I have put money (cash plus Kubota loan for balance) on a Kubota 1850 with front loader, 54 inch finecut deck and front loader with tooth bar. I have a back yard that is a hillside, not a fine lawn but with some fruit trees. Main use will be cutting the grass, some winter snow removal from the driveway and general sorts of use of the front loader to move some dirt etc. Not a farm, but not anything like a city lot. (about 2 1/2 acres with 1 in grass and 1.5 in woods) I am going to get a rototiller for it and also have some concerns about stability on the hillside slope for cutting grass etc. Used a sears 46 inch garden tractor before. Never rolled it but makes me get jittery with the turns at the top of the hill. Is the 1850 more than enough HP for this kind of general use or should I be looking at upgrading to the 2350. Dealer wants chunk of change to redo paperwork since it is already set up with Kubota. Any thoughts on power on the 1850? I really cannot justify a 24 with backhoe but it might come in handy upon occasion just hate to spend almost 6 grand more for an occasional toy. Could have someone come in and do the work for less, just not as convenient. Another question is on tires. Are the turf pretty good even with the front loader? Dealer is going to alcohol fill them to help with the balance against the front loader.

dedtired: In your post, you wrote "Today I am making a new mushroom soup recipe in the slow cooker." If it turns out good, would you post the recipe? Thanks. Since I'm retired, I too try to stay home on the weekends. And I try to not run errands or go out to lunch at noon. It's hard enough for work people to go through a line or find a table at 'lunchtime', so I don't want them to have to wait on me when I can go earlier/later. Shirley

She doesn't have to love you, but I would ABSO-FRICKING-LUTELY insist that she be civil to you. Tell him that his allowing her to do this crap is not showing you any respect ... abuse and insult by proxy. He's also not helping his daughter any by not having standards for her. He's letting her develop some self-destructive habits that will bite her in the butt in a year or two. One of my uncles married an older woman with 2 daughters. He was all of 22, and they were about 12 or 13 ... one of them sassed her mom and he corrected her. She said "you aren't our dad, you can't tell me what to do" so he picked her up, raised her to his 6'6" eye level, looked her straight in the eye and said "I am not your father, but your mother is now my WIFE, and I will not allow anyone to treat my WIFE with disrespect". Then he lowered her to the floor and walked out of the room.

Most places are pretty nice about empoyees needing medical attention, and more than likely his will be too. I'm so relieved it's not the condition you told us about. Let's hope the surgery and recovery are successful. Thanks for letting us know; I was wondering and thought maybe I'd missed the news. Susan