Real Estate Innovation

Frickin’ Yummy Puppy Treats For Brilliant Nutritional Delights!

Honest Kitchen has come up with some innovative doggie treat ideas, from the wonderfully-named Smooches, which are wholesome, natural dog cookies and Nuzzles, an evolution of one of the best selling varieties of Smooches, the luxuriously sinful Duck and Cherry.

Only Natural Pet Organic Fresh Kisses Biscuits freshen breath and clean teeth with the unique peppermint and parsley formula. These biscuits will make your dog’s kisses a while lot sweeter.

Organic can be fun

Organix Dog Cookies from Castor & Pollux are good for your dog and fun to enjoy. These nutritious biscuit flavors include Organic Chicken, Cheese and Peanut Butter. Castor & Pollux has also created the Good Buddy line of treats in Cheese, Peanut Butter, Spearmint and “the dog friendly chocolate” - Carob.

Yummy yet healthy ingredients such as molasses and sesame seeds find their way into Monzie’s Organic Cookies for Dogs, and better still they are baked fresh.

Apple Pie and Sweet Potato Pie treats, by Wet Noses, make a fantastic treat for the holidays, and now they are even better. These delightful treats are 100% USDA certified organic.

The enjoyable flavors of Bacon & Cheddar, Vegetable & Garlic, Chicken & Barley, and Peanut Butter constitute a tempting snack from A Dog’s Life Natural Hand-Baked Treats. You can rest assured that these delicious biscuits are completely organic.

For a good, honest dog biscuit that gets back to basics, take a look at Newman’s Own Organics Dog Treats. These high protein, all natural dog biscuits contain added vegetables and are free of wheat, soy and bothersome fillers.

Missing Link Healthy Delites Organic Dog Treats are made with natural ingredients, are wheat free and promote healthy weight, good digestion and general wellbeing.

Nature Nosh Organic Gourmet Dog Treats are prepared with only the most healthy and wholesome ingredients. This amazing company makes the best possible treats for your pampered dog, and tries to help out those dogs who aren’t as fortunate by donating a portion of every sale to the Much Love Animal Rescue.

You can treat your dog right with Karma Organic Dog Treats. These dog biscuits contain free range organic animal proteins, and nourishing ingredients like brown rice, quinoa, red beets, blueberries, and green tea extract.

And finally, for owners who like their dog treats meat-free Muttrooms Baked Organic Mushroom Dog Treats contain a blend of 5 organic mushrooms in an all-natural biscuit. It’s a treat for all animals!

Advice on Buying a Home Log Cabin

The cost of log cabins varies greatly depending on the kinds of logs which have been used and the size of the property. You will find that those cabins that have been built using handcrafted logs will cost much more than those where the logs have been milled.

It is important therefore before you actually decide on getting such a cabin built you know the difference between milled and handcrafted logs. Generally, those that are milled have been prepared using either a sawmill, a lathe or a planer. This then ensures that each log will be cut to a specific profile or shape. As you will soon discover milled logs have a far more uniformed shape and size to them compared to handcrafted ones.

Logs, which are milled to help extract moisture from them, will either be allowed to dry in the air or be placed in a kiln. The time it takes for the exact amounts of moisture to be removed depends on the size of the log and the method of drying used. But by extracting moisture from the wood helps to prevent too much shrinkage occurring once, the cabin has been constructed.

Because the wood will have been either planed, sawn or lathed the surface of the logs will be smooth. Plus in many cases, they will also have a tongue and groove joints so actually putting the logs together is much easier. This means that building the cabin is a lot easier and will often take a lot less time to complete. However, if you want to retain that rustic look to your cabin the outer face of the log can retain its rough bark coating.

In most cases, the trees from which the wood for these types of logs used are pines, spruces, firs as well as cedars. For a cheap but well built milled cabin, buy one made from either pine or spruce. However, if you have a little more money in your budget then consider getting one made using cedar instead.

As for handcrafted logs, these will have been prepared by being hand peeled using either a drawknife or through the use of water. The actual logs themselves when being prepared are green and will only have been cut and hauled a few days or weeks before. Unlike milled logs these are allowed to air dry only as kiln drying is a very expensive process, as these need to be dried whilst they are still their full lengths after cutting.

Just like with milled log cabins those who make handcrafted ones like to use pine and spruce trees. However, there are some log cabin manufacturers who prefer to use either Douglas fir, Oak, Juniper, Cyprus or Alpine Fir (True Firs) instead.

As mentioned the cost you pay for buying and having log cabins constructed will not only depend on the way in which the logs have been prepared. You also need to take into consideration the size of the cabin you are having built. The bigger the cabin then the more labour intensive and the more logs will be needed in order to build it. If you want to save money but would like a large cabin then you are better off going for milled rather than handcrafted logs.

Home Saunas and Your Health

As people are becoming more health-conscious and are looking for ways to improve and/or maintain their well-being, they are turning to tried and true alternatives that have a solid track record for effectiveness. Saunas are just one of those time-tested alternatives. Saunas have been around for centuries and many sauna practitioners will attest to the value of soothing dry heat for promoting health and relaxation.

Gyms are the most common location where people have used a sauna, but today folks are discovering the value of having a home sauna. Having a home sauna dispenses with the need for road travel to and from the gym (which helps on gas) as well as cutting out the ongoing fees of a sauna service at the local gym or spa.

There are several different types of saunas that you can choose from:

* Electric or Wood * Outdoor or Indoor * Infrared * Finnish * Two, Four or Multi-Person *

If you are good with your hands and like to build things, then this may be the way to go with your home sauna. Home saunas are fairly easy to build and you can even get pre packaged saunas that are ready to be put together.

When your health is involved, having a home sauna, particulary a infrared sauna, is priceless because:

* It is a great stress reliever * It can help reduce body pain * It is known to lower blood pressure * It facilitates the detoxification process

You may not be familiar with an infrared sauna, but it is excellent for your health. As you sit in the sauna the heat goes deeply into your muscles, joints and tissues. It increases blood flow and oxygen flow, it promotes detoxification, which is important because of the increase in toxins in our environment and our bodies.

Because of its user-friendly nature, people naturally prefer to use far infrared saunas and will continue to do so on a regular basis. The infrared sauna produces much cooler air and at the same time provides the amount of warmth you desire. This makes it much easier to breath. The distinctive feeling of well-being reported by users as an after-effect, is a big draw as well. Infrared saunas may also be used with the door fully open if the only effect desired is infrared penetration or if a very cool, minimal-sweating experience is desired as a pre-activity warm-up while fully clothed. Due to this fact alone, more people are likely to use their saunas on a regular basis.

Other Tidbits About Home Saunas

* Skin brushing combined with infrared sauna use can enhance cleansing as pores open to ease the release of toxic debris. Skin tone and elasticity improve as well as acne, eczema, psoriasis, and skin roughness.

*When you purchase a sauna make sure you have a warranty that covers the heaters for as long as you own it. If your heater goes out it could cost you the price of a new sauna just to replace it.

* As far as your pocketbook goes, infrared heaters use less energy and operate at a lower temperature, which saves on your energy bill.

Pot a Little Piece of Paradise

A home filled with potted plants is a home that exudes character, warmth and fertility. Plants can provide an emotional boost, help cleanse the air and are great simply for their decorative qualities. But the choice and maintenance of potted plants can pose some difficulties.

First is the knowledge that particular plants often require very exacting sizes of pots. They also need to be kept in an area of the home where they’ll receive just the perfect amount of sunlight for their variety, and soil levels and the moisture levels of that soil need to be constantly monitored. Many plant species may also require additional touches to keep them in perfect shape. If this sounds like a lot of work, it can be, plants are after all living things that have the same little quirks, likes and dislikes you would find in an animal or human. Once you have your routine down though, you’ll find that maintaining your plant in optimal health is not so hard at all.

Variety is the spice of life, so you can’t go wrong by populating your abode with a variety of unique and interesting plant life. To cut down on the amount of upkeep required of a variety of different plants and their unique characteristics, choose a few species that require very little water, and little to no fertilizer. These plants will all but maintain themselves, and cut down on the amount of upkeep you’ll need to provide for them. Spider plants and cacti are common and popular plants that don’t require a lot of special treatment.

As mentioned, pot size and beyond that even pot style and construction material can all play a role in how well your plant takes to them, and well they fit together from an aesthetic standpoint. Let your flair and creativity take root here.

For well lit open corners of a room, a large standing plant is a great choice. A palm is a great choice, but will need more room away from the corner so it isn’t restricted.

Most potted plants will need to be re-potted every year or two, though others like bonsais can remain in the same pot for many years if properly cared for. Many plants will require re-potting and/or trimming though as they continue to grow and outgrow their pot or interfere with other household areas through their continued growth.

By carefully staging out your planting duties by acquiring your plants at different times of the years, as well as having species with different growth rates, you can minimize the amount of upkeep that would be required all at once and not get overwhelmed with the workload.

The other benefit of these air cleaning houseplants is the variety of species that many will bloom at different times throughout the year, and for varying lengths of time, ensuring you’ll always have a nice mix of fully grown and developing plants around.

By mixing up the variety of plants in your house, you can keep a thriving and attractive residence with a minimal amount of upkeep. It’s the best of both worlds.