Coffeemom, I'm sure Hinsdale has changed a lot since you lived there, Heck, it's changed since I've moved here in in 1988. More and more section 8 or 9, whatever they're called, buildings are buing erected in that area, therefore, since, crime has increased..That's a shame because Hindsdale is a beautiful area, and like usual, distroying nature with what they deem progress.. Was your dad's grocerys store located in downtown Riverside? Do you remember the vicinity? Which side of Brookfield did your mom reside? I borrowed a hard cover book from Brookfield Library..it contains pictures of Brookfield homes/streets in the early 1900's..My block had 3 homes, the rest fields..It's an interesting book. Garden, save your money..lol..I'm pretty lucky growing tropicals in my home and small gh including citrus, hibs, azaleas, gardnias and many others. The Christia lived less than 2 wks..when it arrived several leaves had already dropped. From then on, one leaf a day fell..I hadn't changed anything..didn't even repot. All that's left is one weak stem..It's history. Think I saw the one I Brian's Botanicals.. Got mine on Ebay..Normally, I don't give up so easy, but in this case, w/this plant, I'll never purchase another. Good luck to anyone who buys one..you guys in warmer, tropical climates might have better luck..Toni

Wow - I'm *almost* in that exact same boat, though it's my fiance, and we don't live together, but he eats dinner at my house almost every night of the week (I cook for both of us, because he just doesn't *eat* or eats junk food all the time if he doesn't eat with me LOL), so it's basically the same thing as far as the meal goes. He's decided to do Atkins for a month next month, and I am not going to (I believe moderation/portion control is way more healthy), so I'm facing cooking meals that we can both enjoy and eat parts of without cooking two separate meals. *My* main thing is watching my portion sizes - palm-sized protein, fist sized carb, and salad or veggies...as long as I keep a calorie deficit going and we stick to our workouts, I loose, so I'm happy (have lost 3lbs in the last 3 weeks just watching portion sizes, eating healthy and working out - even a few big dinners out in there). I'm wondering why cooking the same meal didn't work for both of you though? :-) I mean, if you look on the cooking forum, I asked about salad dressing, but I'm not that worried about it otherwise. I normally cook a balanced meal (meat, carbs, and veggies), and as long as I don't cook the meat in sauces (sauces will now be served on the side for me, so he doesn't have to eat them), or the veggies in anything, I don't really see where the problem will be. I always use real butter or olive oil to cook with, so that's not even a change for me. So a sample dinner for us one night might be steak - he'll get a whole one with pepper and probably half of mine, I'll eat half (or a palm-sized piece) of a steak (I'll trim the fat off on my plate) with herbs, he'll get the 2 cups of salad with carb free dressing he's allowed, and I'll get a fist sized baked potato and salad. The steaks are cooked together, the potato bakes at the same time...same meal, we just eat different portions and parts. I might skip the cheese on my salad - his salad will have hard boiled eggs and cheese in it...but those will be pre-cut up and kept in dishes in the fridge to just pull out as needed. Chicken - same thing. I'll cook a whole one in the crockpot (with olive oil & herbs), and he can have as much of that as he wants with the skin, I'll pull the skin off mine and eat a smaller portion with some pasta. We'll both share the salad, he can doctor his as necessary, and I'll cook a veggie from his "acceptable list" that we can both eat. My pasta will have sauce to spread over my chicken too if I feel like it. Or a roast in the crockpot - again, just cooked plain, I'll make a sauce to go over for myself, a baked potato, and then we'll both eat veggies/salad off his list (it's healthy for me to eat more veggies anyways). Spaghetti - Atkins can have spaghetti squash, so a simple spaghetti sauce with meatballs prepared on the side and served over the squash will make a great meal for both of us - he can just watch how much sauce he uses, and I'll "doctor" mine at the table if needed (I have a copy of his list, so I'll just use what's on the list to make the main sauce). If I'm not mistaken, on WW, you can have whatever you want, as long as it stays within the point range, right? So you should be able to eat the same thing you cook for him, in smaller portions, and with carbs added for you, and stay within your points, don't you think? I've never done WW, so I don't know for sure, but DF did for awhile, and that's what I understood about it... In any case, that's my "plan"...if it doesn't work, I guess he'll end up figuring out his own meals (which won't work - he'll give up if that happens, I know from experience). LOL Let me know if you want some more ideas...I'm still thinking of good ways to make meals that go both ways, so I'm always open to suggestions! :-)

I have one I've worked with now on a couple buys/sales. All I have to do is express an interest in something, and within 24 hours, there is a call back with information. Twice last week, I was out when the calls came in, so figure the subject dropped there. Nope, the next day arrives in the mail nice listings with information and a note to call and an appointment to view the properties will be set up. Good agents are out there. Years and years ago, I was interested in buying some property, and selling a home, and I worked with a friend of my (then) husband. I was taken to homes completely out of my price range or interest, and when ones I had to find myself came up, never got responses. I ended up buying through a completely different agent, and boy was the first one peeved. The way I look at it is ......I'm quite willing when I sell to pare off a hefty piece of my profit for your fee, if you earn it. And, if I'm looking and can find numerous homes fitting my criteria, but you can't seem to locate them, don't get upset if I go to somebody else......or God forbid buy one at auction. LOL. I have relocated more than once and bought a home based on a two day house-hunting expedition. I'm not alone. More than at any other time, having a good agent is important, to screen out what you can fit into the time span you have to find a home in an unfamiliar community. It's like any other occupation. To do it 'right' it's not an easy job and there are really professional agents and then there are folks who think it's 'easy' money and do as little as they can for as much commission as they can muster. There are firms who really consider helping folks relocate to their community their specialty. Most of them claim to, but some do a good job at it. I hope you can connect with one of them. Heck, you can find bad/good agents even working along side each other in the same firm.

This came up in another thread recently, but it's important to understand the relationship between dew point and freezing. If the air temperature is above freezing, but the dew point is below freezing, wind CAN cause water to freeze, AND kill frost sensitive plants. As long as the dew point is above freezing, you really have nothing to worry about. The temperature is always above the dew point. The dew point is closer to the temperature if the humidity is high. There are a zillion online weather stations, and most of them will read off dew point (which is a function of temperature and humidity). Just go online and find one nearby. To sum up, air temperatures above freezing CAN kill frost sensitive plants, if there is wind. So if the temperature is low but above freezing, checking the dew point might be smart to preserve frost sensitive plants. Last night, my temperature went down to 37F, and the dew point was 33F. So my tomatoes and squash were safe. Temps close to freezing, dew point well below that (low humidity) and wind are a recipe for problems.