Kalmia Records Blog

Do you have one or more areas in your yard that hold water after a rainfall? This is a common problem, and sometimes difficult to solve. Over the years I’ve talked with dozens of people trying to battle this problem, and on several occasions I have been hired to solve the problem. So what can be done?

Too often people come to me asking what kind of a tree, or what kind of shrubs can be planted in a wet area to dry it up. This is the wrong approach. Most plants, and I mean almost all plants are not going to survive in an area where the soil is soggy for extended periods of time. The roots need to breathe, and planting a tree or shrub in a water area will kill it.

Another common approach is to try and fill the area with topsoil. Depending on a variety of variables, this can work, but many times adding additional soil to a wet area will only shift the water to another area just a few feet away.

If you are lucky enough to have some natural fall to your property, or a drainage ditch nearby, this problem is easy enough to solve. If you happen to live in an area that was developed over the past few years, there might even be a system to remove storm water nearby. In many new home developments I’ve seen stormwater catch basins already installed in backyards. Trust me, this is a good thing. There is nothing worse than having a soggy yard all the time.

If you are fortunate to have some fall to your yard, or a stormwater system that you can drain water into, this problem is easy to solve. Make sure you check with your local officials before you do anything at all with a storm drain.

All you have to do is go to your local building supply center and buy some 4″ perforated plastic drain pipe. The best kind for this purpose is the flexible kind that comes in 100′ rolls. This type of drain pipe has small slits all around the pipe. These slits allow water to enter the pipe so it can be carried away.

Just dig a trench from the center of the low area you are trying to drain, to the point that you intend to drain it to. Using a simple line level you can set up a string over top of the trench to make sure that your pipe runs downhill all the way. A line level is a very small level that is designed to attach to a string. Any hardware stores sells them for just a couple of dollars. Set the string up so it is level, then measure from the string to the bottom of your trench to make sure you have constant fall. You should have 6″ fall for every 100′ of pipe.

The highest point is going to be the area that you are trying to drain, so you only want your pipe deep enough at this point so it can be covered with soil. Once the trench is dug just lay the pipe in. At the highest end of the pipe you’ll need to insert a strainer into the end of the pipe to keep soil from entering the pipe. Cover the pipe with some washed stone, and then backfill the trench with soil. The washed stone creates a void around the pipe so that the water can find its way into the pipe.

Washed stone is usually inexpensive stone that has been washed so it is clean and free of mud. The only part of the pipe that needs to be exposed is the low end, where the water exits the pipe. Do not put a strainer in that end.

If you do not have anywhere that you can drain the water to, you still might be able to do something. But first consider what is happening, and why the water is standing where it is. Even if you have well drained soil, water cannot soak in fast enough during periods of heavy rain, and it runs across the top of the ground and eventually finds the lowest point, and either leaves the property, or gets trapped.

If you have well drained soil, the trapped water usually soaks in. If you have heavy clay soil, the water lays there, and the soil underneath becomes very compacted, and the problem compounds itself. The more water that stands, the worse the drainage gets.

What I have done in areas like this, where there is standing water, but nowhere to drain it to, is to install a French drain system that actually carries the water away from the low area, and allows it to seep into the ground over a larger distance, where the soil is not quite so compacted. To install this French drain system you do everything exactly as explained above, except instead of draining the water to a lower area, you can send it in any direction you like. Even in the direction from which it came, which is uphill.

When installing this type of system, it’s a good idea to dig a number of shorter trenches, all heading away from the area where the water stands. Using the line level, make sure your trenches fall away from their point of origin so once the water enters the pipes it will flow away from the wet spot. What is going to happen is that during times of heavy rain the low area is still going to trap water, but much of that water is going to seep into the drain pipes and eventually leach into the soil under each trench.

Because this soil has not been compacted by the standing water and the baking sun, it will accept the water. It won’t happen nearly as fast as if you could just drain the water to a ditch, but at least you will have a mechanism in place that will eventually disperse the water back into the soil. It’s a lot easier to leach 200 gallons of water into a series of trenches that total 100 lineal feet, than it is to expect that water to leach into a 10′ by 10′ area that is hard and compact.

Michael J. McGroarty is the author of this article. Visit his most interesting website, www.freeplants.com and sign up for his excellent gardening newsletter. Article provided by gardening-articles.com

Surveys are interesting. I took note of this one done recently by American Express because it backed up some data I learned at the (National Association of Female Executives) NAFE National Conference in May. According to the survey, 40% of the smallest business owners - those with less than $200,000 in annual revenues - are planning no vacation whatsoever this summer. But even business owners with higher revenues aren’t doing much better - only 75% of them expect to get away from the business this summer.

As we were told at the NAFE Conference, even those business owners who do get away from the office, won’t truly get away. Rather, one in three will link their vacation time to a business trip and 50% will still check in with the office at least once a day.

Why can’t business owners let go? What are the concerns that keep them tied to the business? According to the survey:

* An important client or customer will not receive appropriate service
* The business will miss out on a new opportunity
* There is no other competent person to leave in charge
* The individuals left in charge will make the wrong decisions
* An operational or equipment breakdown will occur without anyone to solve the problem

Such concerns are not surprising. It is hard for a business owner to take any type of vacation worry-free. But with planning, preparation and good leadership you can boost the enjoyment level of your time off to come back refreshed and ready to tackle new challenges and opportunities. Here are 8 steps to prevent vacation angst.

1. Make a plan - To avoid surprises, create a list of scenarios on your current projects and brief your staff on the possibilities and your major concerns about each client. Assign specific staff to each client/account so there is someone that clients can speak to who understands their concerns when you aren’t there.

2. Brief your key clients or customers - Offer them advance notice of any extended absence you are planning. There’s no reason to keep your vacation schedule a secret. Introduce them to your deputy and convey your confidence in their ability to handle any issues that may arise. If appropriate, consider letting them know how to reach you should a true emergency arise - not that one will because of all your pre-planning.

3. Leadership is being a delegator not a dictator - If you never delegate important tasks to others, you can’t expect them to be ready to fill your shoes when you want to take time off. To create a saner situation and build confidence that good things will happen when you aren’t there, learn to delegate responsibilities - divvy up those pieces that must still happen in your absence and postpone those that can wait for your return.

4. Strategically schedule your vacation time - Most businesses have a slow season or times of the year when the pace is slower, or at least a bit less crazy. Plan your vacations to coincide with those lulls.

5. Mini-Vacations - If you just can’t let go of the business for a whole week or two, or you can’t bear to be too far away from the office, try taking a few days out of town, or extend a weekend somewhere else. Even a brief escape from routine with a change of scenery can do wonders for your perspective and re-energize you.

6. Disconnect entirely - When you do take a vacation: turn off your cell phone, don’t bring the laptop, don’t check your email, don’t bring work with you and avoid the temptation to call or visit the office to “check up” on what’s happening. If there’s an emergency they can’t handle, they will find you.

7. Take time off to sharpen skills - If you just can’t justify taking time off to kick back and relax, then take time off to learn something new - business or personal. Taking continuing education courses at a local college or business school is a low-cost and effective way to break from your office routine, be with new people and try new things. Some programs are 3-5 days off-site if that fits your schedule better.

8. Keep your priorities straight - When you go through the exercise of listing the things you really care about, is your business really #1, 2, and 3? Outside of work, your priorities might be connecting with family and friends, spending time with kids, cultivating personal interests, staying healthy or pursuing an avocation. To regain balance in your life, you need to keep work, family and personal time in perspective. Those other priorities help you find more enjoyment in your time away from the business.

Let me know if these tips help you take a well-deserved vacation (or two) this summer.

Kerri Salls, MBA runs a virtual business school to train, consult and coach small business CEO’s and entrepreneurs in 10 key strategies to make more profit in less time. Learn more at www.breakthrough-business-school.com/products.html or sign up for a free weekly newsletter at www.breakthrough-business-school.com/newsletter.shtml

One of the first questions that comes to mind when thinking of leasing a car is: “What will my monthly lease payment amount be?” or “How much can I save by leasing when compared to buying?”

Getting the answers can be as simple as using an online lease calculator such as the Lease Calculator from LeaseGuide.com, which calculates payments, finance charges, taxes, and total lease costs by walking you through a number of easy steps in which you answer questions and input information about your lease.

Lease payment calculators use a standard leasing industry payment formula to determine monthly payment amount. Additional calculations are performed to determine other costs.

Even though you may not know some of the factors you need to plug into the calculator, you can guess or make some assumptions. Then you can go back and change some of the factors to see how it affects the results. In this way, you can play with the calculator to get the answers you want.

If you have all the figures about a specific lease deal from your dealer lease price (cap cost), down payment (cap cost reduction), lease-end value (residual), length of lease (term), and finance rate (money factor) you can check the honesty of your dealer’s payment calculations by using an online lease calculator. A dealer’s figures should exactly match yours. If not, then the dealer is using numbers that he has not accurately disclosed to you. If you both are using the same numbers as input to your calculations, the results will be precisely the same to the penny.

If you want to compare the cost of leasing to the cost of buying, use a Lease vs. Buy Calculator. Based on the input figures that you provide, you can easily see the difference between buying and leasing.

Lease payments are always smaller than loan payments for the same vehicle. However, this does not necessarily mean leasing is right for you, nor does it mean that a specific lease is a good deal. To understand this better, see the Lease Guide for more details.

Al Hearn is owner and operator of LeaseGuide.com, a popular web site for automotive consumers interested in leasing. It has served thousands of visitors since 1995.

Many people are disillusioned with the “build it and they’ll come” theory where you painstakingly build a website (either yourself or hire someone). Get it done, see your name in lights and don’t bother to follow thru with a marketing plan. Tsk. Tsk.

Or worse yet; you’re led to believe if you participate in search-engine, or pay-per-click hocus-pocus that’s all you’ll ever need to do. Period. WRONG! If you don’t know what you’re doing, you could end up farting around with your time and hard earned money!

The #1 marketing secret to online success is to combine offline marketing techniques with your website.

In today’s world of solo-professionals and entrepreneurs many are combining Hi-tech and Hi-touch techniques by finding new ways to reach out and touch someone with outrageous success.

Does that make sense?

Here are a few examples:

A Marketing coach has combined email and traditional snail mail to increase customer loyalty and boost sales. She emails a weekly ezine to her list of 9,000 subscribers, where she promotes 2 of her own teleclasses a month. To everyone who signs up for the teleclass she offers a free mp3 downloadable recording after the call, AND she sends via regular postal mail an audio CD to your home. Nice added touch, eh? Certainly adds value to her services.

An extraordinary Mortgage broker goes way above and beyond customer service; so much so that he has raving fans! His secret? Keeping the customer in the loop by sending small gifts with “status updates” throughout each step of their loan process. His customers are simply blown away because they feel appreciated and cared for.

Another small business owner offers such an outlandish guarantee you simply can’t say no. His pest control company offers a transferable, life-time warranty against the recurrence of termites. A LIFE TIME WARRANTY - against termites? In Florida, that’s unheard of! He even has photographs of refund checks in his sales letter to prove it. To most that seems like an incredible gamble, BUT he’s the best in the business and rarely has had to issue refunds. The increased revenue has far outweighed the risk.

Daniel opened a specialty retail shop on Main Street. His business is the classic “brick and click” meaning he markets just as aggressively online as he does offline. The other day I noticed one of his billboards along the highway. It gave his business location, a small blurb about lowest prices and “Get a free yadda-yadda at our website xyz.com.” Needless to say, Daniel is building his customer mailing list and getting tons of traffic, both online and in his store. Once he has you on his mailing list, he can reach out and touch you forever, promoting his products, services, special events, sales, etc…

Each of these folks has demonstrated that with combined aggressive marketing, you can achieve remarkable success. So don’t think for a second that your ho-hum brick and mortar or website can ever stop marketing. Experts say a very large percentage of your time should be spent marketing.

Now it’s YOUR turn! How can you think beyond the box in terms of marketing? Online? Offline? Simple adjustments can make all the difference in the world. Take time to review your marketing materials, you’ll be glad you did!

Copyright 2006 Donna Payne

Donna Payne Is the Chief Marketing Goddess of Payne Publishing & Dan Kennedy Discounts, a resource for Direct response marketing, direct mail and web marketing information for any size business and entrepreneurs by millionaire maker, Dan Kennedy. To get details on over $300 in free bonus gifts Click here http://www.DanKennedyDiscounts.com.

Many of the clients I work with in success coaching can relate to the following example.

If you have ever been to the circus, you have probably seen the side show in which a clown or juggler puts a plate on a stick and spins it. Then he puts another plate on a stick and spins that one, and another, and another, etc. A neat trick, but then he has to constantly run around to keep all the plates spinning.

Now there’s a metaphor for modern life if I’ve ever heard one.

In order to talk in a useful way about time management, we need to call it what it really is, which is life management. Each of us is given twenty four hours each day in which to manage our lives. That’s why I call my time/life management seminars “24 and No More.”

In order to manage your time and therefore your life, well, a very important distinction needs to be made. Do you organize your life around work or do you organize your work around your life? A key distinction to be made is that if you are part of a family, your most important job is not at work, it’s at home.

Having said all that, let’s put some hands and feet onto this idea of time/life management, and provide you with some solutions you can take home.

Get organized. That’s step one. So much time is spent and wasted looking for something or doing something over and over again, when a little organization can allow you to organize once and be done with it.

If you are at all like me and don’t come by organization naturally, either hire or borrow someone who has the gift of organization. Or you could get lucky like me and marry someone with this gift.

Create systems. Creating systems for doing things is a great time saver. In fact, an acronym for system is:

Saves
You
Some
Time
Energy and
Money.

Prioritized To Do Lists. Remember, a to do list is a tool that you use to work for you, not you for it. A prioritized to do list is divided into three categories, A tasks, B tasks, and C tasks. A tasks are things that must be done today, B tasks are things you would like to get done today, and C tasks are things you can get done with any extra time. If you have items left over at the end of the day, simply put them behind you for the day and move them on to the next day’s list.

“But what if all my tasks are A tasks?” That’s a question I often hear. Here’s a two part answer to the question. Part one is to go back through the list and ask this question, “What will happen if I don’t get this task done today?” If you can live with the answer, it may not be an A task. Part two is, if all your tasks are really A tasks, then the key is to…….

Delegate. That’s a fancy way of saying ask for help. It’s amazing to me how willing most people are to help. Just about every time I’ve gotten over my pride and asked for help with something, I’ve been pleasantly surprised by the outcome.

Block Scheduling. For those of us who have multiple projects and multiple daily demands, block scheduling can be a real life saver. Block scheduling simply means to set aside blocks of time on a daily, weekly, monthly basis in order to do certain tasks. Barring a true emergency, nothing is to interfere with the task scheduled for this time.

There are at least three clear benefits to block scheduling:

a time is set aside to accomplish key tasks
lower anxiety knowing there is time set aside
you get more done.

Visit SecretsofGreatRelationships.com for tips and tools for creating and growing a great relationship. You can also subscribe to our f*r*e*e 10 day e-program on how to enrich your relationship today, from relationship coach and expert Jeff Herring.

Since GardenDirect.co.uk was opened online around nineteen ninety six it has with momentum become one of a selection of profitable mail order stockists of shrubs. And in the twelve years which GardenDirect.co.uk have been retailing www.gardendirect.co.uk now have 2 million shoppers who have been drawn by bona fide convenience, very low price tags, the best value for money and it’s always high quality garden tools and plants. Garden Directs supply are so varied; GardenDirect.co.uk are likewise consistently praised for their exotic flower sorts which can be found continually inserted to the new range, that furthermore includes gardening shears and extras that help buyers that can grab the very leading for their precious garden. www.gardendirect.co.uk sell in excess of one hundred and thirty million very best choice flower plants every year, the great majority developed at www.gardendirect.co.uk’s own nurseries, all this permits folk to be confident about a acquisition & consider that what you have ordered is of the very best standard.

GardenDirect.co.uk also offers the choice of a catalogue for one to inspect through & purchase from in a little of your own time. www.GardenDirect.co.uk have a wide group from across classic favourites to further fantastic forms you will often not purchase within the majority of garden centres; the catalogue might often also include a variety of seasonal offers too. GardenDirect.co.uk sell different options of flower plants which one will often purchase within GardenDirect.co.uk online store. One can often either go for a plug, ready or super seeding. All of which are completely different, plug plants, sold at 4-6cm high in a plug of compost the aforementioned are the best top value for money, you then have the bigger set flowers that are sold at at 6-8cm tall and being also more aged might be planted straight into the garden, lastly you have super flower plants these are idyllic for folk that have less time to spare, distributed at 9-11cm tall they of course should be directly planted into one’s garden.

Along with shrub plants the business provide the ordinary gardening products that you yourself might purchase; the above mentioned consist of gardening tools, gardening sheds & garden shears along with numerous others. You don’t have to go to your local garden centre to pick up your garden tools Garden Direct can deliver straight to your door.

Low carbohydrate diets will indeed help you to loose weight, but who likes the word “diet” anyway? The secret is to make low carbs a way of life for you and your family. Our bodies are made up of protein, fats, and carbohydrates - and of course, water and vitamins and minerals which all work together to make up our blood system, our tissues, bones, and organs to give us energy everyday. The problem for most people is when these major components get out of balance. Our systems are designed to withstand some turbulence (like eating a whole pizza or a gallon of ice cream) once in a long while, and then it will bounce right back whenever the proper nutrition is again added into the system. But, not major upheavals.

Most of us tend to overdue it on processed carbs. We drink too much soda instead of good clean water, eat drive-thru twice a day, and then come home for a dinner of chicken and mashed potatoes (from a box). This is not a balanced diet! The carb level on a day like this is through the roof! Really, the only thing good here was the chicken (protein) and possibly that little burger that was in-between all that bread and fries from the drive-thru! Where are the fruits and veggies? You need the balance. They do have carbs in them, but “good” carbs, and they also contain vitamins, minerals, and fiber. They are naturally sweetened, too. As you can see, there is little room in this days’ intake to squeeze in some healthy food, so the best suggestion is to lower the carb intake by changing your lifestyle to a low carbohydrate diet.

A simple low carb diet means eliminating those bad, starchy, sugary junk foods, and unnatural foods that come pre-packaged and replacing them with some of the healthy, fresh, or at least canned or frozen veggies and fruits. Reducing the processed food will allow you to take in more protein which makes you feel satisfied longer, and builds tissues and muscle. In the long run, a person who cuts down on their carbs, and beefs up the rest of their metabolism with 8 glasses of water a day, and 15 minutes of exercise, natural types of food, will lose weight on a consistent basis. Let low carbohydrate dieting become a way of life for you, and you will feel much better for much longer.

This article was written by T. Potter. You can visit Low Carb Guide for further information and low carbohydrate resources.

I don’t know about you, but hardly a day goes by I don’t receive spam emails about grants. Spam that absolutely promises me I can buy a book and get a $30,000 grant, just for being alive on the planet. Spam that assures me there are grants available to pay my credit card bills, start any kind of business, or buy a shiny new car.

To some degree, those spam emails are why I established a website devoted to grants. Because I have been a grants consultant for thirty years, I know the truth about grants, and I want to share that truth with you.

The truth about grants is a good news/bad news proposition. Let’s get the bad news out of the way first:

Nobody is going to award you a grant of $20,000 or $30,000 to spend at Saks, or pay your bills. Nobody is going to give you cash to start a network marketing business. Nobody is going to buy you a new Mercedes to drive around the neighborhood.

But really, in your heart of hearts, you already knew that - right?

Now for the good news about grants…and there is some very, very good news indeed:

Every year in the United States alone, $360 billion is available in grant funding for individuals, businesses, and non-profit organizations. This is the real thing, money that is genuinely available from solid, dependable funding organizations.

There are grants for college, grants to pay for medical care and drugs, and grants to support research and study projects. There are some government grants available to certain established businesses, and a very limited number of grants to start new businesses.

There are grants for women and for minorities, grants to buy homes, grants to acquire and repair rental properties, and grants to develop new products that will help the environment. There are grants to fund a virtually unlimited number of community projects. If you have a project that offers some social value, there is probably a funder who has a grant for which you can apply.

Government agencies, foundations, and corporations all make grants. Almost universally, grants do not need to be repaid, and grants are tax-free.

Are you beginning to see the scope of this?

To help people understand just how much potential there is in grants, I often describe grants funding as a “parallel economy”. There is the standard economy, where goods and services are bought and sold, and taxes paid. Then there is the parallel economy of grants, where gifts are requested and received.

Not just a few gifts. Three hundred sixty billion dollars in gifts.

So is there a trick involved in getting grants? No. But, as is true in any situation in life, there is a framework within which the successful grantseeker must operate. If you want to profit from grants, you must put forth the time and effort to learn how this parallel economy operates, and how to play by its rules.

First, grants are all about purpose. Every grant is offered and awarded in order to accomplish a specific purpose. Every funding agency has a mission it wants to carry out, and grants are given to further that mission. So if you want to start a children’s orchestra in your town, you must find the funder who considers musical programs for children part of its mission. If you have invented a better trash compactor, then you are looking for a funder with an environmental mission.

Second, there are a host of resources for finding and identifying grants. You must learn about the types of grants, who is making them, and how to locate them. You must learn how to tailor your project to potential funders.

Third, there is a specific format for requesting grants, called a grant proposal. Although there are many different types of grants, the basic grant proposal format can be adapted to all of them. You must learn how to write a good proposal, and assemble all the information a funder will want to see.

This all sounds a bit more complicated than just buying a book, right? So the question becomes, is it worth the effort?

Well, I’ve raised millions of dollars in grant funds for my clients, and for myself. I bought an apartment complex free and clear, without a penny of my own money, with a grant. I absolutely believe it’s worth the time and effort involved. Where else but in the parallel economy of grants, can you ask for what you need, and receive it as a gift?

2003 - 2005 (c) Jillian Coleman Wheeler

Jillian Coleman Wheeler is a Grants and Business Consultant. Her website, http://www.GrantMeRich.com, is a resource site for entrepreneurs, grant writers and consultants, and offers online training for grants consultants. She is also author of The New American Land Rush: How to Buy Real Estate with Government Money. For information: http://www.NewAmericanLandRush.com You may reprint this article, if you credit the author and include this
resource box. Please notify the author of publication information: jillian@grantmerich.com

We’ve been hearing it for years. Seven out of ten of us are
wearing the wrong size bra, ladies! And having a bra fit by a
‘professional’ may not help at all!

Too often, we rely on those silly little things called tape
measures to ‘tell’ us what size we are and stick to it like gum
on a shoe, when in reality, the fit will be different depending
on the style, manufacturer and fabric. Charts and measurements
are often no help, especially when it comes to larger sizes.

Women who have gone to have a sizing done by a professional bra
fitter do not always get the best results, especially if the
fitter is inexperienced or has received little training. Your
best bet? Grab a handful-no pun intended- of bras in your
general size and start trying them on!

The most common problem: cups and underwires. Cups should fit
comfortably. In other words, your cup should not runneth over-no
bulges from the front or sides; nor should they be baggy.
Underwires should fit under and around the breast, resting
comfortably on the ribcage-never on the breast itself and you
should be able to raise your arms above your head comfortably,
also.

To find the right fit you’ll also need time. Take a Saturday and
make it your mission to find ‘the right one’. If you decide to
see a professional, a good fitter will make you feel comfortable
and at ease and will explain what she is doing. She will check
where the wire, the underband and the straps fit and have the
ability to know from a mathematical formula how to fit you with
a bra that is supportive and comfortable, not to mention
attractive and flattering to your figure.

You don’t have to spend a fortune but every woman needs a few
bras of good quality in her drawer. Remember, you get what you
pay for. At last, you won’t have to be one of those 7 out of 10
women walking around doing the bra cha-cha (1, 2, 3-tug and
adjust).

Won’t that be nice?

There’s no doubt about it — having a baby changes your life. New parents often find that they have to give up some aspects of their lifestyle and may have trouble fitting in all their activities. Jogging, however, is one activity that can be continued after baby is born. Thanks to baby jogging strollers Mom and Dad can fit in their exercise routine by combining their jogging with an outing with baby.

A baby jogging stroller is instantly recognizable by its 3-wheel design. This makes it suitable for jogging over a wide variety of terrain while providing a comfortable ride for your child.

There are 2 basic styles of jogging strollers - swivel front wheel or fixed front wheel. A fixed wheel is easier for jogging. Less effort is needed for steering the stroller and more attention can be paid to the road and your child. On the other hand, strollers with swivel front wheels are much easier to manoeuvre in tight spots. If you want to take your jogging stroller to the shopping mall a swivel front wheel is more convenient.

Many companies offer strollers that allow the swivel front wheel to be locked in position. This offer the best of both worlds - when jogging the wheel can be fixed and when manoeuvring is important the wheel can be unlocked.

Jogging strollers are available in either single or double models. If you have twins or two toddlers the double models are ideal. Again there are 2 styles of double strollers - the seats can be positioned side-by-side or front and back. Some parents find that the front-back arrangement invites hair-pulling, kicking, and other bad behaviour so keep this in mind when choosing a stroller.

In either double or single strollers look for models with a reclining seat. If the seat fully reclines the stroller can be used with newborns although remember that you should not jog with children under the age of 6 months.

Other features to look for are storage areas (either underseat trays or pockets), parking brakes, folding mechanisms, and detachable wheels.

There are many jogging strollers to choose from, so consider your needs and you are sure to find a model that suits you and your child exactly!

Linda, mother of two is an inspired author of the
http://www.baby-strollers-guide.com/ and the
http://www.baby-product-guides.com/