Lilac City Momma

Lynn

The Best Corporate Caterers Will Look After Your Guests

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You hire a professional catering service because you want to serve only the best for your guests. Obviously, you want to make them feel satisfied. And especially if you’re a mother, like me, you will want to serve your guests more than a quick crockpot meal. Also, if you are hosting a corporate event, there will probably be important guests in attendance, and you don’t want to disappoint them.

The reason why professional caterers are worthy of doing the job is because they have tons of experience in the business. They will not just provide food for the guests. They will give the best possible dining experience. They will arrange people to wait on tables, and attend the requests of guests.

Aside from the main dishes that you order, they will also provide food for those with special requests. Vegetarians or those who have food restrictions due to allergies, or religion, will also be catered for.

From the start until the end

The best part about hiring professional caterers is that they will be there to provide service from the moment the food counter is opened until the guests leave the venue. They are used to serving important people who may have lots of requests. They have well-trained staff who have done corporate catering in the past.

You won’t be embarrassed

There is huge pressure when organising a corporate event. You have to consider a lot of details. Food is the major part of such events, so you might have to allot a bigger budget for catering, but it’s worth paying a bit more to hire an experienced professional catering service.

Reserve now

If you are organising your event during a peak season, expect that the top catering companies will be busy. They might have to refuse your request, especially if they have already accepted a lot of catering requests. Once you have found the best caterer, after a tasting session, you should book them right away. Of course, you need to check the overall budget but you should not hesitate especially if you know that their services will guarantee the satisfaction of everyone in attendance.

In the event that there is a need to cancel the event, or hold it on another date, check the cancellation policy of the catering company. You might still have to pay a certain amount of money. However, if the cancellation is at the last minute, don’t expect a full refund.

Pick the best professional caterers and entrust them with this major aspect of your event. You still have a lot of other concerns to attend to. You will be able to focus on other details once you know the food is already taken care of, and look forward to a successful corporate event.

Excellent Gift Ideas To Celebrate Newborn Babies

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When a friend or a family member has a baby, it is common to get them a gift to help celebrate the occasion, but it can be hard to know what to get, especially with so many other people buying gifts also. You can find some excellent ideas for newborn babies on the pinterest.com.au website to help get you started, and you can also carry on reading below and find some great gift ideas.

An Arm Full Of Nappies

If there is one thing that you can never have too many of, it is nappies. You can get some excellent nappy cakes in a variety of different designs, which often include a soft cuddly toy for the child. There will come a time when this gift is more than appreciated!

A Basket Full Of Gifts

There are baby gifts sold online throughout Australia, and one of the most popular items that people buy is baby hampers, which are the gift that just keeps on giving. A baby hamper is made up of an assortment of different products for newborn babies such as;

  • Nappies
  • Clothes
  • Blankets
  • Soaps
  • Powders
  • Toys

The hampers will usually come in a variety of different sizes, which also means that there is one to suit pretty much any budget and be very helpful to any mommy. The baskets are designed to include all of the essentials for a newborn baby, which get used regularly and have to be continuously stocked up.

A Gift For The Parents

You tend to find that the majority of gifts that people give are geared around the baby, so you may wish to give something to the parents that they will appreciate. Your options are only limited by your budget and can range anywhere from a gift voucher for a city break for two, or even just offer to babysit one day to give the new parents a couple of hours off. You could just get a couple of bottles of their favourite wine and a takeaway meal, but no matter what you decide to give trust that it will be very much appreciated.

A Gift For Years To Come

Another excellent idea for the perfect gift for a newborn baby is a family portrait from a local photography studio. What better way to commemorate an addition to the family by having all of your family on a set of photographs that you will be able to keep and look back on for many years to come.

Clothes, Clothes, And More Clothes

Something else that the child will go through like no tomorrow is clothes. Many people will bring clothes suitable for the first couple of months which is fine as they will get used no doubt. But you can also buy clothes for the baby that they will grow into in the coming months, which will be one less thing for the proud new parents to buy. Just make sure that you buy the right colour clothes for the sex of the baby, or you could find that they go unworn!

3 Creative Recipes for Spiralized Vegetables or Fruit

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Along with the newly risen awareness of healthy eating came a bunch of kitchen devices to help us prepare colourful and fun recipes. With Paleo and Keto on the rise, the top rated vegetable spiralizer transforms boring everyday fruits and vegetables into long veggie noodles or appetizing fruit desserts. The top rated vegatable spiralizers are devices that are normally able to not only produce one kind of spiral, but many different kinds due to interchangeable blades. Such as the “Brieftons 5 blade spiralizer” that not only got the highest rating, but also offers great value for the money. It offers the possibility to five different vegetable spirales and has a costumer-friendly desgin. A bit cheaper, but also delivered with five blades, is the much smaller “SimpleTaste Spiral Slicer”. This vegetable spiralizer is much more simple than a lot of kitchen appliances but very handy. Additionally: most spiralizers don’t cost more than $30 and you will use these devices for years to come and can help with many fun and healthy mommy recipes!

Once you see what great recipes can be composed – you’ll be happy to invest the money! All recipes are for two adults, so adjust the amounts based on the servings you need.

1. Everyone’s staple: low-carb zucchini pasta with traditional Italian sauce
One of the most popular recipes out there – and so simple it’s a shame you haven’t tried it before!

Ingredients: 

3 large zucchinis – yellow or green
fresh or dried basil (10 leaves or 1tbsp)
1 tbsp of nutritional yeast
1 small onion
12 ounces of sleved tomatoes
1tbsp of extra virgin olive oil
pinch of salt and pepper

Instructions: 

Wash and clean the zucchini of any soil, then use a small to medium blade in your spiralizer and slice zucchini into long crunchy raw noodles. You will want to stop from time to time and cut through the spiral as it might be hard to eat the dish otherwise. Once your zucchinis are done you prepare the sauce.

Peel and cut the small onion and put it into a small pan together with the olive oil. Fry for a short period. Add the tomatoes, the nutritional yeast, salt and pepper as well as the basil. Cook for five minutes. Add additional water if needed.
Arrange the zucchini pasta and serve with the hot pasta sauce!

2. So pretty: colourful Indian summer beetroot salad

Ingredients:

4 raw beetroots (medium to large)
1 medium parsnip
1 medium carrot
2 medium oranges
1 cup of cashews
1 small lemon
4 tbsp of white vinegar
a hand full of fresh rucola
pinch of salt and pepper

Instructions: 

Peel beetroots, parsnip and carrot and use spiralizer with a small blade to cut into spirals. Peel and cut oranges and slice them into thin pieces. For the dressing use a blender and add cashews, the juice of one lemon as well as the vinegar and salt and pepper. Blend into a creamy dressing. Wash the rucola. Arrange the colourful noodles first, put the oranges second, top with rucola and finally sprincle on the dressing to your liking.

3. Spiralized cinnamon apples with vanilla ice cream

Ingredients: 

4 medium apples
1 tbsp of cinnamon
1 tbsp of maple syrup
1 ounce of vanilla icream
2-4 fresh
mint leaves to decorate

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Peel apples and use medium to large blade to spiralize the apples. Mix spiralized apples with cinnamon and maple syrup and bake for ten to fifteen minutes. Serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and some fresh mint leaves on top. Enjoy!

When and How to Conduct a Home Electrical Inspection

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Your home is probably your most valuable physical asset. This means you need to do everything in your power to protect it. Part of keeping a home in good condition is knowing about various kinds of necessary inspections. Here’s when and how to conduct a home electrical inspection on your home.

When to Conduct a Home Electrical Inspection

Before you go through all the effort of doing an electrical inspection, it’s good to know if this is actually necessary for your situation. There are a few times when it pretty much always makes sense to get an electrical inspection:

  • You’re Buying a House: This is the time when you absolutely need to have someone take a look at a home’s electrical system. When purchasing a home, you really have no way of knowing its true history. The previous owners could have had their cousin do some free electrical work. While this could be totally up to code, it could also be dangerous for you and your family. Always make sure to have the electrical system checked before purchasing a house—either during the standard home inspection or later with an electrician.

 

  • Your Home Is Really Old: Even if you’ve been in the same home for 30 years, it might be a good idea to have someone look at the electrical system. After all, it’s been at least 30 years since the last time someone inspected it. A lot can happen to electrical works over the years. Rodents can be a huge issue for electrical systems in the long term, as they are known to chew on wires.

  • You’re Adding to Your Home: Additions are great for homeowners. However, they can complicate the inner workings of a house. If you’re adding on to your home, make sure that you have an expert double check that the new electrical work matches up with the existing system.

 

  • Your Power Has Been Acting Up: If you’ve noticed your lights flickering, or any other kind of inconsistencies in your electricity, it’s time to have an electrical inspection. There could very well be a serious issue with your system. Ignoring this is only setting you up for a serious issue down the line.

Obviously, it’s important to make sure that your electrical panel and system are in working order. Often times, your homeowners insurance will cover this. Get homeowners insurance quotes online to find a provider that will cover replacement costs for electrical systems, or damage caused by electrical system failure.

How to Conduct a Home Electrical Inspection

For most people, doing a DIY electrical inspection is out of the question. If you’re someone who isn’t confident in their ability to diagnose home issues, don’t start out by trying to figure out the electrical system. Errors here can be much direr than in other areas. However, if you’re pretty handy around the house, there are a few things you can look for while doing your own electrical inspection:

 

  • Check the Service Panel: Your electrical service panel is probably on your home’s exterior, or in the garage or basement. There are a couple things to note here. It’s not a good sign if there is any damage to the service panel, or if there appears to be markings from smoke. Also check if the panel has the older, round fuses, which should be replaced. These are all reasons to call an electrician. Don’t try to fix the panel on your own, as this can be dangerous if done incorrectly.

 

  • Inspect Outlets: You can also do a few things to see if your home’s outlets are giving any warning signs. They shouldn’t be hot, or show anything that resembles a burn mark. It’s also a concern if you can hear a buzzing noise coming from your outlets. These are all additional reasons to call an electrician.

The electrical system is extremely important to the integrity of a home. Don’t make the mistake of thinking you can get by without an electrical inspection. This can come back to haunt you later.  

Simple Steps to Improving the Efficiency of your Concrete Garage

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With climate change being high on the agenda for Government officials across the world, it’s time that homeowners here in the UK begin to make their homes more efficient to lower their carbon footprint. One of the least efficient rooms in most homes is the garage, and that’s because it is an after-thought of most people because it isn’t always seen as a key area of the home.

But a concrete garage can be easily made into an efficient room, which in turn could actually lead people to start saving money on energy bills in the long term.

Here is our top tips on how you can turn your cold and costly concrete garage into an affordable and energy efficient part of your home:

Doors and windows

A lot of concrete garages are cold places, particularly in the winter, and that’s because most garage doors, internal doors and windows have gaps that can let in the cold air. One good idea, particularly for an internal door that goes into your garage, is to install weather stripping seals around the door frame. This means that no drafts will enter your home, and it will keep the air in the garage in there.

When it concerns your concrete garage door, you can apply insulation to the door through the means of what is known as an insulation kit. These can be picked up at any local DIY store and include a roll of insulation, tape and gloves. This will also prevent leaks into your garage which may come from the increase in rain during the winter months.

Meanwhile, if you have a concrete garage that has windows they need to be energy certified to keep out drafts, just like the windows you would install in your home. Generally, a lot of homeowners don’t have windows in their concrete garages, it’s more so if you are looking to convert it.

Insulate

If there is one thing that will keep your concrete garage warm and more efficient it’s insulating the walls and floor. Newer homes will always be insulated, but some garages, including those connected to your home, may not be. To keep your home and garage warm to save on energy bills during the winter, insulate your concrete garage walls by rolling the insulation between joists in the wall. We recommend you speak to a professional before you take on this task, as any errors could lead to you paying more money out in the long run.

Similarly to the walls of your garage, you should also look to sealing the edge of your garage flooring, where it meets the walls. You can do this by using a sealant based caulk, which is again available from most DIY stores. By doing this you will prevent any warm air from leaving the garage by falling through the gaps. And whilst you are working on the flooring of your garage, it might be a good idea to start sealing up any cracks in your concrete garage floor, you can use a similar sealant to do this.

Energy saving

Climate change is one of the biggest topics of conversation at the moment, with one home improvement contributing positively towards this being the installation of solar panels. This form of energy is becoming more popular with homeowners, and that’s because they can reduce energy bills massively. Using natural sunlight you will be able to light up your home and your garage, and luckily for homeowners, there is some amazing deals on with solar panels at the moment, meaning it might be a real cost-effective solution to reducing your carbon footprint.

But if solar panels aren’t for you then you could still also make your concrete garage more efficient by using LED lightbulbs. These will also reduce your energy bills and only use 12 watts of electricity which can actually create a very similar amount of light as a 60 watt bulb so you won’t even notice a difference!

It’s so important now that homeowners across the UK and even around the world, start to become more energy efficient to reduce their carbon footprint. By following the above simple steps, your concrete garage could become much more efficient like the rest of your home.