JenV

My 10-month-old daughter is teething again and will not nurse without biting. Having made it this long, I am determined to try my best to make it to at least the full year mark with breastfeeding and pumping, but I don't feel that I will always be able to pump enough for her needs and breastfeeding is much more convenient and less stressful. Could nipple shields help correct this problem for a few days until the pain diminishes for her and she is ready to latch correctly again?

I am 8 weeks postpartum and began my first period after the birth today. I hurt all over, feel extremely weak and nothing tastes right to me, so I've had a hard time eating. I am also breastfeeding my little one, so I need to keep my strength and calories up. Anyone else have tips? In general, the only thing that has worked in the past for my period pains is Pamprin, but I've read that I should not take it while breastfeeding. Tylenol, which was the only thing my midwife approved for me to use during pregnancy and breastfeeding, rarely does anything for my period pains, so I haven't taken any at this point.

Long story short - My little girl was 7 weeks on Saturday, and I have been having a few symptoms the past few days that I only experienced during early pregnancy. I am breastfeeding and have not yet had my first period, but my husband and I resumed relations around 4 weeks.

I see a lot of anecdotal evidence about how a woman is actually "most fertile" in this 6 week window after she gives birth, but no reliable sources or definite details. Anyone who could direct me to Web sites with this information would be greatly appreciated!

The details on the situation are as follows: The first time my husband and I had sex after the birth, we were both too into the moment to stop for a condom. It was 4 weeks following my delivery. We have used condoms each time since then. About 1 week ago I started noticing that I was feeling slightly queasy when I was brushing my teeth in the mornings. This is the ONLY early pregnancy symptom I had with my little one, and I can't recall ever having a period of time where I consistently got queasy while brushing my teeth other than in early pregnancy. I will be getting two tests today so that I can take one when I get home and a second first thing in the morning, since I haven't had a period and don't know when I would be "late." With my little girl, the queasiness started just a couple of days before my missed period, so now that it has been going on about a week, I expect that possibly enough time has passed - also, it's been just over 3 weeks since the only time my husband and I had unprotected sex. Also, I have had unusual discharge, but that may simply be hormonal changes.

I am considering adopting a young dog (under 6 months) from the local animal shelter. I have found a wonderful girl who I think would fit well into our family. She will be an indoor dog, but as she is in the shelter, I'm not certain whether she has had any training or housebreaking.

When I took her out to walk and play with her, I saw that she should be quite easy to keep in a kennel - she didn't try to dash out of the kennel before I was able to get the lead around her neck, and when it was time to bring her back inside I walked her right up to the door of the kennel and she hopped right in when I told her that I needed to fill out the paperwork and that if they'd let me adopt her I would be back to pick her up on Thursday (Yes, I talk to animals).

However, at the shelter, they are kept in the kennels most of the day and only briefly walked by volunteers or when a potential adopter comes to see them. So, I am concerned that a shelter dog may get somewhat accustomed to doing their business in a kennel.

Does anyone have any advice on retraining a dog if whining, barking and other behaviors aren't the issue, but the dog finds it acceptable to go in their kennel? I will need to kennel her while at work (but will be going home in the day to check on her and walk her), at least until I am certain that she is accustomed to our home and won't get into wires for electronics, chew on furniture, etc. I don't want to discipline her for accidents in the kennel, as she seems otherwise to be very accepting of kennels and I don't want to create any ill feelings toward the kennel. But I'd like to minimize kennel accidents, not just to keep from cleaning them up, but also for her comfort and cleanliness in the kennel while we are away.

Additionally: The kennel she is in at the shelter is in their "puppy" room. It is one of the larger kennels in the area, but she is a medium sized dog and they are guessing around 6 months, so it's large enough but not so large that she has excess room (i.e., not really enough room for her to have one area for the bathroom, one area for eating, etc.). My kennel at home is quite a bit larger than the kennel she is in (rated for a dog up to a grayhound, but I don't really think a grayhound would fit comfortably), but I still don't feel it would have enough room to put a puppy pad and her still have plenty of space, although I will probably try lining the kennel with puppy pads if she does have accidents. I'd prefer gentle methods that ensure that she seperates the potty from the kennel entirely.

I am approximately 6 and a half weeks pregnant. I have had morning sickness off and on since approximately 4 weeks. However, the vomiting associated with my morning sickness seems to be very small amounts. I have never had more than a small "mouthful" each time I have vomited (like about as much as a single bite of food), regardless of whether I have just eaten or if it has been hours since I ate last. It seems to me that despite the nausea, my body is trying to hold onto the nutrients, so it makes a little sense to me, but other women I have spoken with feel like it's a little strange that although I vomit, it's never very much even if I've just had quite a bit of food.

For the past month or so, I have been charting my basal body temperature in order to get to know a little more about my cycles. Is a spike in basal body temperature and a sustained rise until time of menstruation a definite sign of ovulation, or is it possible that it could happen even in an anovulatory cycle? My BBT was actually only "down" for a few days last month, and didn't drop until a week or so after my menstruation.

I'm looking for a country song that I heard at the washeteria. Their other music was a mixture of old and new country, I don't listen to country as much as I once did so I suspect the song I am looking for is a newer song, but it could be older, as it's been over 10 years since I was a real country "fan." It was sung by a man and he detailed how he and his wife were always fighting, but he loved her so much, and I the chorus was a bit garbled but it sounded like most of the time he was singing something like "just go" until the last time around when it was "don't go." I know it's not much to go on, but it was a really moving song for me at the moment and I was too caught up in the emotions stirred up by the song to really remember the lyrics ... I just remembered how much they moved me ... and I'm hoping to find it again.

I feel like I'm a pretty generous tipper when it comes to eating out in most circumstances. I'll leave a minimum of 15 to 20% even for poor service in most situations, although there have been a few really drastic circumstances where I have left less or no tip.

However, I have always questioned myself on pizza delivery tips.

For example, I'd like to order pizza tonight. Total will be around $20, including $1.75 pizza delivery fee (which I know does not go directly to the driver and should not be considered part of the tip). I will be ordering two pizzas, and it's a small town so the pizza place I'd like to order from only has one location. I'm about 15 minutes away from the pizza place, and on the very edge of their delivery area.

Is a $5 tip sufficient? If I placed the same order in a large city, I'd feel this was more than generous, but I feel a little skimpy because I'm afraid I might be disappointed with that tip for the work, especially with gas prices and all the car maintenance issues. But, on the other hand, I begin thinking that if they have accepted this position, they must be satisfied with the compensation, and I've never really heard any opinions on changing the amount of the tip based on the size of the area - whether it's a large city or small town.

So, what are your opinions on tipping for pizza delivery?

We have two delivery drivers and two trucks where I work. One truck is smaller and easier to get in and out of traffic, the other truck has a larger capacity for deliveries but is very slow and has no acceleration for highway driving, but is also easier to get into and out of parking lots for deliveries.

The drivers have been told that use of the trucks is "first come, first served," basically.

On a day when the smaller truck would accommodate enough for either driver to make their deliveries, this is the scenario:

Driver 1 has a route that is in the same town where we are located. Since he would be doing a lot of driving in town and parking at businesses, the smaller truck makes his job easier as it is easier to maneuver, but the larger truck won't add as much extra time as his driving is somewhat limited on the route. Almost none of his driving will be in an area where speed limits exceed the top speed of the larger truck.

Driver 2 has a route that carries him much further from the office, with a lot of highway driving. Using the larger truck will literally add three hours onto the route for him, because of the issues with lack of acceleration and the fact that top speed of the truck is approximately 15 MPH under the highway speed limit.

Given this scenario, the first driver arrived at work this morning first in order to get the smaller truck which is the more convenient vehicle for either to use; however, he did not actually begin his deliveries until at least an hour and a half after the second driver had left to start his route.

Both drivers are paid on commission and no hourly wages for their delivery days, so the first driver is not taking advantage of payroll by taking possession of the smaller truck earlier on.

Is this abuse of "first come, first served," since the first driver actually arrived much before the time he intended to do the work, and the second driver arrived at the time he intended to work?

There are other factors in the equation which might lead me to have a biased opinion on the scenario, so I have tried to put in only the pertinent facts on this particular situation. What are your opinions?

A family I know recently lost their brother to a suicide. I plan to send a small arrangement for the funeral, but would also like to do something special for the surviving brother. Is a restaurant gift card in a sympathy card appropriate? Are there any other ideas for special sympathy gifts?

I've recently seen some questions/answers here about Facebook friend requests "rotting" after a certain amount of time. I sent a friend request to someone over a year ago, and was quite puzzled by a lack of response. Now, I realize that it may simply be that she was not very active, and never had the opportunity to see the friend request that was sent to her. I cannot send a request again, as it still indicates that my request is pending when I look at her profile to try to do so. What happens now? I don't think that she has purposefully let the request rot, as I was invited to a party in her honor by one of her best friends, and so I feel that her best friend would know if there was a reason why she wouldn't want to keep in contact - also, she is Facebook friends with several of my other friends - I think she is just more active on Facebook now than she was at the time when I originally sent the request, and we are possibly in a situation where she thinks it would be awkward to send me a friend request. I also plan to attend the party in her honor. I don't want to make things awkward by asking her about it in person, though.

I'm researching for a third tattoo (will probably be 3 to 4 years before I get it). I am stumped about where I'd like to have it. I want it some place that will be easily covered if need be, a somewhat personal spot, and something that I will see regularly. I have a green man on my right shoulder blade (back is probably out of the question for my new tat, I'm a bit disappointed in my first tat that I don't see it myself more regularly), and a celtic knot cuff around my left ankle. It will be in remembrance of my former employer and in recognition of a very good friend I worked with, and I want to get it when I graduate with a master's degree in speech-language pathology, in recognition of the significant impact those two people have made on my life. I don't really have a tattoo anywhere that expresses the significance of my husband in my life, so I don't really want to get it in a place like on a breast or anything, but still somewhere somewhat personal.

Also, any links to flash of a painted bunting would be appreciated.

For several years, I have been visited regularly by a lady who is a Jehovah's Witness who brings me their publications. I have been polite and allowed it, although I really have no interest in the religion, because I really feel for anyone who believes that their religious relationship has anything to do with going out and spreading the word, and I know it must be hard to do, as so many people have strong opinions about the religion, as it is. However, over the past few months, each time she brings her publications to me, she mentions how they are supported by voluntary donations, and that she would be willing to turn in my donation for me, if I wished for her to. I suspect that this may be "against the rules" for her to even mention, but I certainly don't wish to get her in any trouble for it. She's never directly asked for money, only points this out every single time. But, at the same time, I really don't care one way or the other regarding the publications, I only accept them as a courtesy to her, and I don't ever intend to pay anything for them.

On an almost daily basis, I receive a message from the same individual asking to be added to my Yahoo Messenger contacts. Her ID appears to be straightforward, and there's a full name given on the requesting account, however, it is not anyone I recognize. It doesn't appear to be spam, either. However, on multiple occasions, when I have received the message requesting to add me to their contacts, I have sent a message asking if I knew the person making the request, and I have gotten no responses. It doesn't look like spam - what do others think? Also, I don't understand why someone would request to add me to their contacts list, but not respond when sent a message back from me.

In the state of Texas, is it required that an individual report a bankruptcy to their employer? Furthermore, if it is a Chapter 13 bankruptcy, based on income, would the courts or anyone contact the employer to confirm any salary information provided in determining the payment schedule?

The owner of the small business I work for occassionally treats me (and sometimes, others in the office), to lunch. On occassion, when she has something else come up on a day she had planned to treat me to lunch, or if she's simply not feeling well, she will give me money and tell me that I can treat myself to lunch on her for the day. If I genuinely enjoy the opportunity to spend some time with her more than the meal, would it be rude of me to decline her offer of "lunch money" and tell her that I would prefer to reschedule for some time when we could both enjoy the meal together?

I haven't seen a doctor for a UTI in years (as in, since I was about 5 or so), I've always handled them at home with lots of cranberry juice and water. But I have an especially tough one, and probably should schedule an appointment if it's not clearing up by the end of the weekend. Do I see a general practitioner, my OB/GYN or a urologist for this? The only regular doctor I really have is an OB/GYN, and if they need to do an examination, this is really the only doctor I'd feel very comfortable with.

With all of the current coverage given to the birth of octuplets to Nadya Suleman, I've found one very important piece of evidence to be lacking - who paid for the in-vitro fertilization in the first place. The articles describe her disability and settlements and the fact that she is living with her parents, but truth is, she's already undergone several previous in-vitro treatments, which are costly and have to have eaten through any settlements she has received. Surely in-vitro fertilization isn't covered by any form of public assistance, and one would not think that a fertility clinic would proffer credit to anyone in her circumstances for the procedure. In my mind, the options seem to be this: Either her parents paid for the procedure and are now lambasting her for the results, or else this was done as a bizarre publicity stunt by the clinic. Has anyone read anything about how Suleman's fertility treatments were financed? What is your opinion?

In looking for saddles on the Internet, I've run across Kate's Australian Horse Saddle Supply. The site is professionally done, and the saddles look great. They offer a 10-year warranty on the tree and 2-year on fittings, and even offer warranties on many of their used/clearance products. However, these are also great saddles for the price range - starting under $300 for new saddles. They appear to have their own proprietary tree design, and offer to shape this tree to the horse with a wither tracing provided by the purchaser, at no extra charge. Does anyone have any experiences, positive or negative, with this company?

I am looking to get together some beginning tack (would like something that would last 5+ years, but doesn't have to be lifetime). I am interested in either a western pleasure/trail or australian stock saddle.

Price range, I'd like to get a saddle around $250, or full set around $350 to $400. Less expensive would be great, but I don't want to skimp too much on quality.

Does anyone have recommendations? Thanks.