You are embarking on a venture that will be years in the making. I started out with no idea of what I was getting into. I visited many gardens and ask for a few pointers and help. No one would offer. Now that I look back on that I now can see how difficult that is to do. There to many variables regarding peoples likes/dislikes, money, time and conifer availability just to name a few. Since you process a degree in Landscape design that is a plus. Do you know what you want your design to be. Do you want to go for the desert look of mulch and focal point conifers. Or do you want a more natural setting of rocks and companion plants in the mix. Either way is acceptable ..a matter of personal preference. Do a Google over head such as this for your place. Study it for design capabilities. Fit form and flow are your primary goals. Start with foundation and property plantings first. Give no thought as to what you will plant. That will come later. With those two in place you can later lock the interior design in place for flow and balance. Start your new planting areas with a foal point conifer. Color is important. 'Skylands' 'Hoopsii' Picea paviflora just to name a few. Everything will play off of it. Some areas can use two or three depending upon room. As you become more familiar with conifers it is almost a given that you will seek more desirable, rare and interesting forms. I always like to see what I am buying. Fortunately I have a nursery that orders the rare and unusual. I have ordered from them for years. Needles to say it has its benefits. I now have access to about anything I want to order. Feel free to email me any time if you have further questions. You will... Dave

hey everybody...first off, thanks for all your responses, including your condolences. We will be ok, in time. Secondly, if any of you are wondering why it's taken me so long to respond, it's because for some reason my computer friend here does not seem to want to open any threads I have posted on and keeps popping up an irritating little "operation aborted" box. I am guessing it has something to do with the anti-spam/anti-cookie program we run occasionally, but I am not sure. Anyway, some days opening my treasured forums site slows to a crawl and I don't always have the time/patience for it. Now, back to the topic at hand. I did order some pepper spray, but the company I worked with advised me to not go with the bear formula but instead order a police-issue type because the bear formulation is way too much for a human and could in fact be a lethal dose. I could just see her trying it out when we were gone and having it drift back in her own face...eeeks. I was WAY put off by the cost: which came up to 84$ and change for an 8 oz canister and two purse sized ones. I could have gotten three gallons of GAS for that much money!! :) I will just keep that bit of info to myself, and besides, she is pleased with the whole plan overall, and that is worth a million dollars to me anyway. I am willing to bet that she never once has to use the stuff, but knowing she has it and that it does have stopping power will be a huge confidence booster. I wish I could explain her personality in words that don't make it sound as if I am disdainful or disrespectful...her siblings have told me that she was raised "the baby" and as a result led a pretty sheltered life but that's all over now and it will be really really hard for her. Her son and I need to be as supportive as we can without becoming her security net.

Low and slow. Iowagirl's would be good. A long time ago (look at the date! LOL) I posted about cooking a brisket for bison and this sounds pretty close to what I did..shred or sliced thin and made a BBQ sauce. Posted by jen_tx (My Page) on Thu, Jun 22, 06 at 12:19 I have a wonderful brisket recipe. It's from a cookbook called Stir Ups that the Junior Welfare League of Enid, OK put out. I usually make this in my roaster oven and put it out in the garage so it doesn't invade my dreams! Everytime I make it, it gets rave reviews. (I already had it typed out in Word, thank goodness!) BBQ Brisket 5-6 lb. Brisket (I use one with the fat trimmed off) Seasoning Salt Garlic Salt Worcestershire Sauce Pepper Sprinkle brisket generously with seasoning salt, garlic salt, Worcestershire sauce and pepper. Bake 30 minutes at 450°. (I put the brisket in a disposable pan with deep sides.) Cover brisket in foil and bake 7-8 hours at 225°. When done, pour juice off and chill both brisket and juice. Remove solidified fat from top of juice and slice brisket thinly. (an electric knife works best) Sauce: 1 C. Ketchup 1/3 C. Worcestershire Sauce ¾ C. Brown Sugar 1 Tbsp. Lemon juice For sauce: Use 2 cups of juice (add water if needed to make 2 cups). Combine all sauce ingredients with the 2 cups of juice from the cooked brisket and heat. Pour sauce over sliced brisket and heat in medium oven till hot

Thanks everyone, this is my recipe. Cream Puff Cake Ingredients 1 cup water 1/2 cup butter, cubed 1 cup all-purpose flour 4 eggs FILLING: 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened 2-1/2 cups 2% milk 3 packages (3.3 ounces each) instant white chocolate or vanilla pudding mix (I used french vanilla) 1 carton (8 ounces) frozen whipped topping, thawed Directions In a large saucepan, bring water and butter to a boil. Add flour all at once and stir until a smooth ball forms. Continue beating until smooth and shiny. Remove from the heat; let stand for 5 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Transfer to a greased 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish. Bake at 400° for 22-26 minutes or until puffed and golden brown. Cool completely on a wire rack. For filling, in a large bowl, beat the cream cheese, milk and pudding mixes until smooth. Spread over the crust; refrigerate for 20 minutes. Spread with whipped topping. Chill until serving. (I folded half the cool whip in the pudding mixture, and spread the rest on top)