Promise, I've definitely been watching the specific places where I want to put my plants. Right now, the living room window and garage window are my best bets for south-facing window lighting (as shown in the pictures). After I get that sofa table up, and we get more of our crap unpacked and put away, I want to put something similar in the garage beneath that window; so that'll be a place for my more cold-tolerant plants. My office gets really not a lot of light, so I'm trying out my medium-light plants in there (none of which are succulents). Of the plants I currently have outside, those that will remain out there will go into a little greenhouse setup - nothing big and fancy, as I don't have the room (or the money), just a little something with enough racks for me to comfortably house my little lovelies and protect them from frost. I'm looking for something along these lines: 4-Tier Grow-Rack Mini Greenhouse Of all my potential outdoor location options, by the front door seems to be the best, as it's protected from wind and rain. The walls also tend to retain solar heat, so that'll help keep the plants warmer a bit longer as evening sets in. I'm still trying to get a feel for placement for a few other plants, mostly non-succulent house plants - I have a ginormous peace lily that would love bright sunlight, but wouldn't survive the cold outdoors, and it's not something I can just bring inside in the evening (plant + pot + soil = at least 100#s, if not more). My Dracaena Dragon Tree and Queen Palm are desiring more light than they're presently getting (I don't know who's bright idea it was to get a Queen Palm - those suckers are thirsty buggers, and this is a desert - but I'm doing my best to keep it happy); and I have a ginger that seems to be about ready to give up (even when it's warm enough out to put it outdoors, the air is just too dry here, and the leaves desiccate in a matter of hours). So I'll certainly be making observations for a while yet. I'm just glad we got the unit that we did. Our place is part of a duplex (two separate units in one housing structure), and the adjoining unit doesn't have any south-facing windows. If we'd ended up in that one, I'd have been completely screwed. %P *CG*

I kinda got the shade thing down, believe it or not, most of that garden gets a lot of direct sun in the late morning, early afternoon and then again some in the late afternoon from the other direction. My biggest problem under the trees is the MOISTURE content and the hard dry soil. I need to find plants that can tolerate really dry conditions as well as some shade. I have some daylilies and just started adding some epimedium, so far, so good. One area gets less sun and has more moisture and it does well, I have fern and hosta, huchera, tiarella, and some others that do well there. My biggest problem is the area that is dry. Thanks for the direction to the shade forum, I hadn't thought of that as a reference. I guess because my garden does get a bit of sun, and it is dry that I didn't associate the two. I know a lot of the plants you list above like it on the moist side...I tried astilbe when I first started, not the right site at all. Now I am more versed in plants and their requirements and try to match the site to the plant as best I can. Thanks JoAnn

We could pack lunches, and we did that many times throughout the years. All the children prefer hot lunches and in the winter it is nice to have a warm meal. With me only working part-time we figured if we could qualify for reduced lunch then we should do it. And really even paying the 2.40 per day is cheaper than packing lunches for 4 children. My dh is convinced the state will not go after him for this mess. He told me that the person he spoke with says the situation does not involve him because he did not fill anything out, only she did. I feel like he needs to submit copies of those court papers to ensure our safety in this issue. He wrote down the contact info and fax number where he is supposed to send this paperwork. I am seriously thinking about faxing it myself! Why should we take the chance of getting in trouble? I am also going to our states welfare fraud website and doing an annoymous tip about her situation. And also going to the state she lives in's fraud site to report her there in case she is pulling the same scam there. But I don't know if I should. Its a hard decision. But it really burns me to know she could be putting us in jeopardy.

Marj, I live in Pueblo, so there is a far amount of distance between us. I started out with a couple of goldfish to test the koi pond and it didn't take long before there were hundreds. It took me the better part of a week using a net to remove all the fry out of the large pond and move them into the smaller goldfish pond. A hailstorm thinned out their ranks considerably but I still have well over a 100 that have grown to at least the size you have. And your fish may feel a little crowded in the setup I have, I would prefer to have just a dozen or so but I wouldn't know what to do with the rest. Somehow they have survived about ten winters with the water circulating and covered with a tarp to minimize the pond from freezing solid. One of these days I expect to find the pump broke and I have a big block of ice in the ground. I do hope you find a good home for your fish.