Is a Keurig worth it?

Our family had wanted a Keurig coffee maker for a long time.  We had visited a friend who has one and we loved the taste of the coffee and the ease of use.

There were a couple of major concerns.  First, we love coffee and drink it often.  That being so, the Kcups seem to be at least 50 cents per cup of coffee!  Needless to say, we each drink multiple cups of coffee per day.  This would quickly get too expensive for us to use.  Secondly, we were concerned that making coffee one cup at a time would get really old.  This could create frustration and a desire to go back to a regular coffee pot.  Again, if we spend money on the Keurig, it would be a terrible waste of money to buy it then go back to a regular coffee maker.

During this past summer we came across a little extra cash, enough for a Keurig.  We decided to make the jump.  This is something that we've thought about for a couple years and we just decided what the heck.  We ended up going with a cheaper model, the Keurig B60.  We also picked up a Solofill K3 Chrome refillable Kcup.  The thought was that a refillable cup might save some costs.

So what did we think....?

We've been using the set up for the last 4 or 5 months and we are very happy that we made the leap!

Initially we had a few free Kcups that came with our machine and the coffee was fantastic.  We did buy one extra set of cups that were on sale.  Truth be told, if we had to buy new Kcups all the time and couldn't use the refillable cup, we wouldn't be nearly as happy.

The Solofill refillable cup has made this a great experience.  The first cup of coffee I made with it was terrible.  It takes a little trial and error to find the sweet spot.  Initially I didn't put enough coffee in and it was very watered down.  On the second try I did too much and it was too intense.  Eventually, I  found the right mix.  Then we bought a different coffee to use and I had to start the trial and error over again.  The thing is, each type of coffee is different based on the strength of the coffee and how the beans are ground.  But the main point is the same, you can make an awesome cup of coffee with this refillable filter.

We never tried the Keruig refillable filter.  The main reason was that it was a 3 piece model.  You had the filter, the case, and the lid.  It just seemed like a lot of hassle.  The Solofill is a 1 piece model that works great.

The machine itself works great.  There is a built in filter that keeps the water tasting great and keeps the coffee consistent.  It's pretty much a plug and go process.  Not much to mess with and not much to adjust.  The only potential downside to the  Keurig B60 is that the fill sizing is 6, 8, and 10oz.  Some of the more expensive machines have bigger sizes, but again we were wanting to keep the machine cost down.  All in all this one downside has not impacted our enjoyment at all!

One of the things we didn't count on was using the Keurig for tea and hot chocolate!  Now, I personally wouldn't buy Kcups for tea, I just use the Keurig to heat up the water and use a regular tea bag.  Same thing for the hot chocolate, I just use the Keurig for the water.  I haven't had a chance to try using it for the ramen noodle soups yet, but I plan on trying that too!

How To Stop Dog Aggression.

If you want to understand how to stop dog aggression let me start by asking you two rhetorical questions!

Firstly, do YOU start the aggression and then your dog simply joins in?

Secondly, if you try to show your dog a new way to behave, does it listen to you just before it misbehaves?

The answer will of course be the following:

At the point your dog starts to become aggressive he is taking no notice at all of you.

He is making his own decisions and will not listen to you if you try to show him a different way to behave. What he is doing is simply too important to him and is the right thing to do. Dog aggression is nearly always done in order to protect their pack and their own lives.

There is of course a whole range of different types of aggression from dominant to fearful and everything in between.  There is aggression that occurs all the time and other erratic aggression that is random depending on a number of differing factors. You can also look at what your dog is aggressive towards; it could be people, animals, other dogs or objects.

The way to stop dog aggression has very much the same source as the above cause of the problem. Your dog thinks that it is the pack leader.  He becomes fearful and attacks to protect, you and himself. Dominant dogs will be more proactive, often they are attacking when they still have the option of running away where fearful dogs will only attack if they have no place to run. All the other factors relating to why aggression occurs pale into insignificance compared to this main source.

The most important concept to grasp if you want to understand how to stop dog aggression is that your dog must first look to you as the pack leader in the home. (This is the easiest place to convince him you are the decision maker.) Only then can you convince him that you are the pack leader on a walk. There are some fantastic video sites now that show you exactly how to become the pack leader.

Once you have convinced your dog that you are the pack leader outside, he will then actually start to take notice of how you are behaving when he reaches the point where he would usually become aggressive!

Just remember, dogs are pack animals and they follow the pack leader.

One of the best examples of a professional dog trainer putting this all into practice is The Online Dog Trainer. The site has live videos of this method being demonstrated and explains exactly how to stop dog aggression by simply convincing your dog that you are the pack leader. CLICK HERE