Taking Fido for a walk in this area can mean coming home with an unwanted stowaway - ticks. Whether or not you are employing a flea and tick control product on your dog, these tips can help to lessen the encounters and issues. Keep your yard clean and grass trimmed. Also remove debris and keep your bushes trimmed. Keep away from tall grass or weeds on your walks. Consider a repellent collar for your pet. Treat the lawn around your home if keeping greenery is not enough. Try an all-natural method. Click here for more information.  Got a method we did not mention? Tell us in the comments.

Even though it would not seem like it with the weather, it is May. And that means that those late planters are getting out into their gardens and getting flowers and vegetables in the ground. We all know growing your own produce is usually less expensive and better for you to eat. But if you don't plan well for your gardening activities, you could end up with back pain. Position yourself correctly. If you are sitting, you should have both legs bent with on in front and one in back. For a photo of this position, click here. Try standing and lunging. Sitting can be more painful for people with …

As the weather begins to heat up and on the heels of the rains we have had in the last couple weeks, you and your neighbors are probably all heading out on the weekend to crank up the lawnmower. Even if you have been mowing the lawn for decades, you can probably be reminded of safety considerations and tips for just how short you should be cutting. Turns out not all lawns should be cut the same. Kentucky bluegrass, for example, should be cut to 1.5 to 2.5 inches, while Bentgrass should be at  0.25 to 0.75 inches. You can find more information on lengths for particular grasses by clicking here…

We've probably all been there. It's been raining outside for hours and you go into your basement to find a soggy, wet mess. Or, you can't get into the basement without putting on special clothes and boots to wade through the water. Maybe it wasn't even a storm outside, but a burst water heater or another house specific mini-disaster. No matter what caused the flooding, the ways to clean up and stay safe are the same. We consulted the web and called Vic Riato, Media Services Manager at the Will County Health Department. Turn off electricity and gas. Do this before you head into the basement. …

Here at Patch, we know that a great many of you will be boiling eggs this weekend and next week in preparation to celebrate Easter. For those of you who are going to color those eggs, we offered you an option to color those eggs in a marbelized pattern, which we think would work best if you were not going to eat them. We wanted to give you instructions on how to blow an egg the modern way. You will need a couple tools an egg a bowl a pin or nail a medicine syringe Wikihow.com has some great instructions on how to do this step-by-step with nails or pins. Tinkerlab has instructions for doing it…

My mom is a great cook. It is because of her and my grandmother that I am such a great cook. On Sunday, she will be cooking corned beef for St. Patrick's Day. I am guessing she will also take a stab at making gluten-free soda bread for me since I said I was coming. But there is a standard to the American version of the St. Paddy's meal that she wants nothing to do with - cabbage. I said I would bring the cabbage. I am confident that I can manage this. But I have a variety of approaches to take when cooking the vegetable. Cabbage is really high in nutrients and low in fat. It belongs to the …

Tax time is upon us and that is always a good time to clean out your files, says Beth Randall, owner of Joe Organizer, a Plainfield-based business.  "It's a necessity to clear out your old files to make room for the new, unless of course you enjoy collecting filing cabinets to store all of it," she said in a written release. And as a professional organizer, Randall has a system that works well for her. "What I usually recommend is that you purchase an accordion file folder," she said. You can usually find these at local big box stores for less than $10. "Take all your 2012 papers and store …

With snow in the forecast throughout the week next week, there is a pretty good chance you will be back outside in snow boots and gloves with a shovel or snowblower. Patch has compiled some tips for you on how to best get the driveway and sidewalks clear. "You can use liquid floor wax on the shovel, which reduces the friction because it makes the shovel a slicker surface as you are scraping the shovel through the snow," Danny Lipford, the host of "Today's Homeowner told The Early Show. "It also keeps the snow from sticking to the shovel itself and that makes it less heavy when you're working…

It seems kind of obvious. When the streets are slippery and cars slow down to avoid sliding, we need to pay more attention to the way in which we walk as well. "Every winter the hazards of driving in snow and icy conditions are noted, but rarely is walking on snow and ice addressed," Martin B. Tirado, CAE, Executive Director of the Snow & Ice Management Association said in a written release. "Slipping and falling while walking accounts for a large number of winter-related injuries and can have an impact on the quality of life for the injured person." When the ground is icy or slippery, there …

We have all heard it, the best way to dress for the weather is in layers. But what does that even mean? Patch has put together some tips on how you can get through the don't-like-the-weather-wait-an-hour Chicagoland reality. When experts say to dress in layers, they ideally mean layers that serve specific purposes. According to weather.com, the first layer, closest to your skin, should serve to move moisture away. "This means the fibers will wick (move) moisture away from your skin and pass it through the fabric so it will evaporate," weather.com states. "This keeps you warm, dry and …

For those of you paying attention, this coming Thursday is Feb. 14. And, in case you started the year with an undated planner, that means that Thursday is Valentine's Day. If you are celebrating with a loved one, that celebration does not have to be expensive. And, if you are celebrating with your own fabulous self this year, we have some ideas for that too. With Your Loved One Decorate Your Space: Use what you already have in your house. We like the idea to make an origami heart with wings. Don't have that much time on your hands? Cut out simple hearts and cover the kitchen table or couch or…

This weekend is Super Bowl Sunday. While we know many of you were rooting for teams that did not make it into the big game, we also know you still will be glued to your television Sunday, watching a great game, great commercials and a great halftime show. We wanted to give you a resource to prepare all the food your friends and family will no doubt look forward to eating. So, just click on the links below to take you to the site with the recipe. Super Easy Bolingbrook Patch gave us recipes for guacamole and meatballs and a link to 50 more options. We saw this photo on the Gluten-Free resource…

We have been lucky in Illinois this winter. We have not yet seen bitter cold or a large shower of snow. But, it is pretty doubtful that we will get through the entire winter season without either of the traditional markings of an Illinois winter. With that in mind, Patch has compiled a list of items you should keep in your car during the colder months. Much of the information below was compiled from weather.com. First Aid Kit: This is something that you should actually have in your car year-round. A basic one can be used for everyday bumps and bruises. A more extensive one could help if you …

It takes 21 days to make a habit. So, those of you who resolved to do better in 2013 may be feeling about ready to give up. But don't. Stick with it. And if your resolution was to be more fit, continue to brave the crowds at the gyms and outlast them. There are a variety of tips out there to keep you on track and motivated. Simplefitnesssolutions.com offers a number of tips to keep going. Here are our favorites: Write down the reasons you began this journey on an index card and put it where you can see it every day. Figure out what is getting in your way to getting your goal - improve your …

Patch already gave you tips on how much you can drink before your alcohol level makes it unsafe to drive. But before you take that first sip of champagne, we want to remind you of some sobering statistics regarding DUI. Mothers Against Drunk Driving at www.madd.org provided the following: One in three people will be involved in an alcohol-related crash in their lifetime. An average drunken driver has driven drunk 87 times before his or her first arrest. Drunken driving costs each adult in this country almost $500 per year. One person is injured from an alcohol-related crash every minute. 50-…

The day after Thanksgiving is the busiest day of the season at Tammen Treeberry Farm in Wilmington. And, it does not matter if Thanksgiving comes early. "November 23 is the earliest it gets," Tammen said. "The day after Thanksgiving is our busiest day of the season." The farm offers any size tree for $50, including tax. Purchasers get to choose and cut down their selection. "We don’t have any precut trees," Tammen said. "We used to sell that way, but it got to be where people did not want to buy them." Because he used to sell both, though, Tammen is uniquely qualified to offer tips on what to…

Next week, it's time to cook the turkey and all the fixins that go with a Thanksgiving feast. All that cooking is hard work. Chefs, even those working in a home kitchen, need to take steps to make sure that all that cooking does not take its toll on his or her body. ATI Physical Therapy have some tips that can help keep you pain-free. “Activities such as standing too long while cooking, meal preparation, and lifting heavy objects like turkeys and boxes can cause back, shoulder and neck pain,” says Tara Smith, physical therapist at ATI. “There are simple things that can be done to help …

Terry D'Arcy, who owns three car dealerships in Joliet, says that this time of the year is indeed the best to buy a car. "It is a good time to buy a car the later part of the year, if you intend to keep it," he said. That's because D'Arcy said he has seen a trend in more and more people leasing cars instead of buying them. "There's probably 35 to 40 percent of people who like to trade in three or four years," D'Arcy said. Years ago, D'Arcy said only about 5 to 7 percent of people chose to lease. No matter whether you're going to buy a car or lease a car, here are some tips: Know the value of …

When you walk into MacFarlane Pumpkin Patch, you see big pots of mums. Those are not for sale, but rather are flowers the family has cultivated for years. They have bloomed multiple times and continue to come back year after year. Keeping mums healthy and continually blooming is not that hard, Marilyn Macfarlane said. Marilyn Macfarlane is married to Drew Macfarlane, whose family has owned the farm for 50 years. The best way to keep your mums blooming year after year is to plant them in the ground. But that is not the only way. You can also winter mums in pots if you care for them in the …

Let's say you bought a pumpkin for the purpose of carving eyes, nose and a mouth and lighting the inside with a candle. You have gutted the pumpkin and there on your table, are the seeds and the pulp. You may have no idea what to do with it. Or, you may be the kind of family that pulls the seeds out, throws them on a pan with some salt and roasts them in the oven. But, there is so much more you can do with pumpkin. Patch has pointed you in the direction of the University of Illinois Extension before. We told you what to look for in a carving pumpkin and what to look for in a baking pumpkin. …