2 Ways to Take the Stress Out of Holiday Entertaining

 

Finally got personalized stockings in 2019!

When the holiday season rolls around, will you be ready? For many, the season is exciting and fun, but it also has the reputation of being stressful and overwhelming. One thing many people have in common over the holidays is entertaining. Filling homes with family and friends for parties or meals is one of the most popular ways of celebrating together. There's something to be said for finding ways to make entertaining easier. If you're interested in doing this, keep reading. Here are two ways you can take the stress out of your holiday entertaining. 

1. Don't Do Everything Yourself

Gone are the days of making everything from scratch, spending hours and hours in the kitchen. While some things certainly deserve to be scratch-made (hello, Grandma's famous pumpkin pie), it's time to free yourself from thinking that's the only way. How much time could you save if you decided that this year, you're calling in the reinforcements? 

Go ahead and plan your next gathering, making sure a call to a catering company San Diego CA is prioritized on your to-do list. Don't be afraid to get creative when planning a menu. If menu planning isn't exactly your forte, don't be shy about asking for guidance or advice. Remember, this is supposed to make your life easier. 

2. Set Limits and Stick to Them

How many times have you been planning a gathering, and before you know it the guest list is three times what you expected, or you blow through your budget before even purchasing everything you need? Take a deep breath and relax, because you can come back from this. The trick lies in realizing your limits and working with them to your advantage.

Keep in mind that your gathering will be as great as you make it.   

Stay-at-Home Winter: 4 Tips to Enjoy Social Distancing a Little More

 

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This winter will be a little different from any other and, if you had already been planning your Christmas holiday abroad, think again! Due to the still current social distancing measures and travel restrictions, our dreams of a long vacation in a sunny destination might not be in the cards this year. 

However, the holiday season is approaching, and there is no reason why you should not make the most of your time indoors with your family. But, of course, it becomes paramount to make sure that your home is the cozy, heart-warming winter wonderland of your dreams. Start here.

Invest in Tech

Whether we love it or dislike it, technology is an essential aspect of our daily life. And, if used well, it can make our lives a lot easier! Investing in a Home Automation system can help you regulate temperatures, lights, and audio in your home at the touch of a finger. 

Undoubtedly, such state-of-the-art systems can help you make your home more comfortable and easy to enjoy. However, they have some side benefits you should not overlook. Indeed, if you can have better control over your home’s heating and lighting, you can live more sustainably, reduce wastage, and save some extra money on your bills.

Understanding what fits your budget and implementing the gadgets that can truly make your daily tasks easier is something you might decide to take advantage of!

Rethink Your Style

Reducing clutter and keeping your home clean and tidy is paramount when deciding to spend most of your time indoors. However, sometimes, this just seems unachievable, especially if your home is particularly spacious or rich in furniture and details. 

If you wish to improve the look and feel of your family home, maybe a change in style and design can help you. For example, new trends such as minimalism will prompt you to get rid of all those items that are not of use and create clutter. The guidelines of this lifestyle are simple, but the benefits can be impressive. 

And, as a side benefit, you can start to reduce the single-use items around the home, investing in long-lasting, reusable details that will work with you towards a more sustainable (and affordable) lifestyle.

Create a Healthier Environment

Creating a healthier environment in your family home is crucial if your chances of spending time outside are limited. Investing in plants, natural materials, and more sustainable items can make you feel healthier, more energized, and happy. These are simple modifications that you can integrate even if you are restyling your home on a limited budget. However, they can help you enjoy your time indoors more.

Don’t Cut Back on Comforts

Lastly, don’t forget that being at home during the holiday season makes this time of the year even more special. You will have all the time you need to relax with your family and strengthen that bond that connects you to your loved ones. During such a unique occasion, you should feel allowed to enjoy time in a comfortable place. So, investing in high-quality throws, cushions, and furniture is the key to spend more time together in the heart of the house.

Keeping Your Home Pest-Free This Winter

 With winter around the corner, you’re probably already working on making your home nice and cozy. It’s lovely to come home to a warm, inviting house, but there’s a catch - animals think so too! In winter, and indeed the rest of the year, your home can be an attractive space for pests to shelter and try to make their home your own.

Unless you want some unexpected visitors this winter, here are some of the ways you can keep your home pest-free.

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Keep your home clean

Bugs and vermin are typically attracted to waste and garbage, which is why the first step to keeping your home pest-free is to keep it clean. By cleaning like a pro, you’ll be able to keep counters and other surfaces free from mess, while also making sure you tackle the trash and any discarded food.

Always make sure food is put away securely - anything remotely tempting could attract all kinds of unwanted attention from pests looking for something to eat.

Seal up any gaps

It doesn’t take much for a mouse or a cockroach to make its way into your home. A regular inspection for any cracks, holes or gaps will help you find any entry points where something might enter your home. This can also help you keep out a draft if you’re feeling a chill in your home! For serious repairs, you may need a professional to help you with this. 

If you have a cat flap or a doggy door, you might want to consider upgrading to one which only your pets can access to stop any others from making their way into your house.

Get your yard in order

While you should be taking steps to get your backyard ready for winter, you should also be looking at the things that might be attractive to different pests and doing what you can to eliminate them. Overhanging branches, bird tables next to fences, etc. are attractive to squirrels, rats and other rodents, while having your trashcan left open can also be tempting to garden visitors. 

Spend time checking your fence and other areas of your backyard to make sure everything is as secure as possible.

Bring in the professionals

If you suspect you have squirrels or raccoons in your attic or other pests you’re unable to handle yourself; it’s time to bring in the professionals. Wildlife removal services can help you get rid of these pests in a humane way, helping to protect your home from damage and identify areas where it might happen again. Bring in the pros sooner rather than later before your home needs a lot of repair work and cleaning up!

Nobody likes dealing with pests, so it’s better to take precautions and prevent them from coming into your home in the first place. Keep your home clean, get your yard in order, and take steps to keep unwanted critters out of your home. 

The Bad Habits That Will Keep You Trapped In Debt

 

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If you're in debt, know that you're not alone. In America, for example, 80% of people are reportedly in debt, according to one financial article.

In a lot of cases, debt is a necessary evil, as it can be instigated by business startup loans and homeowner mortgages. These account for a high proportion of the debts that many people have to cope with.

However, our bad habits can also drive (and keep) us into debt, and the same could apply to you. To get out of debt, you might need to change your money mindset, and quit those things that are not helping you climb out of the debt hole you may have found yourself in.

Consider the following bad habits. If you relate to any of them, do what you can to turn things around as quickly as possible.

Bad Habit #1: Paying the minimum on your credit card each month

If you can't afford to pay more than the minimum payment on your card, then fine. But if you do have the ability to pay more, then you definitely should. The minimum payments often account for the interest, so you won't actually be eating into the outstanding balance on your credit card. By paying more, you will clear your debt sooner, so commit to this when you have the financial ability to do so.

Bad Habit #2: Refusing to accept help

As we suggested, a high proportion of the country is in debt, so you don't need to feel guilty or ashamed. Your debt issue might not even be your fault, as many people struggle to escape it due to financial scams within the system, according to the DTSS review. So, look for a debt relief solution if you need to, as this is better than burying your head in the sand with fear and shame. Check the previous link, and speak to a debt relief charity to explore other options available to you. 

Bad Habit #3: Keeping up with your neighbors

Not only your neighbors but your friends and work colleagues as well. If you regularly buy into the latest things because other people have them, you are going to drive yourself deeper into debt. This will multiply if you are talking out other loans and opening new credit cards to buy yourself the latest thing. Be it the latest iPhone, tablet, or trending decor for your home (or anything else besides), remember that you don't have to buy into these things if you can't afford them. You also shouldn't bother with them if your only reason for buying is to keep up with other people. 

Bad Habit #4: Buying on impulse

It might be when you're browsing shopping sites online. Or it could be when you're strolling along the high street. If you see something you like and then buy on impulse, you will have wasted the money that could have gone towards paying off your debt. If you're guilty of this, remove your credit card or Paypal details from shopping sites. You won't then have access to any quick payment options online. And when you're leaving your home to go to town, take cash and leave your credit card at home. You will then know how much you realistically have to spend.

Bad habits: We're all guilty of them, but they don't serve us well. So, kick any bad habits you have into touch, and get into good habits to clear your debt sooner, as you will achieve greater amounts of financial freedom if you do. 

How To Continually Improve Your Credit Score

 

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Credit scores are essential to build, because they provide us with much more flexible financial freedom, and the means in which to be accepted into deals on good faith. Finding a better home or apartment, financing a car, or perhaps taking out a loan are all commonplace examples of how credit scores can inform your financial potential, and of course, how a lack of a good credit score can prevent you from taking care of these requirements.

That being said, continually improving your credit score is not easy. It’s very easy for obligations to weigh you down, particularly if you have a family and responsibilities to deal with. It might be that you have certain past mistakes harming your positive growth, such as debts you haven’t dealt with or a credit card bill that feels like a mountain to climb.

So, how can you improve your credit score, but more importantly, take a structured approach to moving forward and adding points in your favor? We have three essential tips to help you in this direction:

Use Assets Correctly

Using assets to your advantage can be a worthwhile use of your time. For instance, taking the time to sell an annuity can help you gain short-term gain over a long-term payout, which may just help you clear a large section of debt from your record or clear out past creditor associations in an immediate manner. Your assets, such as older cars, or property, or perhaps even business equipment, can be used as collateral or a foremost investment to benefit yourself your immediate credit standing.

Meet Your Payments

Often, clearing debts is important, but it’s also important to meet your monthly commitments. For instance, it’s important to keep up with your credit card payments, to pay your premiums, and to ensure that you stick with the assigned plans you have already agreed to. Missing these obligations will often translate into the most primary credit hits being felt, and that’s never a good outcome.

From there, you can focus on paying into your own, sustainable, curated payment plan to help clear your debts. This can help you chip away at them. Remember too that after seven years in some countries, your credit score will reset. This means that prior closed credit accounts will not affect your score forever. You can make progress if you will it.

Consider Financial Advice

Specialized financial advice is often a fantastic means of moving forward when you believe there is no hope. There are many excellent debt charities that can provide you with a curated payment plan to help you out of hardship and trouble. Furthermore, these organizations can often approach your creditors for you, giving you the means to begin a dialogue rather than hiding away from past debts. Sometimes, the best means in which to approach your credit score is to simply approach it, face-on.

With this advice, we hope you can continually improve your credit score and improve your financial standing as a result.