A student of mine died this way about 17 years ago. Not long after, similar deaths occurred with 2 other kids, but no one ever really confirmed what happened in the latter 2 cases. Unfortunately, it's one of those things that will persist in spite of our warnings, but at least we can talk to our kids about it. The truth is, most of them already know it's dangerous which is probably part of the allure. I'm very sorry this happened - senseless, preventable deaths are so awful. It would be great if no child ever sniffed from a whipped cream can, drove too fast, drank alcohol, tried drugs, took chances with strangers etc but the reality is that young people are particularly vulnerable to such things and will continue to make bad choices from time to time as part of their maturation process. The best thing we can do is keep the lines of communication open and stress the importance of making good choices by modeling that, and hope that the bad choices they DO make will not bring them harm. I shudder to think what could have happened to me from some of the things I did when I was young, and I wasn't anything close to a rebel. I was just one of the lucky kids that didn't wind up a negative statistic. My warmest thoughts to you at this time.

Here you go, Jo. This is a delicious pasta dish! GREEK-STYLE PASTA WITH SHRIMP 1/4 cup olive oil 4 teaspoons minced garlic 1 pound uncooked medium shrimp, peeled, deveined 1 1/2 cups drained canned artichoke hearts, chopped 1 1/2 cups crumbled feta cheese 1/2 cup chopped seeded tomatoes 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh oregano or 1 1/2 teaspoons dried 12 ounces angel hair pasta or linguine Heat oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add garlic and saut30 seconds. Add shrimp and sauté until almost cooked through, about 2 minutes. Add artichokes, feta, tomatoes, lemon juice, parsley and oregano and sauté until shrimp are cooked through, about 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Meanwhile, cook pasta in large pot of boiling salted water until just tender but still firm to bite, stirring occasionally. Drain. Transfer pasta to large bowl. Add shrimp mixture to pasta and toss to coat. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve. Serves 4. Bon Appétit June 1995 My notes: This is also good with chicken in place of the shrimp. Add cheese last and do not cook longer than instructions. Here is another that is quick and easy that they might like. Kung Pao Chicken Adapted from a recipe found in Cooking Light 1 tablespoon vegetable oil, divided 4 cups broccoli florets 1 red pepper, cut in strips 2 tablespoons water 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into 1/4\-inch strips 1/2 cup fat\-free, less\-sodium chicken broth 1 T ground ginger (or shredded fresh ginger) 2 tablespoons hoisin sauce 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar 2 tablespoons soy sauce 2 teaspoons cornstarch 4 garlic cloves, minced 2 tablespoons coarsely chopped salted peanuts Preparation Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium\-high heat. Add broccoli to pan; sauté 1 minute, add pepper strips and water. Cover; cook 2 minutes or until broccoli is crisp\-tender. Remove vegetables from pan; keep warm. Heat remaining 2 teaspoons oil in pan; add crushed red pepper, and chicken. Cook 4 minutes or until chicken is lightly browned, stirring frequently. Combine broth and next 6 ingredients (through garlic) in a small bowl, and stir with a whisk. Add broth mixture to pan; cook 1 minute or until mixture thickens, stirring constantly. Return broccoli mixture to pan; toss to coat. Sprinkle with peanuts, serve over rice. Yield: 4 servings My notes: Really easy and on the table in 30 minutes! Not super spicy. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ And if they would prefer a super easy Italian\-type entree...... Turkey Marsala 1lb turkey breast 2T butter 3T flour 2tsp instant chicken boullion 1/4tsp garlic powder 1c water 1/2c dry Marsala wine 1c sliced fresh mushrooms Melt butter in skillet over medium heat. Brown the turkey, turning once. Place turkey on serving platter, cover to keep warm. Combine flour, boullion and garlic powder in bowl. Gradually stir in water and wine. Add to skillet and cook over medium heat 5 minutes, stirring constantly until thickened. Add mushrooms and heat one minute more. Pour half of sauce over turkey, pass remaining sauce. 4 servings. Linda

Presto! I have a party planned - ya'll are awesome, thanks for the many helpful suggestions. The hot dogs in the crockpot are a perfect and easy solution and will surely be a crowd pleaser. I was thinking of a variety of different sandwich platters, some I can do and others I can order for a more 'specialty' sandwich - Jason's Deli makes a great muffalata that I can cut into quarters. I was thinking of maybe a chicken nugget tray from Chik-Fil-A. I was going to skewer them, but your mention of wastefulness and safety comes to mind, better to leave in the tray I think. Lots of bowls of salty items and fruit, guess I'm done! I'm not going to sweat the dessert too much as it's a birthday party and my daughter has picked out a beautiful cake already. Although the chocolate fountain sounds great...think 50 kids and a chocolate fountain doesn't sound like a good idea? Darn!! We will have a margarita machine flowing, that will add some 'sweetness'...non-alcohlic of course. As mentioned, I think the pool, friends and game playing will be the main attraction and the food secondary - although necessary. Probably will be more about the quantity than the quality...they are 13, after all. Thanks for pointing that out, I tend to concentrate on the food too much when I'm feeding anyone for any occasion. I'm sure the kabob thread would be intersting, but as Stacy sounds quite busy, I will bug her another time. Now, off to figure out the game details!

Rob, I'm someone who HATES scary or gory (or both) movies, and one of my daughters does too. Please don't make him watch something scary because some of us internalize it too much, even though we know it's make-believe. We're rather misunderstood people, I'd say. Sorry to be a downer! :( Might he enjoy a funny movie more?