Always wanted to tour the homes on Millionaire’s Row? Now’s your chance.  Take a peek at residences and churches on the tour this week in House to Home. Then buy your $10 ticket for the April 25 tour. It sells out every year. The Watson-Curtze mansion, at left, is on the tour. Read the full story here.

Check out all of House to Home right here:

At the art of it all – customize your living space with custom art from a local artist. Take a look at what Sabrina Fischer of Sassy Peacock Galleria did for clients. The custom painting on the wall below is exactly what the client wanted — and completed by a local artist. You can do it too. 

Award-winning seeds promise living color
Erie’s Sue Scholz tells us about the AAS winner seed packages we can start indoors, and she gives us a glimpse of the colorful beauty that awaits.

Hello Kitty wall graphics – the 40-year-old cat with no mouth is as popular as ever! 

Midcentury home is fine fit for young couple – 20 somethings love ranches, and they have vision.
Sink includes smart divide – the perfect kitchen sink is out there. Why didn’t someone think of this sooner?
1960s foam home is far-out, sculpted dome – part cave, part art — it’s worth a look.
Adventures with backyard chickens – OK — it’s not for everyone, but backyard farms are gaining fans. Cluck cluck!
Pottery dates to 1920s – sometimes Grandma’s vase is worth a bundle, and sometimes it came from Woolworth’s, but it’s still beautiful.

Pam Parker has been writing about real estate, homes, home improvement and decor for more than 20 years. She is the editor of Lake Erie LifeStyle, Her Times and House to Home at the Erie Times-News in Erie, Pa. She is the mom of three, stepmom to three and step-grandmom to one. 

In 20 years of writing for House to Home, I don’t think I’ve seen so many nice condos and patio homes on the market at one time until now.

The picture is of one of my favorites behind Erie Day School, but there are some for every price range and plenty are open tomorrow for viewing. Read my full story here. One thing to keep in mind about condos is some developments do not permit For Sale signs, so if you, like me, ride through neighborhoods and figure nothing is for sale — check with a Realtor because right now nearly every condo development in the region has a few for sale.

A shout out to all the folks who sent me their favorites. We couldn’t accommodate everyone, but I will be doing this again. You can create your open house tour here. If the condos you want aren’t on the tour, call a listing agent, get an appointment and check out some great places to live — in all price ranges.

Check out all of this week’s House to Home right here:

Clocks are turned ahead, and we all need a nap. Thankfully, Monday is national Napping Day, celebrated every year after Daylight Savings kicks in. Pay attention to this one, ladies. Studies indicate we need more sleep than men. Check out this CBS report.

Napping Day is followed by — scare yourself to death day — if you can hum the theme to the Alfred Hitchcock hour, you know that this unassuming man was behind a lot of classic thrillers.

While “The Birds” was one of scariest movies, I remember some of the TV shows best. The story about The Nurses still gives me the willies.

Hitchock teamed with Cary Grant on four films, and in “Suspicion,” 1940, he left everyone wondering if Grant’s character really was the bad guy. There was even an alternate ending. “Notorious,” 1946, “To Catch a Thief,” 1955, and “North by Northwest,” 1959, also starred Grant.

Fans also know Hitchcock appeared in nearly all of his films. A passerby in the background, a customer — but always in the background. See if you can spot him.

I’m a fan of naps and Hitchock, but it’s rare that anyone would nap after a Hitchcock film.

Pam Parker is the editor of Lake Erie LifeStyle, Her Times and House to Home at the Erie Times-News in Erie, Pa. She is the mom of three, stepmom to three and step-grandmom to one.

It’s always nice to find a surprise in a house for sale. This week in House to Home, we visit  Pebble Creek, where the  home at 5471 Granite Lane has two full floors of living and separate entry points — perfect for a multi-generational Millcreek family. Read the full story here. The house is open next Sunday, and it lists for $249,900.

Check out all of House to Home right here:

At our house we couldn’t keep a goldfish alive for a week with tender loving care, let alone long enough to become a beast.

In Denver, however, a giant goldfish might not be named Goldie but rather Killer. This 1.5-foot beast has been found in Lake Tahoe. Uh-oh. Researchers worry that folks who dump aquarium fish into ponds, lakes and more are damaging the ecosystems.

Apparently, people dumping aquarium fish in freshwater lakes all over the world is creating a problem. Aquarium fish have become a third of the world’s worst aquatic and invasive species, according to a report on Huffington Post that quotes researchers at the University of Nevada, Reno. Read the full report here.

Here at home, I’ve seen folks keep goldfish in their outdoor, man-made ponds for years, and the fish can grow quite large. So these gentle fish can be real survivors. With that big body of Lake Erie water out there, we may need to keep a close eye on Goldie — and keep our potentially invasive fish out of circulation.

Pam Parker is the editor of Lake Erie LifeStyle, Her Times and House to Home at the Erie Times-News in Erie, Pa. She is the mom of three, stepmom to three.  

Dresses, dresses, dresses. I am loving the dresses. This one from ModCloth.com speaks to me because it is called Author Outings Dress. It has a vintage feel — here’s the ModCloth.com description: “goldenrod-yellow fit-and-flare frock! Its retro hue, lightly textured stretch fabric, and see-through, crocheted details make this dress as intriguing as your latest work. You know it’s not fair to judge a book by its cover … ”

I had a dress that color many moons ago, and I also had that collar on another dress. It’s all back!

It is $79 and it is one of a million dresses I love. I am also coveting many frocks from Ruelala.  The site has numerous BCBGMAXAZRIA designs. Click here to see a few. I have friends who told me about these sites. Thanks friends.

Just a heads up — you do have to join to see all the stuff, but it costs nothing — just your e-mail address. So far they have not been stalking me like Zappos does (I get reminders that they miss me on nearly every web page I open — it’s a little creepy!), but I am a huge Zappos fan.

If you’re going to shop online, here’s the full glossary of terms I never knew, thanks to Recessionista.com. Get the full story here:

• B&M = Brick-and-mortar (aka, this deal is redeemable at the store’s physical location).
• BOGO or B1G1F = Buy One Get One Free
• C/O = Cash Off
• CPN = Coupon
• DND = Do Not Double (aka, no doubling up on coupons allowed!)
• GDA = Good deal alert
• GWP = Gift With Purchase
• H/F = Handling Fee
• LPG = Lower Price Guarantee
• MIB orNIB = Mint in Box or New in Box (aka, the product is brand new).
• NAZ = Name Address Zip Code (to see if you are eligible for the deal).
• NED = No expiration date
• NOCC = No Credit Card
• NWOT = New WithOut Tags
• NWT = New With Tags
• POP = Proof of Purchase
• PP = Purchase Price
• SMP = Specially Marked Packages
• TMF = Try Me Free (samples, anyone??)
• UNL = Unlimited
• YMMV = Your Merchandise May Vary

Pam Parker is the editor of Lake Erie LifeStyle, Her Times and House to Home at the Erie Times-News in Erie, Pa. She is the mom of three, stepmom to three and step-grandmom to one.

Ever since I was a kid, I’ve eaten fish on Ash Wednesday and every Friday during Lent. I grew up in an era when fish was what’s for dinner every Friday — even when it wasn’t Lent. Or at least anything not meat was the Catholic menu. So mac and cheese worked too.

But as a fish aficionado — and my family will tell you I forced them to be aficionados even when they were too young to be ordered to eat fish, according to Catholic tenets — we religiously bought into McDonald’s Filet-o-fish sandwiches.

When we had six kids around the house, there were deals where these catches were 2 for $4. That was big news for us because many of the Eckert and Parker brood ate more than one sandwich … and fries. We tested out nearly every other sandwich on the planet, and returned to McDonalds.

This year, we discovered the Arby’s fish sandwich. Mmmm — they are 2 for $4, and the folks at Arby‘s in downtown Erie assure me that we can reel in that price until the end of April. Guess what’s for dinner?

In recent years, those talking fish at McDonald’s (if you watch the commercials) retailed for just shy of $4 each. Not at my house. McDonald’s heard my plea for mercy. Well sort of. On Friday, if you buy an extra value Filet-o-fish meal, you can buy an extra sandwich for a $1 — just on Fridays, but today, you can get the the new snack-size McBites for $1.

Gone fishing!

Pam Parker is the editor of Lake Erie LifeStyle, Her Times and House to Home at the Erie Times-News in Erie, Pa. She is the mom of three, stepmom to three and step-grandmom to one.

I remember when flooring was very obviously a laminate, wood, stone, tile or something else. Not anymore.

I’ve seen incredible concrete and other materials that look like natural wonders. To catch up on what’s out there, read the cover story this week in House to Home right here. If that vinyl flooring story doesn’t surprise you — here’s another on leather — it’s on floors, doors and much more.

In the next few weeks, I’ll be taking you inside some breathtaking homes and showing you the ingenuity of a grandmother who made clever play kitchens for her granddaughters.

Check out all the stories this week in House to Home – click on the links below. And there are a lot of new listings out there to see.

Tree seedling sale begins in March
Digital prints become wall coverings
Room for Romance
Parents create housing for disabled
What you should know before buying antiques
Rustic reno makes one suite bath

Pam Parker has written about real estate and home decor in the tri-state region for more than 20 years. She is the editor of Lake Erie LifeStyle, Her Times and House to Home at the Erie Times-News in Erie, Pa. She is the mom of three, stepmom to three and step-grandmom to one.  

What a view of Lake Erie though those doors! I took this shot in a Harborcreek home where three bedrooms suites offer similar vistas.

This residence is one of those hidden gems on Lake Erie — for more info, read my column in this week’s House to Home. Click here.

Check out our local garden feature by super local gardener Sue Scholz — it’s Time for gardens shows in tri-state area.

Catch up on all our fun decor features — especially some great ideas from Mary Carol Garrity on what to do with those 1950s rooms that blend living and dining rooms together in one space. Read Dining room becomes multipurpose masterpiece and Budget renovation delivers rich results.

Check out the rest of our stories below. Happy Super Bowl weekend!
Plants OK in ‘igloo’
Time for garden shows in tri-state area
2 crisp, clean ideas for winter centerpieces
Rock-A-Bye Eco Baby

Pam Parker has written about real estate and home decor in the tri-state region for more than 20 years. She is the editor of Lake Erie LifeStyle, Her Times and House to Home at the Erie Times-News in Erie, Pa. She is the mom of three, stepmom to three and step-grandmom to one.