Missing any eggs lately Sheila? You mentioned that DH relocated the varmit across the street to the woods. I tried to find some info on returning snakes as I know that rattlers may do this if not taken far enough from their territory. Couldn't find anything on garter snakes. I DID discover that there's a breed called Giant Garter snakes -up to 65"! but they are from California. Maybe somebody did some serious relocating with the specimien you came across. I'm badly startled by them myself...I've tried to over come the shock upon bumping into them and don't know why I suffer from it so. Something primal? (I'm not biblical). If I ran across one that big I'd definitely beg to have it relocated X the river of sticks. Sure wouldn't want that one in the gene pool. It would be a battle I'd lose though. RJ is more kindred to Maggie when it comes to snakes, and will rescue every one that our cat drags home. (Wish our cat would do a better job of finishing them. Maybe he doesn't know where the throat is). Do you think it was after your eggs? Every time one of our birds takes a day off I start to wonder. (If I found one in a nest box I would just scream!) LF

Hi I'm new to topiary also. So far I have made 2 using premade heavy guage wire frames. (One is a 4 foot tall giraffe covered with creeping fig, the other is a 3 foot pyramid filled with pink impatiens) I also would love to make some out of hedges and was wondering about the chicken wire and how it holds up to weather. I know of some web sites that sell premade chicken wire frames, if you want the names. How are you going to make the designs? Any ideas what shapes you will use? Hoping someone will post about this too.

I've spent a few days in court lately, unfortunately (my husband is a victim & witness) in a case that keeps getting postponed. I'm sorry, but if the judge is anything at all like the one we've been observing, I wouldn't be so sure. We saw a guy get over a $1000 in assorted fines plus community service for shoplifting $21 worth of merchandise. If the 'victim' wants to press charges, the judge may have no discretion but to follow the law and impose the required penalties. You say you've got a drs appt. for her--that's good, and I'd make sure that she gets to the dr. and you have a diagnosis in hand (if there is one along the lines of dementia) before going to court, but I'd strongly recommend that you see your lawyer for a couple of things. First and foremost, you HAVE to have her properly represented in this case, and secondly, if she is becoming incapable of handling her own affairs, there are legal steps you need to take--if she'll sign a financial and medical POA, that will help. If she's unwilling, you may have to go for guardianship. Either way, you're describing a parent who needs some supervision--for her own health and safety. As to what will happen with the dr? Since she hasn't been in some time, apparently, she's going to need a complete physical. In the office, he'll probably check her blood pressure, pulse, etc. He probably will send her for bloodwork and possibly a urinalysis--to check for things like diabetes, UTI infection (which can in the elderly, ape dementia and create a lot of confusion), high cholesterol, etc. He's probably going to ask her questions that are designed to indicate her mental acuity--unfortunately, there's no actual test (bloodwork, X-Ray, etc) for dementia. He may prescribe one of the medications that are helpful in slowing (but can't cure) dementia. You're going to want to make sure that you have yourselves listed as people the dr. can legally talk to (HYPPA), and you're going to want to make sure that one of you always accompanies her so that you understand and follow the drs instructions. As I've been through a lot of this with my mom, aunt and MIL (various health/elder issues)--I'd suggest that it's probably time to consider having at the very least, some help in several days a week. Home health aids--good ones, at least--are worth their weight in gold. They help with personal needs like bathing, will do laundry, cleaning, cooking, shopping--and most importantly, visit. They're an extra pair of eyes to help catch minor problems before they become major issues. Depending upon your mom's eventual diagnosis, health aids may be covered by her insurance/medicare. But even if they aren't, they're worth the price. It may be, that the time is coming when you may have to make the decision that mom needs assisted living or nursing home care. Know that's not what any of us want to face, but it's better to start looking around before you need one, than to wait until the need is critical. Being prepared ahead of time, is going to take a lot of stress off your shoulders when that time comes. I know you're going through a lot right now--but you're going to learn a lot about yourself--you're going to find strengths you didn't know you had. You're going to redefine your relationship with your mom--and that's not necessarily a bad thing. Just hang in there, and get through a day at a time, make sure the first things you handle are mom's immediate health issues and her legal woes. Good luck with all that.

I just looked at this thread because I'm going to be cooking for a new mom, new dad, 16mo old older sister this weekend (or soon after depending on when the baby comes). I'm going to make spanikopita because it's great freshly made and yummy heated up and can also be frozen (although the filo never crisps up). I'm going to stay away from too many onions or cruciferous veggies, as I think those are supposed to be hard on the new babe's system. I was looking at some of my clippings here and think I will also make this posted by loves2cook4six. I'm going to get some TJ's precooked rice to go with, since I'm not sure if the chicken will be put in the freezer or not. Baked Coconut Curry Chicken 2 1/2 lbs. chicken (I use chicken legs and boneless, skinless thighs & breasts, but you can use whatever combination of chicken you enjoy most) 1 can coconut milk 2 cups chicken broth 2-3 teaspoons cayenne pepper (depending on how hot you like your food) 2 tablespoons curry powder (again depending on how much you like curry) 1 teaspoon garlic powder 1 tablespoon sugar salt & pepper to taste 1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees 2. Wash and pat dry the chicken with a paper towel. Pour the chicken broth and coconut milk in a baking dish then lay the chicken in the broth. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Then sprinkle the rest of the spices all over the chicken and broth. 3. Cover the baking dish tightly with aluminum foil. Bake for 30 minutes. Remove the dish from the oven, carefully remove the foil and turn chicken and mix up the broth mixture so the coconut milk breaks up. Put the baking dish back in the oven uncovered for another 30-45 minutes or until the chicken is fully cooked and very tender. 4. I cook this chicken a little longer than necessary because I like the thighs and breasts to sort of shred and since the chicken is in a broth, it does not dry out with the extra cooking time. 5. Once you remove the baking dish from the oven, carefully pour the sauce into a saucepan and add 1 tablespoon butter. Mix using a whisk, bring the sauce to a boil and whisk till smooth and reduced. Taste the sauce to make sure it is spicy enough for your liking...if not...add more cayenne pepper and curry powder. Serve chicken over rice and pour the sauce over the chicken and rice.