♥♥Mrs SSG B♥♥

My husband used to tell me to put our yard trimmings in the garden to help control the weeds, but he's currently in Iraq and I've hired a landscaper to do the yard work and they haul the trimmings away. The landscaper also told me not to put yard trimmings in the garden because you redeposit the weeds from your lawn into your garden, which makes perfect sense. So can I mulch in the garden to help keep weeds down, and also to keep the soil from drying out so fast? If so, how much to I use and how do I place it? And if mulch isn't a good idea, what else can be done to control weeds in my garden?

I joined a gym so I can get in shape while my husband is in Iraq. I hired a personal trainer so I could learn the equipment and also so I would have someone to help customize a work-out just for ME. Our first session was just a sit-down to go over my medical history and fitness goals and experience. I haven't worked out EVER really. I did join a gym a few years ago, but that was because my boyfriend belonged and I really didn't get much out of it. So for all intents and purposes, this is my first time doing this type of thing.

My first actual work-out session with the trainer was this past Friday (2 days ago) He had me doing squats, lunges, push-ups (not the girl kind, but the regular kind, on an incline) and we worked my arms, back, chest, and legs. I was lightheaded by the time we were done and a little sick to my stomach. He said that's normal for your first time. I was sore that whole night then.

Then next morning (yesterday) I could not even get out of bed. I can barely sit down down on the toilet. My legs are SOOO sore! I can't hardly go down the stairs. My arms and shoulders and armpits burn so badly that I can't raise them over my head. I have never felt this terrible. I have to go down the basement steps to do laundry and I can't. I literally cannot do it! I am all but crippled and I have kids to worry about.

He knew I have never done anything like this before, and it seems like he had me work until I had muscle failure. Is this normal to be totally incompactitated after a work-out? I expected to be sore, but this is ridiculous! I thought you were supposed to start slow and gradually work your way up. Did he push me too hard?

Just curious...because I about had a heart attack when I took my son to see Santa at our shopping mall! It was a nice Santa...it was an actual elderly man with a real beard, rather than some twenty-something kid. And my little guy, who just turned 4 last weekend, wanted to sit on his lap. I looked at the prices and the CHEAPEST price was $15.00 for 1 - 5x7 picture!!! $15.00!!! Does that seem ridiculous to anyone else? With the economy in the toilet, and people spending less on Christmas this year, you'd think they'd stop raping our wallets so that our kids can get a friggin picture with Santa Clause. We could have eaten lunch at Arby's for that price!!!

It just really floored me...just wondered what they charge other places!

Thanks!

Its funny...I thought I knew WAY more about this! Must be me just getting old. Is it just a matter of plugging it in to the phone jack? We have DSL; how do you connect your Wii with that? Does it cost extra to have your Wii online? My son keeps asking me if we can hook it up and I may do that as part of his Christmas present, but I don't know what's all involved. Since we have a home PC, would we need some type of router? Totally clueless about this whole Wii thing here. Not cool!!!

I usually pour everything into an empty glass spaghetti sauce jar and then when its full, I just throw the whole thing out in the garbage. Just wondering what other people do with theirs? Is there a better (less gross) way to dispose of fat?

I am doing some online Christmas shopping for my son and he wants this game; do you need to purchase the dual glow sabers to go with it to play? Or can you just use the Wii controller and nun chuk? I want to get them for him...just making sure they are compatible with this particular game.

Thank you!

I am driving my husband's 2002 VW Golf, while his National Guard Unit is mobilized for Iraq. I just had the thing inspected and it needed a bunch of work. He commutes 45 min. to an hour each way to work everyday so the car has 113,000+ miles on it, so it needed $1500.00 worth of work to get it legal for emissions and inspection. I forgot to tell the VW dealer where we take it for service that the dashboard lights flicker - A LOT! Sometimes, they go all the way off and then back on again in like a split second. At first I thought I was imagining things, then my son saw it too.

Just wondering if this sounds like a huge expensive repair, or could be something simple like a wire being loose??? I just can't afford to spend a ton more money on it this close to the holidays.

Thanks!

Just had my kitten to the vet this morning; she had been exposed to another kitten that was sick and just passed away last night. My best and I both adopted kittens from a no-kill shleter last Thursday. Her kitten was fine when she took him home and very quickly went down hill. She had it to the vet and they were treating it for an upper respiratory infection. The anitbiotics they gave her weren't working and the ver kept that cat overnight this Thursday and was giving it nebulizer treatments. She picked him up yesterday and he seemed maybe a little better. The cat had stopped eating and drinking totally. Last night when she got home from work, the cat looked 100 times worse than he did earlier and couldn't even lift his head up to drink because he was so weak. He died in his box overnight last night. My kitten has been doing extraordinarily well. I had her to the vet on Election Day and they said she was fine; no worms and vitals were good, but I did tell them that my friend's was being treated for this respiratory infection. They told me in can incubate for up to 10 days and to keep an eye on her and call if she starts getting sick. Well, yesterday, she started getting kind of sniffley and snotty and I called the vet this morning because my friend told me that her kitten died overnight. The vet had me bring her in and tested her for Parvo Ha (some very contagious virus that cats can get that has symptoms like a respiratory infection) They did the test in the office and and it came back negative. They gave my some Clavamox drops for her and she gets her second dose tonight. I came home from work and she is definitely congested and her ears seem really red and warm. Just wondered if thats indicative of a fever or not. She is still eating and drinking and otherwise fine...just was curious.

You can do everything else online. I will be heading to the polls here this mornng with my toddler and its going its really going to suck to have to wait in line for an hour or longer with an impatient 3 year old. Heck, even a 20 minute can be hell when you've got kids.

Just seems like in this day and age where everything can be done online, you'd think someone somewhere would be developing a way so that we can log-on and cast our ballot...

I just think the Commander In Chief NEEDS to have SOME type of a military background if he is going to be the one in charge of all of our Armed Forces. As a proud wife of a Soldier that is currently mobilized for Iraq, I don't think our President should be allowed to make decisions on how to use our military if he's never spent a day in his life serving our Country; if he's never been willing to die for our country if necessary. I think they ought to make it a prerequisite for ALL candidates for the Presidency to have some type of prior military service; males and females alike. Does anyone else think that's a good idea?

I see this all the time; walkers and joggers walking and running on the street - alongside of a perfectly good sidewalk. Many times, they are running and walking on the WRONG side of the street, with traffic, rather than against it, so they can't see oncoming cars behind them. I see it enough that is seems to be on purpose...is there a reason why they refuse to use the sidewalk where its safe?

Just wondered...

I've read that it is so good to clean all of that junk out of your body, that it can help you lose weight, make your stomach flatter, amoung other benefits. How do they work, how long does it take, and must you be near a toilet at all times?

Its a decent JVC DVD player and it does get a lot of use. We have a young son and we watch a lot of movies. But lately, there are certain ones that it always played before that all of the sudden don't play. It'll read "no disc" after about a minute of trying. I play with it and open and close the DVD drawer, but there are some DVD's that it consistantly happens to; Thomas The Tank Engine, some of our 'Allo, 'Allo DVD's, and this morning it was the Lion King that I had to sit there and play with before it would work.

Is it time for a new DVD player? I just think its weird because its not all of our DVD's, just certain ones and these are DVD's that used to play without any problems a month ago.

We are in the midst of *trying* to potty train our 3 1/2 yr. old boy. When it comes to peeing in the potty; we are great! But the child will not poop in the potty. I got him to go on the potty a few weeks back and has since stopped. He WILL NOT do it! I've called the pediatrician and they suggested giving him Miralax, a stool softener. What they don't understand is that its not that he can't go, its that he WON'T go. He won't go at all! He won't do it in a pull-up, he won't do it in the potty! I've had him sitting on the potty forever, because I know he has to go because he lets a little out at a time, but he won't physically squeeze it out! He won't even try! His butt gets so sore because he'll let a little out at a time, like 10-12 times a day, and from constantly wiping his backside, he gets really sore. I've tried having him run around without pants on and it doesn't work. I've tried putting big boy undies on him and nothing is working!!! I am currently doing this solo because my husband's Guard Unit was just mobilized and he is now away from home and I am totally stressed out! I don't know what to do for this child. I can make him sit on the potty but I can't *MAKE* him poop...I've tried rewarding him with little toys and stickers and NOTHING IS WORKING! He's going to be 4 in December and I just don't know what to do!!!!! Someone please help!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

My 4 year old cat has thrown up almost 15 times today. At first she was bringing up food, and now she just keeps bringing up foamy stuff. She does it once or twice every now and then, but never THIS much in one day. I plan on calling the vet in the morning, I just wondered if anyone has ever had their cat throw up this much and if anyone had any idea what might be causing this.

Thank you.

I just read the story on Yahoo about possibly thousands who chose to stay that will likely now need to be rescued...why can't people just do what they are told in situations like this? They make other people risk their own lives in dangerous rescue missions to save them. Hasn't anyone learned anything from Hurricane Katrina in Louisiana?

My neighbors, whom NO ONE gets along with, have moved out of their house and into another house very close by. They are trying to rent their old house out, which is in TERRIBLE condition. They posted a flyer at the local laundromat and that is how we found out they were trying to rent. There is no sign in yard that the house is for rent, which leaves us to think they are trying to do it without notifying their mortgage lender, or their homeowners insurance company. I didn't know if the township also had to be told that they were planning on renting their property out. What is the correct procudure for renting out a home? And what are the consequences if you don't do it legally?

If I eat before, I'd be afraid I'd get stomach cramps, or throw up after being on the treadmill. And I wasn't sure how healthy it was to work out and then go home and eat. Some help from someone who is qualified, please...

My husband's unit is mobiliznig in a few weeks and I was just thinking I'd send him with stamps for writing letters and I wondered if we use regular postage stamps, or if you need different postage when sending letters to a Soldier in Iraq. Thanks!