We all know that using certain types of steroids is bad and the use of it in baseball is even worse. What does that show our children? You can’t be a good ball player unless you use steroids. I feel that my love for baseball has truly dwindled since steroid use has come to light. I was a major baseball fan and I truly lost most if not all interest in the game.

One thing I have learned though is that one of the substances that baseball has banned is the HGH releaser also known as the Human Growth Hormone. Some people call it a steroid but it is not it is a hormone that controls the release of many other hormones in the body and is made by the pituitary gland in the center of the brain. While you are a child, HGH directs the growth of the body. Once you’re an adult, HGH begins to go down a lot with age. I was reading an article and they say that taking HGH can do the following for your body:
· HGH can decrease body fat
· Restoring muscle mass
· HGH may reduce wrinkles.
· HGH may restore lost hair.
· HGH can restore hair color.
· HGH increases energy.
· HGH increases sexual issues.
· HGH may improve cholesterol.
· Improve memory.
· Elevate mood/improve sleep.

Although taking HGH is legal in baseball it is not, I guess one of the reasons is because of the muscle mass and it decreases your body fat? That is something I am interested in finding out more about. I guess they still feel that it is cheating to do these things. Some people think that if you are going to ban a player from taking things to help improve their performance that your would also ban vitamins, proteins shakes and so on. What do you think?

A friend of mine is having a baby boy soon and was looking for a cool theme for his room. I suggested she turn the wall in to a street using a stripe around the whole room, there she can turn the room into a car theme. She could use car decals or racing decals that she can buy already made or by printing them herself from her computer. She was really excited about the theme because her husband loves Ferrari’s.

I told her she could even go a step further and buy used Ferrari parts and turn them into a car bed when her son was old enough to sleep in a bigger bed. So tomorrow she will be checking out places that sell Ferrari parts for cheap and she is also going to look for car parts and car theme items she can use in the room. I can’t wait to see her finished product. I told her to check out HGTV’s website to see if they have any suggestions on her theme.

As the mother of 4 children and my 3 furry children (dogs) I am always looking for ways to keep my expenses down. I search high and low for good deals and one of things that I consider a good deal is if I can get it for free! Free is my favorite 4-letter word and over the years I have received a ton of free things from a community called Freecycle.

If you haven’t heard of Freecycle then here is a little bit about them. It’s a network of made up of 4,745 groups with 6,737,000 members across the globe. It’s all about keeping items out of the landfills. I started with Freecycle when I lived in Delaware a few years ago and I have gotten everything from TV’s to bunk beds. I love getting things for free and I love it even more that I help keep the landfills free of good things. So when I moved to North Carolina I made sure I found a local group in my area.

In order to sign up you must find a Freecycle group in your own area and you can do so by checking out their site at http://www.freecycle.org/. One thing you must know before signing up is that you must give in order to receive and not every time you see someone giving away an item you are going to get it. It is up to person giving away the item on who they choose to give it to. You may also post wanted items for example let’s say you need a washer you can post in the subject line of your email Wanted: Washer in Main Street USA, and if you are giving away an item you would write in the subject line of your email offer: Washer in Main Street USA.

Depending on the group and the Volunteer running the group also known as the moderator some rules maybe different from what you read on the Freecycle website. So it is wise to read the group rules as soon as you join. For example some Freecycle groups allow you to post animals that need new homes while other groups don’t allow these types of posts. When in doubt ask the groups moderator if an answer to your question is in not in the group’s rules.

The number one rule to remember if you decide to join a Freecycle group in your area is to stay safe. You want to make sure that if you get an item from another Freecycler and you have to go pick it up at their house, that you go with someone else. Never go alone because these people are perfect strangers, and the same rule applies if you are giving something away to make sure that you are never home alone when you arrange for pick up of an item you are giving away. Although this is suppose to be a group to give and take you never can be to sure, if this person is really interested in giving something away or if they are really interested in something that you are giving away rather then stealing from you.

One thing that I do when I give an item away is that I leave it by the curb of my home or by my mailbox and I tell the person I will leave outside by the mailbox and it will be outside by a certain time. That way the person never enters my home. For the most part Freecycle is a wonder program and I have met some great people. I have also received some great items and have saved a ton of money in the process. So visit the Freecycle website and join, and if you don’t find a local group in your area you can ask the owners of the site if you can start a group in your local area.

I was writing on my other blog about how I watched the Biggest Loser and how Helen became the winner. Many people wonder how they can lose weight like these people with out looking for effective diet pills or taking supplements etc... If you ever watched the Biggest Loser you would always see them telling people to join the The Biggest Loser Club, there you can find helpful tips to help you achieve your goals for losing weight. The website is located at http://www.biggestloserclub.com you can get a free diet profile, but I believe you do have to pay to be apart of the program its something like $4 a week or so. Losing weight is more then just eating right and exercising, you really have to be committed mentally and you must also be willing to do what ever it takes to get where you want to be.
That goes for everything you do in life, you must commit yourself and not give up. I know it is easier said then done, believe me I have been there and done that. But I have realized that when you have a family there is no time to give up on anything, because if you do not only are you giving up on yourself you are giving up on your family. So remember that the next time you want to give.

Land's End Launches a new concept called The Island at www.landsend.com/getaway.

With summer right around the corner, one can’t help but fantasize about a tropical getaway. In celebration of the season, Lands’ End has just launched “The Island” at www.landsend.com/getaway, where one can enjoy a virtual island getaway. Amidst the backdrop of a private island paradise, you and your community can shop for Lands’ End swimsuit styles, enter an exciting sweepstakes and share the experience with friends through popular social media channels.

To celebrate the launch of The Island, Lands’ End is providing a promo code for free shipping starting Monday, May 4, and ending Monday, May 25. Simply enter the promo code and pin number below at http://www.landsend.com/ checkout and you will get receive free shipping off your entire order.

Promo Code = ISLAND

PIN = 5262

While visiting The Island, you can scroll through the multiple Lands’ End swimwear collections (including our Swimwear That Slims, high-performance Aquaterra Separates, Beach Living Separates and Resort collections) in a fun and highly-interactive format . Also, all your finds can be easily shared with friends and family through built-in share tools for Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, Digg and email.

To continue the celebration Lands’ End is also going to be hosting a “Twitter Party” on May 12 at 8:00 p.m. EST. Fashion expert, swimsuit authority and Life & Style contributing editor Rachel Zalis and Lands’ End swim expert Michele Casper will answer all of your swimsuit-related questions via twitter. There will also be chances to win great swim prizes! All you need to do to participate is the following:

Follow @LEprAmanda, @LEprMichele, or @LandsEndPRKira to review discussions and comments on May 12 between 8:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. EST
· OR join the chat by including the #getaway hashtag in your tweet

Also, since a real island is definitely better than a virtual island, Lands’ End has launched a sweepstakes offering a trip for four to Barbados. Visitors can enter daily for a chance to win at www.landsend.com/getaway ending midnight (CST) on May 31, 2009. The prize package also includes a Lands’ End Swimwear package for four, round-trip airfare and transportation, and meals. The official contest rules and entry form can also be found at www.landsend.com/getaway .

Hey have any of you purchased lingerie from the Lingerie Diva? I would like for you to post your comments if you have purchased from this site. I had someone ask me the other day about any information I had on the site as they were looking to buy from this company, but I have never purchased from this site, so I couldn’t give them any information about it. They seem to have some nice items and the prices seem good, but other then that I have no further information, so if anyone has any thing good or bad to say about the Lingerie Diva please let me know.

I am so shocked how some companies can sell medicine that is not FDA approved. I was looking at a website called nuphedra.com and when you enter the site you immediately see a big warning label, stating that Nuphedra has NOT BEEN EVALUATED BY THE fda. THE FORMULA MAY NOT meet label claims and MAY containing banned substances. They also claim to be ephedra free. I don’t care if it contains a small amount of gold I don’t know how these people are allowed to sell these things. Then the website goes on to say some of other things that just don’t make sense to me, it says if you agree to every thing we say click this button. So out of curiosity I clicked the button and it didn’t even work, why have such a site in the first place. Can somebody explain that to me?