PSA: Change your Filters (Free Filters + $250 Target Gift Card Giveaway)

This post is sponsored by FilterEasy.

It’s not the most glamorous post topic, but it’s an honest one: Go change your air filter!

Last year, when spring began, we had someone come out and test our heating and air-conditioning unit. We had just gone to solar power, and we wanted to make sure our energy usage was as low as possible. One of the first questions he asked me was about our air filters. How often were we changing them? If the airflow is reduced from clogging, it can force your AC and Heating systems to work harder. I realized I wasn’t even sure if I were pointing to the right place. You mean those vents? Is that the air filter?

This is one of those things about working from home that no one really talks about: you become the go-to contact for every handy-person, delivery, repair service, etcetera. And, while I’m not proud of this, there are just certain things I don’t pay attention to when it comes to home maintenance. I’m slowly learning—both because I have to, and because it’s embarrassing when someone asks you about your roofing material and you aren’t sure what to say.

Frankly, it comes back to arbitrary divisions of labor. For example, Aron is the dog poop guy, the trash guy, the one who renews our diaper subscription. I keep the kids nails’ trim, get the laundry going, and buy the birthday cards. He makes the plumbing appointment; I meet with the plumber. And so on.

Anyway, it turned out air filters hadn’t made it onto either of our lists, and that they should be changed every one to three months—both to save energy, as we discovered, and to keep the air you breathe cleaner.

If you haven’t changed yours in a while, just wait ’til you see your old one. It’s so gross! In fact, as a result, when we started getting settled in the cabin last month, one of the very first things we did was change the air filter. We also were happy that, coincidentally, FilterEasy got in touch to tell us about their filter subscription service, so we won’t forget when it is time to change them again.

They deliver your exact number of filters, in exactly the right sizes, only when you are supposed to change them (so you don’t store them and forget about them). When the box shows up at your front door, it’s time to change the filters.

Go check your filter—cleaning-wise, it’s immediate gratification, and you’ll help your cooling system to be more efficient for the summer.

Giveaway! Visit http://air.filtereasy.com/hitherandthither/ to place an order and the first 150 people who enter their email address will receive their first set of filters of any size for free (plus free shipping)! All entries following the first 150 will get 65% off their first set of filters. Plus, for the next 10 days, all entries on http://air.filtereasy.com/hitherandthither/ will be entered to win a $250 Target gift card! You can modify or cancel your order at any time.

This post is sponsored by FilterEasy. Don’t see your size directly on our site? Simply email [email protected] with your size, mention this blog post, and you can still get your first order FREE!

Sunday in San Diego: Scenes from Mother’s Day

We’re on the road this week—Aron had a conference in San Diego, so I requested we all check into the hotel so we could have room service on Mother’s Day and go to the San Diego Zoo!

When I was growing up in Long Beach, my aunt and uncle lived in one of the tall towers on Coronado, and my mom would often drive us over the long blue bridge to spend weekends there; my aunt was a member of the zoo (she and her friends would take their morning walks all over Balboa Park) and so I have a lot of memories of visiting. I’d been really looking forward to going back with the kids! I wish they could have tried my uncle’s amazingly thin, delicious buckwheat pancakes.

(Love Hudson here, so focused on those cinnamon rolls.)

It was a short stay in San Diego—we have to go back soon as there’s so much more to see!—but we’re heading up the coast and making stops at Disneyland (Skyler’s first time, she’ll be just a little older than Hudson was); in Big Sur (where I’ll be referencing some of Natalie’s tips), and Monterey (where I hope we will revisit the aquarium and go tidepooling).

P.S. More photos on Instagram. Also, scenes from last Mother’s Day and a 5 Things guide to San Diego.

Summer packing with Boden

We’ve got a lot of travel coming up this summer, so I’ve started thinking about what clothes I’ll be bringing along and what I might still need.

I always want to pack new things and end up shopping at the last minute, but then I end up wearing so many of the tried-and-true. Recall that white boxy shirt I wore almost every day last summer? I could have worn that every day on our Mexico trip and practically did.

I’ve actually discovered that it’s really helpful to test-run things before they come along, so that I can see how I feel in them, make sure they’re comfortable, and perhaps check out how they look in a few photos. But—and I know this is silly, but it’s true—I find it can be a little tricky because if I start wearing and washing it too much, it doesn’t feel new anymore and I find myself coveting that new thing to pull out of my suitcase.

I just picked up a bunch of new items from Boden‘s Summer catalogue and I have started wearing them the past few weeks to see what’s going to become that thing I choose to put on over and over again. I asked my talented friend, Susan, to come over and take some pictures to share…

Keep Reading >