According to the American Time Use Survey conducted by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, people spend most of their average day at home, engaging in personal care, household maintenance, or socialization and entertainment. Thus, improving the quality of your home life enhances a significant part of your well-being since we spend most of our time in the house.
In this article, discover seven tips on elevating your home life via two aspects: your family and your house.
The Family
The family is widely regarded as the ‘basic unit of society.’ Your family bears witness to most of your firsts. For newlyweds and new parents, the family serves as their support system as they navigate married life and, in the latter’s case, parenthood. The family helps children build character and develop their personal principles and values.
Thus, starting with your family when improving your home life is only fitting. Here are tips to get you started.
Tip #1: Eat a Balanced Diet
Transforming your house into a home often lies in the personal touches that reflect your personality and preferences. A well-decorated home fosters warmth, comfort, and a sense of belonging. Consider adding decorative elements like family photos, art pieces, or handmade crafts to infuse your space with character. Rearrange furniture to maximize functionality and flow, creating inviting areas for relaxation and socialization. Seasonal updates, like winter interior painting, can refresh your interiors and provide a cosy atmosphere during colder months. Thoughtful personalization can turn your home into a sanctuary where you love spending time and making memories with your family.
A balanced diet consists of various foods that cover the daily nutritional value recommended by the Food and Drug Administration. A suggested meal may contain 50% fruits and vegetables, 25% whole grains, and 25% healthy protein. These values can adjust depending on your overall health goals. To ensure that you cover all nutritional requirements, you can take dietary supplements such as Vitamin D to help strengthen bones and Vitamin B to improve memory and mood. Also, remember to drink water! Proper hydration brings plenty of health benefits, such as improved physical performance and digestion.
Sometimes, introducing healthy eating to your kids can be challenging. To help sustain your family’s healthy eating habits, lead by example. Children tend to follow what they see more than what you tell them to do. It also helps to involve your kids in meal preparation, such as designing your meals for the week and cooking the meals.
Tip #2: Exercise Regularly
Regular exercise contributes to a healthier lifestyle by enhancing brain function, strengthening muscles and joints, and boosting the immune system.
Additionally, you can turn exercise into a bonding activity for the family. You can go for jogs around the block together or play frisbee at the local park. Exercising with your family also ensures you see your workout through since studies show that having a workout buddy helps you stick to your regimen better.
There are parts of the home that are going to require routine care every year to maintain your quality of life, as well. For instance, arranging for your heating and AC to be serviced, with the heating before winter and the AC before summer, can ensure that your home remains comfortable, climate-controlled, and cost-effective. Otherwise, your HVAC appliances can become inefficient and ineffective over time due to wear and tear, especially if you use them a lot.
Tip #3: Make Time for Bonding Activities
Spending time with them is one of the best ways to establish more profound and meaningful connections with your family. Bonding promotes open communication among family members and shows that you consider your family your top priority.
You and your family can do a lot together. You can work on your common hobbies or interests, such as holding book discussions and movie reviews. You can play board games indoors or play outdoor games in your backyard.
On weekdays, when work and school occupy most of your family’s schedule, eating together may help. Gathering during mealtimes facilitates discussion and lets you destress and unwind after a long day.
The House
Upgrading your home’s structure can bring remarkable results in improving your home life, mainly through increasing the level of comfort and security you experience in your home. These upgrades don’t even need to cost you a ton of money! Below are cost-efficient tips for you to check out.
Tip #1: Declutter and Clean Your Home
People primarily clean the house for hygienic purposes. Regularly cleaning your home prevents the spread of illnesses by removing potential breeding grounds for germs, bacteria, and even disease-carrying insects and rodents.
Aside from the physical health benefits, cleaning does wonders for your mental health. The mind can perceive a cluttered and disorganized home as a sign of chaos, which can be stressful. Keeping your living space neat can keep stress at bay. As one famous proverb goes, “Out of sight, out of mind.” In addition, cleaning releases endorphins, brain chemicals that impart the feeling of happiness. Cleaning also helps you slow down and turn your attention to the task at hand, which improves your focus.
However, making your family jump on the cleaning bandwagon may be tricky, especially if you have children. To circumvent this concern, try to make cleaning a more fun activity. For example, you can incorporate games into the cleaning activity, such as timed challenges or treasure hunts.
Furthermore, children possess shorter attention spans compared to adults. Instead of hour-long sessions during the weekend, you can scatter shorter cleaning sessions throughout the week to keep your child engaged throughout the cleaning session.
Tip #2: Perform Annual Maintenance Inspections and Repairs
An annual maintenance inspection is an important step to take in the upkeep of your house. It lets you discover issues in your home early on and repair them before they become more significant problems. This preventive maintenance measure provides your family with a safe and secure living space, giving you peace of mind.
You can do these inspections yourself, or you can seek the help of a third-party inspector for a more professional and thorough checking. If you decide to perform the inspection yourself, prepare a checklist beforehand to ensure that you cover all necessary areas. Check your electrical fixtures, wiring, plumbing system, ventilation, exterior facade, and interior furnishings. . Do not forget to check your hvac system, and it might even be worth checking this twice per year – once as you’re coming into summer and once into winter to be on the safe side. You should also check your osburn wood stoves or any other kind of heating you might have, just in case.
Pest control should be part of any annual maintenance inspection. Pests not only cause property damage but can also pose health threats. When performing an inspection, check for signs of infestation such as droppings, gnaw marks, holes in walls or furniture, and pest activity around food storage areas. Seal cracks properly to keep out pests while maintaining cleanliness also can help keep pests at bay. Finally, consider scheduling regular professional treatments from a pest control professional to maintain a pest-free home.
Tip #3: Install Cost-Saving Upgrades
Certain upgrades can cost you upfront upon installation, but they can help you save a lot in the long run while making your life more comfortable. For example, you can conserve water and save on water bills by investing in more efficient plumbing fixtures. These fixtures include low-flush toilets and water-saving showers, which deliver their expected functionality using less water.
In terms of energy saving, you can start with a small-scale project, such as switching from incandescent bulbs to LED bulbs. LED bulbs shine brighter, last longer, and use energy better than their incandescent counterparts. Once you get into the groove, you can embark on larger improvement projects, such as installing a home solar power system. A solar power system protects you from power interruptions and reduces electricity bills.
Tip #4: Hire Professional Exterior Cleaning Services
One effective way to boost your home’s efficiency and curb appeal is by hiring professional exterior cleaning services. Accumulated dirt, grime, and mold on your home’s exterior can greatly impact its insulation performance and energy consumption. Services like pressure washing for siding, roofs, and driveways not only keep them looking their best but can also prevent costly repairs later down the line. Regular professional exterior cleaning ensures that your property remains both aesthetically pleasing and functionally sound.
And of course, if you’ve done all that and things haven’t changed, it’s worth speaking to an insulation contractor because that could be the issue.
Conclusion
Elevating your home life doesn’t have to be expensive. You can improve the quality of your home life by strengthening family relations and upgrading your home to a space where you’ll love to live.
To know more about other factors that affect your quality of life and how to improve them, check out this resource.
