read frommer's.

Did you know that Mother Rabbit never travels to a city or country without reading the Frommer's Guide first? It is true. If I am spending the $ to travel to a new destination, I want to maximize my expereince and get the most bang-for-my-buck while I am there.

I am a huge fan of the Frommer's star rating system and I use it to select restaurants, make hotel choices and to decide which sights are most worth my time. Planning for a trip and studying the area enhances the anticipation, which is part of the fun.

If I had to rate all of my advice tidbits, this one would be in my Top Ten. If you are investing in a trip of any kind, purchase a Frommers Guide for the region and maximize your investment.

rinse with warm salt water.

Do you have a sore throat? Rinse or gargle with warm salt water. Do you have a canker sore? Rinse your mouth with warm salt water.

Following this age-old advice is a simple way to keep your mouth clean and promote healing. Your grandparents did it. You should too. Some of the best advice is advice that has been around for a hundred years. Mike has some sores in his mouth from the surgical equipment during his cancer removal surgery. Mother Rabbit's advice: Rinse with warm salt water.

the gift bag & brownies.

Our friend Sharon is a genius and Mother Rabbit wants to pass on this brilliant advice. Mike and I are currently in ICU in a hospital in St. Louis where Mike is recovering from surgery to remove cancer from his tonsil area. Sharon baked a huge tray of brownies and told me to give it to all the nurses on duty and tell them they are from Mike. I have never seen such a happy feeding frenzy when I set the brownies down. What a brilliant idea for some excellent care & attention for the patient!

She also brought a "gift bag" filled with the handiest stuff for a hospital stay: bottled water, breath mints, granola bars, chocolate covered edamome, magazines, a sudoku book, hand sanitizer, fancy chocolates and a cute paper pad & pen. She also somehow took the logo from his cancer blog (MikesLongRide.blogspot.com) and iron transferred it to the tote bag she put the goods in. Very charming. Guests aren't always what you need during a stressful hospital stay, but handing the caregiver a bag of goodies is genius.

Mother Rabbit says: Remember the power of brownies for the nurses and how a basket of goodies might be the best way to visit.

airport socks in action.

I posted advice last fall recommending "airport socks" for going through security at airports. Mother Rabbit likes clean feet and she likes putting only clean feet inside her shoes and in her bed. Walking on certainly-not-clean paths through the X-ray machine was a problem for Mother Rabbit until she started putting an extra pair of socks in her carry-on bag to slip over her feet & socks after slipping off her shoes in the TSA security line.

Upon reading about this, one of my beloved readers sent me a pair of "rabbit socks" which are now my faithful airport socks. Try it. You'll like it.

profound wisdom.

Elizabeth Elliot, wife of martyred missionary Jim Elliot, mouthed some of the best advice ever given for suffering. She wisely said that when you are devastated by loss or tragedy, just "do the next thing". If you can remember this, you will be equipped to survive whatever life hurls your way. Another favorite bit of wisdom to ponder: When asked what he would do if the world would end tomorrow, Martin Luther said "I would plant a tree today." The depth and breadth of wisdom packed in a few words from these saints is staggering.

enjoy a cr-afternoon.

When was the last time you spent several hours doing something wonderfully creative? When was the last time you spent an afternoon being crafty? My daughter's friends planned a CRAFTernoon doing various creative projects together, and as soon as I heard about it I had to have one. This past Saturday on a visit to daughter Abby in Minneapolis we spent the afternoon with our needlework projects. We visited a yarn shop for color inspiration for starters... I showed Abby how to design her own pattern on graph paper for a needlepoint project... and I counted the stitches and painted the canvas for my next Christmas stocking using a beloved Mary Beale counted cross stitch pattern. Abby's inspiration for her needlepoint pillow was a favorite vintage rose print. We spent hours sitting around her kitchen table on that sunny crafternoon!

Grab an unfinished project or start a new one, but enjoy the pleasure of a whole afternoon with your creative juices flowing among friends.

3 important questions.

When my bunnies were little I read a book entitled "How to Really Love Your Child" by Ross Campbell. The nutshell wisdom I learned is this: When your child acts up or is naughty, before you disciple them for their inappropriate behavior, ask these three questions. Are they tired? Are they hungry? Is their emotional tank full? Sometimes, the resulting behavior was my fault. For instance, we were out shopping and - oops - I skipped their nap and - oops - I skipped their lunch. More often than not, meeting one of their basic needs fixed the problem. Learn to review these important questions in your mind next time you have naughty girls or naughty boys on your hand. Important Note: This applies to husbands too.