alright Kimcoco, sounds like you are determined to plant a Thuja Green Giant in your space. Then here is a closer response to the advice you requested. Green Giant grows by sending up a thin shoot with very sparce branching, then takes time to fill-in as the season progresses to the fall. By the fall the new growth will have filled out moderately and another new shoot will grow from the top. That is once the tree has developed and established enough root system, which can support its above ground structure. What will that mean to you? It means no real privacy for you for at least 5 years or more after planting the tree. That is unless you plant a 12 to 15 foot field grown Thuja that was balled and burlaped. Such a tree and the crew to plant it could end up being quite expensive. A solution to that issue would be for you to obtain the tallest Sport cultivar of the Thuja Green Giant that you can afford. I mean the Thuja 'Steeplechase' sport cultivar of Green Giant. this sport would benefit you in the following two ways. One: Steeplechase's top growth is considerably more filled out and consistant with the overall look of the tree's older growth on it's lower trunk, when compared to Green Giant Two: This Steeplechase cultivar still grows big enough for your expressed needs, but would not need as much pruning as the green giant would need. I mean, because the Steeplechase cultivar is reported to not grow quite as tall and is reported to spread only 6 - 8 feet instead of the 12 feet that is the Green Giant's reported potential. If you still want to plant the Green Giant, please realize that if you plant a 6-10 foot tall one at the start, the tree could take at least 5 years to establish its root system well enough to begin showing the great growth rates reported with this tree, and when it starts that growing each initial seasonal growth shoot will be very thin and will offer no extra privacy. until maybe the same time in the following year. One good thing that Green Giants growth pattern will do for you is that such a growth dynamic while not being good for privacy issues, it is good for making easier the top pruning you would have to do to keep the tree within the height range that you desire for it to not exceed. As far as the spreading issue goes, this tree has the potential to spread 12 feet. How do you plan to keep that within bounds. I ask that because I have seen Green Giant trees hyper-focus their growth power to spreading faster when whatever has prevented the tree from reaching it's height potential. By spreading faster, I mean the trunk thickens massively, and so do the branches this makes the tree spread out and look very stout. That would make pruning away the spead much more difficult. But above all please do not take a hedge clipper to this tree. Such a pruning job would end up producing such a disappointment in how the tree over all appears. Thats because, then it's fan shaped leaf needles loose their draping beauty, and cause the branches to increase density to the point where the tree hardly retains any of the beauty, which it naturally would display.

Just shooting from the hip here, going line by line through your post: The pillows that came with the couch ARE pretty, but I'd still change them, or add to them. The smallest ones are too small. The rug is too small and pale for this floor and your furniture. If you're really committed to it, pull the couches forward so their front legs are on the rugs, and then adjust the recliners to suit.This may also help both couches share a coffee table or ottoman. Or you may not need one at all. (I'd prefer not to have one in your arrangement. As for family pics on canvas, I want those, too! What scale and where to put them I can't say because I can't see the walls of the room. Can you take a shot of each wall? Big vases where? I tried corner lamps in my living room (similar layout, as we've said) It didn't look right. And at night, I didn't like having lamps on next to the TV. Also, and this is a "me" thing, I didn't like having all the "electronic stuff" on one wall. Too much like a wall-sized entertainment center. A sofa table could work, but I'm so into balance, I'd need one behind each couch. You have a built-in ~what~ with nothing in it? And where is it? Is the pass-through of this room behind the recliners? How much space is there from behind the recliners to the next wall or piece of furniture? Each recliner should share a side table with the couch next to it, and the tables should be round, not square. I'm big into plants, so I'd make sure to put some in front of those windows. I love your floor and am exceedingly jealous. Here are some pics of the pool. I took pictures from the beginning to the end of the process, but I'm assuming you want to see the pool and not the process. This is a picture of the pool the day it finished filling, which is why the water looks green, no chemicals yet. Hardly any landscaping is done. And notice how the close edge of the photo shows the deck meeting the dirt that used to be grass. This shows the pool and deck in relation the the back of the house. See how the water is finally blue? And you see a peek of the brick patio I put down after my hubby graded the dirt for me. I'm very proud of that! And this shows the other side, how the ground slopes away, and how much yard we still have left over. I'm just starting to work on landscaping. See the finished patio? Also, the iron fence-work and three brick columns are done, but none of these pictures show it. Same sorta angle, but from an upstairs window. This view is from standing in the ~other~ back corner of the yard. It's beautiful, but not done (like everything else) We still need to paint the trim and door of the screened porch, finish landscaping the dirt slope, and build steps where you can see the grass ends at the patio. My husband wasn't open to a pool at all, either. I started jokingly telling him, "I'm not broke, and I'm not asking," and "Great. I'll use MY half of OUR money to pay for it." Finally, I put an ugly pop-up pool in the yard, and kept it there for two years, then replaced it with the same thing when it wore out. By the time that one died two years later, he was sold on a real pool. I did all the maintenance for the pop up, and I do all maintenance for this pool. But that meant I could design and build exactly what I wanted. I even created the shape myself! Here's the eyesore that caused him to give in.

Shabosbaby... We jump on people in this forum because we are passionate and on the same token we could all benefit from obedience training so we learn not to jump :-) Free advice, you know it's take it or leave it. Some of it you'll like, some of it you won't. In forums, you can't complain about the advice because you didn't pay for it but When I started asking pet questions on the net as a newbie I got jumped on and the comments not only stuck with me because they were memorably obnoxious, but I wound up learning a whole lot from the passionate loudmouths. If you feel like dirt by some of the replies here then just picture all the loudmouths throwing tomatoes at you next time you almost not crate the dog when you can't watch him. As mentioned it won't be long until you can gradually test the waters and give the puppy more freedom and it will be such a relief on those times when you come home and everything is just the way you left it. They grow up so fast. Instead of trash, crate the dog with safe chew toys like kongs and eventually when you ahve to leave and the dog starts looking for something to do, they go right for the chewtoy out of habit, not the trash or exploring for cushions to rip apart. (called chewtoy training)

Kennel cough is like that of our colds, it is a virus and should be treated by a vet, tests need to be done to confirm it is a virus. You should alert the breeder, kennel cough is passed on because of unsanitary conditions. A dog that has the virus can pass it on by licking something, drinking out of a water bowl etc. The breeder should be notified not only to clean up the area but she may be able to help with expenses