Have You Ever Thought About a Yard Sale?

You are out of school for the summer time to have some fun.  This means that it is time for an old past time.  Yard sales will be popping up throughout your town, and we have found some great purchases that can save you money in the future.  Grab your friends and head to the yard sale to save your household money this summer.  Apartment Therapy has some great ideas for your summer vacation.

1. Rugs. Rugs are notoriously difficult to sell secondhand, which is why you will see plenty of them around at yard sale time. Head out for a few Saturdays, you are bound to find a new rug for the kids' room for under $30. I found one recently, a 5x7 foot 100% wool rug for $5! It had been passed over by others because one small corner was a little frayed - a problem easily solved by tucking it under a crib.

2. Furniture: Do you need to furnish your apartment? Yard Sales are the perfect opportunity to find a cheap piece of furniture for your new home. 

3. Old Music: Have you always wanted an old record player or old music from your childhood you forgot about?  This is the perfect place to find that old music for a decent price.

4. Entertainment:  Yard Sales can be a great source of entertainment and a fun afternoon with friends.  You never know what treasures you are going to find!

Your Guide To A Better Night's Sleep

Is your bedroom keeping you awake at night? There are five reasons that may be the cause of your lack of sleep in your own home. This blog has a list of those reasons. It also includes a list of possible solutions that could help you in your quest for a better night's sleep. You can learn more at apartment therapy.

PROBLEM #1: ALLERGIES


Is your stuffy nose keeping you from getting shut eye? Seasonal allergies are one thing, but dust mites are with us all year round. Your bed is Disneyland for those little critters, who thrive on all the dead skin cells your body provides.


Fixes: Vacuum your room with a HEPA filter and clean your bedding as often as you can— including your pillows, which you can throw in the dryer for 15 minutes to kill off any existing bugs. Instead of scented detergent, use a few drops of eucalyptus oil in your laundry. Put hypoallergenic protective covers on your mattress and pillows. And lastly, strip your mattress before you go out of town to give it time to air out. (I won’t rile up pet owners by suggesting you ban furry loved ones from the bedroom, but it’s worth thinking about.) Read more onbedroom allergies here.






PROBLEM #2: LIGHT


Your room is too bright at night. Whether it’s coming from the outside, a nightlight, the television screen, or your blinking alarm clock, any light keeps your body fooled into thinking it’s not sleeping time.


Fixes: Buy really dark curtains, or add liner, to block out street lamps. Also turn off electronic devices and remove anything else that emits brightness. (If you’re worried about getting up in time, try covering your alarm clock instead.) Lastly, swap out higher watt lightbulbs in your bedside lamp for dimmer ones; these will aid the transition as you’re winding down from the day by reading in bed at night.








PROBLEM #3: TEMPERATURE


Some nights you're too hot, and other times, it's too cold. Sleep is induced when you are at rest and your core body temperature lowers. If your heat is on too high (or too cold for that matter), your internal thermostat fluctuates which leads to restless sleep.


Fixes: Everyone is comfortable at different temps, so experiment to find the right one for you. There's no right answer but cooler is generally better - start in the 65 degree range. There are always fans and blankets to help you regulate, but know that bedding material makes a difference too; memory foam pillows and mattresses, for example, are hotter than more traditional ones. If you are still having trouble staying asleep, look into bedding and pads that keep you cooler at night.








PROBLEM #4: NOISE


There’s the 5 am garbage truck variety that’s impossible to ignore. But when it'stoo quiet, the slightest disruption can reach epic proportions and you find yourself focused on that weird hum or dripping faucet. Either way, you need a way to soundproof your sleep.


Fixes: If it’s too loud, wear earplugs as a first resort. Or, try a white noise machine or app —or even a basic fan— to drown out any noises that violate your REM cycle. If it’s really bad, get as far away from the offending noise as possible. Either move your bed to another wall to dampen neighbor noises, or, if you have the option, try swapping your current bedroom with another room entirely. Read more on bedroom noise here.








PROBLEM #5: MATTRESS


Having a healthy, comfortable, supportive mattress is critical to a good night's sleep.


Fixes: Flip your mattress with the seasons, alternating between end-over-end and side-over-side rotation. If it's time for a new one, check out Danny Seo’sgreat tips on mattress shopping. A couple of years ago, Maxwell also experimented with different mattress brands for twelve months and wrote about it in his Year in Bed series.

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to all of the mothers out there! We hope you have a great day with your friends and family.

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to all of the mothers out there!  We hope you have a great day with your friends and family.

Storage In Your Small Space

Are you running out of room to store items in your apartment? Apartment Therapy has some great tips on how to get the most out of your living space. There is always a nook or cranny that become a new organizational home for your items. You can learn morehere.

Use the space above your kitchen cabinets
Pictured above: Loved a lot of the ideas (plus the very cute baby) in My Small Home: Carrie's Small Space Solutions. But there was one idea that stuck out because it was so simple and functional: Don't waste that space above the upper kitchen cabinets, but don't clutter it either. Use a uniform bunch of decorative baskets or boxes to store utilitarian things like light bulbs, tools and other things that you don't need every day. By keeping them uniform you don't overwhelm the senses. We'd suggest doing what Carrie did and leave a little space between each container so it doesn't feel too heavy, either.


Remember that storage is still sometimes display

We loved the idea to remember in How To Deal When Your Closet Isn't in Your Room (or Maybe Isn't Even a Closet). Taryn talked about remembering that in small spaces where lack of closets causes the need to store some items out in the open, it's important to remember that this storage is actually display. Spending attention to make it more attractive will make it feel intentional, and not just like you're living in a closet. The post is talking about clothing, but you can make this argument with just about any object. If you've got to store out in the open — say like your toiletries in your bathroom — create a lovely visual display so that it becomes decoration and not clutter.

You can buy or DIY magnetic knife holders to save space

We always forget about this neat space-saving idea. Perhaps because our parents never used them, but it is a great idea for keeping tools handy and utilize previously unused wall space. And consider expanding the idea beyond knives...what other metal kitchen utensils that you use could be treated this same way? Find options you can buy and DIY here: Small Space Kitchen Tip: Use a Double Magnetic Knife Holder.


Transform your dining room to double duty

We know just about any room can pull double duty in small homes when needed, but we can't think of a better space than the dining room. Why spend energy to transform it into a space you can also do work in? Well because you're probably already using it in that way a little bit anyway, so taking a little extra time to incorporate some furniture that might help you tuck the creative/work objects away when it comes to food time might help keep a compact dining room uncluttered — and more enjoyable — more often. Find an example of doing it right: 5 Double-Duty Room Combos that Always Work.

Storage Ideas For Your Small Space

Are you running out of room to store items in your apartment? Apartment Therapy has some great tips on how to get the most out of your living space. There is always a nook or cranny that become a new organizational home for your items. You can learn morehere.

Use the space above your kitchen cabinets
Pictured above: Loved a lot of the ideas (plus the very cute baby) in My Small Home: Carrie's Small Space Solutions. But there was one idea that stuck out because it was so simple and functional: Don't waste that space above the upper kitchen cabinets, but don't clutter it either. Use a uniform bunch of decorative baskets or boxes to store utilitarian things like light bulbs, tools and other things that you don't need every day. By keeping them uniform you don't overwhelm the senses. We'd suggest doing what Carrie did and leave a little space between each container so it doesn't feel too heavy, either.


Remember that storage is still sometimes display

We loved the idea to remember in How To Deal When Your Closet Isn't in Your Room (or Maybe Isn't Even a Closet). Taryn talked about remembering that in small spaces where lack of closets causes the need to store some items out in the open, it's important to remember that this storage is actually display. Spending attention to make it more attractive will make it feel intentional, and not just like you're living in a closet. The post is talking about clothing, but you can make this argument with just about any object. If you've got to store out in the open — say like your toiletries in your bathroom — create a lovely visual display so that it becomes decoration and not clutter.

You can buy or DIY magnetic knife holders to save space

We always forget about this neat space-saving idea. Perhaps because our parents never used them, but it is a great idea for keeping tools handy and utilize previously unused wall space. And consider expanding the idea beyond knives...what other metal kitchen utensils that you use could be treated this same way? Find options you can buy and DIY here: Small Space Kitchen Tip: Use a Double Magnetic Knife Holder.


Transform your dining room to double duty

We know just about any room can pull double duty in small homes when needed, but we can't think of a better space than the dining room. Why spend energy to transform it into a space you can also do work in? Well because you're probably already using it in that way a little bit anyway, so taking a little extra time to incorporate some furniture that might help you tuck the creative/work objects away when it comes to food time might help keep a compact dining room uncluttered — and more enjoyable — more often. Find an example of doing it right: 5 Double-Duty Room Combos that Always Work.

Enjoy Happy Valley This Spring

How do you want to spend your spring at Penn State? Here are some great events and locations for you to experience before the end of the semester. Happy Valley and this blog have a list of the events you do not want to miss in the next few months.


Springtime in Happy Valley always kicks off with the popular Blue and White Weekend. Like homecoming, this event brings together alumni visiting just in time to celebrate their Penn State pride in the sun. Blue and White Weekend brings back some great tailgating memories from the fall. There is nothing like spending time in the sun, eating great food and playing corn hole with fellow Penn Staters. Photo Credit: Penn State




Happy Valley has plenty of beautiful sites to see, but hiking Mount Nittany on a warm sunny day is always a fan favorite. After spending a lot of time indoors from the cold, snow and rain, it is great to finally enjoy an outside workout. Mount Nittany is only a few miles from State College and is fun for all ages. This hike is easy, fun and enjoyable. Photo Credit: Penn State



There is certainly nothing like having some Creamery ice cream on the patio during the spring. The Berkey Creamery, known for their delicious ice cream, has a variety of flavors to choose from but don’t forget you can’t mix them! After picking up some ice cream, you can also take a walk over to the Arboretum to enjoy some of the beautiful gardens. If traveling far, always remember to ask for some to take home in their specialty travel bags! Photo Credit: Penn State Berkey Creamery



The warmer months of spring mean a lot of things to different people, but for the legal crowd it means one thing: 55 Days of Café. For 55 days (It is 55 days because Penn State was founded in 1855,) participants must come to Café 210 West and get one food item or one beverage and sign in with their assigned participant number as proof. There are more rules that can be found here. Participants who last the entire 55 days get their name engraved on a plaque on the wall in Café. Even if you don't participate in 55 days, you can still stop in and relax with great food and drink in the warm weather on Cafe's front or back patio. Photo Credit: Cafe 210 West Facebook



Another way to get out and enjoy Happy Valley this spring is by going trout fishing. There is a plethora of streams and lakes in the surrounding region to choose from. Whipple Dam State Park, Penns Creek and Spring Creek are just a few local options. Whether you're a die-hard fisherman or just looking for some recreational fun, Happy Valley is home to some of the finest trout fishing in the state. Photo Credit: Penns Creek Angler



Warmer weather means cleaner streets and sidewalks. What better time then to take out the bike and go for a ride around beautiful State College? And if you’re feeling especially adventurous, feel free to bike the Tussey Mountain Loop for an 11-mile ride that is sure to be a great workout. Click here for more bike trails to try.Photo Credit: The Alleghenies Facebook Page



Time for a round of golf! From the Penn State Golf Courses to Toftrees Golf Club, a golfing enthusiast has many options when it comes to playing a few rounds. Whether you have been golfing for years or are just trying to learn, State College offers great opportunities to golf. Tussey Mountain also offers a driving range and par 3 course. Get more information on the golfing locations and programs in the area here. Photo Credit: Penn State Golf Courses



Just about 40 minutes from State College sits Raystown Lake, which stretches 8,300 acres and has been called one of the hidden games of Pennsylvania. In addition to all that the lake has to offer, the Raystown region offers lots of fun activities and great places to dine and shop. Learn more about how you can enjoy spring in Raystownhere. Photo Credit: Raystown Lake Region