The Kerrie Show Goes to #Chicago Day One: Marriott Residence Inn Rosemont/O'Hare

Okay, readers, I have a lot to share with you. Lots of tips and tricks about Chicago with kids. My mom is waiting for this blog post so it's not going to be super wordy ... lots of pictures though! Enjoy!

Oh, and we are here because my husband had a week of computer training in Elk Grove Village, Illinois. His company said he could bring the wife and kids and we always jump at the chance for a free vacation (see the Houston posts from two years ago; they start at Day One and hopefully all link to the next day so you can watch the fun in order) ... always feel bad for my husband, though, because we are out seeing the city and he is stuck in a classroom. But that's why we have the Florida Vacation Fund for later this year :-) He deserves to relax on a beach, that's for sure!

I'm weird because I like to post pictures of when I'm organized with food. I feel good having all the stuff figured out for the trip and saving money on the road. Michael says we could be a Ziploc commercial. The trip did not seem horrible ... about 9 hours when we are used to Houston, Wyoming and Phoenix seemed like a walk in the park.

The main living area. To the right is my room with Aron. To the left is the room with the littles. THREE televisions in this place (our house only has one) and TWO bathrooms halleluia.

A kitchen is IMPORTANT when we travel. Here, breakfast is free 7 days a week and dinner is covered Monday and Tuesday nights. We will eat out some lunches, pack some, and same for dinners.

My crazy family.

My FitBit friends are HATING ON ME right now because I am kicking butt on steps! Glucosamine is the ruler of my world right now or I could not walk around like I have been ... about 12K steps a day. Sunday night after traveling all day I hit the gym to treadmill for a bit in silence.

Some light reading before bed. Aron is starting The Green Ember with the kids for their nighttime reading. I thought a book on the Chicago Fire would inspire some sweet dreams.

Time for bed and the lovely Callie has the bed all set up for herself and her little sister and little brother. I am SO GRATEFUL that they can still sleep three to a bed. Joel and Michael slept on the sofa bed in the living room.

Click here to see Day Two and our first train ride in Chicago and Adler Planetarium!

4 Ways to Prevent Pet Hair in Your House

Pet hair on the couches, on the carpet, and in the air is the scourge of most pet owners. Cleaning up fur can feel like a constant battle in your home. Prevent pet hair in your house with these four tips.

Brush Your Pet Daily

Image via Flickr by Monkey Mash Button

If you find hair all over the place rather than just on your dog, improve your grooming game. Get a brush that’s appropriate for your pet, and take time each day to brush your furry friend. Do it outside or in the garage in order to prevent that hair from getting loose in your home.

Regular grooming will decrease the number of hairballs that your cat hacks up, and you’ll even get some quality time with your pet. If your dog or cat prefers petting to brushing, try tackling the fur problem with a grooming glove instead.

Bathe Your Dogs

Since cats are pretty good at grooming themselves, you don’t need to bathe them very often. In fact, they only need a bath when they become especially dirty, sticky, or smelly.

For dogs, however, a weekly bath can help with excess fur, especially when you use a high-quality shampoo that prevents shedding. These shampoos are nondrying and help remove loose hair while promoting a healthy coat.

Take Your Pet to a Groomer

In addition to brushing your pet every day and bathing your pet once a week, consider taking your pet to a professional groomer. Not only will having your pet professionally groomed reduce the amount of fur in your home, but also groomers can help your dog by cleaning out clogged ears, trimming nails that are painful to walk on, and ridding your dog’s coat of matted hair.

Think of how refreshed you feel after a massage, a facial, or a pedicure. Getting groomed does the same thing for dogs. It makes them feel pampered and refreshed, resulting in a happier dog. You can also ask your groomer to recommend the best brush for your dog’s fur type. For optimal health, you should plan to take your dog to a groomer once a month.

Have a Professional Clean Your HVAC System

Pet hair and dander can easily enter your HVAC system’s vents and ductwork. When your heating or cooling system turns on, these substances can circulate through your home’s air supply or build up in the ductwork. Removing pet hair from your furniture and carpet is a great way to reduce airborne contaminants, but your standard cleaning routine won’t eliminate fur and dander entirely. Have your HVAC system professionally cleaned by a company like Air Control Heating and Cooling Inc. to stop pet hair and dander from circulating through your home.


Though getting rid of pet hair may feel like an unending battle, continue to be vigilant. Be sure to brush your cat or dog once a day, bathe once a week, and groom once a month, and you’ll see a lot less hair covering the surfaces in your house. Have your HVAC system cleaned twice a year, and you’ll experience a substantial improvement in your home’s air quality.

Use Private Tutors to Further Develop Students' Academic Progress

Parents around the world are trying to provide their children the best possible education one can get in order to make sure that children will be able to pursue their ambitions. Such ambitions are extremely important for a child’s confidence, and employing private tutoring services such as chemistry tuition will go a long way in paving the road ahead for a student’s success.

There are a lot of advantages of making use of such services and taking into account it has become the most important business in the education system, people have developed strategies to improve curriculum and their teaching style in accordance to their student’s needs. There are a lot of perks when employing a find private tutor  and the possibilities of acquiring important knowledge and the information on how to deal with difficult problems will prove to be paramount in terms of having a successful career.

One-to-One Tuition Advantages

Private tuition has been considered as the most efficient way of making students achieve their full academic potential extremely easy and in a quick manner as well. There are some students who might struggle with certain subject and it is extremely difficult for classroom teacher to cope with their needs. That’s where private tutors come in lane to make sure that students will understand the difficult areas of a subject through one on one tutoring.

 They have to keep students extremely motivated and interested and make sure that the subjects taught by them are easily understandable and will help them in terms of further academic development. Employing a private tutor will ensure the fact that all subjects will be efficiently covered with ease.

Amazing Cover of All Subject Areas

In terms of opting for private tuition, students will be sure to benefit from personalized and undivided attention from their teachers in order to efficiently cover their weaker subject areas. Such tutors are seasoned in terms of teaching and will quickly indentify the aspects in which a student struggles and will be sure to correct them immediately or explain such subjects in a different way, tailored to the needs of a student to make sure that it is understood and can be used to grasp difficult concepts with enthusiasm and ease.

Struggling students who benefit from private tuition have been shown to drastically improve even from the first couple of sessions and due to the increasing competitive nature of exams, the same students have shown to perform even better and achieve better scores than students who did not opt for such services. It is extremely recommended to opt for a private tutor if parents see their children struggling in some aspects of a subjects and by doing so, not only will they pave the road ahead towards academic development but they will also make sure that students will fully understand difficult concepts and learn how to put them in practice here.

Yes, You Do Need a Whole-Home Generator!

Power outages are inconvenient at best and life-threatening at worst, and you're likely to experience them no matter where you live. In 2011, fourteen storms caused power problems for a staggering 2.8 million people. An outage in the middle of a Chicago summer means no AC for hours, and that same outage could have a dangerous effect on a family member or loved one who depends on electricity for medical equipment. For example, dialysis machines and ventilators both need to be plugged in. Stay prepared for power outages by investing in a whole-home generator.

Whole-home generators make it easy to switch to off-grid power in the event of an outage. They turn on automatically, so when the power goes out all you have to do is wait a few seconds for your generator to restore power to your home. They're wired to your home the same way grid power is, so you don't need to hook anything up; you experience generator power the same way you experience grid power. On top of all that, they run on either propane or natural gas, so you don't have to worry about running out of fuel any time soon.


The infographic below, originally published by Black Diamond Plumbing & Mechanical, Inc., has valuable information on whole-home generators. You can find out more about whole-home generators, Illinois' power outage information from 2014, and how to choose the right whole-home generator. You'll also learn which appliances eat up the most wattage, so you can more accurately determine what you need in a generator.

Timeless Classic Gifts For The Man In Your Life

We all know what a stressful experience it can often be to buy presents for someone you love. It often seems as if the closer they are to you, the harder they are to buy for. And it doesn’t help when they don’t even have any idea about what they want either. If you are currently in the position of having to think of a present for the man in your life, whether it’s your husband, partner, or even father, you might be forgiven for being at a bit of a loss. However, there is solution, and it is all about looking into some of the traditional, classic gifts which all men love to receive. For men, we of course need to find reliable gifts for manly men. The truth is, there are certain presents which nobody can easily be disappointed with, no matter how much time goes on, and it is worth keeping these in mind when you are coming up to someone’s birthday, or any other big event. In this article, we are going to take a look at some of the timeless classic gifts that your man just might appreciate. Hopefully, this will help you on your mission to buy the perfect present. Let’s take a look.

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Wallet

There is just something about a well-chosen wallet that can really make it seem like such a thoughtful gift. Usually, we don’t think too much about the wallet we use, but if you receive one from someone close to you and it seems to suit you, then that can be something very special indeed. If you do decide to go for this option, make sure that you spend a good deal of time on choosing the actual wallet. You don’t just want to go for any old thing here - you are ideally looking for something which makes a real statement, adds a sense of class. Truthfully, for most men, you can’t go far wrong with a leather wallet of traditional style, but it is a good idea to also remember that there are plenty of other styles available, including many other modern types which your man might prefer. As with most present buying, it is a case of thinking what is likely to suit the recipient, and choosing based on that understanding. A wallet is a great gift, provided you get it just right.

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Beard Grooming Kit

You might have noticed that there is a current resurgence of the fashion of growing a beard. It seems that more men than ever are growing and keeping their beards, and this is something of a mixed blessing. For you, however, it provides you with a relatively easy and straightforward gift choice. These days, you can get a variety of different beard grooming kits. What’s more, there are many men who would really appreciate such a gift - even if it is something which they might not necessarily actively ask for. If the man you are buying a gift for usually has a beard, why not look into buying them a decent beard grooming kit? There are a huge variety available, and they each are slightly different. The best often have a range of products in them, including items such as clippers and beard oils, even maybe a beard brush too. This is a surprisingly good present for any men you know who might have a beard - or even if they are just thinking of growing one sometime soon.

Watch

When it comes to real traditional, classic gifts, you can’t really say fairer than a wristwatch. Watches seem to have somewhat fallen out of favour with certain sections of society, perhaps owing in part to the rise of smartphone. But when it comes to finding a stylish gift for a man you care about, there is still nothing that quite says it like a decent and well-chosen watch. One of the great things about watches as presents is that there is such a huge variety available. This means that you are bound to be able to find something suitable for the man you are buying for, whether he is the type to prefer the kind of watches found at this blog, or someone who wants a newer style wooden watch. Either way, this is a present which is bound to go down pretty well - and it’s great for all year round, too.

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Gown

Is your man a man of luxury? If he is, then buying him a new gown might go down a treat. Comfort is often important to many modern men, and if you are looking for something which is likely to feel luxurious and yet homely, then a decent dressing gown might be your best option. As with many other gifts mentioned here, you should be able to find this in many different styles, and that is great news for you as the gift buyer. Having that kind of option available means that it is much more likely that you will be able to find the right one for your man. Of course, you should think about what style he has, and try to find something that fits that relatively well. This is likely to work well if you spend some time on it - and the luxury that comes from such an item is sure to be appreciated.

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Tie

Although it might not seem quite as exciting, there are men who would still appreciate receiving a tie for their present - and there is hardly a more classic gift possible. Again, this is something which offers you a lot of choice, so you can be sure that you cater to your man’s individual personality as well as possible by getting a tie which he is likely to feel at home in. You could even, if you are feeling up to it, consider trying to find a humorous or colourful tie. These are often not as easy to get right - but once you do, it is bound to go down pretty well. Choosing a good tie is a great way of showing that you know him well, so this might be a good bet.