Great pictures, Jim. Many thanks. Tomorrow or the day after, your Salvia 'Imelda' will have its first flowers........cannot wait! I am now the proud possessor of S. 'Wendy's Wish'...many buds already, am getting very excited about this! (Best not to ask how I obtained it!!!) Robin.

FOCUS ON THE CHILD!!! That's all the courts care about. They don't care that mom's moving.. she knows the kids are settled at their school and have friends. The court is going to be reluctant to uproot them if the father is objecting. That may be why your attorney is relaxed. Once there is a custody order, it's very hard to change custody unless you prove the other parent is unfit. Make sure your current order says she can't take the kids out of state without permission. If it doesn't, ask your attorney about a temporary restraining order to keep her from leaving with the kids. My guess is that there is already an order if she's filed for full custody. My SD's BM has been telling SD that she's going to move her to where she lives and getting SD excited about it. She even went to school and told everyone she won't be back after Christmas break. If the court has denied giving her full custody in the past, what makes you worried that she will get it this time? (especially if she's been found in contempt before!) The guardian may recommend things stay the same (joint custody) but that doesn't mean the court won't order dad to get physical and leave legal custody joint. They can't (or not likely to) do joint physical if the parents don't live in the same state and the child is in school. Dad should look for as many reasons why his children should stay where they are. (doing well in school, have friends, extra curricular activities, relatives, etc.) He should not just focus on how he will feel if they move, the court isn't all that concerned with how the parents 'feel'. They care about what's best for the child. Stability and healthy environment are more important. The fact that they've already quit their jobs and her DH has already moved, that may show the court that she's going no matter what... it might have been better for her to file for custody before she quit her job so that if the court denied her motion, she could stay. But now, the court will see that she's more committed to leaving than staying, regardless of custody.

Well, I did what Ken says not to do...I went tromping through some of the backyard, gathered up the HOSTA pots that came out easily amongst the snow...and lined them up along the north side of the house. BUT I only tromped on snow packed down. Ground still frozen. I just had to gather up the pots so I'd have something to "play with" without having to walk on thawing lawn. Then I went to the sides, "poked" around (lifted dead hosta vegetation but put back down) and I found signs of life! One green pip on one (one of four) of Doug Beilstein's streakers! Blue Cadet pips, real low to ground, but dark and shining! Plantaginea pips coming along the fastest! Things are finally happening here in one part of Ontario, zone 5! WooHoo!!!!! Jo

"I would argue that post WWII, the country built the suburbs on exactly this kind of government program: VA loans and FHA with $1 down. The crash of 2008 was caused by ridiculous loans to buyers who clearly could not afford the payments--churning of loans and (most importantly) the bundling of mortgages tied to derivatives. I am in favor of making lower down payment loans to help the economy. Young folks without families to help cannot buy homes in many parts of the country." I am in the banking/mortgage area. I agree that the liar loans were the biggest reason so many mortgages went under. The income amount and sources were iffy, the appraised values of homes were inflated, and the debt/income ratios were totally out of whack. People thought 10% increases in value every year was the way it always was! You can't issue a mortgage on just a good FICO score. FICO scores are just a tool. The credit report will show negative credit and depth of debt. My bank verifies income, debts, and income history in their underwriting process. Also, appraisals are tighter than in the past. All debt, including mortgage, needs to be a reasonable % of income. The new regulations and verifications have made liar loans, inflated appraisals, and other shady practices nearly non-existent in this area.