Quick Solution For Stinky Shoes

If you don't have time to wash stinky sneakers, stuff a dryer sheet into each one overnight to improve their aroma.

Keep Cake Fresh After Cutting

After you cut a few slices from a cake, keep the cut portions of the rest of the cake fresh by covering them with a piece of wax paper or plastic wrap. Attach with toothpicks if necessary.

Moving To A New Community? If you want to find out more about the city or town before you move, subscribe to the local newspaper. You will feel more comfortable and knowledgeable about the place.

Neat Way To Frost A Cake

Before you frost a cake, place triangles of wax paper between the cake and the edge of the plate After frosting the cake, remove the wax paper. The plate will be clean and the finished product will look much neater.

- Peggy Clements

Be Prepared For Carpet Spills Keep a small spray bottle filled with diluted carpet shampoo (follow the directions) and store it next to your vacuum cleaner. So when that spill happens, you won't be panicked, instead you'll know exactly where to go fast.

Domestic Goddess Tip of the Day

Solving The Sliced Apple Problem

Most kids, even very picky ones, like apple slices. If you like to include sliced apples in your child's lunch, but your child balks at eating brown apples or dislikes the taste of apples sprinkled with lemon juice, try this solution to both problems. Toss the apples with orange juice before putting them in your child's lunchbox. The orange juice keeps the apples from browning, just as lemon juice does, but tastes much sweeter and milder.

- Peggy Clements

Sweet-Smelling Closets To avoid a musty odor in closets, take several oranges and stick whole cloves over the entire surfaces. Hang in every closet for a lovely aroma.

Can't Find Library Books? Is searching through books in your home to find those that are due at the local library driving you crazy? To avoid this time-consuming problem, designate one shelf or spot in a bookcase only for library books. Store them there.

Domestic Goddess Tip of the Day

Silence A Drippy Faucet

Obviously, if you have a leaky faucet, you should fix it as soon as possible. However, in the real world, it can take awhile to get to such chores. If a drippy faucet is keeping you awake at night, tie a string or piece of yarn to the end of the faucet and let it hang down to the sink. The drips will quietly run down the piece of string until you have a chance to fix the problem.

- Peggy Clements

Planning Your Summer Vacation?

If you'll be traveling by car on your next vacation, here's a great tool to help you plan your trip. Freetrip.com provides you with step-by-step directions to your destination as other web sites do. The great thing about this site is that along with the directions, it gives you pertinent information you'll need on your trip.

One really handy feature is the listing of gas prices along the route, as well as a listing of restaurants, rest areas, and places to stay at major stops. You can get pricing information for restaurants and lodging and even book a room. This can help you plan in advance where you'll stop, and can save you time and money over the course of your trip.

Go to the Free Trip site! www.freetrip.com.

- Peggy Clements

-- Anonymous, March 10, 2002