House to House: Home Resolutions Can Save Money, Grief

The following article printed in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette  and numerous papers throughout Arkansas is the sole product and property of the Arkansas Realtors Association. 


While you are busy making the typical New Year’s resolutions to exercise more, lose weight or quit smoking, why not make a few New Year’s resolutions for your home? Doing so might not just help you increase the value of your home and/or help you sell it, those resolutions might just save you a few frustrating moments in 2012.


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House to House: ARA, ASPCA offer tips to keep pets safe around holiday decor

The following article printed in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette and numerous papers throughout Arkansas is the sole product and property of the Arkansas Realtors Association. The photo is by www.ARSportsPhoto.com.  

The staff at the Arkansas Realtors Association has been busy decorating our offices and our homes for the holidays.

We’ve been shopping for the “best deals” on indoor and outdoor lights, discussing how the recent rains might be impacting our outdoor lighting displays and growing more and more excited about spending the holidays with family and friends.

Like many people, this is one of my absolute favorite times of the year. I’ve always thought home never felt more like home than it does during the holidays. Maybe it’s the fire in the fireplace, the lights of the tree or the anticipation of young family members waiting for the day when all those presents can be popped open.

The one thing I’ve always missed because I have a house full of pets is surrounding my tree and my house with bright, big poinsettia plants. I always heard they were deadly to animals. Not so says the ASPCA’s Animal Poison Control Center. Yes, eating them will make your dog or cat feel pretty awful — mouth and stomach irritations and vomiting — but the ASPCA says its toxicity is overrated.

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House to House: HouseLogic offers tips to avoid common holiday mishaps

The following article printed in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette  and numerous papers throughout Arkansas is the sole product and property of the Arkansas Realtors Association. 

This week’s column is co-written by Emma Gillaspy, an eighth grader at Bob Courtway Middle School in Conway.

At the holidays I am always reminded of how blessed I am with family. When I say “blessed,” I mean Thanksgiving with 40 to 60 of my closest relatives — cousins, aunts, new babies and lots of great stories about days gone by and our ancestors. Then there are the food “must haves” like the requisite hot sausage tradition started by my great-grandfather, and my grandmother Maxine’s chocolate cake, without which my wing of the family would probably not make it through the door.

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House to House: CDC tips help protect residents, rescue crews after disaster

The following article printed in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette and papers throughout Arkansas is the sole product and property of the Arkansas Realtors Association. 

Knock on wood, I’ve never really had to deal with flooding or damage from tornadoes.

However, I keep in my thoughts the countless Americans who are still dealing with the wind damage and flooding that resulted from Hurricane Irene and the spring 2011 tornadoes. Lately, if you’ve seen me on any given weekend I am most likely wearing my “Willdabeast” shirt. The shirt memorializes the Joplin, Mo., teenager, Will Norton, who died in the May 22 tornado on his way home from his high school graduation. All proceeds from the T-shirt sales go to Joplin disaster relief.

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House to House: Apologies to Pepe le Pew — DIY deterrents may repel skunks from property

The following article printed in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette is the sole product and property of the Arkansas Realtors Association. 

Dear Pepe le Pew: Your kind has returned to my neck of the woods and, as much as I enjoyed watching you on cartoons as a child, the thrill is gone.

Actually, in all fairness Pepe, it’s not you — it’s the reality show version of you. Unlike the song you once crooned to me, I am not in the mood for love. The cold hard truth is that you and your Arkansas cousins stink, and your cousins’ stink lingers far too long after they’ve left. Eau de Skunk is not a scent I enjoy. Not early in the morning as I sit on my deck or late in the evenings as I sit on my porch. Nor do I enjoy the anxiety of having my dogs smelling of skunk upon re-entering my home.

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