denisew, I totally see your point. This turtle was h*ll-and-gone from the Benbrook Lake. I believe she was either from a body of water in the back woods along the freeway(not sure) or from one of the cattle stock tanks from along the same area(seems to be the most likely..that's what I saw the most of)Even then, the freeway isn't really on top of those areas. There's also how in heck she got past the retaining wall she fell off of.(She has chips in her shell where she landed on her back.) The back yard where she's been rehomed is around a couple acres built in an envelope(they saved the surrounding woods as much as possible for people's yards). Her new home looks like a house that sprung up in the middle of the woods. The lady who lives there added a shallow,good sized wildlife friendly pond and lots of plants. There are houses, with the woods in tact, all around her. She is free to come and go. I understand that other wild turtles have made this pond their home as well so she will be able to go back to pretty much being a wild turtle with them. Wouldn't want her to live out her life without Mr turtle! LOL!PJ Thank you Kristie :^) PJ

Okay, let's see if I can catch up on all of your helpful posts! I met with a landscaper and we were pretty much on the same page but there were a few things that I didn�t agree with. Maybe I just have no clue what I'm doing and maybe his recommendations are truly better than the picture I have in my head! I'll be meeting with another designer on Monday to get his take on it. The first guy was free and we just talked about what the plan would be. The second guy charges $50, but will draw up a whole design. They also do driveways, which the first company does not do. The one thing that I really didn't like about the first guy was that I felt like I had seen all of his ideas in my neighborhood already. I don't want something crazy that doesn't fit the house or neighborhood, but I also don't want the same thing everyone else has. How do you get your house to stand out from the others but still "fit"? Just because everyone else has "x" number of garden beds and "x" amount of front yard grass doesn't mean I have to, right? I did read over our HOA docs and they simply state that no more than 20% of the yard can be raised garden beds or container gardens. I would really like to make maintaining the lawn easier and to shade the front a little more. He wasn't on board with that. As I said before our yard is quite short, only 25 ft deep from the sidewalk to the front brick. So that will definitely play a big part in the design. The front tree is a cherry tree (with fruit) and I have been told that it will grow large enough to provide cover for the front window, not too sure about the door. Every arborist and landscaper that I have talked to seem happy with that tree and tell me not to touch it. The shutters have actually done quite well with all of the sun and heat that they get exposed too. No warping or anything. Considering the roof color is a good point. I think the wrought iron color would look great. I still don�t know what I want to do with the door. I have been playing with pictures of the house for days now. I've cut and pasted so many different designs I'm stuck. I think that there are some styles and looks that definitely work, some that definitely don't work, and then there are the in-between ones. I don't mind having my house look a little different then the neighborhood. I have two tri-levels on each side of me and three true 2 story colonials across the street from me. From my mock-ups I think can get away with some different looks that neither of the other two styles could pull off. And that is why I'm stuck. Too many ideas. I think a designers eye is what I need. The other challenge I am having right now is prioritizing what to do with the house first. The inside still needs to be painted. I could use some new furniture too. If I did do painting I would want to update the lighting while the ceilings are getting a fresh coat. As far as the outside goes, we obviously need landscaping. But we could also use new gutters and soffits, possibly a new door, and new hardscaping. My husband would also like to close in the carport. There is just so much to do and I don't know where to start. The changes we have already made to the inside were easy because they were done out of necessity. Really none of these other things have to be done. I think that I would like to focus on the outside simply because I have a 4yr old and 1yr old that make it a little harder to maintain the inside versus the outside. And I can handle the inside myself. I obviously need professional help with the exterior. So, any ideas on how to prioritize my projects?

Kathy, I can just imagine the tears that fell on your cheeks as you wrote this story. I think I'm crying as much now as when it first happened. Banjo is such a beautiful creature. Thank God he had you and Lucky to take care of him. I hope you will be generous about showing us pictures of him and your new mare. The love you feel for your horses comes through in the posts you write and I never tire of hearing about your beauties.((((( Kathy and Banjo )))))) Linda

I had one of our collies put down 3 years ago...I feel so blessed to have been able to hold him in my lap while he took his last breath...It broke my heart to see him go but the comfort I got by being able to be with him far outweighs the trauma of seeing him suffer...on the other hand, 8 years ago my sweet collie girlm Allie was left at the University of Georgia Animal Hospital...for an illness we didn't know what...she died when they opened her up...I'm still heartbroken that I wasn't there with her...they wisked her off as soon as we got there and WOULD NOT let me go back and see her before I left...needless to say, those doctors learned something that day..I wrote several letters on the heartless attitude and how wrong it was for not letting me go back to her for a few minutes to say goodbye..i had no idea when I left her that I would never see her again.... Every kid is different when it comes to death...I would hope a parent could judge and act accordingly...