The package instructions said to plant seeds while it is still cold outside - when your fingers can become good and numb. We put on our parkas and rounded up our dogsleds and stepped out from our igloo. OK, it was not quite that cold.

The instructions said to plant seeds about depth of one-to-two times length of seed. I measured seed. Actually, seed was too small to measure. Just a touch larger than a celery seed. The package must have erred. According to my measurements, I would burry seeds with even a couple grains of sand on top.

I did my best.

Little Lady, our always-eager-to-be-helpful toddler, placed markers to remind us where we planted seeds. We used short sticks with plastic glow-in-the-dark stars on top. These were, in fact, made for sticking in snow to line driveway at Christmastime, but they seemed fitting markers for such bizarre plants.

The phone rang that evening. "Did you plant something really strange today?" our neighbor asked. "You have stars on sticks poking out of ground. And they are glowing in dark. Did you buy seeds near nuclear power plant?"

We explained that glow-in-the dark sticks were just to mark where we planted our saskatoon berry trees. "Ooh, what do saskatoon berries taste like?" She asked. I had no idea. I had tasted them in jam many years ago on a business trip to Saskatchewan, but I do not even remember if I liked them. The seeds were actually a gift from a friend.

But life is an adventure, and three years from now I can tell you what berries taste like. Can't you just taste a good adventure?

Put tank near a window so it gets plenty of indirect sunlight. A cover (which can be foil loosely placed over top) helps keep out dust and also keeps an active fish in! Sand or gravel bottoms look nice, but make work in that they must be cleaned. If you have a clear aquarium, just put a placemat under it and you'll have an instant sea floor or sandy base. A little mirror propped up on outside of tank will give your fish "company".

Clean Water means a Healthy Goldfish

Change water every second day, replacing old with water that's been aged and salted. It just takes a minute and means that you don't have to buy a filter or air pump - a substantial savings. Scoop your fish out of aquarium in a holding pail, dump dirty water from aquarium, rinse a few times, re-fill and return goldfish.

Feed Sparingly and Wisely

Soak food you buy from pet shop so that it sinks to bottom of tank when you feed your goldfish. Feed a tiny amount every time you change water and, if you like, supplement that with some plants you find growing wild in fresh water rivers and ponds such as anacharis (which is probably most common aquarium plant and readily available in any pet store).

Have Fun

You and your child will not only have fun but will learn together while caring for your little golden water creature. And I'll bet you'll name her "Goldie"!

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