I'm so glad to hear that the seeds I sent out are making it to their new homes and two more cards with fantastic goodies have arrived to my home. Alana (poisondartfrog), thank you so much for the Argemone! I've really been wanting to try some of these but have been having a heck of a time finding seed. And the Pentapetes phoenicia, oh my goodness - this is the first I've heard of this species but as soon as I received the seeds I started reading everything I could find on it and this is most certainly my kind of plant. How absolutely gorgeous and I'm obsessed with the Monticello gardens and Jefferson's work as a gardener so it's so perfect. And last, but most certainly not least, the Ipomoea nil 'Sunrise Serenade' - this looks like an absolutely stunning variety. I'm doing a fence of Ipomoeas next season and this will look gorgeous there. Maria (elf7), thank you so much for the gorgeous card and the round carrots are absolutely perfect! They grow fantastically in the rocky soil here and I also love to grow them in containers and hanging pots. They're incredibly amusing. And I'm putting in a cutting garden and very much look forward to growing the dahlia zinnias there. ~Amanda

Switch!! I used to work for a Major Insurance Company at their national claims office. Many people assume incorrectly that their loyalty really matters. It plays a very small roll; more accurately, the number of claims in any given amount of time is what is really important. There is a national database that tracks all insurance claims for all major companies, and any new company you are with will look at your lifetime claim history, no matter who you were insured with at the time. People also assume that their personal relationship with an agent matters. It doesn't really... only in a feel good way. Any problems you have with a claim usually require that you work with the national claims office and you will spend your time on the phone with the claims office. Your agent will not really represent you. They can't "give you a good deal" or make concessions for you. I have found that the greatest benefit of having a local insurance agent is that I can fax documents to the national claims office for free, lol. The only advantage I have found with being with the same company long term is that we are grandfathered into some coverage that we couldn't get at this time (we get roadside assistance -100% for lockouts, dead batteries, flat tires- for $2.67 every 6 months). Oh, and all our insurance (including our business insurance, workers comp and liability) is through the same company. Great way to get discounts for multiple policies.

Dd asked her therapist to ask dad for a phone of her own. I'm actually against her getting in to having her own phone but if it were to just call me or dad then I would pay for it myself. Its $10 a month. Therapist thought it would be a good idea so she mentioned it to dad and he said no. He doesn't allow cell phones. Therapist has not been pleased with dad ignoring dd's requests so I expect her to let the judge know. There are so many things but there are ways around the courts. Dad could say phone was dead or they lost it or he could 'remove' it when dd isn't looking and then say it was lost. Or he could use it as punishment for behavior which I doubt he would need to do because dd is so scared to misbehave with him. She isn't afraid of dad by the way, but SM is very scary to her. The only thing that keeps me sane sometimes is knowing that dd has stepsister there with her and I think that keeps dd sane as well. She says she is scared to be there alone. Not because they would hurt her but it's unfamiliar to her. She doesn't like spending the night with people. She likes being at home. She would much rather a friend spend the night than go anywhere. And I think going to bd's is no different. It's just new and the room is different. She says she is scared of the noises and the tree outside the window. Etc. Nothing to do with bd or SM just dd not being familiar. She calls me from school on Thursday's and Fridays to say 'good night'. It's sad. She should be able to pick up the phone and say, good night right before getting in to bed. I remember when she was about 6, it was her first holiday away and she was gone for a week. She called half way through the week and was ok at first but it was about mid sentence #2 when she just bust in to tears and said she wanted to come home. They took the phone and hung up. I didn't even say anything to make her cry, she literally had just said hi mommy and I said HI DD!! How are you?? And she just bust in to tears. I do not believe they were being mean, I believe she was 6 and home sick. Nothing more. But they think that if she misses me it's disrespectful to them. There are times that out of the blue DD will say 'I miss my dad' and I always ALWAYS give her a hug and say I know but youll see him (fill in the date). If they did that, she would be fine. If they just let her know it is OK to miss someone then she probably would feel more comfortable. I hate to think what all of this does to her mind. Like what little things are swirling around in that brain when they do things like this. She always gets a tummy ache before she goes to their house. Never fails, Wednesday she is clingy and sick. I just comfort her and act like it's just a belly ache... Never fails though. She is never excited. My dd is a spitting image of her dad. Down to the shape of her toes and toe nails. I'm not even sure who the mother is. Lol I just wish he could enjoy every little minute instead of it being about erasing her life from the moment she arrives to the moment she leaves. I know this is awful of me but I'm going to admit it anyway. If we don't get what we want (no school nights) then we are moving. We live close so that this will be easier on dd. I don't transport her so it didn't matter to me if we lived 99.9 miles away. (we have to stay within 100 miles) But I knew that he would get his visitations back (it's what I wanted also. What's best for dd). I knew that if we lived far like we were, school mornings would be awful for her and/or he wouldn't get her. If they don't make changes, we are moving back. We moved away from everything to be closer so it would work out but I'm not staying here and putting dd through this again. I know I might get slammed for saying it but I'm already ready to move. We rent because we weren't sure where we would settle and this trial is going to be the deal breaker for us. Move back to where we are from and where our family is or stay here to keep dd close to bd. I sure wish he would just see the sacrifices we have made as a family to help him and dd have a better, closer relationship. I thought he would be more involved but he's not. It really did nothing for us. We actually hate this town. And this situation makes me hate it even more.

Yes, I would say you are being zipcoded. I have over 10 years experince in selling window s the prices you mentioned seem high, unless they are quoting you the windows installed and finished on the interior. There is quite a lot you need to understand about windows before you talk to someone about pricing. First, be very careful of Pella and any other roll formed clad window. The roll formed cladding traps moisture against the wood sash and rots them prematurely. You should stick to an extruded clad wood window or move to a fiberglass or vinyl, given your location. You also need to consider the long term implications of Energy Star qualifications, SHGC, Visible Light transmission and how these relate to daylighting and energy usage. Since we spend about 30% of our energy budget, understanding these issues could save you a bundle of money over the long term. I would start with Efficient Windows.org. From there I would see this web page that explains how these factors interrelate: Solar Heat Gain (SHGC), Visible Light Transmission (Vt), U-Value and Daylighting. After that, make sure that you get pricing for Loewen windows (made in your area) and a few more Marvin dealers. These days most manufacturers will make custom sizes without a large increase in cost for the cusom size. If you get that as an excuse from the salesman just tell him games overs and move on. With the businees in such poor shape these days, you are in control, do not be afraid to move on to another source. Get 50 prices if you need to, but get educated first and understand what you are buying and get a thorough, complete written specification and scope of work from the contractor to make sure that he is quoting you the right thing and not setting you up for a giant change-order. Here is a link that might be useful: DIY Green Home Improvement