BTW, I'm no expert, but I'll answer anyway :-) I think you will be much happier with fluorescent lights in a small indoor setup. I think the sodium lights are only meant for big open spaces, but with fluorescent lights the plants can often even touch the lights without burning. Dormancy - in their native habitat, average temperatures in January are a high of 13C and a low of 1C. The other winter months are a bit warmer than this. So the closer you can create those conditions the better. At an average high of 13C (55F) even in the coldest month, the plants may still photosynthesize and grow, but slowly and with much smaller traps than in summer. So you need to give them some light, or they will suffer (but they don't need to eat, and probably best not to feed them then). The fridge method is really only for severe situations when you can't give them any kind of winter rest, so instead put them into deep hibernation just a few degrees above freezing... in this case they don't need light since they are in deep hibernation. But this is really a last resort. Your new plants have probably been growing actively in some greenhouse somewhere, so you could make your setup and let them continue to grow for a couple months before doing the dormancy thing. If you put them to bed now, they are going to want to wake up in about 3 months, which will be late December, just about the time they would be very dormant in their native habitat. So I'd be tempted to let them grow for awhile now. And in your situation, it's probably easier to put them dormant in real winter, when you can move them to your windowsill and let the draft cool them down a bit to aid dormancy. Some thoughts anyway. There are some links on flytrap dormancy you should read at the International Carnivorous Plant Society website... there's a bunch of articles there, I'll give you one below to get you to the website, then you can browse around it for other relevant information. I think you have to copy this into your search engine, as I haven't figured out how to post clickable links here. http://www.sarracenia.com/faq/faq2460.html Good luck, -Don

At least you have snow! The little we had, was melted the moment it hit the ground. LOL I'm not even concerned about landscaping. If I can just get the cement poured and the brick steps and front complete, that will add so much to the house. Heck, I'm not above putting in some fakes temporarily. LOL

Thank you for all the positive comments and constructive feedback on our house. I found out our average DOM is about 120 days, so I guess we have a ways to go before I start to get worried. Just anxious to move on to the next part of our life! Backyard--it does have issues. We could move the playhouse, but the big swing set is huge and can't be moved until we move. Our yard is small, but quite spacious for around here--we are on an island and land is at a premium. We will trim things up and spruce up as much as possible. Kitchen--I love our kitchen. It is huge and has sooo much cabinet space--I will miss it. I love the color, but it isn't for everyone--what would you paint it? I want a bit of contrast with the white cabinets. Kids room--I agree the bed looks out of place where it is. That is our son's room and he is on the autism spectrum. His crib was in that position and when he went to a bed it went in the same spot. He has a really hard time with change and we have packed up a bunch of his stuff--he is having a hard time with that--afraid if we move the bed it could be really bad. So I am not sure if we can do that or not--but I do agree it looks out of place and makes it look small. we will trim up the front, work on the back, and consider painting the kitchen --if someone can give me some color help :-) It really is a nice house--I think I am having a really hard time not taking it personally--plus this is so stressful. We are moving to Colorado when we sell this house, so major life changes about to take place. We are not in a huge hurry, but I do want to be moved and settled by August when ds starts Kindergarten. THanks again, Lisa

Susan- Nope. You can make it as often as needed, but it helps to use the grains once every 7-10 days - maybe as long as 2-weeks, but they will be pretty sluggish after a 2-week rest. You "rest" them in milk in the refrigerator when not in use. I make a cup of milk and rest the grains in a pint jar with a tight-fitting plastic lid on it. Be sure to label it so your family knows it's not something that has spoiled and toss it out. That happened to my sister (LOL). FYI: When you take the grains out of the milk they have been resting in, just seal the lid back on the jar and leave it on the counter along with the new batch. The remaining resting milk will develop a curd because there is enough good bacteria remaining in the milk to ferment it. If they have been resting very long, it may have already developed a curd. It doesn't take long to ferment if the grains have been in there for 5-7 days (maybe just a few hours). If the grains haven't been resting in the milk very long, it might not thicken. In that case, just use the milk in a smoothie or cooking. At the price you're paying for milk, you wouldn't want to waste the resting milk. The more frequently you make kefir, the faster the grains will grow. I pull them apart with my fingers (thoroughly wash and well rinsed hands if handling the grains) when they get about as big around as a quarter. I also never rinse the grains. I make sure my jars are hand-washed and well rinsed. I've read where rinse-aids in dishwashers coat the jars and cause problems with ferments - even with things like a sourdough starter. I also scald the jar with boiling water to be on the safe side, before beginning a batch of kefir or adding them to the resting jar. Be sure to leave plenty of room in the jar you are making kefir in - don't fill it to the top with milk. I usually use 2 to 2-1/2 c. of milk in a quart jar plus about 1/4-1/3 cup of kefir grains. You need plenty of headspace for the fermentation gasses. I also tighten the lid because I like the fizziness of the finished kefir. If you don't want the effervescent effect, just leave the lid only lightly screwed on, and the gases will escape. The grains will float to the top of the milk when fermentation starts, and that's where they can be located for removal. I use a plastic slotted spoon (used only for my kefir grains) to lift the milk kefir grains out of the top of the curd. If you mix or shake the finished kefir, you will destroy the curd and it will liquefy, and remain so. If you want liquid kefir once it's thickened (and it can also separate a curd from the whey), just shake the kefir. If you haven't yet read everything about kefir at Dom's Kefir In-Site, that's one of the best places for information. http://users.chariot.net.au/~dna/kefirpage.html Good luck! ;-) -Grainlady