We Are Losing Our Local Shops and Makers

Money is tight for everyone right now. But please try to support local shops and makers when you can.. we’re losing them at an alarming rate.

As an example - in the past eight months 4 brick and mortar shops I wholesale to have closed their doors. These are shops that employ many local people and buy goods from small businesses like myself. These shops not only support themselves and their employees but so many other small makers and businesses. These shops have all been in business for years and been successful, but times are tough and they had to make difficult decisions.

It’s so sad to see them close, but it’s a ripple effect that goes far beyond that one business. Everyone is struggling right now, but if you’re looking to spend your money please try to shop small and local when you can - thank you from all of us.

Tips for Selling on Facebook Marketplace

Lately I’ve been on a huge decluttering kick. I really want to pare down what we have in our home so we only have stuff we love, use, or is sentimental/important to us. Everything else can go. I’ve been taking my time with this process but it’s been really freeing to open up some space in our home. I try to throw away as little as possible and have been either donating items locally or selling them on Facebook Marketplace. Read on for my tips on how to sell your unwanted items on Facebook.
| Disclaimer: These are suggestions. Sell/buy on Facebook at your own risk. |

| Disclaimer: These are suggestions. Sell/buy on Facebook at your own risk. |

Tips for Selling on Facebook Marketplace

Clean Your Items Before Taking Photograpshs

Oh my gosh - this is the most obvious one that I feel like so many people neglect to do. They will post a picture of a table for example, still covered with magazines and cups - or the table will be filthy with dust. Kids’ shoes is another big example - make sure to take a little time and clean kids’ shoes. Get any stains/dirt you can off up the uppers and take an old toothbrush and clean the mud out of the treads. No one is interested in your dirty items - clean them up!

Consider the Backdrop of Your Photos

Don’t take photos somewhere messy or that looks unclean (like a basement or garage - unless you’re selling something that really belongs there like sports equipment or tools). For example, if you’re selling a nice piece of furniture, dress, kids’ toys, etc make sure the backdrop is somewhere clean and nice inside your home - don’t take a sketchy looking photo in a dirty/damp-looking basement because that implies the items weren’t well-cared for.

Price Your Items Well

Keep in mind this is a “yard sale.” And while things are typically priced a little higher than they would be at an actual yard sale, don’t be unreasonable. I usually price my items at the higher-end of reasonable, and then decrease my price periodically. If it doesn’t sell in a few weeks, it typically gets donated.

Be Safe

Be really wary with selling/buying on Facebook. Always check out the profile of who’s interested in the item to make sure it looks like it’s a real account with some history (it wasn’t just made in the last few months). Also never give out your phone number.. a lot of scammers will send you a message that says something like “I’m working, what’s your phone number so I can text you about this item? -or- Here’s my number, please text me.” Always decline to give out your number and say you only do correspondence through Facebook Messenger. It’s also a good idea to never accept electronic payments (Venmo, PayPal, etc) - stick to cash-only. (And if you’re a buyer never send an electronic payment as a “deposit to hold an item” - that’s a very common scam and a big red flag.)

And the biggest one - ALWAYS MEET IN A PUBLIC PLACE THAT ISN’T YOUR HOUSE. I strictly will only meet at local Police Department parking lots. Our surrounding town police departments all have designated parking spots under video surveillance that are meant for online sale exchanges. Several times someone has messaged me asking to meet for an item but instantly declined once they found out I only meet at the Police Station - that’s a huge red flag if they won’t meet at the Police Station and you want nothing to do with that person.. block them and move on.

Send a Reminder Message about an Hour Before the Meet

No-shows are the worst, and unfortunately fairly common. To help reduce no-shows, send a one-line reminder message about an hour before you’re supposed to meet the person.. something like “See you at XXX Police Department at 3PM.” Most of the time if they forgot or weren’t going to show up they will message you back and say “whoops, I won’t be there” and you’ll save yourself the trip. I also try really hard to line up my yard sale meets with other errands so I’m in that area anyways and it’s not as much of an inconvenience if I get stood up.

What Generally Sells Really Well:

• Kids’ toys

• Kids’ shoes & clothing (clothing typically sells better in big lots by size)

• Sporting equipment

• Tools

• Furniture

• Garden Items

I’ve found that some items in particular (like books and women’s clothing) do not generally sell well. Also make sure to try to sell items seasonally - don’t list snow pants for sale in April, they probably won’t sell. List them for sale in Fall when people are looking for them.

And always - make sure to follow Facebook guidelines on what is allowed for sale or not.

Good luck with your decluttering journey!

An Appeal to Save Childhood Summers

Recently I looked at our family calendar and realized every single day in July was booked with 95% of it being kids' activities or lessons. It felt crazy, and unhealthy. I went through our calendar and cancelled several things and now we have some downtime again - I feel like I can breathe.
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Some of my fondest memories growing up were those lazy summer days where we spent every moment outside with no plans and completely lost track of time, no idea what day of the week it even was. That's what kids' summers should be, not pressure to get ahead or keep up. Every day shouldn’t be booked with tennis lessons, or tutoring, or private training. There's plenty of time to over-schedule yourself once you're an adult - for now it’s so important to be a kid.

I recently read a few articles and books that talked about the importance of letting kids have downtime for their mental health and the opportunity to grow and make more decisions on their own. I highly reccomend reading "How to Raise an Adult" - while I definitley don't agree with all of the points or suggestions in the book, it's a great reminder that your kids are capable of much more than you think and you need to give them some space to figure it out on their own (and not overschedule their life). Also the article "Summer Sanity" is a short read from the University of Florida that also touches on the issues of over-scheduling.

I wish you all a safe, relaxing - and not over-scheduled - summer :)

Who We Donated to This Year

A tradition I started seven years ago was to donate a percentage of profits from Birch Landing Home at year-end to Charity.  This year we were able to help support The Lustgarten Foundation - I chose to support this charity because Pancreatic Cancer has one of the lowest long-term survival rates and hopefully progress will be made soon towards better treatments and a cure.

Thank you so much for all your support this past year - I am thankful for my Wholesale Accounts and continued traffic on my blog to make these donations happen.  I hope to continue to grow Birch Landing Home and be able to give back more each year in return.  Thank you all!

The Three Questions I Ask My Kids Every Night

Keeping an open dialogue is so important with kids, and it’s essential to start that trust early. A few years ago I started a tradition where I ask each kid three questions before they go to bed to give them an opportunity to easily share about their day and anything that may have been trouble for them.
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We typically do our bedtime routine together - brush teeth, say prayers, read a story, etc. but then I spend a few minutes solo with each child when I tuck them in and turn out the lights and say goodnight. I use this solo time to ask each kid their 3 Questions. They know they can be honest and say whatever they want.

The 3 Questions:

• What was your favorite part of the day?

• What was your least favorite (worst) part of the day?

• What are you looking forward to tomorrow?

Now to explain the reasoning behind the questions…

What was your favorite part of the day?

This gives them an opportunity to start easy, an ice breaker. They can share something good about their day and it can be anything. It could be that their favorite part was they did good on a math test, or that they had ice cream after dinner, or that they did their locker combination on their first try. It not only gives them an ice breaker to start the conversation, it gives you a chance to celebrate their favorite “win” of the day with them - no matter how big or how small.

What was your least favorite (worst) part of the day?

This one is the loaded question… the one where you hope your kid will share what’s really bothering them. Some days they will, and some days they won’t.. but at least asking this question daily gives them an easy opportunity to bring something up. Sometimes their answer could be something simple like the worst part was having to eat brussell sprouts at dinner. Or maybe they tripped in the hallway and felt embarrassed. Or maybe that they’re being bullied or there was an incident at school. These are important things to be aware of as a parent that your child isn’t always willing to share… by giving them the opportunity to share you can have a conversation with them to talk through what’s troubling them and hopefully help them figure out how to resolve it on their own or if you need to make someone else (school administration, etc) aware of the situation.
- Though typically we don’t dwell on whatever they say in the moment, especially if it’s obvious they don’t want to talk about right then. It’s more of a chance to just get it off their chest. If there’s something big going on I usually think it over that night and work towards addressing it the next day, if needed.

What are you looking forward to tomorrow?

This is where we end on a high note, a positive… something to look forward to tomorrow before they fall asleep. Sometimes the next day has big things to look forward to (an amusement park trip, a birthday party, skiing, etc), but often there’s nothing “big” the next day and that’s okay! This gives kids the opportunity to look for the positives in the every-day, as there’s always something to look forward to. It could be something simple like it’s pizza day at school, the weather is supposed to be nice, they have art class, etc.

Growing with this Practice

We started this 3 Questions tradition when our kids were small, in preschool. The oldest is now in late elementary school and starting to navigate cliques and social pressures… I hope that continuing this practice will help keep our dialogue open through Middle and High School as things get trickier with school and her social circle. I’m sure as she gets older this practice may evolve but for now I think it’s a great start!

Another useful thing to get converstations going is to always eat dinner together as a family at the dinner table. I admit this can be tricky to do every night especially during those busy weeks, but it's so helpful to get that undistracted face-to-face time with your family and kids. If you're struggling to get the conversation going you can try Table Topics which are fun conversation starters. We use these occasionally during dinner as a game.

Are Stanley Tumblers Worth It? My Honest Opinion

I finally did it… I jumped on the Stanley Tumbler bandwagon. The 40oz Stanley Tumbler cups are the “it” accessory at the moment and seen everywhere. But the big question is, are they worth it? In my opinion, yes… and no. Let me explain. | This post is not sponsored but contains affiliate links and an honest opinion of products |

| 40oz Stanley Tumbler in "Flint" |

First, I’ll share the reasons why I think you should *not* get one:

• You already have a straw tumbler. So many of us already have another brand tumbler and we really don’t need another one just because this style is popular at the moment. If your current tumbler is doing it’s job just fine then don’t bother jumping on this bandwagon and save your money.

• It’s HEAVY. Really heavy. At 40oz when this tumbler is full it is super heavy - it’s really not practical to carry around all day like you see those influencers on Instagram doing.

Now why I think you *should* get one:

• You're in need of a straw tumbler. I actually was in need to upgrade my old tumbler. My old straw tumbler was 10(!) years old and not insulated... I was tired of it leaving condensation marks on our coffee table and it never kept my water cold for long.
• You like your beverages cold (or hot). While I haven't tried my new Stanley Tumbler with hot beverages yet, I'm very impressed how it keeps things cold super long. I'll take a sip of water the next morning and it's still nice and cold from the day before!
• You keep your beverage at your desk or in your car. The large size isn't an issue if you tend to leave your cup in the same place for long periods of time. I typically leave my tumbler on the kitchen counter or on the coffee table and constantly sip it throughout the day so the large size wasn't a problem for me. This cup also fits nicely in our car's cupholders.
• You're trying to increase your water consumption. If you're looking drink more water, this large cup definitely helps get it done.

Overall - I am happy I jumped on the Stanley Tumbler bandwagon. I don't condone buying the "it" thing everytime if you don't need it, but if you are actually in need of a straw tumbler I have been very happy with my Stanley one.

Who We Donated to This Year

A tradition I started six years ago was to donate a percentage of profits from Birch Landing Home at year-end to Charity.  This year we were able to help support The New Hampshire Food Bank - I chose to support this charity because food insecurity has become an issue for many more families this year due to inflation and rising costs.

Thank you so much for all your support this past year, it has definitely been a different year with me returning to work while still trying to balance Birch Landing Home. Nevertheless, I am thankful for my Wholesale Accounts and continued traffic on my blog to make these donations happen.  I hope to continue to grow Birch Landing Home and be able to give back more each year in return.  Thank you all!

Coming to Hazel Moon Botanicals!

I am so excited to have my Birch New Hampshire Stickers at the new Hazel Moon Botanicals retail shop in Meredith, NH! I got a sneak peek at the shop today and it is so cute - I’m looking forward to the grand opening soon and will share on my social media channels when it’s open. Hazel Moon Botanicals will carry a lot of their own popular small-batch aromatherapy products as well as gifts and other items from other small businesses.

You can check out the Hazel Moon Botanicals' website for more information about their products and new retail location.