My New Blog

My children never cease to surprise me.  My youngest is almost twenty years old and she is my biggest mystery, I am still learning things about her and probably always will be.  Just the other day we were visiting her at college and I was updating her on the happenings at home; I told her we sold our old wood stove.  To my surprise, she promptly replied to this bit of news by telling me that if we didn't get the new one installed before she came home to visit this winter, she would be staying somewhere else. She was only kidding... I think.  I didn't realize getting rid of that old hunk of cast iron would be such a big deal, but after talking to my other two children they had similar feelings about the old wood stove.  I don't think they had any special attachment to that particular stove, but there is nothing like the warmth of a good fire to take the chill out on a cold winter day.  I can easily picture all of them coming in from a romp in the snow and laying down in front of the wood stove to warm up.  Memories like that are what make a house a home.  With thoughts of the wood stove come cooler temperatures and the realization I better get ready for winter. 

One of the most important things you can do to get ready for winter is winterize your home.  Don't worry it's not as difficult as you may think.  Simple things like cleaning or changing your furnace filter and replacing the batteries in your smoke detectors are just a couple of things you can do to get started.  For a complete checklist on winterizing your home, go to the following link, http://www.joeydobbs.com/WinterizeyourHome, you can also get to it from the home page of my website.  Taking all or even some of the steps in that article will save you money on your heating bill this winter and hopefully put you and your house in the position to make it through winter with as little hassle and expense as possible.

The other area everyone should be prepared for is winter driving.   One of the best ways to avoid a tragic accident is to be prepared for one.  Snow and cold temperatures are a deadly combination if you are ever stranded in your car and help is far away. Getting your car ready for winter and knowing what to do if you are ever stranded in a snow storm is the best protection you can get.  The Wisconsin Department of Transportation has a great website with a series of links to help get you prepared for winter driving.  This includes how to make a coffee can survival kit that is an inexpensive and yet practical way to get you prepared for that unexpected winter surprise.  Click here for more information on winter driving tips -http://www.dot.wisconsin.gov/safety/motorist/winterdriving/index.htm

Enjoy the coming winter and go make some great family memories.