Sherry....to take pics of your fish with an SLR....not sure what slm is .....all you have to do is take your pic on an angle to the glass......so the flash doesn't reflect back....if you use a flash.....you can also use top lighting from your aquarium and no flash...but this will result in duller or darker pics. When fish are first hatched they stay stuck to the plant or surface where they hatched.....they look like shimmering sticks with a egg sac for a belly....once the egg sac is absorbed they go freeswimming....if they are id sharks...its probably a good thing your bala eat them...sad but true. What did head quarters say about selling plants with fish eggs on.......that has to be a really rare occurance? They hung up on you.....geez. Hmmm......shipping fish shouldn't be a problem.....the fish are shipped to the stores in large white styofoam containers.....depending on the stores location...they stay in there for 3 days. I have brought back discus from a breeder that was a two day trip...all was fine. I brought back goldfish from a wholesaler I was visiting ...that was also a two-day trip. I have had fish bused to to me taking 18 hours.......If they are packed correctly and in the styrofoam coolers....and clearly marked with big black lettering.....LIVE FISH...FRAGILE they should arrive fine. Sierra

I know your plan is dessert, just simple and elegant. While it sounds lovely, will your guests be expecting luncheon spread?. All of the bridal and baby showers I have attended or hosted, start at 1:00 to 2:00 p.m. and end after gifts are opened and cake is served. Perhaps it is a regional thing, and I am in the minority here on the East Coast. Just thought I'd share my own experiences. I recently hosted a baby shower that started at 2:00. I served chicken breasts stuffed with feta and chopped sundried tomatoes, sliced and arranged on a platters; a chilled wild rice salad, grilled asparagus arranged with sliced roasted beets tossed with a light vinagrette. Luncheon prior to gifts. Cake and coffee were served after the gifts were done. All of the luncheon food was prepared ahead and served at room temperature. It may just be my family and friends or a regional thing, but they expect a luncheon even if the shower is called for 2:00. My guests would forego lunch at home in anticipation of it being served at the shower. I was just curious if it is a regional thing that your guests won't be expecting a luncheon, or perhaps the invitation indicates just a sweets type shower? It is so very generous of you to host the shower. Have a wondeful time. Baby showers are so appreciated by the mom-to-be and much fun to celebrate the soon to be new arrival!

How would you know at that age if the baby has a tendency towards allergies? Well, if there is a family history of food allergies, you start more carefully. And whether there is or not you start with the low allergy foods introducing one at a time following the 4 day rule. And if a food does cause a reaction, you stop using it - it isn't a big deal. One of our children had a milk allergy when we introduced it as a baby so we stopped using it and after a few years tried again with no issues. Why didn't we wait to introduce egg white - a) her mother wanted to introduce it at about 11 months so she could know whether egg in the 1st birthday cake would be okay and b) Passover occurs right around her 1st birthday and there are recipes I use then that rely on egg white like sponge cake so we wanted to know whether that would be an issue. Everyone has to decide for themselves based partly on family history and how the first foods go. I think it is important for parents to have the information to make an informed decision so I reference the Wholesome Baby Food site which presents a balanced view IMO - neither alarmist or ignoring the issue. By the way, one baking tip - a few people have a cinnamon allergy. One of my son's friends does and I found out that it is usually Cassia cinnamon (what you find in the grocery store as cinnamon but it isn't true cinnamon - it is a related plant) that causes the allergy. True cinnamon (or Ceylon cinnamon) doesn't have the compound that is the usual allergy trigger - you can get it at Penzeys or The Spice House. That is what we introduced to our granddaughter first and it has allowed our son's friend to share foods that we make with cinnamon.

The Wholesome Baby Food site that girlsingardens linked has good information as well as recipes. They have information on which foods are best to start with and why some foods should be started later. Also a balanced explanation about why there is concern about starting solids to early and what to look for to see if your baby is ready. Based on that, our granddaughter started solids at 5 months - she was able to sit up, seemed interested and was pretty quickly able to indicate when she didn't want more. Some foods are more likely to cause allergic reactions when introduced to early so it is better to wait on them. We have been careful about that because we have a little bit of family history of allergic reactions. Some other foods aren't usual suspects for allergies but are hard to digest so they should also wait until the baby is a bit older - most of the protein foods including beans are there. The other foods you mentioned are all in the list that is okay to introduce under 8 months but refried beans are probably a bit early. Are you doing a 4-day wait between introducing new foods? That is so you can tell if a food causes a problem and back off. We have been doing the 4-day wait. She is 8 months now and so far hasn't reacted badly to anything though there are a few foods that she doesn't care for - avocado went over like a lead balloon. I've been making most of the baby food. It is pretty easy. We do use baby food cereal - she isn't very interested in eating it straight, but it is handy to have some around to use as a thickener when the mashed apples, pears or zucchini come out a bit to liquid. One nice aspect of making the food is that we can adjust texture - now that she is 8-months, she seems to prefer feeding herself small chunks instead of being spoon fed. As far as the obesity thing - it is probably most important to offer healthy foods and not push food when the child doesn't want it. I really doubt that starting at 5 months vs 6 months is going to be the the difference. Doc may be able to predict likely adult size by looking at you and your husband, but I don't think they can predict by looking at the baby. Our son who was in husky cloths as a boy got skinny in his teens and stayed that way - the one that was skinny went the other way (not fat but he has to watch his weight a bit). Here is a link that might be useful: Wholesome baby food site