GR8TR Today Magazine

Living a GR8TR Life Every Day

Featured Articles

8 Easy Tips To Prevent Gnats and Fruit Flies in the Home

Fruit Flies are a very common occurrence during the fall, spring, and summer months. They can multiply easily, and depending on what kind of bugs you have in your kitchen, some of them can reproduce quickly and can carry bacteria into the home. Your kitchen can be spotless, yet you will find fruit flies by the fruit bowl, sugary spots on the table, countertop, thrash can, or recycle bin. Regardless of where you find fruit flies, there are steps to take to stop them from multiplying and becoming a nuisance.

  1. Clean sugar spills on the counter and kitchen table as they occur. Make sure the sugar bowl is firmly closed, and sugary treats are put away in closed lid containers.
  2. Empty the recycle bin and trash can daily and make sure they are clean before bringing them back to the kitchen.  All spills from the bottom of the bins have to be clean with soap and water to get rid of the sugary smell and stickiness from the bottom of the containers.
  3. Refrigerate your fruits placed in the fruit bowl. Bananas attract fruit flies to the bowl and can multiply quickly if you keep leaving them there.  Once the bananas are yellow, put them in the refrigerator and take them out as needed. The less fruit you have outside the refrigerator the better to keep fruit flies at a minimum.
  4. Pour hot water into the drains.  It is not only recommended for the kitchen sinks but bathroom and shower drain as well.  A gallon of hot water poured into the kitchen, bathroom, and shower sink should be enough to kill the fruit flies’ eggs and clear any soap build-up. You can add more hot water if you think it is necessary. Also, you can use a solution of 1 cup white vinegar, and 1 cup of baking soda to get rid of any blockage you have in the drains.  This will also allow you to have cleaner drains and fewer fruit flies in the kitchen.
  5. Clean your kitchen sink.  Make sure your kitchen sink stays clean overnight.  Snack dishes or ice cream bowls used after dinner should be rinsed and put in the dishwasher.  Dishes with a sugary smell left overnight will most certainly bring ants, fruit flies, and gnats to your kitchen.
  6. Do not store potatoes, onions, or any other root vegetable in bins in warm places where they can rot quickly. Make sure you sort all vegetables and wash them before storing them.  Make sure any vegetable with a brown or discolored spot is used quickly before it rots and contaminates all the other vegetables. Do not replenish the bins with new vegetables before taking inventory of the old ones.  Do not mix new and old ones.
  7. Gnats can be found in potted plants all year round.  Make sure you do not overwater your plants.  Potting soil that is too wet is a perfect environment for gnats. Also, make sure roots that are rotting or decaying are put in the trash can outside the home right away.
  8. Dirty glasses or dishes in your child’s bedroom can also be the reason you have flies or fruit flies in the home.  Checking your child’s bedroom for wrappers or dirty dishes might be a starting point to get rid of fruit flies.

Every year there is a season when it seems impossible to get rid of the flies, gnats, or fruit flies in the home.  By following these 8 easy tips you can have a cleaner and insect-free home all year round.

Get Your Car Ready For Winter

When was the last time you kept track of your car care schedule? Do you remember when you took your car for a full inspection?

Time is money as the old adage goes, and when it comes to the care of our car, time and money are too precious to waste.  That’s why, taking care of your car and doing preventive maintenance or even regular scheduled oil changes can keep your car running well, prevent costly repairs and keeps your car dependable for many years.

Before Winter arrives, here is a list to check to see if you have a car that is ready to see you through the Winter.

  1. Oil change
  2. Transmission flush and fill
  3. Check tires and wheel alignment
  4. Replace wiper blades
  5. Check  brakes and battery
  6. Check your lights – weekly if you can
  7. The Heating and air conditioning of your car
  8. Check the antifreeze fluid
  9. Belts and hoses
  10. Annual tune-up

There are many places in Columbus where you can have your car serviced.  But, do you know which ones have a good rating? By checking the Better Business Bureau’s website (BBB), you can check to see if the place you are planning to take your car for a checkup has a good rating. Remember that not even the Better Business Bureau guarantees you will have a nice experience, but it is a good place to start. Asking your friends and family for their favorite place to take their own car is the best bet, and you can probably avoid some headaches.

Now that you have taken your car to be serviced, and want to keep your car running smoothly for the foreseeable future, keeping a reminder of their service schedule can be a very practical thing to do.

At carcare.org, you can build a service schedule for your car by entering your car’s make and model.  Then, they send you a schedule service reminder to your email when the time is approaching to have your car serviced. Is it convenient? You bet. It is easy to do and an easy way for you to then call your favorite car care place and schedule an appointment without forgetting.

Sustainable Health and Fitness – Creating a Lifestyle

There are countless articles relating to fitness. There are those that  will convince you that it is possible to lose 7 inches in one month, and others that layout radical diets. A majority of these articles are based around getting quick results,  or seeing the numbers on the scale dial back with minimal effort. We often times buy into these gimmicks with false hope, knowing that maybe it is too good to be true, but reading on despite that fact. We fall in love with this fallacy, and it can cause problems when trying to get healthy, stay healthy, or change the paradigm of our eating habits.

It is the small changes you make now that will transform into significant differences later in your life. This is a small outline of changes you can make now, that will help create a healthier, and sustainable lifestyle.

  1. Shop Smart: Avoid temptations that lurk in the candy and chip aisles. It is much easier to avoid the danger zones in the grocery store than to avoid the snacks burrowed in your own cabinets. A trick to avoiding the unhealthier items in the store is to shop around the perimeter of your store. The outside areas of the store are usually where the fresh veggies and fruit live. You can also find the freezers and refrigerators with eggs, milk, yogurts, and meats on the perimeter.
  2. Drink More: Not just water either, tea and coffee have health benefits, and can help increase energy as well. Although water does not have any caffeine, it is the most effective way to hydrate, and dehydration is a common cause of sleepiness. Dehydration can also cause muscle cramping, headaches, and even dizziness in some cases.
  3. Find Your Physical Activity: Gyms are great, and so are CrossFit boxes, but if they’re not something you enjoy, then they’re probably not going to be something you will continue doing. Physical activity is important, but sometimes people neglect the fact that there are countless ways to exercise. Playing a sport, going on a hike, or even taking your dog for a more lengthy walk are all examples of exercise that are not as cookie-cutter as going to a gym or doing a structured hour and a half workout, but they will improve you physical fitness and health. The important aspect of this, is to find joy in the activity. To make a healthy lifestyle sustainable, you must get pleasure out of leading one, and enjoy the activities that keep you active.
  4. Accountability: If leading a healthy lifestyle is a newer goal of yours, accountability to others can be a huge motivator to stay in track. It is a much easier feat when the people closest to you are aware, supportive, and encouraging of your choices. Having a partner that is trying to lead a similar lifestyle is very helpful and can lead to a stronger relationship by bonding over staying active, or discover new fun ways to eat cleanly. This is a successful way to stay on track, as well as make it more fun for both parties.
  5. Cook at Home: As fun and tasty as the food in restaurants can be, often times, they are packing a very high caloric punch. Although we all can understand that a double decker cheeseburger is not healthy, we tend to gloss over the fact that we are eating our entire daily allotment of calories and fat in a single sitting. Restaurants focus more on making food taste good, than on making it moderately healthy. Learning to cook home-cooked meals can greatly increase your health, as well as keep some extra cash in your wallet. Cooking can also be a fun adventure, learning to mimic healthy recipes online can be exciting and rewarding, as well as help sharpen up a useful skill.

All these small changes are easy to start implementing slowly into your lifestyle. Although none of these are incredibly drastic, they can all be a great additions to your lifestyle change, and making it more sustainable as well.

One last important aspect is understanding balance, as well as flexibility in your lifestyle. No one is perfect, and there is nothing wrong with occasionally digging into some pizza, or spending a day binge watching your newest Netflix obsession instead of going for a run. Everything is best in moderation, but leading a healthy lifestyle can make some significantly positive changes for you.

 

Transitioning From Outdoor Fit to Indoor Fit

With the cooler weather coming soon, it is time for Ohio residents to start planning their transition from outdoor fitness activities to indoor. Northeast Ohio has a wealth of bike trails, hiking, beaches, swimming, outdoor sports and other ways to stay outside (for free) in the Summer.  But once it dips below 50 degrees, those outdoor activities seem a bit less appealing and eventually only are options for hard core outdoorsy people.

So what are some of your options this Winter to stay in shape?

Join  a Gym.  This is obvious, but one nice thing that has changed in the last few years is you can join gyms month to month and only use them in the Winter months.

Buy limited fitness equipment to stay fit at home.  A tread mill and some kettle bells might be all you need to stay beach body ready in your home.  Look for used kettle bells to save some money.

Join Indoor Sports.  We recently covered options of Indoor Tennis and Indoor Soccer.  Basketball would be another obvious one.  Maybe you can even find adult dodge ball.  There are plenty of indoor sporting opportunities for kids and adults.

Do Winter sports.  Cross country and downhill skiing are great workouts.  Snow shoe hiking?  Sure.  You can also simply hike snow trails with some extra preparation.

Watch what you eat.  There is the issue of paying close attention to your Winter diet.  Do not start eating more at night because you are spending more time in front of the television.  Do not cut back on fresh fruits and vegetables just because they cost a little bit more.  Do not stop grilling healthy lean meats just because you have to push some snow off the grill cover first.

With some advanced planning and careful attention being paid to how your habits change, you can stay fit and firm no matter how long the ground is covered in permafrost.

 

How To Help Your Kids With Math

Do you have children that are struggling with math at school?  Don’t worry, you are not alone. In a recent study done by the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) which measures reading, science and math ability between 15-year-olds from 71 developed and developing countries, children in the United States ranked 38th in math and 24th in science.

Among its peers, the United States spends more in education than those at the top, and the results are clearly nothing to brag about. Our children are falling behind.

So, clearly, we need to do something about it.  Where to start though?  Most schools in this country are not doing a good job teaching science, math or technology- the results speak for themselves- as parents, we have left the teaching of these important subjects to the schools for too long without expecting accountability.  Our children are failing math and passing to the next grade without mastering the basic of algebra, trigonometry or calculus. By the time college looms near, math is a subject most teens in this country dread about. They are getting accepted into college and put into remedial math they should have learned during junior and high school.

If you google “math help” on your computer, you will get about 251,000,000 results in less than a second. Will that help? Doubtful.  You can spend days going through all the sites to see which ones offer math for free, which ones are worth paying for, or which ones will give you good math advice.

If your child goes to school, does he/she have a math book?  Do you understand where they are in the book, or what they are learning? Would you like to do some math with your child during breaks, or the weekend?

Is your school doing student surveys to see when they are struggling?

If your child is falling behind in math, and you want to help them, start small. You can start by spending 10 to 15 minutes a day explaining a topic and asking them to solve some problems.  If you don’t know where to start, test them to see where the starting point is for them. Here is a link that will provide you with a very simple assessment of where your child should start. The information is all there, you just need to print it.

Pupil in elementary geography class

Before I continue, I need to tell you I am not getting paid for promoting this site, nor am I required to promote it.  This is a personal preference. My family has used Saxon Math for many years, and although is a bit intense because of the amount of work we need to do, the results are worth it.

After you have administered this test, you will have the results and the option to start at that point.  For Saxon math, the beginning of the books are always very easy because they are reviewing the material from the previous grade, but as you progress, the difficulty becomes much more challenging.

Online math sites are good if you want to go that way.  But be choosy, remember that there are millions of sites with math help. Choose a site that will give your child extensive and numerous exercises till he or she masters the topic, and make sure that at the beginning of your journey, you choose a free site before committing yourself to a site that locks you into a long term commitment.  If you want to make sure he/she knows the topic, come back later on and test her again with some problems to see if you need to review that topic. You must remember that your child needs to master a topic, before continuing into another.  We are not at school.

Good luck and have fun with math!

Fall Fitness – Things To Do Before Winter Hits

Summer is almost over and for many that means exercising outdoors is coming to an end. However, there are many fine days in fall when you can engage in various fitness activities such as hiking or biking and enjoying fall beauty or picking apples or traveling to a pumpkin patch and choosing several great looking pumpkins for your patio or porch. Running during crisp fall days is another way to get your exercise.

When running in the Fall, be sure to wear breathable, moisture-wicking clothing, as the temperatures will be much cooler. Or when walking during dark morning or evening hours, it is important to wear reflective workout clothes and carry a flashlight. For those who like to ride their bike, invest in blinking tail lights and headlights and be cautious of roads that are heavy with traffic. Other activities that you can do during the fall are learning how to tap dance, box and maybe even fence. Discounts are often available in the fall and that makes learning how to dance, box or fence that more enjoyable.

Or, if you would rather work out at home, buy several fitness DVDs or try Hulu for free workout tutorials on Exercise TV. In addition, how about buying a bike? Sometimes you will find sales on bikes during the fall season. Prices are often slashed on old models because most dealers don’t want old models taking up too much room in the showroom. Another way to exercise at home is by purchasing a rower or treadmill. Exercising during the fall has many benefits such as controlling your weight, combating health conditions and diseases, enjoying an improvement in your mood, boosting energy and engaging in activities that stimulate your brain.

To conclude, exercise is a wonderful and beneficial activity. It not only keeps you in great shape, it also helps with weight loss, improves your mood and combats health conditions and diseases. So, don’t let the cool, fall weather stop you from exercising. Try one or more of the above ways to exercise such as taking a hike and enjoying the foliage, picking some apples, riding a bike and enjoying the fall weather. Enjoy the summer while it is here but remember when fall arrives, you can still enjoy several outdoor activities. Remember, exercising keeps you fit physically and mentally; it is activity that will maintain your good physical and mental health.

Shopping Around – The New Norm

Shopping around for items is normal, but many people are moving towards shopping for items and services that used to not be questioned.  Prices can be very different from one place to another depending on the vendor. And things that used to be a monopoly have a high degree of competition now.  This week I saw a friend on Facebook complain about a new medication he needed be $500 a month and not covered by insurance.  Within an hour he had people telling him how to get it for $60 and places he could maybe get it free (from manufacturer) and how to do it.

Facebook and other social media channels are helping people collaborate and share information to find better deals on things.  But are you looking for better deals when it comes to some of these things?

  1. Utilities – By shopping for utility providers, you can reduce your rate significantly.  Put when your contract is up on your calendar and reshop for it once it expires or your rate will go up and not one will notify you.
  2. Medical – The exact same procedure can be radically different from place to place.  Some people even find it cheaper to go to another country and have a medical vacation versus just taking the first offer on a medical procedure.  (Please do not shop around if it is an emergency though!)
  3. Auto Repairs – If you are one of those people still going to the dealer, you are paying too much for some things.  I do like the dealer for maintenance but not for big jobs unless it requires a specialist.  That said, this is one area asking around is very important.  Just taking the cheapest person to fix your car can be a nightmare.
  4. Prescriptions – Not only does the place matter, but there are programs that will give you a discount at your pharmacy.  Check out online programs but be careful what information you are sharing.
  5. Cars – Sure we all shop around for cars already, but did you know if you know what you are looking for and you start calling dealerships (especially if you are a little flexible) you can get a great deal without ever setting foot on the lot (until you buy)?
  6. Entertainment – I cannot even say “TV” or “Cable” anymore because there are so many options for entertainment.  Do you just watch movies and tv shows?  You probably only need a streaming service.  The trick here is to know what you can’t live without and then shop around for the entertainment necessities and cut out the unused stuff.
  7. Insurance – If you got the best price on insurance more than a year ago, why have you not shopped it around again?  For example, we got a great deal on insurance a year ago and this year they raised the price about  for no reason.  Clearly the first year was a discount to get the business and they hope people will not move after year one and the price increase.  Time to start calling around.

I wish it was not such a hassle.  It is an unfortunate byproduct of our hyper capitalistic economy that businesses are always using gimmicks, specials and tricks to squeeze more money out of you.  You can either accept the games and pay more or you can manage your buying and pay less.  The choice is yours.

Kitchen Gadgets and Food Facts

Is cooking a dying art? Home cooking in American households might be a thing of the past. The obsession we have with cooking shows stops right then and there in front of the TV. We like watching fancy meals being prepared by chefs in a cooking show, but would rather just be spectators than participants. An article( www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3639863/ ) published in the United States National Library of Medicine analyzes the trend in the United States home preparation and consumption from 1965-1966 and then again from 2007-2008.

The conclusion is simple: Regardless of your socioeconomic status, Americans are spending less time than before cooking. Home prepared meals are a rarity, and the average household in the United States spends over $3,000 dollars eating out. (http://www.businessinsider.com/americans-spending-food-bls-2017-2), that’s almost half the budget they have for food for a year.

According to research done by Marketing Charts(http://www.marketingcharts.com/television-13719) 8 in 10 US adults watch a cooking show, and 36% of those adults have purchased a kitchen gadget as a result of viewing the show. Why? To store the gadget, forget they own it and rebuy it again when they watch the rerun of the show.

But seriously, It is true that cooking is not for everyone, it is also true that a huge majority of women work outside the home. The time they want to spend at the kitchen is minimum, and the research has shown it. Home cooked meals are a thing of the past.  But, if your health and the health of your children is in jeopardy, most Americans would probably try to get back to the kitchen.  

Before you make a decision about cooking or not, here is a statistic for you.According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (cdc.gov), More than one-third (36.5%) of U.S. adults have obesity. And 1 in 6 children are obese in the United States. The various diseases link to obesity are many and scary. Cooking your meals at home and making sure you use the best possible ingredients- and we do not mean expensive ingredients-can give your family a life full of health benefits.

If you are decided and want to tackle the dying art of cooking, where do you start? First, you need to have essential kitchen gadgets to help you navigate the journey of cooking. Most of us, whether we cook or not, have them. Here is a list:

  1. A cutting board  
  2. Knives
  3. Spoons, spatulas, whisks, potato masher and measuring cups
  4. Pots and pans of various sizes
  5. Blender
  6. Pressure cooker
  7. Slow cooker
  8. Baking dishes
  9. Can opener
  10. Wine opener to celebrate your first home cooked meal.

Personally, I love the pressure cooker and a garlic masher, but some of the things here are essentially in every kitchen, and you do not need a garlic masher if you are just starting. Cooking a meal can be a family affair. Children DO LOVE to cook and help prepare meals. Make it fun and eventually a home prepared meal will become easy for you, and will become a necessity for your family.

5 Reasons To Cook More At Home

I get a little concerned when I hear that Americans do not cook. I get it if you both have professional jobs working 50+ hours a week and long commutes. I also get it if you live alone and it is easier and sometimes cheaper to go out to eat.  But if you have two or more people and you are not making a bunch of money working crazy hours, going out to eat should be more of a treat and not a twice a day occurrence.

From what is reported in the media, it seems like many people did not learn cooking growing up and decide this means it is too late to learn.  In fact, it is just a matter of building up your comfort level with different ways to cook and different ingredients.  You can do trial and error, starting with easier stuff and building up your competence over time.  You can watch cooking channels and try things you see.  You can take cooking classes.  You could offer to buy ingredients and cook with a friend who is a better cook than you but let them know you want to cook with them and learn.

Here are five very good reasons to cook at home – even if it is going to take you a while to get good at it.

  1. Healthier Food – The top reason is that you know what is going in your food and you can make it healthier.  The reality is that it might not taste as good as that unhealthy stuff, but it can be very good and be much better for you.  For example, I make Chipotle burritos at home and they are not as good because I put less of the cheese and no sour cream.  I just can’t bring myself to glob on huge portions like they do in the restaurant (even though it is delicious.)
  2. Less Fried Foods – You can also cut back on fried foods when you eat at home.  It is easy to order a side of fries but a pain in the but to heat up the fryer and fry things just for an unhealthy side.
  3. Show Off a Skill – As good cooks get more rare, it is even more impressive when you meet one.  The only way you become a good cook is by cooking regularly and experimenting with new recipes.  Once you get there you can amaze your friends and family, impress a date and act like a snob know it all in restaurants.  So much fun.
  4. Save Money – Sometimes you might spend MORE on a meal than you would have getting the same thing in a restaurant.  But what you might not factor in is that you have a lot more food than you would have by going out.  So you may get 3 meals for roughly the same spend.  Alcohol is one big bonus when it comes to saving money as you buy your bottle of wine or case of beer for what two glasses would have cost in that dinner out.
  5. Get Sick Less – I am not anti-restaurant, but we do notice we get sick more when we eat out more.  When you have a restaurant kitchen full of people cooking and prepping your food, it only takes one person with a cold to get the whole family sick.  Restaurants do not want employees to come sick, but since the employees most likely do not get sick pay, they need to work when they are feeling under the weather.  This results in people working while sick more then you would like to think.

I am not suggesting not eating out anymore.  Far from it.  But also you do not want to get into the habit of eating out all the time and eating prepackaged stuff at home that you only need to microwave.  It is so much healthier, cheaper and more rewarding to learn how to cook nice meals.  Start slow and build up your skills until you are an Iron Chef of your home.

Winterize Your Home Before Fall

When Winter season is approaching, many people opt to leave their homes and visit other cities where it is warmer. If you are planning to vacate your home this winter, it is important you make preparations in the right way. The arrangements done should help you secure your property from theft and destruction. Preparations are easy and less costly. Various ideas are used in securing the house and all assets which are vulnerable to the falls. Here are useful tips that could help keep your home a better place to come back after the winter season is over.

Be proactive about your home sewage and plumbing

Heavy downfall is experienced during the winter season. Secure the pipes which are exposed on your compound. Alternating changes of temperatures could affect these pipes causing them to burst up. If you have a swimming pool or any other water spigots that are within your compound, consider cutting off water supply. On the last days, ensure sprinklers are dried of excess moisture using compressed air. Facilities like air conditioners must also be covered to keep off moisture from affecting the equipment.

Trim huge trees near the house

The weather experienced in winter is very harsh. There are frequent thunderstorms and winds. If there are trees that are positioned next to your house, this could pose a huge threat to your home. Accumulation of ice on branches causes them to break off. Hire tree companies that specialize in trimming and felling of trees professionally. They will help in trimming this vegetation thus reducing the risk of falling on your roof. Apart from trimming, cleaning of branches and leaves that have fallen is done.

Enclose the chimney

If your house has a fire point, ensure cleaning is done days before the winter comes. The chimney should be washed using chemicals that reduce acidic reactions on the surface. When cleaning is finished, chimney caps should be installed on top. The advantage of covering the top opening is to reduce any snow that falls into your fireplace. Corrosion is reduced, and your house stays in good condition during the period.