If that title didn't get you excited, you might have to wait until Christmas for a gift of this size!

We think we've struck gold!

By gold, we mean, we've found almost 6 weeks of extra vacation for you to get excited about...give or take the exact minutes in a lingering sunset.

On March 11th, we'll all run to our clocks (at least the ones we still have to adjust since our cell phones do it automatically) to set them ahead one hour.

That's one more hour of, wait for it...DAYLIGHT...per day!!!

That is the "vacation gold" we are speaking of.

And before we have to set them back again in November, we'll see almost 6 weeks of that extra sunlight in our world, when you tally them up by an hour a day.

What could you do with an extra hour of sunlight a day?

The possibilities are endless!

The reason we are writing about this, is to encourage you. See...the thing is..."spring break" is coming. And eventually "summer vacation". And it's those two phrases that sometimes can be frustrating to think about as a family.

You know...the question when someone says "Are you going away for spring break?" OR..."Where are you going for summer vacation?" They say it with a huge grin, because they can't wait to tell you where they are headed.

And we wrap our happiness inside the box and bow of one week here or there. Now, don't get us wrong, there is nothing wrong with a family getaway. But we also think there is equal value to taking a little piece of everyday and making it as fun as a getaway. That's where the almost 6 weeks of vacation thing came to mind.

While it's not always feasible to head out for a consecutive week of vacation in the spring or summer, we can take advantage of an extra hour of daylight/hopefully SUNNY light right here at home.

Your family can create all sorts of fun experiences in and around your home, our community, and the Chautauqua County area.

So the next time some asks where you are headed for vacation and you know you are staying close to home, tell them you are still planning it. And when they ask what you are planning, tell them 6 weeks worth of family bonding, laughing, and hilarity.

When they look at you like you are rich, because they think you are booking flights, hotels, and getaways for 6 weeks...tell them you are, indeed rich.

In relationship.
In love.
In appreciation.
In opportunity.
In memories.
In gratefulness.
In health.

In clever ideas that keep coming! :)

That list goes on and on. And when we leverage the one extra hour of daylight we get per day, into one extra hour of stay-cation power with our family and friends...that's a game-changer!

Thanks for stopping by MIDWEEK with MIDTOWN today. We hope you feel like you hit the family-time lottery, just like we did thinking about this, and all of you.

We're pretty lucky to know so many of you, and call you friends. And if we haven't met yet?

Swing by and say hi with one of those extra hours as you take a walk as a family. We'd be honored to meet you!

Happy stay-cationing!

-Your friends at Midtown Realty Company!

If you missed PART 1 of The Most Epic Spring Cleaning Idea Ever!, you'll want to make sure you check it out! We posted it just a couple of days ago, and this part will make the first part that much more fun!

We thought you might like some ideas for your "events".

Here 3 fun ones to get your creative juices flowing!

1. Match & Toss!: This one is so good, you can use it year round! Pile up all of the socks, in every load of laundry, after one day. From there, let both teams pull from the pile to match as many pairs as they can in a pre-determined amount of time. And if you want to make it a multi-event contest, add in the sock toss! What's that? Have an empty laundry basket set at a specific distance away from where you are matching the socks. Once the pair is matched, have teams roll them together, and toss them into the empty bin. Most in the basket before the clock expires, wins! Be sure to move away from areas where lamps, and other breakables could end up in pieces on the floor as the result of an errant attempt to make the basket. There are so many variations with this event, that you've probably already thought of a few yourself while reading this!

2. Philanthropic Poundage!: When it comes time to cleaning out the closets around the house, that usually doesn't get everyone excited. That is, until now! This one might take a while, so you can make the time limit whatever you want. An afternoon, a day, a weekend. During that time, place items of clothing that your family is going to give away to charity in a bag. Weigh the bag of each team, and the most weight wins. Be strategic when you split your teams up, so it's fair. A sweater from a 25 year old is going to weight more than your 8 year old, so pair your teams accordingly. When it's done, celebrate the joy found in helping others in need.

3. Ultimate DUSTination!: Each team gets a room of the house to dust. Again, after a pre-determined amount of time, an impartial judge gets to walk through each room. As they do, for every surface they can swipe a finger and still find dust, that is a point. The object of the game is to have the lowest score at the end. And just so everyone stays safe, limit this event to what you can reach from standing on the ground. Hey, and try to recruit a 7 foot friend to come help! :)

There are 3 great ideas.

If you come up with more, feel free to share them here with us!

Have fun!

And make sure you go back to read The Most Epic Spring Cleaning Idea Ever! from the other day, so you know what to do with these ideas.

Thanks for stopping by!

-The Midtown Realty Company Team

One more week until March is upon us.

Can you believe it!

That means green grass, flowers, and birds chirping will replace snow, icicles, and the loud roar of plows and salt trucks rumbling down the streets.

MIDWEEK with MIDTOWN: Episode 18 is coming in two parts, as will every Episode into and throughout the month of March.

Why?

We've got a lot to cover that we think will put the SPRING in your family's step as THE SPRING moves in. Yes...it's likely we'll remain that punny...all month long. :)

Part 1 of Episode 18 is going to focus on something you can do to make spring cleaning less of a chore, and more of a hilarious family-fun activity.

Hey...we've all been there. Thing get shut in drawers, pushed back into closets, and crammed in the attic during the cold winter months. And when warmer temps start to get us excited about cracking the windows back open, it also gets us (ok...the adults, not so much the kids) excited about cleaning out.

Since we are in the midst of the Winter Olympics, we thought we could turn spring cleaning into it's own Olympic event.

So, without any further ado, here's a thought on how to make spring cleaning a story your family will laugh about for years to come.

Divide up the chores on your to-do list. Write each one on a piece of paper. We'll now affectionally refer to those items as the "events" in your family's SPRING CLEANING OLYMPICS.

Next, you'll need teams.

If you are a small family, you can even get your kid's friends in on the fun. And if this goes over well, you can encourage your friends to get your kids to go help them run the same thing in their house!

Ok.

So you have your teams, and the events.

Now it's time to get each event on the calendar. Be reasonable about how long it will take to do the "event" well, and plan accordingly. You can make your SPRING OLYMPICS last a week, a month, or longer, depending on the difficulty of your events.

Now...no Olympics would be complete without judges to rate the work, and medals (rewards) for the winners. Enlist your neighbors to come over and inspect the work. Watch how much more popular it is when you neighbor says "hey, there is still dust on this ledge" than when you say it to your kids. 9.5!

The only difference is you'll have to do match-up events, as you won't be cleaning the same space together. For example, one team may clean out the attic, the other the garage. You can have the same categories that the judge will look for to score. Once that is done, the winning team receives a pre-determined reward.

You see where we are headed with this.

The bottom line is we all have chores, dirt, dust, and grime to scrub out after a long winter. But, it doesn't just have to be the drudgery of boredom and complaining it may have been in the past.

Spend time as a family. Get your neighbors in on it. Offer to do the same for your friends and their families.

Bonus event:

Have your kids go take care of something for an elderly neighbor as one of the events. The possibilities are endless when we start enjoying every detail of life together, and serving our community in the process.

Well...what are you waiting for?

Have fun.

And if your events take on the epic proportions of hilarity and you happen to get it on video or take pictures, you could always share those with us. :)

We'll share details on how to pull of an amazing SPRING OLYMPICS experience for your family, on Thursday in PART 2 of MIDWEEK with MIDTOWN: Episode 18.

​See you then!

-The Midtown Realty Company Team