Hi James!
Thank you so kindly for getting back to me!
I will try the raw code again, but before I do so, I want to clarify that when you mean I should make sure I am using the latest version do you mean the latest version of the theme? As of right now I am still using the first version I purchased I think in Oct/Nov of 2012 and after I had made changes to it the way I wanted my site, then the update was released however, I had made some modifications to the main files (before I knew about child theme) so I still have not gone back through to try and decipher what changes I made. So I guess before I update to the updated theme I should probably do that. I am pretty sure it is only the settings I changed on the main page slider to not show the words or have a border, but to tell you the truth it is all a blur because I don’t understand have of it (and basically just cut and paste, lol). So, to make a long story short, if you are referring to me using the latest version of Deadline Responsive, then I have not done that yet.
Along those lines, I have not yet upgraded to the newest WordPress version (3.5.1) because I was not sure if this would cause any of my current theme to not work properly. Would you suggest that I wait to update to the latest wordpress until I first update to the latest Deadline Responsive theme? This is my first update for both, so this is why I am hesitant since I won’t be able to know how to fix what is wrong right away. If it doesn’t have an affect on the theme I will just go ahead and upgrade the latest wordpress.
#2 worked perfectly! I resized the images to 620px and they show up fine in the slider and they are not oversized in my RSS feed – thank you! 
Finally, thank you for the link to the sidebars plugin! I will be implementing that very soon – I really appreciate that!
Once again, thank you for your time & patience. I hope you have a wonderful week!
Angie
