Home, Furniture & Kitchen

  The Internet of Things will ultimately change all of our lives for the better, and the Philips HUE lighting system is a great place to start. Imagine being able to control every aspect of your home with your Smartphone or tablet, and even have aspects of your home control itself based on a set of rules that you can customize. Philips Hue can take you there and do much more. It makes your lighting fun and convenient, while adding a lot of utility that can make your house more secure.

Coffee might help bring you back to life in the morning, but what keeps you going during those long days of class and studying? Food and only food can give you the boost to stay alert and conscious when the days get busy.   Here are some high-energy recipes to give you a boost every day.

I’ve always loved school. In fact, throughout my entire pre-university academic career, I was what you would call a teacher’s pet. So much so, that at the end of every summer, while most kids were bemoaning the start of another school year, I was sitting on my bedroom floor, surrounded by new school supplies, getting organized for the first day of class. Yup, I was that girl. But not everyone is as school-supply obsessed as I was. So with September around the corner, here’s a breakdown of the essential supplies your kids will need to make the most out of a new school year. 

I’ve been experimenting with brain food lately, and found a recipe that takes all of those nutrients and combines them into one delicious energy bar. Although they’re chock full of healthy ingredients, they taste almost like a chocolate bar. The local coffee shop sells them and calls them ‘Brain Bites,’ but I just call them delicious.   I whipped up a batch of these little gems today – check out the recipe and my photos for the steps to make them.

It’s important to break your ‘must haves’ into ‘absolutely pack’ long before you head out the door. For some people the ‘absolutely pack’ includes everything but the kitchen sink, but because I’ve been there and done that, I can definitely share what you can safely leave behind and what is absolutely essential to bring when you’re heading back to school.

Last November, I had an opportunity to review three different in-ear headphone models from Monster’s iSport line – Strive™, Intensity™, and Victory™. While each had their pros and cons, it was the iSport Victory™ that got my vote for the best of the bunch. In fact, since my review, the Victory™ earbuds have become just as much a staple to my workouts as my overpriced stretchy pants. But to throw a bit of a kink in things, I was just sent the latest in the iSport arsenal – the over-ear, wireless, and Bluetooth-enabled Freedom™ headphones. Would they take the place of my beloved Victory?

The amazing thing about summer vegetables is that you can make a new side dish for dinner every single night. Some of them are so good you may just opt out of a main course and stick to your sides.

With so many two-income families at work each day, home security is important. It can even provide safety for families that are at home. Someone tried to break-in to my home while we were asleep, and fortunately I woke up in time and was able to scare him away. That was before I had a security system! A security system is an excellent deterrent as there are so many unprotected homes burglars generally won’t  risk a protected one. I particularly like camera systems because they not only deter thieves but also vandals who get some sick joy out of destroying property.   I already have a Q-See Surveillance System installed in my house, but recently got a chance to test out a couple of Lorex Wireless Security Surveillance Systems and see how they compare. In fairness, the 2 Lorex packages that I tested out were smaller configurations, but with the same primary function – cameras that can monitor and record activity. All three systems have some significant differences that are worth knowing about.

The reason summer salads are called ‘summer salads’ is because they’re chock full of fresh-from-the-garden vegetables. But if you haven’t tried mixing things up and adding a few chunks of fruit, you’re really missing out on a mind-blowing meal.

As a part of their appliance expansion, Best Buy is now offering a selection of Bosch dishwashers!