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, ...

Dear Dr. Linda, According to the Merriam Webster Dictionary, a vacation is defined as follows: 1) a period spent away from home or business in travel or recreation; 2) a scheduled period during which activity (as of a court or school) is suspended; 3) a respite or a time of respite from something. Vacation this year has been stressful once again because of required summer reading. My kids are not big readers. Despite the fact that I have two master’s degrees and am a successful businesswoman, neither am I. It’s not that I ...

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 Committee on Preschool Special Education (CPSE) or Committee on Special Education (CSE) meeting. Questions can range from “How best do parents advocate for their children?” to “How do parents interpret formal tests that ...

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 ...

We’ve had our fair share of goldfish. Most of them were won at a local fairs and carnivals so I could understand if they may not have been the healthiest fish in the world. However, I’ve had friends who’ve had pet goldfish like mine that lasted for a dozen years (the fish, not the friends), so maybe it’s not the fish… maybe it’s us. Either way, we haven’t had the best luck with fish to the point where I was afraid if my kid told someone we were on our 11th goldfish in as many months, they would ...

Last week my friend Dave took me and a couple of other friends out for a very pleasant tour of the Long Island Sound on his boat. He has a peppy little bowrider that he tows over to the Norwalk boat launch at Veteran’s Park. The term “boat launch” brought back some vivid memories of when Dave and I owned a boat together. Dave taught me everything I know about how to pilot a boat. However, no one who’s boat has been hit by mine should hold that against him, since he taught me a lot more than I learned. One thing that did ...

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 ...

I’m holding in my hands a book that belonged to someone I knew very well, but never met! She left this world last month, at the age of 90, so I’ll never get to see her in life—but we shared something extremely special: We loved and cherished the same two people, her son and my daughter. Ilene and Curtis met after each had lived through terribly traumatic situations and found in each other solace, friendship and love. Sally, Curtis’ mother, lived in North Carolina and, because of health issues, could not attend their ...

Did you read “Dear Abby’s” column published a few weeks ago?  At 91 years of age, “Old Geezer Out West” had written, from the heart, what he was feeling.   “I’ve outlived many of my family members and long-time friends” and how social events are few and far between because advanced age and distance have made it almost impossible to see those who are left. He further stated that at a family gathering—and he looks forward to these—“when folks look up from their cell ...