Thanks for the instructions, Minnie. They are very clear. I've been wanting to try making the 3 dimensional cards, but never take the time. I guess if I started now I would have my Christmas cards ready in time! The old cards done this way were beautiful and interesting!

This is not a complete fabric idea...but I'll tell you what I have done once. I used a heavy card stock in a tanish color. Cut and folded it. Cut a good size heart shape out of the front of it. On the back side of the heart I used old quilt fabric and sewed it to the card with the quilt facing the front. I used a fancy stitch that looked like quilt stitching and followed around the edge of the heart. Stuffed a little stuffing to make the heart puff out a little and then cut a backing for the back side of the front of the card. to cover where the back side of the old quilt was. Glued that on and had a card. It has been a long time ago that I made those but I think at that time I sold them for $2.00 each. patti

OK, I'm about to share my top secret approach to doing things easily, Just between me and you, don't let anyone else know. I refuse to go hunting for downloads, so I designate where they go so I can find them immediately. This is done in the browser (if you're using that for downloads, better to use itunes but that will be next month). The following only needs to be done once-- have your son do it if necessary First we create a new folder (aka "directory") for downloads. Left Click on Start, then Left Click on Computer`. A Windows Explorer (not internet explorer) window will open. In the lefthand column, it will say Local Disk (C:). Right click on that, then left click on the choice New, then Folder. "New Folder" will appear in the column, but it's highlighted and it will change as you type. Type .....Download folder. We've now created a new folder at the location C:\Download folder Halfway done Open your browser, we need to redirect where downloads go. Firefox, click on Tools, Options, General, look for Downloads, Save Files to...type in C:\Download folder Or with Chrome - Click on Menu (Upper right 3 horizontal lines), Setting, Advanced Settings, Look for where it says Downloads, then for Download Location type in the same thing C:\Download folder Or with Internet Explorer - Click on Gear symbol (upper right) then View Downloads, then Options, then where it says Default Download Location, type in C:\Download folder Now, when in a browser and you click "Download" for anything, a photo or otherwise, it will go to C:\Download folder. Everything, not just podcast files. Done with onetime folder creation and browser setting change __________________________________________ OK, now that we know where they go, need to move them to the SD card. These two steps will be done every time you want to put something on the SD card Put in the SD card when the PC is running. A windows explorer window should open, the SD card should appear as another drive. Like E:\ or F:\ If WIndows Explorer doesn't open, left click as above on Start and then Computer. Step 1 - Find sound files in C and select ones to move In the lefthand column, Click on Local Disk (C:\), then the plus sign next to it, and then one click on Download Folder. In the righthand column will appear the files that have been downloaded. Highlight as many as you want (Hold down Ctrl key and then left click) to accumulate highlighted files. Then right click and choose "Copy" Step 2 - Copy to SD card Go back to the lefthand column, choose the SD card (E:\ or F:\ or G:\) and give it one left click to highlight it. Then right click, choose Copy. The files you chose in Step 1 are now copied to the SD card. Turn off the PC before removing the SD card (there's another way, but I want to keep it simple).

Do we know where Unc lives? It seems to me these trees have endured considerably more than one winter, albeit location unknown. Arbs are not typical plants of snow-free areas, so this "split like a banana peel" thing may be getting over-amplified. All that said-and as if I haven't made this abundantly clear by now, I hate these multi-leadered things, but for more reasons than just their alleged unsuitability in snow and/or ice. And I have seen this splitting phenomenon happen myself. But the main issue I've got with such plants is how very bastardized they are from the real thing-species Thuja occidentalis, a plant which, proven in my Wisconsin woods many times, is utterly qualified to handle snow. Not to mention, a far more imposing plant than these myriad icky cultivars. I continue to perceive that most responders in such threads have no idea what I'm talking about-native stands of this tree. I should think though that a true New Englander, at least from the northern half of that region, or a correspondent from northern Michigan (I know-not your home Ken) should have seen these remarkable plants, often in near-pure groves, in streamside swamps and even scrambling up moist hillsides. Oddly, in all the years I've participated on this board, not once have I gotten the sense that anybody has!