomeOnline.com 17

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Have you ever given any consideration to how much your clutter is costing you, in terms of time, emotional and mental energy, as well as cold, hard cash? Many people tell me that they would work on their clutter, but there are so many more interesting things to do. This could not be truer, even for someone like me. I would rather go to the park with my family than tidy up. However, when I return from my family outing to a cluttered house, I have a different opinion. Sound familiar?

The truth of the matter is if we were

of finding a home for one item in your

to take a short period of time each day

box. Sometimes this will take longer

to pick up and put away clutter, we would

than others, but it is a worthwhile time

be putting a stick in the spoke of that

investment. For instance, if the item

cycle. According to the National Soap

needing a home is a brand new box of

and Detergent Association (yes, there

Legos, when new Legos arrive (there is

is one at www.cleaninginstitute.org),

no such thing as one box of Legos), they

getting rid of clutter would eliminate 40%

can go directly to the new home. The

of housework in the average home. I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t

same thing goes with any type of item.

know about you, but 40% less housework

And just for the record; small, clear plastic

would make me a very happy person!

stackable boxes are ideal Lego storage.

So, here we are, already very busy people, how can we keep the clutter to a minimum to be more effective? Start by

Place one kit into each box along with the instruction book. There are times when it is difficult to

making the time. If we were to dedicate

include solutions to all circumstances

thirty minutes each day to cleaning and

when addressing such a varied audience.

de-cluttering, we would ultimately have

Please feel free to contact me directly

more time to ourselves. Identify the most

should you have questions or concerns

productive time of the day for you, then

about your specific situation.

assign one room each day. Set the timer and get started. The process is easier with daily tasks out of the way: bed making, dish washing, laundry, etc. With the remaining time take one room and remove all of the clutter. Any items that should be

Until next time, have a NEAT day! Jennifer Snyder is owner of Neat as a Pin Organizing Experts. For more info visit her at neatasasapin.net, call 254.715.3888, or email her at jennifer@neatasapin.net

removed from the focus area that are without a definite home, place these in a box labeled, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Needs a New Homeâ&#x20AC;?. Resist the urge to stash these items in a drawer, cabinet, or other out-of-sight location. This will hurt more in the long run. When the time is up, complete the task at hand then stop. Move on to those things that kept you from de-cluttering in the beginning, like television or reading. After the first day, incorporate the task AllThingsHomeOnline.com 21

With a New Year comes the infamous New Year’s Resolutions. We all want to make a change and January 1st seems to be the most logical time to do so. In the past few months, we have most likely overspent, overate, under-exercised, and under- organized. In my line of business as a Professional Organizer, the one thing I hear most often is that people know how to be organized, they just don’t know how to get started. The truth is, it doesn’t matter how you start, it simply matters that you do. So getting started means different things to different folks. Today I am going to give you some inspiration to “pull the trigger” and get organized in 2012! Regardless of how tidy, messy, clean, or domestically lax we may be, trash consumes a great deal of space. (Using the term “trash” loosely for items that can be given away, donated, recycled or literally sent to the landfill) These items can consume up to 50% of our living and storage spaces. By simply removing the “trash”, you can reduce the volume of stuff that you have to organize. Once the volume is reduced, you will be more likely to have a reasonable amount of things in your space. We can talk about living at capacity another day. Remove your trash by systematically identifying and removing such items. Create a donate box and when it gets full, take it to your preferred charity. If you don’t have one, I would recommend the Salvation Army and the Family Abuse Center. Allowing donate items to build up is simply doing the same things you have always done and calling it something different. Taking action is the key.

Challenge yourself to identify at least one item to remove from your space every day. Here are a few examples of how to do this: • Check expiration dates – do this with items in the refrigerator, pantry, medications, and make-up. • Remove clothing with stains and holes – if these are being saved for crafts or yard work, identify how many you would realistically need before the next possible wash. One or two sets are usually all that is needed. • Remove clothing that does not make you feel attractive. If it doesn’t make you feel great, you probably won’t wear it anyway. • If a project has been incomplete for more than 12 months, it is unlikely to be completed this year. Discard the items purchased or saved for the incomplete project – regardless of how much money it cost you. It is costing you money being stored in your space. I hope these tips help to get you started on the right track in 2012! Please visit my Facebook page, Neat as a Pin Organizing Experts for questions and answers to your most challenging organizing issues. Jennifer Snyder is owner of Neat as a Pin Organizing Experts. For more info, visit her at neatasasapin.net, call 254.715.3888, or email her at jennifer@neatasapin.net

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collections are uniquely inspired creations. Faith, Hope & Love are set in gold and silver, while Branches is done in gold and diamonds. “My favorite is called interchangeables, it starts with a gold swirl and allows you to change the color dripping from the bottom. It is quite a client favorite as well.” Linda McEathron sees jewelry as a very personal choice. It must feel as special as it looks. Her work reflects that sentiment. Visit Design House today for a gift for the one you love, yourself or your beauty. Their located inside Sironia at 1509 Austin Ave. or contact them at 254.717.743 or online at www.designhouse-jewelry.com

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“I love to have the torch in my hand...it’s a very powerful thing to create!” Spoken like a master jeweler, someone that touches every step of the process with her own hands from the selection of a precious stone to designing the perfect setting. Linda McEathron is one such master. You can find her creations at Design House. Situated inside Sironia in Waco’s

have many clients that have a wish list. I

trendy Uptown shopping district, the

look for things I know they will love.” This

treasures found in Design House are

is central to her design philosophy.

displayed in the setting that evoke the natural world. Rocks, bamboo, and moss serve as backdrops to Mrs. McEathron’s stunning, handmade jewelry. Drawing inspiration from the world around her is something she does often. It is a beautiful world, full of color and graceful lines. “I work with lots of bold color,” says McEathron. To meet the needs of her clients, she travels far and wide buying raw metals and fabulous gemstones. “I It’s A Girl Thing Magazine 3

Linda brings her clients into the creative process. “Nothing is more satisfying than to see a client wearing a piece of jewelry that we made together.” Exquisite jewelry demands the finest materials and this artist settles for nothing less. McEathron works with Tahitian pearls, citrine, dazzling shades of tourmaline, and even ancient Roman coins. Her designs are executed in gold, silver, and platinum. Her signature

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Index

February 2012