Bringing home your beach treasures

DEAR READERS: If you visit the beach this summer, your children likely will have collected all kinds of pretty and delicate seashells that they will want to bring home. Here’s how to do it safely:

Gather all seashells and place each child’s picks into sealable plastic bags. When you get home, soak the shells in water and a bit of household bleach. Then rinse the shells well and allow them to dry. Your family members can display their beach treasures in jars or bowls.

DEAR HELOISE: During the summer, my windows just seem to be dirty all the time with dust, pollen and grass. How can I clean them in a better way? — Betty from Arizona

DEAR BETTY: During summer months, house windows do take a beating. Use these steps to make them look good:

1. Make your own cleaner. Mix 1 cup of white or apple cider vinegar with 1 cup of water.

2. Wipe off the dust and debris from the windows on the inside and outside. Hose down the outside to remove the grime.

3. Wash windows when the sun isn’t shining directly on them because it causes the cleaner to dry too fast and may leave residue or streaks.

4. Dry windows on the outside from right to left and the then dry them on the inside with up-and-down strokes. Examine the windows to see if there are streaks.

DEAR READERS: With all of the outdoor activities during summer vacations, your children’s sneakers will get a good workout and possibly will develop a disgusting smell as well.

To get rid of these bad odors, sprinkle baking soda into each sneaker and leave inside overnight. Pour it out in the morning.

To prevent sneakers from becoming stinky, spray your feet with an antiperspirant or spray it inside of the sneakers. You also can place odor-preventing inserts inside.

To clean sneakers, treat with a prewash product and then put washable shoes (without leather) into the washing machine. Then air-dry the shoes or put them into the dryer with several towels.