Life at a "Swell's" pace

Quick Tips 101: Things you can't go without knowing (Volume 1)

Quick Tips 101: Things you can't go without knowing.

Cleaning your windows with newspaper instead of paper towels. Cuts down on paper waste and makes your windows shine like a peach!

Using labeled, glass, food containers as decorations on your kitchen counter.

Seek out bio-degradable products whenever possible. (Multi-purpose Wipes from Wysi Wipes.)

Always wrap and freeze unused meats immediately. Wrapping in plastic wrap and then again in a freezer-proof bag will prevent freezer burn. Be sure to label the bag as to what's inside.

Eliminate sticky residue from an iron. Run the hot iron (no steam) over plain paper sprinkled with salt. (Real Simple Tip.)

Use a lemon to clean hard water stains. (Broccoli Cupcake Tip.)

Spot cleaning hard to reach stains with the Tide® To-Go Stain Pin. (Family Handyman Tip.)

Keep your stainless steel sink clean with just some elbow grease and environmentally sound cleaners. (Tip Nut Tip.)

Clean your blinds like a professional. ( French Knots Tip.)

Wash your windows like a pro. (Chaotically Creative Tip.)

Extra Tips:

• Always use the good dishes when eating with your family. Every meal should be a special occasion.

• Always wash your windows and keep them clean, along with your toilet and your fine China.

• Keep kitchen counters free of clutter and wiped down, it makes your kitchen look more inviting.

• Make your bed everyday. No matter what the day plans are, always make time for that.

• Keep litter box odor down by cleaning it daily or every other day, and use baking soda to rid odor.

• Set an air freshener in hidden places around your home (behind the toilet). No one will be the wiser.

• Dust your home once a week. It cuts down on allergens and tidy up the home in the process.

All these tips are to help you stay organized. For more organization visit the tips section at the top of the page. Remember, every little bit helps! :)

How to make Starbucks' Passion Tea with Lemonade

When the summertime hits the only thing I can think about is WATER, but sometimes that water gets a bit bland and you want to spice it up. There are ways to add a flavor to your water, everything from lemons and limes to even a Pinterest post I found about "Sassy Water." (I thought the Ball Jar was such a clever idea too!)

Sometimes though, the change calls for something a tad-bit more like the Starbucks' Passion Tea. I have been grabbing a Passion Tea from Starbucks for the last eight years and I just love it! I always have them make it sugar free and add the lemonade as a sugar-addition to spice up the flavor and let me tell you, it is heavenly. The tea is such a great icon for the summer, but at $6.00 a Vente (large) glass it seems to add up after awhile, FAST! So I went on a hunt to create it myself and, believe it or not, I didn't have to look far.

Tazo®, the brand that Starbucks uses is sold to the general public just like it would be sold to Starbucks or "through" Starbucks; It's about $5. You can actually buy a box of Passion Tea off the shelf at any grocery store that sells artisan tea, for less than the price of a cup of Passion Tea from Starbucks. Crazy huh? Well, with that said, all you do is steep the tea, and then add your lemonade to the tea and refrigerate. That's it! Seriously!

After steeping the tea, I like to let the tea bags sit in the water over night in the refrigerator, then add the lemonade the following morning. That way when I add the lemonade it won't change the flavor because it is cold liquid added to cold liquid.

If you don't want the added sugar, use sugar-free lemonade or even squeeze fresh lemons straight into your tea.

Once you get your tea and lemonade mixed, pour into a cocktail shaker, or a larger-rimmed glass over the smaller-rimmed glass, and SHAKE! Shake it with ice and it makes it taste even more refreshing.

ENJOY!

Road Trip: More about our Trips to Arkansas

I wasn't too sure what to label this one, "Trip to Arkansas", "During the Wedding Trip", "Out and about in Arkansas", or even "Long over-due Visit." One thing is for sure, while we were in Arkansas this past May, we actually saw a lot of things around the Hot Springs, Arkansas area that we hadn't seen in so long. I am pleased that we were able to show Skylar so many things that he missed out on when we moved to Oregon. He got to see the special places that, being eight-years-old, he completely understands what they are. It melted my heart to be able to share these moments with him, and his dad.

St. Joseph Mercy Hospital where Skylar was born. It seems now that the name has been changed to just Mercy Hospital. Those are sort of the things you notice right away after being gone for eight years. Showing this to Skylar was exciting. He asked so many questions about that day and what happened afterward and what we did and what we ate and if I held him tight and loved on him. It was almost like we were reliving the moment of his birth all over again by answering all of his questions. He is such a great kid!

We ventured from there to downtown Hot Springs and found ourselves along Bathhouse Row.

Lamar Baths. The city had these bathhouses shut down for a good amount of years, but now they are all up and fully functional, (or getting there), after some remodel work on a few of them. This one has been turned into an office building for park employees and a gift shop.

Buckstaff Bathhouse. This bathhouse is a true and still running bathhouse in downtown Hot Springs. It offers the same type of services it offered back in 1912, when it first opened.

Ozark Bathhouse. The Museum of Contemporary Art is inside this Bathhouse now after it closed its doors in 1977 as a bathhouse and spa.

Quapaw Bathhouse. Now a fully functional bathhouse with its spa treatments and café. Serving, what I find wonderful, hot teas and other foods in eco-friendly containers an array of other items that are along the environmentally conscious theme.

Fordyce Bathhouse. This bathhouse was the best one on the block until it closed its doors in 1962. It is now the Park's Visitors' Center and an education hub for all the bathhouses.

Hale Bathhouse. This bathhouse was closed in 1978, but not before it went through several renovations to keep it up to modern appeal.

Superior Bathhouse. The smallest bathhouse on the row and it closed its doors in 1983, but was fully functional until then. It was recently renovated to add a handicap access ramp to the front of the building.

At the end of Bathhouse Row stands the Arlington Hotel. You can stay at the Arlington under their "Al Capone" package for under $400. Its revolving door in the front is still functional to this day.

After leaving the Bathhouse Row area we headed to the Hot Springs Mountain Tower.

The views from the tower.

Then a tour of the Hot Springs Fire House in downtown Hot Springs, Arkansas. Skylar takes after his dad in the fire fighting department. They both love BRIGHT RED FIRE TRUCKS!

Climbing along the rock face on West Mountain.

After hanging around Hot Springs all day we joined up with my sister, Kendra, to watch Ryan and my dad in a baseball game. My dad's company sponsored the team and they were called Mike's Heating and Air THUNDER!

Ryan was such a good ball player and at times very comical!

Skylar got to drive Papaw's tractor too! Since we have been back he hasn't stopped talking about how "cool" it was to pick up the brush pile with the bucket.