What can I say about the living room? After the kitchen, my living room is the busiest area in the whole house. The only ones living in the house are my husband and myself, but at times it looks like there’s a whole tribe camped out here. Yes, it get’s that dirty.
I love to listen to music and dance, well it’s what I call dancing, while I dust and straighten up. I am sure that you have mismatched socks around the house so put on aside for dusting. Spray the sock with furniture polish, put it on like a mitten …read more

Do you have a bedroom that is in dire need of change or face lift? If so, I have a few ideas that may help. There never seems to be enough money to do exactly what we want to do, so I tried to keep these ideas as inexpensive as possible.
Hang a quilt on the wall behind your headboard. It’s a simple step that looks great. You don’t have to match the quilt with your bedspread, but do keep the same color scheme.
Mix and match some pillows to brighten up the room. Your décor should express your personality so find a …read more

With the holidays so close, and so much shopping, cleaning and decorating to do, I thought I might share some of my household tips with you. Some of these tips may be familiar, but I hope some will be new to you and help you with a lot of your household chores.
When you use scouring soap pads like Brillo or SOS, if you’re like me you never seem use the entire pad and it sits on your sink and rusts. From now on when you buy soap pads cut them in half and use half at a time. It keeps …read more

When someone visits your home the first thing they will notice is how it smells. Like I said before I am a sniffer. I sniff everything from a glass, before I drink from it, to the family room to make sure there are no unflattering, lingering scents. There are times when my house picks up the scents of my cooking and I don’t readily notice. So I make it a point to deodorize after cleaning.
There are plenty of commercial product on the market to extinguish offensive smells, but I would rather use ordinary everyday solutions.
If you have an offensive smell …read more

I know this is hard to believe, but Thanksgiving is only six weeks away!  Eeek!  How did that happen?  Instead of pushing it out of our minds, it’s better to embrace it and make preparations for a less stressful and happier time.  Planning is key to things running smoothly.
I remember the year we purchased our first home.  I decided that I should host Christmas dinner.  We had my parents and my husband’s parents over.  I didn’t realize all the work that would go into hosting the meal, opening presents, and family time. 
I learned a lot that day and now I …read more

Here are a few highlights from June at Keeping the Castle.

Free 4th of July Crafts and Recipe Book
Helpful Links for This Week
May Highlights at Keeping the Castle
A Tip for Painting Your Home
The Lowdown on McDonald’s Iced Coffee
What is the Temperature of Your House?
Cucumber Salad Recipe
Nestle Toll House Cookie Dough Recall
Five Minute Chocolate Mug Cake
Cleaning Challenge: Clean Your Coffeemaker
Hamilton Beach Dispensing Blender
Cheesy Chicken Enchiladas Recipe
10 Meals in 10 Minutes
Enjoying the Wildlife Today
Health Benefits of Drinking Tea
Time Saving Laundry Tip
Save Time with Bed Linens
Links I’m Enjoying
The Martha Stewart Blog
Works for Me Wednesday: Bag Organization
Cleaning Challenge: Clutter Patrol
Which articles did you enjoy?
image (c) Karen …read more

I was making coffee today and just realized something – I have never cleaned my coffeemaker.  I’ve only been using the coffee pot for about six months and I don’t drink coffee as regularly as some people, but it certainly is time for a cleaning!
You may be wondering why you should clean your coffee pot, especially when the only thing that goes in it is clean water.  The problem is, the water causes deposits inside the coffee maker.  The deposits can slow the flow of water inside the machine and they can alter the taste of your coffee. 

To clean your …read more

I really enjoy Cadbury Creme Eggs.  It’s a yummy little something that I look forward to each Easter.  I have to say though, I’ve never heard of baking with Cadbury Creme eggs.  Have you?
I have a weakness for sweets.  This Pomegranate Layer Cake at Baking Delights looks yummy.
Last year, my husband and I planted some tomato and pepper plants.  It was nice to have fresh veggies around and it definitely saved on our grocery bill.  Peggy gives us some reasons to start a veggie garden.
I’m all for saving time in the kitchen and making easy recipes.  Noble Pig gives us …read more

I received this in an email and thought I would share it with you all.  It is an article from 1955.

Is your bedroom designed for sleep? That’s the question that Pat Heydlauff, President of Energy by Design, asks.
I never really thought of designing a bedroom for sleep, beyond providing the necessities of a bed, pillows and linen. Pat makes a good point that the bedroom’s primary function is for rest and relaxation. It’s a haven, a retreat from the rest of the home if need be.
She says that designing for sleep should start at the planning stages of a house. The location of the bedroom, relative to the other rooms and spaces, should be considered.
For an existing bedroom, …read more