Since decorating mistakes can be very costly and time consuming, I always urge my clients to do their homework before undertaking any redecorating project. What kind of homework?  A good way to begin is to flip through design and decorating magazines, and visit websites dedicated to interior décor. Start collecting pictures of various design products and styles that appeal to you and you can visualize as your own.  Once you start identifying colors, designs, and various furnishings that illustrate your dream room, ...

It is almost unfathomable to me that we are out of power again. Weren’t we just recovering from the back-to-back nor’easters of March? Yikes! And while I am still out of power, I consider myself and my family to be fortunate; just a few houses from mine, and all over Westchester and Putnam counties, there are trees and wires down on roads, on cars, on homes and businesses. Indeed, we are lucky.  So I don’t feel it appropriate, or even possible, to write a lighthearted out-and-about Diversions this week. Instead, what ...

Dear Dr. Linda, I am in second grade and have a problem about math. My teacher just keeps giving me homework and it’s driving me crazy. Because she keeps giving it to me on weekends and spring and summer breaks. And it’s only one level and it’s too hard. But the other people who have special needs get to be moved into a higher or lower group and they learn even more because it’s their level. I’m feeling very overwhelmed. Emi Dear Emi, It’s not that often that a second-grader writes to me. Thank ...

Dana Stahl, a learning specialist and educational consultant, will address educational questions and concerns that parents may have regarding their children’s academic development and progress in school. Topics can center on such concerns as how to handle homework dilemmas or what questions to ask at a CSE meeting. Questions can range from “How best do parents advocate for their children?” to “How do parents interpret formal tests that have been administered?” to “Which schools and colleges are right for my ...

2 Hollowbrook Place, Cortlandt $550,000.00 This unique 3 family home boasts tremendous curb appeal with a stone and brick exterior. Each unit offers 2 spacious bedrooms, 1 updated full bath, updated kitchens, separate entrances and separate patios. Two of the three units have beautiful brick and stone fireplaces that create a warm and cozy atmosphere in the living rooms. There is plenty of backyard space for tenants to use and ample parking via 1 car attached garage, driveway, gravel parking lot on side of house. Additional unit used ...

Did you watch “Roseanne” last week? The reboot of the popular show from the ‘90s opened to huge ratings. So huge, in fact, it earned the highest ratings of any network program in the last six years. More than 18 million people tuned in to watch both of the first two half-hour episodes. That’s quite an accomplishment for a show that had a terrible final year and then took a 20-year hiatus.  I am just going to put it right out front. The reason for this huge opening is that both the character of Roseanne Connor ...

One morning, I had a big cup of coffee as I usually do, and then I got in the car and drove 40 minutes to a clothing store I had been curious to check out. I don’t normally drive 40 minutes to go shopping, but since I am a stay-at-home mom and everyone knows we stay-at-home moms just spend our time shopping and eating bonbons, I figured, “What the hey.” Having had the aforementioned monster cup of coffee 40 minutes earlier, I naturally had to go to the bathroom the instant I arrived at the store. “Please tell me ...

Because of my deadline, I’m writing this before the fact, but I never received my invitation to the royal nuptials last Saturday. Not even ONE invitation. Nothing. I was camped out at the mailbox all week, and even had a tip for the mailman, and also one from Christmas, which must have gotten lost in the mail.  Prince Harry and Meghan Markle didn’t announce the guest list, but Nacho Figueras, an Argentinian polo player, was on it and I wasn’t. Obviously a guy who can sit on a horse and chase a ball around with a stick ...

We spend so much time teaching our children not to bully one another and not to gossip, but all too often adults don’t practice what they preach, especially given the often toxic and viral nature of social media. Given the series of events last week regarding a disputed story involving the Somers girls and Yorktown boys lacrosse players, it seems that Somers school administrators were bullied into making premature statements. Many people are so quick to judge—and to judge publicly—without any deference to due process ...

Who says paperwork is not sexy?! This week, I was so impressed (and even charmed) by the paperwork and systems of two different women. I was even a little envious. In the first case, my client Lois in Ardsley decided that it was time to get her paperwork in order. After six years of shifting paperwork, a dysfunctional home office, an international move and the purchase of a new home, she had HAD it!  Before this, every time there was a family event necessitating the use of the dining room, Lois would load everything on the table into a ...

Once upon a time, before computers and texting and email and Facebook, we had telephones with dials. They spun around and connected us with the live voice of whomever we were calling. That’s what telephones were used for: talking to other people. They had an ear piece and a mouth piece and we made what was known as “conversation.” Today we have layers. If we use phones instead of computers to reach our doctor’s office or a business, a recorded voice gives us a choice of numbers to press: 1 for English, 2 for Spanish, ...

I celebrated my birthday last week, surrounded by the love of family: What a joyful occasion. I’ve thought about past celebrations and how tremendous it was to be remembered and loved. One such birthday was a real hoot. As you know, my mother’s birthday also was in May. Years ago, we were having family over to celebrate her day; because of busy calendars, the party was scheduled before both of our birthdays. While preparing some snacks, I looked out the window and saw a group of my friends coming down the driveway. This is ...