It’s summertime. The kids are out of school. The sun stays out until nearly ten every night. It’s great. Except for some reason summer also means more robberies in my neighborhood.

On Memorial Day weekend, my next-door neighbors were out of town at their lake house. They came back to find that their home had been broken into and all of their electronics and jewelry was gone.

Yesterday, the neighbor on the other side of my house had furniture stolen right off her front porch in the middle of the day. Then another neighbor down the street saw a SUV pull into her driveway, open the hatch and put her concrete garden bench in the back and speed off.

The police officers told them that a lot of criminals are stealing things to put into garage sales. Garage sales have always been one of my favorite summer pastimes, but now I’ll view them differently. Am I getting this picnic table for a real steal? Literally?

All you can do is be as smart as you can and protect your home. Angie’s List offers tips for making your home more secure by using outdoor lighting, keeping bushes in front of your house trimmed and of course, getting an alarm system.

I’m so happy that my husband and I found a great alarm company from Angie's List. While I realize we aren’t immune to thieves, I feel a bit safer knowing that someone else is looking out for my security and safety.