Generation NeXt Parenting

Packing, Life, and Travel Prep

Right now our suitcases are 90% packed for the Czech Republic, our curriculum is close to being finished for the English camp, and my to-do list of things I need to finish before we head out is getting smaller.

I just had to tell you about one of the cool things we did before our trip ... we actually installed a new lock on our front door! Exciting, I know!

Actually, we are very excited about it, and we've been showing it off to friends. It's a combination lock, and it was VERY important to install it for my grandma. You see, my 78-year-old grandmother lives with us, and even though we have many people checking up on her, she'll be spending more time alone during our trip than she's used to. She'll also be letting herself in and out of her house when we're gone.

For as long as she'd lived with us, grandma has had trouble with the deadbolt lock. You had to get the key in just right for it to work. Bothersome even for me!

Grandma's also one of those people who changes her purse with her outfit, so there's been times she's left the house and has forgotten her key in "the other purse." This hasn't been too much of a problem when we're around to let her in ... but we'll be in Europe! So ... we found this awesome Schlage lock that has a keypad. You just punch in the right code and the lock opens with a simple twist of the knob.

We were able to give Grandma a code (one she'll remember) and with a push of a few buttons she's inside. It's also awesome because we can give separate codes to all those people that we've asked to check in on Grandma. In fact, we can program 19 different codes if we want to. (And my husband thinks it's great. He's a gizmo person so this was right up his alley. And it was easy to install, too!)

The kids love the new lock, too ... and we've been showing it off to all our friends who've been over. You can find out more information here:
http://consumer.schlage.com/mediaroom/default.asp

Okay, so that's taken care of. It's marked off my to-do list ... and I have a whole lot more piece of mind for the trip! Now ... if I can just figure out a code to water all my plants ...

posted by Tricia Goyer @ 2:02 PM