Now that I am an adult I consider myself to be pretty handy which comes in useful  since I am able to work on my own cars for the most part and I am able to fix most things around the house.  There are a few things that I wish I would have learned when I was younger and that is electric, plumbing and heating and air conditioning. 

When I was growing up my parents bought a house that needed to be totally gutted and remodeled which my dad did most of the work himself but thankfully my brothers and I got to help him which allowed us to learn a lot of different skills.  I was able to learn a lot during the process about framing, dry wall, windows, roofing and much more.  My dad is extremely handy but I do remember my dad having to have a plumber come out to run all of the necessary lines throughout the house because this was one area where he lacked the necessary skills.

Like I mentioned these are skills that I wish I had because these are highly specialized areas and if I was able to do that work on my own I could save a fortune.  Now these areas tend to be a little expensive for a reason so be sure not to do any of this kind of work yourself unless you are 100% sure in your abilities.  If you aren’t 100% sure what to do be sure to call in an expert to do the work regardless of the cost because getting it done right the first time is important. 

I am man enough to say when I need help and electric, plumbing and heating and air conditioning are those areas where I need a lot of help.  Need help hanging drywall no problem but need help with your plumbing you are on your own because I don’t know squat.

Is your husband handy around the house?

They say home is where the heart is but to me home is where the beautiful kitchen and backyard are. When our family gets together for football, birthdays or just random outings most of the time is spent in the kitchen or in the backyard so to me it is important to have an awesome kitchen and yard where everyone can hang and have a great time and eat awesome food.

Melinda and I watch a lot of home improvement shows and I especially like when they show the work being done to the kitchen and the yard. These contractors who do this work are amazing and have some serious knowledge to do the creative and awesome work that they do. I think we have a pretty nice kitchen already and we are in the process of doing some work in the back yard so by the beginning of summer we are going to be ready to host family functions and I can’t wait.

Like I mentioned for me it isn’t 100% about the kitchen it’s also about the backyard because I like to hang out in the summer on our deck and in our backyard. I like to make our backyard functional but somewhere we can just relax and have a great time. Last year we had a garden and will be doing the same this year. We also redid our deck by getting some new furniture and accessories so that will be getting used often this season and we are thinking about putting our hammock back up so we can relax on those lazy sunny weekend afternoons.

The weather here in Delaware was extremely nice last week but will only be so so this week so we might not use the deck and back yard a lot this week so I guess we will just spend a little more time inside in the kitchen.

When you host family functions where do most people tend to hang out?

As bloggers our computers tend to be either desktops or laptops or maybe both and are our life line. Most if not all of us wouldn’t be able to work or live without them or so we think, LOL. If you sit back and think about your computer usage how do you really use it on a daily basis? Do you use it strictly for pleasure like blogging and surfing the interest or do you use it more for work purposes?

My laptop usage is 50/50. Fifty percent personal and fifty percent work related.

For me I use a few things every single day regardless if I am at home or at work. I use Word Press for our blog, Twitter, Facebook, Email and Microsoft Excel for spreadsheets. Not only do I use Excel at home a lot but I also use Excel a TON at work and thankfully I have taken a few Excel classes throughout the years because now I feel like I am very knowledgeable with it which allows me to use it for more blog related things. I do also use Word a lot at home for writing blog posts because even though I have the ability to write them in Word Press directly I still like using Word for some reason, maybe it’s a comfort thing who knows. I do also use iTunes a good amount at home to store all of my music and movies.  I also use my laptop for surfing the internet, reading news and for reading other blogs becasue what kind of blogger would I be if I didn’t use my computer to read other blogs.

So as you can see I am not really using my computer for any hard core calculations or world problem solving but without my laptop I would be lost for sure because my laptops gets used every single day.

What do you use your laptop/desktop for on a daily basis?

I came home from work one day last week and I saw a ninja in my front yard fighting with one of the neighborhood kids. After a closer look I realized it was just Shaun wearing his Halloween costume play fighting and making videos with one of his friends.

Shaun and Shae dress up all of the time and I even had to make a dress up storage area for Shae so that she could store all of her shoes, hats, princess outfits, etc. She has a TON of dress up stuff that we have accumulated and still seem to be accumulating to this day.

Sometimes Melinda and I will buy costumes and dress up items even when it isn’t Halloween for the kids because they enjoy playing dress up that much. Last week I stumbled upon a place called Fancy Dress Ball and let me tell you they have so many children’s outfits to choose from. Shaun even at eight soon to be nine years old likes to dress up in army and ninja outfits while Shae LOVES to dress up like a princess. It is funny because at any random moment Shae will come downstairs dressed up in some kind of outfit.

I like that our kids use their imaginations and dress up and pretend to be someone else for a while because they appear to be having so much fun. Maybe I need to do the same every once in a while.

Spring is right around the corner which means, for men and women, an entire change in wardrobe. As the spring months progress we will begin putting our heavy coats to the back of our closets and bust out the boat shoes, flip-flops, shorts and short sleeve shirts. Designers are already releasing their spring lines and stores are starting to convert their inventory on display from heavy dark winter items to bright light fitting spring ones. You do not want to be left behind with last year’s wardrobe but you also do not want to break the bank buying an entire new one, so what should you do? Women know all about accessorizing their wardrobes, but men do not always do. This is why men should follow these following tips.

Spruce up your wardrobe by adding accessories to it. A belt or hat can tie any pair of shoes to the shirt you are wearing by incorporating similar colors. Wear that pair of blue Sperry’s you just got with a green shirt by wearing a belt that has a combination of blue and green in it.

Belts are not the only way you can jazz up your look this spring. Mens watches are another way you can update your look this year. ShopNBC carries a wide range of mens watches. You can choose brands such as Invicta, Fossil, Croton, and even Gucci. They have watches available in a multitude of price ranges and styles making it a great spot to shop for watches.

Do not break the bank updating your wardrobe to the latest fashion trends. Add a few new items and accessorize to make yourself stand out this spring.

I have been shopping like mad the last few days and really need to search online more often for discount voucher codes. Since tomorrow is my birthday we have been spending a TON of money on new deck items like furniture, tiki torches and wind chimes but I am so happy with the new look.

I am sure I could have bought a few of these items online and probably saved a few bucks but I am an instant gratification kind of guy.  Typically when I see something I want it then and can’t wait three to five days for it to be delivered.  For example I scored a really nice table and chair set off of Craigslist for only $100 and only had to put another $20 into it for a can of spray paint to repaint the table (Melinda did the repainting) and for new tiles for the table top.  When I saw it on Craigslists I picked it up within 24 hours because I was afraid someone would take it right from under me.

After we set the table and chairs up we decided we needed a few extra chairs so we went to Home Depot and bought a few chairs and cushion sets then decided a new wind chime would be nice also.  I am being serious when I say between Melinda and I we have been to Home Depot five to six times since Friday afternoon.  It seemed like every time we got home we either got the wrong thing or decided we needed something else like trash bags and grass seed.

Overall going to Home Depot was pretty painless since it is less than five miles from our house and like I mentioned I am super happy with my deck and am really looking forward to spring and summer.  Last year we didn’t really use our deck much because our furniture wasn’t that nice but that is not going to be the case this year.

Melinda and I have been trying to have date night a little more often over the last month or so and there have been a lot of new movies hitting the theaters so that is what we have been doing on our date nights.

We try to see new movies within the first week of the release date as long as the cinema times are good for us because we find if we wait more than a week or so to see a particular movie we never go then we just wait for it to hit DVD.

The last time Melinda and I had date night we went out and had a nice dinner just the two of us with no kids and then went to see Act of Valor. We had a great night but date night tends to be expensive because for the two of us to go see a movie with snacks cost us close to $50 so we don’t go as often as we would like.

Movies are a treat for Melinda and I because date night usually consist of a shopping trip to Wal-Mart for groceries and other odds and ends that we need for the week. Sometimes we even do date night during the week with a trip to Best Buy, Buffalo Wild Wings or where ever else we need to run to. Maybe I wouldn’t call it date night but more like spending time together.

Do you go to the movies for date night? What is your favorite movie of all time?

The weather this week in Delaware is going to be in the high 60’s low 70’s and it has me thinking about spring big time. I am so glad that we dodged the snow and I am really looking forward to warmer weather for sure. The only thing is when I think spring I think house work more specifically yard work and this year I am looking to make a few nice changes in our back yard.

Our deck is about ten to twelve years old and needs some repair but I am wondering if I should just replace the deck and be done with it. I recently started looking at composite decking prices and even though it’s a little higher than traditional wood I think composite decking looks a lot nicer than wood plus it will last a lot longer than wood. Funny thing with me is once I start on a project I want to revamp the entire yard and not over tine either because I hate having one thing that looks new and the rest of the yard looks beat up. So while I was looking at composite decking I also researched composite fencing prices and composite railing prices. Our fence is a split rail fence that is probably as old as the deck which makes sense because they were probably all installed when the house was built. Currently we have a three foot fence but I would really love a six foot privacy fence as long as our home owners association allows it. I would love to be able to sit in my back yard without having to see my neighbor’s crappy yard.

There are also a few cosmetic things that need to be done like re-seed the grass because I have a few thin spots and we also want to get new deck furniture. Melinda and I saw a really nice patio table and chairs at Home Depot the other day for about $500 so we will probably be getting that this spring as well.

So as you can tell if all goes well like I hope we will have a totally new back yard and empty pockets, LOL, but at least the yard will look totally awesome.

Are you planning on any yard projects this spring/summer?

Starting a business of your own is extremely tough and you need to make sure that you have all your bases covered before jumping in head first.

Melinda and I have spoken many times about one day opening up a bar/restaurant until we go over all of the costs associated with opening a business.

Here are a few hidden costs people miss when starting a small business:

1. Trademarking The Business Name – You spend a lot of time in the planning process and coming up with just the perfect name for your new business so you want to make sure that you protect it so others do not try to use your name. For additional details on how to do this click HERE.
2. Technology, Including Software/Equipment – So you have your name selected now it is time to purchase the technology. For myself and Melinda if we run with the restaurant idea we would need cash registers, POS order taking systems, credit card machines plus office equipment. This is just a small piece of what it will take to make a business run.
3. Setting Up A Dedicated Internet/T1 Service – Now that you have your business name and equipment decided on you now need reliable internet service to keep your business running. Make sure you find a dependable internet provider because there would be nothing worse than losing your internet and having your business come to a stop.  For reliable internet go here http://www.xo.com/services/network/dia/Pages/overview.aspx

These are just a few hidden costs associated with starting a small business.

My father owns his own roofing company so I have seen a lot of the things he has had to go through to ensure success. Owning your own business is a lot of work and at times extremely stressful but in the end it is all worth it.

This post was sponsored by About Dollar, a financial information resource with articles on topics ranging from personal savings to corporate accounting.

More and more people are meeting the person of their dreams online via dating websites. I remember when this form of dating first started and I thought to myself there was no way this would ever last but I was clearly wrong. I remember when Match.com was the big place to go but now you are seeing so many different dating sites online from datingagency.com to eharmony.com.

Today you see ads in many different forms advertising dating all over the world not just the US. I receive emails all the time in my spam folder for singles in London as well as many other counties. Dating in London, the US as well as all over the word has turned to online.

What happened to meeting people the good old fashion way like at work, a bar or being set up on a blind date? Guess these forms aren’t as popular as they once were but I have a hard time wrapping my head around meeting someone online. Melinda and I met the old fashion way; at a brew pub in Delaware where we got to speak face to face and got to know each other. I like the face to face interaction when you first meet someone in person but I do understand weeding out people who do not interest you online.

There is no right or wrong way on how people should meet and it is all personal preference but my preference is in person face to face.

How did you meet your significant other? Do you have a preference on how you would/would’ve liked to meet your mate?