Ivy says:

Heather and I have been talking about the aggregator. We’re quite undecided about whether or not it adds value to the site. As you know, we hate clutter here at Home Ec 101, so if our readers don’t think it’s a useful addition to the site, we might get rid of it.

However, our readers could find it to be a great resource. People who are on the aggregator may find they get some traffic from it. We’re not sure, and that’s why we’re opening it up to you guys. Please take the poll and leave us a comment about what you think!

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Dear Home Ec 101,

How can I make my husband help around the house?

Signed,

Nags Head, NC

Heather says:

I moved out quite young and lived with an interesting variety of roommates until I married.  Different people have different standards of cleanliness and tolerance.  If you are the Felix of your relationship, odds are you will carry more of the cleaning burden.   You can ask, but you cannot make your spouse or partner do anything.  This goes for those living with roommates, to a point.  As long as finances aren’t an issue, roommates have the somewhat less difficult option of dissolving the situation.

My best tip for achieving help around the house is to ask politely and directly when the other party is not busy.  Use the same courtesy you expect from others. Thank them when the are through and do NOT immediately fix what they have done.

I know many of our readers have been down this road and not every tactic works for every relationship; please share what you have found helpful in your situation.

You do have a choice when it comes to the maintenance of your home: you can wallow in resentment and self-pity or you can choose to maintain your surroundings to your* standards.

*If a spouse is both critical and unwilling to help, please seek professional advice.

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Ivy says:

Here’s something I struggle with that I bet our fabulous readers have ideas about! I get invited to go out a lot with my various local friends. The problem? I can’t really afford to go out as much as I’m invited out. I know I’m lucky to have that many friends that want to invite me places, but it’s tough- I have been declining a whole lot of invitations and I’m afraid they’ll stop asking me to go out places with them.

I used to decline invitations by simply explaining that I didn’t have the money to go out, but to please invite me some other time- eventually, I’ll find the extra in the budget. The problem with this is that often, my friends will offer to pay my way which opens up a whole ‘nother issue- I don’t want to be beholden to my friends and I know they often are about as broke as I am.

So I finally just stopped giving a reason as to why I couldn’t come, but I’m afraid they’ll think it’s them I don’t want to hang out with, when it’s really just that I don’t have the money to go out. I’ve tried to temper a lot of this expensive going out by inviting people to come over to my house instead, but that brings up another issue.

See, I live in a way-out-of-the-way part of town. So not a lot of people want to drive all the way out there- even though I’m driving all the way out there to see them. So not only am I paying out money to go out to eat, but I’m also paying a lot of gas money to get there. Sigh.

So, Home Eccers, what do you do when faced with this problem?

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Heather says:

I just got in a few hours ago from Ivy and I’s first public appearance.  We spoke at CREATE South and had a wonderful time.  I would like to give Andre Pope the Home Ec 101 Seal of Approval for his BBQ and chicken bog.  I will be spending this evening with my family and catching up on things that must be done before I turn into a pumpkin.  With that in mind, it is time for an episode of Ask the Audience.   Feel free to clap and cheer, we love it, too.

Recently someone asked me a question that seemed perfect for our fun and creative frugal cooks:

When making a layer cake, what do you do with the trimmed bits of cake?

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Ivy says:

Since today is reader appreciation day, I thought an “ask the audience” would be appropriate here. What is your best cleaning tip? This could be anything from your never-fail stain removal method to the easiest way to get the kids to clean up after themselves.

My tip ‘o’ the day is about keeping pets out of the trash. If putting a trash can in a cabinet or using a covered trash can is not an option, just use the drawstring type bags. Keep the drawstring drawn at all times. This won’t keep a terribly determined animal out of your trash, but it provides a subterfuge for the time being until you can get a trash can with a lid or you can train your animal to stay out of the trash. (Easier said than done, I know!)

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