I read in a gardening magazine or book to sharpen your hoe and slice weeds at the surface. I thought it sounded like a good idea then thought of my toes. There is not a shovel around here that would slice through a flip flop. That is why when I read it, I couldn't figure out how you did that. My fear is falling on one of the stakes I have everywhere because the dogs and cats lay on my plants. It is more dangerous if you have manure around. My mother spent 11 days in the hospital (years ago when they kept you longer)because she stabbed her toe with a manure laden pitch fork. She had to keep her leg elevated and was not sick at all. They were worried about the bacteria.

I just wanted to thank everyone here for being so helpful and sharing your stories about perimenopause. I used to be so full of energy, happy, positive -- all that began to change once perimenopause kicked in, which for me was around 47. The first sign was when I had a period just two weeks after my last one. My period became erratic after that. But the crap really hit the fan when I turned 50. I had always told myself that I would never act/feel frumpy/unhappy like a lot of women I had seen who were in their 50's. Well that's because I didn't know how very difficult perimenopause could be, and no one gave me a heads up about what can happen. I think many women go on hormones and thus do not suffer from much of this. But my doctor made it clear that she did not think they were a good idea. There have been days, though, where I've thought, enough is enough, I'm going to take them. I've experienced almost every symptom that's been discussed on this forum. I've had some truly awful panic attacks, which for me begin with a sensation of vertigo and feeling like I might pass out. My doctor gave me xanax for this, and I take a half or whole pill when the symptoms start. Since I now recognize what's happening, I know it will pass. The panic attacks usually occur when I'm out somewhere -- in a mall, grocery store, etc. Stress does play a big role in all of this, but it's made far worse my the fluctuating hormones. Regarding heart palpitations, I, too, have had them throughout my life, and wore "halters" from time to time to look for rhythm disturbances, etc. Of course nothing was found because magically when I wore the halter I must not have had any palpitations. Fast forward to a few months ago -- one day out of the blue my heart started flip flopping such that I had to sit down. After a minute or two it passed, but it got my attention. My doctor did an EKG which of course found nothing because again, at that moment, I was not having them. My doctor prescribed a low dose of Lexapro to address underlying anxiety. I have the pills but have chosen not take them right now. I've been taking Wellbutrin for the past twelve years to help with depression and it's done a pretty good job. I get them a couple times a day. I will say that since I cut out caffiene (including my beloved chocolate), the palpitations have decreased a little -- but I still have them. On the advice of several friends, I started taking CoQ10, which my doctor said was "unnecessary." I'm taking it anyway in the hope it might somehow help. Sometimes the palpitations start at night when I'm laying on my side in bed. But they can appear anytime during the day, whether I'm dealing with something stressful or not. I"m also trying to eat healthier and drop some weight, knowing that can only help in terms of feeling better. I'm tired of feeling like a sick, old person!! No one in my family understands so I don't talk about what I'm going through. I often pray and ask God to heal me from these symptoms. Sometimes my muscles/joints are so sore it's an effort for me to turn over in bed. I do not sit around all the time, I have three teens and tend to my family's needs, and I am involved in other things as well. My oldest is going to college this Fall, and I can see a time in the near future when I will have to get a job. Given how difficult some days are for me, I dread this thought. As many of the ladies here have said, "I want the old me back!!" And I wonder if that will ever happen. I truly hope so. Back to the heart palpitations, maybe I will try the calcium/magnesium supplements. I think I read somewhere that one should only take these for a certain amount of time. Thank you again to all who come here and honestly tell what's going on. I am very grateful for all the stories, advice, information and support I see here. Hoping and praying we can all move past this phase and get back our peace of mind, good health and happiness!

Some one save me from ignorant or is it lazy homeowners! The ones who: Can't clean or properly prep a surface BEFORE they paint. They try covering the grease and the dirt with paint or wallpaper! Can't fix a leaky valve on a toilet so over a LONG period of time the entire floor rots. It's just DUMB luck that the toilet didn't fall from the first floor to the basement....In my dreams it would have been wonderful tho if the PO had been sitting on it! Can't be bothered to prep the walls properly for wallpaper and just throw it up there. Later when their "taste" change they paint over the wall paper making it nearly impossible to do anything but start over. Couldn't leave the built ins alone decided they had to saw them off. Needed to glue the rug down on to what was a hardwood floor. The ones that paint hardware because they didn't like the shine! The ones who didn't mix the paint BEFORE they started putting it on the wall. The ones who nailed stuff when it should have be screwed together AND instead of using a finishing nail used a penny nail! The ones who thought that duct tape could repair EVERYTHING including: the rip in the tile in the kitchen(bright green goes with everything right?) the broken windows ( they might as well used it for a window covering it covered most of the windows in the one room. the door that came off the hinges (how that happened came about I can only guess) as a sub for electrical tape in a few of the wall switches and for the proper fitting for a leaky sink. I'm sure there's more but those are the ones that make me cringe the most.

I'm way behind on the story, and I guess I didn't realize until now that you had TWO sofas to re-cover! I would definitely do the chairs in the paisley and leave the sofas in solid colors, especially if they are going to sit back-to-back or close together as shown in your photo. Too many competing patterns and colors, unless that is what you're going for. I do still love the elephant print and the olive color with it. Not a bold choice for a solid, but really shows off the thundering herd. I'd use the rust/red as cording somewhere - with the teal blue on the sofa or maybe even on both sofas to tie them together, for throw pillows or for cording on pillows with the paisley, etc. Just a touch of that will go a long way. Here is your photo right-side up.