Happy Valentine's Day!

Dinner-and-a-movie plans with that special someone? Make it a cosier, cheaper night in.

Redbox movie rentals is offering a FREE one-night movie rental for Valentine's Day ONLY.  Simply use the promo code: BEMINE

Insulating Old Windows Makes A Big Difference

Holy cow. Last night it got down to -7 degrees in Cleveland. Chilled to the bone. When these cold temps hit you really start to wonder how much heat your house is letting out and how much energy you're wasting.

Our house was built in 1921 and, while we've replaced some of the windows, there are others we haven't gotten around to. There is a noticeable difference in temperature from the rooms that have new windows and those that don't. Last year at this time I dreaded getting out of bed to go to the bathroom because our bathroom was so one of those rooms we didn't get around to.

This fall we decided to put up plastic wrap over all of the older windows in our house. We purchased the wrap from our local Home Depot for about $6 a box and installed them ourselves in one evening. All you need is the kit from Home Depot, scissors, and a hair dryer.

The kit offers detailed instructions on how to put up the wrap, but it's fairly simple. You place the double-sided tape around the window frame, cut the plastic wrap to your desired length (definitely leave a few extra inches on each side for shrinkage/mistakes), and attach the wrap to the tape, one side at a time. Once all sides have been attached, use a blow dryer at low speed on a medium heat setting until you notice that the plastic wrap is shrinking and smoothing out. Unlike my hubby, don't let it pull too tight or the edges will pull apart over time.  One of our window wraps did come apart and you can feel a noticeable breeze at the opening.

Although I don't have specific figures of the energy saved, I can tell you that they make a huge difference in the temperature of a room. And while we put ours up at the end of fall, they're definitely still worthwhile to put up now. These cold temps aren't letting up anytime soon!

Green Tip

Next time you take your car in for maintenance be sure to ask about antifreeze made from propylene glycol. It's biodegradable and less toxic than conventional antifreeze. Earth-friendly and less worrisome for pet owners. You may want to call ahead and make sure they have it in stock.

I'm Bumming

Living after the loss of a parent, at any age, is hard. It's even harder when you lose them so unexpectedly at a relatively young age. My dad, specifically, was 67. I often say, "If he'd only made it to 70, it would feel so much older".

Many people have told me, "Well at least he didn't suffer". All I can think is, yeah, he didn't suffer, but I'd give anything to have days, weeks, or even months with him. I crave the opportunity to sit by his bedside, knowing he's dying, and talk to him about life. To get all of his pearls of wisdom - not that he was shy about departing his knowledge in the first place.

Everyone says the first year is the hardest. Their first birthday, the first Thanksgiving and Christmas without them, all of the major firsts. For me the smaller firsts are just as hard because you don't have that support system around you, expecting those moments to be rough. Like the first time you have to set the table and you habitually count out five when you only need four. The first time you go to call him, like you always do, every day after work. The first time your car breaks down and you need to run all the symptoms by him for a diagnosis. Those are all hard - and you're not surrounded by loved ones. You're alone, in your car, or at home. So yes, the first year will be really hard, for more reasons than most people can't expect. But I don't think it'll be the hardest.

I feel like, once the shock of everything wears off and we finally close all the loose ends that he left for us, that's when it will really hit me. It will be the realization that this is long-term. It is not something that we're just dealing with now. You almost get into this comfort zone of taking care of all the incidentals, thinking all will go back to normal once everything is closed out. And when everything is completed, that's when you'll feel empty. The realization that this will always be, from here on out, my life.

It's been 146 days since I've talked to him. I'm worried about the day that I'll be detached from that moment in time. That life-changing phone call. The day hen he and his quirks won't be as fresh in my mind.

I am trying to build a new relationship with him. One that will continue to include him in my life, as involved as he was before. Within minutes of that call I was crying, "I have no dad anymore, my dad's gone." In the days following those words I thought to myself how pissed he would be if he heard me say that. I can just hear him, "What the heck? I give you 27 years and I can't even retain the title of 'Dad'?" That put a smile on my face. He'll always be my dad.

Even still, I find that I'm constantly reminding myself, just because he's no longer alive doesn't take away any of the moments that I've ever shared with him. I'm not sure if I'm alone in this feeling, but I catch myself wondering, if he's no longer here to remember it, does it still have as much value? Was it as important as I remember it to have been? Is it even a relevant memory anymore? I guess it's hard to put into words, but it feels like it's a one-sided memory now. So I remind myself, he was there, he had that memory and just because he's gone, he's not untouchable. Those memories aren't larger than life. They are mine, they are his, they will always have happened, and they were simple.