Hi, I'm getting some minis in about 6 weeks, and need to prepare their new home. I've read about putting news paper down, how much?? how thick? I will be building the area up about 1' to 1-1/2' deeper in soil. It is a square corner between the house, sidewalk, driveway and porch. I'm thinking of making it slope up towards the corner where the house and porch meet. Any suggestions on how to prepare the area? soil mixture? Will they survive being above actual ground level, should I prepare to protect them when it gets cold? Please help!