Blog Posts by GALTime.com

By GalTime Gardener Dianne Venetta

No matter how you "till it," maintenance comes with the job of gardening. Er--I mean the joy of gardening. Yes. And gardening is a joy! Especially when the business of upkeep is kept to a minimum. I don't know about you, but weeding is not my favorite chore in the garden.

Harvest is definitely my favorite. But I won't get there if I allow weeds free run of the rows. If given the chance, these wild greens will take over in the span of one sunny afternoon-and they can survive without much water or sun. Have a few under my weed paper to prove it.

Also See: Composting 101

But don't let that stop you from using weed paper to line your rows and beds! Nine out of ten times it works. Line your walkways, line your borders, and by all means cover any unused beds with paper. Don't have any paper? A heavy layer of mulch-hay, pine straw or bark to name a few-will do. Left long enough, these natural materials will also supply you with a

Read More »from Prevent Weeds for a Gorgeous Garden

By Rebekah Hunter Scott, Author of Motherhood is Easy

Think your couch is just a couch? A hairbrush meant for brushing hair? How about that 18-pack of toilet paper you just bought? Bet you didn't realize it was actually a birthday celebration wrapped in plastic.

Kids have the amazing ability to take everyday household items and find new uses for them. This ability is so great, in fact, that you may not need to buy another Christmas present, birthday present, or bribery present ever again.

Here's a list of the top five things your kids will adopt and turn into a plaything more beloved than that ridiculous Pillow Pet they swore they'd play with every day, and is now sitting forgotten at the bottom of their closet.

Related: The Toddler Dictionary

The Couch. Your children will spend more time playing with the couch than with all of their Hot Wheels, Geotrax and princess dolls combined. It's a trampoline for launching little sisters toward the ceiling fan. It's a labyrinth of

Read More »from 5 Things Your Kids Will Turn Into Toys

By Johanna Lyman, Romance Recovery for GalTime.com

Ahh, soulmates. We've all been fed the romantic notion that there's one perfect someone out there for us. Everyone has one perfect soulmate, and if we're lucky, we'll find each other and live happily ever after. The stars will align for us: we'll be born at the same time (give or take a few or twenty years) and after living our lives a little, we'll magically end up in the same part of the world at exactly the right time to fall head over heels in love. We'll know instantly when we meet. Bells will ring, cupids will dance around our heads, and we'll have stars in our eyes. You've seen the cartoon and movie versions, I'm sure.

Related: Fishing for Mr. Right: The Kinds of Guys to THROW BACK

I have good news and bad news for you. The bad news is that it doesn't work like that most of the time and when it does, it doesn't always have a happy ending. The good news is that even when things end badly, we can still make our own happy

Read More »from What is a Soulmate, Really?

By GalTime.com Dating Diva Bobbi Palmer

Have you heard about Weinergate? Just in case you haven't, it goes like this:

Congressman Anthony Weiner, after denying it for days, got caught quite literally with his pants down. (Yeah, I know I'm not the first to use that. But it works.) Apparently The Weiner has been acting like a horny 16 year old, sexting endlessly to women he doesn't even know. (Nor, as I keep hearing reported, did he know their ages. Uh-oh.)

Related: 5 Myths Women (Still) Believe About Men

Once known as one of New York's most eligible bachelors, Weiner is now married to a highly accomplished, brilliant and beautiful woman. (I'm going to show her respect by not mentioning her name; this isn't about her.) Here is what Hillary Clinton, her former employer, said about "Ms. Weiner": "She is timeless. Her combination of poise, kindness, and intelligence are matchless."

Related: 4 Biggest Mistakes Men Make in Bed

Doesn't this just piss you off??

Read More »from One Thing That Makes Anthony a Little Less of a Weiner

By GalTime.com

When you think sunburn, you probably picture bright red shoulders, a lobster red chest or a nose that rivals Rudolph. While most of us are savvy enough these days to lather our skin with sunblock before heading outdoors, many of us forget to protect another important body part from those harmful ultraviolet rays. Did you know that you can sunburn your eyes? A new survey by the American Optometric Association found that 35 percent of Americans are unaware of the risk UV radiation poses to their eyes. Both adults and children are at risk for sunburned eyes and the effects can be both short and long-term.

Related: What's the Real Difference Between 15, 30, and 45 SPF?

How do you know if you've sunburned your eyes? The symptoms include redness or irritation, tearing, pain, a gritty feeling almost like there's sand in your eyes, blurry vision and temporary vision loss (called photokeratitis, or snow blindness). People often mistakenly believe they've gotten too much Read More »from Did You Know You Can Sunburn Your EYES?

By GalTime.com Nerd Chick Andrea Eldridge

As the days get longer and warmer, they herald the coming of summer vacation. Who doesn't remember the joy of lazy days spent roaming the neighborhood with your buddies, swimming in the pool or lake, or inventing games to play in the backyard?

Yet these days, our kids are more likely to spend the summer roaming the Internet, swimming in a sea of media, and inventing stories for their Facebook page. How do you get your kids to unplug and see the sun? When they are online, how do you keep your kids safe when they're home free and you're not? Nerd Chicks have scoured the Internet for the best tips and tools to bring the relaxation back to summer vacation.

Related: Most Dangerous Websites for Teen Girls

Most parents struggle with limiting screen time for their kids. From TV and video games, to computers and cell phones, our kids are constantly "plugged in". How can you ensure your kids don't spend all summer glued to the tube? Check out

Read More »from Keep Your Kids Cyber-Safe This Summer

By Barbara Greenberg, PhD and Jennifer Powell-Lunder, PsyD for GalTime.com

So, this teenager wrote about her upcoming party on Facebook but OOPS, she forgot to set her privacy settings properly. And my, what an event it turned out to be. It is reported that 1,500 teens came to party!

The problem was that she hadn't intended to invite all of these guests. Just one click of a button can send a message intended for just a few friends to hundreds or even thousands of unintended recipients.

Related: Most Dangerous Websites for Teen Girls

This is why teens need to be cautioned about the speed at which messages can be sent and the far-reach that a single message can have. At the risk of sounding like a broken record, parents, you must learn about technology and teach your teens about privacy settings, caution, potential problems,etc.

Parents, you not only can set parameters around your teens use of social media, but you should!

Related: Keep Your Kids Cyber-Safe

Read More »from 1500 Kids Show Up at Party Thanks to Facebook e-Vite. Are Parents to Blame?

By Lauren Hull, GalTime.com
Here we find ourselves at the end of the school year, rounding through spring and heading full speed ahead to summer, and to me this means one thing: VACATION! It is so important you save and preserve every memory you possibly can from these trips (I mean, let's face it, the kids aren't going to be little forever). So, I have compiled a few tips for you on how to take fantastic vacation pictures... making sure you come home happy with your memories.

1. It's all in the camera! While it would seem silly to carry around a DSLR (digital single lens reflex camera) every where we went, it would still be nice to get the crisp clean photos these phenomenal cameras take. If you have the budget, I suggest the Canon PowerShot Pro Series S3 IS. It's a little pricey for an everday camera, but it has an impressive 6 megapixels, includes image stabilization and was rated the number one point and shoot to own by Digitalphotographyschool.com. With the Canon Powershot pro

Read More »from 5 Tips For Great Vacation Photos