Hi Pixie, When you posted about Little House on the Prairie I looked some things up and was planning to post but just haven't found the time! I'm glad you explained why you wanted to do the plains! At least now it makes sense! After you posted I looked up DeSmet on google Earth--to get the "lay of the land," and I think your daughter would be really disappointed with the "plains" we have out here compared to the terrain you'll find in eastern SD. The link I posted to a pic of "our" plains up above really is pretty accurate--there is simply nothing out there! If you do DeSmet I doubt that she'll actually be looking at "the land" very much when you do it, and she'll have all the Little House things, which is what she actually thinks of when she's reading the books. (Love it when kids are reading books!) So rather than taking her for a hot, dry, flat drive, and destroying her mental image of Little House, I now very definitely think you should skip the plains and enjoy the extra time in the hills! A couple things about the fishing if you're gonna stick that in. Wherever you do it you'll need a Colorado fishing license, so be sure you plan ahead for that so you're not disappointed. And if you do decide to go to the Poma Ranch near Pagosa Springs, you'd really need to stay there two nites to have time for fishing. Checkin is at 3:00, so that wouldn't leave much time on the day you arrive, and checkout is at 10:00, so there wouldn't be time on the day you were leaving. The Weminuche River that runs thru the ranch flows very gently and it could easily be fished wading or from the bank. Check out their Fishing page at the link below, and there's more fishing info on their FAQs page, including that they rent "basic" and "kids" fishing gear at the ranch. I don't really know anything about fishing so I'm not sure what all that would include, but if you're seriously considering it and have any questions, call the ranch and ask for Karen! Also, since the river flows gently--and is shallow (a "river" out here is not the same as a "river" in the midwest or east!) your daughter might enjoy wading around in it (probably with a pair of cotton tennis shoes or at least flip flops since the bottom will be "rocky")! But she probably wouldn't stay in too long since water in the mountains is COLD--it's melted snow--and the ranch is at 8,000'! Also, if you're seriously considering staying there, PM me and I'd be glad to send you some more pictures of the inside (and outside) of the Hideaway cabin! I've stayed there three times now so I have pics of the outsides of the other cabins too. This is a favorite pic! I couldn't help but smile the first time I drove in there and saw the Welcome Home sign! I immediately knew I was gonna love the place! (The sign is on the back side of the "bathhouse" building that has the "waterfall showers!") And before I got to the welcome home sign (on the small building on the right) I ran into this roadblock on the drive in! (If it looks gloomy, that's because it was raining on and off on the drive from Pagosa to the ranch the first year I stayed there! Then, right after I got there, the sun came out just in time for sunset!) This was a view heading out of Pagosa toward the ranch that year! The ranch is in them thar hills! I also highly recommend the "Cozy House" at Dolores for the Cortez part of your trip, and would be glad to send you a bunch of pics of that place too to help you decide if you're interested. One more thing since Zinnia brought up Dinosaur Ridge! Just a little further down the road, in Morrison, is a place called Tiny Town! Perhaps in lieu of Little House your daughter would like to see some "little houses"---and other buildings! I don't have time to live link these pages, but here's a copy/paste link to their site, and if you google for images of Tiny Town you'll come up with lots of pics of the buildings with people standing by them so you can get the scale. I haven't been out to this place since the late 70's when it was a run down (tiny) ghost town all overgrown with weeds, but it's been all spiffied up and is back in business, and this could be a real fun Kid Thing! You could plan your whole last day to do Red Rocks, the dinosaurs, and Tiny Town, and then head to the airport for your last nite's lodging! http://tinytownrailroad.com/ Out of time for tonite! I can't wait to find out what all you finally decide to do! Skybird Here is a link that might be useful: Fishing on the V. A. Poma Ranch!

Im doing a dance! I actually figured it out! Thank you guys! ==>> its nice to teach.. congrats ... you should have filmed the dance... lol .. take care ... ken ps: you said: I planned on planting it in dirt ... one more lesson .... MEDIA is what goes in a pot ... there is good media.. and not so good media ... mother earth is SOIL ... it does not work well in pots .... media is all about water management ... and soil is usually not manageable in a pot ... DIRT .. as you call it.. is what is all over you and the workspace.. when you are done playing with soil or media ... lol ... when it all boils down ... gardening.. is just an excuse for adults... to play in soil/media ... channeling their inner child ... as you did.. with your dance.. lol ... i am sure.. the peeps here.... can guide you on how to go forward.. in planting your bulb ... and what to plant it in.. and how to do it ...

IT is amazing the regional variation in surgical costs… here in Los Angeles you would be very lucky to find someone to do a disc surgery for under $8000… $4000 was early 2000 prices… $1000 for a back surgery would be 1970 prices. I have had cases go to the specialist and spend over $15000 for all the treatment… and some still cannot walk. Yikes. Glad your puppy is better… 'Always' a veterinarian will suggest medical treatment prior to surgery (unless there are or no very little pain reflexes- then emergency surgery is really the only hope for a disc problem… if that is indeed what it is… fibrocartilangenous emboli show up very similarly and are not really surgical problems anyway)…. so few specialists would push a back surgery if medications were helping (back surgery is much better these days than it was 20 or 30 years ago, but it still has its dangerous and no guarantees). I have seen many cases of paralysis in dogs and it is really hard to predict which will improve and which will not, particularly without a myleogram or MRI. But it is always worth a try… and I have been happy to see at least about half or more respond to medication (not all, sadly), though not all return to 100% normal gait.

bay area guy, I am in agreement with nik! As well as that, I am not sure what kind of pot and soil your plant is in, but make sure it's a well draining pot, and I recommend for soil using one that is specifically designed for Cactus and Succulents. I was able to find some at my local gardening center, but if there isn't one near you, amazon is a dear friend. Overall, your plant looks good and I am sure it will come back! Good luck