Trudy: " Traditional " is my favorite way also. Thought everyone went to Salting , High Heat method. Nice to see I'm not alone. I usually make mine with Stuffing, sometimes with chopped up and simmered Sausage mixed in it. Stuffing ( Double for Turkey ) 1 Celery stalk, (10in. Piece ) and ½ of a Med. l onion (chopped small) and Cooked in Micro Wave until tender (about 2 ½ min.) Some Bell Pepper may also be added. In a large Bowl mix: 1 cup of small bread cubes 2 cups of Italian Bread crumbs 1 tablesp. Parsley Flakes 2 tablesp. Of Locatelli Romano grated cheese 1 teasp. Of Onion Powder 1 teasp. Of Garlic Powder ( or more to taste ) 1/2 teaspoon of Old Bay Seasoning Salt to taste ( about ½ teaspoon ) Optional- 1 piece of Italian Sausage 10 in. long, skinned and cut into small pieces. Sautee till medium rare. Add the cooked Onion and Celery. Put 1 egg into a cup of chicken stock , or Chicken Soup Base ) beat well and mix this into the other ingredients. Add a little water, if the mixture is too dry. Add more sausage or whatever you like. Baking the Turkey: I use a Waterless cooker and Bake until the inside stuffing temperature reaches 165 Degrees. Take the lid off for the last 1/2 hour , to brown. I just rub oil on the turkey and sprinkle with Onion and Garlic Powder. Put 1/2 cup of water in the bottom and let her rip. Always Good !!! Here is mine , cooked Last Christmas. HAPPY THANKSGIVING !!! LOU

I love the idea of a house that is 'fully lived in' as sister3 says! And 'human scaled'...so much empty space in really big houses. The guest conundrum is funny to listen to...we've been lamenting about not having room for our relatives to stay when they come (usually for at least a week) and I don't think they enjoy the idea of camping that long in a tent, so its always an issue. Last year it rained 9 out of the 10 days my sis and 2 children (who fit the previously mentioned category perfectly)were here! Cramped to say the least! I think I'll not worry so much about trying to make them comfortable in the house (there's talk this year of them borrowing a camper trailer! Hee hee!) Cleaning and maintenance is definately a bonus, but like amanda I find it gets cluttered and the floor gets dirty so darn fast! But a few minutes each morning (well, ideally every morning...)seems to keep things under control. Also, we dont have seperate kitchen, dining and living areas (all one room) so our computer sits amongst it all. We got a 19" monitor so we can watch movies on it, which keeps down the electronic clutter. We even have no trouble with one phone! And heating is a cinch...in fact, right now I'm baking a rhubarb crisp, and the oven is heating the cabin nicely on this rainy, cold day! Not to mention filling it with yummy aroma! The list of benifits just goes on and on...if only people just realized!

Hi Pat. Thanks for the kind words in the other posting. Here are my thoughts on bird feeding. You can’t wrong with straight black oil sunflower seed. For years I only fed BOSS and suet (and suet nuggets), and I attracted a lot of birds with those two things. Both options are affordable and easy to find. For anyone new to bird feeding, I would tell them to skip mixes and buy straight BOSS. In my early days of feeding, I did buy the mixes, but I had a lot of waste under the feeders because the birds sifted through the “filler” and mostly went for the BOSS. So I like to buy straight BOSS now. It wasn’t until the last couple months that I really started adding a lot of new feed options (and this is because I started reading books and learned how much more the birds will eat). I started feeding Nyjer/thistle, safflower, peanuts, almonds, pecans, hulled sunflower chips/hearts (just means no shell), cracked corn, mealworms, millet, and treats (like nut & seed logs, specialty suet blocks, etc). I even bought some blackberries the other day on sale and have the in the freezer now. I’ll get them out later when food is really scarce. If you buy store bought mixes, avoid the ones that say “milo” especially if milo is listed as the first or second ingredient… Those are usually the cheaper brands with lots of “filler” aka “milo”… And be sure to read what the mixes include, it’s important to know that whatever is listed first means the bag contains the most of that particular item. Millet is fine to feed. I just bought a bag of millet at my local feed store. I buy in bulk and wait for sales. My local feed store sells everything I need, but sometimes I order mixes and peanuts online because it’s cheaper. My favorite online stores are DrsFoster&Smith and FleetFarm.com Here’s what I’m currently using in my feeders- Tube feeders contain 90% BOSS with 10% premium nut mix Thistle tube feeder - 100% thistle (birds go crazy at this feeder) Hopper style feeder – one contains only safflower (I wanted to know if they would eat it, and they are). Another hopper contains 90% BOSS with cracked corn and nuts mixed in. (My fav feeder) – Droll Yankees - Dorothy’s Cardinal Bird Feeder – http://drollyankees.com/product/dorothys-cardinal-bird-feeder/ (Found it on sale at Walmart for $25) it’s an open/fly thru style feeder – and every morning I put out my premium mix in this. I have two suet feeders.. I have a seed log feeder and I just put out a treat called “nutsie” http://www.fleetfarm.com/detail/pine-tree-farms-nutsie-classic-seed-log-40-oz-/0000000214011 I also have a mini open feeder that contains 100% thistle I have a couple ground feeders too with stuff for the doves and ground feeders. My husband says I've gone nuts with the birds... hahaha But I remind him, he was the one who told me years ago that "once you start feeding them, you can't stop" hahaha so I tell him I can't stop since he told me that :)

Love ( in no particular order) Extra deep counters with a full row of appliance garages and lots of outlets and plug mold so I have plenty of room for my toys without having to put them away every day or haul them out, so they are always on hand. An extra deep appliance drawer for those appliances I don’t use every day. My skylights and extra windows bringing in extra light. My Aga induction Elise ( boils a cup of water in 30 seconds). My double height ceilings with stunning ceiling height tile behind my Aga creating a focal point. Lots of drawers. Lots of storage space. My pantry with lots of space for mason jars and vacuum sealable containers. So much counter space and workspace for multiple cooks and helpers ( should we ever get back to having extra people over ) Great combination of aesthetics and function. Convection steam oven. Lots of refrigeration space. A great extraction hood. Orienting my work space to my view. My Koehler ombré sensation faucet (my cat gives it a thumbs up too. It provides hours of entertainment for her ). My unique cedar( with inlaid glass )countertops. Some glass fronted upper cabinets for interest and display. Ceiling fans. Places for my cats to sit and access to windows for them. My monogram 48 in refrigerator/ freezer ( on close out). Didn’t think I’d love it as much as subzero. The appliances I got on close out, saving a ton of money. 1 and Half hp garbage disposers. My instant hot water and filtered water dispenser. Hate Not having ( some of) my appliances panel ready. ( what I’m used to ). The stainless steel always shows everything and I’m always cleaning them. Hate my copper sinks. Also never look clean and don’t drain well. And a break down in communication resulted in them not being under mount. That the lighting designer never got here so instead of a centralized Lutron panel, light switches are in different areas. Don’t miss My microwave.