Thanks for the suggestions everybody! Keep in mind that blackspot resistance is a big, big factor here. mad_gallica, They aren't white pines, we're way too far south for those. I've had a landscape architect tell me they were loblollies--although we're at the very northern range for them so maybe that's why that don't seem so aggressive--I've been here 5 years and they've grown but not so excessively. I do have to clean out multiflora grown from seeds the birds bring in under them every few years. Because they finish shedding their needles right before this photo there is actually grass under them that you can't see--at least in the gaps there is. But it does sound like I need to focus on very vigorous roses. Jackie, the Lady Banks I want to move is currently thriving in a sport a lot less protected than this! It was a gift that I would have never bought myself so if it doesn't work no big loss there! The gaps in the trees make for a SSW exposure. I've already dug and amended (big) holes with a copious amount of horse manure compost with the plan to let it sit over winter for spring planting. I was actually surprised with how little root resistance we had while digging. Of course now that it is amended it might be a different story in a year!

'Sorry about your red admiral, Sandy! It's interesting that you're noticing toads eating cats for the first time now. My pipevine swallowtail Mamas had been laying eggs on the Va. snakeroot I had growing in pots in my garden. I'd see the hatchlings, then they'd disappear. There's a big toad that's been living in there, and it finally occurred to me that he/she's eating them. So lately I've been planting the Va. snakeroots out in the new raised beds next to my new picket fence. This may also explain why the giant swallowtails wouldn't lay eggs on the ptelea I've got growing in pots while the pots were on the ground, but immediately started laying eggs on them as soon as I put them on the top shelves of some baker's racks - up there, they're out of reach of toads. So I have to agree - toads are predators, 'don't know about green frogs. Green frogs are all over my porch and don't bother the cats, but then they can't reach the cats in their cages. Sherry

beigestonehill, did you have to get treatment for the bite? When I saw a copperhead on my driveway when I lived in mountainous southwest VA, I got some long sticks and carefully took it far down away from the house (about a mile). Next day I found another, then the next day another! I wouldn't recommend anyone doing this without quite a bit of experience with snakes, tho. Never saw copperheads again, but that doesn't mean they weren't there. The occasional black snake near my house was easy to handle & almost always placid. One particular 6 footer was around the house for many yrs -- I must've handled it a half-dozen times. It was big enough to hold its own against my cat. Here in MD now my border-stream has quite a few common water snakes. They sun in the shrubs overhanging the stream & drop into the water when disturbed.

Obviously, you're looking at your shortterm problems. As you should. However, for the long term? if your husband is a school teacher, there's absolutely NO reason why you couldn't get a parttime job in the evening. Work a couple of nights a week at a store, or in a restaurant, WHILE your husband is a father to his children. Being a teacher, he has regular hours. You wouldn't be the first couple to work opposite shifts so that the family can be taken care of. My sister worked days, my brother worked the overnight shift for YEARS when my niece was little so that they DIDN'T have to use daycare. There's a huge added benefit, too--your children should have the enormous opportunity to spend time alone with their dad. It's a good thing for you to be out of the house several hours a week, so they can have that. Actually, whether or not you have a job, you SHOULD be making sure there are several opportunities a week for them to spend time alone with their dad--it's vital to them both. And what about working from home? I know many, many women who have found ways to make money from home, so they can raise their children AND help with the family finances. I used to smock children's dresses that sold in upscale boutiques, some women I know make between $50,000-100,000 a year recipe contesting. Another woman was doing work at home on her computer for a local mortgage company. Others have done done things like: call the subs for the local school district or hospital; made crafts throughout the year and had a home sale before the holidays, in home childcare, yes--can collecting or picking up stuff from the trash on trash night to resell at flea markets or on E-bay. Assess your skills, and then put your thinking cap on and figure out a way to make them pay. You have to be a little creative to make it work, but it's definitely possible, and if being home with the kids is important, you have a lot of incentive to make something like that work. Also, have you spoken to someone who can help you with your budgeting? I don't know what kind of expenses you have, but it does seem a little unreasonable that a teacher's family is in this desparate a financial situation. Teachers generally start at $50,000/year (around here, it's more like $60,000) and their salaries just go up and up---especially if they take on extras like clubs, independent studies, coaching and other activities. But in any case, teachers make good money--and many have other good paying jobs in summer. So it may be that having someone who can help you organize what you've got coming in would be a very important step for you to take at this point, so that you can get back on track. Look, I totoally 'get' that you want to be there to raise your children yourself--that's admirable, and I think--very important. IF (and only if) it is doable. From what you're describing, right now, it's not for your family. You DO need more money coming in. You do need to sit down with your husband and brainstorm what solutions you can come up with that will let you make a little extra money, that will have minimal impact on the kids. They are out there. And once you get through the next 2 weeks, it is time to really figure out what you're going to do to prevent being in this same situation over and over and over. Good luck to you